Jeb

'What?' Jeb started aloud. What is happening?

Eventually a structure came into view, Jeb recognised it as the one he was thrown out of at the beginning of his sentence.

He came to a stop on the floor in the room he recognised as the one he had been thrown into and watched as the wall closed behind him blocking his view of the distant storm of Chaos.

Soon a door opened and one of his own kind entered grabbing the brown globe before making a strange symbol with his free hand. Jeb's protection field vanished with a slight hiss and he stood up, stunned into silence.

'Follow me,' the guard spoke turning to leave.

Jeb stumbled after him hardly daring to believe his luck.

He was led through a series of corridors until he felt fresh, cool, air on his face. He was out.

Hundreds of his people were gathered together singing familiar songs of legend at a huge central fire throwing offerings in to gain luck from whatever gods they believed in.

'He returns!' one shouted as Jeb emerged blinking in the light.

Then all fell silent.

Jeb recognised the next person immediately, his walking staff gave him away. It was the villager's Keeper-of-Trust, the nearest any of them had to a leader. He was the one who spoke for his villagers in any meeting of their people. The presence of him alone marked this as an occasion of importance, but the crowds that gathered were also testament to the meeting. They had come from many different lands to see this and would return with over embellished legends that would honour Jeb far more than he would ever have imagined.

He was slowly starting to lose his confusion at what was happening before the Keeper-of-Trust spoke, then it all became crystal clear.

'People! We have a victory! We have a hero! Jeb has returned!'

Jeb smiled as everyone cheered, his memory fully returned. He had volunteered to be one of only a few of his people to track and capture the Thrall, the entity who killed the sleeping. The only way to do this was to go into the Chaos. The only way of success was to be entirely unaware of the objective. Jeb, and the others who would go, had the memory of the task hidden deep within their subconscious to avoid its detection by the Thrall. Jeb was unaware that what he was doing had been programmed into him, but now he knew. He also remembered that he had volunteered-he had no one to blame for all of this but himself.

Now it was over, he was home. The others had been recalled and debriefed and were able to join in with the feast in their honour, but it was Jeb who took pride of place.

The Keeper-of-Trust encased the globe in an amulet made especially and gave it to Jeb to wear during the celebrations. Then it would be held by the Keeper and those who followed as a mark of their strength and ability to overcome anything that threatened their lives.

Jeb enjoyed himself thoroughly drinking and eating far too much. He knew he would be ill in the morning, but it had been so long since he had tasted anything-he could not get enough.

Every now and then he tried to inch away, but there was always someone who would be there to talk to him, congratulate him and share a drink with him. All he really wanted to do was find her, his betrothed.

When, for what seemed like the millionth time, someone else came up to share a moment with him, Jeb resigned himself to never getting away.

Then a voice cut through the noise bringing with it a rush of emotion.

'Hello, hero.'

Jeb looked up and saw her, she had not changed a bit. She looked so happy to see him, so beautiful, he wept.

Dodging everyone seemed easier once he had seen her. He soon bridged the distance and, with a sob of relief, they fell into each others arms.

The End.