Zeb - Origins, Part 1

Today is my nameday. Today I become a man. Today is the day I die.

Call it a gift. Call it a curse. Call it what you will. That day I awoke from a vision. In the blissful ignorance of youth, I dismissed the vision as a bad dream and ignored the unfamiliar smell cloying my nostrils. The sun was shining and there was a spring scent to the morning breeze, quickly dissipating any of the night's horrors. The smell? I later came to know it as brimstone, the taint of unforgiveness, and the musk of the damned.

I knelt in the shallow frigid waters, the elder finally nearing the completion of the naming rite he dunked my head into the clear waters. This was that magical moment between a boy and a man. My moment. I savored it as long as I could, the gentle river sounds filling my ears and soothing my spirit. I finally raised my head from the waters, my ears straining to hear the name that all men would know me by. Straining, you see, to hear through the chorus of cheers and congratulations. I must know my name!

Water streaming from my hair, into my eyes, my sight finally cleared enough to see it was tainted red. Red? I turned to look at the elder, still clutching my shoulder. Red blood flowed from the spear that had pierced his chest. Each beating of his heart pushing blood into the river. One heartbeat, two heartbeats, the elders eyes lost focus. That's when it became clear that I had mistaken the cries of mercy of those gathered for jubilee.

I turned, and stood in the knee deep water, just as my killer loosed an arrow. I felt no pain as I stared dumbly at the bolt which sprang from my chest. I lost all feeling, but a sense of tumbling uncontrollably. The beautiful sun shining down onto my face. The water rising over my ears. I was dying and my soul screamed in a fury that I did not possess!

All became blackness for a time, no water, no sun, no movement of air or noise of nature. My soul begged for mercy! My soul cursed with anger! In the end, my soul begged the goddess Avandra for forgiveness. In the end, I died.

When I opened my eyes once again to the world of the living the now familiar smell of brimstone was again the first thing I noticed. Avandra was not the one who had answered.