VII

It was over.

With the ending of the visions, his mind was working over time, trying to make sense what he just saw. John's inner me was more than active. Was there any use? He hoped. But why those vision? Why couldn't it be any other vision?

They meant something that much was clear. What? That was something all together different. Everything has a logical answer. Do visions? Nobody could answer that. He had to continue. Freedom was near.

He hoped so.

The tunnel was silent. Darkness was around him. Darkness and the unknowing. Silent. Unnatural. It was so unnatural.

A voice appeared from the darkness. It was strange to hear a voice in this darkness.

"Things that were, things that will be - are as one."

"What does that mean?" John asked.

"Old secrets are to be revealed soon."

"Old secrets? Are you sure?"

"Yes," was the reply that he got.

"What secrets?"

"Secrets from long ago, secrets of magic."

"There is no one with magic here."

"Yes, there is!"

"Who? Say it already!"

"You…"

"Me…"

John didn't want to hear that. More than anything he didn't to want to hear that. He had magic running through his veins.

"How?"

"Magic is a tricky thing. It skips one generation and appears in the other."

"What? That means…"

"It has skipped your father and chose you. You have the gift. There is no way of knowing when it will appear.""

"Why me?"

"There are no rules. Get that part. It's up to you to decide what you want to do with it."

"When will I know?"

"You will know when time is right."

"Only then…"

"Yes."

The voice disappeared, John was alone. A light shinned at the end of the tunnel. He was near the exit.

The freshness of the air was mesmerizing.

John appeared over the hill, heard something and stopped for a moment. He heard voices. Female voices.

"Have pity, my lady." said the first voice.

"Pity? Me?" said the second voice. "That's something new. I haven't heard that one before."

"My pa injured his limbs so bad that he can not do any hard work."

"Then how do you make a living?"

"He makes nets for hunting." the first voice tried to stay focused.

"Is that so?" the second voice that something unwelcoming about it. "What about your mother?"

"She... she works around the village."

"Have you any skills or are they the same as your mother's?"

"Reading and writing, basic house chores."

"Alright…"

The woman were hidden in shadow. John heard a sound that was familiar to him. They kissed. Another sound was heard, the sound of a whip. This was starting to get interesting.

This was new ground for him. The whip cracked in the night. A cream echoed through the forest. It wasn't a scream of pain but longing.

"More," said the first woman, "I want more."

"Beg, Bethany, beg." the second woman stood over her. Slowly she removed the layer of her dress and then the next, until there was nothing left.

The first woman followed her. Every secret was revealed. They saw him. The look on their faces changed.

John knew what was going to happen.

"Please, mistress." Bethany's breath was irregular. She gasped for air. She wanted this.

"You shall have it, my pet." the lady smiled.

She took a fistful of the younger woman's hair, lifted her head, twisted it around to look into her eyes. She liked what she saw. Not even once before had she saw that much yearning.

A warm feeling spread through her. The whip was a standard one. As she leaned over, Bethany placed herself.

The lady's lip curled in a sneer. This is starting to get interesting. She's going to enjoy this. Her hand went up. The whip rested in her hand only for a moment, until she let it loose.

Bethany said nothing. It was clear that she enjoyed this.

The whip traveled onward from her thighs to her firm ass. Small marks start to appear where the whip had touched the skin again. Time slowly went. John was more than enjoying this. He never knew that someone could do this so openly.

The lady stopped.

"Please continue, mistress." Bethany moaned. Her climax was near.

"Do… do you truly want this, my pet?" the lady couldn't believe it.

"More than anything, mistress."

John knew it was time to go.

Who's that moving in the bushes? Is that a woman? Should I follow her? It's late and I need to find the nearest inn. I don't want to have anything arranged for me.

The words of his father echoed in his head. More than anything he wished to be free. Free. There was nothing greater than that. It was so close. He could feel it. There was something to be excited for. That was a future he hoped for.

A woman went down the river to take a bath, the water was cold, but not freezing – like it supposed to do in this time of the year, the winter month were also called the dead months. The folk in these parts are known for their orientation to the cycles of nature. What even the case may be, she was more than intrigued by it, that the thought was still lingering in her head. It was known that the water is freezing in these parts. She removed her clothes, entered the water. A wave of chills went down her spine. She started to bathe.

Something caught her attention. She turned and saw a man behind her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

No response.

The body of the man fell.

A man shouldn't do that all of a sudden. A strange smell filled her nose. The water was freezing, how could it change all of a sudden. Something red was on top of the water.

She knew what it was. Blood. It wasn't her blood; the only logical thing was that it's the man's blood. But why? Why did he fell? There was no answer to that.

She turned away from it all. Blood continues to spread. Above her a group of phantom riders appeared. Terrible was their cry. A strange coldness appeared from under their robes and armors. They were black as night.

John stopped in track. Phantom riders they were a thing of legend. And yet again, magic was also. Deep inside he hoped that everything will work out, nobody knew what the king would do, nobody knew that. The trade agreement was more than needed. Something bothered him more, magic was in him. Magic…

Something told him that the agreement was the easiest part…

Hilda, her name danced in his mind… Hilda… a love from a long time ago…

Will she be with him?