Part One

Snow Goose

“Hey, Mr. Campbell!” Thomas called out, shutting the door to the inn behind him. Some of the patrons dining in the small restaurant looked up from their tables, a few of them calling out a greeting to the blonde boy walking in. He was well-known in the small village, remembered by his willingness to help out as much as he possibly could. Thomas waved to them, but continued onwards to the back of the restaurant where the innkeeper stood behind the counter.

“Thomas, my boy!” the man in question called out cheerfully, a smile breaking across his features. “What can I do for you?”

Thomas shrugged. “I was wondering if you needed any help this afternoon.”

“Well, I could’ve used you two hours ago when the lunch rush was in full swing.” Mr. Campbell fixed a glare at the boy, but Thomas wasn’t bothered by the man’s antics. He knew that, beneath that glare, the man understood why Thomas wasn’t present earlier. Despite the cold attitude the man displayed much of the time, Mr. Campbell was actually a nice person. “But no matter,” the man continued, shrugging slightly. “I’m happy that you’re here now. Holly’s in the back right now if you want to see if she needs help washing the dishes.”

Thomas nodded, knowing that the man was talking about his wife, Mrs. Campbell. “Sounds good. I’ll head ba--”

“Thomas!” a voice shouted. Turning to face the owner of this new voice, Thomas found a boy his age coming up to him.

“Hey, Eli!” Thomas replied. “How are you?”

Eli shrugged. “Okay, I guess. Dad feels certain that a winter storm is going to blow through at any moment.”

Thomas blinked. “A snowstorm? This early in the year? I haven’t even celebrated my birthday yet!”

The other boy shrugged. “Ma keeps telling him that he’s crazy for thinking that way. Still, he keeps going on and on about how his leg is aching like mad.”

Eli’s father had participated in the war between the Aspayan Empire and Tascela. Near the beginning of it, he had suffered from an injury to his leg, something that had almost killed him and ruined his chances of fighting in the army. His leg still bothered him from time to time, causing him and his family to live with his older brother, helping take care of the farm that had been in his family for generations. He also claimed that it told him when bad weather was blowing in. Surprisingly, he was accurate on anything concerning the weather.

“Well, he might be right then,” Thomas said. “How are things on the farm?”

“Tío believes Dad about the storm, so he’s been making us build some shelters for the animals.”

Thomas frowned. “Do you guys need help with that? I’m certain Ms. Jesse will let me skip lessons if you need help. She’s already told me that I don’t need to go to the afternoon lessons.”

“My uncle will probably appreciate the extra help,” Eli said slowly, thinking over Thomas’ offer. “What about your other friend? Do you think he can help us as well?”

Thomas looked at the boy in confusion. “Who are you talking about?”

“The boy from Tascela. The tall one, with the sandy hair.”

Immediately, Thomas’ face cleared with understanding. “You mean Hunter?”

Hunter was a childhood friend of Thomas who lived in Tascela. They met several years ago, when Thomas was ten. They were about the same age, Hunter only a year older than him. They had become fast friends, especially when they had discovered the fact that they were both orphans. While the kids at the orphanage had tried to become friends with Thomas, he always felt there was a massive rift between them, caused by the fact that they typically remembered and talked frequently of their parents. Thomas, however, had arrived at the orphanage early in his life, meaning that he wasn’t able to share family stories with the other kids. Instead, he had taken to caring for the younger kids, becoming an older brother figure in their lives as opposed to a friend. While Hunter remembered his parents, he rarely talked about them, meaning that Thomas had always felt a connection with the boy. The only conversations the two of them had about their family were usually about their desire to see them again one day. Spending time with Hunter was also very enjoyable, due in large part to the amount of mischief Hunter was always getting into.

However, as they grew up, Hunter’s visits to see Thomas grew less and less frequent and--when Hunter became an archer’s apprentice a year ago--they became nonexistent. Thomas had thought of perhaps heading into Tascela himself to see Hunter, but the idea of traveling for six days alone through land he didn’t know was a daunting one. In the end, he decided against it, hoping that his friend would return before his birthday arrived.

But that idea was becoming less and less probable with each passing day, as Thomas’ sixteenth birthday loomed closer and closer, meaning that Thomas’ time at Ridgecrest was drawing to a close.

“I don’t know where he is,” Thomas told Eli. “He arrives out of nowhere and vanishes just as quickly.” Seeing Eli’s disappointed face, Thomas added, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” the boy said, brushing off his apology. “I--”

At that moment, the door opened. Eli broke his sentence off quickly, going silent as he turned to stare at the person that just entered. A hushed silence befell the room, completely stopping the low murmurs Thomas could hear just moments before. Slowly, Thomas turned around, taking in the newcomer standing in the doorway.

It was a man, an Aspayan soldier by the looks of the red army uniform he had on. That idea was pushed even further when Thomas noticed the sword hanging from the man’s left hip. The patrons in the small restaurant shifted in their seats. The tension created by the appearance of the soldier was palpable and Thomas could almost taste it in the air. Almost unconsciously, Thomas noticed that he himself was shifting his weight from one foot to the other. He frowned when he saw the soldier’s lips curving up slightly to form a small smile. It appeared that the soldier drew joy from the nervousness he was causing. Not only that, but it seemed that he was reveling in it if the glint of happiness in his eyes was anything to go off of.

The soldier began to walk forwards, the people he passed by leaning away from him and cowering away from him. In the corner of the room, Thomas spotted a child holding tight onto her mother and Thomas wished he could do the same. He wished he had someone who could protect him from the evilness in this world but, just like he realized earlier that afternoon, no one was beside him to draw strength from. Thomas slid his gaze off of the girl and her mother, instead fixating his attention back on the man.

At that point, the soldier was just a few feet away from Thomas and Eli. Seeing that the man was heading for their position in front of Mr. Campbell at the front counter, Eli moved off to the side. Thomas, however, stayed standing where he was. The soldier stopped right in front of Thomas, staring at him and not saying a word. When it appeared that Thomas wasn’t planning on moving and letting him take his place at the front of the counter, the man’s face contorted in anger.

“Move, boy,” he said, his words spoken low and soft. They had a bite to them, showing the soldier’s contempt for Thomas. Still, Thomas held his ground, keeping his eyes trained on the man. He didn’t care for people who abused their power; he disliked Levi and his friends for that and he disliked the man standing in front of him as well.

“Thomas,” Eli murmured quietly, uttering a soft warning for Thomas. The soldier placed his hand on the hilt of his sword and Thomas looked away from the man’s face to the weapon. Still hesitating a little, Thomas moved off to the side, realizing that it was pointless to antagonize the man any further, not when he had the ability to hurt--or kill--Thomas.

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The soldier didn’t say anything, though he did smirk slightly when Thomas finally did what he desired. He stepped past Thomas to stand in front of Mr. Campbell, placing his hands on the counter between them.

“I want a room for tonight,” the soldier said. With the longer sentence, Thomas could detect the Aspayan accent in the man’s voice. This wasn’t some poor person conscripted from the towns of Malin. No, this was an actual Aspayan citizen, someone born and raised in the heart of the Empire.

“Of course, sir,” Mr. Campbell said. “I can get a room ready for you in the next hour or so, if--”

“I want it now,” the man said, talking over the innkeeper.

“Of course, sir,” the man said easily. If it was anyone else, Thomas knew that Mr. Campbell would complain about his rude manners. Now, in the face of an Aspayan soldier who carried with him a sword and the support of the Empire, Mr. Campbell couldn’t do much else except to let the man do as he pleased. The innkeeper turned around to face one of his workers, a young girl a few years younger than Thomas and a friend of Myla’s. “Lily, do you mind showing this fine gentleman to his room?”

Thomas could easily see that it was far from what Lily wanted to do. She nodded dumbly, keeping her wide eyes fixated on the soldier’s eyes. Not even realizing what he was doing, Thomas found himself stepping forwards, speaking up. “I can do it, Mr. Campbell.”

Immediately, the soldier’s attention turned away from the innkeeper and the girl, turning to face Thomas, his lips turning up to form a small smirk. The gleeful-looking expression on his face made Thomas want to fold in on himself, but upon remembering the way the whole room had gone silent as fear gripped everyone when the man had walked in, upon remembering the way the little girl was still holding tight to her mother’s skirts, her wide, terrified eyes fixated on the Aspayan soldier, upon remembering Lily’s terror at the thought of walking the man to his room alone, Thomas held fast.

“You sure about that, boy?” the soldier asked, stepping closer towards Thomas.

The boy clenched his hands, lifting his chin as he looked the man straight in the eye, knowing that there was a defiant glint in his eyes. “Yes, sir,” he said, surprised to find that his voice was even, wasn’t cracking as waves of fear rolled over him. “I am.”

“Well, then”--the soldier made a gesture for Thomas to move forward--“lead the way.”

Thomas nodded, glancing over at Eli and Mr. Campbell. Both of them were staring intently at Thomas, almost as if they were imprinting everything about him in their memory. It appeared as if they were expecting this to be their last time seeing him. And maybe it actually was, Thomas found himself thinking, when the soldier raised his hand, his palm colliding with the side of Thomas’ head. Even with his ringing ears, Thomas could hear several gasps, even the crying of the little girl in the corner of the room, as he stumbled, just barely finding his balance to avoid falling to the floor.

“Now, boy,” the Aspayan soldier spat, sounding irritated by Thomas’ lack of movement.

Shaking his head to clear the ringing in his ears, Thomas backed away, hesitant to turn his back completely on the man in front of him. When he reached the stairs that led to the second floor where all the rooms were, though, he was forced to. He reached a hand out to use the railing as he went upstairs, finding that his hand was shaking. Thomas gripped the railing tightly, forcing his hand to steady itself. Hearing the soldier’s footsteps behind him, he hoped that the man didn’t notice it. Once on the next floor, Thomas hurried to turn around to face the Aspayan soldier, gesturing to the first room. The door was open, signifying that it was vacant.

“Here is your room, sir,” Thomas said.

Instead of walking past him and into his room like Thomas was expecting, the soldier stopped at the top of the stairs. The soldier stared intently at him and he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, uncomfortable with the attention he was receiving. After a few seconds of tense, silent observation, the man asked, “What’s your name, boy?”

“Thomas Hayes, sir,” he answered. His last name was the only thing he had that told him about his family, about where he was from. Save for the medallion around his neck, he corrected himself, feeling the weight of it beneath his shirt.

“And your parents? Who are they?”

Thomas felt a brief flash of pain go through him as the soldier asked a question that he couldn’t answer, a common one that he felt like he should know the answer to. “I don’t know, sir. I’m an orphan.”

The soldier blinked, confusion flashing across his features as he seemingly considered Thomas’ answer. Thomas felt his face furrow in confusion as he watched the soldier react. Instead of antagonizing him over his inability to answer his simple question, he only seemed perplexed, seemingly trying to understand an unsolved problem Thomas’ answer posed.

“Are they from Aspaya or Malin?” the soldier asked.

Thomas shrugged. “I believe Malin, since they left me in a Malin orphanage, but I don’t know for certain, sir.”

The soldier kept his eyes fixated on Thomas, staring at Thomas after he had finished speaking. “Have you heard of the rumors, boy?” he asked after a few beats had passed.

Thomas looked doubtful at the man. “There’s always rumors circulating, sir. Which one are--”

“Don’t treat me like I’m stupid!” the soldier spat. “Have you heard the rumor of Matheson Wells having a son?”

Thomas felt his jaw drop when he heard the man’s question. He didn’t have to ask who Matheson Wells was; everyone in the whole continent of Esmaya knew him. He was a man that had appeared seemingly out of nowhere, quickly rising to become Emperor Elliott’s right-hand man. With his help, Aspaya took over Malin and, in recent months, Tascela. Since he was so influential to the Empire’s success in their world domination quest, he was known throughout the continent of Esmaya as the Aspayan Hero. Thomas had never heard of him having a son nor did he learn anything about Wells’ past now that he was thinking about it. Feeling the man’s questioning gaze on him, Thomas turned his attention back on him, shutting his mouth quickly.

“No, sir. I didn’t know that he had a son.” Then, he hesitated, wondering if he should ask the soldier any questions of his own. With the man staying silent, he decided to risk it. “Why do you ask?”

The man shook his head, abandoning the pondering look and taking back up the appearance of an Aspayan soldier with far more power than the orphan boy in front of him. “That’s none of your business, boy. Now go.” With that, he turned on his heel, walking into the room Thomas had taken him to, slamming the door in Thomas’ face.

In doing so, he left Thomas standing alone in the second floor hallway of the inn, confused as to why the soldier was asking questions about his family or why they were asked in conjunction with a rumor about Wells having a son. He stared at the door the man had disappeared through, trying to get the answers to the questions swimming in his head.

When he came to the realization that none were forthcoming by simply standing in front of the door, he turned around, heading back downstairs. Despite telling himself to let go of the confusing conversation, he found himself unable to as he spoke to Mr. Campbell and Eli, reassuring them that he was fine after the altercation with the Aspayan soldier. He found himself pondering about the significance of the conversation when he stood next to Mr. Campbell’s wife, helping her wash the dishes. And, later that night, when he laid in his bed, his dreams of his mother’s parting words to him intermingled with the words of the soldier, entwining to form a dance that he couldn’t see fully, ghostly figures beckoning him to join in a dance that he didn’t know the moves to.

“And your parents? Who are they?” A flash of a sad smile, dark hair that smelled of fresh baked bread, and leaf green eyes floating through his mind.

“It’s a snow goose, sweetie.” A hand colliding with the side of his face, causing him to stumble in order to catch his balance before he fell.

“Are they from Aspaya or Malin?” Fingers clutching tight around a medallion depicting a snow goose, the only object he had from his mother.

“As long as you have it, I will be with you. I love you, Thomas.” A ponderous look on a soldier’s face, wondering about something that he could only guess at.

“Have you heard the rumor of Matheson Wells having a son?” Gazing after a young boy with his parents, wishing against anything that he could have only a taste of what it felt like to be considered someone’s son, someone’s beloved child.

His mother and the soldier’s words echoed around in his head, demanding for him to understand their connection. But, for the life of him, Thomas couldn’t see it. When he woke up the next morning to Derrick and Erick calling for him, he found himself wishing for Hunter, the friend Eli had mentioned in the inn, to arrive, to give him the chance to ask him about the soldier’s questions. But as the days passed with no Hunter appearing suddenly and as his sixteenth birthday loomed ever closer, Thomas was beginning to realize that it was close to impossible that he would get the chance to talk to him before he was forced to leave to join the Aspayan Army. He just wished that he could shake the feeling that he was on the precipice of having information about his family, information that he had been trying to find for years now, before he left behind everything and everyone he knew.