“I have
always been efficient and always on schedule. I need you to know this, so when
tell you I have only failed once, you will understand the significance”
In the
ancient times great kings would have their warriors compete for glory and
honor. The best warriors of the land would strive for victory in single combat.
These fights were not always to the death, but they were still brutal. One
combatant stood out for his sheer force of will and indomitable spirit. This
warrior was named Virtus.
Virtus fought
for glory and honor like the other warriors but he also fought with a goal and
determination to reach that goal. Virtus was from a small village, a village
that was always plagued by bandits and raiders. The poor villagers did not have
much to spare even before the bandits attacked. So Virtus grew up fighting,
trying to protect his village. He felt responsible for the entire village even
as a youth, so he would fight the raiders and even though he lost more than he
won, he still fought on to show the human vultures of that land that his
village was not easy prey. Virtus spent his life as the guardian of the village
and as the years passed he grew up tall and strong. By the time he was a
full-grown man he had as many scars on his body as he had muscles. The elder of
the village told Virtus to leave and find a future for himself, as many of the
villagers worried that protecting a few cattle and some grain would be his
entire life. While everyone in the village felt blessed to have Virtus they
knew it wouldn’t be right to let him shoulder the burden of the whole village
by himself. So with a heavy heart the Elder of the village forced Virtus to
leave. It wasn’t banishment but it was pretty close.
It didn’t
take long for Virtus to discover the capital city and its giant gladiator arena
that hosted fights every day and drew in crowds from all across the land. Once
Virtus heard about the fame and gold that could be earned in the arena he made
a promise to himself that he would become the champion of the arena and return
to his village with enough gold to hire soldiers and repair the homes and
farms. Virtus had once again put the people of his village back onto his
shoulders and was determined to carry them to prosperity. Virtus was an orphan
and when no one would care for him, it was the village and the elder that took
him in when he was a small boy wondering the desert by himself.
Virtus
fought with the ferocity of a lion during his time in the arena. As his number
of victories grew he also accumulated nicknames and titles such as Indomitable
Virtus and the Iron demon. He was called Iron demon because Iron was the
strongest metal available and Virtus seemed un-killable like a demon would be.
Virtus
roared with each swing of his sword, he swung his weapon wildly to throw his
opponent off balance then rammed hard with his shield. The force of the strike
broke the ribs of the enemy gladiator and the poor soul collapsed on the
ground. Virtus yelled a guttural roar as the crowd cheered. Most fights would
end quickly with the result always the same. Virtus standing victorious as his
opponent lay dead or injured in the dust and sand. When Virtus did fight a
powerful enemy the fights would last much longer, sometimes going on for hours
until Virtus opponent collapsed from exhaustion. Whenever Virtus lost his
breath, sustained injuries or was bleeding all over the arena, his inner drive
would push him to continue. He would never back down and he would never fall to
anyone.
Virtus was
indomitable, fierce, strong willed and some believed he could not be killed,
but he was a mortal despite what the arena patrons thought. Virtus died at the
age of one hundred and twenty seven. He died while severing the king’s head
from his shoulders. Virtus was mid-stroke with his sword, he had cleaved the
King’s head straight off when a spear was driven through Virtus back, impaling
him and going through his torso. This spear impaling was the final blow that
killed him, but he had already sustained injuries from sword cuts and stab wounds
and burns from a flaming arrow that
struck his shoulder.
The castle
was in chaos as Virtus let out his last breath and fell to the stone floor next
to the headless king. Virtus spirit stood above his body and watched as the
soldiers continued to fight against the rebels that were led by Virtus. The
show was interrupted for Virtus when a black-cloaked figure glided into the
room. The world of the living melted away and only darkness remained. Death
stood before Virtus and lifted a skeletal hand. “You have brought so much death
that even I am impressed with your skills, but your time is over. Come with me”
Echoed the voice of death. Virtus gritted his teeth “I follow no one!” Virtus
shouted and charged at the grim reaper.
The spirit
of Virtus grappled with the spirit of death itself. Virtus inner strength and
will counted for just as much in the spirit world as it did in the mortal
world. The Grim reaper was the master of death but struggled to keep Virtus at
bay. The indomitable spirit fought Death for decades. Since time did not pass
in the spirit would a decade of fighting would not have affected the mortal
realm. The battle ended when Virtus wrestled Death’s scythe from the clutches
of Death. Virtus struck the Grim reaper with its own weapon and send the spirit
of Death to the afterlife. Death was banished from that realm in between the
mortal world and the afterlife. The spirit world or Limbo was now the domain of
Virtus.
Death’s
scythe vanished in a cloud of black smoke seconds after Death was thrown from
this plane of existence. Death had no trouble navigating the afterlife and
finding his way back to Limbo. When Death returned to the spirit world Virtus
was gone, he had escaped back into the mortal realm and was reborn into the
world as a baby of a merchant’s wife.
Virtus
lived as a son of a merchant unaware of his past life as a gladiator or his
battle with Death. Virtus didn’t even know his original name and when he was
born back into the world he was given the name William Merchant. William grew
into a strapping young man who had more strength and determination than anyone
else in town. William had a nice childhood and had no reason to have an
unshakable will and the urge to fulfill his goals, but he had the spirit of
Virtus and while he had no memory of his former life, his past was permanently
marked on his soul and every incarnation of Virtus would have the same
Indomitable will as the original Virtus. Some incarnations were more violent
while others were more peaceful
William
Merchant grew up to be a successful sailor and merchant and when his ship was
taken by the king for unpaid taxes, William became a pirate who targeted the
kings royal ships and any merchant who vowed loyalty to the king. William
wasn’t just any pirate, he became the most feared and successful pirate who had
ever lived. He eventually died when he ship in a head on collision with the
King’s military flagship. William had left his entire crew back at town and
sailed the ship himself with hull full of gunpowder and dynamite. When
William’s ship collided with the King’s flagship the gunpowder was ignited
torches lit directly above the gunpowder barrels. The explosion killed the top
general and his best men as well as destroyed the front half of the flagship.
Virtus’
spirit evaded the Grim Reapers grasp every time one of his incarnations died.
Virtus spirit lived on through dozens of humans over the ages.
“It was the only time I ever failed. Virtus was the only
soul I never collected” Explained Death. The grim reaper stood looming over a
fourteen-year-old boy, Death’s voice boomed and echoed through the air. “ Why
are you telling me this?” John Pharris the boy who survived the grave wagon
attack and the only human who could walk freely through the haunted forest. “I
am telling you this because Virtus’ spirit fuels the Grave Wagon, and I cannot
stop it” Explained Death. John’s eyes went wide and he felt like he had been
kicked in the stomach, he took a step backward and fell backward landing on his
butt. The ground was cold and hard, the dark green grass prickled at him
through his pants. Death over John, they both were in the deepest and darkest
part of the Haunted forest, a second of the forest that was reserved for Death
and no mortal or monster had ever entered. “If you can’t beat him, how am I
supposed to beat him? How is anyone supposed to beat him?” Asked John is
disbelief.
Death
crouched down and sat on a tree stump. “You need to face the Indomitable will
with your own equally unwavering spirit. Use the magic that the Grave Wagon
gave you” Death explained.
Note: Thanks for reading!! I hope to finish my Halloween series by Halloween night. I hope everyone is enjoying the grave wagon stories. I also plan to write stand alone stories about Virtus life and William Merchants life, as I thought they were really interesting after I wrote them but had to gloss over their lives to tell the larger story.
