The Darkness Steals The Light - The Elim Chronicles

Tides of Change

I pity Jain, but more so all the lives he has touched. He is a man imprisoned by his own relentless battle to find his worth in the world.

Danan. The Third Great Age. 3031.

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Bright light shatters the black void. There is hope, there is life.

"Welcome back, Jain. Your fever has broken." Lord Varesh wipes cold sweat from Jain's drenched brow.

A blast of warm, fishy air washes over Jain as he rubs at his dazed eyes. His world spins, and words falter on his stuttering lips. His groggy eyes scan through a bobbing world of creaking timbers and blinding light.

Tight leather binds hold Jain's wrists and ankles to the sweat, sodden cot bed.

"Allow me." Lord Varesh leans over Jain's body and unbuckles the taut restraints. The leather tears away from his skin, leaving lines of bloodied bruises.

Jain sits up, hanging his head as he gazes down at his feet, which peek from a filthy cloth rag covered in stains of blood, piss, and shit. Tears well in his shamed eyes, red with sorrow and regret.

"You're clean now, Jain. It won't be easy to forget the past, but time will heal." Lord Varesh places a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you." Jain's gratitude catches in his throat as he holds back his tears.

Danan enters the ship's cabin and stands at Lord Varesh's side. "Danan has tended to you the best he could, given the circumstances."

"What circumstances?" Jain's words trail off.

"The past is in the past; we restrained you not only for your own safety but also for the safety of others." Lord Varesh places his hand on Danan's shoulder.

Danan winces and rubs a purple-blue bruise on his neck.

"Danan, I would never—" Jain's words fall into silence.

"Drop withdrawal is an obnoxious experience for all." Lord Varesh fixes Jain with an uncompromising stare. "You suffered, as did Danan, who tended to you, day and night. Do not forget this kindness."

Danan steps forward and passes Jain a bowlful of steaming chicken and vegetable stew.

Jain nods in silent gratitude, and with a loud slurp, he takes his first burning mouthful. The hot, salty, and fatty broth scalds his lips but brings a broad smile to Jain's face.

"How is it?" Danan leans forward, his voice eager.

"Bloody good," Jain says, through a loud slurp, blowing and sucking the air, fanning his mouth through a puff of steam.

"I told you." Lord Varesh pats Danan on the back. "Danan's working in the ship's galley." Varesh raises his gray brows. "Not much of a seaman, but it turns out he has a dab hand with the cooking pot."

Jain glances over his steaming bowl at Danan and looks him up and down. "What in The One's good name are you wearing? You look like a bloody pirate."

Danan stares down at his knee-high block boots, then fumbles with his white linen shirt and rubs his soft hands down his brown britches.

"Danan has honed quite an array of new skills. It turns out he's a natural with a blade, too." Lord Varesh chortles.

"What?" Jain chokes on a mouthful of tough shredded chicken.

"Captain Sorana took it upon himself that Danan should be capable, at least, of holding a blade." Lord Varesh gives Jain a pat on the back. "After all, Heb is not a place to be taken lightly."