With the knowledge that there might be someone who could help Adrelia, I found my spirits had raised considerably. While my foot still had to take time to heal, the idea of visiting Almir’s brother gave me something to do. I spent time looking over maps provided by Almir, and discussed with him what the journey would entail. I learned that Avalid was about a three day journey. Almir informed me that that one going east would eventually hit the gray river and could simply follow it south to Avalid. The other route was to travel along the coast of the Southern sea. This route, while more hospitable, was also a bit longer as the coast worked its way southeast before going north again towards Avalid.

Reading lessons with Telina progressed quickly. She was a good and patient teacher and I looked forward each day to her company. I found her to be unassumingly intelligent. She had a kind personality and exhibited a simplicity that was captivating. Being forced to stay off my foot all day, I had a lot of time on my hands. Because of this and Telina’s lessons I was reading, albeit slowly, in only a few days. One of the first things I read when I was able was the children’s book Nuala had given me. It was indeed a collection of fairy tales. However, one story was of interest. It was a story about a nelak who arrived on Orth. The nelak promised to harness the power of lightning to make their lives easier. However, it had ended in disaster. The village had caught fire and many died, including the nelak.

The next day, during our reading time, I asked Telina about it. “Oh yes.” She replied, “That is the way of the nelak. They come to our work promising great things, but it always ends in disaster. There are many such stories. One of my favorites was always the nelak and the flying machine.”

I winced. It didn’t take much to figure what had happened in these stories. Immediately Telina changed her tone, “Oh! But I know you wouldn’t do anything like that to us, would you Chon?”

I shook my head, “Of course not”, I responded reassuringly. Now I understood the concern others had about me. I also realized any suggestion I was planning on making to improve the lives of the town would be immediately met with hostility. I decided that I’d probably be better off not suggesting anything.

After my foot started to heal, I would join Torin and Perel outside after reading time. A great deal of work was required in maintaining a farm. There were always buildings and equipment that needed repair, as well as crops and animals that needed tending. While my injury made it difficult, I was still able to do some work to help out. Torin and Perel were both hard workers, and easy to get along with. Intelligence seemed to run in the family, and they were always discussing new and more efficient ways to do their work. I wanted to suggest methods of irrigation to them, but remembering the nelak stories decided against it.

Once Almir noticed I was helping, he insisted I be given 50 silver a week. This was, I learned, high pay for the work I was doing. Given that I wasn’t paying for my food made it even more generous. I think it was in part a charity to help me out, but it did allow me to start saving.

Every fifth morning, the entire town would meet at the sanctuary to participate in a worship for Phatia. The first time I had stayed home due to my injury. Now that I was getting around more, Telina suggested I go with them.

“You should come with us tomorrow!” Telina said one night as the family game was winding down. “It is the both end of the cycle and the day of completeness. They will have the worship in the morning, and then there will be a picnic for the town. It would be fun to have you there with us!”

I smiled as she blushed at her thinly veiled attempt to have my company. I could see Perel grinning as well. Everyone chimed in, however, and heartily agreed with Telina. Almir pointed out that it would give me the opportunity to meet the rest of the town. After some prodding I agreed to go.

The sanctuary was a huge stone building with large wooden spires towering into the sky. It was large enough to hold the entire town, which consisted of a couple thousand people. Inside, it was dark, with light streaming in from tall windows on either side. I found it to be similar to a church, with pews for seating and a raised area in the front with a podium from which to speak.

I was surprised to find that the service, as well, was similar to what one would expect of a religious service on earth. There were prayers, songs, and a sermon by the prophet, who spent his time emphasizing to the women in the congregation the virtue of obedience to one’s husband. To the men, he enthused that they work hard to provide for their families, stating that Phatia would bless them with bountiful harvests and material possessions for their faithfulness. During the service Telina sat beside me, and for the first time I felt like I had found home, and a family. My mind drifted towards Adrelia and I found myself wishing she was seated beside me. I knew she would not have gone willingly to the sisters of the mist. I felt an urgency to as I filled with worry for her. I swore to myself that I would visit Almir’s brother as soon as I was able.

After the service everyone filtered out of the sanctuary. I was instantly approached by Finiel and Cadel who were thrilled that I had come. They excitedly told me that they had been seated only a few rows behind me during the service. The three of us sat together at one of the tables in the lawn and chatted while food was laid out. It was good seeing them again. It was also good having some friendly faces to spend time with, as I could feel eyes on me, and would often catch someone looking away when I turned to see them.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

It was the first time I had been out in the community. Seeing the entire town made me realize why polygamy had become a thing in Timbervale. Three quarters of those present were women. I asked the Odot brothers about the proportion of men to women and they simply shrugged their shoulders, as if that’s the way it always was and they had no idea why one would question it.

As we were chatting, a young blonde woman in a white dress with a blue ribbon around her waist approached us. She rubbed Finiel’s back in a friendly fashion and smiled as she greeted us. “Oh!”, said Finiel, “Chon, this is Arlea, my betrothed. Arlea, this is Chon.”

Arlea’s eyes brightened as she inclined her head in the customary way. I smiled, nodding back, “Nice to meet you”, she said, “Finiel has talked about you quite a bit.”

“Well it’s not often we get a nelek in-“, Finiel was instantly cut off by Cadel’s elbow in the ribs. Finiel shot him a look, “Look. It’s not like people don’t know”, he protested.

“It’s OK”, I replied, holding up my hands. “Really, I get it.”

Cadel nonetheless glared at Finiel and Arlea giggled, clearly amused by the antics of the two. I moved over on the bench and invited her to join us, but she declined, saying she had already promised to sit with her sisters. She pointed to a table across the large lawn which was full of girls chatting happily. A few of them looked our way and waved.

After she had left, Finiel leaned in conspiratorially, “She’s beautiful isn’t she?”, he remarked. I had to agree she was. “We are to be married in two months. I’ve been saving up for my own place for awhile!” The fact that Finiel was the one of the two to marry first surprised me. Cadel clearly came across as the more responsible one. Cadel was happy for his brother, but I could tell there was a bit of jealousy.

“And what about Master Theos’ Daughter?” Finiel added. “I saw her sitting next to you at worship and the way she looks at you. She’s quite a catch.”

Cadel nodded in agreement. “Easily one of the prettiest girls in Timbervale, though she known to be overly smart. I guess it comes from her father. She’s almost at completion and able to marry.”

“Are you interested?” Finiel asked, grinning.

I sighed a bit, scanning the lawn before returning my focus to the conversation. “Well”, I answered, “I just arrived here.” It wasn’t that I didn’t like Telina. I realized I had become very fond of her, yet I also had feelings for Adrelia. The idea of settling down with anyone seemed out of the question when I considered what Adrelia might be suffering in her captivity. “I have some personal things I have to deal with before I can even think about settling down”, I added. The answer seemed to satisfy the Odot brothers.

While we were eating, Solmar’s mother, Mirelle, appeared. She was ecstatic that I had come and insisted on introducing me to everyone. The Odot brothers, who had no inclination to argue with her, suggested that I go along. I rose from the table and Mirelle practically dragged me across the lawn while I limped along behind her. I was introduced first to the prophet’s family. He had five wives of various ages, the youngest of which looked to be just at the age of completion. One of his wives had bright red hair, which showed up in several of his children. They were all friendly and even the prophet had a warm smile. His disposition was very different from the first time I had met him. There was no discerning or suspicious look in his face. Rather, the prophet and his family were very welcoming.

While Mirelle chatting with his wives, the prophet took me privately to the side. “Chon”, he said, “When your foot is better, I would like you to come see me. I have some things I wish to discuss privately with you.”

I looked at him with a puzzled expression, “Of course prophet, I’d be happy to.” The words were oddly out of my mouth before I even had a chance to think of them, as if his velvety voice had put me into some sort of trance. My stomach turned into a knot as I thought about what he might want from me.

After meeting the prophet’s family, I was introduced to most of the other citizens of Timbervale. I found that many of them to be farmers, from those raising crops and fruit to those keeping animals. However, I met all sorts of families. There were, among them, a large family that owned the bank, a few bakeries, blacksmiths, and shopkeepers. These introductions continued until Solmar showed up, and with frustration, demanded his mother let me sit.

When the picnic was over, Almir and I headed back to the house while the rest of the family cleaned up. I spent the evening trying to stay off of my foot, which was once again burning in pain. The wound had opened up a bit from the day’s activities. Solmar stopped by later that night and expressed his displeasure, re-cleaning the wound and repairing the suture. It hurt, which strengthened my resolve to take it easy.

That night, dinner was quieter than usual. Almir’s wives had met up with relatives at the picnic and had opted to join them for dinner. Since they had taken the younger children with them, this left Almir, Perel, Torin, Telina, and myself. The meal had a very different feel with less people. It was quieter, and the conversation was much slower paced. Tonight they were discussing the sermon from the service, which they all though was particularly good.

“What did you think of the service Chon?”, Telina asked me expectedly.

“I enjoyed it.”, I replied, unsure how to respond. I remembered the discussions I had with Adrelia. She had often expressed her skepticism in the idea of equality in a relationship. While I was still not comfortable with the notion, my time in Timbervale, even in the last few days, had made me less hostile to the concept.

Almir laughed, “That’s a diplomatic answer if I’ve heard one.” He was on to me.

Perel and Torin smirked, but Telina seemed disappointed.

“It’s just a lot to take in”, I added truthfully. “Phatia’s ways are very different from what I am used to, and I need time to think about it all.”

This seemed to satisfy Telina. With Almir, it had only roused his curiosity. “How are things different where you are from?”, He asked.

I struggled for a moment to collect my thoughts, but I didn’t have a chance to answer. At that moment there was the sound of shattering glass. A volley of flaming arrows ripped through the window into the room, embedding in the wall behind me. Flames shot up to from the arrows to the ceiling. Telina screamed with terror. The town was under siege.