The Tale of Onora: The Boy and the Peddler of Death (13 page)

______________________________

T
HE CLAP OF HOOVES colliding with cobblestone grew louder and louder. Aithein squinted hard as he tried to focus through the rain, but it was wrought with fog. A white mass galloped towards him through the billowing smoke. As it approached he could see it was a steed carrying two passengers, a woman and a child.

The horsewoman was a type of being Aithein had never seen. Her eyes emitted a silver-purple glow. Her hair was silky white, and although it was soaking wet, it danced with the wind. Her features were elfin. She wore midnight-blue armor that was protected by a white breastplate with a symbol of an eye shedding a red tear in the center. Aithein didn’t know what the red tear meant, but the design was encrusted with jewels and had an uncanny effect on him.

The child clinging to the horsewoman was a little girl who appeared to be the same age as Aithein. Her hair was partially braided. It escaped her hooded cloak like sunglow and flailed in the wind. A gold diadem, crafted in the shape of laurel leaves, rested upon her head. A crown jewel was embedded in its center.

Aithein was not familiar with the caste structure of Caliphweald. He spent his whole life with the Amori. Even though he had never been subjected to the governance of the Royal Family, his instincts told him that this little girl was important.

By the time Aithein realized the white horse was on a collision course with him, it was too late. He dove out of the way to avoid being crushed. His body slid in the field. The mud squished between his fingers while trying to break his fall. The wake of his hands doused his face in thick, earthy water. He gagged as it rushed into his nose and mouth.

As the horse galloped by, the little girl locked eyes with Aithein. The fabric of time unraveled and stood still. All of his senses heightened. Each sound was magnified and accompanied by a fluttering echo. He could hear her blink. He could hear her breathe. Her solar eyes were unlike anything he’d ever seen. The beauty of the entire universe culminated inside of them.

A vacuum in Aithein’s vision released the galaxies and solar systems from her eyes in a Fibonacci spiral that enveloped the air around him. The echoes of chaos slowly brought him back to reality as time weaved itself back to normal.

Aithein felt his soul tear apart as the girl broke her gaze with him and turned away. A bittersweet feeling flooded his heart and sunk deep into the marrow of his bones as he watched the horse disappear into the mist. She would live a beautiful life. He was left behind. He wished he were someone else. He wished he were far away.

______________________________

A
S DANI EXPLORED THE village, her solo flight gathered all sorts of looks. Some of the Amori discreetly displayed their solidarity with her because they knew what her arrival meant. Others observed her in dismay.

A small Amori boy clapped his hands excitedly. His smile beamed across his face. He waved at Dani. “’Ello, fairy! ‘Ello!”

Dani glided down to greet him.

“Hello, there,” she said. “Who might you be?”

He giggled innocently. “I might be Baelwyn.”

The name meant Guardian of Music in Dani’s native language.

Baelwyn continued, “But when I grows up you won’t be able to tell me apart from my brothers. This is Koehari. She is my fairy.”

“Earthspring?” Dani wondered.

Koehari gave a proud nod. “
Xas
. Welcome to Caliphweald,” she thought to Dani. “Baelwyn is the youngest of the Bannitlarn Brothers.”

“Holders of Mysteries?” Dani found humor in this. She studied Baelwyn. “He can barely hold his pants up.”

“They would fight to the death for the one you seek,” Koehari warned. “Heed them.”

“A friend to Aithein is a friend to me,” Dani thought back. “Thank you.”

“Are you come for him?” Baelwyn asked. He pointed to a tree house at the other end of the village.

“Is that where Aithein lives?” Dani asked.

“Xas,” Baelwyn replied. “He’s a sleepies head. Hurry! He has nightmaries like I do. But I don’t sleep.”

“You don’t sleep?” Dani asked.

“
Nau
,” Baelwyn replied. “He’s ugly.”

Dani felt like she was talking to a madman.

“Who is ugly?” she asked.

“The man in our nightmaries,” he said.

Koehari interrupted with her thoughts. “Some of the Amori have been suffering the same dreams. The forest is unbalanced as of late. I suspect that’s why you were summoned.”

Dani found that odd. She had only been in this realm for a short time, yet she kept receiving these troubling clues. She did her best to conceal the gears of her mind. “Thank you, Baelwyn. Hurry I shall.”

Dani started to fly away. Baelwyn’s urgent tone stopped her.

“Wait!” he called. “What is your name, fairy?” The look on his face seemed like the answer to this question was the most important thing in the world.

Dani flew back to him. “I’m Dani.”

Baelwyn gave a nod of approval. “Good. Now I command you. Be nice to him, Dani. He’s my
feravan
.”

“Did that little bastard just do that to me?” Dani thought.

“He’s a wily bugger,” Koehari thought back. “He’ll win the game before you even know you’re playing.”

“Is that so?” Dani thought. She flew close to Baelwyn’s face. “You speak Shadean, no?”

“Huh?” Baelwyn looked confused.

Dani’s irises changed in color from amethyst to dark plum. “Why play the part of village idiot now? Words are everything, which is why you tricked me into giving you my name.”

Baelwyn feigned a grin.

Dani’s voice grew as hard as oak and as cold as steel on a damp night. “You may wield power over unwitting Caliphians. Their minds fear what they cannot explain. I, on the other hand, am familiar with your schemes so let me assure you, my soul is darker than a moonless, starless night. Caliphians fear “demons” from the Shade, but you know better than they do. You know that demons do not exist. I exist.”

Baelwyn beheld the terror of what true evil looked like.

Dani smiled wildly. “If you so much as entertain a single thought of using my name against me, I swear upon my life that you will beg the gods to unleash hordes of demons upon you rather than face what I shall unleash upon you.”

Wide-eyed Baelwyn turned white. He gulped his words. “I’m sowie.”

Dani’s irises returned to their amethyst color. “It pleases me to know that the Amori did not let their native language die.
Feravan
did not originate in this forest, or even this world. It came from the Shade. Just like you and me. Recognize that I understand you, Baelwyn. We’re in Caliphweald now. Aithein is my champion of the forest as well, so before you attempt to command me or threaten me again, here’s another word from the Shade that shall make you reconsider.
Maibrar
. That’s what I am. As the Guardian of Music, you had better know which notes I move to before you speak to me again.” Dani winked at him. She politely curtsied and flew away.

“What does
maibrar
mean?” Baelwyn asked Koehari.

Koehari liked Dani. So she did her a favor when she paused for dramatic effect. Baelwyn stared wide-eyed in anticipation.

“Crafter of Death,” Koehari said. “Deathsmith.”

______________________________

D
ANI LANDED ON THE windowsill. The smell of fear was so thick that it could be cut with a knife. She heard the shivering of a child. A young boy, no older than twelve, lay asleep in a messy bed. He was drenched in his own sweat. There was no fairy around the Amori boy besides Dani. This was her assignment.

To startle an Amori could have a disastrous outcome. Dani gently approached the sleeping boy. She let the syllables of his name float upon the gentle gust of breeze from the window.

“Aithein?” she asked. “Aithein, I’ve come for you. Awaken.”

______________________________

T
HE MOST DESTURBING, DEMONIC sound Aithein had ever heard made the hair on his body stand up. The beast’s hot exhale of mucus and saliva sprayed on the back of his neck amidst the cold dampness of the rain. He felt its grunts as it sniffed down to his inner thighs. He saw next his hand in the muck, a multi-colored flower watching him. It had whites and blues mixed with reds and violets in its petals. It was the only thing he could grab onto and so he took it by the stem and squeezed tight.

Aithein heard the reins crack, followed by commands in a foreign language. He heard hooves unearthing the ground as the beast retreated. He slowly turned to see what was behind him.

The glowing red eyes of a monstrous horse peered down at him. A muscular man with wildfire hair and leathery reptilian skin sat upon the steed. He calmly observed Aithein, his face the emissary of fear. A gnarled scar covered his left eye socket and extended down across his lips. His left ear was severed. Web-like scars deformed the nub in its place.

The man raised his right clenched fist and displayed the back of it to Aithein. The glowing insignia of The Trivium emanated from his flesh. The surrounding air grew darker and darker. The crackling sound of its magic drew the light out of the aether.

The darkness was so bright that only the man’s right eye and the glowing insignia were visible. The Trivium of Volition sat atop the base helixes of The Trivium of Logic and The Trivium of Valor. It glowed brighter than the other two shards.

Though The Trivium consists of three helixes, two at the base and one at the top, its powers may be divided into three or combined to sum a triangular infinite.

Aithein felt the surge of its magic pulling at everything around him. The pressure grew unbearable. He felt his life force being sucked out of his body. The pain drew a deep scream of agony from the bowels of his gut.

______________________________

A
GUT-WRENCHING SCREAM ECHOED across Amori Village. Flocks of birds scattered away from Aithein’s tree house. At the village square, the Amori who waited in line to surrender
their
weapons feared the worst, but no one dared to speak. Their frightened expressions said it all. Those who were carrying about their daily business stopped what they were doing and looked on helplessly.

           
Inside Aithein’s house, Dani illuminated herself. She called upon the power of the gods, but it was not a prayer. It was healing ward.

“
Fisonna
,” she commanded. “Drive the darkness out of this child’s mind.”

Aithein’s contorted body struggled until it stiffened into stillness. His screaming ceased. After a moment, the tension fled his body and he collapsed into a relaxed position. The pace of his breath slowed and returned to normal. His eyes moved rapidly beneath their closed lids. Then they opened.

Aithein raised his hand to diffuse Dani’s aura. His autumn irises shimmered as they adjusted to the light. The sight of a fairy surprised him. “W-who
are
you?”

“I am Dani,” she replied. She calmly dimmed her aura.

Aithein grew nervous. “Are you a
Hlaetho
?”

“I do not see the truth lest it reveals itself to me,” Dani replied.

Her voice assured him, but disappointment crept over Aithein’s face. “Then you cannot see him?”

Dani was not sure if he wanted privacy or company. She remembered that brevity was golden. “No.”

Aithein’s eyes filled with tears. His bottom lip quivered. He felt ashamed and helpless. “Every night I see her. Then she is gone. Every night he kills me in my sleep.”

“I do not know the representations of your dreams,” Dani replied. “For that I apologize. But I can help you.”

“How?” Aithein asked.

“The faelen tree summons you,” Dani responded. “There are others who share your nightmares.”

______________________________

A
ITHEIN STEPPED ONTO HIS porch. The shades of light had drifted to early afternoon. He leaned on the log railing and looked down at the village. The jingle of light chimed with the breeze, followed by a manifestation.

Ellia exploded out of the manifestation, already running towards Aithein’s house. “Namus!”

           
“I’m fine,” Aithein responded.

           
“What happened?” she asked.

           
Aithein sighed. “Nightmares again.”

Ellia saw Dani hovering around him. Her head cocked slightly as she noticed something different about the fairy. Ellia extended her open hand invitingly.

Dani trusted the magnetic draw she felt from Ellia, and so she gently floated down and landed on Ellia’s open palm.

Ellia looked into Dani’s amethyst eyes and stared in wonder. “You are the prettiest fairy I have ever seen.”

“Thank you,” Dani replied.

Ellia was protective. Her brow was skeptical. “What’s your business with Aithein?”