Fan Fiction ❯ Prayer - Deus e Suas Crian�as ❯ Voleur ( Chapter 3 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

A/N: Moving things along, lol. This one shifts a lot, so I hope you don't get confused easily. ^^; Oh, and the site likes to take away the italics from some lines, so I apologize in advance.

Light broke through the blinds shielding the med room from the possibility of being woken too early by sunlight. Obviously, it wasn't doing its job this morning. Amadeo's eyes slowly, groggily opened and he made a large yawn. Mm…my neck hurts…well no wonder, I slept in a chair! Wait, why? Oh, Evan…oh no, where's Evan?

Sure enough, the bed infront of the still sleepy Amadeo was empty. And the clothing the nun's had lain out for Evan was gone as well. It was quite clear Evan had fled the sanctuary.

Pity, I'm going to miss him…oh well, time to check the donation box! Amadeo had an odd love for checking the donation box. Some people gossiped behind his back, saying he took some of it for himself, but in reality, he liked knowing people were charitable enough to give to the church. He looked at his face in the mirror, putting his hair back in place and wiping off a smudge of dirt from his cheek.

Evan felt bad for leaving so abruptly, but guilt was something a wanderer shouldn't have, so he tried to bury that feeling. That Amadeo fell asleep right beside him in a chair, not once leaving his side, it seemed. Such a dutiful priest…

He heard the merry jingle-jangle of gold in his new pant pocket. He had to give it to the nuns, because they shopped for style. These new clothes were clean, loose fitting, and light. Black was a good color for him, and that was the color his new duds were. It would help immensely when he went hunting at night, because now he would melt into the background.

"Now, just gotta buy a sword and I'll be set."

"WHAT!!"

"Yes, Brother Everhart, it's gone! All of it! All the gold is gone!" one of the nuns sobbed, pointing a shaking finger at the empty box.

"T-this cannot be! I bet it was those soldiers!!" another exclaimed.

"No…I don't think so. The Alexandrian Empire's military may rape, kidnap, vandalize and take sacred artifacts…but they don't steal from charities." Amadeo said. Despite the seriousness of the situation, he had to chuckle some seeing as that was a motto of the Empire.

"Then the only one left is the rogue you brought in! After you treated him so kindly!!"

"I'm afraid to admit that you…are right. He's the only reasonable explanation left…" Amadeo said, sadly.

"You brought him here, you get the money back!!" a nun said angrily, throwing the donation box at the younger priest.

"Sister!" several of the nun's said in unison. Amadeo ducked just in time to dodge the flying box, and it landed loudly on a pile of rubble that was once one of the angelic statues that seemed like they were protecting Amadeo while he prayed.

"I…I understand. I'll go find him and the money. I won't return till I do!" Amadeo vowed, running for the church's exit. One of the nuns started to trot after him but was stopped by the angry nun who had tossed the box. Her elderly, wrinkled hands dug in painfully on the younger priestess's arm.

"Don't. The boy has yet to prove himself to the church. Knowing when to halt the trespassers of the light is a brave valor, you should be proud he wishes to do this on his own…"

The younger nun noticed something in the older woman's eyes she hadn't seen before. The usual glow of faith, of life, of purpose…was gone. Her eyes were empty; all that remained were dull orbs of blue.

Evan looked at the sword appreciatively. It was longer than his previous one, and sharper too. He knew it would come in handy. He felt bad for stealing from the church, but he didn't have the foggiest where his money was, so it balanced everything out.

You're going to miss that boy, a voice in the back of his mind told him. What? What are you trying to say? Evan mentally asked himself.

Admit it, no one's taken care of you like that. Probably not even your parents. You're probably trying to keep yourself from running back to the church right now.

"Shut up!" Evan yelled out loud. He didn't realize he had actually yelled at…whatever it was that was talking to him, until he realized various shoppers were looking at him. The rose seller from the other day was laughing pretty annoyingly, at him more than likely. He lowered his head and ran for the city's exit. He shoved the sword into the sheath on his back and ran under the emblem-decorated arch. He looked around, letting the rolling green pastures relax him while the dew-filled morning air filled his nostrils.

"Home Free…"

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How could he! That…that…heretical fiend! How could someone be so vile as to steal money from a church!!

Amadeo sprinted through the white streets of Fatima City. Everything was white in Fatima; streets, houses, statues…it was a whitewashed wonderland. He ran past a few shoppers, accidentally bumping into a taller, bulkier man.

"Excuse you," the man said, annoyed.

"I-I'm sorry, I was in such a hurry and…sorry!" Amadeo said hastily, moving around the larger, and darker skinned man, and bolting for the city's exit.

I'm coming for you, you filthy thief!

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Evan was enjoying his walk back towards his little camp near Marble. The trees were covered in lush green leaves, the birds were chirping happily, and the wind was blowing gently.

If it gets anymore beautiful, my teeth will rot. Evan thought to himself bitterly. He had never felt guilty about stealing before, so why did he now? His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a roaring noise.

It can't be…

Sure enough, it was the monster he had broke his sword on. It was larger than he remembered; it was at least three feet taller than him. Its gray, scaly skin was just as thick as he remembered it looking, but its horns looked a bit sharper…

Unfortunately, it seemed to remember Evan too. It charged at the man, roaring angrily.

"SHIT!" Evan cursed, jumping out of the way just in time. The beast had a hard time stopping, and ran into a tree. The tree was uprooted immediately and soared through the air for a few moments before hitting the ground.

"Oh god, I'm so dead…" Evan mumbled. The hulking behemoth rushed towards him again, and he knew he wouldn't be able to duck in time. He brought his new sword out of its sheath and brought it infront of him protectively. "Bring it, wide load!"

And bring it, the monster did. Once the monster was a few feet away, Evan brought the sword down on it. The sword and him both were knocked back from the collision, and luckily he was bounced back in time to not get ran over.

Before Evan could stand up again, its large form was over him. It stood up on its hind legs, preparing to bring one of its front feet down on the man, crushing him. Just as it was descending, everything went white.

"The light of the soul is an impenetrable fortress! Aura!!" a familiar tenor/baritone voice shouted. Evan's eyes focused once again, and a small orb of light was hovering before him. Immediately it spread out, forming a bubble of light around him. The large monster was instantly thrown back.

"A-Amadeo?" Evan shouted. He stood up, as the bubble faded in a mist of glittery light. Sure enough, the clad-in-navy priest was running towards him, his cloak flapping behind him in the wind. "Amadeo!" Evan shouted happily.

He was then knocked to the ground. Not by the animal, but by Amadeo. The smaller boy had hit him square in the jaw. "Where is the gold?" Amadeo asked angrily. He stood up, trying to knock the wet, dewy grass off his back. "Can we worry about that later, I'm sorta busy at the moment!" Evan shouted.

As if on cue, the horned fiend ran towards the two men with intent to kill. Amadeo waved his hand infront of him, and another orb of light appeared. It expanded into another bubble of light, keeping the monster at bay.

"How the hell are you doing that?" Evan asked in awe.

"It's magic, idiot. You've honestly never seen someone use an Aura spell?"

"Nope."

Amadeo sighed heavily, holding his hand out towards the monster to keep the shelter strong. "Aura turns the light of someone's soul into a physical shield. Only high-level clergy members and certain magicians are able to use it."

"Know any other magic tricks?" Evan asked, amused. He looked at the large monster trying to get through the wall of light, but fortunately he wasn't getting anywhere.

"Just some healing spells. You?"

"If I did, do you think I'd need your help?" Evan said. Amadeo stepped on his foot angrily, and turned his head away from the swordsman. "Ow! You're certainly not as sweet as you were yesterday!"

"Because you stole from my church! Kill this thing already so I can get the money back!" Amadeo shouted forcefully.

"How? It's like a tank!" Evan said, taunting the monster with childish faces.

"Goodness, you're so immature. Maybe he has a weak underbelly?" Amadeo suggested.

"That's a good idea…okay, use this Aura-thing to knock it over, and I'll handle the rest!" Amadeo nodded, and clasped his hands together. The bubble stretched out, lifting the beast off the ground as it expanded.

"Be gone!" Amadeo shouted, as the bubble spread out a few more feet, before fading away. The monster fell on its side, roaring in pain.

"My turn…" Evan mumbled, running for the monster, his sword pointed out infront of him. He pierced the monster's soft, fleshy underside, digging the sword in deep. He jumped upwards, spreading the gash further. Blood gushed out, and Amadeo recoiled in disgust.

Ew…gross, Amadeo thought to himself.

Evan landed on the fiend's side, stuck his sword in again, and jumped down, splitting not only its flesh, but also its seemingly invincible armor. A fountain of gleaming crimson blood rushed from the massive wound, and the beast let out one more pained roar before stopping all movement.

Amadeo threw Evan a cloth to clean the blade off with, and it didn't take long for it to be covered in blood. Amadeo smiled his congratulations, before gripping Evan's shirt.

"Give me the money you stole," he said irritably.

"Too late, dude. I spent it on this wonderful sword here," Evan said, showing the blade off to him.

"Grr…do you intend on paying us back?" Amadeo demanded.

"With what?"

"I…don't know. You're the son of the Guardians, if what you said was true, go hit them up for money!"

Evan said nothing; he just stared off into the distance. Then, suddenly, he started moving in the opposite direction of Marble.

"H-hey! Where are you going?" Amadeo shouted, running after him.

"Alexandria…it's time for a family reunion."

"H-how do you know the way?"

"I don't. I'm going to ask someone." Evan replied, glaring over his shoulder at the priest.

"I…know the way. So I might as well come! I'm following you till you return my money!" Amadeo said, running after the man.

"Whatever, priesty. You just can't resist this sexayness." Evan said, winking. Amadeo recoiled again, and stepped on his foot.

"Pervert!"