release me from this cross after all these years, tag Blitz

[Evelina Brendon]

Release me from this cross after all these years
Oh call my name and help me with this weight
Even though it comes far too late

The elf sat on the riverbank, her feet just barely submerged in the rushing water. After the walk she'd taken this afternoon, a short time relaxing would do her good. If only she could calm her mind enough to do so. But a calm mind was the last thing Evelina would be getting. Memories kept flooding her mind. In theory visiting her childhood home was a good idea. Get a new start by going back to where it all began. But all she found here was pain. Certainly there were plenty of good memories of this village. After all, Eve had spent nine happy years here. But the only thing she could recall right now was that night.

A tear fell onto her balled fist. It was more than just the memory of her mother being murdered before her eyes. It was more than watching her village burn to the ground, or being separated from her father, or being raped by her new owner. The memories that were tearing her up inside were of things totally unrelated to this place. They were the memories of what she had done. Part of her mind still tried to tell herself that she'd had no choice. But Eve knew that it was her choice. Maybe the alternative was her own death, but she'd still made the decision to kill all of those people, and to take the ones that survived back to be sold into slavery.

The anger she felt, both at her former master and herself, was boiling up in her and as she jumped to her feet, Evelina swung her sword hard into a tree. It didn't make her feel better really, but her anger subsided into grief and regret again. A fresh wave of tears, which she denied the ability to fall, welled up in her eyes. Returning her sword to its sheath she turned back to the remnants of the village and started walking. Just before she got there she knelt in front of a stone. The stone was one of nearly sixty arranged in rows. All of them had names engraved on them. Eve had spent the morning and what little magic she knew how to use, making the stones for every member of her village she could recall. The baker. That old couple who'd lived across the road. The young couple next door with those two boys that were always following her around. Her mother, Adrianna Brendon. That was the stone she had knelt in front of. One for her father, James was next to it. He may well still be alive. For all she knew any of the villagers who'd been captured may still be alive. But she doubted that she'd see them, or that they'd ever come back here, again.

Finally a tear fell from Evelina and landed on her mother's name. The elf looked down at it. "Forgive me," she whispered, to no one and everyone.

In my heart I still hope you will open the door
You can purify it all, answer my call

[Blitz Von Krieg]

Home. How he'd missed it so terribly, and for so long, and now he was back again. Or at the very least he'd returned to what was left of the place. It had been completely destroyed that night. He could remember his father spinning, whirling, twisting, and turning about and every which-way with his sword, slicing through slaver after slaver. He not only hacked and slashed away at them , but drew and fired arrow after arrow as well, at blinding speed. It had taken seven arrows and five swordsmen at once to take his father down.

RIght now he rode slowly through the destroyed village, upon the back of his young mustang. It was all still decimated, but yet it seemed as if it should be this way after what happened. Though, he did spot something new - rows of headstones. Who had put those here? Who even knew of the attack aside from those that had been in the village when it happened? He was still a good distance away, and that's when he spotted them - or someone at least.

Hopping down off of Comet, he tugged the reigns and led him to a post he could tie the young paint to. Then he made his way over; quickly, quietly, just as he'd learned. Most Elves were loud compared to him, but he was as clase to silent as one could get. He was used to being an assassin at times, and knew that even the slightest noise could sometimes give you away. When he got close enough, he saw who it was. Even after the last few years he recognized her - Evelina. What he'd never expected though was to see her crying.

He walked up to where whe was, staying quiet even as he did so. Then when he was close to her, he kneeled down at her side and gently put his arms around her. As a young boy he'd always looked up to her like an older sister, and he hated to see anyone he cared about cry. Now, he felt the urge, despite what she'd done in her past, to comfort her as best he could.

"If they knew the things I know, I think they all would." he gave a weak smile.

[Evelina Brendon]

How long she sat there, Eve didn't know. Put she did know that the tears she'd been holding back for so many years were all flooding out now. She'd never really had the chance to grieve her mother's death. First there had been being sold to...him. And then what he did to her. And then she became someone else. A little girl's loss of her mother just got drowned beneath everything else. And on top of that now she had the realization of all the pain she had caused these past years. It was too much. Ein was so sure that she could change, that she could be something good for Elafa rather than a killer. Eve wasn't convinced that she would ever be anything more than a murderer.

She should die for her deeds, she knew that. But one person, one out of thousands, wanted her to live. Though perhaps that was a greater punishment. After all the guilt would last her entire life, death would only end that pain. Suddenly, Eve realized, death may not be such a bad thing. But didn't she owe it to those she hurt to at least try to change?

Soft foot steps sounded behind her. But she was too lost in her grief to even really notice or care. Evelina's tears slowly subsided. She ought be getting back to the capital. She hadn't planned on staying the whole day here. Though, she didn't really want to leave. Despite the memories and thoughts ravaging her mind, she did, for the first time in over fifteen years, feel at home. This was where she had spent her childhood.

All at once she was snapped out her thoughts as she heard someone directly behind her. Before she even had the chance to react Eve felt a pair of arms wrapping gently around her. She thought it was Ein for a moment before she turned her head slightly towards the person. It most definitely not her King. Evelina twisted out of his arms and turned to face him, taking a few steps backward.

"What do you want?" she asked, her voice rough from all the crying.

[Blitz Von Krieg]

As soon as she twisted out from his arms, he knew that more than likely he was in big trouble. Stupid, stupid, stupid! He berated himself mentally. Why in hell had he done that? Oh, yeah, sure... just randomly go up to someone you know could probably kick your ass and hug them without saying anything before doing it. Yeah Blitz, you're a bloody genius, aren't you?

Before he even spoke though, he found himself plopped backward on his hind-end, looking up at her. Normally he would come off as some cocky boy that didn't act his age, and maybe even needed to be shown what being a man was about, but right now he oddly enough had the look of a little kid that knew they were about to be scolded. It wasn't so much his actual look, but rather his eyes that told of it.

"I- I'm sorry." He looked down, "I know I shouldn't have done that without asking, or saying something, but I..." he was quiet for a moment, "I just didn't want to see you cry, Eve. I'm sorry, please dont be angry with me. I just wanted you to be happy. I don't like seeing you sad." He doubted that she would remember the runt of a boy that had been captured by Edward alongside her. He doubted she would remember him and his little fists beating on Edward's leg and telling him to leave her alone.

Yet, somehow, he hoped that the little girl in her could remember him - even if all she remembered were his golden yellow eyes.

[Evelina Brendon]

He did indeed have the look of a boy who was about to be scolded. And she might have been the one to scold him if it weren't for what he called her. Eve. No one called her that anymore. Every person she'd met since her return to Elafa had referred to her as Lina, or sometimes, mainly if Ein was within earshot, they'd bring themselves to call her by her full name, Evelina, never Eve. But having him, especially since she didn't know him at all, call her Eve threw her off. "Who are you?"

On top of that, why would he even care if she was sad? Most anyone else would say she deserved the sadness. Eve looked at him as she waited for him to respond. There was something familiar about him. She wanted to pass it off to having seen him on a raid, but that wasn't likely. She never left survivors, and she never recalled the faces of those she'd enslaved or killed. Was he from the village? If so how did he come to be here? Those that had been captured with her had all been killed or were in the outskirts of Olen with Sir Edward.

As she looked at his face a memory flashed in her mind. A little boy trying to stop Edward when he was going to have his way with her. Of course it hadn't done much good and Eve hadn't seen him later on, and she only barely remembered. So many memories of her life before she was Lina were lost to her. It was so long ago, and so confused in her mind she couldn't even be sure it was real, or if was just her trying to piece it together that way. But he knew here, that was clear.

[Blitz Von Krieg]

"You probably don't remember me..." he said sadly, "but my name is Blitz. I lived in this village, just like you, when we were kids." He tilted his head slighty, "You might not remember, but I was that little kid that beat on Edward's leg that time..." He even hated the name of that man. It put a foul taste in his mouth. Of course, the fact that he'd been smacked, backhanded no less, for trying to get him to stop what he was doing didn't help that little matter.

He looked to all the different headstones. He wondered vaguely if one for his father was in there somewhere, but he quickly brushed the though from his mind. It was best not to dwell on the thought of death... unless of course it was the memopry of Edward's demise. He liked to dwell on that one.

[Evelina Brendon]

"Blitz," Eve said softly. The name sounded familiar. She thought about it for a moment. Blitz...he had a brother. And there were his parents. They'd lived only a few houses down from her family. The Von Kreig family. That was it. "Blitz von Kreig." That sounded right. Thought it had been years since she'd heard the name. The memory of what he had attempted to do to her was still in her mind. So she hadn't made it up. "I remember." She gave him a tiny smile. "Thanks for trying to help."

She remembered then that he had been in the service of Sir Edward just as she had been. So how was he here? And so Eve put the question to him. "Why are you here? How...?" Suddenly the realization that he might have come to take her back to that life hit her. But then he wasn't like her. He didn't seem the type to betray his own kind, not like she did. Besides, he'd had the perfect opportunity when he'd first come up behind her. No he'd gotten away somehow. He had to have.

[Blitz Von Krieg]

"That's my name." He gave a small half-smile, and then a grin when she said she remembered. "You're welcome..." then added quietly, "for all the good it did." He really wished he'd been older back then so he could have actually helped her. That, or he wished his dad had been with them. His dad would have shown Edward what-for on the first day. They would not have needed to wait for years and years. They would have had a revolt that first day.

"I just wanted to see it all again. This place was once my home after all... I figured I might as well see it once more before I leave it behind for good." At the question of how, he smiled, "That's the simple part. Edward's dead - I killed him. Burned that sorrid place of his to the ground as well, and slaughtered his guard." He paused, "Though I can't take all the credit. It did help that the other slaves were revolting as well... though I was leading them."

He looked to the gravestones again, "Did you put these here?"

[Evelina Brendon]

"At least you tried," she mumbled. No one else had. Heck the other girls didn't even resist when he raped them. Then again, if Eve hadn't have fought back, Edward never would have known her fighting ability and the rest of this mess never would have happened. But then she also likely would never have been free of him.

She only nodded to his response to why he was here. He'd come for the same reason she had. To say goodbye. True her good-bye had taken several hours longer than she'd planned, but it was actually worth it. Her people deserved a proper memorial at least. She would have done much more if she could.

Eve didn't comprehend right away what he said about Edward. Dead? Her mind just couldn't accept that for a moment. He was gone. Edward was dead. For a moment she felt anger, part of her had wanted to be the one to end his life. But then the realization sank in. He was gone. He couldn't hurt her or anyone anymore. "That's great," was all she could say, at least that made a little sense.

She nodded. "I spent all morning working on them," she told him. Eve did hope she didn't miss anyone, but it had been many years since she'd seen them it was possible.

[Blitz Von Krieg]

He nodded when she said it was great. He had a feeling that she would have liked to be the one that killed him, but what was done was done. He could recall that night perfectly. As soon as the guards were alerted that Eve was escaping the entire place was up in arms. Guards were being rushed about and sent after her. Most of them were going off half-cocked too; their weapons left behind and unguarded. None of them were prepared for a revolt, and certainly not at night.

As soon as the guards left, and while the commotion still went on outside, he quickly woke the other slaves - those that had sworn their allegiance to him. Breaking out from the cells and other rooms was easy enough, and soon they spread like wildfire through the grounds; killing any guards they came across as quietly as they could. They made their way to the armoury, and then the revolt truly began. He'd taught his fellow slaves how to use a sword and a bow in secret, and now the training would pay off. They grabbed all the weapons and went on the attack.

Guards were felled left and right, walls were destroyed as the dragons amongst them finally transformed for the first time in ages. As teh guards that had been sent out to retrieve Eve returned, empty handed, they were dealt a swift end by the flaming breath of the dragons and the flying arrows of the revolting slaves. Blitz however was not in the main part of the fray after the dragons transformed, no, he went to find Edward - and find Edward he did. He found him in a corridor; armed with only a sword, and protected by only one guard.

He dispated the guard quickly with an arrow and the electrical power he'd learned to use from Edward's many magic books. Then he sent a jolt at the slave-owner. Edward had gone soaring back into the wall, and as he staggered to his feet and prepared to perform some sort of magic, Blitz notched an arrow and pierced him through the shoulder. He soon had his revenge upon the man that was responsible for his last sixteen years of suffering, and as soon as Edward was dispatched, he rejoined the fray outside.

The battle was soon over; not a guard was left living to tell the tale.

Scanning over the markers, he spotted one with his father's name, and smiled. It simply read "Achilles", but Blitz knew it was his father - after all, nobody else in the village bore that same name. He raised a hand and pointed two fingers toward the marker; a lightning bolt shooting forward to the stone. As it touched it did not blast it, but instead carved out "Von Krieg" in cursive in addition to the given name.

"There..." He smiled, then turned to look at Eve again, "So, what have you been doing since you got back?"

[Evelina Brendon]

Even though she had wanted to be the one to end Sir Edwards life, she'd always known it wasn't likely. For one, she never intended to go back to Barena, much less to Olen or Edwards home. His death at her hands was more a fantasy of hers that anything she'd ever expected to happen. Eve watched silently as he added onto her tombstone for his father. She couldn't recall his last name earlier. Of course there were a couple of the graves that only had "The Baker" and "The Teacher" on them. It had been a small village so most everyone knew everyone, but it was still many years ago.

She didn't answer his question for a moment. "Mostly...avoiding people," she told him. That was what she'd had to do to survive this long. Even since Ein had formally forgiven her no one else really accepted her, so Eve kept to herself. It suited her though. She was quite content on her own.

[Blitz Von Krieg]

"Avoiding people?" He tilted his head slightly, and sounded as if he were sad to hear her say that, "Well now, that simply won't do." He shook his head, then smiled, "That won't do at all. You've got no reason to avoid people - none." he paused for a moment, then added, "And before you say anything to make any kind of arguement that is base upon the fact that you have done things in your past, let me say this: rubbish. That's still no reason. If you want to be accepted, you have to be involved with people - you must be active in their lives and show them you are not what they've heard of." How did he know that she was probably avoiding people because of her past? Because he'd heard things as well. Rumors did spread rather easily.

"So.... how did you get here? Walk or ride?"

[Evelina Brendon]

"No reason? I have..." Evelina started to retort. She had plenty of reason to avoid people. Most everyone in Elafa wanted her dead for her deeds, and who was to say they were wrong for wanting that. They all feared her. No one seemed willing to give her a change to redeem herself, so she'd taken to just staying home unless Ein wanted to see her. Today was a rare event. She just felt like she needed to come back here.

"I rode," she said simply nodding to her mare picketed down by the river.


_{short yes. but jackie is hogging the muse}

[Blitz Von Krieg]

"You have no reason." He was adamant about that. "People will never like you if you don't work at making them like you. Keep yourself distanced from them, and they'll never have a different opinion about you." It was true.

"Where were you headed to after this? Elafa, or somewhere else?"

[Evelina Brendon]

Arguing about that was pointless Eve could tell, but she still didn't agree. She just didn't have the patience anymore to deal with people that weren't willing to give her another chance. Maybe he could understand her, and give her that chance, but most of the population didn't agree with that.

"I'm headed back to Elafa," Evelina told him. The last thing she wanted to do was worry Ein. She ought to have left a while ago. Yet, she didn't really want to leave this place. Sure it was rather depressing seeing the ruins of what used to be her home, but there was still something about the place that made her want to stay.