They Were Born Upon Ashes by Kenneth Champion

people of Genold City. Plus what I experienced that night in the castle still makes it hard for me to sleep.”
    “I’m sorry. Are you okay?”
    “I’m good; I’m perfectly fine even,” said Elizabeth. “The men in hoods didn’t hurt me. They barely even put a hand on me. But I saw them put their blades through a few of my friends that worked in the castle with me. All they did was fight back. But they were good people. They did not deserve to die just because they fought and defended themselves from whom they believed to be an evil and hostile force.”
    “Those images are always hard to deal with,” said Nick. “Some will fade in time. Others will resonate with you. You see that person die over and over. That is something I might carry with me for the rest of my life.”
    “That’s not exactly a comforting observation to tell me, my friend,” said Elizabeth.
    “It’s the truth,” said Nick. “Another thing that is true is the power of meditation. If you can master meditation you can ease the traumatic experiences you’ve encountered. I used meditation when I felt alone in the arena. I used it when I couldn’t get the images of what I had done in order to survive out of my head. Meditation is a practice that you can use to unlock the greatest power in each and every one of us. I’m not talking about the power of a human, a Reza, or a Paplon. I’m talking about a power that we all share. The power of your mind. It is more powerful than any of us could ever imagine. You can conquer anything so long as you realize the full potential of what your brain can do for you.”
    “And how do I do this meditation thing?” asked Elizabeth.
    “You’ve never even heard of it?”
    She shook her head.
    “Well, all you do is breath deeply. The most important thing is to learn to control your breath. Consistent and slow exhales and inhales. Once that is done, allow your mind to travel to the most comfortable place you can ever be in. Once you are there and your breathing is controlled, you must let go. When you let go just allow yourself to get lost.”
    Elizabeth closed her eyes and did exactly as Nick had instructed. After a few minutes she smirked slightly. That was all he needed to see to know that she was capable of meditating. She was on her first step to recovering from what she had experienced.
    He heard the familiar faint clacking of feet in the distance behind him. First they very faint, but then they grew louder. He turned around to see the shadow of a horse and a person riding on top of it.
    It grew closer and closer with each passing second. Nick put his hand on the handle of his blade just in case the person intended to pick a fight.
    “Nick!” shouted the rider.
    It was a voice all too familiar to him.
    “Penny?”
    The horse came to a stop and Penny Goldstem stepped down off of the horse.
    “Nick, I’m so glad you’re safe,” said Penny.
    “Penny, what are you doing out here?” Nick asked as he ran over to hug her.
    They were face to face as Nick said, “This feels like a dream.”
    “This is no dream. I came to be with you, Nick, and I couldn’t bear to live another day without you.”
    They kissed each other. It was the kind of kiss one would grow up wishing to experience someday. The kind of kiss where there was no absence of happiness. One would smile and the other would reciprocate as they could feel their partner’s lips crease upwards. It was the kind of kiss that they could both share in an immense and overwhelming feeling without having to say a single word. What they could feel was love. There was no doubt in either of their minds.

Chapter Six
    Love. It was something that Nick had never experienced. As shocked and almost appalled at the thought of Penny risking her safety to come all the way up north to be with him, he could not stay mad at her. Sure, there was a quite sudden sickening thought when he had first seen her face. But within minutes all Nick could do was appreciate