THE MOMENT
"Tessa, wait," Grayson stopped his Guide before they entered the Dark Lord's keep. The sun was dipping below the horizon and it painted the cloudless sky with shades of purple and orange. This was Grayson's destiny. And if it all went well, he'd never see his Guide again. After the adventures they'd had and the bond that grew between them, he was having trouble coming to terms with her disappearance. She didn't deserve it; she was too young.
"Yeah?" The teen girl stopped and turned to face him, but only her head. Her body still faced forward as if she was eager to get it over with.
"We don't have to do this...," he said. She giggled and shook her head.
"Yeah, we do. Let's go," she stepped forward but Grayson stopped her again.
"No, we don't," he said. If he learned anything about the teen girl in their travels together it was that she was very driven. That, more than anything, was making him hesitate now. At first, he was shocked to learn his Guide was a teenager; she was almost 10 years younger than him. But, she'd proven herself to be very capable. After a couple of days of travel, it became clear why she was the Guide. He was supposed to be the hero; but, he could not have made it to the Dark Lord's keep without her frantic magic. He'd never seen anyone cast spells as fast and as vicious as she did. At times it seemed like she cast multiple spells at the same time.
Grayson spent most of his life training for his destiny. And, he spent most of his training wishing for a normal life. His Guide's age was a surprise, but as they traveled he began to see her as the daughter he'd never had. He wanted good things for her, and it only drove him harder on his mission. He wanted her to live in a world free of the Dark Lord's influence. But, then he learned that she would disappear after he completed his chosen quest. That was worse than living under the Dark Lord's shadow. And, in the long run, he doubted she'd be in any danger from the low-level minions that pillaged the countryside; she'd already proven that.
"We could just end this now. We'll go somewhere far away from here and you can live a full life into old age. Maybe you can find a nice boy to protect," he chuckled. "I'll help take care of you."
"No thanks," Tessa shook her head and stepped forward again.
"You're going to die!" Grayson said. He knew he had to be direct to get through to her. She stopped and this time she turned around completely. She had an almost annoyed look in her eyes. Grayson chalked it up to her age.
"What's your favorite number?" she asked.
"Did you hear what I said?" he asked. "After we defeat the Dark Lord, you're going to disappear." Despite what he just said, the annoyance dissipated. Her shoulders slumped and she looked genuinely relieved.
"Oh, thank god," she said. Then, she nodded at him. "Yeah, I know. Let's go."
"You... know?" Grayson was shocked. And, even more determined to keep her safe. She was too selfless for her own good. "No, I'm not going," he said.
"You're going to let me go by myself?" she giggled at him. "I thought you wanted to keep me alive." Grayson smiled and shook his head.
"It takes both of us to open the door, remember?" It's why he was given a Guide at all. Not only was the journey dangerous, but a single person also could literally not do it on their own. Ancient magic sealed the Dark Lord's keep and it required a Hero and a Guide to get past it. She sighed heavily and her eyes rolled up as she lost herself in thought.
"Uhhmm...," she had a tendency to think aloud. "okay..., I can work around this," Grayson knew she was talking to herself more than him. Then, she looked at him again.
"You're obviously not supposed to know that," she shrugged. "But, I knew it before I became your Guide. Do you know where we come from?" he asked.
"Come from...?" Grayson shook his head. He'd taken it for granted that Guides were chosen ones like Heroes were. He knew she was an elf, and he knew elves existed, along with other non-human races. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized that the only non-human races he knew of were Guides. "..another country?" he asked. She giggled and shook her head.
"Another world," she said. Grayson's jaw fell slack. It was almost unbelievable; but, not quite. It made too much sense with the things he'd seen her do.
"After we finish this quest, I'm going back to my world," she said. "All Guides do. I'm not going to die, just disappear from this world. I still have a long life ahead of me, like you wanted. And, I really want to get back to it," she said. Grayson narrowed her eyes at her.
"You... you wouldn't lie to me...," he said. He wasn't sure about that fact himself.
"Oh, I would," she nodded with a sly smile. "But, one thing I wouldn't do is knowingly walk into my own death," she said. "Not for your world anyway," she added to drive the point home. Grayson nodded. She had a brusque personality that took time to warm up to. And, he believed her. He was confident that she absolutely would lie to him. But, he also knew she wouldn't accept her death lying down.
"How... how did you get here? Can you visit? Can we somehow meet again?"
"No," she said. "I'm only allowed to be here to guide you on your quest. I can't come back."
"Okay," Grayson nodded and took her at her word. "Once we get in there, it'll be non-stop fighting until the end," he reached an arm around her shoulders. "I'm going to miss you. I hope you have a wonderful life ahead of you." She patted his stomach in a friendly gesture, then slipped out of his arm.
"Yeah, I'll miss you too," she lied. "Let's go get this over with."