Shreds of an Archive

The Reality of a Hero

Drip. . . drip. . . drip. A distant echo, barely heard like a whisper in a gale. Drip. . . DRIP. Deinon woke with a startle, a huge drop of water landing directly on his forehead shocking him awake, dampness seeped into his tunic, as more drops of water landed directly on his chest forcing him up. A brief glance showed him that the source of the water was a small breach in the roof with a constant stream of droplets raining from the source, splattering on his bedsheets and wetting the ground creating a gleam on the stone floor amongst the firelight. Angrily, Deinon sauntered over to dress himself, shuffling into the moist morning spring grass. Soon he had pulled a bucket from the shed and put it under the leak, stopping the leak from spreading any further. He put his hands on his hips, briefly admiring his work, before setting out to do his daily chores.

The sun was high in the sky, shining brightly upon the slick landscape, breathing life into everything it touched. The air was brisk and cold, turning Deinon's breath visible, and was quickly swept away by a smooth breeze, riding along it with no destination or goal in sight. Deinon sighed. A long hard thing. He often wished that he could be like the wind, traveling aimlessly, drifting and moving throughout mountains. It was truly free, something that he had wanted since he was a little bairn. The time of journey would come soon though. His 16th nameday was on the morrow, the thought of it bringing a fierce joy burning in his chest. Tomorrow, things will change.

"Deinon! Stop standing around and Clean the stables!" His da bellowed out, shooting Deinon a venomous look before ducking back into his forge, quickly becoming engrossed in his work. With a work of will power. Deinon began scooping up horse excrement.

Today was the day. His 16th nameday. Deinon sat on one of the horses he had taken care of for the past couple moons. It was originally sent to be taken care of by him and his family by a noble, but the noble had eventually lost interest and forgotten about him, so he had claimed it for himself, and become attached to it, going as far as to name it Vi Fedas, meaning strength and honor. His family stood with him at the edge of the forest path, with a couple of his friends and adults he was close to. They congratulated him, patting his back, his ma gave him a long parting hug, and his younger sister just looked at him angrily, but he spied teardrops in her eyes.

"You've done well, Deinon, I'm proud to be your father" A broad smile was plastered on his dad's face, beaming with pride and joy.

"Aye da, When I come back to this village, I swear, I will be a man just a strong as you are."

"Aye, I'm sure you will" His dad said, his eyes turning glassy

"Please be safe" His mom called out as he turned to leave.

"I'll come back without a scratch on me, you needn't worry." He ushered Fedas into a canter, steadily making way towards the broad trunks of the woods.

The sun dipped down, casting an orange glow filtering through the dense canopy of the forest. He had been traveling since midday and was feeling a growing exhaustion gnawing at the excitement of starting a new journey.

He struck steel against a small piece of flint he had received as a parting gift, sparks flying off mingling with dry grass he had found in an open patch in the forest, the dull glow spread, consuming the kindling and growing into a strong flame. Only then did he realize he hadn't prepared any meat to cook over the fire.

He set out with his bow that he had received on his 14th nameday, it was an elegant maple wood recurve slightly charred by a time he had left it too close to the fire - he had received quite the lesson from his dad that day. He paused, smiling at the memory.

A loud equestrian screaming came back in the direction of his camp- he froze in place, fear and panic muddling his thoughts. He sprang into action, vaulting himself over a fallen tree branch and twisting around trees as the horses' desperate whinnying continued. He came back to the clearing where he had set up camp, standing by his horse was an outlandish looking man wearing a vest cloak and leather gloves, untying Fedas from his tree. The man had taken a moment to glance over at Deinon, staring at him for a couple seconds before returning to his work.