The Birth Of A Hero
“I have been blinded from jealousy.” Steven of Kusman was filled with remorse and pain. “I am sorry, brother.”
After Toby of Kusman had been knighted by Prince Caius, Toby the Centaur decided to visit his family and return his bow back to its rightful owner, his family, as a symbol of leaving his Yeoman life behind and entering his new knighthood. Although Toby still felt uncomfortable and uneasy to face other humans after transformed unwillingly into a fairy tale creature, he was filled with pride, dignity and honor as he stepped into his home. With tears in his eyes, his dream had come true. He was a knight from the Commoners.
The next day after Toby left his family, Steven of Kusman, Toby’s younger brother, was staring at the bow that Toby had left behind. It, as a trophy, was placed perfectly on the shelf in the living room.
“What has happened to you, brother?” Steven talked to himself unawares. “You have been turned into a monster, and yet you are still the favored… It is NOT fair!”
Steven wondered that if he had been the chosen one to follow Prince Caius, he would have a better fate than now. Life is not fair. With all the negative thinking in his head, Steven irritably decided to grab the bow and ran away. He wanted to run as far away as he could to get away from his family, his miserable past. He wanted a different life. A life that he could craft for himself…
After many days of travel, Steven was lost in a forest with an empty stomach. He was so tired that he could not run any more. He decided to take a brief rest, then hunt something to fill his belly, but the bow was too large for him to use efficiently. He cursed the bow, put it back on his back, and then started to look around for some berries and fruits. It must be his destiny, or he was an extremely unlucky person. He didn’t find food. He found the bandits instead.
The bandit leader was interested in the huge bow that Steven was carrying. He started asking Steven questions. Soon he found out that Steven was a Yeoman from the Kusmans (The name of Sir Toby of Kusman, the Centaur, was starting to go throughout the land of King Anguish).
“I offer you a chance to oath of fealty to me,” the bandit leader asked Steven all of a sudden. “Do you accept?”
It was not expected. Steven was shocked and paused for a few seconds. He thought he would not survive, but now he had a chance to live and start his new life.
“I accept…” Steven said it unwillingly. He wanted to live.
When they returned to the bandit camp, Steven was given a proper long bow that matched his size. He tested it with a few bullseye shots.
“He truly is the brother of Sir Toby of Kusman,” the bandit leader whispered himself with approval. “And I would not expect less from him.”
Months had been passed. Steven had befriended with the bandit leader as he learned more about the bandit leader. He started to see and look at things differently after meeting different people.
The bandit leader allowed Steven to keep Toby’s huge bow, so Steven hung it up on the wall beside his bed. One day, Steven noticed that the bow was shrinking to its original size. He immediately had a bad feeling about it, but he couldn’t tell what exactly. Then he saw a green mist emerged from nowhere, and it slowly went into the bow. The bow had mysteriously turned green. Steven had a feeling of his brother’s present somehow. He lifted his shaking hand up slowly and touched the bow lightly. He heard a low voice in his head saying, “Seek out King Arthur… Seek out King Arthur… Prince Caius needs your help...”
Steven charged out of the room and looked for the bandit leader, but the bandit leader was nowhere to be found. So, Steven quickly dropped a note and left in the middle of the night. He did not forget his oath of fealty to the bandit leader, but he had a more important thing to do... to save King Arthur.
“Brother,” Steven cried out with remorse. “Now I will continue to fulfill your destiny.”
