章 8: The Road to Iriaebor
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I was not in luck. The road continued to go on and after two days of rough travelling in deep wilderness I had only barely started to see structures. Dilapidated and ruined beyond compare, these building were worn by time and obviously abandoned. I called them buildings but they were mere fragments of the rural lives of people who had once been here. Beams of wood were strewn in tall grasses as borders of fences were mere suggestions of what may have been grazing land for cows.
Walking through the wide open planes the wind whipped my hair, the long black silken strands slapping my nape persistently. My bow was slapping against my back as my pack was hollowed out, my meagre rations all but depleted after several days of travel. My feet were also a weary sight as my boots did little to fully condition the soles of my feet for such a long journey.
Seemingly there were a lot of details left out of epic sagas and fantasy novels, like the constant poking of rocks under your feet! I shook my leg trying to get it out of the top of my boots, it was to no avail though... Wiping sweat from my brow soon after however my eyes grasped onto the sight of a small shrine off to the side of the road. It was a unique structure, one that was starkly blue amidst the verdant grasses and white cloudy skies. Marbles and granites seemed to be used in its construction as a singular symbol was carved into the recesses in the middle of the circular, raised, shrine.
The symbol was odd, unlike most flags or commercial symbology I had seen in my past life. This had two eyes with a flowy scrolling coming out of them and seven stars surrounding them. Stopping my trip for a few seconds I spent a little bit of time examining the shrine. Offerings were scarce with only a single flower draping its half-rotten self over an offering bowl as the stonework around had small vines growing along it. Dirt and mud had been solidified over its exterior and it generally just looked abandoned, much like the buildings around... Much like me.
I didn't know the patron deity, spirit or god, but I hated to see it in such a state. With this in mind I spared a small amount of water from my bottle and wiped down the exterior. Wasn't much, but it would at least make it more presentable. Continuing onwards I eventually settled down for the night in a partially standing barn, my body covered from whatever rain or snow may strike but enough of an open view to allow me to see some vagrant stars and even the beautiful silver moon of this world.
The moon itself was pock marked much like the moon of Earth but the difference was the large asteroid cluster that orbited this one. I wasn't one for poetry but they looked much like tears, large celestial tears draining off from the only source of light in the sky amidst perpetual darkness. Unfortunately the slaughter of the elves still left me scarred as that night, despite falling asleep beneath such a beautiful spectacle, I was once again racked with dreams. Skin falling off, eyes popping and cracking, It was horrid. One doesn't truly understand the terrifying nature of death until they stare it straight in the eyes, which I had recently done.
...
Waking in a pool of sweat I was staring upwards. Where moon once was, there was the sun. A pure and ever-warm beacon of light in the sky that drove away the darkness for everyone who lived... Yes, once again I found myself slipping into my own thoughts. Perhaps it was a condition of having high wisdom and intelligence but these small little things constantly made me think and expound on within myself. But, I had to get up and continue onwards. Thus I sat up, a groan escaping my lips and my hand grasping for my bow.
*RUSTLE*
There was a movement near the barn. It disappeared quickly but my senses picked it up, my heartrate slowing and my eyes and ears enhancing in acuity. Nothing... Nothing... SOMETHING! I Drew my bow and the single arrow I had on me, haphazardly attempting to do all the steps properly as Lyria had shown me previously. More movement caused me to step back a little, my eyes flickering to my behind as I tried to make sure I wasn't getting ambushed.
"BAM!"
From my right side the sound of a loud yell startled me and made me jump, aiming my bow in the noise's direction. I blinked as my feet landed on soft grass, the wind whistling through the barn as a small child was sitting on the edge of the barn.
"Hahahahahaha! Brother, she was so easy to scare!"
Another little figure crawled from where I had first heard the noise. They were both human kids, their ears lacking elven points. Mischievous red hair tussled on the window-boy's head as his bright green eyes playfully gleamed with trouble. His figure was rather lithe and lacked most of what one would consider 'baby-fat', freckles lining his cheeks and rounding out his rather plain appearance.
The other little trickster was a boy who looked older than the red head but had puffier cheeks and limbs. His blonde-red hair trickled down to his shoulders and looked unkempt and unbrushed as it knotted at the ends. In stark contrast however, his eyes were devoid of all murkiness, the purest blue one would most likely see in a Human's eye.
"S-sorry miss, we was just playin! Oliver, mum and pah told us not to mess with strangers..."
"Oh... Travis, you're such a stickler for the rules! Come on, we gotta live a little!"
I was ignored within moments...
"Sup lady! Me name's Oliver, as you probably heard. What be your name?"
Blinking a couple times at how outgoing and uncaring these two boys were I suffered a minor shock. How was I supposed to respond and how was I able to understand them? Things I didn't know but that I needed answers to.
"Lumin'ara'el, that is my name. Are you always like this, and if so, how are you not dead or half beaten every time?"
Oliver frowned for a little bit but eventually answered, his tone a little more shaken now as he may have had a realisation about, something? I didn't know.
"Ah! Be begging my pardon, I can't speak as complex as you lots can... Um, Travis, help please..."
"What my brother is tryin to say, I think, is that we couldn't understand a bleeding inch of what you said, except for your name."
Frowning at the oddity of the difference in speech I attempted to speak in elvish, which only drew confused stares as their eyes went blank at the attempt to understand. Sighing in defeat I put away my singular arrow and strung my bow on my back, walking up to my bag to grab whatever was left within it.
"You're mum and dad, could you grab them?"
"Somethin bout mah and pops...? Did I get that right?"
"Yes Oliver, you got that right."
"Um, lady, if you be waiting here for a minute I go be grabbing my pops..."
Slouching my shoulders in loneliness at once again not being understood, i nodded. There wasn't much to be done about kids not understanding what I was saying but hopefully their parents would be different. This was disproven a short minute later as their father came to the barn with an annoyed tone and frustrated air about him.
"Yah little gobshites! I told ye not to mess with strange folk out in the country sides. What if it be a wee hag? Or a monstrous were-creature that wish to suck ye innards out through ye arse?"
"Pah, she ain't hurting anybody, we just teased her a little... And she took it right well as well! We can't understand a lick o'er words, but i think she is being important."
"Popycock! Why would a high-faluten noble be comin out this far into the ass end of nowhere?"
He stepped through and saw me standing there. I couldn't tell how I looked but from his reaction I could gauge that he was at least mildly attracted, something I was used to seeing and rejecting.
"e-eh-ah... M-mornin miss?"
"Good Morning."
He blinked a few times but seemingly nodded, as if understanding my words. Hope breathed itself into me once more.
"Yeah, i not be understanding what she be saying... I don't think they even have that language in ye yonder nine-hells!"
'Fucking Celestial... Why can't I just speak common like a normal person!?'
{Do you wish to add a Language Learning Section?}
'Fuck it, sure! I am over this language barrier shit.'
{Done. Once you hear a language you will start learning it and be able to pick it up quickly.}
'Shit, fuck...'
"Could you speak some more please?"
"Miss, I don't be understanding you, the words be a song more than actual letters."
I could feel it working as my lack of speech was slowly starting to fix itself. I tried a few words more, the man blinking and wincing as he was incapable of communicating with me, yet. The more he spoke, the more my words started to change substance. My muscles in my mouth were slowly adapting to the new way of speaking and very quickly my understanding of the difference was bridged.
"Sorry about that. I said, good morning."
The boys and their father all widened their eyes. It was as if I had just grown wings and learnt to fly before them... Which was impossible. Coughing to recover himself the relatively old man and his white-black smattering of short cut hair responded in kind.
"That be a magical trick it do be... Morning to you as well anyway. What can we be of aid for such a fine lady of your calibre?"
"You are aware that I look like shit, yes?"
"Well awares. Ye just be speakin too special to be a nobody, that's all."
Grinning at the logic I hefted my bag over my shoulder, strapping it to my back in a way that the bow was leaned on it and gaining support from it.
"Fine then. I was looking for the nearest city, my old place got destroyed by some sort of fire breathing monster..."
His brows furrowed in sympathy as the lines in his face all sagged a touch from the statement. It was odd, as if he was tired of hearing similar stories.
"Aye, the world do be dangerous these days... Well, if ye keep on following this road then ye be making ye way to Iriaebor. Me and me-" He looked to his kids for a few seconds. "Stupid sons, are heading in that wee direction. If ye want you can join us?"
Relief washed over me as I was thinking of a comfortable wagon or cart that I could sit on to skip the constant perspiration and odious cross-country hiking. Nodding towards him I walked closer, the relief most likely evident on my face as he smiled widely, a chuckle rumbling softly out from under his breath.
"If I could? Walking is bloody tiring business."
"AYE! That it be, that is why we tamed the horse and invented the wheel..."
"If I knew the people that had done it, I'd shout them a beer if I had any money."
"Ye could do the same for me...?"
"Key part of my last sentence, 'if' I had any money."
Another chuckle escaped the man as his sons followed suit, their understanding limited due to their age but their guffaws still amusing to me.
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Fuck this took some effort for me to get right and make it feel natural... You have to like it, otherwise I'll go insane... No one likes an insane necromancer! You have been warned!
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