At Peace

Avery Koski

January 8, 2012

Creative Writing

Mrs. Picard

 

      At Peace

                Collapsed in the scorching sand, the heat is unbearable. Amadeus drifts off into a sleep. Elena!

Elena wait! Come back Elena, ELENA! Amadeus jumps up from sleep in a cold sweat. That ended up startling the young lady tending to him and his cloths.

“I found you in the sand on my way home from the market.” Yurippe said. “I could not have just left you there in the heat, you would have died.”

“Well thanks.” Amadeus replied ever so calmly. “How long was I asleep?”

“You have been asleep for three weeks, you have been very ill. Where were you heading?”

“Anywhere.”  Replied Amadeus.

“Where are you coming from?”

“Nowhere.”

“Well… Can you help me!? Sorry to ask you so much so soon. I just really need someone’s help. My necklace was taken by some bandit thieves. Please, please, please.”

Amadeus is struggling to get up from the bed. “God just shut up already, I am trying to think. No… No sorry, I just do not do free work.” Grabbing his cloths, he began walking out the door. A few steps outside the house Amadeus looks up to find himself completely surrounded. While continuing to walk forward, the bandit leader moves in his way and begins to chuckle.

“You think you are lucky Drifter?”

“No, just trying to pass through.”

“Well drifter I will make you a deal.”

“No thanks, I just want to pass through.”

“Come on I just want to test your luck. It is custom for the king to do so.”

“The king?” Amadeus questioned.

“Yes, I am the king of luck. You can call me Lucky.”

“Okay, just let me pass. I am not looking for any trouble.”

“If you have luck you can pass.”

“Fine, what do I have to do?”

“Just follow me Drifter.” Amadeus follows the king of luck to a little diner. The king explains that they will play a simple card game. The two men sit down at a table, as the king explains the rules of the game. “Only two rules to the game; you draw a card one at a time, and if you draw a joker you lose. If you lose you do not have luck.”

“Okay. What is the second rule?” Amadeus asks.

“The second rule is if you draw the king of spades you win. If you win the game that shows you have luck. I have not lost a single game.”

“Okay who goes first?” Amadeus asks.

“The guest goes first.” Amadeus begins drawing his card.

“Ace of clubs.” Amadeus says. The king draws his card.

“Three of hearts.” The king says.  Amadeus asks the king another question. 

“Have you seen a young ladies necklace? She asked me to find it for her.”

“Awe, you mean that beautiful women Yurippe. I have, I mean I know where the necklace is.”

“Where is that?” The men are still drawing the cards one after the other.

“My brother asked me to grab the necklace for him.” The king says “now my turn to ask you something. What is your name Drifter?”

“Amadeus Shishio…” The king hesitates. People in the crowd around the two men mumble the Drifting King?

“Now is that true?”
               “Yeah.” Amadeus draws his card, third card from the bottom. “Well I guess I lose.” Showing the king one of the jokers. Amadeus stands up readjusting his hat. “Are you going to shoot me in the back when I leave?”

“No, no one has come this close to winning this game against me before. That proves you have luck. You can pass without being harmed.”

“Well thanks.” As Amadeus walks away from the table the king grabs his next card. A young waitress come to the table and asks Lucky

 “what is the matter?”

“That man Amadeus Shishio, is the Drifting King.” The king sets his card on the table. The waitress gasps.

“A joker? Lucky you never draw a joker.”

“Yes first time. That man has too much luck.” The king snaps his fingers. “Kill that fool.”

“Yes sir.” All of the bandits hollered as they ran out of the room.

Later on that night Amadeus is walking in the streets void of people. Amadeus remembers that he forgot to ask the King of luck who his boss was. As Amadeus begins to turn around, he notices that one of the bandits from the diner is pointing his Tommy gun at him. The bandit begins to fire his weapon. "Bap, bap, bap, bap.” Amadeus grabs his sword and begins to spin it unbelievable fast, deflecting all of the bullets. The bandit is terrified; he throws his gun at Amadeus as he is running away.

“Man this is a bother. No one has any honor now days.” Amadeus says slouching over.

“King! King, something has happened.” The bandit wheezes to say while trying catching his breath. “I, I am sorry Lucky. Amadeus he, he is on his way back. I failed you Lucky.”

“Man it is all good, it just proves that he has luck. Sad to say but his luck is going to run out.” Lucky and all of his bandits get up and leave the little diner.

 

“Hello, hello. Everyone is gone already, that was fast.” Some pans in the kitchen clang together. “Hey who is there, I know someone is there. Just come out!” Amadeus says in a stern voice.

“Oh my, I am sorry, I did not notice you come in.” The waitress says in a very soft apologetic voice.

“Aren’t you the waitress from earlier?”

“Yes I am, this is my diner. Can I help you with something?”

“Yeah I am looking for that lucky guy. Have you seen him?

“Sorry they just left about twenty minutes ago. They always go to the casino at the edge of town. They should be there until morning.”

“Thanks, do you think I could get a glass of milk before I leave?” The waitress goes into the kitchen and grabs Amadeus a tall glass of milk from the refrigerator. As she hands Amadeus his beverage she asks him not to go looking for trouble.

“I do not look for trouble anymore.” Amadeus says while staring at the cold glass of milk. It is now getting dark outside; the sound of a faint coyote’s howls can be heard off in the distance.

“Hey mister, hey wait for me!” Yurippe yells while trying to get Amadeus’s attention.

“Huh, who is that?”

“What!? You do not remember me? I am Yurippe… I was the one who saved you.”

“Awe yeah … I remember now. You are the girl with the thousand questions.”

“Don’t be mean mister.” Yurippe replied.

“So what do you want?” I have already told you that I do not do work for free.

“I know but there must be something that I can do to get you to help me.”

“No there is nothing, I don’t do free work.”

“I am a very good cook.”

“NO!” Amadeus sternly said.

“I can do your laundry.”

“I already said no.”

“Come on, please! I will travel with you.”

“I told you no, now go home already.” As Amadeus is walking away Yurippe yells,

“I will marry you!” Amadeus stops mid stride.

“Now why would you want to marry me? I am washed up sorry joke of a man.”

All that Yurippe could say was, “Because…”

“When you get married it is supposed to be the happiest time of your life. I know I would not be able to give that to you, but I guess I do need a cook. You can come along I guess.”

 

Amadeus stops at the end of the street to read a sign. “The casino is really twenty more miles north?”

“Yeah no one really ever goes out there except for the gang lords and those bandits.”

“Okay thanks, I want you to stay back here. This is going to get bad.” Amadeus said in a compassionate voice. “I will get your necklace for you; I just do not want you to get hurt. Okay?”

“Mister…”

“Stop calling me “mister.” Amadeus said. “My name is Amadeus Shishio.”

“Sure, Amadeus why are you going to the casino?”

“Because that Lucky guy is supposed to be up at the casino right now. I need to ask him if he has seen a man with a glass eye.”

“Why are you looking for a man with a glass eye?” Yurippe asks. With a sigh Amadeus begins to explain.

“I was going to get married that day, she was the love of my life. He had almost killed me and she was in really bad shape.”

“Who is she?”

“Her name is Elena.”

“The same person you were talking about in your dreams?”

“The doctors wanted to save her, because she wasn’t as badly injured. Elena forced the doctors to save my life instead of hers. Last thing I remember was telling the doctors to save her, forget about me, I just needed to make sure she was going to be fine. It was too much knowing that I could not even protect her, and then she was going to die instead of me. It was that man with the glass eye, he killed her.”

“I think his name is Comrade…” Yurippe interrupted.

“What do you mean?”

“The guy with the glass eye, I think his name is Comrade. He owns the casino on the edge of town.”

“AGH lets go NOW!” Amadeus yells.

“Wait mister I think we should take my car. It looks like it is going to rain, also twenty miles is a far walk. He will be gone by time we get there.” It was dark and raining heavily as they drove to the casino.

“Amadeus, Amadeus please do not kill that man.” Amadeus’s eyes open slightly. “I do not want my necklace back anymore… I meant it back then. I do want to marry you. I have been taking care of you for almost a month now. I’ve noticed that you are a sweet kind person at heart. You talk of love and compassion. Every time I cared for you, you thanked me. I could not help but fall in love with you. Please do not kill that man.” Amadeus looks as if he was about to confess something to Yurippe, as he saw the man with the glass eye walk out of the casino.

“Stop the car, NOW!” Amadeus yelled.

“What!?”

“STOP THE CAR, NOW!!” As the car stops Amadeus jumps out of it running at a man in a black dress suit. Already pounding on him in a senseless rage.

“Amadeus stop!” Yurippe frantically yells while running towards Amadeus. “Amadeus just stop.” Amadeus stops hitting the man as Yurippe jumps between him and the man. “This is not what Elena would have wanted. She gave her life so you could live.”

Both men yelled,

 “Do not say her name!” A moment of silence as Amadeus and Yurippe fall backwards.

“She was the love of my life.”

Comrade falls to his knees. “She was my daughter….”

“What!? How could you have killed your own daughter with your own hands in cold blood!!”

“I had to, it was the only way they would let me live.”

“NO, Amadeus don’t!” Yurippe yelled. Time seemed to slow as Amadeus pulled out his sword and stabbed it at Comrades head. Time seemed to be slower for Yurippe as she watched Amadeus do this unforgivable act. A flash of lightning revealed that Amadeus spared the man’s life. Yurippe embraces Amadeus with a heavy hug. “Thank you, thank you.” Yurippe said while still hugging Amadeus. The rain continues to fall.

“You do not deserve a death by my hands.” Amadeus said to the sorry excuse of a man lying on the ground bruised and bloody.

  Amadeus walked away that night not a better or a proud man, but a man at peace.