Sera closed the book with a loud thump, her ice-blue eyes tracing over the words embossed on its worn leather cover with the image of the sacred star of Icos, “The Legend of Celeste”.

The book was practically ancient, the parchment containing the words every child has heard and the faded pictures every child has seen were frayed and faded. A few were even pulled loose from the binding and stuck out unevenly here and there. She could have sworn she had read it a thousand times.

“Read it again!”

Sera rolled her eyes and fell back into the grass with a playful groan. A thousand-and-one times she thought, if the little boy in her lap had anything to say about it. “Steven, aren’t you tired of hearing this same depressing story all the time?”

“Please?” Steven replied, spinning around on top of her. He completely ignored her question as he wrested the old book from her and pushed it to her face. “One more time! One more time!”

“Maybe tomowwow, kiddo.” Sera said, her cheek mushed against the soft thick bundle of pages.

“Aww. Okayyy.” Steven said, defeated as he rolled off of her.

Sera sat up, brushing her hands through her long, platinum-blonde hair. Green flecks of grass fell over her dress as the little boy wandered off swinging the wooden play-sword he brought along with the book.

“Sera,” He started thoughtfully, “Do you think Celeste is real?”

“I dunno.” She replied, “What do you think?”

He shrugged, “Momma says she’s a myth.”

“What about your dad?”

Steven took a second to recall the exact words his father had used once before. “Daddy says ‘We shouldn’t waste time thinking about what-ifs or isn’ts, we should just focus on covering our own-’ and then he says a word I’m not allowed to say.”

Sera giggled listening to the boy’s imitation of his fathers voice.

“But Sera,” He came to stand by her. “If Chimera came here, I would protect you.”

“Aww,” She smiled, reaching out to tousle his hair. “You’re so brave.”

“You think so?” He looked so proud.

“I sure do.” She said before taking on a shocked expression. “Steven! Is that one over there?”

“Where!” He said spinning around holding out his toy sword.

“Riiight…here!” Sera suddenly reached up and began tickling him.

The boy squealed in laughter and crumpled to the ground as Sera continued digging her fingers into his sides making play-monster sounds all the while.

This was how Sera spent most of her days. If she wasn’t babysitting the boy or any of the other children from town while their parents worked the fields, she would find herself helping people run errands, watching stalls for merchants, or something before serving ale for her own father at his tavern after sun down. She loved her little life in her little town and the people in it.

When the little boy had calmed down, the two of them laid in the grass looking up at the clouds, one dreaming of fighting monsters and saving princesses and the other wondering how many ales Mr. Salter was going to down before he passed out.

After a while, Steven asked “Are there really Chimera in the valley?”

Sera’s eyes widened a bit. “Where’d you hear that?”

“Collan Barty and Kevin Wetz said that’s why all the mercs are here, and that’s why everyone is building the wall.” He lowered his voice a bit before adding “I also hear Momma and Daddy talking about it sometimes when I’m supposed to be in bed.”

Sera’s face grew serious. It was true that Chimera were in the valley where their little town was situated. They had been as long as she could remember, but until recently they seemed to be keeping away from the town. It started just over a year before when some hunters wound up missing, then a sheppard, and another hunter a week later. It was a secret that the adults only spoke of in hushed tones. They hoped to keep such a secret from the children, they didn’t want to scare them. It had been five months since the mercs were hired and construction on the fortified wall around the town began.

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Now it seemed the secret was out.

“Well,” Sera began, “You needn’t worry about them. They only come out at night so as long as you do what you’re told and are home before dark, you’ll be safe.” She hoped the slight fudging of the truth may set the boy’s mind at ease. “Speaking of which, the sun will be going down soon. Your mother should be on her way home by now.”

“Noo!” the boy whined. “I wanna play some more!”

“What did I just say, Steven? If you don’t do what you’re told, the Chimera will come out and gobble you up!” Sera wrapped her arms around the child and hauled him off of his feet as she growled and pretended to gnaw on his ear. The boy giggled gleefully as she swung him around in a circle before bending down to pick up his book.

The child under one arm, his tattered old story book in the other, Sera made her way out of the clearing towards the edge of town. The surrounding wall of trees gave way to that of buildings.

The town of Revera wasn’t a large place by manner of physical size but the buildings were packed close, allowing for over two hundred people, not counting the mercs who were camped in another clearing just outside the town’s northeastern border. There were buildings of wattle and daub as well as older ones built from stone and some nicer ones which used an attractive brick. Not all of them were homes, of course. Some of them housed businesses, some of which whose purposes were more frivolous than others. People busied themselves in the streets as the two of them made their way to Revera’s town square. Hand in hand with the little boy who skipped alongside her, Sera smiled and waved to friendly faces as they passed by, many of which were familiar, and many still who she one day hoped to be more familiar with.

The sky had turned pink by the time they reached their destination as the sun sank beyond the horizon. They took a seat on a bench, waiting for Steven’s mother to return from her work in the fields where many of Revera’s occupants tended various farms outside its border. It was the beating heart of Revera, many of the most notable places of business were situated here, the exception being the makeshift brothel that had sprung up across the main bridge close to the merc camp. Even her father’s tavern sat barely beyond her view around a corner at the southwest corner of the square. Already she could see people disappearing around the corner, the tavern their most likely destination.

It was crowded as it usually was at this time of day. Merchants packed up their displays as they moved them indoors, procrastinators hurriedly finished off their errands, Mercs changed shifts either making their way out to their posts or returning from them, destined for the brothel, the taverns or both, and farmhands returning from their work in the fields. In the years before however, when she was a child, the town square was an even livelier place than it was now. Before, the town was once part of the kingdom of Volknest. In those days, various merchants from out of town brought their wares to sell or collected wares to be brought to Volknest for trade there, traders came seeking furs and lumber, and of course, collectors came to collect taxes owed to the king. When the garrison emptied and the men there returned to Volknest, word began to spread that they had been besieged by a particularly strong rash of Chimera. The out-of-towners stopped coming, and soon after, the disappearances began.

That was when the people of Revera knew they had been abandoned, it was then that they sought to hire the band of mercs that now resided with them; the leadership and elite of which took up residence in the garrison, and the grunts in the now seemingly permanent camp just outside of town. The coin that was once paid as taxes to the king now went to paying for the hired blades. It wasn’t a bad deal, most would say. Whereas before, the coin sent to a king who most would never see in their lives was out of the town’s circulation completely. Now, the money went to the mercs, who would in turn give it back in exchange for food, drink, and regrettably, the comfort of a woman’s intimate embrace.

Sera smiled to herself as she remembered those old days of her childhood, the days when her mother was still alive.

Sera lived alone with her father, the tavern he ran doubled as their home. Her mother, Allison suffered from an illness which she bore all her life. Sera was twelve when she passed. Allison was always a kind, caring woman. Despite her poor health, every glass of ale and every meal she served came with a smile, no matter how unpleasant the patron. Her’s was an example that Sera strived to follow.

As the little boy beside her swung his feet blissfully looking through the faded illustrations in his storybook, a waving arm shook Sera out of her thoughts.

“Momma!” Steven shouted as the woman wormed her way through the crowd. He rushed off of the bench and threw his arms around her, nearly knocking the basket of carrots and celery from her hand. The boy’s mother smiled as she guided him away with her free hand, casting a wide-eyed look to Sera and mouthing the words “Thank you.”

Sera smiled and shook her head. It was no problem.

As she stood to make her way to the tavern to begin her work, someone jumped in her way. Sera dodged left, he dodged right. Sera ducked right, he shifted left.

Sera sighed. “Tristan, please I have to get to work.”

“C’mon.” The boy called Tristan pressured, “You work for the old man every night. Seriously, Sera can’t you have just one night off?”

“I can, I just don’t want t-.” he moved in her way again as Sera made another attempt at escape. “I just just don’t want to.”

“Maybe that’s just because you don’t know what a night off feels like.” Tristan smiled impishly. “C’mon, take the night off with me. There’s this great place where-”

“I am not going anywhere alone with you.” She pushed him aside, throwing him off balance.”

He laughed. “Y’know, you’re pretty strong for a girl.”

“Please, I carry glasses of ale bigger than you every night.” She rolled her eyes with an amused grin before adding. “Multiple glasses of ale bigger than you, in one trip.”

“And I haul logs around for a living.” Tristan shrugged. “I dunno, I think we’d make some pretty tough kids.”

“I am not going anywhere alone with you, Tristan.” Sera reiterated. “And I am not making kids with you.”

He rolled his eyes and slumped his shoulders in mock defeat as she walked away offering a backhanded wave. “Goodnight, Tristan.”