//------------------------------// // Chapter4:Moral decision // Story: Hearthfire The Sands Of Time // by Predman1227 //------------------------------// Chapter 4: Moral decision Summer Haze “Theran, cut it out will you I’m clean!” Theran was washing dry blood off of Haze’s face with a wet rag after she had head butted the bandit mare in her wounded shoulder. “If you hate it then don’t go around head butting bloody bandits.” Theran lectured as he dumped the bloody rag back in a boiling pot of melted snow he had set up hours after his battle with the bandits. “What did you expect!?” Haze yelled, she was so angry at Theran, she just wanted to let it out “I thought you were dead, I thought I was going to be alone again and she…!” Haze pointed at the unconscious mare that lay near her. “Doesn’t deserve to live. Why did you stop me?” Theran glared at Haze, bearing his sharp teeth a little. “You shouldn’t have to do something like that, not at your age.” Haze stood up and yelled at him, her frustration building. “I don’t need you to tell me what I can’t do!” She put a hoof on her hard-shelled chest. “I know how to take care of myself!” Theran’s expression changed from anger to smug surprise and he said in a sarcastic tone. “Oh, I’m sorry I didny know how much of a big girl you were.” He floated one of the daggers he had collected from the bandits and dropped it in front of Haze. “If you think killing her is the right thing to do then go ahead, I won’t stop you this time.” He crossed his arms and waited with the same smug pout. Haze looked at the dagger in front of her hooves with a numb sense of realisation in her mind. Was he really going to let her decide the fate of another? Haze slowly levitated the dagger up and looked at it with her jaw slightly open. Its metal surface reflected the glow of the campfire. She shifted her gaze over to the unconscious mare and she felt her heart begin to race. Without even thinking she moved over to the mare and floated the dagger near the mare’s throat. Haze felt almost transfixed by the blade’s sharp edges, just hovering it close to the mare’s neck. It would be so easy. One cut and it would be over for the mare, all her crimes payed with a single stroke. Haze’s heart was pounding in her chest now as the dagger inched closer to the mare. Could she do it? Could she really kill her in cold blood? At that moment she caught site of her own gaze in the dagger’s reflective surface, Her green eyes staring back at her. That’s when reality came flooding back and the dagger wavered in her magic grasp. She also realised she had been holding her breath and she shakily let it out. She hovered the dagger back over to Theran and when Haze looked at him she saw he had a half smile on his face. He took the dagger from her and said almost reassuringly. “You made the right decision. A thing like that would scar you, it changes you.” His expression softened. “This shows you have a good heart, never change that.” Haze was silent for a while after that, she sat there by the fire wile Theran unstrapped his chest plate and got to cleaning off the blood stains. Even without most of his barding on he still had an under layer of clothing that was a lighter shade of black than his armour. He then started speaking again as he cleaned his stuff. “So I guess you’re wondering why I’m not dead?” He asked Haze. She hadn’t really thought about it but now that he had brought it up, she couldn’t help her curiosity. “Yeah how come you didn’t die? I watched you get stabbed right here.” She pointed at her neck. “I was right beside you and you weren’t breathing or anything. How are you alive?” Theran sheepishly grind again. “Oh I was dead.” Haze was so confused. “But then…how are you still here?” Her voice had gone high pitched at this point. Theran looked up from his chest plate and gazed at Haze. With his half smile he said. “Well to put it simply…I can’t die, ever.” Haze was speechless, how was that even possible? She finally managed to speak again after a minute. “How…how come you can’t die?” She asked. Theran just shrugged. “I’d like to know that myself. You’d think after 550 years I’d…” Haze suddenly cut Theran off when she heard that number. “Did you just say 550 years?” Haze felt her voice start to strain from how high it was going. Theran was taken aback. “You understand how long 550 years are? But how do you know that?” Haze crossed her arms and gave him an unimpressed look. “I maybe 8 years old but I’m not dumb. I know a pony can’t live that long it’s just not possible.” Theran looked impressed with her. “You’re a smart little cookie aren’t you? Well…” He lifted one of his hooves. “For a brat.” Haze ignored his jokes and asked. “So…how old are you?” Theran scratched his chin with his hoof in thought. “Well physically I’m still 25. I guess you can do the math?” What Haze Lacked in reading and writing she made up for in math. “You are 575 years old.” Her eyes widened when she thought about it. “Wow that’s old.” “Thanks.” Theran said sarcastically. “Make me feel old why don’t you.” “But how come you’ve lived for so long?” Haze asked. Theran shrugged again. “What ever stops me from dying also stops me from aging. I…” Theran was cut off when the mare started groaning. “Well sleeping beauty finally awakes.” Theran Razorblade Theran had taken the percussions to tie the mare’s legs and gag her so she didn’t scream. He also took the time to close her wound with some healing magic but could do nothing about her damaged shoulder blade. She slowly started to open her purple eyes and lazily looked at Haze. She frowned and looked over to Theran. That’s when she became fully awake and screamed under her gag and struggled in her bonds. She then let out a low moan and started whimpering, breathing heavily. Her sudden movement must have caused her shoulder to flare up in pain and she wasn’t handling it well. Theran gave her a minute to calm down. When she finally stopped crying he said flatly. “You’ve been out for a while, I was beginning to think you weren’t going to wake up.” The mare just stared at him with her bright purple eyes. He could see the fear in them. Theran floated a dagger up and the mare started to whimper again. “Relax.” Theran assured her. “I’m going to cut the gag off. If you scream, it willny end well.” He floated the dagger over and cut the gag off. She took in sharp intakes of air as she blurted out words. “P…please don’t rape me I’m begging you please I’ll do anything ask!” Theran was shocked and felt a little awkward, not to mention degusted. “What! Oh gods NO! What do think I am one of your fucking bandit buds sheesh!?” The mare looked confused. “So you’re not…” Theran cut her off. “Hell NO! I don’t know what you’re used to but that is just disgusting.” She still looked confused but at least she looked a little more relaxed. She still had the same fear in her eyes though. “Then…what are you going to do to me?” She asked rather shakily. Theran waved the dagger around his side of the campfire as he spoke. “I’m not planning on doing anything to you as long as you behave. And besides, the worst I could do to you is boil your blood inside your veins.” She looked at him now in confused terror and struggled again. As a result she cried out in pain. “Please just let me go!” She pleaded, “I won’t come back I swear!” “And where would you go huh?” Theran protested, “You’d be dead with in a few days in your state. No, I have something I need your help with.” He put down the dagger and brought up his map. “Can you read maps?” The mare look even more confused as she just stared at him. “What?” Theran was getting irritated now and he snapped at her. “Can you read the fucking map or not?” “Yes!” She said almost immediately. “I can read maps I do…did it a lot for Hammer Head.” “Hammer Head huh?” Theran pondered. “I never would have guessed that was his name.” Theran set the map aside, got up and moved over and stood by the mare. He looked down on her as she looked up at him. “What ya name lass?” Theran asked. The mare looked scared but she managed to say. “V…Vi…Violet. My name is Violet.” Theran half smiled at her. “Well Violet ma name is Theran and that pip squeak there is Summer Haze but I just call her Haze.” Theran extended one of his hidden blades and moved closer. Violet gasped and closed her eyes. Theran cut her bonds and she opened her eyes, looking up at him in confusion. “Welcome to the group.” -------------- It had been hours now and night had settled over the campsite. Theran was completely done cleaning all the dried blood off himself and found he was rather hungry. He lifted the loaf of bread out of his saddle-bag and looked around the camp. Haze had fallen asleep and was quietly snoring as she shifted in her sleep. Violet on the other hand was still awake and was just lying on her side looking at the campfire with a rather depressed look on her face. He did have to admit in his mind she was kind of pretty. Her white coat stood out in the dark and her mane was scruffy tan colure with pink highlights. He could also tell she was from the Barrier Lands, do to her lack of a thing called a cutie mark. Theran moved over to her and sat down beside her. She tried to sit up but winced when her shoulder gave in and she flopped to her side again. Theran put a hoof on her back and she flinched at his touch. “You now I’m not going to hurt you, well not any more.” She looked to the ground and let her ears drop to the sides of her head. “Sorry.” “Don’t be.” Theran huffed. “Are you going to let me look at your shoulder now or are you just going to make this harder?” After a minute she lay her head down on the ground again and let Theran look at her wound. His healing magic wasn’t the best but at least he was able to close the wound. Apart of him, the warrior inside told him this was a bad idea and he should just kill the mare. But Theran was so tired of killing, he’d been killing for as long as he could remember. Shaking his head he looked at her wound he caused in his blood rage. On the outside it was no more than a scar but on the inside his sharp horn had cut into the bone and made it almost impossible to walk on. He pressed his hoof on the scar and Violet whimpered in pain. “Yep, you’re not going to be walking on this leg for a while.” He got some leather straps and turned them into a sling, which he wrapped under her hoof joint and around the back of her neck. “Keep it like this and it should heal in a few weeks.” He then got the loaf of bread again and with his hoof blade he cut a slice off. He gave it to Violet then cut a slice for himself. He had no problem eating his cause of his magic but Violet was an earth pony so she had to use her hoof. They ate in silence till Violet asked. “Why are you helping me, I mean its not been that long since we were trying to kill each other.” Theran frowned. “What are you saying I should just kill you?” “No!” She immediately went submissive by lowering her head and folding her ears back. “Its just not what I expected from a stranger is all.” “Diny get used to it.” Theran said flatly. “Not all strangers are as forgiving as I am.” Violet decided to change the subject by turning her head to Haze and said. “She looks different now. What’s wrong with her?” Theran just did his normal half smile and answered. “There’s nothing wrong with her, She’s just being herself. Its all anypony can do really.” Theran levitated the dagger again and slowly spun it in the air. “She nearly killed you out of rage, but I stopped her. I guess that means you owe me one.” Violet suddenly frowned at Theran, not looking submissive anymore. “Why didn’t you let her?” She said angrily. Theran was taken aback by her question. “Are you saying you wanted to die?” Her eye widened as if she just realising what she had just said. She then looked away and lay her head down. “I want to sleep now.” She didn’t say anything after that. Theran got up and went to his spot. He touched his covers and looked over his shoulder. Violet was shivering where she lay so Theran sighed and with his magic he floated his covers over to her and laid them over her back. She lifted her head and looked at him in confusion. Theran picked up his barding and strapped it back on. “Isolated armour.” He said. “Get some sleep, you’ll need it.” Violet didn’t say anything. She lay her head down again and with a deep sigh she closed her eyes and went to sleep. Theran put his back to a large rock, crossed his back and front legs and slowly drifted off into sleep.