Chapter 4

*Aspen*

“Excuse me . . . excuse me . . . excuse me!” Aspen’d been trying for hours, and no luck. Every person she walked up to seemed to want nothing to do with her, even though she hadn’t done anything wrong. She clenched the sides of her skirt and took a deep breath to quell the panic rising in her chest. What if nobody would help her? What would she do then? 

She slowly let out the breath and continued walking down the street, the sunset staining the stones orange. Her eyes scanned the crowd of people, looking for someone, anyone who she could ask for help. She refused to be defeated. She had only walked a few yards when she passed by an alley and stopped in her tracks to gaze down it, her eyes widening as she recognized a pair of legs sticking out from behind a large crate. 

Someone was there! She darted down the alley, rounding the crate to have her gut wrenched in pain. An old homeless man lay on the ground, a few rags hanging off his body in a way that reminded her of the reason why she needed help to begin with. She could count every one of his ribs, and she felt sympathy clench at her chest. She kneeled down next to him and carefully laid a hand on his shoulder, not trying to startle him.

“Sir, are you alright?” she asked softly. The man opened his eyes, his gaze taking some time to focus on Aspen. When he processed what he saw in front of him a shaky smile splayed across his dry lips. 

“What have I done to deserve the company of such a kind looking young lady?” he muttered, his voice plagued with age. His breaths dragged across his throat, and she winced. He must be in pain.

An idea crossed Aspen’s mind. “Hold on just a minute, please.” She removed her bag from her shoulder and set it on the ground, rummaging until she found the thing she needed, a pale, cream-colored liquid that sat in its container. She opened the jar and held it close to the man’s mouth. “Open up. This will prevent you from feeling pain.” 

The old man’s eyes sparked with understanding, and he gratefully accepted the drink. She gave the whole thing to him and he sighed once the jar had been emptied. She set it aside and held her hands over his stomach, closing her eyes as she concentrated. She felt her hands glow with a slight light as she assessed his life force, and when she took her hands away she knew she’d been right in giving him the anesthetic. He wasn’t due for this world much longer. 

She brought out a piece of bread from her tote and fed it to him, his eyes glistening with gratitude. When he was finished she closed her bag and was about to stand up when he grabbed her wrist with a surprisingly strong grip. 

“Wait,” he whispered. “I want to do something for you.” 

She shook her head adamantly. “Please, sir, I don’t need anything. It was my pleasure to treat you.” 

He shook his head back at her. “No. The next time I sleep will most likely be my last, and I want to entrust you with a gift as thanks for helping me move along without pain.” He reached in a crack nestled between the crate and the alley wall, bringing out a rectangular prism that swirled with a white, milky color. The man’s hand shook as he handed it to her, and she received it with reverence. He was giving her a crystal? 

“This crystal,” he murmured, “is the only one of its kind. It amplifies the powers of its holder so much so that you could easily become the most powerful person in the land if you wished so.” 

She gave him a thoughtful glance. “Why are you giving it to me?” 

The old man’s eyelids flickered, sleep dragging at his conscious. “I used that crystal too much as a boy. Did terrible, horrible things that I regret to this day. And now that it’s my time to go I need to entrust it to someone who won’t make the same mistakes I did. If I’d before then I wouldn’t have forgiven myself.” 

She looked down at the crystal in her hands, the off-white surface gleaming up at her. “But, why me?” 

He smiled at her. “You gave me pain numbing medicine without hesitation and you don’t even know my name. You are well suited for the job.” 

His eyes started closing and she grasped his hand as he went under, his last words whispering around her mind. “Thank you.” 

His hand slipped from hers, dropping onto the ground. His chest wouldn’t rise anymore, and she closed her eyes as she said a short prayer over his soul. She stood up and glanced up at the sky, the first few stars glinting at her from the ocean above. 

Aspen squeezed the crystal, determination swelling in her chest as she thought of what she had to do. For the old man’s sake, for her sake, and for her village’s sake, she wouldn’t fail.

*Zared*

The sun just peeking up over the mountain range to the east, Zared watched his breaths turn into puffs of mist as he and Miria waited at the eastern gate. Miria’s footsteps sounded on the pavement every now and and then as she shifted her stance or walked around a bit to warm herself up. She started pacing in a circle around Zared, and he calmly waited for her to stop. Miria usually paced when something was upsetting her, and he knew she would voice her thoughts soon.

After a while of more pacing Miria stopped in front of him, her back to him as she gazed out at the main road. “Zared, do you think he’ll show up?” She glanced back at hime, the worry flashing in her eyes. “I stayed up most of the night thinking about it. What if he’s tricking us? Leading us into a trap? For all we know he could be a part of the Excidium Sect.” 

Zared swallowed. As usual, Miria had hit the nail on the head, voicing his worries exactly. “I know how you feel, Miria. And if this guy, Terrin, ends up trying to attack us I’ll take him down without a moment’s thought. But let’s see what we can learn from the information he claims to have. We’ll take it one step at a time.” She nodded and fingered her pendant through her linen shirt, her expression still doubtful. 

The sound of someone running up to them got their attention, and they turned to see Terrin heading their way with a goofy smile on his face. Zared’s skin prickled. Something about the guy irked him, that was for sure. He sighed and stepped forward to greet him. 

“Good morning, fellow travelers,” Terrin said as he walked past Zared and kneeled at Miria’s feet, grabbing her hand to bring it to his lips. “And a wonderful good morning to my Lady in Waiting Miria.” 

Miria ripped her hand away from him and immediately Zared’s nerves were on edge, his face reddening at Terrin’s gesture as his heart sped up in his chest. “Don’t make stupid jokes!” she scolded, whapping Terrin over the head.

Terrin rubbed the place she’d hit and laughed, standing up straight. “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. I thought it’d be funny.” 

“Well, it wasn’t,” Zared grumbled, stepping closer and shooting him with a freezing glare. He folded his arms in front of his chest, feeling exposed. “Now, what was that information you said you had on the Excidium Sect?” 

Terrin blinked. “Oh yeah, I had something like that, didn’t I?” 

Zared grabbed the front of his shirt and brought his face down to his, their noses only an inch apart as he seethed with irritation. “You’d better start talking fast before we regret not handing you over to the guards.” 

Terrin chuckled uncomfortably. “Fine, fine. Let’s head out into the forest and we’ll talk more once we’ve found a place to sit.” 

Zared exchanged a glance Miria, and she rolled her eyes, portraying exactly what he felt. This was going to be a long journey with this guy. 

*Terrin*

Terrin grinned, fighting hard to stifle some laughter as they headed out into the forest. He’d thought his joke earlier had been funny, and definitely not deserving of a whap over the head. A voice in the back of his head reminded him of his real reason for joining the two of them, and his expression grew still. He knew Emota was still alive. He’d just have to use these guys to find where she was. 

Zared and Miria walked ahead of him, their body language suggesting a certain closeness that he observed carefully. As they walked he watched them interact. Miria used her hands a lot when she talked, constantly in motion even when she didn’t need to be. Zared on the other hand was the tall, stoic type that he’d seen many girls swoon at, and Terrin wondered if he and Miria were a couple. They certainly didn’t seem like it. More like a brother and sister. 

After a while of walking they came to a small clearing, and they set down their items to take a break. Miria broke up the food rations, and she and Zared both watched him as they ate. Terrin resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He obviously wasn’t gonna try anything with the two of them watching him like a pair of hawks. 

They finished their meals and continued watching him, and he sighed. “Okay, listen. I know I’m pretty to look at and all, but I really wish you’d ask before staring.”

Miria scoffed and averted her gaze, and Zared closed his eyes as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Satisfaction flared through Terrin as he smirked. These guys were way too serious.

Zared opened his eyes and turned to him, his expression already tired. “Terrin, what do you know about the Excidium Sect?”

Terrin folded his arms in front of him. “Tut, tut. Don’t you know how trading works, Bun Boy? You give something, and I give something in return?” 

Zared’s eyebrows scrunched together as he frowned. “‘Bun Boy’?” 

“The Excidium Sect is a ruthless faction who kills anyone that opposes it,” Miria started, her expression solemn as she eyed him. “They don’t care who you are or what status you hold. If you’re their enemy, they’ll kill you. The members of the Excidium Sect are usually clad in all black, with a purple insignia of a sickle stitched on the shoulders of their bodysuits.” 

Terrin’s eyes were wide. He hadn’t been expecting her to give up information so easily. He started to speak but she interrupted him. “Don’t kid yourself. This is all information you can get at the nearest intelligence broker if you ask. Unfortunately it’s also the only information we have on them. And now, it’s your turn.” 

A smile tugged at the corner of Terrin’s mouth. He met Miria’s challenging gaze and bowed his head. “Of course, Your Highness.” Her eyebrow twitched at that, an action that almost made him start laughing. But he forced himself to focus on his goal, and he grew serious. “I’ve been living in Azmar for a while, and it’s a big city so I can usually get information from many sources. Recently I overheard a couple of guards talking about an ancient fortress located to the north of Helmfirth. Apparently Excidium lackeys were crawling all over the place, though the guards didn’t know what they were doing there or what they were trying to achieve.” 

Miria’s eyes widened and she exchanged a glance with Zared. Terrin noted the way Zared had clenched his fists so tightly the color had left his knuckles, and he wondered what had happened to make Zared so angry. Not that Terrin didn’t have reasons of his own for wanting to see the Excidium Sect burn to the ground. 

Zared turned his burning gaze on Terrin. “Thank you for telling us. We’d better continue moving now that we know our destination.” He stood up and started packing up his things, shouldering his bag and walking away from the clearing. 

Miria watched him leave for a moment before turning back to look at him, her gaze regarding him with less hostility and more thoughtfulness now. “I’ll be honest with you, Terrin. I don’t really like the idea of you coming with us, but I can tell that the information you just gave us is true.” A small, kind smile lifted the corners of her mouth. “So thank you for that.” 

His eyes widened as he watched her gather her things and head after her friend, stopping to look back at him with a more mischievous grin. “Well? Let’s go, Thief Boy.” 

Terrin flashed her a returning grin and stood up to follow them into the woods towards their next destination.

*Excidium Sect Leader*

He gazed down at the sphere on the table in front of him and his mouth curled in a cruel smile. He watched in amusement as the thief boy told the tall boy and the young girl about the fortress north of Helmfirth, and chuckled at their reactions. He took a sip of wine from his metal cup, relishing in the tangy taste that washed over his tongue. He set the cup down and glanced at the person kneeling on the ground a few meters in front of him. 

“Let’s see if we can get rid of this group before they reach the fortress, shall we?” he suggested, his voice echoing in the near empty throne room. The person in front of him bowed their head and turned around to leave. 

His harsh laughs rang throughout the hall. They wouldn’t get very far. Not if he could help it.

Author's Note

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