Both Elenio and Galena were cleaned and dressed long before Tark emerged from the room above. They were sitting on some of the chairs placed around the sitting room when he finally descended the stairs.
“Bout time. We were just debating which one of us should go and retrieve you,” Elenio said jokingly.
Tark simply nodded and sat, still looking like he was lost in his thoughts.
Elenio and Galena exchanged looks, but said nothing more.
Twoit scampered over to Galena and scaled her leg, hopping up and down on her lap in excitement. Galena absently scratched her head, contemplating Tark’s mood. It was unlike him to be this quiet.
“Are you hurt?” she asked, eyeing him suspiciously.
He looked at her, appearing to be startled that she and Elenio were in the same room with him, but said nothing. Instead, he shook his head and continued to stare at the floor.
She looked at Elenio again, who simply shrugged in response.
“Okay, well then, they should be coming for us soon. It’s almost twilight,” Galena remarked, still eyeing Tark with curiosity.
“You should probably leave the heavy drinking to us,” Elenio said seriously, a twinkle in his eyes giving away his merriment. “The last time we attended a feast, it took you a while to recover.”
Galena playfully shoved his shoulder about the same time they heard a knock at their door. Galena stood and walked over to it, pushing it open to reveal young Quona looking up at the structure with wide eyes.
“I didn’t think I would see you before the party,” Galena said, smiling at their young friend.
“They sent me to bring you to it. Actually, I said I would go and get you, because I already knew you.” She was now focused on the room with which they were standing in.
“Would you like the grand tour?” Galena asked, taking in Quona’s curious expression.
The tiny elf nodded enthusiastically, but then stopped short. “Actually, I better get you to the feast. They told me I had to be quick.” A look of disappointment replaced the curious one she had been wearing just moments before.
“Another time then,” Galena said smiling.
Quona smiled back and eagerly nodded once more. “Are you ready then?” she asked, looking around Galena so she could see the other two.
“Yep. Lead the way, young one,” Elenio said, standing up and shaking the shoulder of the slightly dazed looking Tark to gain his attention so they wouldn’t leave him behind.
At this point, Galena was sure they would have been able to walk out and celebrate all night without his noticing. They followed Quona out into the night for all the festivities to come.
Quona led them toward the center of the village where tables had been placed and were laden with food.
So much more appealing than the stuff we were served in the underground world, Galena thought while she looked at all the smiling faces around her. Everything seemed so much more pleasant and welcoming, not like a sending off feast.
Elenio, Tark, and she sat down at the only three empty seats among several smiling faces. Once that that she saw they were comfortable, Amrick stood, thanking everyone for coming, the arrival of the trio, and then, the feast began.
It even tastes better, Galena thought joyfully. She felt slightly sad with it though. She wondered what had become of Morgo since they had returned to the world above.
Elves of all ages made a point of coming and talking with her while she ate. She heard many grateful elves praise her fighting skills as well as offer their help with whatever she needed. Galena wasn’t sure if she should have felt overwhelmed, or exceptionally flattered. She shook hands with all of them, asked for the news of Tomiro from the older ones, and played with the little ones. Galena realized she was happier than she had been in months. Looking around at all the bright and happy faces, her reason for finding the sword became more real to her as well as more important. She couldn’t let this village down. More importantly, she couldn’t let down the entirety of Tomiro. Failure wasn’t an option.
* * * *
The next morning, Galena awoke to the warm sun shining on her face and Elenio’s arm wrapped around her waist. Even though she would never admit it to Elenio or Tark, she’d decided to go easy on the wine this time, so she would be more in charge of herself. It would be just her luck that another group of torlics would come and find her too drunk to do anything about it. She probably would’ve burnt down the whole village instead. Shaking her head, she sat up slowly so as not to disturb Elenio from his slumber. She carefully picked up his arm and gently placed it beside him. Removing the blankets, she went to the washroom to clean up for the day.
As she bathed and prepared herself for their upcoming journey, she thought about Tark. He’d remained quiet throughout the meal. He watched the other elves in his quiet contemplation, and would respond to the questions asked of him, but other than that, he remained aloof. Galena wasn’t sure what was bothering him, but she hoped he would get over it, or come out with it before they continued. She was starting to really worry about him. He rarely went for long spells without talking, and this was the longest by far.
She finished braiding her long hair into a complicated pattern. Flipping it over her shoulder, she opened the door, and headed back into her and Elenio’s room to find him starting to wake. She crouched down by the bed, so that her eyes were level with his and smiled when he opened them. She loved his eyes. They were such a clear blue. She felt peace and love every time she looked into them.
“Good morning,” she said, pushing the hair from his face. She placed a hand on his cheek and temple, rubbing her thumb back and forth across the smoothness that was him. “Look who had trouble holding their liquor this time.”
“You always wake earlier than me,” he replied in a voice filled with sleep.
She smiled at his argument, but didn’t take the bait. Instead, she climbed back under the blankets, so she could snuggle with him for a few minutes before he got up to get ready for the day. He wrapped his arms around her, resting his hands on her back and kissing the top of her head.
He sighed, pulling her closer as he did. “If we lay like this for a few minutes, it’s like the world and all of its problems disappear.”
She smiled, thinking it indeed feel that way. She wrapped an arm around him, pulling him closer.
“Tark talking yet?” Elenio asked through a huge yawn.
“I haven’t seen him this morning.”
“You think he’s behaving strangely too, don’t you?” he asked.
“Yes,” Galena answered. “Either he will spill what’s on his mind, or he’ll resolve the issue on his own. We just have to wait until he reaches that point.”
Kissing the top of her head once more, Elenio released his hold on her and sat up. She got off the bed so he wouldn’t have to climb over her to get up.
“I better get ready. I think we should get started sooner versus later. I keep feeling we’re putting off the inevitable.”
Galena looked at him and sighed. She knew he was right, but still, he wasn’t the one who had to go up against Mira’s cunning little spell. She watched as he went into the washroom, shutting the door behind him before she filled his washbasin and heated the stones for his bath. That done, she headed down the stairs to start packing their bags. Once this was all over, she was going to burn her bag and stay in one place for the rest of her life.
Twoit had just come back in, when Elenio joined her downstairs. He was running his hand through his long, brown hair, combing the tangles out with his fingers. Galena walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck before kissing him on the lips.
“You have to be the most handsome elf in Tomiro.”
Elenio blushed a deep red and kissed her lightly on the tip of the nose. “Sounds like you had more to drink than I thought.”
She smiled at his shyness and gave him one more quick kiss before heading off to finish collecting their things.
She heard Tark descending the stairs a few minutes later. “Did you want me to fill your bathing basin?” she asked, turning to him as he stepped onto the floor.
He shook his head and with a single finger beckoned her over to the sitting area.
Here we go, she thought, confession time.
Elenio joined them, leaning against one of the walls as he regarded Tark for a moment.
“I’m sure you two have noticed I’ve been kind of quiet for a little bit.”
Neither elf responded to this, but rather waited for him to continue.
“I’ve been thinking about the torlics Rau has sent out. He’s searching for us. He’s not sure where we are, so I feel this makes him even more dangerous and Tomiro even less safe. He doesn’t care what the torlics do to the other elves as long as he gets his prize.”
Galena watched Tark who had begun to rub his palms across his thighs in a nervous manner.
Elenio crossed his arms across his chest his expression looked grim as he regarded Tark who was taking a calming breath.
“I think I should stay behind.” He held up a hand to stifle the protests that were on Galena lips. “Before you lay into to me, let me explain my reasoning. I’ve put a lot of thought into this.”
Galena closed her mouth at that; she couldn’t deny that last statement.
“We’re leaving all the elves of Tomiro to deal with Rau’s fury with us as we continue on with our journey. Sure, we may defeat Rau, but for what? If he destroys everything that we were fighting for, will beating him really matter? I think you two should continue toward the cave in the western woods and let me stay behind to train other elves. We owe it to them to show them how to defend themselves. Plus, when you finally have recovered the sword, it’s not as if you’ll be able to stroll right into Rau’s domain, catch him off guard, and finish this. He’ll have his own army to reckon with as well. This is where an army of elves would help.”
Galena bit her lip as his words soaked into her mind. He was right, she knew he was, but she couldn’t help feeling abandoned. He would be staying behind and she would be leaving. She didn’t know if she would ever get to see him again. Mira had not given her any guarantees that she would be able to make it past the cave, only that she would be stronger if she did. She blinked back the tears as this thought occurred to her.
“What made you think this up?” Elenio asked quietly.
“After taking on a group of torlics to save a village from them,” Tark said, shrugging nonchalantly. “You see that I’m right, don’t you?” He looked at them pleadingly. “I’ll start with this village, teaching their blacksmiths how to create weapons and then I’ll train whoever is willing to learn. We would leave some behind to protect their villages, but I want as many to come with me as possible when the time comes to go to Blackwell.”
Galena shuddered at the mention of Rau’s domain. She’d grown up hearing horror stories of that place and was not looking forward to approaching the tiny island just off the shores of Tomiro.
“You two could send more elves this way with instructions to recruit as many along the way as possible. If we want to be free from Rau, we all have to be willing to fight. I’ll stay in this village until we have collected as many elves as possible and have trained them.”
Galena felt the tears starting to make trails down her cheeks as she listened to what Tark was saying. She glanced at Elenio who was looking stonily at the floor. She felt his own sadness and resignation wash through her.
“We’ll miss you brother, but you’re right and wise for thinking about it. To be honest, the thought had crossed my mind, but I can’t leave Galena,” Elenio murmured.
Galena looked startled when she heard this; she hadn’t realized he’d been thinking the same thing. The thought never crossed her own mind, because she was focused on retrieving the Sword of Lumina.
“I can check on you with mirror waters. Morgo explained them to me. You won’t be able to see me, but I’ll be able to see if you’re okay.”
Tark’s head snapped up, his eyes meeting her own. “Show me Taura and Silva before you leave.” His longing was evident upon his face.
Why she hadn’t thought of doing that very thing before now, was beyond her. She really needed to start thinking about others more than herself.
Thinking of a mixing bowl, Galena watched as the wood from the floor pooled up and began to rearrange itself. When she was at last satisfied with its shape, she created an end to the stack of slivers, separating the bowl from the floor. She summoned water into it and looked into its clear depths. According to what Morgo said, you just had to focus on an object or person. When the underground elves had been searching for her, Mira instructed that they be on the lookout for battling torlics and they would find her, because they had no idea what she looked like. In this case, Galena focused on Taura and instantly, she was there in the water. It was like looking through a window, with the exception of no sound. Taura sat on a low stool, their tiny daughter sitting between her legs while Taura braided her hair. She appeared to be talking the whole time, although they couldn’t hear what she said. They watched as Silva’s face broke into a huge grin and her shoulders shook with laughter.
Tark covered his face with his hands releasing a ragged breath and moaned.
Galena cleared the water and reached over to embrace her brother in a hug. “I’m sorry it took me this long to give you comfort. Forgive me.” She stroked his head as he continued to cover his face, his breathing ragged from trying to stifle the tears he shed.
He nodded and wiping his nose on his sleeve, he looked up.
Galena wiped the tears from his face and smiled at him. It felt strange for her to be comforting her brother. It had always been his role to care for her.
“Thank you for that. You’ve given me the courage to stay and do a bigger part to protect them.” He cupped her face and looked gravely into her eyes. The sadness there almost overwhelmed her and she began to cry once more. “Go little sister and make me proud even as I stay behind to make you proud of me.”
Galena choked back a sob, how her heart ached to leave him behind. “There is not an elf alive that is more proud of you than me,” she whispered, embracing him once more.
He returned the embrace with full force, causing Galena to cry harder.
“I will continue to check on you and if I see anything wrong, I’m coming back.”
“Now, if only I could do the same,” he responded, his own voice thick with tears.
“I’ll return here before going on to Blackwell.”
“You’d better, seeing how I’m training up your army.” He gave her one last squeeze before letting her go and holding her away at an arm’s length. “We’ll finish this together.”
She nodded, afraid to trust her voice.
Elenio helped her to stand and then grabbing Tark by the forearm, hauled him up. They stood, holding each other’s arms as they each regarded the other.
“Take care of her.”
“You don’t even have to ask.”
Tark nodded once more and then embraced Elenio quickly before releasing him as well.
Elenio reached for his own pack, his sword already strapped to his belt. Galena waited for him by the door, having made sure she had everything they needed to be off, including Twoit. Taking her hand, Elenio and Galena stepped through the door and started out toward the village. They’d decided the night before that it would be easier to go through it than to go around it. Galena looked back one more time though, feeling incredibly lonely as she saw Tark standing in the doorway, arms crossed, watching them leave. She couldn’t help wondering if this would be the last time they saw each other. He would be left alone, without her protection. With Mira’s warnings about the dangers of the cave still ringing in her ears, she realized that both circumstances could easily prevent their happy reunion. With this thought in mind, Galena waved once more to Tark before turning and taking Elenio’s hand, starting her journey without her brother.