The meeting house rang out with the sound of laughter and jubilation. People of all walks of life lined the tables that were set up for the celebratory feast that day. The richest and most flamboyant merchants laughed with the poorest and most reserved farmers. The attendants had long abandoned all semblance of manners for the price of enjoying themselves, at the embarrassment of the resident holy man.
Charastro Lerendum was his church name, but everyone in the small town just called him Leren. He was a small and almost noticeable man that could easily have been mistaken for a bird for his long nose and sharp facial features.
Leren was now begging the mayor to bring some sense of order to the dining hall. The mayor was a heavy man with massive arms who was now too engrossed in drink and talk to heed the priest's request.
“Hehehe, the mayor has really outdone himself with this party. Not even Leren can control it. I don’t think I remember anything like it. What about you, Canadine?”
Canadine looked to his left to see a scrawny youth of twelve with a nose as sharp as a dagger with a plate full of food shuffling into the seat next to him.
Canadine took a sip from the goblet in front of him. He never liked the taste of wine, but he was obliged to drink one glass on such a special occasion.
“Once.”
“Once? When?”
“I don’t remember, but there has to be another time.”
“No there doesn’t. If there was, I would have definitely remembered.”
Canadine looked at the youth’s plate, “How can you even eat all that Dari?”
Dari shrugged his shoulders, “My mom says I’m growing. I’ll probably be bigger than you when we grow up.”
Canadine had started growing earlier than others his age and light brown patches had started to dot his face. He didn’t want to shave it because he thought a beard of that color would go well with his green eyes, but his father would probably teach him to shave soon.
“Leren’s gonna catch you if you keep refilling your plate,” Canadine said
“No, he’s not. He can barely even manage the adults.”
A small but stern voice came from Canadine’s right, “I hope that doesn’t mean that you won’t return the money you stole.”
Canadine shifted his gaze to the speaker, Gralt was a year younger than Canadine and Dari with a pug face and shaved head. It would be impossible to place Dari and him as brothers if one didn’t know beforehand.
Dari gave a playful smile, “C’mon, everyone's so happy that some missing coins won’t make them mad. Besides, even the mayor won’t scold me tonight. Just look at him.
Canadine looked at the Mayor and couldn’t help but smile. He was boasting about something or another to a richly and colorfully dressed merchant, laughing as he sloshed his wine while he slapped the merchant back.
“This is for his daughter.”
The three boys instinctively looked towards the podium at the front of the meeting hall. There sat a man with a strong square jaw clothed in a rainbow of colors, which contrasted with his sharp eyes and the discontented frown on his face as he whispered to a man in a plain black garb and silver wolf mask.
“I hope she's al…” Gralt was cut off by an indignant shout from Leren as he stomped over to the group.
As he approached, attendants in the boy's proximity, a rich farmer, a beggar, and a blacksmith, all protested the priest's anger but were all silenced by his hellish glare.
“Where is Karline! How could she embarrass us in such a way? It's shameful. Well?!”
Dari put his hand in front of his full plate, “No sir, I’ve been enjoying the party. I didn’t even know she left.”
Leren’s glare deepened, “I’m sure you haven’t, but just you know I’ll have you return what you stole Dariano Yolen.”
“I don’t know what…”
“I’m sure you haven’t,” he quickly turned to Canadine and Gralt, demanding an answer.
Canadine shook his head, “I’m sorry Charastro, but I only saw her leave.”
“Why didn’t you stop her!”
“I thought she needed to be alone.”
Gralt nodded along, “She’s been really quiet recently. Whenever I would ask her what was wrong she would just shake her head and walk away.”
Leren’s veins almost popped out of his neck, “Sad! How ungrateful. Does she know how much a girl would pay for such an opportunity? Well does she?”
Dari looked back towards the man on the podium, “I’ve never really thought to ask her. Have you?”
Leren jabbed his finger at the boys, “If you don’t go and find her right now I’ll smite you where you sit for your slothfulness and disrespect.”
Those words sent the youths running out of the meeting hall. They had all seen the magic that Leren could work and had no want to be on the receiving end of it.
The last thing they heard before the door closed was the shouting of Leren, “Now I can’t even find Alesria! Why today of all…”
When the door closed Gralt sprinted down the tiled road of the village, “I don’t think Leren’s joking. We better find Karline as fast as we can.”
Dari gave a deep yawn, “Ya, know where she might be?”
Canadine raised his eyebrow at the question, “There’s only one place. isn’t there?”
Dari gave a faint laugh, “I guess there is. I will be there in a minute. Gralt might be too busy thinking about how Leren will punish him to realize it.
Canadine walked down another tiled street taking in the night air. What was once a relief now made him feel empty somehow. He made his way down alleys through brick buildings with only the fires from their windows lighting his way. The only human thing in the air was the cries and laughter from the meeting hall and the small number of taverns that were in the town.
He eventually made his way away from the light of the village and the tiled roads into the green grass that somehow looked duller than he remembered. When he finally arrived at his destination, he was caught off guard by someone unexpected.
He walked up to a tree that overlooked the bay, the cool breeze of autumn gently swaying its branches. A young girl of the age of five with bright blond curls and a white robe stood under the branches jumping for a ripe apple that taunted her from its branches.
He walked up to the little girl and kneeled to get at eye level with her, “Alesria, what are you doing so far away from your parents? Leren’s looking for you.”
Alesria pointed at the apple, “Can you help me?”
Canadine nodded and stood on his toes in order to reach the ripe apple. Though as he went to give it to Alesria, she shook her head.
“I want to give it to Karline. It’ll make her not sad anymore.” She said
“And where is she?”
Alesria pointed down the hill, which the apple tree stood upon. Canadine scratched her head as he walked by, but he noticed she wasn’t following.
“Don’t you wanna come?”
Alesria shook her head violently, “They're both being mean!”
Canadine continued down the hill without the little girl, where he was greeted with the sight of two girls laying on their backs gazing at the black waves crash upon the rocky shore.
“You know your sister was up there right, Elena.”
The taller of the two girls with raven hair looked up at him with an annoyed expression, “She was just bothering us. Couldn’t even sit still.”
Canadine looked back up at the view. Two cliffs perfectly framed the moon and its rays of light reflected off the black waves beneath.
“You’re taking it in one last time?”
“Yeah,” the smaller of the two girls said. Her auburn hair was up in a bun, that looked as if it was struggling to keep itself together.
“I’ve never really thought about it that much before. This I mean,” she waved her hand in at the view, “It's hard to believe that I’ll never see it again.”
Canadine sat next to the two girls and offered the apple to Karline, “Don’t say that. You’ll have plenty of chances to come back.”
Karline snatched the apple from his hand, “Yeah right. We could barely get the great lord Loriendo to consent to have the wedding here. I mean it's in a whole other province. You think he’ll let me travel here from Granalio? That’s funny, he doesn’t care.”
“He’s marrying you, so he must care about you.”
Karline sat up and stared at the shiny surface of the bright red apple, “He only cares about the idea of me.”
“The idea of you…what does that even mean?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
Canadine stood back up and offered his hand to her, “Being out here won’t fix your mood.”
“And being in there will? Seeing all the people that I’ll probably never see again?”
Elena put her hand on Karline's, “I won’t leave you.”
Karline shook her head solemnly, “I still don’t know how I feel about you becoming my servant. Just saying it feels weird.”
“I don’t care. Wherever you go, I go.”
Canadine puffed out his chest as he looked towards the horizon, “I’ll definitely see you again. I will get out of this village as soon as I can and become a warrior.”
The two girls broke out into hysterical laughter.
“What?” Canadine asked, confused.
Elena wiped tears from her eyes, “You still believe that.”
“Are you insulting our dream?” Dari called out from the crest of the hill
Elena’s mood suddenly soured, “You a warrior, you’re joking. How do you think anyone can take you seriously?”
“Just you wait! While you’re a maid, I’ll be a hero who travels the world fighting monsters and villains,” he had now joined the three of them.
Elena rolled her eyes, “You’re joking.”
Dari looked as if he was about to tackle her, but a shout drew his gaze back up the hill.
The group ran back up the hill only to find Gralt hanging from a tree branch and Alesria gazing up at him.
“Why are you up there Gralt!” Dari called up to his brother.
“Alesria wanted an apple so I tried to get her one.”
Elena ran to her sister and looked her in the eyes, “Why didn’t you ask me.”
Alesria pouted her lip in a dejected manner, “You were being mean!”
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
Canadine looked up at the tree. Gralt was high but not too high that he would hurt himself by jumping down.
“Gralt just jumped down.”
Gralt’s eyes popped open at the suggestion, “ARE YOU KIDDING, can’t you see how high up I am. Besides I haven’t gotten an apple for Alesria yet.”
Dari started cleaning his ear, bored of the whole situation, “No one cares about the stupid apple.”
Alesria kicked Dari in the shin with surprising strength from a five-year-old as Dari yelped, hopping on one foot as he rubbed the aforementioned shin.
Karline walked up to Alesria and handed her the apple she had, “Here you can have this one.”
Alesria looked at the apple disgusted, “But I want my own.”
Dari was still sour from the act of violence committed against him, “What are you an idiot? Just take the apple.”
“What a minute, I almost have her one,” Gralt called from the tree.
Canadine had been observing Gralt the whole time and he had barely moved an inch, “No you don’t, just come down already.”
As the two continued to yell back and forth, Elana seized the apple from Karline and shoved it into Alesria’s chest, “Don’t be so picky! An apple’s an apple!”
Alesria carefully considered the apple in her hands, dejected from her sister's reprove. Eventually, she slowly rose her head towards Karline
“But what about you?”
Karline gave a sweet smile to the little girl, “Don’t worry about it, I already feel better.”
The instant the last word left Karline’s lips, Alesria took a loud and scrumptious bite from the bright red fruit.
“Hey! Didn’t I say I almost had one! Now I came up here for nothing!” Gralt frustratingly called down from the tree.
“Just get me an apple then,” Dari called out
“….”
“If you're not gonna get me an apple then come down already.”
“...”
“Well?”
Elena was tired of the whole display, “Graltio Yolen, get down here this instant, what?” she looked at Canadine’s reprimanding gaze defensively.
“You don’t have to be so aggressive. Your not his moth..”
A cacophony rang out from the trees as branches violently collided with each other and a small boy who was falling through them.
Elena and Canadine ran to Gralt's tiny figure sprawled across, “I told you!”
“I’m fine, just give me a minute.” Gralt moaned.
Karline had recovered from a momentary shock and spoke in panic, “We have to get someone. I’ll go get Mrs.Yolen.”
As she ran off, Dari seized her by the wrist, “No, don’t go tell my mom. Please, he's fine. C’mon Gralt stop being dramatic, It wasn’t that bad.”
Karline looked doubtfully at Canadine and Elana who were hunched over Gralt.
Canadine met her eyes for a moment and looked back at Gralt, “Hey Gralt tell me where it hurts.”
Gralt took a deep breath and slowly sat up, “It’s fine. It took the breath out of me, that's all,” he gave a reassuring smile as if to prove his point.
Elana violently shoved him back to the ground, “You deserve to be hurt after what just happened. You should have listened to us.”
“Sure thing,” Gralt said with a little wave.
Dari piped up not wanting to miss a chance to toy with his brother, “Yeah, you almost ruined Karline’s big night. Imagine what would happen if everyone had to take care of you. I’m sure her fancy fiance wouldn’t want you hogging all the attention.”
At his words, the world went silent except for the wind brushing through the leaves above.
Canadine gazed up at the moon framed by the two jagged rocks as if framing it. It was like a painting frozen in time.
“You’re really leaving huh?”
Karline hung her head, “Of course I am. You’ve known that for a while now.”
“But I haven’t really known. You know?”
The somber mood was dispersed by the wave of Dari’s hand, “It’s not like we’ll never see you again. Me and Canadine will come and see you when we’re older. But you're gonna be disappointed because you won’t be able to look down on us even though you're married to a governor.”
Elena couldn’t help but smirk, “Are you talking about that stupid dream? You really think you’ll become a warrior don’t you?”
“And when we see you again Elana will be all like ‘I’m so sorry for crippling your self-esteem when we were younger Dari.’”
Everyone couldn’t help but life at Dari’s dumb joke even Canadine, “You can’t really argue with that can you?” he said
“Don’t forget about me! I’m coming too! You can’t stop me!” Gralt shouted out as if feeling left out.
Dari rolled his eyes, “Sure, I’ll think about it if you don’t tell mom about you falling out of the tree.”
“Oh, I’ve been here the whole time, but I just didn’t want to interrupt you kid's goodbye,” a voice rose out of the darkness followed by a figure.
Mrs. Volen was an anomaly. She was the doctor of the village but opted more to let people hurt themselves so they could learn their lessons. She was incredibly shrewd and had a knowing eye that always seemed to know more than it should. All this was complemented by a welp bulging from her stomach.
Dari and Gralt gave a start at her arrival, “Mom! I can explain!” They both said it simultaneously
However, both of their expectations were somehow drowned out by Elana’s matter-of-fact speech, “Hello Mrs. Volen, can you look at Gralt. He fell out of his tree, and he says he’s fine but I’m not really sure.”
Mrs. Volen gave an amused smile at the scene, “I’ll do that when I walk back with him, but you other kids better hurry back. Especially you Karline and Alesria.”
Karline nodded slowly and Alesria was still eating her apple seemingly unaware of what was going on around her.
“Leren is at the point where he’s about to throw a fit, and I don’t think anyone wants that to happen in front of Karline’s fiance.”
The youths, except for Gralt who walked with his mother, made their way back to the hall in silence. Even as they made their way back onto the lit-up tiled streets with the laughter from what seemed like each building even louder and more frequent now, not even Dari could find words to say.
When they arrived at the meeting hall, Leren and Canadine’s father, a heavy man with a dark red beard, waited by the entrance.
Before the group could react, Leren was hurrying them into the hall, “Where have you all been! Do you know what you have done! Our guest is starting to get frustrated! Why didn’t you do what I told you to Dario!”
Dari held his hands up defensively, “I brought them didn’t I, and Elana too. We weren’t even gone that long.”
“Shut up! I shouldn’t have let you out of my sight! What have you been up to! I know you’ve done something!”
“What…” Their argument continued as they went inside.
Canadine followed, but his father stopped him, “What is it, dad?”
“I just want to make sure you won’t do anything.”
“What do you mean?”
“If anything goes wrong tonight it will most likely be caused by you.”
Canadine couldn’t help but smile, “Shouldn’t be telling Dari that.”
Canadine’s father raised his eyebrow at his son’s statement, “Should I?”
“I don’t know. I would think so.” Canadine shrugged, unsure of what his father was getting at.
Canadine’s father shook his head, “No I shouldn’t. Leren’s watching him too closely for him to do anything. I know what you must be going through with Karline leaving, but just remember that you are representing the whole village.”
“Don’t worry you can trust me.”
“Really? You won’t do anything?”
“Yes, I won’t do anything. I promise.”
Canadine’s father smiled, slapping him on the back, “I’ll hold you to that. C’mon, we’re gonna miss the ceremony.”
Leren stood before the attendants of the meeting hall with a worn wooden bowl in his hand. Alesria stood next to him holding a piece of parchment and quill, looking uncomfortable with the gazes that rested on her. The pair stood in the middle of the room next to the fire pit. The tables the attendants sat at were situated around the perimeter of the room with the spouses to be seated on the podium at the head of the hall.
Canadine looked towards Karline, she was unusually still except for her hands which were fidgeting sporadically. Her eyes rested on the bowl in Leren’s hand as if it was some dangerous weapon. Canadine couldn’t even catch a glance from her.
He gave a weary sigh and turned his attention back to Leren.
Dari nudged him with his elbow, “Don’t worry she’ll be fine.”
Leren had a keen ear when it came to Dari’s voice, so Dar’s words of reassurance prompted a scowl that could have struck down an angel, but made Dari sink in his seat, trying to avoid the priest’s gaze.
Leren readjusted himself and spoke in a broad and deep voice, “We come here to rejoice in the matrimony between wife and husband. Between Karline Amore and the esteemed Frederico Loriendo,” Leren gave a brief pause to smile at the couple, “With such a union a sacrifice is required to bind the two souls for eternity,” he sweeps his hand dramatically to the podium, “Which of you will provide this. So that, from its ashes, you may live together in eternal life.”
Karline looked to her father across the hall. His once revelrous mood had completely left him for a severe countenance. He rescinded her worried gaze with a sharp nod.
Karline stood with a rigid posture and spoke with as much authority she could muster, “I sacrifice all I was before this moment. I sacrifice my family name that has been with me through all childhood,” she promptly sat down after she was finished as if her speech had consumed all the energy she had left.
Leren tapped on Alesria’s shoulder, waking her from a daze. Alesria then carried the paper and quill to the stand, handing the items to Karline. Karline slowly took the quill, but her hand started to shake uncontrollably and her eyes went wide.
Lord Loriendo placed a hand on her quill hand and whispered a few words in her ear, inaudible to everyone else. Whatever the words were they calmed Karline enough to write on the parchment. Alesria took the paper slowly back to Leren who seized it from her and flaunted it to the attendees.
Written on the paper was the word, Amore
“Does anyone reject such an offering? An offering to be burned and ashes spread to form an eternal bond between man and women. An offering which will reincarnate Karline into the form of a woman as the death of childhood seals the most sacred promise there is, but the one to God.”
Leren’s eyes swept the room looking for anyone who rejected the offering. After a few seconds, he began to continue, but something moved out of the corner of his eye.
The priest turned in horror as Canadine slowly rose. Everyone’s reaction was similar, except for Dari who took delight in the surprise, and his father who rubbed his forehead as Canadine’s mother whispered in his ear. Though the only thing that stood out to Canadine was Karline’s trying to hide behind the cap she wore.
Before Leren could speak another voice overtook this, “Oh. What is this? A secret lover?”
The look on Leren’s face was that of sheer mortification as he turned to face Lord Loriendo. He started to stumble on his words, before Candine cut him off, “No that would never happen. I don’t reject the sacrifice, but I’m rejecting it at this moment.”
Lord Loriendo raised an eyebrow at the young boy's claim, “And why do you do that, may I ask.”
“I just have one last favor to request of my friend, before she reincarnates or whatever.”
“And what would that be?”
“A dance.”
Lord Loriendo furrowed his brow, “A dance?”
“Yes, you have the rest of your life to do whatever you want with her, so I don’t think it's unfair If I get a dance before you two are married.”
The lord maintained a suspicious stare on Canadine until The man in the silver wolf mask whispered to him, prompting a reassuring smile from the lord, “Fine I’ll give you your dance, but you better make it a good one.”
Leren was taken aback by the whiplash of the situation, but once he recovered he started yelling at the band standing idle in the corner to play.
Karline walked as if moving through quicksand to the spot where Leren and Alesria had previously stood.
As Canadine started off, Dari grabbed his hand, “I don’t know what you’re doing, but it better be good.”
Canadine swatted the hand away, “I’m not doing anything.”
When Canadine got to the center of the room, Karline looked at him with a furious glare.
As the music started, the two began their dance.
They walked around in a circle with their hands intertwined,
“Why are you doing this?” She said in a hushed tone.
“You just didn’t seem ready.”
The two separated and clapped their hands, and then came back together,
“I am ready. I’m not a little girl.”
“You have to be joking. A blind cat could see how uncomfortable you were.”
The two came apart giving, kicks in beat to the music,
“Even if I was, how do you plan on helping me?”
“I’m helping you now aren’t I.”
The two started prancing in a circle once again,
“You are definitely not, but If you are, you can’t help me where I’m going.”
Canadine couldn’t help but laugh, “I’ll help you whenever you call, I’ll be a warrior by then. Remember?”
They came together for one last time,
Karline looked up at Canadine with a pleading look, “Really?”
“Of course. Me, Dari, and maybe Gralt will always be there.”
Karline looked up at Canadine, her glassy eyes reflecting Canadine’s face, “Then can you…save me.”
The world shattered. Blood flooded the entire meeting hall, its only inhabitants were corpses and the ravens feasting off them as fire consumed the building.
The world came together in an instant, Karline still looking into Canadine’s face.
Canadine blinked a few times looking around the meeting hall, he could have sworn that something had happened. That something wasn’t right.
He looked back at Karline, her expression almost apathetic, “Save you? Save you from what?” Canadine said in a daze. She wasn’t dramatic enough to want saving from her future husband.
“The fire.”
The world shattered once again. A scene of carnage spread out before Canadine. His hands were covered in blood while he held a cold corpse amongst the flames.
The world came back once more, but cracks remained as the attendants were noticeably absent.
Canadine seized Karline by the shoulders, “How can I save you. Please tell me.”
Karline’s eyes were soulless; the only thing reflected by them was Canadine with a…beard?
“You can go and die.”
“HAHAHAHAHAHAHA WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE.”
Canadine whipped around at the sound of the voice. The world completely shattered as he was once again standing amongst gore and fire with the only living thing being ravens and something else.
He was confronted with the sight of a beast at the entrance of the hall.
It was as tall as five men with an oval-shaped skull, and prominent jaw hanging loosely, displaying its fangs that could shred through even metal. Its rigid brown coat shone like steel. Its claws were sharper than any blade. A piece of exposed bone protruded from its forehead, giving it an air of death. Green flames leaked out of every opening crevice as anything that went near the beast would be burnt out of existence.
Canadine instinctively grabbed for Karline, but found an axe in his hand instead, but didn’t question it as it felt so natural.
The beast let out a guttural roar sending a shockwave that blew away the meeting hall and almost broke the earth itself.
The beast charged as Canadine swept his axe, a piercing light shone from the head, and soon the whole world was consumed by a holy light.
Canadine trudged through a river of gore, using his axe to even manage to stand.
As he walked through the town he caught glimpses of the tall buildings, but it was difficult to even see a few feet in front of him because of the smoke that consumed everything in sight.
Despite this, he couldn’t help smiling to himself, “Why am I thinking about all of that all of a sudden. I wonder what they're all up to now.”
He thought about this as he stumbled through the smoke, ash, and destruction surrounding him.