Ayden awoke in a small, cluttered room lit only by the light of the grey morning sky.

A sweet scent filled the air and he found himself subconsciously moving towards it. His dark red and curly hair stood out against his skin like a ruby on marble.

He crawled out of a bed that was only marginally larger than his small frame and stumbled out of the room.

“Good morning,” Ayden yawned as he sat on an old wooden chair that creaked with every movement he made.

His mother, a tall woman with a head of long kinky hair which was combed to a fluff, nodded in greeting as she cooked away.

Numerous fading scars marked the parts of her dark skin which weren't covered by her leather pants and jacket.

She had calloused hands, feint wrinkles and brown eyes that sharply cut across everything she saw.

Although their edge softened as soon as she turned to hand Ayden a bowl of porridge.

She took the seat next to his as the boy, who wore a loose shirt that draped from his thin frame, raised his spoon to eat the piping hot meal but one glance was all he needed from his mother to put the spoon down and patiently await the porridge's cooling.

Ayden fiddled with his fingers as the winds whistled by just beyond the house's walls.

Winter was on its way and the signs that it would be a harsh one were clear in the smoke of each of his breaths.

Birds had also begun loudly migrating, and Ayden could already see himself huddled under a thick layer of blankets for the next few months.

After a moment or so of waiting, Ayden snuck a glance at his mother who nodded prompting the boy to eat.

It wasn’t long before he finished so, after standing up, he hurriedly washed his bowl with frigid water from a nearby bucket, quickly dried his hands and returned to his chair.

He looked into his mother’s piercing brown eyes and quickly found himself smiling which made her smile as well.

She then stood, prompting the boy to mimic her movements and, after Ayden slipped into a wooden jersey, the two exited their to find the land around their house was engulfed by a thick fog.

Ayden excitedly locked the door before following his mother westward, towards the sound of rushing waters.

The two quickly arrived at a small pier where a small boat was moored.

The two boarded it and, after Ayden's mother untied its moorings, the boat floated downriver which led south.

Half an hour would pass before they arrived at a much wider part of the river where a spacious dock could be seen to the east.

Several small ships and an assortment of small boats were docked nearby. Most of them belonged to the local fishermen while a handful were the property of the local nobles.

Ayden and his mother moored their boat before hopping onto the pier which sat next to a small town which had a single road that led further east.

The two made their way into the riverside town, coming across fishermen and merchants alike.

The town consisted of a little more than a handful of buildings that varied in size and function.

Ayden and his mother made their way towards one of the last buildings on be road to their right.

“Mmm, it’s the dubhghaill.” A woman seated by the front door of a nearby building groaned.

“I wonder when she’ll realize that she looks far too strange taking care of that boy on her own.” Another woman, who stood next to the first, said.

“I’m sure many an heirless noble would love him.”

“True, he’s too beautiful and dainty to be up here in marshes.”

“Bah! Enough of that, I heard a guard were reported missing yesterday."

Such things were said by those who happened to see Ayden and his mother walked by.

The two eventually reached a certain shop from which the smell of smoked meats came.

They entered the building to find a small old man sitting sleepily behind the counter.

“Oh, good morning, Ayden and Ayanna.” The man yawned before warmly smiled.

"Good morning, Uncle Charles!" Ayden greeted energetically which shook Charles awake a little.

Ayanna instead greeted the man with a smile before resting her hands on the dark wooden counter.

“The usual?” Charles wheezed as he stood up.

Ayanna nodded prompting the old man to walk into the backroom.

Ayden looked around and saw various cuts of dried or cured meat hanging all over the shop. He took several deep breaths as he savoured the smoky aroma of the shop.

Charles eventually returned with a cut of meat that looked about the size of four fists.

Ayanna handed Charles three silver coins. Their front faces were proudly embellished with the face of an old king and on their backs were three torches although they weren’t identical.

The leftmost torch had a roaring flame, while the one in the centre had a slightly smaller flame and the last one had no flame at all.

Ayanna nodded in thanks before leading Ayden as they exited the store as Charles waved them goodbye.

The two then made their way back to the dock as the risning morning sun's warmth slowly dispersed the fog.

However, before they reached the dock, two men, armed with spears and with daggers at their waists, approached Ayanna.

The first man was tall, had dark hair and bright green eyes. His skin was covered in grime and his clothes weren’t better off.

The second man didn’t look any better either.

“Oi, dubhghaill! We’ll be needing your help today again. Seems like a prisoner escaped the buttery hands of our colleague who has yet to return. We'll need your help tracking the two bastards so be here tomorrow mornin'… if ya don’t mind.” The first grinned, revealing a set of malgrown teeth.

Ayanna sighed and crossed crossed her arms as her face stiffened.

“Oh- and yes, you will be duly compensated for your hard work." The second nodded.

Ayanna scoffed before walking past the two, with Ayden in tow.

The boy snuck a glance at the second man and was met with a smile which was missing several teeth.

“When will you let the brat join us during our trips?” The second asked but Ayanna and Ayden ignored the man as they continued westward.

They eventually returned to the dock where they hopped onto their boat and made their way back upstream with Ayanna finally making use of the oars.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Ayden’s eyes wandered as the sound of running water tickled his inner ear.

The rustling of leaves and the blowing of the wind had a calming effect on the boy along with the sounds of Ayanna’s rowing as they made their way north.

They could have walked to the docks and back if they wanted, but the land around their home was a damp marsh and deep bogs that could easily ensnare the witless were strewn about the landscape.

Ayyanna docked by a certain little pier and, after mooring it, led Ayden back home where she placed the cut of meat in a jar before resting her hands on her hips while eying the boy who, with comically narrowed eyes, tried sneaking out of the house but Ayanna grabbed his collar, stopping him in his tracks.

Ayden turned to find his mother staring at him with a questioning look.

“I found a cave in the forest yesterday, I wanna see what’s inside it. Don’t worry, I’ll be back before dark.” Ayden smiled unconvincingly.

Ayanna sighed before raising her right hand, urging the boy to wait, and walking into the bedroom

It wasn't long before m Ayanna returned with two large iron daggers in hand, a sight which made Ayden sigh.

“Trust me, I’ll be fine on my own-"

He silenced himself as he watched his mother’s eyes slowly narrow to a slit.

His shoulders drooped before he accepted one of the identical daggers from his mother's offering hand.

Ayanna then bowed in a comical manner prompting Ayden to lead the way and a grumpy Ayden walked out of the house.

After using the boat to quickly cross the river, they began their trip west. With careful steps and a fair pace, the two eventually found themselves in the middle of a thick, shaded forest.

The morning fog hadn’t fully dissipated, obscuring the depths of the forest deep even further, but Ayden confidently walked ever deeper into the woods.

He then grabbed a rock and threw it to the south prompting Ayanna to look in wonder.

She then heard the sounds of quick steps as Ayden ran away.

Ayanna smiled brightly before lowering her stance.

She took several deep breaths, allowing the boy a head start and, in the next moment, Ayanna dashed into the direction he had run. Her eyes wide and her ears perked up.

She searched for Ayden as she weaved through the trees and it wasn’t long before she caught up to the boy who thought he had cleverly hidden behind a cluster of trees that was off the path.

His presence was made even more obvious in the silent forest by his loud, jovial breaths.

Ayanna slowed down to a crawl before grabbing the unsuspecting Ayden.

“Haha!” Ayden laughed in pure delight as his mother lifted him high in the air.

She then held him close before letting him go.

“Haha! Caught me again. One of these days I'll find some place where you can't reach me.” Ayden giggled as he skipped toward where he remembered the cave was.

Ayanna followed him for about ten minutes before they found the cave he’d mentioned.

Ayanna scanned the cave's rather mundane rocky entrance and followed her son into its interior.

At first, the cave looked just like any other, a hollow rocky space , but then Ayanna noticed several stone structures here and there.

Ayanna deduced that they had stepped onto the site of an ancient ruin although she could no gather any more information beyond that.

Large stone pillars, etched with various markings littered the inner cave and they were covered in markings and weathered etchings that Ayanna could not read.

She then stumbled on something morbid.

At her feet and crushed beneath one of the stone pillars, were the remains of a man. Their were also seemingly the only remains in the cave.

She knelt to get a closer look at the corpse which looked like it belonged to a man and saw that he wore a set of rather modern clothing.

A worn cotton shirt and a pair of demin pants adorned his corpse and by his side was a leather bag.

Ayanna grabbed it and curiously looked inside to find a bunch of old papers and a book, but she couldn’t read so they weren’t of much use to her.

This, however, did not mean that she saw absolutely no value in them.

So she closed the bag and placed its leather strap on her shoulder before following Ayden deeper into the cave.

The two looked around for a couple of minutes, but nothing they found nothing of similar intrigue as the bag. They also didn't know what to make of the ruins which left them staring at strange stone patterns for several minutes.

To Ayanna, it seemed as though the cave was once the site of an ancient people and the person the corpse belonged to wanted to find out more about the ancient peoples who once lived there but, due to what seemed like bizarre circumstances, he died at the hands of gravity.

Ayanna let out a deep sigh after piecing together all she had learnt and knew.

“Mom, you’re bleeding!” Ayden suddenly gasped while pointing at Ayanna’s chest.

She looked down to see that blood was indeed oozing out from her beige shirt.

She quickly lifted it to find six gill-like structures above her ribs and just beneath her breasts.

Three on each side.

Ayanna’s eyes widened.

She couldn’t feel any pain and so she tried poking at one of the gills to find that it was shallow.

The flesh within the sleeve of skin felt a little abrasive but other than that, Ayanna couldn’t feel any pain and the gills didn't lead into her body.

She waved her hands in an attempt to calm the panicked Ayden after pulling her shirt down although this did little to drain the dread the saturated her son's face.

Ayanna then nodded toward the cave's entrance and gestured that they leave.

The two emerged from the cave and hurriedly made their way home as the sun began to set.

Deep shadows crept over the land as the last remnants of light steadily died away.

After entering their home, Ayanna sat by one of the chairs in the kitchen, placed her dagger on the table and removed her jacket and shirt, revealing even more fading scars.

Ayden looked at the newly formed gills on his mother’s chest and the two silently wondered what their existence might mean.

“Mom… are you a fish person?” Ayden asked with a quivering voice but Ayanna shook her head.

Ayden nodded hesitantly as Ayanna wiped away the blood from her gills.

She then walked into the bedroom, grabbed another shirt and slipped into it.

She tapped Ayden's shoulder before handing him the leather bag she’d found.

“Oh yes, I forgot to ask why you were carrying that old thing around. Do you want us to hold onto it?” Ayden asked and Ayanna nodded before she started a fire within the nearby iron stove.

Ayden walked into the bedroom and dropped the leather bag near the bed’s foot.

He stretched his little arms as the darkness of the night filled the room before returning to the kitchen as Ayanna cooked away.

He was still worried about her but it didn't look like she was experiencing any discomfort and that allowed Ayden to worry a little less although he still suspected that his mother was at least loosely related to a mysterious race of fish men.

Ayanna eventually finished cooking and she shared with her son a delicious stew dinner that fought away the encroaching winter cold.

Ayden then helped his mother wash the dishes after they ate and it wasn't long before the two were in bed, although since it was a little too small for Ayanna, she slept with her legs lucked and her arms tightly wrapped around her son.

.

..

Ayden awoke to find that his mother had woken up before him.

He crawled out of bed to find that she was boiling water in a large iron pot.

A chill ran up Ayden’s spine as he quickly realized what was coming.

He sneakily tried returning to bed but Ayanna grabbed him by his collar and pointed at the northern wall of the house.

“But it's cold!” Ayden whined making Ayanna’s sharp eyes widen and this silenced the boy in an instant.

Ayden lowered his head in defeat and begrudgingly walked into the bedroom where he grabbed two towels.

He then grabbed a separate bucket of water before walking down to the river where he quickly filled it.

He let out a sigh before detouring around the house to where an extra room was.

It had no door and within it was a smooth tube-like structure at its bottom.

Ayden clumsily threw all of his bucket's contents into the tub, only for countless splashes of water to land all over him.

He loudly groaned before returning to the river where he refilled the bucket before dumping more water into the tub.

He did this a couple of times before Ayanna walked by with the iron pot in hand.

Ayanna poured the pot's contents into one of the buckets Ayden had filled, which somewhat raised the water's temperature, but Ayden knew that it was now only lukewarm.

He took his clothes off, exposing his little body to the environment and Ayanna did the same before joining Ayden in the tub where she pulled at the boy's shoulders.

“Hey, I can bathe myself now, ya know?” Ayden cried but Ayanna ignored him as she ran water through his rose-red hair using her hands.

She vigorously washed the back of his body before forcibly turning the boy around to find that he had teary eyes.

Ayanna sighed before handing Ayden his towel and in the next moment, all of Ayden’s supposed sadness disappeared as he scrubbed his arms.

Ayanna smiled before she too started bathing.

Ayden looked at Ayanna’s gills for a moment before reaching out to touch them.

He poked at one of them and got a strange reaction from Ayanna.

Her body convulsed strangely and out of curiosity, Ayden poked at the other gills, causing even more convulsions.

Ayden looked up to see if his mother was alright only to see her silently holding in her laughter.

“Oh…” Ayden sounded.

“Sorry,” He lowered his head but Ayanna reassured him by patting his head.

Ayden nodded before hopping out of the tub and drying himself.

He then slipped into his clothes before heading inside.

It wasn’t long before a fully dressed Ayanna entered the house as well.

She and Ayden then tidied up a little before leaving the little house, locking the door and heading down toward the little dock where their boat awaited.

Ayanna made sure to hand Ayden his dagger as they walked.

They boarded the boat and let themselves flow down the river.

It wasn't long before they docked by the riverside town which Ayanna and Ayden entered once more.

However, something was different.

An eerie silence filled the air.

The boats were there and the occasional bird could be heard chirping but other than that there was nothing but silence.

Ayanna cautiously led Ayden eastward as she looked for anything that resembled another person but every building seemed empty and some doors hung wildly open.

Ayden and Ayanna eventually arrived at their preferred butchery which they entered it to find that the counter was unmanned.

The sounds of Footsteps then filled the room.

Ayden and Ayanna then watched as Charles stumbled toward the counter from the backroom. His eyes closed and his face twisted as though he was in pain.

His grey hair and beard were dripping with blood along with his hands and mouth.

Ayden and Ayanna took careful steps backwards as Charles raised his meat cleaver above his head.

“Born without the shackles of ignorance, I felt his touch! Oh, and I heard his voice as it peeled away at my idiocy! Yet here I am! Unwhole yet aware! I must see him! I must hear him, lest I rot away on this vomitous plane!” Charles screamed as he opened his eyes, revealing that they had multiple pupils swirling within.

“Ayanna… be a dear and lend me your eyes.”