The Long Road

[Calix Loragwyn]

Location: Cargo hold of a merchant ship.
Destination: Unknown.

Stowed away in the cargo hold of a merchant vessel, Calix cautiously emerged from his hiding place and after ensuring he was alone, began to carefully open some of the containers and rummage through their contents. With not even a single credit to his name, he hoped that he might at least be able to find something useful or valuable in one of the containers.

"Ammunition," the boy frowned as he peered into the contents of the first crate. "Useless," he muttered and moved on to the second. "More ammunition," he sighed then reached for a smaller container. "Flashbangs," he smiled deviously and removed three - one for when he disembarks this vessel and two for later.

Pleased that his efforts were not entirely fruitless, Calix moved on to a much smaller container and opened it. Inside was an antiquated weapon and ammunition for it.

Carefully removing the revolver from its case, the boy cocked the weapon and pulled the trigger. Not bad, he thought examining the firearm, loaded it and switched on the safety, then shoved it into the waistband of his trousers and pocketed the ammunition.

Prepared in case his stealthy attempt at escape was unsuccessful, the boy continued to rummage through the containers as a means to pass the time until the ship arrived at its destination. Obviously on the ship of some arms dealer, Calix opened box after box of ammunition and slung a sniper rifle across his back. Untrained in its use, he had no plans to wield it as a weapon but rather, sell to some unsavory individual so that he might be able to buy some food and possibly afford a couple of nights at some cheap hotel.

 

[Calix Loragwyn]

His finger was on the pin of the flashbang, ready to pull the pin should the need arise, Calix held his breath as who he assumed were the ship's crew entered the cargo hold. Slowly but surely, he could hear the sound of cargo unloaded piece by piece. It would be his turn soon.

After what felt like forever, the crate he had hidden inside began to move. Hurry! He thought as his body tensed up and adrenaline surged through his veins. He wanted - no, needed to be gone before the weapons he had removed from the crate and hid away in order to make room for himself was discovered. Being only a child he knew he had no chance against adults should things get violent.

Mother... Calix thought tightening his grip around the flashbang. Though he had, like his mother, rejected the teachings of the Church of Ashira, he still liked to think- from time to time - that his deceased mother was watching over him, protecting him.

Barely able to breathe, Calix tensed up all 128 centimeters of his body until it was nearly as stiff as a corpse's with every sound or movement only serving to make his heart beat harder and faster. If the crate was not unloaded soon, he feared he was going to lose his composure and break down.

Stop. Be brave, he ordered himself. From the moment he made the decision to murder his grandmother, he knew he would embarked upon a path with no return.