I had told Alden all I knew about Lesion. I knew he hated surprises, because he wanted to always be in control of everything. I knew that he didn't get his hands dirty, so he had his men do all of his work for him. He was incredibly charismatic and had a tongue born for persuasion. A tongue fit for a snake.
I had very little information to give, but it was enough apparently. The wheels in Alden's head started turning. With arms crossed, he started pacing. I looked over at Tristram and his new wife, and I envied her. Not because Tristram loved her, but because she was beautiful. And from what I've seen of her, she was good and kind, loved by all around her.
I envied her, because she was everything I was not.
My head snapped quickly to Alden's direction as he uttered a sound of revelation. "Well, we know the best way to overthrow Lesion is to surprise him. Obviously, he wouldn't expect it, and we have so many people to back us up!"
"Nice thinking, smarty. But HOW would we go about doing that?" I asked with a little more pride in my tone than I wanted to be communicated.
"Well, we tried to surprise him before, but that didn't work. We're going to need some more people on our side."
"I've got a whole army," Tristram chimed in as casually as he could. Alden looked his way with slightly furrowed brows, even if he didn't intend to communicate that to Tristram. It was really obvious that he was still struggling to treat Tristram the same as he used to. Alden looked down at his feet for a second and barely spoke, "Yeah." Tristram's wife wrapped her arms around him, noticing the dejection in his face.
"Is everyone on board with fighting against Lesion, though? Would anyone betray us?" I couldn't help but think of ways our possible plan could go wrong.
"Yes, I have discussed this with my men, and they are ready to fight this villain!" Tristram exclaimed enthusiastically, revealing that he was ready as well.
"The question that Tarka has brought up earlier still stands," Alden added dryly. "We're not just going to march into his camp and arrest him now, are we?"
Tristram grinned. "That wouldn't be a bad idea. There's definitely more of us than the Viridians, why not?"
I shook my head. "Even so, they're more cunning than you think. We'd need more on our side to make sure our attack would be complete."
"It is possible to do so. I'm sure with a little coaxing and persuasion, you could convince the Palkins to join the Brackins." Rhythmus had been quiet up until this point, but he now stood up. "One of us would have to do the convincing, though." He looked toward Alden.
Alden sighed. "They wouldn't believe me. I'm the punk little brother of a scientist who no one ever took seriously, and I was banished, remember?"
Rhythmus took a few silent steps towards that young dejected man, took a hold of his shoulders, and looked deep into his eyes. "Young man, are you going to let your past define you? You seem to have no idea of the potential you possess, all three of you. You are representatives of three very different peoples. And yet, you are united under one single cause. Do you have no faith in your abilities?"
Alden hung his head, looking even more defeated. I sensed his fear. I was scared for him. I was scared of what could happen. None of us knew what would happen, but the Palkin, the Brackin, and the Viridian all knew what needed to be done. After a minute and a deep breath escaped his beautiful smooth lips, he lifted his eyes up and turned to face his comrades. He started to walk away from us. When we didn't follow immediately, he turned around. Hope was shining bright in those darling eyes.
"Well, gang, there's no use sitting here like bricks. We've got an army to build. Let's go!"
Monday, January 27, 2014
Friday, January 17, 2014
Forty-nine - Alden
I didn't know where to go. The whole town was like a giant maze of stone and wood, nothing like the loose sand and hide tents of home. I could take a few lefts, a right at a stone well, walk down a long road, and then find myself where I started. After finding myself at the same stupid rock bench by a strange moss covered pond for the third time I gave up, kicking one of the rocks surrounding the pond into the green muck, allowing the rock to slowly sink into the green abyss.
With a sigh I turned from the pond and noticed Rhythmus sitting on the small bench, stroking his beard as if deep in thought. I have to wonder if that's the only reason old men have beards. Do they think they can hide the fact that they never really learned anything by taking part in the old-man ritual of thoughtful beard stroking? If I can ever grow facial hair perhaps that will be what I will do.
"You seem to have quite the fondness for dirt." Rhythmus noted, raising one white and fuzzy eyebrow.
"I've been through a lot." I sighed, sitting next to the old man.
"I see." He mumbled, hand covering mouth and eyes crinkling the way a person with poor eyesight looks at distant writing.
This look annoyed me, so before he could judge or lecture me with some weird life lesson, I blurted out, "How do we get rid of Lesion?"
Rhythmus squinted an eye. "I do not know." He said, with a shrug of his shoulders and a glance at the far distance.
I looked at him incredulously. "Yes, you do. You're supposed to be the smart old guy who tells everyone else how to do stuff. You know exactly what we're supposed to do."
"Is that so?" Rhythmus let out a soft chuckle. "I do not even know what I will have for breakfast. Just because I am old, does not mean I know everything." He noted.
"Knew it." I muttered to myself. The beard is always a lie.
"Lesion believes I do know his future, which maybe I do, but it is only based on his own follies. If you wish to talk combat you may wish to take it up with your friends. Is Tarka not a valuable ally in all things Viridi? And Tristram, he now has a whole kingdom behind him, and even you're old friend Roman has great training for war." Rhythmus chuckled once more. "Why you think an old man is helpful is quite odd."
I sighed. "All you had to tell me was talk to them." I stood up, frustrated. Looking down at the road, I felt a warmth flood to my cheeks. Even if talking to my friends is what I was supposed to do, I had no idea where I was. My foot twitched, asking to kick another stone into the green sludge pond.
With a loud "hurumph" Rhythmus pushed his way up off of the rock bench, his muscles creating a creaking and popping sound. "Before you go anywhere," he stated,"perhaps you should follow me to the house I have been lent so that you may wash up." He explained, ushering me down a road.
We walked down a one way street, where lots of people led horses with carts attached through to the other end, where a giant water fountain sat, no green sludge to be found. It still surprised me how big and well built this town was, and perhaps it always will be odd to a person who has lived his whole life as a nomad.
"Here we are." Said Rhythmus, as he walked to a small rock house with a wooden door, just right off of the pathway. I went inside and found the bucket of freshwater that Rhythmus told me about, and rinsed away the dirt and mud from my skin. Once clean I came out of the little hideaway room to see everyone huddled in the small house. Tarka smiled at me a little hesitantly, and Tristram stood to her right, his gaze cast mostly downward and towards a girl I did not recognize, nor care about. Roman was then on Tarka's other side, sitting in a chair with his feet on a table, and arms across his chest. I looked at Rhythmus who stood to my left, but he was busy dusting some books with what looked like a few feathers tied together with string.
"Tarka." I whispered, afraid to break the silence but aware of the necessity of it.
"Yes?" She said, coming over to me.
"I need to know everything you know about Lesion." I expressed, eyebrows furrowing. I knew she did not like to talk about her past or her people for that matter. "Anything we can exploit, or habits that make him predictable... anything and everything." I pleaded.
With a sigh I turned from the pond and noticed Rhythmus sitting on the small bench, stroking his beard as if deep in thought. I have to wonder if that's the only reason old men have beards. Do they think they can hide the fact that they never really learned anything by taking part in the old-man ritual of thoughtful beard stroking? If I can ever grow facial hair perhaps that will be what I will do.
"You seem to have quite the fondness for dirt." Rhythmus noted, raising one white and fuzzy eyebrow.
"I've been through a lot." I sighed, sitting next to the old man.
"I see." He mumbled, hand covering mouth and eyes crinkling the way a person with poor eyesight looks at distant writing.
This look annoyed me, so before he could judge or lecture me with some weird life lesson, I blurted out, "How do we get rid of Lesion?"
Rhythmus squinted an eye. "I do not know." He said, with a shrug of his shoulders and a glance at the far distance.
I looked at him incredulously. "Yes, you do. You're supposed to be the smart old guy who tells everyone else how to do stuff. You know exactly what we're supposed to do."
"Is that so?" Rhythmus let out a soft chuckle. "I do not even know what I will have for breakfast. Just because I am old, does not mean I know everything." He noted.
"Knew it." I muttered to myself. The beard is always a lie.
"Lesion believes I do know his future, which maybe I do, but it is only based on his own follies. If you wish to talk combat you may wish to take it up with your friends. Is Tarka not a valuable ally in all things Viridi? And Tristram, he now has a whole kingdom behind him, and even you're old friend Roman has great training for war." Rhythmus chuckled once more. "Why you think an old man is helpful is quite odd."
I sighed. "All you had to tell me was talk to them." I stood up, frustrated. Looking down at the road, I felt a warmth flood to my cheeks. Even if talking to my friends is what I was supposed to do, I had no idea where I was. My foot twitched, asking to kick another stone into the green sludge pond.
With a loud "hurumph" Rhythmus pushed his way up off of the rock bench, his muscles creating a creaking and popping sound. "Before you go anywhere," he stated,"perhaps you should follow me to the house I have been lent so that you may wash up." He explained, ushering me down a road.
We walked down a one way street, where lots of people led horses with carts attached through to the other end, where a giant water fountain sat, no green sludge to be found. It still surprised me how big and well built this town was, and perhaps it always will be odd to a person who has lived his whole life as a nomad.
"Here we are." Said Rhythmus, as he walked to a small rock house with a wooden door, just right off of the pathway. I went inside and found the bucket of freshwater that Rhythmus told me about, and rinsed away the dirt and mud from my skin. Once clean I came out of the little hideaway room to see everyone huddled in the small house. Tarka smiled at me a little hesitantly, and Tristram stood to her right, his gaze cast mostly downward and towards a girl I did not recognize, nor care about. Roman was then on Tarka's other side, sitting in a chair with his feet on a table, and arms across his chest. I looked at Rhythmus who stood to my left, but he was busy dusting some books with what looked like a few feathers tied together with string.
"Tarka." I whispered, afraid to break the silence but aware of the necessity of it.
"Yes?" She said, coming over to me.
"I need to know everything you know about Lesion." I expressed, eyebrows furrowing. I knew she did not like to talk about her past or her people for that matter. "Anything we can exploit, or habits that make him predictable... anything and everything." I pleaded.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
Forty-Eight - Tristram
The wedding ceremony was small and simple. The party the town threw the next day was quite the opposite. During a time of harsh war, a royal wedding was exactly what the people needed to lift their spirits up. The night before I had managed to patch things up with King Pontus who agreed to start working on negotiating a peace treaty with the Palkins as well as responding to Lesion. Everything was going smoothly and according to plan. Elane and I even moved into a small secluded house within the castle walls. it was about a week later when Alden and Tarka showed up at my door.
After my conversation with Tarka, I headed off in the direction Alden ran. I eventually found him in the stables feeding sugar to one of the horses. He was covered in dirt, probably from his journey, but had two clean streaks along his cheeks. guilt twisted in my chest. He hasn't seen me yet, I could easily sneak back out of the stable... but I owe him the truth. I cough, letting him know I'm there. He picks up another sugar cube from the sack beside him and feeds it to the horse.
"Hey... I'm sorry..."
"Sorry?" Alden interrupts, " You're sorry?" He turns to me, anger in his eyes. The guilt stabs deeper into my chest. "You killed my brother, you don't have the right to be sorry." His voice starts to raise. "If I had known who you were when I met you back in the jungle, I would have killed you there."
"I'm the one who kept you alive hunted for you, protected you from soldiers."
"Yeah but you didn't know I was the brother of the man you MURDERED!"
"Yeah I did." Wrong thing to say. Alden's fists clench and he starts throwing handfuls of sugar cubes at me yelling "you knew you killed my brother and you never told me!?" I take the beating of harmless sugar cubes, knowing I deserve worse.
After a minute Alden quits throwing cubes and collapses to the ground, crying this time. "Alden," I say moving a bit closer, "It was an accident. I got angry and threw a rock...I never meant... It wasn't... but it did and I'm really sorry my anger got out of control. I've learned a lot since then. I've grown and you've helped me learn to forgive myself. Can you please forgive me?"
He stops crying and, after a moment, looks up. "No. I can't forgive you. At least not right now." and the guilt stabs deeper than I thought it could possibly go. I feel like there is no way I can make it up to him, no way he will ever forgive me and be my friend again. I hang my head as Alden stands up. He passes me on his way out then mutters, "But we still need to stop Lesion." Then he is gone. I sit down nursing the ache and brushing off sugar. Elane finds me there and, without asking questions, sits down and wraps her arms around me. It hurts a little less now, but is still hurts.
After my conversation with Tarka, I headed off in the direction Alden ran. I eventually found him in the stables feeding sugar to one of the horses. He was covered in dirt, probably from his journey, but had two clean streaks along his cheeks. guilt twisted in my chest. He hasn't seen me yet, I could easily sneak back out of the stable... but I owe him the truth. I cough, letting him know I'm there. He picks up another sugar cube from the sack beside him and feeds it to the horse.
"Hey... I'm sorry..."
"Sorry?" Alden interrupts, " You're sorry?" He turns to me, anger in his eyes. The guilt stabs deeper into my chest. "You killed my brother, you don't have the right to be sorry." His voice starts to raise. "If I had known who you were when I met you back in the jungle, I would have killed you there."
"I'm the one who kept you alive hunted for you, protected you from soldiers."
"Yeah but you didn't know I was the brother of the man you MURDERED!"
"Yeah I did." Wrong thing to say. Alden's fists clench and he starts throwing handfuls of sugar cubes at me yelling "you knew you killed my brother and you never told me!?" I take the beating of harmless sugar cubes, knowing I deserve worse.
After a minute Alden quits throwing cubes and collapses to the ground, crying this time. "Alden," I say moving a bit closer, "It was an accident. I got angry and threw a rock...I never meant... It wasn't... but it did and I'm really sorry my anger got out of control. I've learned a lot since then. I've grown and you've helped me learn to forgive myself. Can you please forgive me?"
He stops crying and, after a moment, looks up. "No. I can't forgive you. At least not right now." and the guilt stabs deeper than I thought it could possibly go. I feel like there is no way I can make it up to him, no way he will ever forgive me and be my friend again. I hang my head as Alden stands up. He passes me on his way out then mutters, "But we still need to stop Lesion." Then he is gone. I sit down nursing the ache and brushing off sugar. Elane finds me there and, without asking questions, sits down and wraps her arms around me. It hurts a little less now, but is still hurts.
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