Elara was still standing at the edge of the clearing as most of the Rhaen clan began to leave.
The torches surrounding the clearing were still burning, but they were not as bright as before.
The stone houses all around were beginning to welcome their owners back home, making the clearing, which had previously been filled with voices and footsteps, feel much quieter now.
It had been quite a while since Kael had been taken into the elders’ house, but Elara couldn’t quite remember exactly how long.
Her legs were starting to feel heavy, and several times she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, trying to shake off the stiffness that was beginning to set in.
She could have sat down on one of the stones at the edge of the clearing, but it felt as though sitting down would mean accepting that this wait would take a long time.
So she chose to stay standing, even though her body was telling her otherwise.
Her eyes kept looking toward the small path connecting the clearing to the elders’ house, where Kael had been taken after the ritual ended.
Every time she heard a door open in the distance, her heart beat a little faster, hoping it was Kael.
And every time it wasn’t, she felt a small pang of disappointment that she quickly brushed aside.
Someone came out of the house, but it wasn’t Kael, whom Elara had been waiting for.
Aldric walked over to Elara with a smile on his face.
“Why are you still here?” Aldric asked.
“Wait at home, Kael will be back soon.”
He stood a few steps away from her, his face looking calmer than it had during the ritual.
Though Elara could see the exhaustion that lingered after the long ritual, the lines around his eyes, and the way he leaned slightly to one side.
“Is he okay?” Elara asked, without answering Aldric’s question.
Aldric looked at her for a moment before answering.
“He’s fine.
No worse than before.”
Elara sensed something off about that answer, something that made her pause before asking any further questions.
No worse than before didn’t mean he was fine.
It was a carefully chosen answer, like someone trying not to lie outright, but also not wanting to tell the truth.
“What is he doing now?” Elara pressed, trying to find a loophole in Aldric’s previous answer.
“I don’t really know.” Aldric shook his head slowly, hands on his hips, his eyes briefly glancing toward the elders’ house before returning to Elara.
“Why do you look more worried than I am?” Aldric joked, but Elara could only manage a wry smile.
Aldric looked back toward the elders’ house before speaking to Elara again.
“I’m going back there first.
You go back home and get some rest.”
He left Elara and returned to the elders’ house.
She didn’t know how long Kael would stay there, and Elara was already getting tired from standing for so long.
Now that fatigue was mixed with something more unsettling, a vague sense that she couldn’t quite explain based on the way Aldric chose his words.
When Kael still didn’t come out, Elara finally gave up.
She turned around, intending to wait on the porch of Aldric’s house instead.
But before Elara could take a step, something caught her attention.
Ruth.
The old woman moved slowly, aided by her cane.
One hand braced against the wall of the house she was passing.
Each step seemed to cost her more effort than before.
A few people passing by only glanced briefly at her before continuing on their way.
No one spoke to her, nor approached Ruth.
Elara didn’t understand, but the situation made it impossible for her to stop herself from stepping closer.
“Ruth.”
The old woman stopped.
She slowly turned toward Elara, who was coming up behind her at a light jog.
Her cloudy eyes fixed on Elara, but for a moment Elara felt as though Ruth wasn’t actually looking directly at her.
It was as if there was something behind Elara, or within her, that caught Ruth’s attention more than her own face.
“You came,” Ruth whispered.
“Are you okay?” she asked, trying to ignore the strange sensation beginning to creep up the back of her neck.
Ruth didn’t answer right away.
Then she gave a faint smile.
But that smile didn’t look like that of someone happy to see another person arrive.
“The land doesn’t accept it.”
Elara waited for her to continue, but she didn’t.
Instead, Ruth shifted her gaze to the clearing, which was beginning to empty, to the torches whose flames were fading one by one.
“The land hears,” Ruth continued, whether to Elara or to herself.
“It always hears.
They call out, but the one who answers isn’t the one who should be.”
“I don’t understand what you mean, Ruth,” Elara replied honestly.
She pulled her jacket tighter, even though the night breeze wasn’t as cold as it had felt just a moment ago.
Ruth turned her head quickly, as if she’d just realized Elara was still there.
“I don’t understand either.
Not everything.” The answer came out so lightly, almost like a little laugh, leaving Elara even more confused about how to respond.
Elara tried again, this time more carefully.
“Is something wrong?”
But Ruth didn’t answer that question.
Instead, she pointed toward the clearing where the ritual had taken place, her finger trembling.
“Something that shouldn’t have been there.”
“Is it because I, an ordinary human, was there while the ritual was taking place?” Elara didn’t want to consider that possibility, but that sense of guilt had been lingering in her mind ever since.
Only after a few seconds did Ruth look up again, gazing straight into Elara’s eyes.
“Do you know who you are?”
That question left Elara silent longer than she expected.
For a moment, she wondered, was Ruth really crazy, as everyone said?
Or were they just never patient enough to understand her?
Elara sighed before answering, “I don’t even remember who I am.”
Ever since the conversation began, Ruth had been silent for quite a while.
Long enough that Elara almost thought she wouldn’t answer at all, just like Elara’s previous questions that had simply vanished without a reply.
Then Ruth stepped closer, her hand reaching out to touch Elara’s shoulder.
Elara had to lower her body slightly so they were at the same level.
Elara wasn’t tall, but Ruth was so hunched over that Elara had to adjust her height to be able to speak with her.
“Your Majesty, ” Ruth whispered, this time clearly, no longer like a aimless mumble, “only you can recognize yourself.”
Ruth’s brow furrowed, and without pause she continued, “You’ve been through a lot to get here.
But you shouldn’t try so hard.”
Those words made Elara feel strange, as if a part of her recognized them even though she’d never heard them before.
But she didn’t respond or ask any further questions.
Elara just wanted to listen to what Ruth had to say, afraid that if she interrupted, Ruth would slip back into her understandable mumble.
Ruth’s gaze fell to Elara’s chest.
Her thin, cold finger touched right in the center of her chest, pressing gently, as if searching for something hidden deep within.
“Find your way, ” said Ruth.
Elara grew even more confused.
She wanted to ask which way, or where to look, but Ruth offered no further explanation.
The old woman simply stared at Elara with an expression that was hard to read, as if she were both sad and wary at the same time.
Then suddenly Ruth pulled her hand away and took a step back.
The faint smile that had briefly graced her face vanished instantly, replaced by something far colder.
“They’re on the move.”
Before Elara could ask what she meant, the sound of rapid footsteps came from behind her, shattering the silence that had just settled between her and Ruth.
“Elara.”
It was Kael’s voice.
At the same time as that voice, Kael’s hand had already pulled her arm away from Ruth.
The movement was rough enough that Elara lost her balance slightly, her body swaying to the side before Kael’s other arm caught her waist. This story is hosted at g.com.
Elara’s heart was pounding faster, not just because she’d been startled by the sudden pull, but because of the tense expression on Kael’s face as he stared at Ruth behind her.
“What’s going on?” Elara asked, still trying to steady herself.
The man immediately stood between Elara and Ruth, as if his own body were a wall.
His gaze was wary, not angry, but enough to make Elara realize that something was wrong.
Ruth took a few steps back with a smile, as if completely unfazed by Kael’s attitude toward her.
Kael didn’t answer right away.
His gaze shifted to one of the houses on the edge of the clearing.
Elara followed his line of sight, and saw a man knocking on the door of that house and Shillah coming out from inside, his hair still disheveled as if he’d just woken up.
They spoke with the same worried expressions, Shillah’s head glancing quickly toward the Lunareth gate several times.
But the distance was too great for Elara to hear what was being said.
“Kael,” Elara called again, this time more softly, trying to get his attention once more.
Kael sighed before finally answering.
“Devon just got back from town.
He said people there were talking about an attack inside Ravencrest.”
Those words hung heavily between them.
Elara felt the air around her shift, whether because of the night breeze growing colder or because of something else.
She saw Shillah’s face growing more panicked in the distance, and Kael’s face right in front of her tensed as well, as if he were listening to something Elara couldn’t hear at all.
“A Ravencrest guard was found in critical condition,” Kael continued, his voice even softer now.
“They’re trying to heal him.”
“Is something happening, Kael?” Elara pressed, even though half of her already knew the answer wouldn’t put her at ease.
Kael was silent for a while, long enough that Elara almost repeated her question.
“The guard is from the Rhyze clan,” he said finally.
“Everyone’s talking about his wound that doesn’t heal.”
His gaze fell to his own hand.
The wound was still bleeding, the blood not yet fully stopped, even though the ritual had ended a while ago.
Elara’s gaze also fell on the wound, followed by a thought she didn’t want to think about creeping in, though she didn’t dare voice it.
But from the way Kael looked at his own hand, Elara suspected the same question was swirling in his head as well.
Amid these worries, everyone began to come out of their houses without being told to.
Doors opened one by one, the sound of their hinges echoing along the street.
Lights that had been off were now turned back on.
Someone shouted a name Elara didn’t recognize from the end of the street, followed by the sound of footsteps running past the three of them without looking back.
Elara watched the faces passing by.
They were all the same.
Worried, panicked, some hadn’t even had time to put their shoes on properly.
A woman carried her child as she ran towards the elders’ house, and an old man stood frozen in front of his own door, staring toward the Lunareth gate as if waiting for something to come from there.
Kael was still standing in front of Elara, but his body was slightly crouched, as if ready to move at any moment if needed.
Shillah was no longer visible in front of his house, perhaps he had gone back inside or run off in another direction.
The atmosphere, which had been quiet, was now filled with worried murmurs echoing back and forth, though Elara couldn’t make out any complete sentences from anywhere.
But before anyone could speak any more clearly, Ruth’s voice rang out.
Soft, almost like a whisper, yet somehow, it cut through all the chaos.
“The truce has been broken.
This is a warning.
Find yourself before they find you.”
Kael spun around quickly, his eyes narrowing as he glared at Ruth.
Elara could see Kael’s jaw clench, as if he were holding himself back from saying something.
Ruth, for her part, was no longer looking at either of them.
Her gaze had returned to the clearing, which was now filled with people running about, as if her last words hadn’t been meant to be heard, but simply released into the air.
That night, still unaware of who she truly was or what was happening in Ravencrest, Elara stood in the midst of a chaos that wasn’t hers, feeling Ruth’s words still hanging in the air like a fog that refused to lift.
Those words meant that it wasn’t just she herself who was trying to figure out who she was, but that there was someone else doing the same thing, and tonight, somehow, their paths were beginning to cross.