Chapter 19: Sawyer

Theriault dodged another swing from the axe, a smile on his face as he looked at the muscular man in front of him.

"This is how I'm greeted after so long Sawyer? Maybe I should have stayed a ghost..." Theriault said as he dodged another strike.

"It's been more than a few years, it's been 80..." Sawyer said, a melancholic look on his face as Theriault sighed.

Sawyer rushed him, his axe swinging hard through the air, getting closer and closer to Theriault as the boy dodged.

"Yeah... I know buddy, it was hard for me too," Theriault said, ducking the axe and kicking Sawyer's hand, sending the weapon flying off to the side.

Sawyer looked at his lost tool, sighing as he held up a hand. "I know it must have been... But I can't explain it, I just really need to kick your ass right now,"

"Well... So be it then," Theriault chuckled as he stepped back and put some distance between them again.

Sawyer rushed him again, his hair flowing as the wind tried to resist his strength, the air pressure building up around his fist as he swung at Theriault, who dodged the attack and kicked off of Sawyer's shoulder.

He flew into one of the nearby trees with enough force that the tree cracked under the impact. He groaned slightly as he got down onto all fours, looking over at Theriault as he walked towards him slowly.

"Still got that ridiculous ability?" He asked, smiling a bit.

"As you can tell, 80 years did nothing to my complexion, still as healthy as ever," Theriault replied as he ran forward once more, dodging the swings from Sawyer, hitting the man every so often with a jab or a kick.

Sawyer blocked a kick with his knee, elbowing Theriault in the face and grabbing him by the shoulders, directing his body into his knee.

"Still got that stupid strength?" Theriault said, his hand holding onto Sawyer's knee, a small smile on his face

The two stood there for a minute, until Theriault suddenly pulled away, shaking his head. "Are you satisfied? Or should I go all out old man?"

Sawyer shook his head lightly. "No no, we're good here..."

Theriault laughed as he charged forward, jumping into the air and spinning his legs around before landing behind Sawyer, pushing him to the ground, and pressing a foot firmly on top of his back.

"That's good then, I thought I was going to need to really hurt you buddy…" Theriault said, smiling as he took his foot off the man's back and helped him up.

Sawyer brushed himself off, looking at Theriault with a weird expression. "What have you been doing all this time?" He asked, causing Theriault's happy smile to disappear.

"Dying," Theriault answered seriously, holding up his hand when he saw the shocked look on Sawyer's face. "Yeah, I don't really want to talk about it."

Sawyer nodded silently. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. It's just... You were gone so long, I figured something had happened."

"Something did happen…" Theriault said, shaking off his seriousness a second later as his smile returned. "But who cares about that, I brought you a gift!"

Theriault quickly realized strapped the Cornucopia, setting it down in front of him.

The Ten-foot horn was ridiculous, but, it had been worth all the trouble he'd gone through to see the joyous smile on Sawyer's face.

"Is it…" Sawyer asked, taking off the bed sheet and gasping a little.

Theriault nodded. "I spent a couple years trying to get it, all the supernatural bastards care about is favors, it was one favor after another, luckily, I didn't have to do much at the end to get it, plus I got something really cool from it as well."

Theriault took out the Lingjing figurine and then, handed it over to Sawyer for him to feel.

"A divine key? And it's been unclaimed?" Sawyer eyed the figurine greedily for a second, but quickly gave it back to Theriault as he turned to the Cornucopia.

"Man… It's nice it's back here, I'm sure Pan would be happy, at least one of life's artifacts is still vibrant and unharmed." Sawyer smiled as he touched the horn.

Sawyer looked at it curiously, picking up the item and feeling its weight.

"You know if you take this thing, we'll never hear the last of it," Sawyer said, causing Theriault to roll his eyes.

"If I wanted it I wouldn't have come here to give it back to you, I'm just returning it… Plus, I need to use your volcano."

Sawyer looked at Theriault as if he had said something completely inappropriate. "I mean… I'll gladly let you, but why?"

Theriault shrugged. "Because I'm an idiot and I need to make a deal with someone powerful to help me get what I want. That being said, I also need to find a way to… Die less."

"How bad has it gotten? You're key I mean," Sawyer asked, taking his attention off of the Cornucopia.

"Hah… Don't worry about it," Theriault said, flashing a smile as Sawyer nodded in defeat.

"Well you can use the volcano, but it's less of my word and more of his…" Sawyer said, earning a nod from Theriault.

"It's fine he'll let me in…" Theriault replied as he turned and walked away.

"Hey, if a girl with brown hair tries to come here and ask about me, don't say shit," Theriault suddenly said as he turned around.

"Got it."

Sawyer watched as Theriault disappeared into the trees, his hand resting on the large horn.

"You're not a monster Theriault…" He said quietly, smiling a bit, "At least you're back."

…

Shen Yi awed and oohed at every passing piece of land. The garden was beautiful, every flower in the right place, perfect.

The many houses around the empty city were intricately made as well. Detailed to the very last carving in the stone, Shen Yi had to admit that this was even better than her family's estate.

She stopped next to a house near the center, admiring the design as she wondered where everyone went. She could only imagine they were inside their homes, enjoying the day outside or reading a book in the shade.

"So where are the people who live here?" She asked. There was a whole city and she had yet to see any other person besides Ariana.

Ariana sighed, walking beside her as she spoke softly. "They've all died."

Shen Yi frowned, turning to look at the woman, seeing the sad look on her face as she looked at the house in longing.

"This was my house, I live in the main mansion now with my brother and his children..." Ariana said sadly, sighing to herself a bit.

Shen Yi felt guilty for asking, but couldn't stop thinking about the people. How could so many die in such a short amount of time? Why hadn't anyone else noticed?

"Why haven't the others noticed?" Shen Yi asked, "Surely it was a big deal... I mean, every family should have heard of an entire family being wiped out right?"

"Hah... Well actually Shen Yi... The Voxlend Estate was overrun, and all the members of the Voxlend family were killed by none other than those other families we trusted so much."

Shen Yi widened her eyes as her heart dropped. She wanted to assume Ariana just had a weird sense of humor, but once glance into those eyes told her it wasn't that.

"And you're okay with this?" She asked softly as she looked at Ariana, who simply stared back blankly.

"Okay with it?" Ariana asked, putting her hand to her chin. "Of course not, it's more... Acceptance, there is nothing my broken family could do to the council... Even if my brother went he'd eventually be slaughtered by the people at the top... Unless..."

Ariana didn't finish the thought, quickly shaking her head. "No never mind, it's been much too long."

"Unless what?" Shen Yi asked, completely invested in the story. "What were you going to say?"

Ariana paused, seeming to think about whether she should continue telling the truth. After several seconds though, she decided to speak. "There is a chance, quite a small one, for retributions..."

"How? You guys deserve it for sure, I know what it's like to..." Shen Yi stopped, the memories of the dead bodies on the floor, the screams, the fires, all of them rushed back to her as she gulped, trying to hold back tears and continue. "To lose it all," She finished, looking down.

"Well... The only way we'd get them is by declaring war on the council, and by default, everyone in the Keymaster's little alliance they have going on..."

"Declaring war?" Shen Yi frowned. "Against all these families? No offense, but... They aren't exactly going to sit idly..."

Ariana scoffed, giving her a confused look. "Do you not know who you travel with?" Ariana said, her eyes widening a little as she remembered Theriault's words.

"You mean Theriault?" Shen Yi said as her heart beat quicker. Were her suspicions true, was Theriault truly someone of significnance and not a person who'd found a key by chance?

She knew the answer was obvious, but he had given her no real reason to distrust him, guilt clawed at her brain for trying to figure out what he could be hiding.

"Yes... Unfortunately if he doesn't want you to know anything about him then I won't reveal a thing."

"Ariana," Shen Yi said, her voice cracking ever so slightly, "Tell me," She demanded calmly, looking the older woman in the eyes with defiance. She wanted the truth. Who was Theriault?

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