Chapter Two (Unfinished)

Iris discovers the first non-human race of the land.

 

 

Chapter Two

 

     She never thought she was capable of becoming a hero; she never thought that she would have the courage to be a villain. As Iris was running away through a thick brush of wood with a dagger in her hands, she realized that she was going to have to become both.

All that Iris knew was that she’d had no skills or abilities that would warrant the kind of situation that she’d gotten involved in. Rooting through confusion, Iris threw the dagger into the woods and tried her best to clean the blood of a king off of now rust colored palms. There was nowhere Iris could go; she for sure could not enter into the main streets again.   

            “Who knew that you would cause such trouble?” Farah said, her beautiful eyes almost aglow against the darkness; her body began to gain solidity and she once again resembled an average woman.  

            “It’s not what it looks like. I didn’t do it.” Iris told her.

            Farah smiled, “That does not matter, does it? Do not you remember what I told you, you would never be able to go back home if you fail? Right now, it seems as if you will fail. Do not you remember what you promised?” She came closer to Iris, her silhouette almost illuminated as it flickered and ebbed from the scenery.

            There were no excuses, so Iris tried the truth. “You told me that I would have to find the Mask of Keepers and Kairos, right?” she smiled, “I found them both. The king was the only one in my way.”

            “So you killed him?” Farah shouted.

            “No. I asked Teir to help, and he said he could. Before I knew it, I awoke with a bloody dagger in my hands and a body beneath my bed. So I ran.”

             “Perhaps, in order to become king, Teir killed his own father and framed you?”

            Iris shrugged.

            “I do not have much time left here. Just find Kairos and tell him about the mask, he will be able to get you out of any trouble you’ve gotten in. Trust me. I know it will not be easy, but this is the only way that he and I will survive.”

            “What will happen if I don’t help? Why must I be the one to help?” Iris asked, realizing that I would never be able to finish her request.

            She smiled, “I already told you. You don’t have options anymore.” She gave her a sympathetic glance and vanished, leaving Iris with nothing but questions and desires.

            Standing completely frozen, Iris flinched as the dirt and blood on her body hardened and caked on her skin and pulled at it. She realized that she had no choice but to keep heading through the woods. While part of her wanted to face the consequences she’d already created, another part wanted to continue on with the task at hand; although that task lacked clear-cut direction, at least she had a small chance of completing it.

 Iris walked for hours until it seemed that she’d reached some sort of impassible structure.

            “Where are you headed?” she heard. Iris searched for the owner of the voice, but saw nothing but trees and dim moonlight. 

            “Can we help you get there?” Another voice chimed in.

Iris started to wonder if she’d gone insane.

            “We’re known to be very helpful.” One other voice added.

            “Who are you all?” Iris asked, blindly walking towards the trees.

            “Oh, the poor girl is clearly lost.” A strong deep voice said, “Look towards the trees.”

            Iris looked again at the wide, solid trunks of tall trees and noticed a pair of eyes. These eyes were accompanied the outline of bodies that were almost identical to the texture and shade of the trees. One of these bodies headed towards Iris, who stumbled backwards in fear. The creature had a baldhead, large almond-shaped eyes and a body that was dark brown a covered in moss.

            “I am Rheed, head gatekeeper. Have you been to our domain before? If our apology can be given and received, we don’t seem to recognize you.”

            She shook her head, “I can’t really remember if…”

            “Well, then, what a pleasant surprise.” Rheed smiled and stared at me for some time, “I suppose we can let you in, but then we would need to know why you have come. These invaluable travel stories are rarely ever shared.” 

            She cropped it a bit, “Well, I don’t know where I was a while ago. But I remember that I was living in the Fourth Domain as a guest. I saved the king, but a crisis happened so I was sent on my way. I found myself here.”

            “King?” Rheed laughed, “How foolish, those humans still follow that silly Empire? Well, greetings and good times, Lost One. I hope you will find that the Fifth Domain is quite more… adept than what the humans have to offer.”

            With just a motion of a hand, the intertwined vines and trees that had once trapped me started to clear, revealing a marsh surrounding a wide swamp. The people that walked aimlessly around the small settlement were almost identical to Rheed, even down to the pleasant, dreamy looks on their faces.

 Entering slowly, trying to pretend that she had no fear or reservation, Iris knew that she could not keep pretending. Completing the task that would bring Iris back home, wherever home was, but she knew that it would not be easy to do if she never had the skills.

            A woman walked up to Iris just then, cupping her hands over Iris’. She smiled slightly, this was some sort of greeting, it seemed. Iris smiled, unsure of what she should say to her in this position.

“I can feel that you are nervous. There is no reason to be nervous. We will always welcome you when you need to be helped.” The woman said.

 Iris nodded and the woman simply walked away as if she’d never said anything. Iris wanted to tell her something, but it seemed futile as she began to speak with others who walked aimlessly around the swamp.

Iris examined the small shacks that bordered the swamp, wondering how she would be able to stay in one of them although she had no money or skills. Of course, she did not have any choice but to try.

            “Hello. I am the Head of The Fifth Domain. You may address me with the title, Choice.” An elderly man said, extending a thin and trembling hand.

            “Hello.” Iris replied.

            “You must have many questions, Lost One. If you have the time, you’ll find that I have the answers.” He said. He glanced at Iris quickly, “Of course, I have my own questions for you. If we shall converse, come with me to my dwelling.”

            Iris followed the man as he shuffled slowly past the small shacks and into a large building that was sheltered from by large leaves. Servants met the two as they walked into the building, giving them greetings in their jerky dialect.   

            “Tiase bohre, Cuma Cume.” The elder said to a woman before looking to me, “You would like our wood tea, am I misspoken?”  

            “No, wood tea sounds good.” Iris said, not sure what wood tea was.

            Choice sat across from her, “If you are not familiar, we are Arbols. If you must stay here, know that we will be welcome to have you " but some of our residents are not fluent in your language. Most are, especially since the war, but some do not understand it.”

            “Oh, I can’t stay for long. I have a lot to do, it seems.” Iris replied as the woman placed a cup of dark tea on the table.

            “That’s good. Since, I am the leader, I must ask you why you have come to our town with a filthy appearance and several injuries. If your story does not satisfy, then you will not receive lodging and you will have to leave straight away. Understand?” He smirked peacefully and sat back in the chair as it groaned at me.

            “It’s not something I can really tell.” she grimaced as he stared down at her expectantly. “Can I start from the beginning?” she said, sipping the pine tasting wood tea.

            “Yes. You had better start from there.” He said.

            “What happened was I awoke without any memory. So I wandered into the Fifth Domain, and that’s where I met a guy named Teir.”

            “Teir, the second prince?” He asked.

            “Yes. So, he mistook me for a bride and let me meet his father. His father was in danger and I pulled him out from a fire.”

            “I don’t see how that could have gotten you to look like this.” The man said.

            “Well, after that they let me stay with them. I stayed there for a couple of weeks until one morning I woke up with blood all over my body and a weapon in my hand..” Iris confessed, trying to leave out the unnecessary details.

            The man tilted his head, “There is good and bad from this.” He took a sip of tea; “The good is that I do not care for the Human Empire, so I would not mind if the King died. But the dark is often what surrounds the light.”

            “What do you mean?”

            “The king’s death could cause your death and the death of several others, even if you are innocent. Humans have always been hateful and impulsive creatures.”

            A tear paved a way down Iris’ red face, “I really don’t know what to do.” 

            “You had better get home, Lost One. You are not from a place like this, yes?”

            “Yeah.”

            “Aurium is different from any other land here. Many come here to see our world and it’s beauty, but most will not stay because of the danger. Our land is filled the most powerful and capable beings, yet there are not many that can withstand the hostility in current times. Every domain is different than the other, but no domain is sheltered. The guards will never stop searching for you. If the guards want you, they will find you.”

            “How?” Iris asked.

            “The final agreement we made with the humans during the war was to split our land into five domains " where every race could belong to its own unique area. Yet, there was no agreement to restrict these domains or disregard the affairs of another area. If someone asks me about you, I must admit to what I know. This is because it is necessary in such hostile times to remain honest and fair. You do understand, correct?”

            “Sort of, I guess. Not really.” Iris mumbled, wiping at her eyes.

            “Well then, I’m sure you will have enough time to comprehend.” He smiled, “You can stay in the upstairs bedroom here for three days. Not any longer, not any shorter.”  

            Iris lay down that night and every bone and muscle in her body was instantly relieved. She closed her eyes tightly, trying to forget about anything that happened at the Fifth Domain, but realized that it would be impossible to somehow throw away those memories. So, she settled into the bed that night thinking of Teir, Kairos and endured a particularly uncomfortable sleep.

            That morning, she walked downstairs to see a table set with different wooden bowls. Iris noted how much wood they used in this area, and slid into the seat she took yesterday " which was right across from Choice. She grinned at him, tiredly spooning some tasteless sticky sludge into her mouth.

            “That is grey tree sap, have you tried it?” Choice asked, staring at her thoughtfully once again.

            “No, I don’t think so. I wouldn’t know.” She glanced at the tree sap. It made her stomach twist and turn.

            “Oh, yes, of course. You lost your memory. Well, put the tree sap over those leaves, and it gives them a sweet and bitter flavor. It is our specialty here.”

            “Everything is so different here, compared to the Fifth Domain.” Iris commented thoughtlessly.

            He laughed, “I believe that if you chose to focus on difference we will be different, but if you focus on sameness we will be the same.”

            “You think?” Iris chuckled as she slowly ate the leaves and sap. The maid put down a piece of bark and smiled.

            He smirked, “This bark is especially ripe during this season.”

            Iris’ stomach churned and jumped, but she did not show a hint of disgust on her face. She smelled the bark, which had a stench that could never be described, and put it to her lips while closing her eyes.

            “This is very interesting.” She said.

            Choice smiled brighter, the wrinkles of his face deepening into canyon crevices, “Do you want any more?”

            “If you made more, then I shouldn’t just waste it.” Iris said hesitantly.

            “Listen, I think you are not a bad person, Lost One. I believe that you are different than the rest of those humans. Although I know this, I want you to listen to me. I was planning to keep you here in the best interests for the guards to easily find you; I didn’t want to get involved in human affairs. Yet, after speaking to the other elders, we agree that we all believe in you, since you have accepted our culture and it’s differences without complaint. So, I want you to leave today and run as far from here as possible. Find someone or something to protect you.”  

            “I accepted your culture?” Iris asked.

            “You drank the bitter tea that we do not drink. You ate the sap and leaves, which we give to the lost birds.  You accepted our offers, so we will give you this offer.”

            “I should get going then?” Iris asked, standing from her chair and backing out of the house.

            “Do come back.” He said.

            There were no clues as to where to start searching for Kairos, it did not seem as if Farah knew where he would be either. Iris walked quickly at first, haphazardly trying to escape the perimeters around the Fifth Domain.

 

Author's Note

What do you think about Arbols as a race?