A clear starry night, a full moon hung in the air as the fog slowly began to roll over the ground, creeping in between the trees that stood everywhere, covering the single path that ran through the trees that created the thick forest that stretched farther than the eye could see. A lone man, wearing beggars clothes sat on the edge of the road, his hair white, his eyes golden and his gaze is strong, determined. He has known that he would be the one chosen, he knew that he would be needed to help out in this world, a world away from his own. He was needed by a child, a boy that would grow to be a man, someone who would learn the ways of the Angels, to be seen as their peer, to fight alongside them in the fierce battle that lay ahead. He, the one that had seen generations of fighting finally saw his own battles being brought to a close and he sighed. This would be one of the most troublesome battles that he would ever have to fight and the fight was not necessarily against the forces that threatened to destroy him, but rather the forces that were lying dormant within the childs heart, the abilities that could be unleashed, and he wasn’t too fond of the company that he was going to be stuck with, but he had a duty to do, he had been given his mission and he would do everything it took to get it done and done well. He looked up to the sky and just as the fog closed in around him, his clothing fell away to reveal white armor and a silver sword hanging from his hip, from his back extended wings glimmering white in the moon that shone overhead and he sighed once more, the feeling of what was to come just trembling in his body. Quite troublesome indeed.

He never did know how to deal with the people that studied his behaviors. He had analyzed even before they had said a word and it amused him to see them be baffled by all the correct answers that he could give them yet even he believed none of the answers that he gave them. He was insane, he knew that, but he could think, he could act and he could feel. The only thing that made him insane was his mind, his ability to out think other people, the fact that others thought of him as a freak for becoming something so powerful using only the mind that it frightened them, and they sent for his removal from society. Poor fools, poor wretches. If only they could have seen the amazing things that he would have done for them, if only they could sense that he was not there to bring them anything wrong. He was there to give his love, his life for that one person, for that one time that he was looking forward too now more than ever and he watches as another doctor comes in then leaves as he looks at the charts bewildered. Everyone knew he was insane as well, they just didn’t know how to place him, so they stuck him in a room covered in nothing but white and tied him to a chair, where his long black hair hung limp around his head, his green eyes glittering in the little light that was there and his pale skin almost glowing from the loss of pigmentation, but being in that little room wasn’t so bad though. One got used to it, and it eventually became fun. Good fun that he now enjoyed. Now if only they hadn’t scheduled his removal from the institution by killing him the following day. Now the only thing that ran through his mind was where he would go from there, where he would go once he was dead.

Walking around the walls of the castle was nothing special to the man that now walked along the sides of the stone floor, looking out over the battlements of a ferocious slaughter. Having to watch as so many people died, he mourned for the people that died. His brown hair was stained red with the blood of a soldier and he thought about that soldiers loved ones. Was he married, did he have children, but before he could have even looked to see, the man had already been looted, any jewelry he wore was now to be used as a trophy or an article of war. Just the thought though that life had to be ended on his blade brought sadness to his brown eyes and he just stared out, watching as everything unfolded just as he had seen it done. The fires, the screams, the horrors. The battle had already dragged on for days and it seemed the fighting wasn’t going to end soon and it was all the man could do not to fall to his knees and pray for the fighting to stop, but he knew that in that battlefield, God existed but merely as a judge of the dead. He was not there to protect, merely to grant his children life everlasting with him, if they fit the image that he did not know. Even the man knew what happened as the soldiers fought, going out to the other villages and pillaging and raping. He hated having to see all of this, he wanted to just end all the fighting but there was nothing he coul do, nothing that could possibly stop the fighting at this point. Everyone was just ready to die and raise their arms against someone else, another human. The man did not see it, nor did he want to see it but he knew that he had to, or else he would die, and everything that he had tried to accomplish would have been in vain. He grabbed onto one of the posts and looked out, watching the smoke drift upward and if he knew not of the carnage that was going on below he may have enjoyed the sunset. He looked down to see men running to the high walls and he sighed. They wouldn’t be able to get anywhere, even if they tried and he sighed once more, unslinging his bow and knocking an arrow, and letting it fly, it lodged itself in the skull of one of the soldiers and then he proceeded to doing the same to the other two. He prayed silently for their sould before slinging the bow to where it belonged over his shoulder and as he watched more soldiers come he knew that it was a limited time before they broke through. He turned to the right and saw that his assumption was correct, for they already had and were climbing up, already on the same level where he was and once they were prepared, they charged him. The man knew he had no choice, and unslung his bow once more, knocking arrow after arrow, taking down man after man until ten archers were ready and they fired, ten arrows burying themselves in his body but he felt no pain. He fell forever and all he could think of was the woman that would mourn over him, just the women would mourn for the men he had killed.

He was well off now, he didn’t really have any complaints as to the way that he lived now. He had as many women as he could possibly want, his pockets were lined with money and he was glad to say that women had never hurt him in any way shape or form for the very reason that he never let them get close. They just couldn’t resist him though, there was something strange as to why they liked blonde hair and blue eyes, it was strange in that area sure, but he was of foreign blood, he wasn’t originally from there. He didn’t ever remember his home though, so he couldn’t necessarily say that he missed it, but there was always that thing of learning of where he came from but considering that he never really knew his parents. As far as he was concerned, he had popped out of thin air, created by God only to take from the rich and give to those that needed it more than he did, but of course, he wanted to be rewarded in some sense. He didn’t want to have nothing in his pockets after doing all of this and even though watching women under him or on him or over him gave him immense pleasure, he was content with watching as the poor would receive the money that he gave them, the blessings that he received from each one of them really piled up more and more and the more he stole, the better and better he got at it and the more and more advanced his equipment got. He had gotten two double blades though, that he had always seemed to know how to use, they were his weapon of choice, those and throwing knives. He had many different blades, all of them hidden. His other good skill was the fact that he could seduce women to do everything and anything he wanted, not just on the pleasure side, but on the devious side as well. Often a man would end up poisoned, all because he needed to be dead. They were a threat to the poor, to those that truly did deserve a good life, and it all became possible because he wasn’t afraid to get caught. Something had to be done about it and hey, he wasn’t complaining when it came to bedding women. In fact, that was where he was at that moment or he had just gotten done, she had as well and they had just woken up from bed. He was staring at the ceiling, thinking how to go about with his delivery of the wealth when the door opened and four guards and the wifes husband entered, a smirk on the other mans face. The thief sighed and grabbed his blades quickly but before he could move he had a blade in his gut, the woman had stabbed him. Well now, this was interesting was all he thought as he fell.

Blood was everywhere and the man enjoyed it, the carnage was perfect for him and he wanted nothing more than to continue to fight until the day he died. He had shaved his head and his eyes were dark, almost completely black and his body was huge, his muscles carved into his tanned skin and he had his teeth filed to points, his look ferocious and he was happy to be this way. The woman that he was with back home adored him for his strength that he was happy that she was strong, just like he was and she expected his child, a strong child no doubt and he was happy that such a woman existed. But he had to fight and his sword rang as it kept going in the air, slicing throats and he laughed, showing his teeth to all and he ran directly into the carnage as more and more of his enemies died at his feet. This was what he was born to do and he reached down and grabbed a blade from one of his fallen comrades, the wounded soldier was still alive and all the man did was let the blade drop, he wasn’t going to allow his comrade to suffer. No one deserved to suffer and as much as he liked to kill, no one could take him from the fact that there was such a thing as forgiveness and he never killed when it wasn’t necessary, not to say that he enjoyed the idleness of a blade in its sheath, but he had gone for years without a single drop of blood spilled, at least now that a war had come up he now had reason to kill, he was happy with it, very happy. He would go down fighting he knew and even as he watched as his comrades retreated he refused to. When he had gone “soft” he had found a God, the one and only God, someone that he knew adored him for who he was and he fought now for this God, even though it was said that he disliked the killing that he did, but he didn’t care. He just knew that his God knew that he loved this, and maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. He picked up his single blade and smiled as the wave enemies came and after taking out twenty he was finally cut down. He fell smiling.

Another day, another sun, another breathe of air that awoke the sleeping guard from his bed, the thoughts of the day ahead would be in his mind until they actually happened. He had found someone who cared for him, just as much as he cared for her, the only difference was where they came from. He was a young man and she was older to some extent to say the least and yet he had already become very accomplished. He had become the leader of the guards not yet over a year ago, he was the youngest to ever achieve the feat, yet even that no longer brought him satisfaction. He thought that becoming the head of the guard would bring some sort of peace to the land, but it did nothing, or if it did it was very little. He had seen the corruption, the horridity that came with the job of a guard. Lots of them were horrible, treating regular citizens like dirt, kicking them around like they were nothing, yet he was involved with a woman that all the guards despised, a person that they loathed for the fact that she was something that was completely different to what they were, someone that actually cared for her people, the gypsies, instead of exploiting them. He adored her, even though she kept getting mad at him for loving her, for showing her his affection at times, but he didn’t mind. At least she knew that he loved her, that was all that he could ask her to know. The good thing though was that his rounds would be over quickly that day, and even though the rest of her people were rather uneasy around him with his armor on, but he never really minded it and for some reason she never did either. He always kept it brassed and polished and as he put it on, he couldn’t help but notice the weight that it brought, but there was something on his mind that he knew would keep this armor off of him, and he was hoping to ask it soon to her. He wanted to marry her, he wanted them to be together forever and he was going to ask her probably that day or the following day. All throughout his rounds he saw more and more violence, more and more ruthlessness to the citizens and he was glad that he put a stop to it on more than one occasion but even he knew that this would do nothing to stop further incidents. He was almost done though and he sighed. Only a bit longer and he would be with her. Now all he had to do was leave the gates of the city and he would be in amongst the gypsies, the people that he had grown to love and adore over the past few months, but there was always that one that he would be in love with, the Rose. He walked out and saw commotion, screaming and saw guards leaving running and laughing. Smoke was coming from a certain area and he panicked, knowing exactly what had happened. He would do something about those guards though, later after everything was alright after he knew everything would be okay. He ran and sure enough it was her tent, her home that was on fire and he ran inside to find her trapped. He had to save her, even though the smoke burned his eyes and lungs she was more important to him than anything, even his own life. He moved the obstruction, leaving her clear ways to get out and he pushed her forward ahead of him so that she would be safe. He wrapped his arms around her for a moment though, holding her close in the flames, protecting her from them but just as they were almost halfway out a support beam cracked under the heat and fell burning, crashing into him but for some reason he did not fall. He held up the beam even after all its weight was on him and he looked at her, his eyes soft and he pushed her out, away from him and as he did his legs gave out and he was pinned under, his body breaking even under the armor. There was no time for goodbyes, and as he closed his eyes he felt no pain. At least she was safe, alive. He slowly began to fall.

Me in the Jungle uniform used in Vietnam.