Thanks for reading, everyone. Happy friday. Have an awesome weekend!
CHAPTER 21
Falcon’s stomach turned to a pile of knots.
“Are you sure?” asked Lao, his voice suspicious.
“Of course I’m sure, young man. There is no mistaking the power of chaos. Besides, it is not the first time he has attacked our village. This village and Volcseck have a long turbulent history.”
The revelation baffled Falcon. Why would Volcseck bother attacking such an insignificant village as Asturia?
“You must have a lot of questions,” affirmed the elder statesman. “I will answer all of them, but not here. Please, follow me.” He led the Rohads to a half-burnt cabin at the end of a dirt road. Atop the door hung an old sign with the words, Asturia Meeting Hall, etched in it. It looked sloppy, as if someone hurriedly carved it with a kitchen knife. The mayor ushered them in.
The Rohads entered the medium-sized room that reeked of ale and strong wine. A small fire, one that, judging by the coal, had been reduced to a pile of smoldering flames, burnt on the fireplace. It gave the room a warm ambience. A series of wooden chairs were arranged in perfect rows that ran from the front to the end of the hall. At the back of the room stood a scarred wooden table, where a light-skinned man sat, silently staring a hole into the wall. He wore a charcoal-colored shirt that barely managed to contain his muscular physique. A wild bush of golden hair exploded from atop his head.
“I’m Seth Hemstath. I’ve served as mayor of Asturia for the past sixty-seven years,” said the old man, taking a seat at the circular table. “And the man next to me is Mr. Benoit.”
“Commander Benoit!” corrected the muscular man, as he took a giant gulp from a wine mug. “Leader of the armies of Asturia.” His voice sounded as charming as two rocks being ground together.
Sheridan laughed. “I wouldn’t be proud to admit that if I were you.”
The commander’s muscles tensed as he focused on Sheridan. “And what do you mean by that, boy?” Even from afar, Falcon caught the strong smell of alcohol on the commander’s breath.
Sheridan smirked. “I meant your armywouldn’t be able to win a jesting contest if it cost them their lives, much less an actual fight.”
Benoit rose from his seat and kicked it to the side, fury scorching his eyes. He made a move toward the young Rohad. Sheridan stepped up. The two were inches from each other when the mayor stood between them.
“Calm down, commander,” ordered Seth.
“I will not let this ignorant fool—”
“I said, calm down.”
“You too, Sheridan,” said Falcon. Once again Sheridan’s big mouth was getting them into trouble.
Commander Benoit took hold of the table and threw it to the ground, shattering it to pieces. “These Rohads are worthless. They don’t understand our cause so they make sport of our misfortune. You’ll see how right I am, Seth. Then you will beg for my help.” Commander Benoit stormed out of the cabin and slammed the door behind him. Long after he had left, his shouts still echoed in the distance.
“You have to forgive Commander Benoit,” said Seth. “He’s suffered much these last couple of months.”
“It’s nice to formally meet you, Mayor Seth,” said Aya, extending her hand. Taking a cue from Aya, Falcon took the mayor’s hand.
“I’m Falcon Hyatt.”
The mayor froze as his face turned pale. “What did you say your name was, young man?”
“Falcon Hyatt.” Falcon looked at Lao and Aya. Maybe one of them knew what was going on. “Is there something amiss?”
Seth’s color returned as he gave a faint smile. “Oh no, it’s nothing. You have a unique name, that’s all.”
“What a weird guy,” muttered Sheridan in Falcon’s ear.
The mayor’s even, soothing tone filled the cabin. “Over the past twenty years Volcseck has attacked our village twice thus far. The last time he attacked was a little over a year ago.” The mayor took a seat on one of the chairs. He rubbed his head and sighed. “As unbelievable as it sounds, though, at the moment, Volcseck is the least of our problems.”
“What do you mean, Volcseck is the least of your problems?” asked Lao. “Isn’t he the one responsible for the attacks?”
“Yes and no.”
Puzzled, the Rohads looked at one another.
“Allow me to clarify,” said the Mayor. “You see, after Volcseck’s ransacking, the village was left in a state of disarray. Our few good warriors were killed in battle, and many more were permanently maimed. Seeing an opportunity, the Suteckh Empire launched a series of raids against us. They pillage and take our food as soon as we harvest it, leaving just enough for us to scrape by. They don’t kill us because they want us to continue providing them with their sustenance.”
“Why don’t you refuse to do as they say, or at least fight them off?” said Lao.
“It’s not as easy as it sounds. We are mostly farmers, few of us have ever held a sword, and the Suteckh have fearsome warriors in their ranks. I’m afraid we would stand no chance against them in a confrontation.”
“If fighting is out of the question, simply follow my suggestion and refuse to do as they say. Maybe then they‘ll leave you alone.”
“No, that’s not their way. They’ll kill us if we don’t do as they say. If we fight, we die. If we refuse to give them our produce, we die. If we run away, we die of hunger. We are trapped, destined to be slaves for the Suteckh.”
“If what you say is true, mayor,” reasoned Sheridan, “why haven’t you asked for help before? Why wait until now?”
Seth rubbed the little hair he had atop his head. “Young man, we tried. The closest capital cities capable of lending help are Sandoria and Ladria. And do you know what they told us?”
None of the Rohads answered.
“They said we were crazy. That our village had nothing worth taking. Even after we told them the Suteckh Empire was planning to launch an attack on all the capital cities in Va’siel, they refused to listen. Our last hope was to hire Rohads, and even that proved a formidable task. We were fortunate your grandmaster heard our plea.”
Seth’s story seemed plausible to Falcon. The grandmaster himself believed the attackers were simple wandering raiders. If someone like Zoen found it difficult to believe the validity of the Asturia claims, Falcon had no problem believing the pompous aristocrats from Ladria would have done the same.
“That still doesn’t explain why the Suteckh would attack you to take your harvest. They have more than enough to feed themselves,” said Lao.
“It also doesn’t explain where you are getting these wild ideas that they are planning to launch a worldwide invasion,” added Sheridan. “You’re taking this a bit too far.”
“We didn’t understand it either at first,” answered Seth. “Until we captured one of their soldiers. I mind-wielded him. This is how I came to know their plans.”
Falcon gulped. Oh no, a mind wielder.
“Once our minds merged I learned of the Suteckh’s plan to take over Va’siel. They have stored what they’ve taken from us in their warehouses, provisions that will be used to feed their armies as they launch their attack on Va’siel.” Tension filled the room. “Based on the information I’ve gathered, I have concluded they will launch their first attack soon on the earth city of Sandoria or the mind city of Ladria.”
Thank you for stopping by. Next chapter will be up in a few minutes.
BINABASA MO ANG
Element Wielder
Fantasy"His mother's screams remained etched in his mind. He promised himself that night he would never again stand by as people he cared for suffered, and he would one day kill Volcseck. He intended to keep those promises." Falcon Hyatt has a problem. For...
