Aiden & The Holy Sword by Nick Venom (parable of the sower read online txt) 📕

The world was under siege by both Goddesses and Demon Kings. A constant struggle between the two forces---angelic and demonic. The ying-yang of the world had nearly destroyed the five races living in the war-torn world of Utopia. An ironic name of sorts.

The eternity-lasting war had wiped out races and enslaved others. Vampires and Ghouls---which once had good reputations---became victims of the Demon Kings, enslaved to fight against the other races. This tarnished their reputation and, soon, they were treated as demonic monsters, feared by others, and banished from the Holy Kingdoms. During this, kings of the Holy Kingdoms barred vampires and ghouls from entering and declared war against what they referred to as the ‘Demonic Kingdoms’. 

The Demon Kings had a larger sphere of influence than only the Demonic Kingdoms. Normal demons and demon spies were sent in to interfere with elections and convince frustrated and irritated humans to join their side. Demonic Humans began emerging, creating chaos throughout the kingdoms until the first Holy Knight appeared. The Holy Knight pushed the demons out of the Holy Kingdoms and back to their soil. 

With the Holy Knight’s initial appearance, many followed suit. Rumors of a Goddess granting a human the power of the gods spread like wildfire, eventually becoming confirmed. Goddesses began granting their powers and a holy weapon to normal humans. The Holy Kingdoms established five schools to train these knights---referring to them as Ironheight Knights---until they passed their education and granted the title of Holy Knight.

Holy Knights fought against Demon Lords---powerful minions of Demon Kings, staining the tired world with blood. As new Holy Knights were sent to their death, Demon Lords followed. The war was destroying the world.

Aiden---a young boy of eight--inspired to become a Holy Knight and fight against the Demon Kings. His uncle told him many stories about his life as a Holy Knight, filling the young boy’s head with exaggerated details. Aiden enjoyed the tales and treated them as reality. He was even given a sword to train with.

When he was seven, he left his house and inspected a nearby cave---housing slimes and weak goblins. An easy feat for an adult, but deadly for a seven-year-old. His uncle was sent out to locate him, eventually discovering him crushing a slime’s core with a makeshift sword made out of branches and scraps of metal glued together. His uncle then returned him to his furious parents. His uncle calmed them down and told them of Aiden’s feat, earning the curious and free-spirited Aiden a sword. His uncle spent days and nights perfecting a sword for his nephew, choosing a skinny carbon sword with a wooden hilt; bandages were wrapped around the hilt. The sword had a dark blue outline with blood-red scattered on the blade. For some reason, Aiden’s uncle had created small triangles on the blade, filling them with the color of somebody’s blood. Imagining somebody dying to make the sword crept Aiden out, nonetheless he wielded it proudly. 

Aiden showed off his custom sword to the other kids of the village. Brighton, Aiden’s home, was a small village.  Everybody in the village knew and trusted each other. Kids were allowed to walk freely without worry. A safe and carefree atmosphere surrounded the village.

However, the atmosphere would soon be destroyed.

Aiden trained for a few years, reaching twelve-years-old. Now twelve, he was permitted to join the first sword tournament that the village was holding. The tournament allowed every child and adult to enter, separating the two for obvious reasons. Both adults and children were ecstatic at a chance to show off their skills. They signed up in droves, Aiden included. When the time came for the tournament, Aiden fought viciously, but he couldn’t match with the other kids---who were training since they were four or five; Aiden was a late bloomer. His parents, Daniel and Mary, were blacksmiths who were overprotective of their only child. This overprotectiveness led to him being underexposed to the outside and fed to his curiousness.

Somehow, the less experienced Aiden managed to defeat almost all of the other competitors but was bested by a year older Yahir, the strongest child swordsman in the village.

He was disappointed by the defeat but not disheartened. He retreated to his home where he was smothered with hugs from his parents. They had heard the news and rushed to cheer him up. However, Aiden wasn’t giving up because of a single loss. Quite the opposite. 

Aiden, after escaping from his parents’ hug, rushed to a nearby clearing where he continued his training. He slashed at a worn and dirty dummy, chipping into the poor materials that the dummy was composed of. 

He was focused on his training, distracted from the sounds occurring in the background. It wasn´t until he heard the shouts of Yahir that he returned to reality. He turned towards the village and sprinted home. 

Once at home, Aiden was stricken with fear upon eyeing the sights of burning houses, blood, and his friends eviscerated. He noticed Yahir pointing his sword at a demon, protecting two kids behind him. “You will have to go through me!¨ He declared. Aiden watched with wide eyes as the demon brandished a broadsword and sliced Yahir in half, killing and eating the kids he was protecting. 

The strongest adults in the village weren't enough to defend the village from the demonic attacks. A crimson red demon with a black marking on his stomach appeared in the village, frightening the survivors. The black marking was of two semicircles diagonally opposite sides with a box in the middle. 

The demon raised his club---a three feet blunt weapon of human flesh. ¨Demon King Aruthaan is in control of this puny village. Be grateful to be useful to your savior!” The demon declared. The remaining strength of the village was being exhausted, allowing the demon and other minions of Demon King Aruthaan---skeletons, vampires, ghouls, zombies, mummies, and others---to run free throughout the village. 

Aiden froze as a wave of despair rushed over him. Everybody was dying in front of him.

TBC…

Daniel and Mary dashed outside, searching for their son. Daniel noticed Aiden, motioned for him to enter the house. However, he wasn’t bulging. “Open the bunker, I’ll get our son!” Daniel declared, sprinting over to Aiden. He picked him up and carried him to their house.

Once inside, Daniel ushered Aiden into the bunker. “What about you?” He questioned. Daniel shook his head, brandishing a normal iron sword. 

“I’m sorry,” He muttered before turning away from the bunker. Mary locked the bunker’s entrance---a heavy iron covering that was plopped into place, sealing Aiden away from his parents. Aiden, armed with his sword, peered through a small crack but couldn’t see anything through it. 

Aiden looked around the bunker---resembling a basement with shelves scattered everywhere, filled with cans and buckets of water. He turned his attention to the cover of the bunker, waiting for confirmation of his parents’ survival. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t get it. The minions of Aruthaan broke the door down and stormed into the house. Skeleton Archers fired volleys of arrows at Daniel, filling his body with arrows while emptying it of blood. Mary brandished a dagger and screamed as she charged at a skeleton. The skeleton took a step diagonally from her and jabbed its sword into her. Mary didn’t have the skills necessary for a warrior. She was a normal housewife.

Another skeleton stepped forward and pierced Mary’s throat, cutting off her screams for help. Her corpse was thrown to the ground with little regard for her body. The skeletons scanned the house for survivors but couldn’t find anyone. They didn’t see the bunker’s entrance, leaving it untouched. They then left the house and continued on their rampage, tearing into any survivors they could find. Vampires and ghouls assisted the destruction of Brighton. 

An hour passed before the screams and shouts ceased. Aiden no longer heard his friends being slaughtered. 

He attempted to escape and enter the blood-soaked scenery waiting for him, but the cover wouldn’t budge. He applied his entire strength into moving the cover, moving it by an inch. Not enough to escape.

Aiden sat in near-darkness for somebody to discover him. A single lantern illuminating a small part of the bunker, keeping him mentally stable as an hour turned into hours without aid. His uncle---who he never heard die---never appeared to take him out of the bunker.

Two Goddesses---the size of normal humans--appeared at the ruins of Brighton, observing the massacre that took place three days previously. Unfortunately, the goddesses weren’t able to track down Demon King Aruthaan or any of his minions; They disappeared without a trace, almost like they were nonexistent. “Do you think anybody survived this?” Goddess Adoel asked, a pale redheaded goddess. She wore the goddess’ outfit of a dress resembling a wedding gown, which went down to her ankles. 

“I don’t believe so. This was a one-sided massacre. These humans didn’t hold enough power to counter the demons.” Goddess Felicity remarked. Felicity was a blonde and tanned goddess wearing the same outfit as Adoel. “The humans’ report never mentioned a Holy Knight or Ironheight Knight living in this village. It was made of normal humans.”

“Even if it’s unlikely, we must scan the village and surrounding area for survivors,” Adoel added.

“I understand, it’s-” Her voice trailed off. She didn’t enjoy the sight of death, even if she’s the one causing it. She was weak to blood but was able to deal with it temporarily if her life was on the line. 

“Let’s get this over and report to-” Adoel started. Both goddesses heard the shouting of a young child. They were alerted to Aiden’s position, entering his house and discovering the carnage created by the skeletons. Both parents were drained of their blood and riddled with holes.

After a few seconds of looking, the goddesses pinpointed the origin of the screaming, unearthing the bunker and releasing Aiden. He dashed out of the bunker and outside of the house, basking in the sunlight and the sweet breeze before the scent of discomposing corpses entered his nose. He turned around and threw up the food he digested while held up in the bunker. 

Aiden used his sleeve to wipe off the throw-up from his mouth, turning around to face the goddesses. Adoel then asked him his age, responding with twelve. 

“The only survivor is a twelve-year-old boy,” Adoel muttered. “What do we do with him?”

Felicity crouched down to meet Aiden’s eye. “Do you have any relatives?”

“Uncle, but I don’t know where he went. My parents' were-” His voice began shaking as tears started forming in the corner of his eyes. Felicity---weak to tears---shared his emotion.

“We can’t leave him here,” Felicity remarked.

“We can’t take him with us. We’ll have to leave him in another village.”

“Will I ever be able to avenge my parents?” Aiden whispered.

Felicity turned towards him, caressing his face. Out of pity, she decided to grant him a holy sword and skills. She voiced her plan to Adoel, who was briefly against it, but changed her mind after looking back at the corpses of Aiden’s parents. She nodded her head and allowed Felicity’s plan to