Still the Village Girl - Rahil

“Who’s Ren?” Cannagan asked Fenris who shrugged his shoulders in response.

“Elswyth,” Rahil interjected. “Faeldic is on the other side of the continent.”

“We can’t bring him with us,” she begged. “It’s too dangerous and he’s too—”

“Weak?” Cannagan said.

“Domesticated?” Conri added.

“Loud?” Ulric rolled his eyes.

“Inexperienced,” Elswyth said. “He’s not used to this world. He almost got killed yesterday.”

“I don’t think he’s safe in Silva neither,” Conri shrugged his shoulders. “He just doesn’t look like he’s made for the wilderness.”

“He won’t be safe anywhere if the Shadow army gets stronger,” The smile on Roukan’s face was gone. “Look around you. This is the fate of your little village if we don’t stop them.”

A tiny crack of vulnerability hit her façade of defiance. Her jaw softened a fraction as she scanned the dying forest surrounding the burned down houses.

“We’ve all made sacrifices to do the job you were supposed to do,” Roukan said flatly. “You want to keep him alive? Make the right choice.”

She bit her lips, gaze down on the ground. Elswyth clenched her fist and locked gaze with Roukan for a second before walking away.

Roukan grinned. “She left before I got to the good part.”

***

‘She not done,’ he thought to himself as he walked back to the hut. He has seen that steely look in her eyes before. He was standing by the doorway, waiting for five minutes now.

It was no good to confront her right away. He knew that all too well. The angrier she gets, the quieter she becomes. He once backed her into a corner and was sent flying across the field. She can’t even remember how she did it, but he never forgot the pain.

After a few minutes, he let himself in and saw her sitting next to her friend. Her eyes were closed, arms raised forward with her palms out. He had hoped she had a better plan, but seeing her futile attempt to open a portal was disappointing.

“You know that’s not going to work,” he said.

Her hand jerked, eyes snapped towards him.

He sat in front of her, legs crossed as he continued. “I told you. You need pure power from the Heart to open a portal. And you are in the middle of a possessed forest.”

“Thought I’d give it a shot considering I’m the only one who cares about his safety.”

“That’s true,” he nodded. She didn’t like his response one bit. It’s as if her patience was washed away by the storm. But he understood why. When his family died, he hid away with his grief for as long as he could. But that was not an option for her.

He handed her a map. She opened it and looked at him confused and angry.

“What am I supposed to be looking at?” she asked impatiently.

He grabbed the map from her hand and rolled flat on the floor. “Here,” he pointed at a circled location in the middle of the forest just outside the City of Caeldig. “You brought us here, a two-day journey from Caeldig.”

Her mouths slightly parted as she stared at the map. She then bit her lips and swallowed.

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“We know the Heart is near here,” he explained pointing northeast of Caeldig. “Rouakan and his men have been patrolling this forest for a while now. They saw people marching in and out of the city and they all stop by this area.”

Her eyes were glued to map. “It’s just a hunch,” he continued. “But if you are willing, we can try again.”

Then her eyebrows knitted. “You just said I wasn’t ready.”

“If you need a little motivation, cleansing this tree will open a portal to Faeldic. You can bring your friend home back to his quiet little village.”

She scoffed. “Would it kill anyone to care a little?”

He leaned in and spoke low and slow. Each word said carefully, his scarred face remained impassive “Trust me when I say his death will not matter to anyone in this company.”

“We’ve seen far too many deaths. It doesn’t get easier with each loss, but we move forward. We cannot afford to be dragged down by the dead or our foot stuck in a grave—not if you want to stop this war before it begins.”

She held his gaze as she leaned in too. Her voice was steady and sure. “I will never sacrifice anyone I love for the world,”

It wasn’t her words that took him aback. It was the determination in her eyes. The unyielding gaze pierced his soul.

“You and the others may have come to accept that. But I will never stop trying to save everyone.”

‘There she is,’ he thought. The air felt familiar from when he first met her. A strong presence that would make any soul submit.

He shook his head to wake himself from the spell. “Get ready to be disappointed,” he said as he looked away.

“I already am,” she scoffed. “When did you decide that we will stay with that man? I can see you can’t stand him.”

“Neither can you,” he answered. “Even if we don’t want him to come, there’s no stopping him if he follows us.”

“Unless we tie them to a tree,” she said.

It made him chuckle. She didn’t.

“You’re not really considering it, right?” he asked.

“Of course not,” she exhaled. “It’s five against two.”

The tension was cut by a loud groan and the sound bedsheets scratching against each other.

Ren rolled over and sat up.

“Let’s just go to that stupid white walled city.” Ren he muttered. “And stop talking about me like I’m not here.”

“Pardon me, I just don’t care what you thought.” Rahil shrugged, stood up, and sat near the window. Far enough to give them space but near enough to hear what they’re saying.

“How did you survive two years with that prick?” Ren did not care to lower his voice.

Rahil pretended not to hear that.

“Believe it or not, he was worse when I first met him” she smiled. “That shrug is a great progress.”

“Shut it,” he said as he gnawed at a dried fruit.

“How are you feeling?” she said a bit more quietly this time, leaning in her head as if talking to a secret lover in the night.

“Good enough to go to Caeldig,” he answered, as he combed his hair with his fingers.

“I don’t know much about the sedative that kid used,” he said massaging the bridge of his nose. “But his antidote is not effective.”

“Do you think you can make something to counter it?” she asked curiously.

“If I know what he used, I’m sure I can.”

Rahil can hear the steadiness in his voice. He is sure of his skills. He might not be so useless after all, he thought.

“Besides, if we’re going to Caeldig, I’m sure they have stocks of medicine from all over the continent.”

The confidence he felt in Ren disappeared right away. His excitement shows that he has not grasped the peril they were in.

“Ren, I can’t guarantee this plan will work,” she said.

“How many more of those demonic trees are out there?” he asked.

She sighed. “A lot. Just in this forest alone.”

“Then you can’t guarantee my safety on the journey back to Faeldic,” he said. “Shortest way is through a portal. If that doesn’t work, then we’ll find a new one. Or until we’ve travelled enough to circle the globe and find ourselves back in home.”

She smiled at that.

“I’m not proud at how I handled your news last night,” he said scratching his cheek. “I was scared. I still remember those awful things out there.”

“I understand,” she said in a gentle voice. This surprised him.

The silence between them lingered. Both were hesitating to talk. Then finally, Ren spoke.

“I’m sorry,” he said. Though he can only see his back, he can sense the sincerity of his apology.

“I should have known,” he continued. “You loved her, you would never hurt her.”

The air around her changed as soon as she realized what he meant. She cast her eyes to the ground and forced a smile on her face. Rahil thought it was a pitiful attempt to hide her sadness.

“It hasn’t even been a day,” Ren said, reaching for her hand. “How are you doing?”

She took a deep breath through her nose, gave his hand a squeeze before she let it go.

“I’m sad,” the simplicity of her words surprised Rahil. “But I cannot stop. Not just yet.”

Ren merely nodded in response.

“I don’t—” Ren said shaking his head. “I don’t know anything about the dangers of the world beyond our forest. Frankly, I still don’t fully understand what’s happening.”

He sighed. “But I do know that no one should feel so helpless and unsafe in this world. I wouldn’t want to get in the way of you trying to change that.”

And in his own simple words, Rahil saw him as a different man. He thought that maybe, just maybe, they might need him to save the world. But he would never say those words out loud.