Tales of the Hollow Heart

Chapter Nine: Familiar Faces

 Esvelie trails closely behind Esthyl, afraid one tiny slip-up will leave her lost in a bustling and unfamiliar environment. Peering around, she feels a sheen of sweat forming on the back of her neck as she makes a disheartening realization: She can't remember her exact whereabouts in relation to her, Engom, and Ryvia's little dugout. All the dugouts look exceedingly similar, save the masses of Eleaves disappearing and reappearing from beneath the ground. She hopes Esthly will end the tour by taking her back to her family's shop, since there, she will be able to better retrace her steps.

Esvelie gasps and lurches forward at the unanticipated approach of another barrelling wagon, her left heel missing the front right wheel by nothing more than a hair. Esthyl whips around to face Esvelie, shouting, "Are you alright?"

Breathlessly, Esvelie responds with the question, "Where do those come from? What area could possibly be large enough to conceal wagons, let alone horses?"

Chuckling nervously, Esthyl replies, "You would be surprised to learn how fear, desperation, and determination can really boost a civilization's progress."

"But what made you guys decide to hide underground? You could have chosen to hide somewhere in the woods, or traveled further southwest into the Zellorost Mountains." Esvelie counters.

"Ah, but that would be more predictable," Esthyl replies with a sly wink. "Vastbrine would have expected as much. We're far safer being invisible to the world. It's better for the king to assume we're...no longer here." Esthyl's voice takes on an uncharacteristic bite of bitterness as she adds, "That was his plan, after all..."

Cautiously, Esvelie poses the question: "Why did the king send his forces to Kalveyr? Wasn't that city an asset?"

Her smile fades a bit and her eyes shimmer with the ghost of sadness as she sighs and responds, "Indeed it was. Kalveyr and Vastbrine worked closely as a pair. We would provide goods such as crops and carved stone, and in return, the king would provide our people with ample wealth and opportunity."

Her voice falls silent for a moment and she stares solemnly down at her feet."We never saw them coming. We never knew their plans. One moment we were allies, and in the next, we were nothing more than a memory consigned to the Hells of King Strongweld and his forces. Well, that's what Vastbrine believes, anyway. We were ambushed in the dead of night, and more of us were able to escape than they were, fortunately for us, able to prevent. They surely assumed any escapees would die anyway, seeing as most of us were unarmed and unsupplied in the...unsuspecting moment."

"Much like my friends and I," Esvelie adds quietly.

Esthyl nods quietly. "I truly feel for anyone who has endured such an experience."

Offering a half-smile, Esvelie decides to change the topic. "Anyway, how do I avoid getting lost here? Everything looks the same."

Esthyl snorts, a teasing grin returning to her face. "It's simple. You simply get used to it over time and you begin to recognize the Eleaves lingering in certain areas. For instance, you're bound to know where our shop is since either Marima, my mother, or myself will always be around. That also goes for the sheep pasture, which is where I was carrying my basket of wool from."

"You guys supply your own wool as well?" Esvelie questions.

"We do!" Esthyl chirps. "Whenever we first started building our hideout, our reliable hunters Kalifer Steelmist and Erevan Drothstrade were able to snag a couple of lambs, a ram and an ewe, somewhere between Kalveyr and Vastbrine. We named them Ogg and Beldra. My family raised those lambs, and once they became sheep, they had a lamb of their own. Her name is Puile." Esthyl's voice sings with a deep love for her wooly companions.