Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

Reclaiming the Soul of Halbert Halburt

AuthorHouse

Chapter One

The voices of wind chimes skipped and danced on the breeze all around him, although in this certain instance there were none present. He stood with his arms at his side. White and pink apple blossoms drifted and swirled about in the early morning light, like a cascading waterfall of soft fingertips gingerly brushing his eyelashes. The smells seducing his nostrils with all of their supreme appleness had a mingling of orange riding on its heels, masking the acrid scent of blood somewhere in the vicinity.

Halbert was tired. There were no fancy words or interesting phrases to describe it. His recent escapades since last we left him had been great and strenuous for a man of Hal's fragility. It had left him weary.

Now standing before him, lined up like circus otters, were three. Three Tras' of the Kaniawan- child warriors of the Kaniawan. Laden with chain armor and buckled with protective plates, these misled youths brandished their gleaming weapons with a knowledgeable quality and eyed Hal suspiciously with looks of experience and delinquency. Their standoffish behavior proved to be not of a welcoming manner and Halbert stood firmly, or rather indifferently, in his place all the while playing this ongoing staring contest with the Tras'.

Five minutes now.

He realized how five silent minutes seemed like forever when you're in an awkward and uncomfortable setting. He counted the heartbeats drumming in his ears until they took a different rhythm and confused him, coupled with the unseen wind chimes producing a hauntingly invisible harmony that only he could hear. The lines of battle were drawn in the orchard dirt and no one was moving. It was apparent to him that this would end badly. This was fine with him, most things did, but he had a nagging question on his frontal lobe's stoop and it was knocking on his mind's door.

Why did all things he was involved with turn hostile?

Blood, death, deceit, betrayal, love, hate and all other things shrouded in this hazy mystery were on his back like some wailing demon and it was heavy. Also to compliment this new found grief like whipped sweet cream on a fresh pie was the fact that he was in his infancy walking in this vicious world. But there was Norene; Norene the Horse Faced Girl, who had shown him loyalty and love and absolute devotion through all times, bad or good. But he had walked away from her on top of the mountain some time ago now.

He consistently kicked his own ass for this, but the decision was not a spur of the moment thing. No, this was printed onto his fragment of a soul like a tiny note that a carrier sparrow may have tied to his ankle. He had faced the wind and the darkness alone and survived, but it had been an uneventful time for once. A time of reflection where he could see himself for what he was; ugly. Not ugly in a physical sense, but an emotional wreck that now had just enough of a soul inside of him to make him more human than he ever was before.

In the past he had been an animated mannequin walking through the streets with only a shadow cast off him and now he had feelings biting into his flesh and chewing on it like a rare steak. Halbert Halburt thought all these things during his stare down, which was why he was so indifferent. This was nothing compared to what he had dealt with before and what he was sure he would have to deal with in the future. This was just fly tracks in the butter. Nothing to fuss about. Now all he had to do was figure out a way to move forward because as of yet nothing was said except through the eyes.

The center child seemed to be the leader; he was about a foot in front of the other two and his sword had the burgundy crust of old blood spackled about the base of the blade. He wanted to kill Halbert. Hal knew it, and so did the children at his flanks. They seemed fidgety with the anticipation of the impending kill.

When he was a child himself, Halbert didn't get along the same way with the other children that one would expect. He had a different temperament almost like a hidden aggravation with the others on the playground. Not quite understanding their mind numbingly stupid immaturity and their tendency to be fascinated with activities Hal deemed a waste of his moments. Polishing a new pair of shoes, now that was something he could get fired up about. Sitting with a faint smile on his face at the age of six, he would delicately and meticulously buff his new shoes until they gleamed like the blade of a sword. He would then repeat the process again and again while the other children childishly cried, and had tantrums over insignificant toys and had shouting bouts of "Did not!" and "Did too!" He realized now all that lack of emotion was due to his newly discovered soullessness and attributed it entirely to that alone.

Being in the silent company of these children gave Halbert a brief sense of comfort he hadn't known since he parted ways with his companions, which in retrospect he now knew was as ridiculously stupid as this whole journey was to begin with. He imagined his cozy cottage with an infinitesimal roaring bonfire in his hearth while he busied himself with dusting his baseboards and awaiting the wonderful song of his teakettle. Ah, dreamy ignorant bliss, he longed for that feeling once more. He attempted to use it as a tool to take to pieces the ragged horror he felt that first night he ventured off away from his friends. Pumped full of audacity as the sun splashed its last rays against Mount Turtle before losing it's never ending battle with the night sky.

Yes, that brand new bit of soul that charged his cells was not just a brawny ally but also an insufferable enemy which lead his already frazzled nerves to be molested by a kind of fear he had never known until he was all alone that first night. Thinking of home made it worse, because he knew that every step he voluntarily took was one step further away from where he wanted to be the most.

There was also the upside of this, which was being the Scale of Humanity. He could possibly save the world from a vile and disturbing existence but the thought of that thus far seemed to do more damage than good. He wondered to himself if being soulless was what made him special and if getting his pieces back would make him the same as everyone else ...

Anyhow he was daydreaming once again before old father time tapped him on the shoulder with his withered and crooked finger, instantly reminding Hal that a whole other minute had gone by and he was still in the orchard.

The head child finally shouted something, which startled Halbert and made him jump. His ears and his brain were in agreement that this was not a language they knew and after letting Hal know this, he stood still in bewilderment. Again now the head child turned back to the other Tras' and spoke, then they all laughed, obviously at Hal's expense, and when their steely gaze fell back upon him they started stepping forward.

Halbert took a step back. He now cursed himself for using the diamond shot for his pistole to hunt squirrel when he was hungry some time back and he hoped that aiming it at them now would deter them from the bloodbath he was sure would ensue.

He was wrong.

They proceeded towards him. He could see the hunger for blood in their eyes and he was now all out of ideas. Suddenly...