“Look, I need to go!”said Arkain to try and get away. The others, respecting his wish, had also thanked him for the last time and started running away shouting“He is the one! He is the one!” Not wasting any more time, Arkain headed back towards the inn thinking about what has just happened. The night started to turn into day by the time he got back. The sun welcomed this world yet again with a bright sunrise and by the time Arkain got back, it was already ending. He flanged the door open and saw the room, repopulated again. The same men has sat on the same tables, just like the day before. This time, Agaroth and Burdõlwas there too. They were also sitting next to a circular table with mugs in their hands. The chairs were made of wood and had a simple design with a circle bottom to sit on and a long wooden plank to hold their back. The table was similar too, but without the back stand. He walked up to the two of them and sat down.“Where were you?” asked Burdõlwith a bit of smile on his face from the ale. His hands firmly held the chipped wooden mug and his mouth slurped from it every once in a while.“I was away. I couldn’t sleep so I went for a walk”said Arkain, afraid that he would get punished. Still, he wasn’t afraid of that. He was afraid of the things the villagers said, and he wanted no more of it.“In the rain? You might be more stupid than I have though!”laughed the dwarf and finished the conversation by downing the remaining fluid in the mug.“Are you hungry?” asked Agaroth.
“Yes, I am” he replied, realizing that the day before supplements for his hunger had quickly faded away and now he could eat anything. Agaroth gave him a few coins and told him that he should get something from the bartender. There isn’t much food here, but even a chunk of bread is better than nothing, and so, the boy went up to him asking for some kind of a breakfast. The bartender quickly pulled out a small bit of cheese and bread, cold, but edible. He walked back to the table and sat down, eating his food.“We are not far away. I believe that this is the last human populated place that we will see if we were to continue. We might run into some elves but that is highly unlikely” the traveller said while Arkain was finishing.
“Why?” he asked with full mouth.
“Because Elves hate cold. They can’t stand it so they won’t go up here unless they have a reason. Which could be to escape the humans but I doubt it. Everyone knows that there is a forest in the south which is only populated by elves. It is so dangerous according to the people that they won’t go in there. I, myself had only met an elf a couple of months ago that was heading there. He told me that everything was only speculation and that in the real world, they won’t hurt anyone as long as they won’t trespass or kill”
“How long will it take for us to reach that place Arkain wants?” inquired Burdõl.
“A few weeks, perhaps even less. Depends what the land looks like out there”
“So you don’t know?” queried the dwarf with a slight grin on his face.
“Enough! You shouldn’t have drunken as much! Dwarfs are notorious for their resistance to alcohol but you are one of the few that aren’t”
“What?! I am not drunk!” protested Burdõl.
“All the worst”whispered Agaroth to which the dwarf showed quite a menacing face. Still, being probably drunk and tired he quickly forgot about it. Agaroth told the two of them that they need to leave the town soon and that they should at least look around the market once, to see it there might be something useful they can buy. Soon, after Arkain finished, they all took off. As soon as they walked out, a mass of people stood outside, all staring towards Arkain. All of three of the got circled by the bunch of villagers that stared towards the unusual triple.“Just walking?” asked Agaroth without demanding an answer and continued walking, pushing the crowd out of his way. The ones that were in his path got pushed away quickly and the ones behind him closed the gap just as fast. Luckily, he was a tall man and the dwarf and the boy could easily see him through the crowd. Once they got out of the crowd, Agaroth hurried the both of them so they could shake off the others. Arkain ran to the front, and followed the man quickly who was running through tight and small streets in a fast pace. After a while, they successfully got to the market alone. The market itself, wasn’t that big. Similar to the one in the other city, it had a circle of stands with people standing behind them. This time though, there was a lot fewer and the ones that were there had little to offer. The wide area was surrounded by houses where there were many, but only one convenient way out which lead towards the main gate.“Alright, have a look around, I’ll be back in a bit” said Agaroth and disappeared into the crowd. Not having anything else to do, the two of them started visiting each stall and seeing if there is anything they can find. Burdõlheaded off towards the food stand while Arkain went to the right side. The first two stalls weren’t that interesting. Most of them contained trinkets of all sorts and this and that. Nothing important or useful other than carved wood that resembled animals.“You sir! Would you like anything? These statues are handmade! I have got rats, birds, insects and anything you can imagine” offered the man behind, raising nearly each and every statue.
“No, thank you but I am fine. I would not be able to keep it anywhere” answered Arkain.
“Are you sure? You know what?! You can get it for half price!”continued the man and pulling his hand out from a box behind him.“Here it is!”he said“You look like the wolf type! This is one of my best pieces!”In his hand was a small carved wolf. Its eyes were facing towards the boy. It felt like it was looking into the nothing with its paws on the wooden foundation. All of a sudden it turned out to be very well done. It was very detailed.“You know what? I’ll have it for two coins”he answered to the man’s request and once he paid him and got the wolf handed over, he put it into his bag, then continued walking. Soon, it became crowded with people bargaining for the other’s offers and the air was filled with human noises. Still, he continued on, checked most of the stands and nearly managed to fight off all the offers. He didn’t needed any of the stuff that he was offered to pay for and there was no time for him to waste his time with them. Burdõl on the other hand was strongly shouting for something the boy could not quite see. He smiled on the dwarf’s expression and reaction for a blink and when he was about to walk up to him, his eyes have spotted the last stall in the circle, empty around except from an old woman who was sitting in a small chair behind it. The stall had cages on it with animals inside. These ‘animals’ looked weird to the boy and so he walked up to the lady. He managed this fairly fast compared to how much he had to fight for the others. There weren’t any people nearby, no-one tried to argue with her and that could be seen on her face. She was sad and tire. Her face had stretched low towards the ground full of tiredness.“Morning” the boy said the boy and got the same reply. The animals had all kinds of colours on them with great eyes that now faced towards the boy.
“Are you looking for something dear?”
“What are these?” he asked with his head pointing towards the strange creatures.
“You have never seen one of these?”marvelled the lady. Arkain shook his head and waited for an answer with his eyes still staring at one of them. A white one, with great black eyes. Its belly was white and its back had the colour of the inside of a bread.“They are owls” answered the lady with a kind voice.
“Owls”repeated the boy.“How come you don’t have any customers?”
“People cannot afford to fend themselves let alone a companion. Also, most people that are looking for a bird buy a hawk.” she responded.
“Then what is going to happen to them?”
She sighed“I am probably going to let the bigger ones fly away and kill the small one”she pointed at the white one that Arkain couldn’t take his eyes off.
“Why?!” besought the boy fast. He didn’t understand why he got so sad and angry all of a sudden. Is this… compassion?
“She is too small to catch anything and would get killed fast”
He kept looking at it, not understanding what to do. Not understanding how someone can k
ill such a beauty. He stared at her, for what felt like a lifetime, then decided. Someone has to do something about it.“Can I take care of her?” he whispered.
“You?! Do you even know how?!” said the woman amazed.
“I don’t, but I can find out! I cannot let her die!”
The lady hesitated then final gave in.“Oh well, she is one of my favourites and I don’t have the heart to kill her. I suppose I can give her a last chance. One that is more likely to be successful than releasing her too. Tell me. Will you take care of her?” she asked with a few tears swelling up in her eyes.
“I’ll try” he said. She stood up turned around and gave a book to the boy, on which a title stood in the front. It was big and bold and the book felt like it was pretty old.“Owls and their flight”it said and“contained all the things I learned about these amazing creatures”. Then, she lifted the cage and opened it. The owl jumped out onto her hand.“Raise your hand dear”she instructed. Arkain lifted his hand and waited for the lady to take her next step. She walked out from the stall and walked up to the boy. Her hand lifted again and stopped next to his. The owl looked at the boy, then jumped onto his hand. Her head twisted and twisted every way she looked.“Her name is Hoot” the woman said and smiled with her eyes releasing a few tears. The bird’s feet was grippy and firm, holding her body so that it doesn’t fall off. The claws have held firmly onto the boy’s hand. The two of them stood there for a while until Arkain asked what he needs to pay.
“Oh, no! You don’t need to pay anything! It is enough for me that you take care of her!”she said but the boy gave her money anyway. He said that“you still deserve it, someone also needs to take care of you” and handed a great stack of coins to her. The lady thanked him many time for that.
“Thank you! You are a kind fellow. She is in good hands.”she said. A few seconds later she quickly raised her hand and told the boy to stay there and she hurried away. While she was gone Arkain kept petting the bird, feeling its fluffy feather and its strong muscles and bones. Even for a young owl, she felt strong. In exchange, she bit his hand softly to show her thanks. When the lady got back she held a small shiny object in her hand which she quickly gave to the boy.“This is an owl whistle. One of a kind. She will come back to this once you call her. You need to blow on this side”she demonstrated“and it will created a sharp sound that the owls hear and understand” and smiled. The tears have slowly started to disappear from her face and only her smile was left. Her passion to the owls started to show once she started talking about what they eat, how they fly and what might be their favourite pastime. They have talked for a while until Burdõlwalked up to them.“Well, well, well! I didn’t know that you like owls! Are you actually buying one?!”he asked with excitement on his face. This is very fortunate, thought Arkain because he wasn’t sure about what the others would say about this.“Yes I am”the boy replied and then turned to the woman“Do I need to…”but then got cut off because of the shouts and screams that came from the other side. Everyone around them turned around to the loud noises and saw a group a horsemen arrive through the main gate. That wasn’t the main problem. The problem was that they have kicked and punished anyone in their way. In the front of the cavalcade was a man with a menacing look. His sword was big and hanged down on the horse’s side and he had many daggers on him. His head was bold and his face hosted a small beard with a separate moustache. He was also smiling and eating an apple. Behind him were supposedly his henchmen following the leader in armour and helmets. The people that were the closest to them jumped out of the way and ran into their houses. Soon, when most of the horseman came past the gate a big wooden box appeared behind them. This thing had wheels on the bottom and it was pulled by one horse. That horse was fully covered in leather to keep it from escaping and so did the others around it. All of them had dried blood around their mouth and a dirty look. Their body was covered in all sorts of mess. They have calmly walk across the street towards the market, where they have stopped. The people before him had stepped back, creating a half circle.“Where are the guards?!” whispered one from the crowd.
“I paid them off”answered the horsemen in the front, now smiling even more. His horse walked back and forward through the half circle and sometimes stopped, but continued a moment later.“Ladies and gentleman”he started, louder so everyone could hear it“I have an announcement!”the pause have allowed his eyes to run across most of the people and see how they reacted.“I can see that you are scared. Don’t be. We are here to help you! To give you a new life! Our group is growing rapidly! Creating new opportunities for all of you! This, is your time to shine, this! Who wants to join us?”Then, it was all quiet. The leader just stared at the crowd, smiling, waiting for someone to respond. He got that soon enough. An old man had walked out of the crowd in front of the newcomers and raised his voice so everyone could hear it.“WE DON’T WANT TO JOIN YOU! WE WANT NONE OF THIS!”he yelled. The leader has jumped down and walked up to him. His right hand was already on his sword, and when he got close enough it pulled it out and pushed it into his heart. People started screaming as he cleaned his blade after.“Yes, I have forgot to mention one simple thing! If someone tries to be a lost cause than he shall die by our hands! Anyone else that care to do that?”The crowd had started to go wild now all of them pointing towards Arkain. The lady quickly grabbed the owl and told the boy to blow the whistle once he wants her back but“We have to hide her before they kill her”she said, and grabbed all of her owls and hurried away.“It is him! He who shall save all of us!” screamed the crowd and drawn all the attention towards the boy who was ready to pull his sword out. The leader had jumped up onto his horse and started to cut through the crowd with villagers being constantly pushed to the side.“Who?”The word slithered out of his mouth, creating a sharp sound. Everything felt more menacing as he came closer with everyone around staring at both of them.“The chosen one!”came the cry. The man stopped, and looked closely at the boy with his eyes being sharp and dangerous.“Never heard of him!”he laughed with the others behind him doing the same.“Tell me, will YOU join me?”The question has echoed in Arkain’s ears, but he definitely knew the answer to that one. It might have been the worst one to say though.
“No” he said calmly, staring at the bandit, waiting for a reply, and probably not a merry one. His smiling face have turned into the opposite. His rotten teeth were showing as he implied the anger inside.
With Blades and Flames: Awakening Page 16
