…Then…
When I joined the Order of the Black Sword, my only hope was to die a good death.
We theoarm, we live and die by the sword, but some deaths are more honorable than others.
My father died alone in the Highgate Woods. By the time anyone bothered to go find his body, it had already been picked apart.
Being a Son of Iago wasn’t enough to make anyone care to find him. Had Father been a Noble, he would have been given proper respect.
I may never be a Noble, but being a part of the Order is the next best thing. When I die, it will mean something. The Elders will honor my family for my sacrifice.
With every commission I draw closer to my last days. At every turn, I am ready.
I do not want the years.
I do not want the days.
Death in battle is honor, and I will have my hard fought honor.
I seek it.
But my blade is too quick, and my arm is too sharp. I’ve not found yet the foe can give me what I’ve earned.
No shadow minion nor beast from hell causes me to drop my sword.
I’ve been summoned to the Garden of the Elders. I’ve been commissioned to go to America to kill what has been deemed unkillable. A beast that slaughtered an entire town before its capture. The Red Rose and the Child in the Oak have disappeared, leaving me in the company of the White Rose. He is beautiful in a way. A streak of black in his long white hair and beard.
He plucks one of his silken flowers from the bush and hands it to me. I steady my thoughts as we touch so that his thoughts do not become mine, or mine his..
“I wish more for you than the sword, Abini. Even your forefather Iago knew love.”
“Love? What man would have me, Elder? I am broken.”
“Abini, there is more love in Heaven and Earth than just the love of a man for a woman.”
“You are right. There is the love the sword has for blood.”
“Hmm.. We have failed you, haven’t we? That you would chase death for love? Is this the legacy we’ve created?”
ASH 9/17 
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