CHAPTER 8

Daelyn spent the following morning reading through the little booklet, making out individual words and short sentences, yet never really grasping the message behind the assortment of odd scribbles and barely readable symbols. The texts served more to confuse the little boy than teach him, as the absence of any form of visual representation or a description for one of the many idioms scattered throughout each page of the child-sized tome did little more than confuse Daelyn.

                He had spent the morning trying to decipher the first few pages of the little booklet which turned about to be a medium sized tome, as the number of pages contained in the thing seemed incongruous with its size. Nevertheless, Daelyn had tried again and again to plough through the indecipherable texts, yet both he and it failed in making any headway through the wall of symbols, scribbles, and characters which resembled drawings more than letters.

                The morning had started as usual for the Theandor family, with both Lyvia and Grey waking shortly after each other, mostly due to their little game of poking their sleeping partner. Grey had the privilege of finally catching Lyvia off guard after at least a week of waking under a barrage of poking fingers and hands that were a little too invasive. His revenge was sweet yet short lived, as his lovely wife tackled him to the floor within moments of his victory, draining both herself and her partner of any drowsiness and waking little Daelyn.

                The couple had split off during the morning, both hiding away in their own little part of the house. Lyvia kept to herself in the locked room, while Grey simply commenced the task of trying to complete an incremental amount of his workload. The focus of both parents on their respective trades left their offspring free to do as they please.

                Daelyn had quickly left bed after Grey and Lyvia’s little scuffle, grabbing the notebook Tanner had given him and sitting down in his own little room, away from the prying eyes of his parents. The little boy had done everything in his childish mind to hide Tanner’s gift. His thoughts were conflicted, as he wished to retain the knowledge in the tome, yet he could hardly bear the thought of lying and deceiving his parents.

                ‘I’m sure they’ll take it away. It came from mister Anatoly, and mom doesn’t seem to like her.’

                Luckily, Daelyn wasn’t alone in his plight, nor was he in his enthusiasm.

                ‘Yes! Yes, yes, yes! I knew that old man would have something interesting! Finally, a chance to read whatever this world is about!’, He stared through the translucent orbs and into the world of colours beyond, where the beige pages of paper lay there for both of them, unwavering in their inability to be understood and unrelenting in the harrying assault it brought to their collective psyche as the duo tried to regardless.

                ‘Well, crap.’

                The morning continued with this same sentiment, as the two inhabitants of the same body could help only themselves in reaching an understanding regarding the odd texts. Their plight was theirs and theirs alone, as no outside help could be called in.

                Their musings, rumblings, and simple abandonment at times of the subject matter was suddenly interrupted, as a cry of anguish followed by a waterfall of sobs rang throughout the little cottage. The sound originated from the downstairs atelier, where the muffled sound of a slightly panicked Grey could be heard from. The sound was quickly followed by hurried steps towards the living room, which in turn was accompanied by the violent slamming of a wooden door, before Lyvia joined Grey in his panicking.

                Daelyn slowly got up after listening for a few more minutes, silently hoping that the noise would go away, and he would be able to read through the book in peace. Alas, it was not meant to be so. He walked towards the living room, peering through the doorframe into the living room.

                Celeria sat there crying like a child. She was unable to form a coherent sentence, as each word came between wheezed breaths. The momentary realisation of her inability to speak only deepened her grief, as another shriek reverberated through the small room. Daelyn covered his ears at this banshee like shriek, which gave him the time to observe Celeria’s state.

                The poor woman covered in small bruises and cuts on her clothes. She had most likely travelled here by foot on the forest floor in the quickest pace she could manage.

                “Lyvia”, she said between stammers, “T-they are g-going t-to take Dal away!”, the woman cried out, leaping into her friend’s arms.

                “What do you mean Dalarius is going away? Who are ‘they’?”

                “The draft! The draft! He’s been drafted! All members of the guard have been mobilised!”

                “Mobilised? For what?!”

                “T- the frontline! D-Dalarius is going to fight at the eastern border!”, Celeria said in between sobs. The poor woman could hardly be comforted when her beloved was off to the battlefield, fighting in a war of survival for his nation, while his own was at stake.

                The two standing over her could give her little solace, as all knew the stories of the frontline, and all knew that few returned from such a meatgrinder. Even the famed Dynn Doriàn and their physical prowess saved them from an inevitable demise by the hands of a horde of enemies. The quality of their troops was top notch, yet the enemy had quantity that far outmatched theirs, resulting in a stalemate of gore and casualties.

                “How do you know this? There must be some kind of mistake, right?! Who the hell authorised this?!”, Lyvia shouted. She was about to spit fire, her frustration lighting up like a bonfire.

                “T-the council of seven did.”, Celeria’s defeated voice rang through the living room, silencing all the commotion in both their hearts and minds. The highest power in the kingdom had decreed for her husband to travel halfway across the nation to fight on a front where there was little but blighted land.

                The trio turned quiet, ruminating on what to do. Celeria simply stared out into the distance, nothing entering nor leaving her mind, just an empty void of thought.

                ‘What the hell is going on?! A draft?! For Eleanor’s sake, we’re already stretched thing! How in the hell do they expect us to deliver any produce?! The farm workers are already working overtime just to keep the fields from growing over, never mind the goddamned monster infestations! Who in the hell is going to clear those out now that the guards are gone?!’, Lyvia’s temperament started to boil.

                Her frustrations reached a breaking point, edging her towards rushing to the village manor and giving Elrieden a piece of her mind. A tug on her leg shifted her attention away, and quickly melted any frustration she had.

                Daelyn was staring up at his mother with curious and slightly concerned eyes.

                “Mom, what’s going on? Why is she crying?”, the little boy sweetly asked.

                Lyvia smiled at her son, patting his head. She shifted her position to let Celeria rest on her shoulder while they sat the ground, cradling her like an overgrown child.

                “A few things have happened, sweaty. Adult things, things you shouldn’t worry about, okay?”, Lyvia held a faux smile in an attempt to sweet talk her own son.

                Daelyn simply nodded, trotting off towards Grey who was preparing breakfast for the family and their new visitor. The little boy disappeared behind his mother’s back, followed by Celeria’s gaze as she recognised that clumsy step, reminding her of her own daughters.

                Lyvia pulled her out of her lucid dreaming.

                “Cel, I know that it’s hard, but you need to tell me everything you know. I need every detail you have, understood?”, her friend quietly nodded, “Good. Now, did only the guards get drafted, or will there be more?”

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                “I don’t know.”

                “Do you know when they’re leaving?”

                “Today.”

                “Do you- wait, what do you mean ‘today’?”

                “They’re leaving today. Elrieden will hold a feast for their leave in the afternoon, but they’re gone by nightfall.”

                “That helps Cel. Now, we’re going to do a few things, okay? First, you’re going to go home and get your girls. Secondly, we’re going to eat lunch together. Thirdly, we’re going to the village manor and see what we can do. Elrieden isn’t a lich, so he must be able to show some compassion and help, right?”, Lyvia’s attempt at comforting Celeria succeeded, causing the previously downtrodden woman to cast a new light on the situation, creating a spark of hope for her.

                “You’re right. Yes, you’re right! We can do something against this!”

                “But first, lunch.”

                “Yeah, you’re right. I’ll go get the girls, shouldn’t take that long. Hope you have enough food for three more mouths!”, Celeria’s previously depressed face lighted up like a candle, regaining its usual vigour and robustness. She rushed off, speeding through the doorway and out into the open like an arrow being released from a bow.

                The Theandor family was left with a nasty feeling, as they had seen the sudden vigour induced by the slightest hope of redemption in Celeria spring up like an infection. The sight of their lifelong friend being destroyed by the forces which reigned over them in this mortal plane were devastating, as it was hard to even realise what was happening.

                They spent several minutes in silence, contemplating the change in stance their lords had undertaken.

                The realisation that they weren’t alone in this was both horrifying and incomprehensible, as each village would be suffering the loss of their most trusted and trained security force, their guard regiment. The thought that all over the nation, the people of Eleanor would have to fend for themselves once again was both intriguing and concerning.

                Some would see this as an improvement, a testament to the strength of the nation or the strength of the individual depending on the person you asked. There would be those that would gladly leave their home to fight for the nation, those that would see their local guards off with a smile on their face, yet there would be many, many that would observe these changes with fear. Those who feared the changes saw an unstable nation and a whole host of weakened and unprotected villages, endangering the major food source and their lives in the process.

                These thoughts of unrest coursed through their minds, yet they left worrying for the future. They had a very simple goal now, and that was making a good lunch.

                “Dear, can you get some extra mushrooms, maybe some nuts? I don’t know if I have enough for three extra mouths today.”, Grey sat on one of the kitchen chairs, speaking only after having spent several minutes staring blankly at the wall opposite of him. He looked towards Lyvia, who was absentmindedly stroking Daelyn’s hair. Her eyes were glued to the open window, observing the little birds fluttering from branch to branch, calling out to each other at each opportunity. Her lips mimicked the little sounds, touting as the high tones of the birds could only be done through a whistle.

                The soft whistling silenced the room. Grey simply watched this surreal picture, as Lyvia seemed more like a hummingbird dryad, guiding a lost traveller towards the road or their death with sweet songs of simple melodies. The serene sight of his little family emptied Grey’s mind, allowing him only to observe this little oasis of tranquillity in the middle of a nationwide storm.

                Lyvia’s slow whistling was silenced by a rustle of leaves and a muffled shriek, followed by a long silence. The cheerful whistling of the little birds had been silenced by a large predator. The brown feathered thing had a wingspan of close to half a metre, preying on the relatively small and insignificant hummingbirds only because it couldn’t catch anything larger than that, as even the local voles could become too big to swallow.

                The dreary sight of blood had shattered the illusion of tranquillity and brought on the weight of the situation at hand. Lyvia and Grey both stood up, intent on completing the simple task at hand without any more impediments.

                Grey hurried to the kitchen, while Lyvia disappeared down the steps and into the woods. Their respective tasks once again let Daelyn to his own, allowing the little boy to continue cracking his head over the long and undecipherable texts, doing little but to add to his frustration and confusion.

                The Vitafius didn’t make anyone wait, as they arrived shortly after Lyvia and Grey had finished the lunch, giving the couple only seconds before they welcomed a smiling mother and two confused yet cheerful children.

                The sight of both Ayda and Anna being their usual selves surprised Lyvia and Grey, as it hadn’t been the first time they had seen a family be separated through brute force, yet they had rarely seen a smiling or cheerful child on such an occasion. Lyvia and Grey shared a glance, both realising the same thing.

                In such a situation, either they didn’t know, or they didn’t care. Both Grey and Lyvia couldn’t fathom the latter option, so they stuck to their façade, smiling as they welcomed the little family with a warm lunch and open arms. They quietly sat down, starting conversation about small and insignificant topics while ignoring the elephant in the room for the children’s sake. The food was consumed at a relative pace, allowing for more small talk until all was finished. Now, all three parents realized their next stop would be the village, as there was only where they could say goodbye to Dalarius and voice their complaints to Elrieden.

                “Lyvia, are you and Grey going to the little assembly Elrieden is holding tonight? I heard there would be a buffet?”, Celeria’s attempt at masking the situation was childlike. Luckily, she needn’t have done more.

                “Yes, it would be fun to attend. I heard it’s something about honouring the guard regiment.”, Lyvia joined in on the façade in the same childlike manner Celeria did, fooling only the children in front of them.

                Grey had to fight the urge to rub his eyes in frustration, yet he just kept on smiling. The internal screams of exasperation were outweighed by the thought that these children were about to lose their father one way or another, so he might as well leave them in their naïve bliss.

                Grey helped the little trio prepare with that thought in mind, organising the little seemingly innocuous trip to the village. They had a double agenda in going to the village, yet Grey hoped that they wouldn’t be lost in trying to reverse what has already been done. He knew Lyvia’s brashness and he had seen the spark of hope in Celeria’s eyes, yet he knew the powers operating from the capital too well to think that they would change their mind now.

                The threshold to the house was quickly crossed, and the little troupe set off towards the village. The three children were hoisted up on their parents’ shoulders or cradled like an infant in Anna’s case. The little girl was far too shy to be sitting on her mother’s shoulder. However, she enjoyed the sight just as much as both Daelyn and Ayda did, marvelling at both the canopy high up in the sky and the forest floor around them.

                The forest of Eleanor was a peculiar place, as the low amount of light would normally mean that little but moss would grow below the canopy, yet the forest floor was littered with all sorts of plants, covering the ground in all sorts of plants which had no business being there. This odd phenomenon of unrestrained growth resulted in a beautiful yet slightly disconcerting forest filled with all kinds of flora, from colourful flowers to venomous plants, coated in a shadow in which they should not be able to survive. The forest gave off a feeling of cold beauty, something to be observed yet not touched, as any meddlers would most likely receive what hides in the darkness beneath the dense wall of flora.

                However, nothing showed itself today. The forest was awfully quiet, as even the small birds which normally pervaded the woods remained silent. The mating calls of the hummingbirds, the low growl of a predator, or the rustling of leaves could only be heard in the distance, muffled by the wall of flora.

                The only sound that slowly seeped through the thick foliage was a muffled thumping, resounding through the forest like a monster was crushing the ground beneath it. It happened again, and again, and again, washing over the little troupe each time with a slight increase in volume. The odd sound made Lyvia fear for the worst, as it was awfully like that of a certain creature she would rather not encounter. The family continued on regardless, mostly ignoring the increasingly loud noise. The sound went on and on, slowly encroaching on the family, until it abruptly stopped.

                Lyvia put balled her fist and put it up in the air, signalling for everyone to stop. They listened carefully, hoping their silence would reveal something. A muffled noise came from the direction of the village, it was vaguely similar to that of a person shouting. A loud war cry resounded from the same direction, quickly followed by a splintering of the earlier noise as it seemed like a herd of centaurs broke out into a mad charge towards the village.

                The group slowed pace after that, slowly encroaching on the village. They circled around the closest gate in a bid to avoid whatever made that noise, but as they got a clear view of the village, they realised such a thing was unnecessary.

                The southern gate was open, with no corpses strew about, no fires to be put out, and, disturbingly, no guards to keep out any unwanted visitors. The place was simply abandoned, yet the streets beyond were filled with noise. The trees surrounding the village were filled with thick branches with many of them overgrown with leaves, giving the village a natural defence against anyone trying to scry information from the small village, yet these obstructed any view the little group could have, resulting in them only being able to observe the situation through sound.

                The situation was clear to Lyvia, Grey and Celeria despite what little tools they were given for observation. The village itself wasn’t in danger, yet Elrieden most likely was, as instead of a horde of goblins or a stampede of centaurs, an angry mob of locals had gathered and were administering due punishment to the village hall, regardless of those inside.