The Shadow Grey
A story about a soldier returning home.
In a dark shadowy valley a white horse appeared and upon its back was an old man dressed in rags, once a fine garment now torn and with a mix of blood and dirt upon it, the man looked proud but defeated. As he rode on, the valley in which he traveled though was dead silent and was almost holding its breath for what was to come. He come over a hill and there stood a young man, dressed in a rich fabric and wore a smug look, waiting for the old man. The old man understood now why the valley was silent, but he knew he would break the silence before going quietly with it.
As the horse approached the young man, he reached up and grabbed the reigns. The old man looked ahead but then looked down at the young man. The air hung thick between them and the only sound was the horse's breathing. "It's time" the young man said. The old man remained silent and still, refusing to move or dismount from his horse. "You knew this was coming, so quit being stubborn" the young man said. The old man didn't want to hurt the young man but he didn't like the man's attitude, so what he was about to do was going to be a lesson to the young man.
In one swift motion the old man took out his knife, dismounted and had the knife to the young man's throat before he could react. The young man stiffed then tried to counter, but the old man blocked the counter and kept the knife at the young man's throat. "You're going to pay for this" the young man says. But the old man held the upper hand and wasn't going to back down. "Well right now you are going to get on your knees and stay quiet" the old man says.
The young man started to get down on his knees then in a swift motion he kicked the knife out of the old man's hand and landed a swift kick to the old man's chest sending him backwards. The old man slowly recovered and shifted to the left to avoid the young man charging him. Using the young man's momentum, the old man sent him right into a nearby tree knocking him out. Doing his best to dust himself off he checks the young man and after making sure that he was fine he mounts his horse and proceeds to continue to travel though the dark shadowy valley.
After hours of riding the old man comes out of the shadowy valley to look upon his homeland. The sight makes his heart ache, home he thought, the place he was raised, taught to fight, and even loved.