From her house Shella and Alrin could sneak a peek from her window discreetly. Although a small portion of the mysterious intruder was being blocked by trees, Shella and Alrin could clearly see Shella’s grandfather, the moment he revealed himself to the intruder.
“Uhh. I can't believe Alrin followed me to my house and he's hiding with me. Why did all this have to happen today, of all days. But there was not much time. Everything is happening too quickly. My home was the closest place we could retreat to…. unfortunately. Arghh, I wish I was hiding by myself.” Shella tries to keep herself calm but the thoughts in her head keep racing. She felt awkward hiding in her own home alone along with Alrin but her thoughts quickly shifted to what was happening outside.
“We have to stay down, okay.” Immediately through the window Alrin spots something and ducks down trying to get Shella to do the same. “Whoa, is…. is that the intruder?” Alrin and Shella try their best to stay hidden, but their curiosity gets the best of them. They kept popping their heads up near the window in order to see what was happening outside. Suddenly, Alrin spots someone walking around near the giant black metal cauldron.
“Where!?” Shella’s heart drops inside her chest as Alrin points to the intruder through the window but tries to signal to Shella to keep herself concealed. Out of nowhere Shella spots Grandfather Kiev in full view, revealing himself in front of the mysterious intruder. “Grandpa! No!”
“Shhhh! Shella, you have to be quiet. We do not want to be spotted. We have no idea who this person is.”
“Alrin, my grandfather is out there! Why is he out there? What in the world is he doing, anyways? He should be hiding like all of us.” Shella tries to lower her voice. But she was too frantic about the situation. This was her grandfather and she didn’t want anything to happen to him. She immediately shot up from the ground as Alrin attempted to calm her down.
“Shella, please get down and relax. Your grandfather is the Iron Wing. He’s a very powerful fighter. By what he’s shown us already today, he can handle himself in a full on bout. Do you trust me?”
Shella looked into Alrin’s eyes. She could see that he was trying his best to help her. She felt awkward about looking into his eyes so she quickly looked elsewhere. She decided to try and calm herself down. She nods. She took a deep breath and lowered herself back to the floor. However, her emotions were bubbling deep inside of her. Alrin and her decide to stare through the window one more time to see what was going to happen next.
“Alrin…” Shella breaks the silence with a faint whisper. “Please keep talking to me.”
“Huh?” Alrin turns his head to face Shella. It was very random, what she just said to him. Alrin was confused and looked at her as she kept looking through the window, completely absorbed and attentive to what was happening outside.
“W-what do you mean by that?” She turns to look at him. “Everytime you say things like that I-I do not know exactly why you say it.” Alrin felt like Shella did care for him but with the sudden outbursts and pushing him away he felt mixed messages with the things that she would say to him. He finally speaks up and decides to ask her why she says things like that to him. He was curious. He desperately wanted to know.
“I-I uhmm.” Shella is shaking, worrying about her grandfather's safety. She tries her best to explain something important to Alrin. “I am only saying these things to you because I…. I trust you Alrin.” Alrin blushes a little when she says she trusts him.
“Oh, uh. Okay?” In that moment, for Alrin, time was standing still as Shella looked deep into his eyes. She had the urge to look away, but kept her line of sight in line with his. He could tell she was petrified. She was trembling before him. She felt so vulnerable at that moment. She didn’t know what was going to happen. She needed someone to talk to. She gulps down air and clears her throat. Her hands kept shaking in front of her. She tries her best to hold them still.
“Please do not say this to anyone else. I…. I have dozens of thoughts in my head. These thoughts constantly overwhelm me. I never get a break. It is like multiple people talking to you all at once and you can never get a word in. No matter how hard I try, I can never turn these overwhelming thoughts off. But…. but if someone talks to me and distracts me from those thoughts, I can finally focus clearly.” Tears started to swell up in her eyes. Alrin noticed just how difficult it was for her to say all that. It took a lot for Shella to confess something personal. Her entire life she kept it bottled up inside and tried her best to deal with her fluctuating emotions.
Alrin gulps and tries to figure out what to quietly talk to her about. Although his mind was overwhelmed as well with the urgent situation, he puts that aside as best he can for Shella. He tries to distract her from her multiple racing thoughts.
“I have a bad feeling about all this.” Grandfather Kiev gulps hard as the mysterious intruder slowly removes his hood. He right away sees that it was a teenage boy. His face was serious. He had strong piercing eyes that cut through Grandfather Kiev’s mind like a knife. Just that simple look alone helped him figure out just what kind of a person he was. After he saw that it was a human, Grandfather Kiev lowered his guard. But not completely. He did not know the intentions of this mysterious boy.
“Are you the protector of this village?” The boy breaks the silence between them. He spoke articulately and precisely with each word. To Grandfather Kiev he sounded highly intelligent, extremely calm, and relaxed. His voice was a deep authoritative sound that echoed in the air as it reached Grandfather Kiev’s ears. Grandfather Kiev didn’t say anything. He just stared at the boy. The boy casually looked to his left and then to his right when he didn’t get a response from him. He smiles, “Man of few words, huh?”
“Hey, it looks like some boy. It is hard to make out but, yeah, it is a young guy talking to your grandfather.” Alrin points that out as Shella and him continue to watch everything that was happening through the window.
“What? A-a boy?” Shella swallowed hard and curiously looked at the once hooded boy. She did not recognize him.
Grandfather Kiev decided to ask his own question. “Why are you so rude?”
“Huh?” The boy stares into Grandfather Kiev's serious eyes.
“You come here asking me if I am the protector of this village, rather than introducing yourself. This new generation is so rude. Manners are what you all need to be taught.”
“Hmm. Yes, I must admit, I can be rude at times.” The mysterious boy’s smile only grew. Grandfather Kiev could feel the arrogance and confidence in his speech. “But… we are in desperate times, old man. And because of that desperate actions must be taken. You're aware that each day that passes the Dark One gets closer to finding what he is looking for.”
“Yes, time is a factor, that is correct. But that does not give you the excuse to be disrespectful. The Dark One is searching for something…. Are you searching for something? Or are you just passing by? Once again, you have not told me who you are. Warrior….”
“How do you know that? That I’m a warrior. You seem pretty tense, old man. Why exactly are there no people around the village?”
“I can tell you that at least. We were invaded by the Dark One’s forces some time ago, we do not trust outsiders. Now… who are you?”
“Fine. I’ll tell you. You can drop the tough guy act, old man…. I’m an Aleeyah warrior. You at least got that right. I am a warrior.”
“Aleeyah warrior, huh? I do not believe you. Something is off. Your energy is not normal. Do you mind explaining something to me?”
“Sure. What is it?”
“Where is your female partner? You say you're an Aleeyah warrior, correct? That is the known rule. All kingdoms go by that. Aleeyah warriors travel in pairs. You cannot fool me.”
The mysterious boy closes his eyes and smiles. “There was…. There was always conflict between us. Between me and my female partner that is. Ever since our mission started, since day one, there have been non-stop disagreements. We had a big fight. Our differences could no longer be ignored, so we decided we would go our separate ways, but that's none of your concern.” The mysterious boy opened his eyes and revealed his serious face once again to Grandfather Kiev.
“For now, I’ll take your word for it. I still do not trust you. So if you truly are an Aleeyah warrior then you are searching for both the Diamond of Light and the Chosen One, correct?”
“I do not know how you know about my energy. You mentioned that before, that it is not normal. But to answer your question… yes, yes I am. That is why I am here. My sword picked up an energy source coming from this exact location. This village. A warrior’s aura to be more specific. I need to see immediately any young person that has a warrior’s aura. Since you know about energies, you know exactly what I am talking about. Let me see any young person that has been trained in the arts of combat.”
“You won’t find that here. Not in this village. You’ve wasted enough of your time. I suggest you move on.”
“Hmm. Come to think of it. It seems that…” The mysterious boy is lost in a train of thought as he places his hand on something that’s strapped to his waist under the cover of his long black cloak. “My sword is telling me that… This energy source is coming from…. you. Just who are you, old man?”
“I am not in a position to tell you anything. I already told you. There is nothing here that you’re looking for. You are the most aggressive Aleeyah warrior I have ever met.”
“Unfortunately for you, I do not believe you. I feel like you're hiding something from me…. Hmm…. Let's see.” The mysterious boy starts to look up at the clouds and begins to think. He places his index finger on his lips. “How about we make a deal? You and me. Since I know now that you have a warrior’s aura, we can put your skills to the test. Ah yes, a short little battle between us. If I win, you show me all the young people in this village.”
“And if you lose?”
“I walk away and never return. Does that not sound like a good deal to you?” The mysterious boy immediately reveals his sword covered by his cloak. He grabs the handle of his sword firmly and slowly starts to pull it out of its sheath with his right hand. He starts to smile as Grandfather Kiev does not even move an inch. He isn’t even worried at all, still showing a serious face.
“This new generation of Aleeyah warriors has no respect. Drawing a sword on an old man, huh? I did not have the chance to agree to your little deal, yet you rush into things trying to get your way.”
Shella had eventually calmed herself down thanks to Alrin talking to her about random things he could come up with. It helped her ignore all the thoughts that would be floating in her head but as soon as the mysterious boy revealed his sword to her grandfather, Shella's emotions began to spiral out of control.
Shella gasps. “Oh no. That boy! He has a sword! I see it!” She points to the sword.
“No, wait. Where?” Alrin tries looking past the branches and leaves of the trees to make out what exactly was the mysterious boy doing, what he had just revealed under his black cloak. He tries to get her to lower her voice when she points to it. Alrin squints his eyes in his attempt to see if it was a weapon.
“My grandfather is in trouble, Alrin! I need to get to him, NOW!” She tries to rush through the front door but Alrin grabs her in time.
“Shella STOP! Shella calm down, please! You have to keep your voice down, they could probably hear us.” Alrin grabs Shella’s arms firmly. He could see she's completely frantic after seeing that sword. Just a few seconds ago she was calm and responsive. After the boy revealed the sword, Shella was hardly paying any attention to Alrin. She breaks free of his grip. Shella raises her hands up and looks at them and she swears she sees blood on her hands, like when her father was killed. She started to cry out loudly, shaking her head, she couldn’t keep herself quiet. Her lips trembled while Alrin looked at her in confusion. He had no idea what was going on in her head. The thoughts of blood sent shivers down her spine. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She began hyperventilating and hearing a strong ringing noise in her ears. Alrin kept calling out to her by saying her name, trying to get her attention, trying to keep her quiet but it was all background noise for her as she stared deeply into her palms, freaking out, stuck in an endless spiral of negative thoughts. She didn’t want to lose her grandfather.
In Shella’s mind, it felt like time was distorted. It was as if he was saying her name in slow motion. “S–H–E–L–L–A! S-H-E-L-L-A! SHELLA! SHELLA! SHELLA! …..Shella!” Alrin kept saying her name. Trying to get her to be quiet. She was almost screaming because she could see her little brother’s body motionless on the floor. Her name was echoing in her mind over and over again, while her thoughts were spiraling out of control. But finally his voice broke through the thick walls of her mind and she snapped out of it. Suddenly the ringing in her ears stopped.
She looked at him as if she had just woken up from a deep sleep, confused, and unaware of her surroundings. He looked back at her, deep into her eyes, realizing that she was zoned out, completely out of it. She was consumed by anxiety and fear. The only thing he could think of at that moment was to hold her tight. Unexpectedly, he pulls her down to the floor with him. He musters up the courage and embraces her tightly. “Shhhhh! It’s alright Shella. Please, I beg you, settle down.” Shella blushes as Alrin positions her away from the window so that she no longer could see what was happening. He wanted to redirect her focus to something else. This was all too intense for Alrin but he tries to deal with it as best as he could, trying to calm her emotions down.
“I-I know Shella that I am not your boyfriend but…. I’ll do everything I can to protect you…. and keep you calm.”
Shella’s heart is racing. As soon as he said those words, all the thoughts in her head went away. She took a deep breath. Shella looked into his eyes, noticing tears falling down his cheeks. She no longer had the feeling of looking away from his eyes because it was too awkward for her. She was trembling while he held her close, tightly to his body. She never held Alrin like this before. No other boy ever held on to her like that before. To Shella, it felt good feeling his heart beat and the warmth of his body. It was something she never knew she longed for. It was as if all her worries melted away as soon as he did that, as soon as he held her tight. As he held her close, they lost track of time. 28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE5yX7Hojvy
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