My Father's Lands

Disclaimer: This story was inspired by a greek short story. I own and claim nothing.

Updates might be slow in coming. Sorry.
-------

In the olden days there was a woman who bore a son. This was her one comfort and happiness and in the child she saw a likeness to that of the boy's father, though his true name she did not know. The child was beautiful, well formed and strong. As soon as the child could walk, he was apt to fight and quarrel with children of his own age. The fighting was harmless fights of children though the boy was never amiable but always gentle with his mother.

From the moment he was born he was never afraid of anything. When he was five, he would take off into the woods with a small set of a bow and arrows and be gone for hours. His mother worried in his absence but he would always return, sometimes with the bodies of snakes or bunnies that he had shot. Sometimes he would manage to drag home the carcass of an animal equal to his own weight. His mother was truly terrified that one day her boy may be mauled to death by a wild boar during his hunts; or that he might fight and inadvertently kill another boy and be obliged to leave the country. The other boys however knew not to quarrel with her Heero (the name she had chosen for her only son), because he was quick of temper and heavy of hand. As for the wild beasts, he was phlegmatic and eager, and seemed to posses an uncanny knowledge of how to deal with them.

The woman was very proud of her son and hoped that someday he might be able to roll back the bolder in the glen. She had not mentioned of this hope to him as a little boy, but on their daily walks through the forest or on the beach she would ask him to pick up very heavy stones. After performing the task she would shower him with kisses and praise. She would also tell him tales of great heroes of the past who possessed great strength. Heero could not bear to be second rate to anyone, so he would often rise early in the morning to test his weight lifting skills. As it is often shown, people can do amazing things in the morning that they may not have the strength to do later in the day. So rising early, Heero would go beat out the other men in the village in different feats of strength.

When Heero was seven his mother sought to find him a tutor. There was a man named Jerevus who had spent his life in the pursuit of knowledge and strength. Jerevus was eager to pass on his knowledge to such a fine candidate and soon Heero possessed all of his tutor’s great lessons. At age seventeen Heero had gained the best from his tutor, was capable of great shows of physical power and determined himself to be a man. Thus he questioned his mother on the origin of his father. She told him that the man that was his father had taken off shortly after their marriage and never heard from him since. She finally revealed to her son that should he be able to manage to roll the moss covered bolder in the glen from it's position, he could find clues to whom his father was and let the information fill his heart and take him wherever he should think best.

Heero went straight to the bolder and tried his best to move it. It did not budge for him that evening so he quickly returned home to gather bread, wine, and cheese along with a sleeping mat. That night he slept next to the rock in the glen and awoke early in the morning. At the first sounds of the birds and rays of light began to peek over the horizon, Heero tried his hand at moving the rock again. As he pushed, he felt it lightly give way and change positions. Pushing harder the rock was moved from its place and underneath was undisturbed ground except for a wrapping of blue cloth that contained something. Unwrapping many layers from the object, a sword of unparalleled beauty was reveled to him. The hilt was made of crystal and was inlayed in gold with patterns of noble hunts. The blade was double edged, strong and supple. On the bottom of the sword blade, near the hilt, was an inscription. It took Heero a moment to make out what it said. The words were, 'Of Yuy'. Heero had heard of Yuy, a king of the neighboring country who had not had a child with his wife. Yuy led a sorrowful life and his castle was being over taken by his brother Lowe and his children. Lowe and his children had no respect for Yuy, a once powerful man, and they feasted in his hall, recklessly and fiercely, robbing people, and Yuy had no control over them. 'If my father is Yuy, he is in need of me,' Heero thought as he sought him mother.

When Heero found this mother, he presented the sword to her. Tears began to well in her eyes and she told Heero that his father was indeed King Yuy. 'His strength and willpower has been stolen from him. He is truly in need of your help Heero.'

"Then I must go," he told his mother. "I will leave this night and help this king, my father, rid his kingdom of all that terrorizes it."

Pulling together supplies and a sleeping mat for his trip, Heero left under cover of a cloud that evening, girt with the sword of Yuy.

*****

Heero walked all night and slept by day in a farmer's hut. The farmer was kind and shared food and drink with him. He warned him of dangers that lie on the path ahead of him.

"There is a large man," the farmer told Heero, "that lives along the side of the road two kilometers from here. The man contains great strength, enough to wield a large metal mace. However, he is so grand that he cannot support his own weight therefore he cannot stand. Never the less, he is considerably agile."

Heero scoffed at the idea. "I hardly fear a lame man." The farmer looked doubtful at his statement. "How do the locals pass this man on the road? Under the cover of darkness?"

"Darkness scarcely protects travelers," the farmer said taking a long sip from his mug. "Most will trust the ocean before they try to pass this creature on the upland path. You would be wise to do the same."

"I intend to make all paths safe for travelers during my journey."

That evening Heero took leave of the farmer's hospitality and set out to the upland path. Making his way over the ever-rising terrain, it became more difficult to navigate due to overgrown grasses and the deepening shadows. Further on, the land rose steeply up on Heero's left side while it plummeted on his left side. One misstep and he would plunge into the ocean below. If Heero was nervous, it didn't show on his steely visage.

Heero was in tune with his surroundings. An encounter with the large man could happen at any turn in the path and he kept his senses attentive. A cry of a seagull from 3 yards off shore, the ocean breeze in the trees above, and just there the snap of a twig most likely from a small mammal.

Just ahead Heero could see the orange glow of a fire. Shadowed against the fire was the outline of a man of prodigious size. His chin lie on his chest in sleep and his unkempt and tangled hair fell over his face. Next to him laid his mace.

Undeterred in is errand Heero approached the man. "You! Move from my path so I can continue on."

The man looked up at his sleepily.

"I keep this way and you may not continue without my leave," the giant said confidently taking this mace in his hand.

"I will tell you only once more to vacate," Heero growled out.

"That will be hard for me. My legs will not support me, but my arms are strong enough." That was the only warning Heero got before the monstrous man swung his mace out. Heero had only seconds to roll out of the path of the mace and draw his sword. The giant swung the mace again and before he could recover his stroke, Heero rushed forward and drove the sword of Yuy into his throat, and he fell back dead.

Having secured the path, Heero took time to rest. He fell into a light sleep until daybreak and left the giant's body behind. There was a small town not far from where he had slain the mammoth man and the farmers out working in the early morning hailed him as he came upon the village.

"Ho stranger! Did you come from the path?" When Heero nodded another farmer spoke up. "Did you find the giant asleep?"

"No, I found him awake, but he will never bother the upland path again."

Shock was the reigning emotion before a man was sent to check on the proclamation. Soon the man came running back, out of breath but exuberant, he announced, "The giant is indeed dead. There was no body, only tell tail ashes in the fire, but the giant's mace lies abandoned." A cheer went up among the crowd that had gathered. Heero heard one of the village women say behind him, "What a kind man this stranger must be to give the rites of fire to the loathsome giant so his shadow will not wonder outside the final resting place." Only the problem was that Heero had not pushed the giant man's body into the fire. Someone of great strength must have come along the path and preformed the rites. Yet no one had passed through the village after Heero. This mysterious situation bothered Heero to no end. He took only a quick meal and a few supplies from the insistent villagers before he set off again, but not before he had heard of another who terrorized travelers.

Heero was heading off in the direction of a man who dismembered people by pulling back two trees, tying a man by hand and foot to both trees and then letting the trees spring forward so the person would be torn asunder. However there was a new mission--to come across whom ever had pushed the giant's body into the fire. Heero was going to rid his father's land of degenerates and he would not have someone usurp his mission.