Axeton continued walking along the road towards the town of Ostiphas, the one he had seen in Glainn’s vision. Unlike the area surrounding Avandale during the attack, the long road to Ostiphas, a few day’s walk east of his old home, was peaceful. Flowers bloomed in the bushes and patches along the hard dirt walkway, as a gentle breeze wafted the sweet smell of jasmine towards him.
Axeton had made the trip several times in the past, and based on where he was along the road, Avara had dropped him into a forest a day’s walk away from Ostiphas. Trying to keep his mind at peace was a challenge, doing his best to accept things he couldn’t change…for now, anyway. Everyone in Avandale was dead, and that couldn’t be remedied without finding his goddess’ bell. Initially, he wanted to return to the village; to bury the dead, and give them final prayers. But Avara said plainly that Glainne would show him where he needed to go, and Avandale wasn’t it. Axeton hoped that once he found some leads to Dorian’s whereabouts, Glainne would give him a bit of flexibility so he could take care of his old home.
He unsheathed the weapon as he walked, the multicolored panes glinting off the rays of the sun. It cast a colorful shadow at his feet; it looked to be about noon or so. Swinging the blade around like before, when he had first uncovered his dueling blade that day, he felt that it was remarkably similar to the weight he was accustomed to. Odd, he thought; considering that glass was supposed to be a lot lighter than steel. This weapon seemed to break the laws of the world by its mere existence.
The blade was long and straight, going to an elongated edge, as opposed to his dueling blade’s sharp point. It glided through the air almost effortlessly, he wasn’t sure if he had newfound strength in his reborn body, or if that was another part of Glainne’s magic. The shimmering, silvery metal that surrounded each piece of glass seemed to radiate with an aura of hope; but also one of unyielding strength. Reaching deep inside himself, communing with the Destined Object he now held, Axeton could feel that not only was Glainne’s glory pool very deep, but that it was currently full. He had appeared under the tree in the late morning, and didn’t think about the Object’s charge until now. Thankfully, the goddess was prepared.
The avatar of Avara tested the edge of his weapon by lightly slashing at a willow branch, clinging to one of the many trees resting peacefully along the river that ran parallel to the road. It cut cleanly, with minimal effort.
This is going to be a hurdle to use in combat, Axeton thought. Mentally, he knew that he would eventually be swinging around glass. The urge to keep it from shattering, despite the goddess’ promise that it wouldn’t, was going to kink up his Stance for a while. Just something new to get used to.
A few hours passed, and one thing that Axeton realized he wouldn’t have to get used to in a new body was being hungry; that feeling was exactly the same and it came right on time. Normally, he would have afternoon tea with a few of the church’s parishioners at this time of the day. Some of them would usually stop by on their way home from wherever they had spent the day, to say a quick prayer and check in with Axeton in case there was anything important in town they had missed.
He checked himself and what the goddess had left him with: a gray tunic, a belt, a pouch with a few copper Rad, sturdy boots (thank Avara), and Glainne. No food, but it was better than nothing. Even if he had a bow, or anything used to catch prey, Axeton doubted he could do anything with it. It had been years since he hunted and after the traumatic events of the previous day, he didn’t think he could stomach blood right now.
After the willow tree, Axeton continued towards Ostiphas, but following the river instead of the road. It was the safest, he thought. If Dorian’s goons were around, that’s where they would be. He lamented the lack of supplies and tools as he walked along the river, noticing the fat fish swimming against the current. He had never really liked fish, Avandale had a small river but it was shallow and didn’t connect to a fish-sustaining lake for several miles outside of town. But fish, or anything, sounded good right now.
Suddenly, movement nearby. He drew Glainne, then got to one knee to assess. Splashing, then gurgling…laughter? Axeton tilted his head and squinted, trying to focus in on where the sound was coming from. A head full of curly red hair popped up a few inches from the top of the low bushes. It was too small to be a full-grown man’s, so he stood up and walked cautiously towards it. The head disappeared behind the bush as Axeton got closer, but he couldn’t tell if the being had heard him or not. He cleared his throat loudly.
“Ahem”.
The small head popped up once more. Beneath the red hair was the face of what appeared to be an adolescent elf, but since elves aged so differently from humans and he had only met a few in his life, he wasn’t sure if he was small, young, or both.
“Are you okay?” Axeton asked, taking another step forward.
The elf stared at him, her long, bright red curls flowing chaotically around her slightly pointed ears. Her mouth was plastered with red goop, the origin of which was a small hand, full of raspberries. Axeton breathed out in relief, he saw red and worried the child had been hurt. He sheathed Glainne.
He got down on his knee again, his arm resting against it. “Hey there, are you lost?”
The elf didn’t respond, she just continued to stare at him .
“Are you hurt?” he asked. Still nothing. She didn’t even break eye contact as she took a berry from one hand and popped it into her mouth with the other. Both hands were dyed pink.
Odd, Axeton thought. Even the most reclusive elves should be able to understand him . They had their own language, but outside of elvish population centers, most of them defaulted to Morwellish, the common language of the continent.
Diplomacy was getting him nowhere.
Axeton tried once more, in a much more universal way of communication and pointed to his mouth, making a chewing motion.
This, the little elf girl understood. She nodded, then beckoned him to follow and she turned around and skipped further down the river. She’s much more sure-footed than I am, Axeton thought. She was fast, and he almost lost sight of her a few times as he stumbled on slippery river rocks. Eventually, she stopped. She turned around, raised her hands in the air and spun as if declaring to the world that this is the place to be, then stuck her head back into another bush.
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Axeton stopped, bending over with his hands on his knees expecting to be out of breath, but he wasn’t. He was starting to like this new body, even with its hunger. But that hunger had met its match; Axeton was surrounded by a large cluster of berry bushes, circling a small clearing. His mouth watered before forming a plan: he went to the river, picked some reeds, then made a small basket and began collecting the berries with haste. The basket soon overflowing with different types of fruit, Axeton gently sat down in the clearing and ate thankfully and in peace. The river gently murmuring, the birds tweeting overhead, the sweet musty smell of the small thicket being his mealtime entertainment.
After getting his fill, Axeton thought that it was time to thank the little elf for showing him where the food was. He approached, she turned around and had somehow gotten more sticky than before, but also seemed to be slowing down. Axeton pulled out one of the copper pieces in the pouch on his belt.
“This is for you, thank you for showing him the berry bushes”, he enunciated slowly. She looked at him , then blinked.
“You do know what money is, don’t you?” Axeton replied. “Please take this as thanks”.
He held out the Rad, and she took it. She stared at it, then looked up at him with her bright, green eyes.
“Oh, for…”, Axeton spurted, getting mildly annoyed. He picked up a berry, pointed at it, then pointed at the coin. The elf watched him , then bit down on the coin. Axeton winced, then shook his head, taking back the coin. He examined it; she had made a dent right in the middle of the Morwell family’s crest on one side, but looking at her she wasn’t in any pain. He sighed, gave it back to her, and mimicked putting a coin in his own pouch. She seemed to understand that, and copied him.
“There we go”, he sighed, sitting down cross-legged a few feet away.
Maybe if he kept talking, he thought, she’d be able to understand something.
“Are you on your way to Ostiphas? It’s odd that you’re out here all by yourself. Are your parents nearby? Maybe they’re trying to get to town and got lost.”
The little elf girl sucked in her lips, then opened wide and popped in a strawberry. Axeton looked around, incredulously. Where on earth did she get a strawberry? He thought.
He felt like something was off, but he just couldn’t place it. Maybe if he stayed nearby, he could at least keep her safe until her parents finally came and got her.
He pointed to himself. “My name is Axeton,” he said, slowly and deliberately. “What is your name?”
She appeared to be thinking for a moment, then pulled out what looked like a cranberry, offering it to him .
“No, my n-wait, where did you get that?” Axeton balked. “Nevermind.”
He pointed to himself. “Axeton”, he said again. He pointed to her. He repeated himself a few times.
On the fourth time, she pointed at herself. “Eilidh”, she mumbled, still chewing on something. She pointed at him . “Asson”, she proclaimed.
Axeton nodded. “Close enough”, he responded. “Eilidh…what a pretty name. You’re not from around here are you?”
Of course, she still didn’t understand him . He didn’t know why he forgot that, but after eating so much sugar he was starting to get tired. He stood up, then sat back down at the base of a nearby tree, his back against its smooth bark.
“Ok Eilidh,” he began. I’m just going to take a quick nap. You keep doing…whatever you’re doing and I’ll talk to your parents once they get here. Maybe we can help each other out”.
Eilidh the elf wandered over to him, then dropped a grape into his lap before hopping back to a cluster of bushes and sitting back down. Axeton picked up the grape, waving it at her between two fingers. “This isn’t funny!” he bellowed, then turned the fruit over in his hands. Grapes grew on the steppes near the Yontin Plains, hundreds of miles away. It should have been impossible for her to get one here unspoiled, let alone fresh like this one. He tasted it. It was sweet, but he had never had them before so he had nothing to compare it to. This girl is a mystery, he thought, as he continued to supervise her chaotic foraging.
Despite being on the road for hours, the sun was still high in the sky when Axeton finally drifted off. When he woke up, he looked around and startled at his surroundings. He was back near the road. He stood up in a panic.
“EILIDH!” he called out, then waited and listened. No response. He ran across the road, then to the river and followed it. There was no sign that anyone had been there, let alone a messy, berry-obsessed elf girl. He called out again.
“Ain't nobody here but me”, a low voice answered. Axeton turned, his hand on the pommel of Glainne in its sheath, when he found the source. A man sat on a log nearby, a fishing pole held loosely in his grip, studying the water.
Axeton removed his hand from Glainne, continuing to look at the man.
“Best not keep yelling”, the man continued, not looking up from the river. “You’ll scare the fish”.
Axeton nodded, then sat down a few feet down from the man on a large rock.
“How long have you been here?” Axeton asked, not sure what to expect.
The man looked up at the sky, the sun sitting low on the horizon. “I’ve been here all day”, he replied. “This is my spot. I have a cabin deeper in the woods, I like my privacy”.
Axeton’s brows furrowed. “All day? Have you seen me around before?” he asked.
The man finally broke his gaze from the river, looking Axeton up and down, before returning to watch the flow. “Nope. Can’t say I have. Where did you come from, anyway?”
Axeton ignored the question. “And you didn’t see a little elf girl around? Red hair, pointy ears, eating berries and making a mess?”
The man blinked, turning his head to the side. “I would have remembered seeing something like that, but no, I didn’t. Is that who you were hollerin’ for?”
Axeton swallowed, his mouth dry. “Uh…yeah.” he choked.
The man tossed Axeton a waterskin, which he took gratefully and drank before gesturing it back towards the man. “Keep it”, he declined. “If you’re out here, you need it more than I do. I have plenty back at the house.”
Axeton nodded, and gratefully dipped the waterskin into the river to top it off before tying it to his belt.
The man glanced up, his eyes fixed to Glainne’s hilt. “You a mercenary or something?” he inquired.
Axeton looked down, then at the man. “Oh. No, I’m just trying to find some people at Ostiphas.”
The man nodded. “...and kill 'em?”
Axeton froze. He didn’t think about being secretive when he couldn’t even tell what was real or not. He shook his head.
“No, at least..I hope not. I need information.” he replied.
“Fancy weapon you got there”, the man pointed out. “Sounds like some valuable information if you need something like that to get it”.
“It is”, Axeton muttered. He didn’t want to show his hand, in case this man was somehow connected to Dorian.
“Well, I won’t keep ya then. Best git before it gets too dark”, the man suggested. He was tired of questions, which Axeton felt was understandable. He wordlessly stood up, then made his way back to the road.