Star Eater

Chapter 7:

Arthur's Point of View

Reed Farmstead

"Arthur Pendragon?" Austin repeated, and I nodded. "Well, nice ta meet ya, Arthur! We really appreciate yer help!" Holding out his hand for a friendly greeting, I shook it.

"Likewise."

Grandpa Reed chuckled, and I noticed him looking at the bandage over my eye. He didn't comment on it, but I could tell he was curious. After all, it was clearly a rough handmade eyepatch, and the only other thing I was wearing was a towel. Who wouldn't be interested?

"You're an interestin one, Arthur." He turned to Austin. "Start setting the table. Dinner is almost ready."

"Okay, Grandpa!" Again, the boy started to run around.

Chipped plates were set down on the table along with old silverware that clearly has been used one too many times. Three different cups were put down that were made of some manner plastic, clay, and metal. Nothing matched. Grandpa Reed started to put food on the table right as Austin finished.

Smirking as he sat down and hung his cane off the back of his seat, he gestured to all the food. "We have some cooked duck, apple pie, mashed tators, and some steamed veggies. Please, help yourself."

Before I could say anything, Augustus started piling food onto my plate, which made Austin giggle. Not wanting to be rude, I ate everything he set in front of me. It was nice to have a homecooked meal for once. Eating like this was nice and the atmosphere matched. Honestly, I'm not sure I remember a time sitting down like this in the last dozen or so years just to eat.

"So, Arthur," Grandpa Reed started. "Your clothes will be dry in a few hours, but Ah was wonderin if ya might like ta stay the night." He then continued.

"I don't want to overstay my welcome."

Austin quickly spoke up. "Ya won't! We'd love ta have ya here!"

Looking at Augustus, I explained. "Look, you've fed me, bathed me, and helped with my clothes and armor. You don't need to go out-" The old man cut me off.

"Nonsense. Ya saved my life. We'd be more than happy ta have ya." Looking to his grandson, he continued. "Go make up the guest bedroom, Austin." Running out of the kitchen and upstairs, the old man put the dishes in the sink, and then sat back down. "Look, ya did right by us. Let us return the favor."

"You don't need to."

"Well, we want to." Was his quick reply as he smirked. "Besides, gonna take a bit for that manticore to get taken care of. Gotta wait for my granddaughter ta come home before we can get rid of it." He explained. "Not something we would expect our savior ta do. She'll likely be home tomorrow, which works in our favor since we don't have any clothes for you to wear."

Looking out the window at the dead body, I realized the issue. Other creatures might smell it and come looking for it. They were close to the forest that was filled with all types of predators. Rolling my tongue across my lips, I saw my equipment out on the lines, still blowing in the wind.

My attention moved back to Grandpa Reed. "I'll take care of the body if you need me to."

He waved my concern away. "No need. My granddaughter, Cassidy, will be able to take care of it easy enough." Looking at how dark it was getting, Augustus continued. "It's gettin late. You're all showered up and ready for bed. How about we talk about it in the morning?"

"Very well," I said with a smile and stood. "I suppose I should go to my room. However, I would like to bring in my equipment first. Aside from my undershirt and pants, I'd like to look over my armor and sword."

"Be careful with that sword, and don't let Austin anywhere near it."

I nodded. "Of course."

Going outside with nothing but a towel on was interesting. Especially since I had no idea who these people really were aside from simple farmers. Not that they seemed to care. However, Austin's older sister coming home might be an issue. If Augustus said she'd take care of the manticore's body, that tells me she's old enough to handle hard manual labor, and not afraid to get her hands dirty. Which means there is a bit of an age gap between Austin and Cassidy.

Having brought all my armor inside, and my sword, I waited for my actual clothes to dry. While I waited, I looked over my armor and sword. My armor was clean but still wet in some spots. Since I had a towel, I used it to dry the armor the rest of the way. Then I looked over my sword. Blood was still on it. Austin was smart enough not to touch it, which made sense.

"Wish I didn't have to scrap this blood off of you."

At that moment, my mind almost seemed to link with my sword. I could feel it in its entirety. Not because I was holding the handle, but every part on it was almost resonating inside my body. My body tensed, and I felt hot. The sword began to glow as I felt my body shifting... Changing. My alarm only grew when I saw my arm change from a normal human arm to something dark, clawed, and discolored. It was so subtle that if I wasn't looking at it, I probably would've missed it.

"What!?" Dropping the sword in alarm, it fell onto the floor, and I stepped away from it.

Immediately looking over my hands was my main concern. I expected some manner of mutation. There was no such evidence. My arm looked normal, and the sword was no longer glowing. However, as I shakily approached the sword, I noticed it was cleaned. Not a drop of blood on it.

"You alright?" Austin asked me suddenly from the doorway.

Breathing heavily and sweating from the occurrence just prior, I turned to him, alarmed. "Did you see that!?"

The child seemed a little surprised at how panicked my voice seemed. "See what?" He said back unsurely. "Ah was coming up the stairs when Ah heard ya drop something. Figured it was that armor of yours or your sword." Then he looked at the sword. "Ya cut yourself?"

Shaking my head, I replied. "No. It..." Trailing off and taking a deep breath to collect myself helped. "Never mind. I think I'm just tired."

"Ah got your clothes for ya." Austin informed me as he held them up.

"Thank you, Austin." Taking them and setting them on the bed, I looked to the young boy. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Night, Arthur."

A simple wave was all I gave him before I went over and closed the door. Changing into actual clothes was nice. Being in only a towel for a few hours was restricting in a moral way. However, after I got changed, my eyes immediately looked back to my sword. The blue parts on it had stopped glowing entirely, and I was no longer sure if perhaps I just had a vision or some manner of hallucination. Then again, it could be that the sword was trying to tell me something. Absurd in most cases, but what was I supposed to think in this world...

Crawling into bed, my mind wandered as I thought about how little I knew about this world. Flying humans, manticores, ghouls, elves, and more... It was a lot to take in, and I haven't had the chance to really learn anything yet. Sighing as I laid in the rickety bed, I finally took off the bandage on my eye and fell asleep.

The next day came, and I readied for it in an actual home. A morning shower was nice. As was the chance to use toothpaste. Might've used my finger as the brush, but it worked. Putting on the armor was easy, and even though I was a little wary of my sword, I still hooked it onto my back. I was ready for the day and fully dressed. Aside from the tear in my sleeve that was being used for a bandage...

Moving downstairs, the first thing I wanted to get started on was the manticore's body being removed from the area. Then to check the surroundings to make sure there were no more big predators lying in wait. None of these things happened because as soon as I made my way down to the front door, Austin was there waiting for me with his grandpa.

"Breakfast is ready." Augustus informed me and didn't wait for my reply.

Austin grabbed my hand and tried to drag me into the kitchen. "Come on!" I didn't budge an inch. "It's like tryin ta move a tree!" He grunted out as he moved behind me to start pushin. "We got get some grub before we start the day!" Austin said.

Sighing, I stepped forward slightly and let him push. "Alright. I'll eat."

We all sat down, with Austin sitting next to me again, and the old man smiling. Breakfast was nice. Eggs, toast with some jam, and bacon. Something I hadn't had in years. Something that was definitely worth sitting down for. As we were finishing up, I noticed Austin staring at me.

"Do I have something on my face?"

"Yeah! That bandage!" He pointed out. "Ya hurt your eye or somethin?"

"Or something." Was my answer and turned my attention to Augustus. "Figured I'd go take care of that manticore body as a thanks for the meal."

"Ya don't need to." Grandpa Reed replied with a smirk as he gestured out to it with his cane. "Ma Granddaughter should be home sometime today. She can deal with it."

Standing, I moved towards the door. "It's not a problem. I insist. I'll even check your farm for any more or other predators that might've smelled the blood."

Grandpa Reed frowned at that. "Perhaps we should ask the Town Guard for some assistance..." He trailed off, looking at Austin.

Opening the door, I spoke quickly as I exited the home. "No need."

Moving out into the crop, I grabbed the dead manticore after making sure there weren't any other mythical creatures in the immediate area. When I did so, I noticed the dried blood covering the area. In the crop and near the house from Austin washing my armor. It was watered down, but you could still see lines of blood in the dirt and stone here and there. Not to mention the crop itself stank, and the dirt turned to mud that stunk. Something else I would have to take care of.

Grabbing it by its tail, I drug it through the farm and towards the woods where it would be easy enough to leave it there. Once it's in the damned forest that I was dropped in unceremoniously, and without any regard to my safety, something would eat the damn thing, and the problem would be solved. Dragging it across the farm was annoying, especially considering how large it was, but I didn't want to just chuck it into the forest.

"Could I? Probably, but it'd likely give the Reed family a panic attack. Unless people are stronger here than I originally thought." I mumbled to myself.

Once I picked the beast up by its tail, I tossed it just through the tree line and into the forest. With that out of the way, only one thing was left to do. Moving through the farm was easy enough. Several different crops were growing, but none that were overly tall or hard to see in. Aside from the corn and wheat, everything was clear. It didn't take long for me to clear both of those fields either. Corn and wheat were the perfect hiding spots besides maybe the odd collection of trees here and there.

However, after I had cleared the farm, I started to make my way back to the house. "This is a much bigger farm than I thought," I said to myself and looked around. "Most farms were..." Trailing off, I remembered this wasn't Earth. "Right. Different world. Different rules."

Time had gone by. A few hours, at least since I wanted to be thorough. However, as I approached the farmhouse, I noticed a woman standing around the crops where the manticore used to be. Not thinking much of it, I assumed it was Cassidy, but wasn't sure. However, the red hair, freckled face, and worn clothing seemed to be a dead giveaway. She wasn't doing anything as I approached. Just standing there.

"Excuse me," I called out to try and get her attention. "Are you Cassidy Reed?" My inquiry was left unanswered as she stood there silently. "Miss?"

As I studied her closer since I was now next to her, I noticed she was built like a brick shithouse. The amount of muscle on this woman was incredible. No doubt life on the farm helped, but this was training and exercise too. Much like her grandfather, she was shorter than me. However, for a woman, she was quite tall. Probably around 5'10 or so. I had maybe half a foot on her. Maybe less...

"Cassidy?" I called out again.

Instead of responding, I saw her fingers curl into a fist, and her swing it back towards me. Stepping back to avoid the blow, she turned and glared at me. Holding up my hands to try and calm her down, I was able to take in a few more features. She was more of a strawberry blonde and had a tan that accented her hair and freckles. Unfortunately, I couldn't do much else as she stepped toward me in an attacking manner.

"What did you do!?" She bellowed and swung at me.

It wasn't wild strikes either. Each punch was calculated, precise, and controlled.

"Not sure what you mean." Was my reply as I kept my distance. "Are you Ms. Reed?"

"Why don't you come find out!"

Rolling my eyes, I readied myself as she rushed towards me. Dirt kicked up around us as she kicked off the ground hard. I was expecting punches but was surprised to see she could kick too. Bringing her right foot high above her head, she brought it down hard and sent dirt flying through the crop. This girl was certainly flexible. Green eyes glared at me.

"I think there is some misunderstanding here..." I told her as she huffed at me and kept her fist up. "Surely, we can talk about this?" My question went to the wind as she bellowed another battle cry. "Or not."

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