| |
I AWOKE, LYING ON A comfortable bed made from animal pelts. Fortunately, I hadn’t had any of nightmares, just a quiet sleep that my body desperately needed with no idea how long I had slept. I stood, stretching out my sore muscles and went over to a water basin near the pelts. With a deep sigh, I splashed cold water on my face, dried it with a cloth, and stepped outside.
As I walked out of the tent, the moon was full, shining brightly in the sky. The sounds of drunken men dancing and singing in celebration came from all around me. The celebrations would continue for some time, because of the major turning point in the war. There were instruments playing nearby as well, a flute and pounding that I assumed was a drum. The smells of ale and sweat filled my nose, mixing with the sweet smell of fresh meat cooking on a fire.
I finally realized how hungry I was and headed for the command tent. Along the way, men sat around fires scattered all across the camp. Their bellowing laughs and loud voices echoed throughout the area. The ale they kept in their mugs splashed as they clanked the mugs together or pounded them against their shields. Some men were already drunk, singing in slurred voices. Their clumsy bodies tripped and staggered around.
I entered the command tent, fully prepared to eat a good meal. When one of the men saw me, he shouted, and as the others realized who he was shouting about, their voices joined with his, cheering loudly.
“Here’s to Aidan, killer of Cexious the Tyrant, and Savior of Isvyesious!” The cheers grew and most of them raised their mugs in a toast. Regardless of the icy chill that slid up my spine and the sudden urge to flee away from all the praise and people, I stayed perfectly still, keeping the emotion off my face.
“Join us in celebration! Now that Cexious’ army has been overrun, the rest of them will flee to the hills. The ones still holding smaller villages will have no reinforcements or new supplies. Because of you, assassin, we have won this war!” Wekious shouted.
Other voices joined with his and, once again, the cheering and shouting grew. They had a place for me toward the head of the table beside Wekious and the other Lieutenants and commanders. Within minutes, ale and a plate full of freshly cooked meat and fruit was set on the table in front of me. I immediately started eating, glad to finally satisfy my hunger.
As the night and the celebrations continued, I came to realize that in some ways, I rather enjoyed the company. There were fighting tournaments held outside after the meals, to see which soldiers his fellow companions could best. I didn’t join in, but I did watch. Some of them could have used more hand-to-hand combat training, whereas others fared well for themselves. The drinking continued throughout the night, along with the celebrations. Some of the men went to ransack Cexious’ camp. A great sport was made of the event, a contest of sorts, to see which men could gather the most precious or well used items from the dead soldiers. In the end, it became close between Kevi and I, but he ended up finding a soldier’s necklace made of gold that held pictures of his wife and child inside, which put him ahead of me.
When the contest was finished, it was only mere hours until dawn. I rode back to Maxiveren’s camp and found the tent I had slept in, which was now officially mine as long as I resided inside the camp, and sleep came to me immediately.
The next morning, I awoke once the sun was already high in the sky. I suspected it was midday, or nearly after. There was a plate full of meat and fruit waiting on a table just outside my tent, along with a mug full of water. After all the ale the night before, I enjoyed the water. I collected the change of armor I had brought with me, and then went to the river to bathe.
While I scrubbed the dirt and grime off my body, I sighed in relief and finally relaxed now that I was alone. It didn’t happen often in the camp, or even in Lavious’ palace, so I relished in the tranquility of silence and loneliness.
When I returned, I found that Naxi was kept with Wekious’ horses and had been well taken care of. I brushed him and made sure his feed and water buckets were full, and then returned to the command tent. Kevi, Andiv, and several of the commanders and soldiers were going on a hunting trip in order to help provide meat for the celebrations in Niiv later that night. Wekious insisted that I stay, and show my face, the face of Cexious’ killer in the city, so that they knew who saved them all.
Internally, I desperately wanted to leave. I wasn’t sure whether it was to get away from the crowds, or because of an entirely different reason that had to do with Sevylia. However, I politely accepted, and then rode off with the men on the trip.
We tracked several wild boars, one of which spooked one of the men’s horses, causing it to rear up and throw him off. He landed in a heap in the mud, and our laughter was heard over his loud curses. We found the boar several miles after that. They were in mating season, which meant the males were particularly dangerous and territorial. So far, several of the men had already tried to approach the group of three boar, but one soldier had already gotten wounded—a tusk to the leg, unfortunately for him.
I shimmied up a tree and spread out my weight as I slipped across the branches. The shadows from the leaves camouflaged me from sight, but if the boar saw me or became alerted, he would ram into the trunk. These trees were sturdy enough to hold my body weight—especially with how nimble I was—but not enough to keep three agitated boars from knocking it down.
One of the other soldiers—with bulkier muscles—saw me and smiled to himself. He started up a tree to my right, but it buckled beneath his weight. The movement alerted the boar. The larger male stamped his hooves into the ground with a huff and charged toward the tree.
Silently, I nocked an arrow and fired just seconds before the male slammed into the tree trunk. The soldier met my gaze and sighed in relief, shoulders sagging now that he was mostly safe.
I shifted my aim toward the second male and the female they were fighting over. The male had seen my arrow, but still couldn’t pinpoint where I had come from. As long as I stayed perfectly still, he wouldn’t notice me. But all it would take would have been the slightest movement...
Releasing a short breath, I fired my arrow and pierced the boar’s head. The female snorted and charged toward my tree. With another slow exhale, I stayed calm to keep my aim steady and fired.
The arrow landed in her heart.
A couple of servants, who had ridden along on the pack horses, put the boar on one of the pack horses as we continued riding along. We found several deer after that, a good size buck along with a couple of does. They were brought down after an hour or so of tracking and then they were put on the pack horses with the boar. Some of the men went back to the river to gather fish, while a couple of others left the hunt to find and cut more fruit. They would have to climb rather high to get the fruit, but as much as I wanted to climb, I also longed to hunt, so I stayed with the other men. We followed a wild mountain lion, and after tracking it for hours, we managed to kill it, with only minimal injuries on our part.
We returned to the camp, freshened up, and then left with Wekious and some of his higher commanding men to Niiv. We rode through the valley, and it didn’t surprise me that evidence of the battle was still there.
Bodies surrounded the valley from all three armies, but most were Cexious’ men. There was blood all over the ground. Flies had gathered, and the stench nearly knocked me off the horse I was riding. Crows and ravens had gathered to pick the rotting flesh off the bodies. We rode through the valley as quickly as possible, though most of the men saw someone they knew and mourned the loss in a deafening silence.
Ten to fifteen minutes later, we neared the end of the valley, and came to the short road which led to Niiv. Up ahead, the cities’ high walls were visible and in perfect view. Because Maxiveren’s men weren’t able to flee to the walls, they had been trapped and had been charged with keeping Cexious’ men at bay, and not letting them reach the narrow exit out of the valley.
The guards that were posted along the tops of the wall saw us arriving and within seconds the gates, made completely out of stone, opened and let us inside.
We road through the city. People filled the streets; their cheers were louder than anything I had ever heard before. They raised their hands, and some reached out as if trying to touch us. They were kept at bay by the city guards, away from the main street we rode along. It took us several minutes, but finally we came within sight of the city fountain, where rituals or celebrations were held.
The festivities lasted well into the night. Dancers, women in loose skirts and half-shirts spun and twirled to the sound of flutes and drums in the background. Families gathered; mothers holding their son’s hands and fathers with their daughters on their shoulders. Performers that could manipulate fire amazed the crowd with their routine, while jugglers threw and caught swords in the air repeatedly; people who could swallow swords did their act, and then puppet masters put on a show that kept the young children intrigued. Poetry readers let their voices bellow verses of old and sayings of victories past. One performance blurred into the next, until they were all the same — people putting on a show to add to the joy of the crowd around them. I followed the soldiers and stayed near to Maaxiveren and his generals, used to going where I was told to go—like a fish following the river current.
Later in the night, I walked by a barrel of ale to refill my cup and one of the street women approached me. She placed a hand on my shoulder and cooed in my ear, but I politely declined. As soon as I turned around, a second one was there, placing her hands on my chest. I jerked away, feeling as if I had just been caked in ice.
Further down the street, a middle-aged woman eyed them closely—likely their employer. She urged them forward with her hands in a gesture, but I shot her a look and shook my head. With that, I shoved both women away and brushed by them, and escaped toward the thicker parts of the crowd.
After many hours we were led into the overseer’s keep for another feast. Once dawn was a mere few hours away, I went into the city inn and claimed a room so that I could sleep peacefully.
***
I WAS INVITED TO JOIN festivities and celebrations that Maxiveren would hold in a day or so, but I declined. I would have to start off in order to return to Xious’ land to ensure that no one else had attempted to kill Sevylia. It only took me a few minutes to pack the supplies I would need for the journey and then, soon, I rode away on Naxi.
This time I went slower on my journey out of the Isvyesious Realm and into ours. I stopped for enough hours of sleep to keep my body satisfied. Within three days, I had reached the stretch of road that led to Xious’ land.
Xious stood in front of his small house. Even from the distance I was at, I could tell his hand stayed on his belt. I slowed Naxi to a walk and lowered my hood. Once he saw that it was me, his muscles relaxed, and his hand came off his belt.
“You’ve returned unscathed, fortunately. I take it your travels were smooth then?”
I nodded, jumping off Naxi.
“And you’ve returned my dear Naxi, as well.” A smile crept on his face as he took Naxi’s reins and petted the horse.
“I made sure he was well taken care of.”
Xious nodded. “And I appreciate that greatly. Sevylia and a hot meal await you inside, Aidan. Please, make yourself at home.”
I nodded in a way of thanks, not letting in on how his words made me want to go back out on the road alone. I stepped one foot in front of the other, however, and found myself sitting at the small table and enjoying the meal before I could stop myself.
“Aidan, it is a relief to see that your journey was a safe one.” Sevylia’s voice pulled me away from the meal and I found my gaze resting on hers across the cottage.
Everything about her seemed perfectly relaxed. She seemed...
Completely happy.
I nodded, taking another bite of the stew.
“Have you ever been this far out in the famlav lands?” As she spoke, Sevylia sat down across from me, and put her hands on the table.
I shrugged, swallowing another bite. “Perhaps once or twice.”
She smiled. “Of course, you have. I’m sure you’ve traveled greatly.” She glanced down and furrowed her eyebrows, as if unsure of what to say.
“I never had the chance for leisure. What few times I have been throughout the famlav lands were strictly business.” I wasn’t sure why I spoke; but she seemed so happy, and I didn’t want to be the reason that mood changed, which in a way, compelled me to explain farther.
She glanced back up. “Well, later this evening there is going to be a pastoral gathering. I was planning to attend... Now that you’re back, I was hoping you might accompany me? Some leisure might do you some good.”
I swallowed another bite, clenching my teeth to keep from wincing as if it were acid swirling down my throat, rather than food.
“That is, if you wish to, as well as if you believe it is safe.” Sevylia pursed her lips.
“The attempts on your life should stop. All has been taken care of.” I didn’t say any more in reply.
“Shall I expect your company this evening then?”
I forced myself to look Sevylia in the eyes. Genuine hope and... something else lingered in her features, something I couldn’t place.
“A pastoral gathering.” I didn’t state it as a question.
“Yes,” she answered.
I would much rather have stayed at Xious’ house where it was quieter. Gathering meant groups of people, groups of which I would much rather have avoided, especially after the celebrations and feasts I had attended lately. However, a night of leisure? With Sevylia?
Something inside me responded to that with excitement. I felt eager, much like I did before killing someone. Only this was different. Rather than the calm eagerness I so often felt, this was almost a sort of anxious eagerness, something I had only experienced few times before.
My mind instantly started rationalizing, telling me it was better for us both to stay isolated until the time came for us to return to the palace. It appeared as though my body’s reaction ignored the warning my mind screamed inside.
My mouth opened and my voice spoke before I could stop myself. “I will accompany you, Princess.”
Instantly, she smiled.
***
HOURS LATER, WHEN IT was nearly sunset, Xious brought the reins of one of his horses over to where Sevylia and I were standing.
“I apologize. My wife and children are using my other two horses and Naxi needs rest. You and Sevylia will have to ride together.”
In response, I took the reins from him and jumped onto the gelding. I urged him forward just enough so that Sevylia was beside me and the horse. I held out my hand, waiting for her to take it. She gently placed her hand in mine, and I pulled her up just behind me.
“Hold on tight, princess,” I called to her over my shoulder. I felt her hands on my waist and almost forgot where we were riding to.
I heard her voice in my ear, telling me where to go. “Follow the main road for a bit. You’ll see a path just large enough for horses to travel on. It will be on the right. Take it and follow it to our destination.”
As we rode, her dark curls whipped around us, stirred by the wind. It gently brushed against my cheeks and neck, as if caressing it. I could feel her face gently resting against my back, just in between my shoulder blades. Her arms tightened around my waist and her hands just barely touched my stomach.
“Ready?” I asked her.
“For what?”
I didn’t answer her; instead, I drove the horse faster, so that we raced down the road, the wind at our backs, riding so fast the scenery on either side of us passed in a blur. At first her body tensed up, but then she relaxed, and I relished in the feel of her body lightly shaking from laughter.
I saw the smaller path toward my right all too soon. It was directly in the middle of the woods. We followed it for a few minutes before the woods on either side of us ended, along with the path, and opened into a small pasture. I stopped the gelding to take it all in.
There were people gathered, quite a few of them, throughout the pasture. I rode to where the horses were gathered and jumped off, and then turned to help Sevylia dismount. She placed her hands on my shoulders, so after a second’s hesitation, I gently grabbed her waist to steady her. With a soft thud, she landed, but we stayed frozen for a second too long—just her and I, holding each other close.
My eyes found their way to her lips, and I had to force myself to look back into her eyes. She swallowed hard as I released her and forced my hands back down to my sides. With an eager smile, she whirled around and gestured for me to follow her.
All around the pasture there were small fires with people sitting on logs around them. Their voices were low, murmuring so soft it gave the air a sense of peace and quiet. Frogs croaked in the background, along with various sounds of the night. The low hum of the crackle of the fire blended in with the other quiet echoes.
Sevylia led us over to a medium-sized fire in the far corner of the pasture, opposite of where the horses were kept.
“Sevylia! I was hoping we would see you here,” a middle-aged man said as he walked up and hugged her.
Instantly, my muscles grew tense and my hands ached to grab my bow. I forced myself to remain perfectly still, but ready, in case Sevylia would need my protection.
It was as she hugged him back that my jaw clenched, and I realized I wanted to attack him for more reasons than to just protect her.
“Aeo, it is good to see you as well. It’s been far too long.” Sevylia smiled warmly at him.
“And who is your companion?” The man, Aeo, glanced at me after he spoke.
Sevylia broke out of the embrace and glanced at me. “Oh, this—this is my... friend, Aidan. Aidan, this is an old mentor and dear friend of mine, Aeo.”
I slightly nodded my head in response, not bothering to say anything.
“Yes, well it’s a pleasure to meet you, Aidan.”
Again, I nodded, without saying anything else.
Aeo glanced at Sevylia in confusion and she smiled slightly. “He’s—He prefers to stay quiet.”
“Ah. That’s quite understandable. Shall we?” Aeo glanced at both Sevylia and I.
Sevylia nodded in response and gestured for me to follow her, so I did. She sat on one of the logs and patted a spot beside her. I took a seat beside her, while Aeo sat with another woman on a log to our right. The woman smiled at Sevylia and they both started visiting; the woman apparently was Aeo’s wife and they both had three kids, all of whom adored Sevylia greatly. They had all missed her since her last visit. I tuned out their conversation shortly after that, observing all the people around me.
The whole group, even the others who were gathered around other fires around the pasture, seemed as if they were joyful; they seemed at peace with each other and the world around them. Even Sevylia smiled and laughed as I had never seen before. It was a side of her I had never seen; full of life and spark, as if the quiet porcelain doll she was at the palace was nowhere to be seen, and this woman, so full of love and laughter was who she had been all along.
“Are we ready to begin?” Aeo asked after quite a few minutes. Almost at once all the voices grew quiet until there was naught but the sounds of nature around us.
“Does anyone have something in particular they would like to talk about tonight?”
Aeo’s wife glanced at Sevylia. “Sevylia isn’t always able to visit... Why not let her decide for tonight?”
Aeo nodded in agreement.
Sevylia slightly blushed and I almost smiled; she was shy. “I just wish to thank God for how He has protected me recently—in more ways than one. He has blessed me... Despite everything that has happened, I... I am thankful for it because I was able to gain a friendship. I can see the good that has come out of all this. God... has been there for me, by my side, every step of the way. And though there are people I pray for constantly, because they have fallen away from God and their beliefs, I believe God will answer my prayers in His own time.”
“Then we are thankful, as well, that God has protected you. And for the friendship you gained.” As Aeo spoke, Sevylia looked at me and our eyes met.
I swallowed hard, unsure of what to think.
“Aidan, do you have anything you wish to say? Don’t feel obligated to speak, of course, but know that you can if you so wish.” Aeo eyed me closely, and all other eyes shifted my direction.
I creased my eyebrows, suddenly unsure of how to form words. When I finally did speak, it was low and as sharp as the crackling of the fire. “I shouldn’t speak. God would not want to hear anything from a man such as me.”
“God longs to hear from anyone, Aidan, especially a man such as you.”
I shook my head. “I turned my back on Him when I was young and have not looked back since. I have nothing more to say.”
Sevylia glanced down at the ground, staring hard.
Aeo nodded. “Then perhaps it is time to come back to Him again. It is your choice, however. If you wish to remain separated from Him, then so be it. Just know that He is still there, waiting.”
I swallowed deeply, unable to say anything else.
As they continued to speak words of wisdom and hope, of compassion and mercy, of faith and trust, my mind went back to my parents, and I could picture them as clearly as I could anyone else around me, sitting me down, tucking me in at night, telling me the same tales that Sevylia and the others were sharing.
They spoke of the Ancient Prophets, spoke of tales I had forgotten and put behind me years ago. Something inside me stirred, but I forced myself to listen to Aeo speak, rather than dwell on the feeling inside that I wanted gone.
It was several hours well into the night before Sevylia and I were on the gelding traveling back toward Xious’ land. All was quiet, even the wind was steady as we raced down the road.
Sevylia’s arms tightened around my waist. “Thank you for accompanying me tonight, Aidan.”
“My pleasure, princess,” I replied back simply.
“I must ask... You seemed familiar with the writings and discussions...” She hesitated, as if unsure how else to continue.
“That’s not a question.” I yelled and urged the horse into a faster run. With this, the wind picked up so that all I could hear was the sound of it whipping at our faces all around us.
Once Xious’ house was visible, I slowed the horse to a walk.
“To answer your question, princess, yes, I am vaguely familiar with them.”
Sevylia was quiet a moment, as if surprised I had decided to answer her. “You mentioned having turned your back on God...” She hesitated again, and I knew she was asking me a question that she was too afraid to voice out loud.
I swallowed deeply, stopping the horse and jumping off in one swift movement. I could hear Sevylia sigh softly, so I turned and gently placed my hands on her waist. Tensely, she smiled and placed her hands on my shoulders just like before, so I helped her down. Just like before, we stayed close together for a moment too long.
Only this time I didn’t make a move to release her.
I glanced down. I hated talking about my past, but for some unknown reason, I was compelled to tell her. “My parents raised me in their beliefs. However, in training, God and faith, along with prayers and verses, faded. Fighting, blood, the bow, arrows, and killing became my whole world. It was all I grew to know; it is all I know now.” I glanced at the fields beyond Xious’ house, unable to meet her eyes.
“How old were you when you began training?” Her voice was soft, as if she were speaking to a spooked animal loose from its cage.
I didn’t answer; my voice wouldn’t work.
After a time, she put her hand on my cheek. Instantly, I froze and all I could see, think about, and feel was her hand upon my jaw. It was as soft as the gentle wind around us, and just as moving. “I understand you are uncomfortable speaking of your past and I respect that. Do not speak if you do not wish to.”
I released a breath I hadn’t realized I had been holding. At the very same moment, I realized one of her hands was still on my shoulder, and my hands were still resting around her waist. I removed them and grabbed onto the horse’s reins, leading it toward Xious’ house.
Sevylia started toward the door as I led the horse toward the barns in the back. I paused, watching her. When her hand just barely touched the wood, I finally found my voice.
“I was seven.”
She stopped and turned to look at me.
Unable to say anymore, I turned away from her and led the horse into the stable in the back. It was sometime later when I finally had its gear put away and had placed fresh feed and water in its stall. I sat in a corner and took my bow and arrows off my back, placing them on the floor beside me, within the reach of my right hand. I leaned my head back against the wood and closed my eyes.
Within minutes, reality escaped me, and the dreams came. Rather than the bloody images and faces that normally tormented me in my sleep, I saw my parents.
I was seven again, small and thin. There were tears on my face and I leaned in a corner, head upon my knees, shaking.
“Aidan! The Ettki will be here any minute! You must get up!”
“Mama, no!” I yelled, my voice thin and hoarse.
“That’s enough!” My father’s booming voice bellowed in from the other room and I could hear his harsh footsteps pounding on the floor as he came into the room I’d hid inside.
“You will man up! We are suffering and your mother and I need the gold; we will not survive without it nor will our other children. Quit being a coward and come here! We are doing this for your own good! The Ettki will teach you how to be a man. You will be saving our family, as is your duty to us. Now, get up and come here!”
I cowered back from his voice and looked up, pleading with him. “Papa... Please! I don’t want to go with them! I want to stay here, with you and Mama!”
Just then, a loud thud sounded from the front room. I froze in fear as I realized it was the bad men coming in from the front door.
My father stepped aside as they entered the room; two tall men, both wearing black armor. One had a hood that covered his face and the other had a metal helmet. The hooded man came up to me and sneered.
“Tears.” He hissed as if the word itself angered him. He slapped me and I fell to the floor, but the tears only increased.
The other man laughed. “We’ll teach you a thing or two about that.”
The first one grabbed me roughly by the scruff of my neck, yanking me to my feet. He grabbed my hair and shoved me forward, making me stumble. The other man caught me by the shoulders, and he shoved me through the door and into the other room.
He kicked me in the back, and I fell to the floor in a heap.
As they dragged me out of the house, I saw my mother flinch forward, and I prayed she would come after me.
My father stood there, arms crossed, a smile on his face as he accepted the coin from another hooded man.
They tied my hands with a rope, one that they could hold onto as they climbed atop their horses. The first man was the one who held my rope.
“Make ‘im run,” he said with a smile. As the horses took off, they took my childhood and my freedom with them.
