2nd Cycle of history, the 132nd year of athbhreith beithíoch calendar.
Continent: Victoria
Location: The village of Gaoth
Φ A young beastkin girl stands in a concealed area, and as she does she pets a wonderbeast that looks similar to that of a horse, Glórmthai. The beast has great flowing hair and glistening eyes.
And as she hugs it someone walks into the area and says, “Sister, they are back.”
Turning around to look at my brother, I say, “Again.” Then start running with him.
We run from the back of my father's shop to the outside, and as we do we see a group of men fighting. As the drunken men are fighting outside, they break through the shops one after another.
“Those bastards are shattering everything here,” I say as I clench my fist.
With panic in his face, Andrew walks up to the people and says, “Please stop, you're breaking my shop.”
His words and pleas are ignored and moments later the leader of these men comes close to Andrew, a man with beautiful golden locks. With a playful expression, he says, “Sorry, but my men got into a little argument, so we would be rather happy if you would overlook this.”
Andrew looks at him and tries to say something, but then the man's playful expression dissipates and he says, “If you want to talk to me, please assume the proper position.”
Andrew falls to his knees and bows his head saying, “But you said the same thing last time, and it took a lot of time to rebuild my shop, business really suffered during that time.”
“How heartless you are, my men recently came back from a battle to expand our great empire of Louernia. So we are tired and are blowing off some steam, yet you tell us we are wrong for that.”
Putting his hand on the hilt of his sword, he says, “That sure sounds like treason against our king and his values.”
Wasting no time, I stand in between the both of them and say, “Stop it!”
His face lights up and he says, “Laeg, I am so happy to see you here.”
“I am not, now leave.”
“You're lucky your so pretty or I would have taken off your head for that comment, but I do like fierce women, now could you go prepare some food in your father's tavern, we tend to get hungry after our little brawls.”
“We don’t serve trouble markers.”
“Oh don’t be like that,” he says as he tries and grabs me.
My brother knocks his hands away, and says, “You shouldn’t go touching women who aren’t your bride.”
“It seems being mouthy runs in the family, but unlike your sister, I can’t see a reason to let that go.”
My sister says, “Yet we let all of your unlawful hunting of the wonderbeasts around here go, yet if we were to report such a thing I wonder what would happen.”
My comment makes him relax, and he says with his same fake smile, “Well what do you expect we need to sharpen our fangs, and you guys seem to have an utter abundance of Wonderbeasts for a mere fir bolg village.”
My brother says, “Because we took care and cultivated them over the years, but I am sure you would know such in the land you own.”
He gets visibly angry, and then my brother says, “Oh wait you a mere Fían, landless warrior. But isn’t that strange, usually great achievements are rewarded with land, yet you don’t have any?”
In front of us, Hubert with his golden locks is mere moments away from striking my brother, so I stand in between the both of them and turn around saying, “Don’t pick a fight we want them to leave.”
“I know but-,”
Before my brother can finish, Hubert grabs my chin and faces me towards him, and then says, “You know that it isn’t uncommon for villages like this to be overrun and destroyed by wonderbeasts, so I wonder that by the time you send any notice about our current action some wonderbeasts might burn his place to the ground, and I am sure the authorities would love to claim them as their own.”
“Is that a threat?”
“No it is just an idea of something that could happen, but if me and my men had another way to pass the time we would be so tired, so satisfied that we might move on to the next village.”
He caresses my face and as he does I hold my brother back because Hubert's hand is still on his sword.
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But then I heard a familiar voice say, “Here you go.”
Looking back, I see my hefty father with large barrels on the floor, and then walking up to us, he says, “Both of you stop being foolish.”
In front of us, he bows his head, and says, “Please forgive my children and take these wines as reparations. It is our best product.”
Hubert stops, then smiles and then he puts his foot on my father's and his head presses down, this causes both me and my brother to twitch in anger at this slight.
Hubert then says, “I didn’t hear an apology from the one who raised his kids to be like this.”
With my dad's head pushed down into the dirt, he says, “I am sorry for my children, and I beg that you forgive us.”
Hubert says, “Apology accepted.” Turning around he shouts for his men, and they take their goods and then leave.
The moment they leave my father gets up, and seconds later my brother shouts, “What the hell is wrong with you!”
“Ibar,” my father says in a gentle tone.
Looking around, Ibar says, “Why do you all just let them walk all over you, every one of you is completely pathetic!”
As he runs off I am about to say something, but I can’t bring myself to, because on some level I agree. So I grit my teeth and just watch him run off.
-Break-
-An hour later-
Walking into Ibar's room, I see him quickly hide something, and then I say, “Are you okay?”
“Yes now leave me alone.”
Sitting on his bed beside him, I say, “You know he could have taken off your head with one swing.”
“Of course, I know that.”
“Then why did you antagonize him, you idiot?”
“Because I am not going to let someone like him insult us and get away with it for the hundredth time.”
“It’s better than being dead isn’t it!”
“Is it really? Why the hell should father have to bow his head towards someone like that, he is a far greater man.”
“You know why he did it. Because if he didn’t this whole situation would have devolved and become much worse.”
“So what I am supposed to be ok with it!”
“NO WAY!”
My brother shocked says, “Huh?”
"The memory irritates me to my core, and the fact that there is nothing I can do about it bothers me tremendously, right now I just want to go over to their campsite and set them all on fire. Those cowards probably are just fodder kept on the backlines, yet they think they are exceptional, it really bugs me to no end.”
Ibar starts to laugh and says, “I know what you mean, for fierce warriors their bodies are scarless. How can they walk around like that, I would be embarrassed even by the thought.”
“Now that your whining has ceased, come and join us for some dinner.”
“Ok then, let’s go.”
“Also I expect you to apologize to Dad.”
My brother clicks his tongue, and as he does I put my hand over his mouth and say, “Oh my how manly it is for you to not own up to your mistakes and refuse to apologise, truly this makes me shudder in your pure manliness.”
“Ok I get it, I will talk to Dad,” My brother says as he walks out of the room.
But as I follow behind him, he suddenly backs up into me, and I say, “What are you doing?”
“Look down,” he says while pointing.
On the floor is a person completely covered in robes from head to toe, so we cannot see any of this person's features, all we can tell is that this person I clutching something in their arms.
Seeing him we look at each other then scream, and run downstairs, where we see my father.
“Dad there is some stranger upstairs.”
“Dad what the hell is going on here!”
Another voice says, “Hello.”
Looking at one of the tables in the tavern, we see another person covered in robes sitting there, and we also scream and then turn to my father, saying, “Aren’t we closed for the day.”
“What is going on?”
With a smile, my father says, “These two travellers had nowhere to go so I am going to let them stay here for as long as they want.”
Both me and my brother with dumbfounded expression say, “Of course you did.”
Annoyed I say, “You have a giant head so use it, dad, don’t just go letting strangers stay in your home.”
“But did you hear their voice they are so young. Leaving young men like that on the street made me imagine a situation where the two of you are on the street and no one wants to help you. I would hate that so I won’t do that.”
Ibar says, “You shouldn’t invite random men to stay in the same house as your young daughter. For some reason, the eyes of men outside this family don’t work, and they happen to find her beautiful.”
“What do you mean by that Ibar, I would have you know I am beautiful.”
My brother laughs then says, “Despite being given the powers of a horse, I sometimes wonder if you are truly a gorilla instead!”
I smack him in the face, and say, “If you speak to a woman like that you won’t be getting married.”
My brother says, “I would have you know that I am well-liked by women as well!”
I snicker at him which causes him to go on a rant about how popular he is, but as he does that I turn to my dad and say, “Father those robes those two are wearing are made of high-quality material I have never seen anything like this. What if they whisk me away and trap me in a castle to be married.”
With a bright smile on his face, my father says, “Don’t worry even if they did do that, I am sure they would return you soon after.”
“HEY WHAT DOES THAT MEAN!”
“Don’t worry something like that won’t be done.”
“Ahh,” I shout as I notice the boy is beside both of us.
“Our master would brutally beat us if she found out that we forced a woman to do anything.”
With a nervous smile to avoid trouble, I say, “How nice of you.”
Ibar says, “What are fancy men like you doing here?”
“Ibar,” I say indicating he should shut up.
But he ignores me and continues, then says, “Our village is all the way on the outskirts of Gorias, and there are not many places to go from here, so why would you both be out here.”
“I see you seem to think we are up to no good, but I assure you we are not. The truth is we are looking for mistwalker riders, I am sure you as locals have heard of them.”
Sweating I say, “We have heard rumours.”
“The Lúcogadh is a red branch family, known for the swiftness of their riders. But it was said that during one of their test runs around these parts, some strange riders beat them in a race.
The Lúcogadh family didn’t want to accept this loss so this process repeated for about three months, until the members were forced to return home, and all across the land people have been calling them the mist walker riders since none know their identity. Me and my compatriot are looking for them, would you happen to know anything about them.”
Sighing, I say, “No idea, if such people were here we would have used it to market this place better, but as you can see by how sad everyone in our village looks, business hasn’t been good.”
“I see what a shame, but still if possible I would like to ask you guys for he-.”
“I know I have let you stay in my home, but that is not permission to involve my kids in anything, understood?”
“Understood.”
Clapping his hands, he says, “Ok, not that is all for the night everyone returns to your rooms.”