The Return Chapter 4
Unexpected Discovery
By Firstborn Dragon
"Are you sure about trusting him? It was your decision to…." Jack was trying to make Rudy change his mind.
Rudy wasn’t going to be convince easily. "And he never did anything wrong. He needed help. How else could he get it?"
Rudy turned to Jack, annoyed. Jack was about to say something else, when Jane broke in. "The fact still remains that he threatened the town, AND he’s worth a fortune to me."
Rudy was getting very annoyed now. "Jane, I don’t care about your money. You many need it for a good causes, but it doesn’t mean that you can go and kill someone for it. Or do you want to fight over it?"
Rudy held up his ARM. He felt that his grandfather would be disappointed, but Rudy knew that Zed may be the only one who could really understand him. And if he let Jane kill Zed, he may never fully understand the other half of his heritage. The other half that once saved his life, and allowed him to defend his friends. Rudy had felt the power inside of him, especially those times during the war when he had fought the other demons. By helping Zed, and fighting beside him, if necessary, Rudy hoped to understand the powers that he felt.
Well the exchange between Rudy, Jack, and Jane had been going on, Zed slowly backed away from the group. He headed out into the forest, planning on returning to Saint Centaur alone. But Rudy saw him leave, and followed When Zed heard him, he stopped, and turned. "Why are you helping me?"
"Because I need your help, as bad as you need mine." Rudy admitted.
Zed didn’t understand. "Why do you…."
"Because I need to understand my power. The other half of me." Rudy turned to look at Zed. Zed looked at Rudy. Then Zed saw something deep inside of Rudy, and he understood.
What he saw, shocked him. "Impossible. All of your kind was wiped out in the war."
Rudy was glad he wasn’t going to have to explain. "So I was later told. But one was hidden. Why, not even the Elw now know. But I did survive."
Zed was still trying to understand this. And accept the fact that he was no longer alone. "Your lucky that Zeikfried never found out."
Rudy shook his head. "He did."
"Then your even luckier than you know." Zed couldn’t believe it. All this time thinking he was alone, yet there was another. Not truly like him, but close enough.
Zed turned his back to them, and began to walk again. He was no longer certain where to go, only that he had to think. He never thought that one of the Elw’s demon human crosses could have survived. "How could one have survived? After what I saw what he did to them during the war. Forcing the humans and Elw to destroy the only weapon which could have threatened us."
Rudy followed Zed. "Because I was hidden before it hit me. Asleep in bed rock until I was awoken."
Zed turned around to look at Rudy again. If it were possible for Rudy to survive, why couldn’t he? Rudy was much more like a demon then he was a man. Ironic how he survived, when all of the others died. At least now he knew why. For all the good it did him.
Zed shook his head, no longer curious as to why Rudy offered to help him. "If I told you what you wanted, it would put you in greater danger from Zeikfried. He was the one who originally turned your kind against their makers. Do you really want to take that chance?"
Rudy shook his head, disagreeing with Zed. "He can come after me anyway. He’s tried. That’s why I know your telling the truth. Even if they will never believe you, how can I turn away, when you may be the only one who can help me to understand. I’ve heard him. Since the war’s been over. He’s in my head. Calling me. Telling me to surrender. And it’s getting worse. The last few times I’ve felt my arm. Not this one, but the one that Zeikfried took with him when he opened the gate. Just before you found Laura."
Zed looked surprised. As far as he knew, none of the others had managed to refuse beyond the first few summoning. But if Rudy had survived more, and with an arm taken… "Then you are in real danger. If he has an arm, he can use it to turn you against them. I don’t know how he dose it. And I don’t know how to prevent it from harping again."
Suddenly Zed realized how much trust Rudy must have in him. Not only to offer his help, and to stand up against his friends, for Zed’s life, but to tell him the truth. To show him that there was in fact another in his position. One who did not belong to this world. And then it hit him even more. Rudy had no way of knowing whether or not Zed could enslave him. Rudy was trusting his freedom. That kind of trust that Zed had always wanted from the other knights, but never got. In that instant, Zed made a decision. He knew he had to help Rudy, no matter what the cost. For in Rudy, Zed finally found what he wanted. Someone who could accept him as who he was, and not what they thought he was. "I can’t tell you what you want. To do that, would put you in even more danger from him. The thing that has protected you for so long just may be your lack of understanding of your demon bound powers. After all you’ve done for me, I can’t show you."
Just then Rudy screamed. "He’s back. So strong….Can’t fight h…..AHHHHHHHH!" Zed knew what must have happened. He drew his sword, and faced what was once the only other person who could understand him. He knew what this fight would cost him. But he also knew, in that instant, that it would be a far kinder end than anyone else could give him. Zed knew he had to kill Rudy before Zeikfried took over. Drawing his sword, he whispered his final words to the wind. "Laura forgive me. But I must help him now."
But even as Zed approached Rudy, sword draw, he knew it was too late. Zeikfried had won.
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Author’s notes on Zed: Well for those of you who played the game WILD ARMs, you probably are wondering why the sudden change in Zed. After all, during the game he was a wild and crazy type of character. However, I felt that Zed would have changed after living with Laura for over a year. Zed developed a bond, much like Rudy did with his Grandfather. That bond changed his life. That’s why I feel that Zed would begin to change, after having developed that kind of bond with Laura. This is just my opinion, so I don’t care if you choose to disagree.
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