Leo and Heidi
Han’s farm, Germany
“Bah! Evan, since when are you so pessimistic?” Seb asked loudly.
“Since my only childhood friend fought against fantasy novel-like characters and has been out cold for half a day,” Evan answered even louder. “Or what? You thought that I did not see what you were doing? Cultivating him like he is another pawn on your chessboard, played by the clans and the Church? Capitalize on his hero complex and involve him in matters he has no place to be?!”
Seb raised his hand with a finger to scold a child, which Evan objectively was, compared to Seb’s own age. However, before he could yell back at the boy, Leo, disturbed by the noise around him, rose slowly up from the sofa and under the blankets, rubbing his eye with his right hand.
“What are you yelling around for?” he asked sleepily, taking in the room around him. “Where are we? What happened?”
“Hey man, how are you feeling?” Evan asked, walking over to the sofa where Leo sat.
“I am hungry, thanks for asking,” he said, eying the table with the sandwiches. “I will take a bite if you do not mind.” He stretched out his hand and took a couple of sandwiches, sitting back on the sofa and looking around the room. He noted that everyone around him was on edge for some reason, so he asked, “What is going on, guys? Why are you so tense? And what is this place?”
Heidi looked at his innocent expression, surprised that he was so calm after a near-death experience with a Bishop, and asked, “What is the last thing you remember, Leo?”
He looked at their serious faces and thought, chewing, “Hmm, the last thing? I remember that I was training in the garden and managed to form a spell that blew up in my face. That is about it. Why do you ask? What happened?”
“The Church loonies found us, man. That is what happened. Blew the whole fucking house to pieces, and we are now on the run!” Evan exclaimed, raising his voice, unable to keep the frustration in. “You almost got beheaded by that freak Bishop.”
“Calm down, Evan!” Heidi said before Leo could ask more questions. “What are you? A child? Can you not see that he is disoriented? You will only make it worse.”
“They found us? So fast? How?” Leo asked, disbelieving how anyone would be able to find them in the middle of the forest where no cameras and tech were around to identify him or Heidi.
“Most likely, they were notified by some of their sleepers nearby. No doubt posted in Speyer,” Seb answered, scratching his chin. Everyone looked at him in question, so he followed up, “What? You thought the Church only has their clergy members doing the dirty work for them?”
“Yes,” Leo answered. “That is basically how they work, according to Heidi.”
“Well, this information has been left out at various clan levels. Sorry for that, niece. You should have gotten the secret, among others, from your father when you decided to formally take over his position and thus start your training.”
“No matter, uncle. What about these sleepers?”
“They are muds. Just let in on the secret of how things run in the background. As such, they are posted around the continent and make up various positions. You never know when you are going to meet them. Can be the simple shop clerk at the till or a CEO of a company,” Seb shrugged and took a sip of the tea.
“Alright, I get it. But how did we get here? Where are we?” Leo asked, feeling better after eating the sandwiches and taking his own cup of tea.
“We are at a friend’s house. He is a farmer who I met during my search of the cabin.”
“What happened to me?”
“Man, you almost got popped by that freak, Leonard. Seb was buying us time to collect the things from around the house and basement in this neat little bag,” Evan said, pointing to the spatial bag on the table. “At the end of the whole thing, the Bishop decided to end you right there.”
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“What? How did I manage to get out then?”
“That is the thing, you see, there was….”
“An opportunity for Seb to rescue you, given that the Bishop was distracted,” Heidi interrupted Evan with a level look. Evan, seeing this, frowned, not understanding why she did not want him telling the whole story about Leo using his affinity.
“And why can't I remember anything?” he asked.
“Because you hit your head, knocking yourself out,” Seb provided, calmly sipping his tea. “All that matters is that you are alive and well.”
“Yes,” Heidi agreed. “Leo, we are planning to leave tomorrow. So you should recuperate, eat as much as possible, and have a good night’s sleep.”
“Leaving already? Why? Where?”
“Yes, we will head to Zurich, so we need to hitch a bus ride ten kilometers from here in the morning. The Church, no doubt, is still searching for us, and it is a matter of time before they find this farm and start asking questions,” Seb answered, seeing that the dark had settled in the farm outside, the only light in the room coming from the cozy fireplace, running low on wood.
“I will get us some more wood and chat with Hans. Get yourselves ready for the night and rest well. We leave early tomorrow,” Seb stated and got up from the chair, walking out of the room.
Leo, slightly dizzy, nodded to himself and returned to eating the sandwiches, feeling that he wanted to have a good night's sleep before the road, still puzzled by the fact that he could not remember anything stated by the rest of the group.
Heidi, seeing that Leo took her uncle’s advice, also got up and said pointedly, “We will get the water from the well. Evan, come with me, please.” Evan blinked, looking at Leo, who was eating, and frowned again, understanding that she did not want him telling Leo anything. He got up and left the room together with her.
Checking his wristwatch, Evan saw that it was getting late, and the night was setting fast, around 10 PM. When they left the tiny house, Heidi continued in front, walking toward the well with a bucket in hand. Evan asked her right then and there, “What the hell was that?”
“What do you mean?” she asked, innocently dropping the bucket in the well, the chain clinging loudly.
“You know what I mean. Why not tell him the full story?”
“And what would that achieve?” she asked, not meeting his gaze, busying herself with the bucket of water.
“I do not know? Let him decide on his own what he is getting into? Or what? Are you taking your uncle’s side in this? Keep Leo in the dark about the danger you people have pulled him into?”
She stopped pulling the bucket up, releasing the lever, and dropping it back down before answering, “Us people? You think it was my idea to take a random country boy back to our manor in Germany?” Evan looked at her outburst, surprised by her piercing gaze.
“No, dear Evan, it was not who pulled us into this mess. And neither was Seb. We came to get help and were safe for a moment. For all I care, it was you who led them to us with your bravado,” she finished and turned back toward the well, yanking the chain with the bucket inside it.
Evan blinked, outraged, and said calmly, “You know that is not true. You know that if it was not for you, he would still be back in Latvia living his life.”
“No, not living, idiot,” Heidi said, giving up on the bucket and walking up in Evan’s face. “He would be dead,” she hissed. “It was luck or fate, call it as you want, that he met my father and me. Even bigger luck that we came here to find the crystals with lessons tailored for him.”
“Do you not see it?” she asked, stepping back and waving her hands. “All of these coincidences leading up to this moment? How likely it was that we found the cabin and its resources. A goddamn spatial bag that is so rare it costs an arm and a leg.
“I believe that we are on the brink of change. And believe me, Leo also feels it. So, no. I do not want to add more fire to the mixed emotions he will feel when the facts catch up to him once he gets past novel references and starts taking in the facts. He will understand the same things you are pointing out. He has lost his simple life, possible career, and so on.
“He will understand fully that now he must fight for his destiny. For his life. He does not need another reason to fear the Church at the moment. I believe he will find it out soon enough on his own. So be a friend, as you claim to be, and keep a secret for now,” Heidi finished and walked back to the house, not waiting for Evan to respond.
Evan stood rooted next to the well and looked down at the dark water, seeing the bright full moon that came up above him. From behind, he did not notice Seb observing the whole scene and nodding mentally in agreement with his niece and her thinking.
‘Good thing she came out and said the things that needed to be said. Would be a shame to remove the boy and explain it to young Leo,’ he thought and walked back inside.