THE BIRTH OF ASHER

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Early in the morning, Gina gets up from bed and heads to the kitchen to prepare a meal for herself and her husband. Brycen loves all the dishes Gina would always prepare for him. Today was no other different. On her menu, she got the fresh octopus Brycen had brought back from his finishing trip.

Due to her baby, she craved more food than her usual intake. She prepared octopus legs, Shrimp salad, guide rice cakes, and pudding for dessert. She set up the dining area placing all the food she had prepared on the table. She calmly walks up to her matrimony room and wakes up her husband snoring louder than before.

" Wakey, wakey, Dinner is ready." She tells him, tapping on his body gently.

" Huh? y…yes? " * snoring continuous*

" Goodness, you snore more loudly than before." She says, hoping he would move by an inch.

*snoring grows more loudly!*

" Ok, that's it, get up this instance!" her voice becomes stiff in anger.

Brycen immediately falls off the bed wondering what happened. Getting up from the ground and glancing at his pregnant wife he knew what next to expect.

" Brycen! All you do is sleep most of the time! While I work my ass off day and night fixing breakfast, watching your clothes, and cleaning up the house! What do I get in return? A lazy man who does nothing but fish!" Gina yells madly at him probably because of the pregnancy.

" Ok, I'm sorry my love. I wouldn't want to do anything to hurt you especially because of the baby you're carrying. I'm up and dressed, let's have dinner." Brycen tells her, taking her hand and leading her to the dinner table.

Brycen draws one of the dining chairs for his wife. They both sat down together for dinner. A few minutes later, after dinner, Gina decides to wash the plates in the sink but the baby says otherwise. Gina's water broke and she knew the time for her baby was arriving. To her surprise, the baby came earlier than expected.

" Ahhh!!!" Gina groaned in pain.

" What happened?" Brycen asked in fear.

" The baby is coming!" She tells him, tears trickling from her eyes

"Now?!" says Brycen who was more confused than ever.

" We need to go to the barn to deliver him, hurry!" She wails more than ever.

Brycen couldn't bear to watch his wife suffer, the man in him got weaker at the sight of his wife's face. He immediately takes her by the waist, while supporting her on his shoulders. He takes his wife on a bike, hoping to reach their destination before the baby comes out.

" Brycen, aren't we there yet?!" cries Gina holding onto dear life.

" Y…yes my love. Just a distance away. Hold on a bit longer." He tells her, speeding as fast as he can.

Moments after, they reach the barn and Gina is accompanied by Brycen. He calls out to the attendant.

" H…Help, my wife is ready to put to bed." He shouts holding his wife who nearly seems to lose her breath.

Gina is taken by the midwife while her husband is escorted outside of the barn.

" Wait for her, sir, will attend to you shortly." Said the lady who had brought Gina.

" B…but for how long?" Brycen impatiently asked.

" I do not know but not all women make it alive after childbirth," She tells him running back to the barn.

Brycen could only hope, words couldn't explain how he felt but reassured himself that everything was going to be all right.

After an hour …

Brycen gets more anxious pacing back and forth in hopes of hearing the good news. Not long enough, the midwife that had brought Brycen outside, came out with a beautiful, bouncing baby boy covered gently with a white towel.

*Baby wailing*

His wailing grew continuously, Brycen at the sight hurriedly took his baby from her arms hoping to calm him down. Tears of joy flowed in his eyes, kissing his baby gently.

" What about my wife? She would be so happy to see him." Brycen turns to the maiden.

"I…I'm sorry, she…she couldn't make it." She tells him, walking away back to the barn.

A few minutes later, Gina's body is brought back to his home. A sight to witness all because of a prophecy? I can't even take care of myself, and talk more about raising a baby single-handedly.

"Gina my love, today would have been the most joyful day of our lives with you and our baby but I didn't know fate had other plans and devastatingly you're not with us." Brycen cried even more, getting a white cloth to wrap his dead wife in.

What happened to her body is a story that's all left in the past. The beginning of a new story unfolds now that Asher is 18 yrs of age.

Eighteen years after….

Brycen and Asher grew up to be a united family. Asher became very fond of his father who is 45 yrs getting close to his old age at 50's. They do everything together; cooking, washing, cleaning, and even fishing.

Asher grew up in a life of non-riches but loved his father and his village dearly. He grew to be very vibrant, skillful, curious, and energetic. You can say he is a child every parent craves to have. He always had enthusiasm that he was going to be someone great.

Each year that passes by Brycen worries helplessly knowing that his child won't stay with him for long. He could only hope that whatever he faced, he would be ready to face the challenges.

At night Asher screams waking up with a nightmare panicking in fear, his pillow completely soaked in sweat.

*knock Knock*

" Are you ok?" Brycen knocks on Asher's door gently.

" Y…yes father. It's just a dream." Asher replies to him, easing his breath a bit.

"All right son, go to bed it's already late." He replies, disappearing off to his room.

The next morning, Asher is seen gazing out his window where he sees other kids like him play, laugh, and dance on the baked sand barefooted. The thought of him back when he was 6 years old when he would always play with mud and come back home to his father looking dirty. Those thoughts made him smile at least for the moment.

He then sees little kids with their mothers returning from the farm. The Thought of him not growing up with a mother left a big hole in his heart. He always wondered how life would have been if his mom was still alive but he always and will always be grateful to have his dad.

He taught him everything there is to know in the village, how to survive and of course how to be brave and fierce. Of course, those traits from his dad and his mom, There's no missing the facial resemblances between them. From their hair to their physique. Dad will also tell him he looks exactly like his mom.

Different thoughts came to his head and out of exhaustion he fell to his bed and drifted off to sleep. Moments after, Brycen knocks on his door.

" Asher, are you awake?" He calls but gets no response.

" If you're still tensed up about yesterday's dream you could always tell me about it?" He speaks again but still no response.

" Ok, I'm coming in." He opened his door gently and found him sleeping.

He comes to the edge of his bed where he sits. Brushing his hair away from his face, he gazed firmly at him as tears flowed out from his eyes, and then he said;

" Asher my boy, you're an amazing child. I wish I could tell you everything but I'm forced not to due to your safety. I wish you grew up with your Mom because she would have given you all the love you deserved. Though she left us, we will never forget her in our hearts. You're everything to me and I can't afford to lose you. I Love son so dearly, I hope one day you'll forgive me." He tells him, more tears rolled more vigorously from his eyes.

Ten minutes later…

Asher slowly wakes up from sleep and finds his dad lying down close to him. He turns around and gently wakes him.

" Dad? What are you doing?" He asked, tapping him gently.

" Huh…son? you're awake?" He asked with sleepy eyes.

" Yes, I am. Why did you come?" Asher asked again.

" I came to know how you're doing, also, concerning the dream you had yesterday night." He replied to him.

Asher gives out a little sigh turns to him and says;

" Well, I don't know how to explain it but Dad I…I was different." He told him while holding his hand.

" Different? What do you mean?" His father asked, looking into his eyes.

" I mean, I wasn't human but rather some sort of being with fangs, and powers, and in a strange place. In the dream, I saw you Dad and you left me and you betrayed me!" Asher cried as he squeezed his hands in agony.

" Me? I betrayed you?" Brycen asked him with a puzzled face.

" Yes, Dad you. I was so scared." He tells him and draws him close for a hug.

" Oh my boy, that's just a dream. I promise I'll never leave you, Asher. I promise my son." He hugs him back with all emotions as they both softly cry.

The following day….

At 9 am, Asher's father had already gotten some firewood to prepare breakfast. He got down from his bicycle and kept the firewood on the ground.

" Son! I'm back!" Yells his father dusting off the remains of wood from his body.

" Father! Welcome back. " Asher ran from the house, giving an embrace to his father.

" Ok son, please light up the firewood, let's start cooking," Brycen tells his son. He heads to the kitchen where he kept the squid he had caught yesterday.

Asher's gathered all the firewood together at the center of their home. He then poured kerosene and got a machete stick to set the woods on fire. When he hits the match's stick and reaches to flame up the wood his eyes turn red, what seems to be fangs protrude out of the end of his teeth, and both of his hands catch up in flames.

Brycen hears the scream of his son and rushes out to find his son completely transformed into some sort of being he never thought existed. What baffled him the most was the intense burning of fire on both of his hands.

" Does it hurt?" Brycen asked, moving slowly to his son.

" N…no dad…what's happening to me?" Asher asked him in fear.

" Don't worry my son, you'll be alright." His father reassured him.

Asher cries, his tears dripping from his eyes and with just a drop on his burning hands, the flame is put off. He staggered and moved motionlessly towards his father. Brycen could only watch his son quavering in fear.

*It is time Asher, though you're young you are more powerful than you can ever imagine. You will grow to face your mortal enemies, look death in its eyes, and get tortured, betrayed, and even killed. I tell you Asher you will conquer all obstacles but at the same time you will have a price to pay, your powers could lead to your damnation. only you can bring balance to Fae Fawn and Noxus because you are a mixed blood of both kingdoms "

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A/N