Maleki:

The fire burned as we waited for the driver to return. He had been gone longer than I expected but displayed himself as more than comfortable in these environments.

Bright open fields and trees were something I was familiar with, but had this forest been dense and dark, there might have been more tension in the air. Miko would certainly not be wandering alone and blind in the woods if these pines were less visible. Fortunately for us both, I could see as far as he had walked, awkward waddle and all. As awkward as Miko is, he is undoubtedly brilliant, but like many of his genius, they struggle with the basics. They spend so much time thinking that they forget how to act. Across the campfire, my brother had finally fallen asleep; he must’ve worked himself up too much today. He tried to sleep earlier on the ride, but I could tell that he wasn’t by the way he was breathing — Too focused, too forced. Dissecting his growing and changing illness has taken a toll on him, so I’m surprised he can sleep at all with what he’s had on his mind lately.

I blew on the fire and added a new log to keep the fire going before I took a walk. Miko, being so close to the flames, didn’t sit right with me, so I picked him up and carried him over to the sleeping area I had set up earlier. Our backpacks both had a strong cloth woven sleeping bag with a leather bottom that came in handy when sleeping on these rough grounds created from fallen pine needles and hardened dirt.

He sleeps so peacefully. Grandma was right when she said, “The ground could open up and swallow the boy whole, and he would still be asleep.” I even tried smacking him awake once, but his desire to sleep is too strong, so he wakes up when he wants to. It might be easier to wake a hibernating Rim Bear…

I started to walk towards the side of the woods that was more dense with these tall Moonglow pines. Thinking of the Rim Bear reminded me of the difference between Miko and me. He had his books, and I had my stories. Father and Grandfather would tell me all kinds of extraordinary stories from their lives and when they were our age. They made the world seem more interesting than what I’ve seen. The stories, though, I always felt like they were leaving something out. Not all of the stories were personal experiences; some told of great heroes and big battles, probably long ago and long since changed by the span of time. Even Grandfather had a bad habit of retelling the same stories once or thrice and then making them sound more grand and epic with each retelling.

The creek I watched Miko walk to earlier sat before me. I cleaned off all the dirt and sweat I had built up from setting up camp and chopping wood and then relaxed alone in the warm waters of the stream. Through the quiet of the flowing water, a horse whinnied further up the stream, so I dried off and climbed up the elevated rocks of a small waterfall. Further up the creek, there was an opening in the treeline into a small lake and the silhouettes of two large animals and a smaller figure.

After a few minutes of walking, I had worked my way up within twenty feet from what, at this distance, was clearly our dear driver. He was facing away from me and looking out at the reflective lake, so to avoid startling him, I loudly asked, “Is this the private section?”

There was a laugh and then a sniffle. “If it was, you and I both couldn’t afford it.”

I looked down while approaching and brushed off some of the water on my arms. “True. This is probably better than any private land within those big castles anyway.”

“How many castles have you ever been in?” He coughed up a laugh.

“Castles? I’ve been in a few barns.” I said as I sat down facing away from him with one side of his face still in my peripheral. I looked over at him, but his eyes were deadset forward. He had been crying. This was the first person I’d really ever spoken to who wasn’t family, so I didn’t want to let the conversation drift away, but before I thought about interrupting, he sniffled again and spoke, “I’ve been inside those big gates. A few of them. It doesn’t take long to want back out, but at least in there, it’s safe.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Safe?”

“There’s order in there, or at least everyone pretends there is. Maybe that’s all the same, I don’t know, but out here, there’s no laws or anyone to enforce them.”

“I see your point,” I said with an acknowledging assurance. “My family has always lived in the quiet outer kingdom of Korvast. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen, but a few lost carriages drift through those lands. So, this may be coming from a place of ignorance, but what happened out here for you to think that way? Why are you out here alone if it’s not safe?”

“Alone?” the boy grumbled. “I’m with you lot.”

“You know what I meant.” I laughed with a scold.

He closed his eyes with a deep breath and then responded. “I wasn’t always alone out here. I didn’t even want to do this in the first place, but it’s the only way I know to make money.” He looked down at his hands, and a chained necklace loosely dangled from the edge of his palm. I could barely make it out, but there was a pendant with what looked like a sort of family crest. “I learned how to do this by watching my dad. You probably didn’t notice when you picked your carriage, but almost all drivers are a duo. One to manage the horses, and one to protect the passengers.” His hand gripped tighter on the pendant.

“I didn’t notice. Honestly, I just walked up to the closest person if that makes any difference….”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“Most people do, but my dad was a famed adventurer. He was strong enough to protect his horses and his passengers all by himself. People knew him all across the central kingdom and always chose his carriage first.”

“He sounds like a great man,” I said as I locked eyes with the driver. His eyes were almost entirely black but splintered red from crying. “Did your father retire?”

“In a way,” he muttered with a grim face and eyes that tore into the sky. “He was starting to take me on these trips with him to learn the trade, but I was just happy I could spend more time with him.” Our eyes drifted apart, and his hands fell behind him to support his head so he could look up to the sky. “One morning, a man hired my father to make this same trip. He had white hair and appeared to be from a royal family or of some wealth from the armour he wore and the decency of his cloth and crest. He seemed like a kind man, with a white smile that matched his hair. We sat at that same campsite and shared tea until the man turned to my father and commanded him to wield his blade and prepare his battle stance. I’ll never forget the words he said after and the peace that appeared within the man who had just beaten my father until he could no longer speak or move.”

He was still looking up at the sky, but I wasn’t sure how to interject or what to say in response. I was stunned. Tears slid slowly down both his cheeks as he continued. “That man had solace in his heart from what he had done. He stood over my father like a man who had just successfully hunted a beautiful animal, ‘I thank you for the battle we shared and for the strength you showed.’” He laughed to himself as he mocked the man’s voice. “Thanks? How can you thank someone you just beat into a bloody pulp? What sadistic nature does that require? After all that was said and done, the man walked over to me and made a single request. Nay, a single command. ‘I left your father alive today. In return, you will bring me someone strong just as you did today, or I’ll dull my blade in your family’s flesh.”

I couldn’t even comprehend the amount of pain he had experienced, even with the little context he had shared with me, but I did know what misused strength looked like. “That’s…terrifying. I can’t even imagine having to witness that. If I may ask, how is your father now?”

His head dropped down, and he placed the pendant back onto his neck. “Recovering, still. I’ve only been doing this for a few months, getting as much money as possible to care for my family and pay for his healing treatments, but no one wants to take a one-person carriage out of the kingdom, so I only get the short rides. My father’s wounds will heal, but his pride has been broken. I haven’t told him what the man said last. I fear he will try to fight him again and lose his life in the attempt.”

I looked at the sky as well, looking for words to comfort him. “You should be proud of your father; he defended his values and his son valiantly. My father was — I mean, I know what misused strength looks like.”

“Perhaps you are right.” He said, wiping at his eyes. “Let us hope we can both be stronger than our fathers.”

I searched the sky for the four major moons my father taught me about. In order of size, the smallest was Mimas, and then Enceladus, Titan, and Sanguis. Mimas was always easy to find because of the odd spot on it. Enceladus was bright and often hid around the Ring. Sanguis had spidery cracks throughout it, which always made me curious. Titan is my favourite, though; it has the most mystique. An almost blue tint separated it from the rest. “I always look to the moons whenever I feel alone. They’re probably unfathomably far away, but they feel so close. They make my problems feel small, like seeing a mountain puts everything into perspective, but what’s a mountain to a moon?”

I stood and helped the driver up by grasping his forearms with an eye of respect. “Thank you for sharing your burden with me and listening to my own.” I puffed out a deep breath from my chest with a smile. “Maleki, ” I said as I extended my hand

“Kallen — Kallen Phortix…I needed this, Maleki; thank you.” He exhaled in relief. “This trip brings back unwanted memories, and I have no one to share with. I don’t want to scare my family, so I hold it in and keep pushing forward as best as possible.”

“I know what you mean. Our family is small, and we all share the same burdens, each person with their own guilt. It’s difficult to share things with Miko. I don’t want him to think his older brother is weak when he already has it so rough. He needs someone strong to keep him moving.”

“About that. What’s wrong with him?” Kallen questioned. “I haven’t heard or seen an illness like his.”

“He’s partially paralyzed, but it’s entirely random and getting worse. We don’t have long before it becomes unmanageable, or at least I fear that to be the case. Miko and I are trying to find a cure or some kind of treatment, but there’s not a healer on this entire forsaken continent that can do a damn thing to help him.”

“You hope to find this treatment in Quavoris? I know my way around there. It’s a big place, but it’s smaller than other Kingdoms comparatively. Let me give you a tour. It’s the least I can do.”

“Thank you, Kallen. You don’t owe me, but I’ll take you up on that. I’ll use any advantage to get him healthy again.”

We took the horses back to the camp, but that was the end of our conversation. Both of us had found quiet respect for the other and in each other’s journeys. I laid down for the night having made a friend, or at the very least, a knowledgeable ally.

I woke up to the campfire crackling. Miko was still asleep, but Kallen had already begun preparing for the final trek to the city. I cleaned the camp as quietly as possible and watered down the remaining embers that breathed a red-orange in the ash. Miko’s sleeping bag was the last thing remaining to pack.

“We’ll need to get on the road if you want to make it to the city in the sunlight,” Kallen spoke aloud while brushing the horses off.

“I could just toss him in the carriage if you’d like, Kallen. Kicking him while he’s asleep has worked once or twice….”

Miko stirred in his sleeping bag. “Ughh... I’m already awake, idiots.” He popped upright with his chest and his arms in the air. “...and I can see!”

I walked over to Miko and slung him and his sleeping bag over my shoulder. Sight and arms mean he can’t walk, so I’ll have to prepare the cart when we get to the city. His sleeping bag coiled back into his backpack, which we tossed into the carriage. Miko grabbed ahold of the top bar and was rejuvenated enough to carry himself over to his seat by holding his weight up and gripping the bars along the top of the roof.

Kallen even seemed in a better mood today. They hadn’t argued yet, but being in good spirits might actually cause them to bicker more.

Miko yelled aloud, “Quavoris, here we come!”

Kallen yelled back, “That was my ear, you heathen!”

Yep, everything’s back to normal.