by Casey Odell
“I could carry you, my lady.” Aeron offered with arms spread out wide. A big grin appeared on his face.
“I’ll manage.” Claire stood up straight. She held onto her side as her breathing began to slow.
Shouts from the town faded into the distance as they continued deeper into the forest. This one was different from the forest to the north. Vegetation grew rampantly and small animals scurried away as they approached. It seemed full of life, unlike the eerie calm of the Elvin forest.
The trio remained quiet as they hiked through the trees for what seemed like hours. Her legs carried her forward tirelessly, as if they had a mind of their own, away from her home. Tears stung at her eyes, always on the verge of spilling over. Claire’s thoughts wandered. Random thoughts played through her mind as she tried to keep from thinking about the ruined town and the faces of the dead. She couldn’t change what had happened, couldn’t even control her own fate.
“We will rest here for the night,” Aeron declared as they entered a small clearing after what seemed like hours.
The sun began to set and dusk crept through the trees, accompanied by a chill breeze. Claire collapsed in the center of the clearing onto soft grass. Her body felt sore. So much abuse in such a short time took its toll.
“I will patrol the area. Farron, you get some rest as well.” Aeron set his pack near Claire before he disappeared into the trees.
Claire’s eyelids grew heavy, fast. She gave up trying to fend away the horrifying memories and visions and they came crashing down on her, flooding her mind. She turned over on the grass, curled into a ball and wrapped her arms around her knees. The weight of the memories was suffocating. Tears slid down her cheek as she began to weep quietly. Exhaustion eventually swept through her, pulling her down into the comforting dark depths of sleep.
Soft voices interrupted her dreams. Warm heat caressed her back. She listened to the muttered conversation for a moment before she opened her eyes. The two elves were talking in that pretty language of theirs. She sat up and an itchy woolen blanket that covered her fell to her lap. The elves stopped their conversation and looked at her from across a little campfire. She wondered what they were talking about as she rubbed her eyes, sore and swollen from crying.
“Good evening, my lady,” Aeron said. He looked at her expectantly, waiting for some sort of reply.
Claire felt numb. Her body and spirit were tired, crushed. Visions of the earlier events had plagued her dreams. She’d tried to keep them away, but they leaked in whenever she let down her guard. It was exhausting.
She stared into the fire, the wool blanket wrapped around her. The warm orange glow was mesmerizing. She refused to believe that her mother was still in that town. She couldn’t be. She had to remain strong, to have hope. But, what would she do if she never found her mother? The few friends that she had most likely fled with the rest of the townspeople. Or at least she hoped they had. The town was lost now, seized by the savages. There was no going back. Not to the way things were before. The thought made her stomach sink as it finally dawned on her. She would have to start a new life, find a new home and a way to survive. Nausea swept through her, the stress twisting her stomach into knots. All this time she had thought that she could return to her old life as if nothing had ever happened, but that was foolish. To be suddenly thrust out of her normal life into an unfamiliar world all alone was too much for her to handle. Perhaps she was too sheltered.
“I’m sure she got out.”
Farron’s voice stirred her from her thoughts. She looked across the fire at him. He sat atop a log and inspected an arrow closely. Aeron sat across from him, his hands busy with a knife as he carved at a stick.
“I’m sure she did too.” Her voice was soft. “It’s just--” She struggled to find the words that explained how she felt. “I don’t know what I’m going to do now. I’ve lost my home, my only family, my friends, my job. I don’t know where I should go. I can’t go back to Stockton and I can’t go to where my mother is because I don’t know where she is. I have this weird mark on my hand and you two won’t tell me where we’re going or what you want from me. I’m stressed, I’m tired and I’m scared.”
She took a deep breath, feeling a little better after getting some of her thoughts off her chest. The two elves remained silent, looking a little uncomfortable. She hadn’t meant to take it out on them. After all, they had saved her life and treated her well ever since she’d entered the forest, although that could have something to do with the strange mark.
“I’m sorry,” she muttered. “I’m not blaming you. I should be thanking you two.”
“Do not worry about it, mon lainí,” Aeron said. “Here, eat this.” He tossed a small wrapped object to her across the fire. “We will set out for Lendon in the morning. It is a human city. They might have fled there for shelter.”
She’d heard of Lendon before, seen it on maps a couple times. Travelers and merchants would usually rest in Stockton before or after their stop there. It was, she’d heard, a city and a kingdom unto itself. Slowly its reach would expand as small villages and towns came under its rule, joining of their own volition. An offer the citizens of Stockton have refused many times over the years. Though the ruler, King Harold was thought of as being just and peaceful, the people of Stockton had their own way of doing things, and were not so willing to give up their freedoms so easily.
She unwrapped the object that Aeron tossed to her. It was a loaf of bread.
She had never been out of her hometown before and the thought of seeing a foreign place lifted her spirits some. Aeron was right. There could be some survivors in Lendon. If anything, it was a ray of hope and a much needed distraction from her own mind.
“Try not to worry too much. What happened is in the past. Take one step at a time or else you will feel overwhelmed. We will make sure that nothing happens to you,” Aeron said.
She thought about Aeron’s words. He was right. There was no point in worrying about the past. She had to move forward, to come up with a plan. For now, she would go along with the elves and worry about where to go after they were done with their mission. She closed her eyes and summoned her mother’s strength. She didn’t have time to sit around and mope. Mother had taught her better than that. She should make the best out of the situation, put the past aside for now and look forward. It was a good opportunity to see the world and discover new places. A dim flame lit inside of her, giving her a much-needed surge of confidence. She couldn’t forget what had happened to her, but she could channel her sorrow into something more productive than sulking.
5
Chill morning air nipped at her exposed skin as they walked through the dense woods. Claire carried a small pack. She wanted to feel useful, so she offered to carry one and Aeron quickly obliged. What a gentleman.
Morning dew coated the forest and dripped off leaves as they passed underneath. Claire yawned, stretching her arms out above her head. Her body was sore, her legs ached with every step.
Farron took the lead again, silent as ever. Maybe he wasn’t a morning person.
Aeron walked behind her, strangely quiet as well. Had she said something to offend them last night? She turned to look at Aeron, but tripped over a tree root and fell onto her hands and knees. Her body cried out in pain at the sudden jolt.
Aeron offered her a hand as a smile formed on his lips.
“Thanks.” She brushed off her knees. “Did I happen to say anything to offend you last night?”
“Why would you say that, my lady?”
“Well, you seem so quiet. It’s usual for him, it seems,” she nodded towards Farron, “but not for you.”
Aeron laughed. “He is not used to mornings, you know. He may be a little irritable, so watch out.”
She looked at him, raising an eyebrow in question.
“You see, Farron is on the night patrol. His normal, ah, disposition is actually quite pleasant.”
“Oh,” she replied, not knowing what to say. That
could be the reason for all the black.
“As for me,” he continued, “I am just thinking.”
“About what?”
“His Majesty would never approve of us straying from our mission. He will have my head for sure.” He covered his face with his hands and sighed heavily as he dragged them down it.
Claire was speechless again. His emotions were just too erratic. Guilt played at the edge of her mind, about them straying for some reason, even though she didn’t know anything about their so called mission. She was just grateful to finally be out of that room. Searching for her mother helped keep her busy, and being busy kept her from going crazy.
“Does the King have to know?” she asked.
He sighed again. “We may have no choice. It depends on how the people react when they see us. We do not exactly have a glowing reputation with humans.”
“Why not?”
Aeron chuckled. “I guess I have no choice.” He crossed his arms as he walked. “You see, back before the Great War, about a hundred years or so, us elves were the rulers. Back then magic flowed through the land.”
“Magic? You speak of tales, my friend.” Children’s tales, legends, stories. She’d heard them all, but never once thought any of it to be real.
“Magic existed. It may still in fact.” His eyes flicked to the dark mark. “What exactly do you think that is on your arm?”
“A curse.”
“And what do you think a curse is?”
She opened her mouth, but stopped and narrowed her eyes instead. If she hadn’t seen it herself, the mark bursting to life, she wouldn’t have believed any of it.
Aeron smiled before continuing on with his tale. “We were able to harness the power, building great cities and monuments.” He spread his arms out wide, his eyes sparkling as if he remembered a great past. “Humans flocked to the cities, ruled by the powerful, ethereal beings. But soon the humans began to resent us, envious of our ability to use magic.”
“Humans couldn’t use magic?” It was her first time hearing such a tale, so she remained a little skeptical.
“Not at first. Tensions began to rise between the two. Humans wanted power; elves did not want to share. Any uprising was quickly suppressed. Over time, humans somehow learned how to use magic and war broke out, spreading quickly between cities. The magic devastated both sides, killing thousands, leaving civilization in ruins. Until one day… it stopped.”
“It just stopped?” she asked.
“Yup,” he said and splayed his fingers out wide. “Poof, it was gone. The magic just suddenly dried up, disappearing overnight.”
“How can that happen?”
“No one really knows,” he said, and held a finger up to her like a teacher. “But it did.”
“Then what happened?”
“Well, the elves were outnumbered by the humans. Our kind does not procreate as fast as humans do, you know.” He grinned at her.
Claire rolled her eyes. Of course he would work that into the story somehow.
“They panicked at the sudden loss of their powers and fled their cities, seeking shelter where the magic still flowed in the land. Like the forest, for example. It is faint, but magic still lives on there. Ciana et Yaederre we call it. The city of hope. Humans eventually took our other cities and now rule supreme.”
“But that was ages ago. Surely they can’t still hold a grudge against you.”
“That would be good. We have been locked up in that forest for so long no one really knows how things are now, how the people will react. His Majesty closed the forest off years ago, allowing no one to leave or enter. With a few exceptions, of course.” He glanced ahead at Farron.
“He’s not from the forest?” That could explain some things.
“No, and he refuses to tell me where he is from,” he said rather dramatically. He sighed. “It is like he does not trust me.”
“And to think elves have been in the forest all this time. I had no idea.” She wondered if anyone in Stockton knew of their presence. And if so, why keep it a secret? They must have been why it was forbidden to enter, not because of wild beasts or some curse. “Why would the King close off the forest like that? Wouldn’t it be better to get along with everybody?” She paused for a moment. “And how is it that you can speak our language for that matter?”
“We weren’t always apart from your world, so of course we can speak your language. Most of us, anyway. Not all of us learn, or wish to speak it.” Distress flickered across his face. “The magic is fading in Ciana. I can feel it. We all can. Soon we will be forced out, to live somewhere else, amongst the humans. The forest cannot provide all of our needs. Most of us are still too proud, clinging to their old beliefs, the old ways. Us elves, we may live longer, but I believe that makes us more adverse to change. Or maybe we are just scared. Change can be scary, especially when you are used to,” he paused, looking sideways at her “…being on top, as you would say.”
“Well, I don’t have anything against you.” She sighed, her head ached trying to sort through all the new information. She’d never heard of the Great War before. Why hadn’t Mother told her about it? Did other people know? It didn’t seem like something people would just forget. “Besides, you can’t control the things that your fathers before you have done. I’ve never even heard of the Great War before. I didn’t even know your kind really existed until a few days ago. You seem pleasant so far.”
“That is kind of you, my lady.” Aeron bowed slightly to her as they walked.
“Do you hate humans, Aeron?” So far, he didn’t seem to, but he could have been nice to her because the elves had some need of her. And it couldn’t hurt to ask, right?
Aeron took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “No. Like you said, my lady, not even we can control what our ancestors did. There are a growing number of us who are starting to think that way. Perhaps they are getting tired of the forest. There are those who have spent their entire lives in Ciana et Yaederre, never laying eyes on the outside world.”
Pain stabbed though her chest. She supposed the same thing could have been said about her and Stockton. “Have you ever left the forest?”
“Yes.” Aeron looked up with a nostalgic air. “A long time ago, when I was young and daring, and even more handsome, a group of us left the forest to experience the outside world. But we avoided the humans and their towns. Years of being told humans were evil could have that effect on you, you know?” He glanced at her. “But we grew bored and got homesick, and eventually went back to the forest. That was the first unhappy encounter with the His Majesty.” He chuckled.
“The first of many, right?”
“How did you know, my lady?” he asked.
“Let’s just call it a hunch.”
It didn’t make any sense, she thought quietly. If they were so adverse to humans, then why did they take her in? They treated her wounds and gave her a place to stay. And not just any place. If she were really just a prisoner, they would have kept her in a dungeon, if they had one at all. She rubbed the mark on her right arm. It must have been because that thing showed up. Moreover, if that was the case, did her mother know about it? Was that the reason she had sent her into the forest? The mark definitely wasn’t usual. What is it they weren’t telling her? All the questions became a jumbled mess in her head in what was becoming an increasingly familiar feeling as of late.
They stopped to rest around noon. The sun burned high overhead and filtered in through the dense treetops. She sat on an overturned tree, the leaves on it somehow still green, unwilling to give up life just yet.
Aeron passed her a flask filled with water. She took a long gulp and handed it back. She examined the horizontal tree. It didn’t give up just because it was knocked over. It fought for survival in its own way.
“Teach me how to fight,” she blurted out. The thought struck her like a lightning bolt.
Aeron choked on the water he was drinking. “What was that?” he asked between coughs.
Aeron’s amusement faded when she didn’t back down. “You are serious?”
“Yes.” Fire filled her. She wanted to become strong so she didn’t have to rely on anyone anymore.
Aeron looked to Farron who leaned against a tree. The silver-haired elf just shrugged his shoulders.
“Alright,” Aeron said with a smug, slightly amused look on his face. “Let us see what you have.”
He stood a few feet in front of her, knees bent, hands out in front of him. She looked up at him, unsure of what he wanted her to do.
“Come on.” He gestured with his hands in the air. “Draw your weapon and attack me.”
“I don’t think--”
“Just do it!”
She did and held it out before her in her right hand, although not quite sure of how exactly to hold it.
“Come on!” he shouted. “I am a centaur that invaded your town. Show me what you have!”
Claire charged at Aeron, raised the dagger above her head with both hands and sliced down at the elf. He easily dodged the small blade, stepping to the left. Claire lost her balance and tripped over a fallen branch, and the blade flew out of her hands as she hit the ground hard.
Aeron laughed, a loud hearty sound. She glanced at Farron and a hint of a smile tugged at his lips. She got up, brushed the leaves and dirt off her and marched over to Aeron.
“It’s not funny!” she cried. “I’m serious. I want to learn how to fight!”
“That is what we are here for.” Aeron spread his arms out in a flourish.