Staring at his trembling blood-soaked hands, Ben"s thoughts were in a chaotic mess.(I killed them, no matter how much I tried to stop myself I just couldn"t. My own people, no matter how much they screamed and no matter how much they begged me I still slaughtered them, what, what have I done.)
As Ben"s thoughts swirled into a maddening disorder Jack"s yelling finally brought him some focus.
"Ben, Ben, Benjamin can you hear me!"
Ben"s eyes regained focus and with a quick wipe, his tears fell no more. Staring at Jack"s pale worn face, Ben could see the terror and exhaustion Jack extruded and could only feel fear and guilt himself.
"Jack that wasn"t me, that goblin, he, he did something. I couldn"t control it, I couldn"t control myself. But I can now, his power, it must have faded."
Seeing Jack"s face, he seemed to not believe Ben in the slightest. This made Ben"s heart sink, even though Jack was right there the moment Ben was taken over, how would he know if that was magic or not. There was no doubt the goblin"s words were weird at the time but you can"t just come to the conclusion that he used magic. From an outside perspective it simply looked like the goblin said a word or two and then Benjamin just went crazy. To a person like Jack, he had never witnessed magic before and from the stories he was told as a child, what happened didn"t seem like magic either. Whether it be from the earth moving or mysterious lights floating in the sky, this was what Jack believed magic was and he didn"t witness any of that happening. At the same time, Ben was claiming it was magic and the fact that he says the magic faded and he wasn"t killing Jack at the moment, Jack honestly didn"t know what to believe anymore.
Releasing a long sigh Jacks heart finally calmed down although he still looked at Ben with a little suspicion, the fact remains there was no real motive for Benjamin to kill everyone and even more so if he was lying then shouldn"t he have killed Jack to get rid of any living witnesses. Once they made it back home Jack could tell everyone at the village anything and Benjamin knew that but still, he didn"t kill Jack. This was the main reason Jack believed Ben.
Ben walked over to Jack and picked him up, throwing him over his shoulder. Jack at first was frightened but seeing as that Ben had no ulterior motive he only felt embarra.s.sment instead. Being carried like a rag doll, for a man at least made Jack feel like a weakling but with his ankle swelled up now double in size there were no complaints from him if Ben wanted to carry him. With a speed blurry to the naked eye Ben while carrying Jack over his shoulder moved like a flexible arrow thru the black forest, very quickly they arrived near the edge of the forest. Jack wanted to puke up his guts, although Ben"s movements were agile and quick, the fast pivots and the b.u.mpy movements from Ben running over dense forestry and on top of that, Jack had just been running for his life. This entire culmination made Jacks stomach queazy beyond belief.
As the two quietly starred at their now abandoned carts they craned their necks looking for any signs of the three goblins. Seeing none, the two came out of the forest with cautious movement, setting Jack down gently Ben looked over the carts.
"Those goblins took a few things but besides that everything else seems to be here."
Jack didn"t really seem to care, he was more worried about getting home safely. Ben looked around the carts a bit more but instead of looking at the carts themselves he was searching for something on the ground and he instantly found it.
"Jack, there"s some goblin footprints here they head off in that direction...."
Before Benjamin could say anymore Jack interrupted his words.
"NO! no matter what you can"t go after them. If they can control you once they can do it again and again. So many of our people are dead. We must leave here and tell Chief Roland what happened as soon as possible."
Ben didn"t argue, he had no intention of following after those goblins. Having absolutely no control over one"s own body was such a terrifying concept but after experiencing it first hand it was more than terrifying, it was an absolute nightmare. Ben once again picked Jack up, staring around he wished to spot his battle hammer, but in this blackness, he had no way to find it and right now there was a more important matter at hand. Running into the night with Jack in tow Ben raced back home. With his speed strength and stamina, the 10 plus hour trip it took everyone to reach that distance, Ben could cover it in just over 2.
The night continued to stretch as a silver laced moon moved quietly in the star-filled sky. As many villagers had sweet dreams of warm bellies and golden riches the sound of a terrifying roar awoke everyone at once.
"CHIEF!! CHIEF ROLAND!! EMERGENCY!!"
Very quickly candles and torches were lit as men from around the village stormed out of there homes and rushed to the source of the noise which came from the village square. As many men arrived, they were shocked to see Benjamin covered in blood, carrying a terrified Jack on his shoulder. Instantly the village square was flooded with noise as every man there shouted question after question in agitation. As the noise became louder and louder soon even the women were coming out for a look but Ben ignored them all if Roland still didn"t come out of closed-door cultivation after all this then Ben would know that Roland truly didn"t care for this village at that moment Ben would simply take his kids and leave. Finally, an older man broke thru the crowd, behind him, three even older men followed.
Standing in front of Ben was Chief Roland and the three elders seeing him covered in blood and what seemed to be chunks of flesh all three elders wanted to vomit only Roland maintained his cool as he asked.
"Ben, just what the h.e.l.ls going on, what emergency is there?"
Ben carried Jack into the Chief Hall and said.
"Everyones dead!"
Hearing this the crowd grew panicked as many shouted more and more questions at Ben.
"They died how?"
"What happened, tell us?"
"Who was it, was it bandits, how many were there?"
As question after question was thrown about the noise only seemed to grow before Roland finally shouted.
"SILENCE!"
The crowd"s voices soon became a murmur and then nothing as they silently waited for an explanation. Roland looked at the villagers and wanted to shake his head in disappointment.
(They have no clue what"s happening and yet they act like chickens with their heads cut off.)
*Sigh*
"Everyone, calm yourselves, I will get to the bottom of this but first we can"t have anyone panic. Men guard the village, we are on high alert, grab whatever you can for a weapon women barricade you and your family"s inside your homes and don"t come out until you hear the signal for safety from the bell, now everyone go. Benjamin, I suggest you come inside and tell me what the h.e.l.l happened. After that Benjamin and Jack explained the situation and when it came to Ben killing everyone, he could only lower his head as his mind was filled with both guilt and shame. The elders stared at Benjamin in shock, of course they felt the whole magic explanation was nothing more than an excuse. As for his reason to kill his fellow villagers, to the three elders, it was simple, Ben had always looked down on those that were weak, so those villagers must have done something or said something. Ben already dispysing them, this only added fuel to the fire when he eventually snapped. As for him not killing Jack, the elders thought it to be a ploy, thinking maybe he kept Jack alive so it would make his story more believable. The three elders looked on at Benjamin as though he were a disgusting monster, no more than a killing demon who slaughters only for his own pleasure. At this point, there was no convincing them otherwise. The elders immediately blamed him.
"Benjamin you dare kill so many of your fellow villagers and then claim a goblin made you do it with magic. Just how stupid do you think we are, if you weren"t so strong do you think you"d be allowed to live after this."
Another elder saw this as a moment to release all his frustrations as well.
"Ben, you vile, ugly, man-demon, we may not be able to do anything to you but you will definitely not have a good ending. What have my fellow villagers ever done to you to deserve what you"ve done to them?"
Listening to these elders, they not only didn"t believe him, they even began berating him instead. The shame Ben had felt began to wash away as anger soon replaced it. Looking over at Roland, he wanted to see if he had anything detrimental to say as well, but surprisingly he seemed to be thinking deeply about something. Noticing Ben"s gaze Roland seemed to recall something.
"Ben, I believe you."
Benjamin couldn"t believe it, in fact, no one in the room could believe what Roland had just said, Immediately all three elders stood up at once in shock.
"What! Chief Roland! how can you possibly believe such a false tale it"s clear that he murdered our brothers in cold blood how can you say you believe him."
Chief Roland looked at these village elders in disappointment.
(If only these old fools would look at things more objectively.)
*Sigh*
"Elders, if Ben truly wanted them dead then why would he just not kill them all earlier, he"s had hundreds if not thousands of opportunities to murder them, so why now, why on this night. Not only that, if there were someone he actually wanted to murder wouldn"t it be you three."
Hearing this, the three elders quickly retreated a few steps in fright. Looking at Ben he suddenly grinned at the three elders in an intimidating fashion frightening them even more, a small chuckle slipped by Bens lips at the three elders foolish actions.
Roland continued.
"And yet here all three of you stand, completely unharmed. Furthermore, he"s saved many villager lives since he"s lived here. To continue, he doesn"t want for much, his wealth exceeds us all in totality, he has the biggest home, the most land so in the end, where is his the motive. Looking at all things involved the biggest reason I believe him is because I think that goblin is a mage."
The elders looked at Roland like he was crazy based off of what did he think that. Ben though seemed to understand not many people knew that Roland was a Mage but Ben did the two had been completely surrounded at one time and it was thanks to Roland unleashing a powerful fire attack that both their a.s.ses escaped with little injury.
"Elders, while I was in closed-door training I felt something for a moment, at the time I just thought my senses were off but I believe it was that goblin starting a spell if he noticed me it wouldn"t be strange for him to suddenly stop. After that, it seemed he waited until the right moment before he unleashed his power out in the wilderness. Looking at it from this angle he had certainly had motive and being in the wilderness he had the opportunity and if my guess isnt wrong and he truly is a Mage then he definitely had the power."
everyone stood there in silence taking Roland"s words in one by one. Ben especially hearing this he grew more and more angered.
(Then that goblin had everything planned from the start, I was completely played like a fool, d.a.m.n.)
The look in Ben"s eyes completely changed he asked Roland thru gritted teeth.
"Chief, that power, is there any way to defend against it?"
Roland thought for a moment.
"Hmm, a mind manipulation technique like that is quite rare. I"ve traveled all over the Qiyuan continent and ive only ever heard about such abilities never witnessing it myself, hmm."
Once more Roland began to ponder but Ben was losing patience as he quickly said.
"Chief is there nothing, if that goblin comes for revenge we"ll be left completely unguarded."
Roland heard this and broke out into a soft chuckle.
"Haha no, nothing like revenge will happen, even in my weakend state that goblin has felt my power, there"s no way he"ll come for revenge."
But Ben wasn"t convinced staring anxiously at Roland he asked once more.
"So there"s nothing to counter that goblin."
Roland didn"t see any reason to hide it so reaching into his robe he pulled out a small rectangular sheet of paper and placed it in Ben"s hand. Looking down a few words were written but Ben couldn"t understand it, it seemed to be whatever language Mages used.
"Ben, that piece of paper I just gave you is a magic item called a Talisman. it is a one time use item, It requires no magic to activate it so anyone, whether they be a Mage or not, can use it. The one I gave you is of the wind element, by activating it, it can cause a perimeter of silence to form around it. The range is 50 feet and the spell last for 15 minutes. If what you told me about that goblin is true, then I believe the way he activates his spells is with not only his mind but with the element of wind as well. Using a verbal command his magic travels thru the wind and into his victim"s ear shooting directly to your brain where he takes control. If you silence him, then with your strength, its game set match."
Holding the Talisman in his hand a look of excitement flashed over Ben"s eyes he looked back at Roland asking him.
"How do I activate it?"
"Simple, while holding it you say the word written on it followed by the word "Activate" for that one, the word written on it is "Silence". So to activate that Talisman you would say Silence Activate. "
Roland looked at the excitement building within Benjamin and quickly reuttered.
"Benjamin remember that Talisman is a one time use after you activate it when it"s time runs out it becomes nothing more than a piece of paper and remember, you have to be within 50 feet otherwise that goblin can control you. My suggestion for you is to be as stealthy as possible, don"t be seen or heard until the last possible second otherwise..."
Roland cut his words there everyone already knew what he meant so there was no need to go on further. Benjamin turned and was about to depart.
"Roland, take care of my kids while I"m gone or you know what will happen."
And like that Benjamin once more rushed out into the dark night. The elders though were still livid.
"Chief your just gonna let him go even if he was controlled he still killed so many of our people he must be punished.
Roland, however, shook his head.
"No, what happened to those people was a tragedy but if that goblin really is a Mage then the best solution is to send Benjamin to deal with it. After that it will already be too late to punish him, won"t it? If hes successful then he"ll return as a hero, tell me, at that time will the people listen to you elders as you order for punishment? They may even turn their backs on me if I force it, what will we do then?"
The three elders looked at each other in dismay not knowing what to say or do they could only return to their homes in defeat.
As the sun rose, the dark land once more became bright and vibrant. The tolling bell signaled the villagers that it was safe to leave their homes and start their day as though it were just like any other. While people were about and busy a small rumor began to spread saying that Benjamin had gone on a killing spree, killing several villagers for sport he then fleed into the forest, abandoning his children. Some people immediately latched on either due to jealousy or maybe just plain foolishness but soon everyone had heard it and as a day pa.s.sed followed by another and another, with no return of Benjamin that rumor soon solidified into truth.