Tearha: Keep Walking

Chapter Six: Home

Clear skies stretched north for as far as the eyes could see. To the south, the cloudy Tainted skies of Katoki loomed. But that was not a problem for him. No. Not for Joashden Stalewaver. He was across Leviathan's Helm, living happily in a ridge-top hut in Titan's Valley. He liked the life. It was simple. Unassuming. And the only thing he needed was a hot-air balloon to go into town for provisions every other week and a hoe for his quaint farm. He lucked out, not having been called for the rebellion, and even more so to have avoided the war with the dark elves.

As he lugged the last of his gear into the balloon, the sound of footsteps pattered up to him, and he turned just in time to a be tackled with a hug by the girl no taller than his stomach.

"Are you leaving, dad?"

Josh smiled, ruffling her short brunette hair, taken after him, with green eyes after her mother. A bubbly face of girls her age and a pendant around her neck over a light-brown dress.

He replied, "I'll be back soon. Just going into town to get a few things for dinner. Be a good girl for mommy, okay?"

"Okay!" She hopped and he lifted her up for her weekly kiss to the cheek before gently lowering her to the ground. "Take care, daddy. I love you!"

He got down to his knees and hugged her. "I love you too." Josh gave one final kiss to her forehead before turning around and climbing into his balloon.

Propellers revved, burner lit, the balloon slowly floated away as the girl waved goodbye from the ground below. He waved back and turned to look at the clouding sky. Rain was coming, but if he hurried, he should make it back home before the pour starts.

Should.

***

The abandoned hut of stone and cement was not the most comfortable of rooms. But on The Walking Path, it was a grand hotel to even have a roof over their head. The southern corner of the ceiling had collapsed over the empty bed frame, but the roof stayed intact enough to keep out the Taint. They slept on the floor of what used to be a kitchen, having managed to start a gentle fire in the firewood left over in the the bare stove, another unexpected luxury.

Josh's stirring was slow. Waking up had taken exponentially longer as he aged, and it was entirely possible he had aged more over the past twelve years than most people did in their lifetime. A decade of crash landings, long, dangerous treks, and battling giant Titans had taken its toll. He did his best to hide it, preferring to use his smarts and wits to weapons and force. Preferring to reactivate a broken giant to fight another giant for him.

Luce, who sat opposite the room, also on the floor, voiced sarcastically, "Good morning." Jacques slept deeply in her lap, a soft snore carried through the room.

Josh rubbed his eyes opened and after getting the after-image of the bright valley sky out of his mind, asked, "Aren't you supposed to be resting?"

"Aren't you supposed to be on sentry duty?"

He took a breath to answer, but found her logic impregnable. "Well played," he replied instead. He slowly got to his feet, stretching his arms as he did so, the cracks of his aged bones ringing out through the room.

Luce made a face. "That's disgusting."

Josh continued to like how straightforward the girl was. Even when being insulting, she did not hide her opinions, which was a rare trait in a world where lying was the best way to get ahead.

He chuckled and replied, "That is called getting old. And one day, you'll get it too."

"Ugh..." she made another face and subconsciously started stroking Jacques's hair. She started to look around the primitive house. "Stone hut. Wood stoves. How did we lose to such a backwards country?"