Sitting near the fire, his emerald eyes gazed into the flickering fire that his friends, and himself, had circled around. Removing his helmet, Nodaku set it down next to him and sighed softly as he slowly reached into his armor and pulled out the necklace. Holding it in his hand gently, he tilted his head down and closed his eyes and he slowly removed Annalys’ necklace. Removing his remaining gauntlet, Nodaku gently placed his other hand upon the necklace, which was hanging from his hands. In the middle of his hands rested the charm that he had given Annalys when they had first met years ago. Gently resting his forehead upon his hands, he took a deep breath and sighed lightly; accompanied by friends, he still felt alone, as though a part of him were missing. While Nodaku’s eyes remained closed, holding the necklace in his hands, he wanted nothing more than to be back within her warm embrace.

“AH! Help!” a young voice had screamed out from a village set ablaze by heartless thieves who were out only for treasures and peoples lives. The young girl was a priestess in training, having only learned her basic magic tactics that had no effect upon the thieves and their quick, agile movements. Her amethyst eyes open wide in fear and her light brown hair matted from the struggles. Her lips quivered as her frail body had managed to crawl into a corner. Terrified for her life, all she managed to squeeze out from her mouth, was her single cry for help.

Hearing the helpless screams, Nodaku had awoke from his sleep in a dark alley. Standing up and dusting himself off a little, he turned his head and looked at his sword, Lion’s Fang. Holding it tightly, he lifted it and lay the sword upon both of his shoulders and rested his arms on the blade. It was dull from the amount of times that he had used it, and it needed to be re-sharpened. Moving out of the alley, he looked around and arched a brow slightly at the town being on fire and people running around. There wasn’t a lot of screaming or anything, the town looked deserted aside from the two or three people he had just seen while stepping out of the alleyway.

Seeing a young woman curled into a ball in the corner, Nodaku sighed and shook his head a little and looked around some more. Nodaku was a heartless fellow who had only cared about two things: himself, and power. As he turned his body to the side to walk from the young woman, he noticed that there were several dead people piled near the temple steps. Looking over his shoulder and to the young woman in the corner still, he sighed and said in his dreary, heartless tone, “Today isn’t her day at all..” and with his words said, he began to walk towards the temple steps.

Annalys, the priestess in training, had saw Nodaku look to her and heard faint words but was unable to make them out. She staggered to her feet as best as she could, as not to trip on her Purple Doroness robe. As she ran towards Nodaku, the bells that hung around her waist had jingled with her every step. Her hands gripped to her robe to keep it out of the way of her small feet. She was unarmed and was unable to defend herself, if she had the ability to. She wasn’t like her other friends who became mages, she lacked an attack. She was trying to be the most unique, trying to make herself able to cast more and longer than her friends. As she grew closer to Nodaku, a thief had come from the alley that Nodaku once slept in. The thief motioned for the rest of his team, which was only two other people, to come, “GET HER!” yelled the thieves and ran towards Nodaku and Annalys.

Before Nodaku had the ability to turn around when hearing the thieves, he felt a small body dive into his. Her small, thin, arms wrapped around his body and her head buried into his back as she had cried and said, “Help me please, I don’t want to die!” Feeling a great deal of guilt all of a sudden, Nodaku signed and nodded as he turned around and looked at the three thieves, only one of which had made it to Bandit class, and yet, his attire proved he wasn’t even a higher ranking one. Turning his body to face the thieves, Nodaku removed his hand from the blade of his sword and slipped it from his shoulders and slammed the blade into the ground next to him. “Stop.” Was all he said to the thieves. His appearance, they knew not because they were not familiar with warriors.

“Another step and I will kill you all.” Nodaku had said, without thinking about things twice. His sword as heavy and he had no problem wielding it with ease. His Umber Shoulder Mail and his pale skin gave an appearance that should have hinted to those not of equal terms with him, to beware. The thieves, cocky as always began to run at Nodaku, their daggers held in hand as they were ready to attack. Annalys’ eyes shut in fear as she gripped Nodaku harder, afraid to let him go because she might get attacked.

Nodaku sighed and glared at the three thieves. Feeling the young girl cling to him for her life, he sighed once more, this time, in a different way. Lifting his sword into the air, Nodaku quickly swung it down in a diagonal from the top right, to the bottom left, his sword hitting the ground and making a loud clang sound. The ground itself couldn’t hold the pressure from his swing and quickly splintered towards one of the thieves. The ground was like daggers, no dull points at all. Adjusting his wrist, he quickly twisted his torso and heaved his arms in the opposite direction. The force of his brute force caused the ground, where the blade had sank in, to be lifted and shot towards the two remaining thieves who his original attack hadn’t gotten near.

All of the thieves that were running at Nodaku, had stopped and slid, each falling onto their butts and looking forth at the warrior before them with fear. “Get out of here and don’t come back.” Nodaku had said in a grimacing tone. Looking down to the slender arms that were tightly wrapped around him, he shook his head slightly and sighed as he had removed his Silver Crusader helm. Dropping it onto the ground, he then stabbed his sword into the ground and placed his hands over hers. He felt different as his hands touched hers. Slowly moving her arms from around him, he turned around and looked at her. His emerald gave staring down at her as he gave a soft, reassuring smile.

Annalys, feeling Nodaku moving her hands from around him, looked up towards Nodaku, who was un-helmed and visible to her. She smiled softly then jumped up at him and wrapped her arms around his neck and hung from him as she hugged him tightly. Nodaku gave a soft sigh as he hesitantly wrapped his arms around Annalys and held her close. Nodaku, in his lifetime, had missed the simple pleasures of life due to his constant training… but now, he was able to know what they were like. “You’re welcome…” Nodaku had said in a soft tone as he let her go. Annalys didn’t let him go, instead, she leaned her head back and smiled brightly at Nodaku once again before leaning to him and pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

Nodaku had blushed at her kissing him, but he wasn’t the only person who had blushed in that kiss. Averting his eyes, Nodaku tried to avoid eye contact with her, though, it was cut short when her soft voice had whispered out, “He’s cute.” Looking back at her, he arched a brow and blushed a little deeper. Realizing what she had said, she dropped down and placed her hands over her mouth and closed her eyes, turning around and kicking a rock away from her. Removing her hands from her mouth, she turned around to look at Nodaku and said softly, “Sorry I have a bad habit of saying what I am thinking..” Placing her hands together, she held them down at her thighs, sighing softly as everyone she had met before him, scolded her for being ditzy.

Nodaku laughed softly and smiled at her words before he raised a hand up and placed it on top of her head and ruffled her hair a little. “It’s alright.” He said before leaning down and picking his helmet up and brushing the dust off of it. She looked up at him with a bright smile and asked in a shy tone, “Um…M… May I follow you?” As Nodaku had put his helmet on, he looked at her and smiled before leaning down towards her and saying softly, “Once you become stronger, you can join me.” His voice was truthful and straight forward. “You won’t get yourself anywhere if you follow me.”

It was several years later that Nodaku’s path had brought him back to the village that was burnt to the ground. Though, now, the village was re-built and very prosperous. Nodaku moved to the market place, in search for food to stock up on before heading back out. This time, however, he wasn’t as weak as he once was. His sword, now the Doombringer. His attire had changed, but it was only what he wore to hide his true attire. Though, his face and hair were the same, never once being changed.

Nodaku, stabbing his sword into the ground, stood near a bench, just to let the weight off of him for a little while. As he reached his arms up and stretched, he was forced to stagger forward a little as he was nearly tackled by a small form. Looking down, he saw the same slender arms that he had seen years ago. “Still have that habit of saying what you’re thinking?” he asked as he looked over his shoulder and to the woman who clung to him again. Annalys nodded and smiled brightly, “Well, I got stronger, thanks to you.. Now, I will follow you.” She said as she continued to smile. Jumping onto his back, she leaned forth and kissed Nodaku’s cheek, “I still think you’re cute.” She then giggled like a little school girl.

Nodaku sighed and smiled, “It is good to see you as well, and I would like it if you joined me.” He smiled, feeling like a new person as he had the ability to feel the warmth of her body once again. Reaching his arms back, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kept her close to him as he did so.

Annalys, smiling and whispering softly into Nodaku’s ear, “I will be with you until the end of your journey.” And with her words said, she had removed her birth necklace and put it upon Nodaku’s neck, and in turn, Nodaku had done the same with her. They were bound together in a way, forever.

Opening his eyes slowly, he gazed at the campfire, he sighed softly then whispered to himself, “With me until the end.. It seems that I have failed you Annalys.” And with his words said, he closed his eyes and placed his hands in front of his mouth, placing a soft kiss upon his hands. As he kissed his hands, he heard a faint whisper barely behind his ears, “I am always with you.. I love you.”

Hearing the words that she had spoke, he smiled warmly and opened his hands, kissing the necklace softly before putting it back around his neck. “Once this journey is over… I will return to you.” He said to himself out loud before he placed the charm under his armor and fell back onto the ground and stared at the stars. “I love you… Annalys.” Nodaku said softly before closing his eyes and falling asleep for the night.

[To be Continued…]
Next Chapter – Nodaku’s Suprise

(Sorry for all of the slow posts, I just got promoted and am having to work more >_< I will keep posting the stories as quickly as I can, but it will be in due time. As for JTJ (JinTheJin) DON’T COMMENT ABOUT THE NEUTRALITY OF MY WRITING >_< I’ll get you the interesting things later, so shadap.)

*Paragraph 10, ‘heck’ changed to the approprite word – neck. ^^; Word doesn’t catch stupid stuff <_< Dumb thing.