“Cleff, of course, would be a valued addition in any circumstance.” Why was Bran staring at Ean as he spoke? He started to get a very bad feeling as Bran continued. “But can we afford to take Cleff away from the village? What if others are hurt and need his skills?” Shaking his head, he continued on. “No, I cannot take Cleff with me, but there is another who knows the ways of a Healer, and who deserves the chance to prove himself.”
Ean seemed to be the only one that understood where Bran was going with his speech. He started to turn to leave but only made it a few steps before Bran pointed right at him, confirming his fears.
“Ean will be going with me.” Bran smiled as he looked at Ean, lost in his own speech and failing to notice the look of horror on Ean’s face. “He has trained with Cleff for most of his life and has an extensive knowledge of the healing arts. With the two of us going together, nothing will be able to stop us!”
It was clear that Bran had expected a rousing applause when he finished speaking. What he got instead was stunned silence from both the crowd and his family. A low murmur started in the crowd, as all of the villagers turned to face toward Ean’s direction. Ean’s heart pounded in his chest. Sweat dripped down his forehead. He gave a weak laugh and shook his head, unable to move. After what felt like an eternity, Cleff broke Ean out of his stupor. The old man had made his way over and placed a hand on Ean’s shoulder.
“Ean would be proud to be of aid to Bran on his mission.” Pride painted Cleff’s face, something Ean had never seen. “May Alistar guide and protect these two young men as they go out in the world.”
Cleff gave his shoulder a light squeeze as he turned back to the crowd. Ean could only stand there, wondering how things had gotten so out of control, as the crowd began to nod in approval. He turned to look at Bran, who was grinning at him like a fool. The slight narrowing of his eyes and a twitch at the corner of his lip gave away that his expression was forced. How had this happened?
Bran began speaking again. “With the three, uh… I mean two of us together, we will be able to reach the capitol and find the answers or the help that we need. Please pray for our safety and wish us luck, for we leave today!”
As the crowd shouted Bran’s name, Cleff draped an around Ean’s shoulders and steered him towards home. They walked in silence for a time, the noise of the cheering crowd following them as they moved down the road. Ean’s knees wobbled as he was led away. It felt like he was carrying the mountains on his shoulders. As they passed the field of the town square, Cleff spoke up.
“This will be a good experience for you,” the old man said, still leading Ean along. “You will see more of the world, learn new things.” He shot Ean a withering stare. “And do some good instead of causing trouble.” Cleff let out a grunt. “I think you have gotten all that you can from me and this village. The mistakes of your parents have blinded the people here to your true potential. Better for you to get out now, grow as a man. Then someday, if you wish to return, these close-minded villagers will see the man you have become and come to regret the way they have treated you all of these years.”
All Ean could do was nod as all control over his own future was torn away from him.
ON THE WAY HOME, Cleff confessed that Bran had told him about the plan to bring Ean along on the journey earlier that day. “From what I understand,” Cleff said. “You and Bran will reach the base of the mountain tonight. You’ll camp there and begin the two-day journey through the mountains in the morning. It’s cold up there this time of year, so pack a few heavier pieces of clothing. I’ll take care of packing up the medical supplies, and Bran will have all of the provisions you need.”
By the time Ean and Cleff made it back to the house, he had just enough time to pack before having to head out again. He stuffed his bag with a few changes of clothes, his carving knife, and other odds and ends.
“Zin?” he called out to the empty bedroom before leaving. “You here?”
No reply. The imp was probably amused by Ean’s predicament, laughing it off somewhere. It was better he wasn’t around to rub it in anyway.
At the bottom of the stairs he found the old man waiting with a bag twice the size of his own. “I tried to pack a little of everything,” Cleff said, the pride still clear in his voice. “If you run out or need anything else, you will have to find it as you go. You do remember your lessons on identifying plants and fungi, I hope? There is a much larger variety of plants outside of the valley than what we can find here. None of it as good as Rottwealth, of course, but still useful.”
Waving Cleff off, Ean leaned down to grab the other pack. “Yes, yes, of course, I remember. You had me looking at pictures of…” Ean lost what he was saying as he struggled to lift the bag of supplies. The pack was twice as heavy as his bag of clothes. Cleff must have packed everything he could. Ean wouldn’t have been surprised if the old man had left little of his stores for himself. With a great deal of effort, Ean moved the second pack to his shoulder, adjusting both packs around to be as comfortable and balanced as possible. As soon as he was settled he turned back to Cleff.
“Well, Sir, wish me luck. I suppose I wouldn’t object if you sent the occasional prayer to Alistar my way.” Ean knew he would; Cleff was a devoted follower of the God of Justice. The older man had never tried to push his beliefs on Ean, though.
Cleff moved in close, placing a hand on each of Ean’s shoulders. He struggled to maintain his balance under the extra weight and shifted his bags around as Cleff spoke.
“I can certainly do that. You take care of yourself, boy. I want you to make it back here safe and sound. I truly am proud of you for doing this.” Without another word, the old man released him, patted him once, and headed back towards his office.
Ean stared after Cleff as he walked away, conflicted between following him to give a more meaningful goodbye or simply leave it as is. The man was one of the few people that had kept Ean’s best interests at heart. After a few moments, he decided to leave things be. He might be back after all. Ean had plenty of people here that he wanted to show up for how they had treated him, with Krane sitting at the top of the list.
Wobbling along as he tried to get his balance, Ean couldn’t wait to unload the bags on the Mayor’s horse. A wave of nostalgia hit him as he left Cleff’s house. He had spent the better part of his life, the parts he had been old enough to remember, here. Part of him had never expected to leave, and certainly not so soon. The afternoon air had a bit of a chill in it, the cold of the Chill season sticking around longer than usual. The gray fog that often clung to his village like the gray fingers of death filled Ean with a sense of foreboding.
He made it about halfway to the inn when a hot breeze caressed his skin, but there was no heat on this cool afternoon. Pausing, he tried to figure out where the strange feeling was coming from. There was a force to it now that went along with the warmth. It pulled at him, a feeling both familiar and new, like being unable to put a new name to a known face.
Ean tried to focus on the force affecting him. There was a direction associated to the pull--behind him. There, between two houses. Straining his eyes to see in the late afternoon light, he was surprised to make out the telltale shimmer of his invisible friend.
This was certainly new. He had always been able to see something of the imp when he was invisible, but he never felt him before. Ean hurried to the alley, straining under the weight of his luggage. The blur that was Zin started to move away as he approached, slinking back into the shadows of the alley between the squat houses.
"Not so fast!" Ean growled, trying to keep his voice as quiet as possible. Ean didn’t want to take any chances of being overheard.
The blur stopped, the form of the imp shimmering into view. "You have better eyes than I thought," the imp said. "I was going to wait until we got out of the village, but I suppose we can come up with our plan now."
"Plan? What plan?" Ean's questions about the strange feeling left his mind at the imp's odd suggestion. Zin�
�s plans often ended in Ean getting into trouble, and that was inside the village. They could lead to much worse outside of it.
"Our plan to ditch the do-gooder as soon as we get out of town, of course."
“I can’t ditch him now! The whole town expects me to go with him, and even though I couldn’t care less what most of the people here think…” Ean paused to shake his head. “I can’t do that to Cleff. Not after everything he’s done for me. The pride I saw in that man’s eyes…it would destroy him to hear I had abandoned Bran.”
“You really care what that old man thinks?” The imp let out a laugh, then dodged out of the way of a clumsy kick from Ean. “Fine, fine, we go with him all the way. It’s not like you had the money to get out of this mud pit on your own. So now we get to leave, and the Mayor is going to pay for it, so it still seems like a win-win situation to me.”
Ean grunted, then turned and continued his walk to the inn. It was annoying, but Zin was probably right. This was an excellent opportunity to get out and see the world. And Bran wasn't all that bad, especially when Jaslen wasn't around. Of course, Ean would never admit to the imp that he was right, so he kept up his scowl as they walked on in silence.
Sounds of merriment drifted out of the open doors and windows of the inn as they approached, but not a single person sat on the porch. The Mayor's brown horse was tied up outside, loaded with bags in a variety of different shapes. Bran was standing there as well, checking the bags with a huge grin on his face. As Ean approached, the older boy stopped what he was doing and jogged over to greet him.
"Great, you're here!" Reaching out, Bran started taking Ean's bags off his shoulders.
Ean was surprised at the ease with which Bran could handle the heavier bag. "Thanks," was all Ean was able to get out, not trusting himself enough to say more.
"No problem. It's the least I could do after blindsiding you like this." Glancing over his shoulder, Bran flashed him a sheepish look. "I hoped that if I caught you off guard, you would have trouble saying no. Guess it worked, huh?"
Ean returned his expression with a fake one of his own. "Yea, I suppose it did. Are we all set to go then?"
"Yup, all set. I've loaded old Claire here with everything we need." Bran said, pausing to pat the horse. "I've packed rations of food, two tents for us to sleep in while we're on the road, and a few other things that we might need along the way." He placed his hand on the pommel of the sword hanging from his waist. "And of course, I have this in case we get into any trouble. But I don't think we'll have any problems. No one from outside the valley has ever mentioned anything dangerous on the path out."
“Of course I’m sure the rest of the world is perfectly safe,” Ean said, not able to hide the sarcasm in his voice. “The abundance of these Heroes that seem to roam the realm is quite reassuring.”
Bran gave a slight frown and changed the subject. “Well, the gods willing, we’ll have a pleasant trip east through the mountain to the village of Rensen, and then an easy journey north through Rensen forest to the capitol city. Those are the directions my father gave me, at least. It’s exciting, isn’t it? To see what we’ve only heard about all these years?”
Even though he hated to admit it, Bran’s enthusiasm was contagious. A twinge of excitement went through him at the prospect of escaping the confines of the village. “Yes, it will be great to get out of here and see the world. And the sooner the better. Like now.” Without waiting to see if Bran was ready, he started to head up the road towards the mountains.
Bran was quick to follow, leading the pack horse behind him as he hurried to catch up. It was strange. Ean had expected some kind of fanfare or send-off party, at the very least, a few people to watch them go. But it was only Ean, Bran and the horse--and Zin who was somewhere nearby--that moved from the edge of the village. Jaslen wasn’t even there to see them off, which was strange. She and the rest of the village appeared to be too busy celebrating their eventual success to bother giving them a nice send-off.
The two moved along the road without comment from that point on, which Ean took as a blessing at first. Bran was known for being chatty, talking about whatever came to his mind. He was happy to find Bran in a thoughtful mood as the sun moved over the tops of the mountains behind them.
About halfway between the town and the mountain pass, Ean caught sight of Zin’s mostly invisible form climbing up onto their horse. The lazy imp! Shaking his head, Ean turned his attention back to the road. He had never been this far outside of the village on this end of the valley. There was nothing really to see; all of the farmland stopped a little past the last house, which meant no one else would be found this far east. Even the area where the ashes of the dead were scattered looked the same as the rest of the land.
As the sun sank behind the mountains, their tiny convoy reached the base of the mountain pass. Bran was still silent as the two set up camp, which at this point was starting to make Ean a little nervous. The other boy looked about sporadically and avoided making eye contact. Maybe it had finally occurred to Bran that his companion hadn’t appreciated being drafted into this journey against his will. Ean started a fire, set up a tripod, and hung the pot of beans he had prepared. Stirring the embers with a stick as they waited for their meal to heat up, Bran broke the silence.
“Well, Ean, we are off on our own.” He gazed into the fire as if it were the most fascinating thing in the world. “As much as I’m enjoying the freedom, I’m glad to have someone like you—a skilled healer—at my side.”
“Yes, well, I’m nowhere near as skilled as old Cleff, but I should be able to handle the occasional injury." Why was Bran still refusing to look at him? "Bran, it's clear something is bothering you, so let's hear it. As nice as the silence has been, I don't want it to continue for the entire trip."
Dragging his gaze from the fire, Bran regarded Ean quietly for a few moments, the only sound being the crackling of the embers. When he spoke, the words came out of his mouth in a rush. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before we left, but I didn't want to risk having you tell either of our parents."
“Tell me what, Bran? Ambushing me to come on this little trip was enough of a surprise. I don't need any more."
"Well then, hopefully, this one will be a pleasant surprise?" The sound of a familiar female voice behind him made him jump to his feet. He turned around to see beautiful, forest-green eyes staring back at him.
“Jaslen!” he gasped.
Used to seeing her in long skirts, it took a minute to adjust to her more masculine attire—a short-sleeve, green shirt with a brown vest, form-fitting brown trousers, and black leather boots. A bow and quiver were slung over her shoulder. She walked past him, patting him on the back a few times before sitting down next to Bran. All Ean could do was stand there dumbfounded, his mouth hanging open.
“See, I told you he wouldn’t take it well,” Bran said, turning to look at Jaslen. “He can’t even say anything, he is so upset.”
“Nonsense!” she replied, placing an arm around Bran. “He is just shocked to see me, is all. Once the shock has worn off, he’ll be happy to have another person to talk to while we travel. Isn’t that right, Ean?”
Shaking himself out of his stupor, Ean let out a grunt. “You really think you are coming with us?” Turning to face Bran, he gestured towards Jaslen with his left hand. “You can’t really think it’s a good idea to take her, do you?” Bran tried to respond, but Ean didn’t give him the chance to answer. “I can understand how you might think it fun to have your girlfriend along, but this trip is going to be dangerous. How can we worry about keeping ourselves safe while we have to worry about her?”
“Now wait just a moment!” Leaping to her feet, Jaslen moved right in front of Ean, leaning forward and jamming her face almost into his own. “Out of the three of us here, YOU are the one least likely to be able to do anything in a fight!”
“If I remember correctly, you were the terrified one at the bog,” Ean retorted. “Bran had to carry you all the wa
y home.”
“I had never seen anything that terrible in my entire life,” she shot back. “You’re a healer. Blood, guts and bone are your life. Excuse me for being momentarily overcome by the horror of it all.”
“Who’s to say you won’t be overcome if some other horror comes along?”
“Give me the chance to prove myself. I’m pretty good with a bow and staff. And Bran is the best swordsman in the village. You’re only useful after the fighting is done. I’m useful during, unless you have some other skills that neither of us know about.”
Well, let’s see. I can summon creatures that I have no control over, and I could cast spells if I knew at least a tiny amount of how to read the runes from the Abyss. Not comfortable going with either of those answers, Ean decided his best course of action was to just shrug and look disgruntled.
“That’s what I thought!” Jaslen said, a self-satisfied smirk appearing for a brief moment before she returned to her seat next to Bran. The boy had just sat there and poked at the fire during the entire exchange. “So, I don’t want to hear anything more about having to worry about me. Now, with that out of the way, we can enjoy our little trip together.”
“Whatever,” Ean said, turning his back on the two. “I’m going to head to bed. All of these surprises today have destroyed my appetite.” He walked over to his tent, opened it up and placed one foot inside before turning back around. “It’s… nice that you’ll be with us, Jaslen,” he said in an attempt to make peace. He received a warm smile as a response before he moved into his tent.
He set about inside getting himself changed and ready for bed, a hundred thoughts running through his head. It was one thing to stomach seeing the two cozying up in the village every now and then; it was another thing entirely having them sleeping together only a few paces away. But what could he do? And how could he keep his secret from both of them? That was going to be the bigger problem. It was going to be hard enough with just Bran around, but now with Jaslen too, did he have any hope?
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