Author's Note: I'm really happy to hear the amount of positive feedback, on this series. The story is going to start speeding up, but this isn't going to be "the norm." I hope to create a realistic world, where you, the reader, can imagine it clearly.
If you are able to, please take the time to rate the story. I know it is just starting, so some of you are waiting to see if the content is consistent.
Thank you again!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the road a pair of Ladies of Grace rode on the traveler’s road, a road that connects the villages together to the distant parts of the kingdom of Camblin. To celebrate the Lord’s birth, the Ladies are sent out from the Order to oversee the festivals and record the names on naming day. Clothed in white, their faces are covered with a porcelain mask only exposing their eyes.
“I hear there is a fair amount of young adults this year, my lady.” Amela commented, the younger of the two, she looked forward to seeing the newly named.
Jamelia looked back at her disciple, and glad for her excitement. “Yes, this year our lord will have a new generation of adults, who’ll work to continue peace and happiness in this world he created.” She remembered the days, back when a naming day would bring such elation and joy when she reached her own naming day.
The journey from the Temple was a long and exhausting journey for the two Ladies. Getting to the village took a two full lunar cycles from the Temple. Provided with enough gold and silver, they made the journey, while periodically stopping in villages and providing blessings from Grace.
Though the Ladies of Grace have a benevolent purpose, in spreading the message, they are also a source of both love and fear. Through the rigorous training during their childhood they are taught the lessons on the teachings of Grace and his apostles. Along with the teaching, the Ladies learn combative skills ranking them as high, if not higher than assassins. Answering only to themselves and the Order, they go throughout the kingdom of Camblin serving as watchers of the faith dealing out judgment where they deem appropriate. The white cloaks, garments, and faceplate serve to represent humanities innocent, and purity, as they serve the people.
In the distance the ladies could see the light from the village. As they approached the village the decorations of the spring festival could be seen. Walking through the entrance to the village, Jamelia nodded to the villagers occasionally touching their foreheads, laying blessings onto them. Their arrival is always a celebration for villagers this far away from the Temple. Stopping and motioning for one of the villagers Jamelia asked, “My child, could you direct me to where we could find both food and lodging?”
"The Wayward Traveler is a fine place where you can find delicious food and comfortable lodgings, my lady. Allow me to guide you to the inn and I’ll take care of both of your fine horses.” The villager replied, reverently.
“Thank you and what would your name be,” asked Amela.
“My name is Kalt, my lady,” bowed Kalt raising his arm with his hand palm up towards Amela. In the older villagers, the traditional bow is used to symbolize their acceptance of Grace’s blessings. After an accepted length of time Kalt lowered his arm and guided them to the Wayward Traveler.
At the Wayward Traveler, the ladies dismounted from their horses and thanked Kalt for his service. Walking into the inn, the Ladies quietly sat at a nearby empty table. A serving girl walked up to the Ladies, bringing a pitcher of water and cups for them.
Curtseying, the serving girl asked, “What may I bring you today, my ladies?”
“Whatever is your finest meal at this splendid inn would be quite nice,” answered Amela. Removing her mask, she revealed a young face not much older than those readying for naming day, and dark brown hair that flowed in curls, cascading down her face as she pushed back her hood. “For a small village this inn is quite nice and the villagers are hospitable, my lady.” Amela remarked to Jamelia looking around the inn and smiling at the people inside.
“Yes, the Lord Grace has definitely blessed this village with plentiful harvest and good health.” The face that Jamelia uncovered was one that would take the breath away from any man, though a normal man would think twice before courting a Lady of Grace. Unlike Amela, she had a face of a mature woman, with raven black hair that was straight and flowed down her back as she pushed back her hood.
The room went silent as the villagers stared at the Ladies faces; the occasion to look at the face of a Lady was rare since the only times they remove their masks was when they eat, in private, and at the Temple. Normally Ladies eat their meals in private but during spring festivals they prefer to dine with the villagers.
Bringing a slab of pork and a beef stew with vegetables, the serving girl quietly laid the plates in front of them. Jamelia noticed with a slight smile how the girl tried not to stare at them. “It is alright, my dear.” She tried to comfort the girl, who obviously was nervous serving such refined women.
The serving girl replied stammering, “Yes my lady, I apologize for my rudeness.”
“My goodness what rudeness are you referring to?” Amela asked gently. “Here this silver coin should be more than enough to pay for our meal and lodging.” She placed the coin on the table top and slid it towards the girl.
Taking the coin, the girl looked at the silver her hand trembling as if it were a manifestation of the Lord Grace, in her hand. Placing the coin in her apron pocket, the serving girl curtsied and quickly went back to the bar.
“A silver coin in this village could buy a herd of cows.” Jumelia mused looking at the serving girl as she displayed the silver to the bartender.
The door opened and a girl walked into the inn, quietly walking over to the group of young boys and girls. One of the boys looked up at the girl and asked, “So Malera did you ask that red-eyed monster out to the spring festival?” Some of the boys in the group chuckled at the idea, while the girls looked uncomfortable with the talk.
“Stop calling him a monster Clemis” the girl named Malera shot back at the guy. Though she appeared upset, the girl sat with the group at the table and called over the serving girl.
“Did you hear what she said, my lady?” Amela asked in a hushed tone.
Eating some of the stew, Jumelia looked over at the table with the young group and then looked back and replied, “Yes, the mention of red eyes is indeed news. I am interested in this lad they are talking about, the one with the eyes.”
“Do you think they are exaggerating as to the eye color? Maybe it could be a birth deformity and nothing to do with the teachings. Demons have not existed in ages ever since the War of Light and Dark, when they fought against the Army of Light.”
“Until we see the boy, let us not jump to conclusion prematurely.” Jumelia warned Amela. The idea of demons walking on the earth sent shivers running down her back. The teaching told about the demons and how they nearly tipped the scales, in the war. Even she did not have confidence in facing a demon on the battlefield. The Temple would need to be alerted of this news if it turned out this child was in fact tainted by demon’s blood.
Once the meal was over, they raised their hood and covered their face once again. The inn was set up with the dining area being on the first level. On the right side of the inn, when entering the inn, were the stairs to the upper level where the lodgings were situated. Getting up from the table, they walked up the stairs to the rooms in the upper levels of the inn. At the top of the stairs, there was a hallway with the rooms set up on either side, with a bathing area on the first right. Their rooms were the first on the right, and upon opening the door to their room Jamelia noticed that their packs, containing their clothes and food, were propped up against the far wall. The inn must have brought in their luggage through the rear entrance, for the servants. The room was a fair size with two beds, normally rented out to visiting families. Hanging up their cloaks on the pegs near the door, they got ready for rest.
Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!
--------------------------------------------------
With the rising of the sun Jamelia began her morning prayers, thanking the Lord Grace for all his blessings. For her, the mornings were truly a time to be thankful. Across the room the inn was the bathing area for the guests. The system may not have been as sophisticated as the ones at the Temple, but they had a nice setup with running hot water for the bath. The tub was made from copper in the shape of a leaf, with fairies imprinted on the outer surface. A village with modest living, the existence of such a lovely tub was impressive and had likely cost them a decent amount of gold coins.
After cleansing her body, Jamelia began putting on her garments finishing with the cloak and mask. Grabbing her pack, she began taking the various throwing knives, daggers, and short swords and sheathed them throughout her garment. When the cloak was on, the various weapons she carries are hidden from view. At any given point a Lady carries, what some may consider, an arsenal of weapons.
Walking down the stairs into the main dining area, Jamelia saw Amela at one of the tables eating a morning meal of eggs and sausage. Amela nodded her head towards Jamelia and pointed to the plate already set at the table. Thanking Amela, she sat down at the table and after removing her mask began eating in solemn silence.
“I shall be looking to see what this boy we heard last night looks like.” Jamelia commented to Amela after finishing her meal. As quickly as possible, they needed to confirm the truth about the boy.
Taking a knife, she cut up some of the sausage and ate it before answer, “I will be visiting the mayor and talking to him about the naming ceremony, my lady. With the number of young men and women being named we will need to have time to properly record all of them. Is there anything I can help you with, my lady, in searching for this boy?”
“No Amela, I will be able to handle looking for this lad. I will be counting on you with handling the mayor and all the records. I know that you’ll do an exemplary job, per usual,” Jamelia instructed her understanding that Amela was capable with her duties as a Lady of Grace.
Getting up, Jamelia headed out of the Wayward Traveler and towards the nearest villager asking, “I would like to inquire if you know a child with red eyes.”
“That would be Kendrolgo you are looking for, my lady. His house is at the edge of the village near the entrance over there.” The villager humbly answered pointing at the house, confused by the question but not daring to lie to a Lady.
Thanking the villager, Jamelia walked to the house enjoying the liveliness of the village. Compared to the Temple and the larger cities, the village had a certain unique quality only found in the outer reaches of the kingdom. In a city, the numbers of Ladies are greater and so moving around the city was vastly different. At the house, she knocked on the door hoping that the family was still inside.
“Yes?” a voice called out, from inside of the house. From the sound of the voice it was a women walking up to the door. Opening the door Jamelia saw that the lady was stunning, even for a Lady of Grace’s standards. “How may I help you, my lady?” she asked Jamelia with concern and confusion in her voice.
“I heard that you have a son?” Jamelia tried to phrase the question with as little accusation in her voice as possible.
“I have two sons, my lady.”
Confused by this turn of events, Jamelia tried to think of a way to question the lady about her son. She understood people’s fears of her, and her fellow sisters. “The one I was looking for is your son with the red eyes. I only ask out of curiosity in terms of his eyes and would just like to talk to him.” She said in as soothing of a voice as possible.
“He is not here at the moment, my lady. I think he may have slept in the forest last night.” Even though the lady probably didn’t want to tell her where her son was, lying to a Lady was not a wise policy.
“In the forest you say?” She repeated back to the lady.
“Yes, my lady. He enjoys being outside, and will occasionally be found reading books.” The mother of the boy replied.
“If you could point me in the direction he normally can be found, I would greatly appreciate it.” Jamelia requested.
The mother pointed towards behind the house and mentioned that there was a lone tree he could sometimes be found at. If he was not under the tree, then most likely he would be in the forest behind it.
Jamelia blessed the mother for her kindness, and walked in the direction where the tree was located. Passing the boundary of the village, Jamelia could spot the boy’s tracks. Following the tracks she passed by the lone tree but saw that the footprints continued into the forest. The forest was old, and the canopy was thick enough to block out the sun. She was surprised by how deep the boy had gone into the forest and slowly the ground changed from dirt to moss. Demon flowers littered the forest floor and when she looked up she saw a boy sleeping among the flowers.
Walking up to the boy, Jamelia noticed that he was slightly bigger in weight than boys his age, but even then his face was fairer than his peers. Seeing the boy starting to stir she stepped back, as a caution. Until she could confirm whether the boy was a demon or not, she needed to be careful.
The boy’s eyes slowly opened and he began looking around, most likely just clearing his head from waking up. Looking closely at the eyes, Jamelia felt her heart drop when she saw the red pupils contrasted by the black where there should have been white. This was almost a clear sign of demon blood, but what cleared all doubt was the way his eyes glowed in the darkened forest.
“Hello, my lady.” The boy said looking at her with those glowing eyes, like smoldering coals.
“I am Lady Jamelia, and what might your name be?” Worrying about how he would react to her, she was comforted by the weapons she had placed throughout her garment.
“My name is Kendrolgo, my lady.” Kendrolgo answered though he looked slightly confused as to why a Lady of Grace was in the forest with him. The most disconcerting aspect of a lady was the porcelain mask, which hid their facial expressions. “If I may, not to be rude, what is my lady doing in the forest.”
“Nice to meet you, Kendrolgo,” she answered walking closer to him. Crouching, Jamelia took a closer look at his eyes that seemed to be able to see through her mask. “Kendrolgo, I see that you have very unique eyes.” As the sun briefly broke through the forest canopy, causing shadows to dance across his eyes making them glow.
“My mother told me that they were a blessing from the Lord Grace.” He whispered, hoping that his answer was correct.
“Yes. You have been blessed, my son. Why don’t we go into the town and enjoy the spring festival?” She suggested thinking about getting back to Amela, and showing her Kendrolgo.
Averting his eyes, Kendrolgo responded bitterly, “there’s no reason for me to go to the spring festival.”
Jamelia could see the bitterness on his face. She could only imagine what the other villagers put him through, due to his differences. Though this boy carried demon blood inside of him, Jamelia couldn’t help but empathize with him, at growing up differently compared to others. Even though she felt bad for him, she knew his demon blood heritage and needing to stay on guard. Moments like these made her glad she had the porcelain mask covering her face, hiding her emotions.
Interrupting their silence was the sudden sound of a low rumbling growl.