Let the End Begin: Chapter 1

Laura

Laura hesitated, looking up.  The village that lay below her wasn't too big, but what laid in it scared her more than anything.  She adjusted her cloak so her hood covered most of her face before descending the hill. 

The streets of the village were abandoned as far as the eye could see.  Laura looked up to one of the tallest houses to see a woman staring wide-eyed at her before quickly closing the shutter.  A door opened to her other side to reveal a man-most likely a father-with a knife in his hand. 

Nice village, Laura thought, rolling her eyes and continuing walking.  Her target was not in these peasants; it was in the Armory of the Living. Her boots scraped the ground slightly faster as she thought of it. 

Two weeks ago, Laura had received a message from this village, telling her to come immediately to the Armory of the Living.  For what reason, she could not be told.  Either way, she thought, so long as I get what I'm after. 

That was gist of it; what she was after. 

The power to cut the world down with a few swift motions. 

All she needed was an weapon, a few followers, and that power.  The thought of it made her fingers uneasy and her head swim. 

At the Armory, Laura pulled her hood back to reveal waist-long red hair and deep green eyes.  An old man at the counter looked up from under his huge eyebrows. 

"Can I help you, Miss?" He asked, standing.

"Yes.  I was told to come here by a boy.  Did you send for me?"

The old man, caught off guard, hesitated before nodding. "Yes, yes I did.  You must be Laura."

Laura nodded and smiled. "Yes, that's my name.  You wanted to see me?"

"Yes." The man stood and walked around the counter to look at her better. "You own a castle in the lake, correct?"

"Yes,” Laura answered, uneasy. 

"Then it is you.  I have been looking for an honest person to hand down my power to.  Someone who shares the same...vision...as I do.  Sit, please."

Laura sat on the wick chair he motioned to, suddenly regretting not taking a weapon of hers along.  The old man closed the door quietly and sat in the chair opposite her. 

"I've heard many stories about you, Laura."

"There are stories about me?" She asked, puzzled.

"Yes.  Many.  Like the one of your...pets.  What do you call them?"

"I call them names.  They aren't a part of any species," Laura said defensively, angry. 

"Of course.  I'm sorry."

"Did you have a point to get to, old man?" Laura asked impatiently. 

"Yes, sorry for getting off track.  You must be a busy person."

"Do you intend to flatter me to death?"

"I am sorry.  You've heard of the power to cut down humanity, I presume?"

"Yes," Laura breathed, for the first time since she entered the Armory not sounded cynical.

"How long have you been looking for it?"

"A very, very, long time," Laura breathed again, anticipation almost eating her insides. 

"Well, as you can see, I've had my better years, and I'm afraid I cannot hold the power in myself anymore."

"What are you getting at?”

"I'm asking you to carry on the power.  I'm too old to, and my bones are withering."

Laura almost sprung up to kill him then, but he sighed.

"I know, you're going to take the power by force, aren't you?"

"That was my initial plan,” Laura admitted.  So the old man isn't that senile, she noted.

"I don't blame you, but I need to tell you that there are many responsibilities to wielding this power.  For example, the power can only be used to work on the Tree of Life, whether to preserve it or cut it down is your decision.  You can be like the Keeper before me and preserve it, or you can share the same vision as I do and wish to cut it down."

"Then why haven't you?" Laura demanded.

"You can not make the journey to the Tree of Life alone,' the old man cautioned, holding up a finger. "I have tried, and they almost cut off my leg."

"They?"

"Yes, they.  The Guardians of the Tree of Life.  They are the most vicious of all Camden's soldiers, ordered to guard the Tree with their lives, or they shall be brutally murdered in the streets, if they do not comply."

"So they're forced?"

"No.  They are not chosen firsthand; they must volunteer themselves first, then when they have proved they are strong enough, the Queen of Camden chooses them."

"Not the king?"

"The king is too busy with political business, so he's put his wife in charge of military duties."

Laura paused, still not sure what the old man was getting at. 

"Laura, I want to pass down the power to you.  You know that already.  The only thing you have to do is give me your word not to use it irrationally."

Again, Laura paused, now not sure whether to giver her word or not.  Her pine-green eyes pierced the man's forehead, still deciding.  After moments of silence, Laura let out a long sigh.

"I give you my word," Laura said, hesitant. "I shall use my power to cut down the Tree of Life, as soon as I get some followers."

"Some followers won't be good enough!" The man, red in the face, almost yelled.  Laura didn't flinch, but raised an eyebrow. "That's what I'm trying to tell you." He seethed, rubbing his eyes. "I'm growing too old to yell," he grunted, looking back up. "Haven't you heard of the Flailing Maul of the Innocent?  The Flying Dagger of the East?  The Staff of Merlin?  The Bow of the Half-Blood?  The Dark Scythe?  The Sword and Shield of the Fallen King?"

"No," Laura snorted.  The man sighed and rubbed his eyes again. 

"That shouldn't surprise me, you young people and your ignorance.  They're old tales.  Fables, some even go to."

"Then they aren't real?"

"Of course they're real!" The man jumped up and threw his arms in the air. "They've been made over the years, and I'm trying to give you the opportunity to make one of your own!"

Silence fell like a heavy blanket.  The old man, breathing hard, struggled to walk back behind the counter and sit.  Laura stood and placed her fists on the wooden counter. 

"So, old man, what you're saying is that if I obtain this...power that you hold, I can make a weapon of my own?  One of this...caliber?"

"Yes."

"And if I do make this weapon, I'll have to gather all the other weapons?"

"Yes."

"Just to cut down the Tree of Life?"

"Yes."

Laura paused.

"I’ll do it."