1 ~ The Sword Ceremony
I mount up my horse and ride her to the edge of the capitol. When I arrive at the palace, I see the group of Agents of Fate standing around before the palace, all of them ready to receive their swords. I approach my friends, who all look at me and smile. Damien and Drake, twin brothers, rush forward to meet me. Damien claps me on the back, and I smile back at him. He smirks at me, a wicked look in his eyes.
"Today's the day, Zarah! Today, we get our Swords of Fate! I wonder who mine will be...." Damien's voice trails off as Simon approaches me.
Simon is a tall, stocky man with black hair and pale white skin, which is freckled and covered in scars. He has brown eyes, and those eyes have seen so much. I often wonder what it would be like if I were Fatebound to him, like only two of the Agents of Fate could be, and if I would like him and his soul if I could feel it.
You see, two Agents of Fate can be Fatebound, which links their souls and minds and hearts as one, making it so we can sync up our thoughts and actions, and thus, we can work together as a team of two bodies, and one soul. I want to be Fatebound to Simon. But I do not know if he wants me to be bound to him.
The sword that we receive today will appear to us as a human. They will be the best friend of us until the day the Fates decide to change them back to their swordstate. But I have never seen a Sword of Fate as a human. As there is only a few ways of telling that the sword is not fully human by appearance. But I don't know what way it is, as I have never before met a sword in their human form.
Damien nudges me. "You spaced out, didn't you?"
I shrug as we walk to the entrance of the palace. Kadence and Mel meet us in the massive, marble halls of the palace. We walk together in silence, and when we enter a large, domed chamber full of people of all types, people who are gathered here for the Sword Ceremony.
The sounds of people talking, laughing, and just having a general good time, fill the massive room. We stand there, milling and talking about nothing, when the doors behind the three thrones are opened, and out comes three women in black mourning gowns, all of them wearing a black cloth over their heads and faces, like a black veil.
Silence falls over the crowd, and the three women — the three Fates, step up to the podium and the one in the middle steps forward to speak. I glance at Damien, Drake, Simon, Kadence, and Mel. All but Simon are staring at the Fates. Simon is staring at me.
My heartbeat quickens, and I have to clench my fists at my sides to prevent them from shaking. Why's he staring at me? What's wrong, here? Is he mad at me or something?
"Good evening, Agents of Fate. We are here today to welcome you all to the life of an Agent. But first, you must understand this — your sword is your life, your sword is your friend, and your sword is the master of your fate. Do right by your swords, and they will never fail you. Stand tall in the face of danger, and your sword will always be by your side, faithful until the end. Now, would Zarah Zakrymenis please step forward to the podium?"
Anxiety flutters about in me as I slowly approach the podium. The other Agents of Fate stand around, letting me pass, and I finally reach the podium and stand before the Fates. I bow low, and the lead one, the one in the middle who spoke, steps forward.
A guard steps up, and gestures for me to follow him. I glance at the Fates, who, as one, nod. So I follow the guard back behind the doors the Fates walked through and up to a set of stairs. The guard, a guy I have never met before, speaks in a deep, gruff voice.
"Zarah Zakrymenis, be careful with this one," he says.
"What?" I ask.
We stop before a great, red and gold door. The guard looks down at me. "Not sure about this one, as it thinks it's an angel." He nods to the door. "Go on in. Meet your sword."
Nervous, I approach the door. I open it, and step inside. It closes behind me, and I face the person in this room with me. She turns to face me, and I stare at her, drinking in her features. She has brown eyes like gems, like a tiger's eye stone. Her skin is golden brown, and her hair is styled to be poofy and wavy. She wears a gold and white dress, and golden sandals. She looks at me, her jewel-like eyes boring into my very soul.
"Uh, hi, there. I'm Zarah Zakrymenis."
"And you are my Agent of Fate."
Her voice is so smooth, deep, and silky that I feel my heart race a bit at her first words to me. She steps out of the light that shines down from above and walks up to me. She looks me up and down. My heart races in my chest.
"What's your name?" I ask her.
"Don't have one," she replies.
"Oh. Do I.... can I name you, then?"
"What would you name me?"
I sigh and think for a minute. "Halobreaker."
Her eyes flick to mine. "Do you believe that I am an angel?"
I shrug. "You're not lying to me. I can always tell when someone is lying to me. You aren't."
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"You said someone. Not something."
I smile at her. "Well, you're a person. I see you as that, not just a sword."
She grins. "I wish everyone thought as you."
