The Amethyst Flame

Chapter 6 - The Downfall (Jethro)

I had never felt so terrified in my life. I watched impatiently as Arthur grilled the hares we caught and knew I’d have to create a distraction to prevent the Jadehoods from becoming suspicious. I needed to say something amusing that would take everyone’s mind off Arthur.

That’s when I remembered the best joke ever told.

“Isaac, I have a joke for you!” I exclaimed, gesturing in his direction.

“I am not a man who laughs often, but you can try your luck,” he said with a scoff.

“A man goes to the pub and finds a fly swimming in his ale. He asks the owner what it’s doing there, and he replies with ‘going out for a little swim, sir.’”

I could see the tips of Isaac’s lips slowly rise, and before I knew it, he was keeled over in laughter. It wasn’t only him. All the brigands went into a frenzy from the joke, and Arthur took that as an opportunity to put the myrtlebane seeds in the meat. By the time everyone regained their senses, he had put all the seeds inside.

“Your meals are ready,” Arthur said with a tiny smile.

“Great, I’m ready!” Saber excitedly exclaimed, rubbing his hands together like a fly.

Your death is ready.

Saber grabbed the meat and gave everyone a piece. Nobody suspected it was poisoned, a massive relief. I watched anxiously as everyone took an enormous bite out of it.

“It tastes rather bitter,” Saber said with a look of disgust. Not even a second after speaking, he gasped and fell over. The rest of the members followed suit. The last one to go was Isaac. He had enough time to take out his dagger but perished before he could use it against us.

There was an uncanny silence following this. We killed between fifteen and twenty people. Remorse hit me like a punch to the stomach; I knelt and began weeping. Arthur wrapped his arms around me and reassured me that everything would be alright.

“Mother Yuna will never let me into the Great Ether now…” I muttered, shaking my head.

“She will. In the book of Ursus, she says that killing is not against her teachings if it’s done for a good purpose. They were going to keep us as slaves forever. What we did was justified,” Arthur spoke with a gentle tone.

“Yeah, I guess that’s true. Before we go back home, let’s see what valuables these guys have. I don’t think they’ll be needing them anymore,” I said with a chuckle.

“Stealing from thieves? I can live with that,” he jested.

We went inside Isaac’s tent to see what goods he had and noticed a canvas map near his makeshift bed. My curiosity got the best of me, and I looked over it for a few minutes. The map was filled with random red triangles, and beneath each one, it explained what was at the location. The closest triangle to us read, ‘Saber says there’s supposed to be a legendary treasure buried here.’

“No, we’re not going to find that treasure!” Arthur shouted in an annoyed tone.

“Why not? Think about how much better our life would be!” I countered.

“We don’t even know if the treasure exists, you moron!” he shouted with a look of contempt.

“I’m not going home until we find that treasure,” I said assertively.

“Excuse me?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“You know you can’t leave me. Father would be furious,” I replied with a smirk.

“Jethro! Fine, I’ll go on your stupid quest. This better be worth it…” he grumbled.

It will be.