Herald of Steel

Alexander observed Camius scamper off, when Cambyses suddenly spoke up, "You know, this is the first time I heard you use that word."

"Huh, what word?" He turned to look at her.

"Instinct. Never heard you say that before. It's always reason and logic with you." She pointed out.

"Hmm, you're right. Needed the right tool for the right job I guess." Alexander admitted.

So why had Alexander's irrational approach worked? Because this was a different time.

In Alexander's time, people were naturally suspicious of each other and always wanted reasons, proofs and evidence to convince them.

But here and now, people tended to trust the people they had an emotional tie with. Emotion and not reason moved most people.

"You've changed." Cambyses made an observation.

"We all have. You're no longer the sickly cripple and I'm no longer the helpless slave. It's called growing up." Alexander replied.

"That's not what I meant." She shook her head.

"When I first met you, you had this invisible aura around you. Like you were not part of this world. It's lessened now."

'What fearsome observation power! Is this what they call a woman's intuition?' Alarm bells started ringing inside Alexander. She had somehow managed to stumble into his biggest secret.

Rapidly trying to think of a rebuttal, he decided not to outright dismiss it, but to bend the truth. "I guess I am different. I think and act differently. That's why I always had trouble mixing with others. Now I guess I am starting to adjust myself."

"No, that's not it." She again shook her head. "You have a kind of walk to yourself that feels like nothing can hold you. That you could just fly away if you wanted to. I know it because I once felt it too. When I was in that closet, I too felt not attached to anything. But yours is much stronger."

"That…"

She suddenly grabbed his wrists and asked, "Hey Alexander, what are you? How do you know so much? Are you Gaia who came down to save me from that Hell?" Her misty, emerald eyes gazed longingly at her lover's almond black eyes, eager for an honest answer.

Looking at those earnest eyes, Alexander knew he couldn't give his usual "learned it from a traveling sage" cookie-cutter answer.

He would totally lose her trust if he did that.

But what could he say?

Saying he was a god was far easier than trying to explain to her that he was an alien soul from a different planet a few thousand years in the future who took over the dead body of an orphan.

Even the raving mad wouldn't believe this creatively bankrupt explanation.

So he tried to delay the answer.

"This isn't the time or ….."

"This is exactly the time. Who knows if we will last the night." Cambyses almost shouted, shivering in anger.

Seeing this Alexander realized that recent events had really shaken her.

It was easy to forget that she was merely sixteen years old. And that in this world, she really had only him to rely on.

He also understood had to give her a straight answer here. There would be no weaseling out of it if he still wanted her as an ally.

"Okay, you want the truth? I will tell you the whole truth." Alexander finally relented. "Not right now but I swear by today I will tell you the truth. I just need to organize my words."

*Hug*. Cambyses simply hugged him in reply.

"You!" Alexander was shocked as he hurriedly tried to pry her off of him.

To think she would openly hug him in public. If someone saw them, it wouldn't end well for either of them.

This wasn't the 21st century.

This was an extremely conservative society where such an open display of affection could have grave consequences.

The names and jeers an unmarried woman could receive if she was found out were enough to drive one to commit suicide.

Fortunately, this part of the camp was quite secluded and everyone was too busy with their own work.

Cambyses on the other hand was totally unconcerned of such considerations and just hugged Alexander even tighter as he tried to pull her off.

"*Sob* *sob*, I was so scared when he came at you. It felt like my heart would burst, *sniff*." Cambyses suddenly burst out crying.

Alexander was stunned. He felt like today alone he received more surprises than in the last ten years combined.

Because he had never seen the girl cry before. Not even once over the ten years he had known her. Not even after all the horrific things that happened to her.

She was abandoned in the corner of a tent, malnourished and developing rickets.

Alexander coincidentally found her one day when he was cleaning Nestoras's tent and from then on poured his heart and soul into treating her.

He would share his meager food with her, drag her outside to sunbathe and even help her exercise.

At meals, he would tell her little stories to coax her to eat.

He even used his little influence to get Mean to help him look after her.

And among all these things, although she showed great reluctance at first, she never ever shouted or threw a tantrum, much less ever shed a drop of tear.

She once proudly said, "I left my tears in that dingy corner."

But now that proud, strong girl was crying, no bawling for him.

It made his heart ache and swell.

In reality, she saved him as much as he saved her.

When he came to this world he was much like her- lost, scared and alone.

Being sold as a child slave to a roaming mercenary band, war, hunger and death hounded him at every step. For a man of the 21st century, it felt worse than hell.

So when he found her, it felt like he found himself. And saving her felt like saving himself because it gave him a reason to live and helped him forget the abject misery he was in.

He tenderly laid in hands on her head, lovingly caressing it and gently cooed in her ears, "Silly girl, I would never leave you."

"You promise, *sniff*?" She asked coyly.

"I promise."

"Good. You're not allowed to die without my permission then." Cambyses finally let go of the embrace and proclaimed majestically.

"As you wish princess," Alexander replied, placing his hand across his chest and bowing.

"Hehe" Cambyses simply giggled.

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