Rehenna’s eyes fluttered open, gray and dull. Her finger twitched, as she awoke. Where was she? Shakily, she breathed in and exhaled. Wherever she was, she was lying down on a very comfortable surface. She was no longer lying down on hard wood or filthy dirt. However, now that she gave it more thought, everything is more comfortable when compared to the previous two she mentioned.
“E-Eku…?” she rasped, her pale and petite hands gripping the sheets beneath her.
Right next to her, Ekubar immediately woke up at the sound of her voice. “Yes, Rehenna?” he tenderly held her hand, letting her know that he was there.
“W-where,” she swallowed, “Where are we? What— what happened?” the last thing she remembered was Ray right in front of her.
“Nothing. Nothing, absolutely nothing for you to worry about, you’re alright.” Ekubar released a breath and pressed his forehead against her hand. He shook as he felt her skin beneath her fingers, and tears began to prick at the corner of his eyes.
“Eku?” Rehenna furrowed her brows, something didn’t feel right. “Are you alright?”
“Yes.” Was his immediate response.
“Okay…” Rehenna tried to sit up but was pushed back down by Ekubar.
“No, no. You stay. Don’t try to get up, I need to be somewhere, so just stay. Alright?” Ekubar pulled the sheets over her once again and brushed her hair away from her face. “Alright?” he repeated.
Ekubar was acting strange, but nonetheless, Rehenna made herself comfortable and nodded.
Ekubar combed his fingers through his ebony hair and exited the doctor’s cabin. When he closed the door, he slid down against it and buried his face in his hands.
“Rhea… Rhea… Rhea, Rhea, Rhea…” the name slipped through his tongue so well, that it felt like second nature to say it.
His midnight eyes peeked through his fingers and seemed to glaze over everything in his sight.
“Rhea.” Said a small voice. The voice belonged to a small boy with dark hair, and curious dark, purple eyes. “Do you want to play with us?”
A little girl with hair the same shade looked behind her, her hair only reaching up to her shoulders. “Okay!” she yelled with a smile, running over to them from her place in the patch of flowers. “Let’s play hide and seek, I will be the one to find the both of you. Go hide with Erash.” She shooed them away as she turned to cover her eyes against a tree.
Eku laughed and took his little sister’s toddler hands into his own, and tugged her away to hide behind a small house made out of straw.
Ekubar made his way down the mountain, eyes unfocused. The ground was covered with a fresh layer of snow, but he had borrowed some clothes from the doctor, and that included warmer boots and extra socks to prevent the cold from entering.
He remembered living in a small village. A village where only Liya lived inside the regular houses. They were only small in numbers, but they were able to live peacefully with only each other as their company. Nobody complained about it since it was a better life than most Liya had at the time.
Erash, his little sister, lived there with him and their parents. Yes, he had a mother and father, and they loved the both of them very much. Ekubar, Erash, and Rehenna would always play together in the village. The three of them were never far apart from each other and were the best of friends.
But…
“Rea! Let’s play hide and seek!” yelled Ekubar as he ran towards her with a little Erash on his back. His clothes were tattered and dirty, but the little boy didn’t seem to mind. “I and Erash will be hiding again!” he gently put Erash down where she stood by herself, her small hand holding her big brother’s shirt.
“Alright!” Rehenna turned around and hid her face in her hands, and started counting starting from fifty.
Ekubar giggled as he pulled his little sister along, who was laughing adorably. Ekubar led them to a small cave that only children as small as they could enter, and excitedly tried to shush her little sister who couldn’t stay quiet. He sealed the opening with a rock and sat down on the ground with his sister.
“Shhh! Quiet, Erash. Rhea will find us!” he held in his snickers as he peaked through the small hole. He backed away and placed both of his hands on his mouth to prevent any sound from giving away their location.
Erash curiously looked into the opening, having to tiptoe to see. “Eku, look.” She said making way for her brother.
“What is it, Erash?” whispered Eku. His breath hitched when he saw that there were strangers in armor walking towards their village. “Soldiers!” he watched as the village elder tried to negotiate from afar, but his eyes widened in horror when he watched the soldier kill the oldest Liya in the village without mercy.
"Eku, Eku!" Erash wouldn't stop tugging at his shirt, "Why people are yelling? Is there a party?"
However, Eku couldn't respond. He was frozen in place; his eyes wide open as they watched a massacre occur right in front of him. The soldiers took all of the Liya that obeyed them and killed all the others who fought back. The children were taken and thrown into small cages.
"Eku!" his little sister was starting to whine, but her high-pitched voice caught the attention of one soldier.
Scared, Ekubar clasped his hand on Erash's mouth, whispering, "Erash, shush... shhh... stay quiet. It'll be alright if you stay quiet."
Ekubar shut his eyes, shaking in fear as he listened to the footsteps that came closer, and closer, and closer.
"Hey!" yelled a familiar voice. Rhea?!
Gasping, Ekubar looked through the opening of the cave and saw Rhea standing behind the soldier who was no longer coming towards them. Rhea's eyes strayed to where he was, and she smiled when her eyes encountered his. No... No, no, Rhea, no!
Ekubar was only able to see little, but he saw how Rhea's eyes widened in fear when the soldier grabbed her by the neck and pulled her up. Ekubar watched as she struggled to get down, her small hands clawing at the soldier's gloved hand. He watched as the soldier dropped her, letting her receive a harsh kick.
"Eku... Eku... Rhea?" Erash had recognized Rhea's voice in her screams and clutched her big brother's arm worriedly.
Ekubar shut his eyes and backed away from the hole as far as he could, gathering Erash in his arms. "It's alright... it's alright..." he whispered more to himself than to his sister. Rhea never stopped crying, and with each thump, he held his sister tighter, trying to block out her pain.
He should go outside and help her. He should stop the soldier from killing her. He should do something! However,... he didn't. He stayed safe from where he was while Rhea was being beaten.
Ekubar didn't know how long he stayed inside of that small cave with his sister, but by the time they had gotten out, the village was burnt to the ground and not a single soul was there. The soldiers had taken all of the Liya that would be of use to them and left the dead bodies that they killed.
Erash never saw a single thing, Ekubar made sure of that. He carried her around in his arms, her small mouth parted as she breathed evenly in sleep.
His parents were dead. Everyone was either dead... or gone.
Moreover, Rhea... Rhea was... gone.
Ekubar broke down in tears, sobbing. He didn't do anything. He just hid like a coward and let her be. Now he had nothing. NOTHING.
"Eku..." said his sister, who was talking in her sleep.
Jerked back into his senses, Ekubar rocked his sister back and forth. "Shhh... go back to sleep."
That's right. He still had his sister.
Ekubar took whatever he could salvage from the wreck and gathered them up in a bag. With Erash asleep, he walked away from his broken home, determined to find a place for his sister. A place where the both of them would be safe.
All these years Ekubar had thought she was dead, or gone forever, but here she was. Just inside of the cabin, resting. He let out a shaky laugh and entered the town's square. He was lucky.
He made his way to the marketplace where he saw someone selling a bunch of regular weapons.
Ekubar approached the small stall, and said, "Are you interested in buying any weapons? I have some that I'm willing to sell."
The man raised a brow and crossed his arms, "Sure, what do you have?"
"I have these." he threw two of his knives in front of the man, and grinned, "How much would these be?"
The man stared at his daggers with wide eyes, his hands delicately holding one to observe. "These... these are beautiful." Ekubar prided himself in choosing pretty, things, and his daggers were no exception. "These could cost 50 gold coins each!"
"Great! I'd like to sell the both of them."
What both Ekubar and Rehenna didn't know was that Jui was not far away. He was just by the Village's gates, entering with his own soldiers behind him.
Of course, there was one person who knew.
Ray pulled her hood up and watched as a green-eyed knight hopped off his horse to greet the village leader. Ray smiled. This was good.
"Ray, I'm hungry…" grumbled Gabriel from behind her, "Let's go get some food."
"Alright, I was getting hungry anyways. You go on ahead. I have something to deal with." Ray handed Gabriel her mirror, "Take Cronus with you."
"Aww... why do I have to bring around this jerk?" Gabriel glared at the mirror where he saw not his own reflection, but Cronus glaring back with his arms crossed.
"Just take him." Ray put on her hood, not because she was cold, but because the wind would ruin her hair.
As Gabriel left with Cronus, she heard a string of insults fading away with the howl of the wind. Typical. When will they grow up and stop arguing? It’s been that way for quite a long time now, and because of that, Ray had already gotten used to it, but sometimes it would get on her nerves.
Ray walked closer towards the group of soldiers, soldiers who, strangely enough, didn’t wear armor to protect their bodies. Instead, coats and sweaters were upon their form. They wouldn’t look like soldiers if it were not the banners that they held and the weapons that they were equipped with.
What caught her eye was a green-eyed Knight who had an air about him that just screamed obedience. Must be him.
“Your village needs to evacuate immediately!” was what the Knight demanded. He was speaking with the village’s elder, or in other words, the leader.
“And why must we listen to you?” asked the old man, covered in a comfy blanket, and holding his home’s door open in order to speak with them.
“A war is coming; it has already hit my kingdom Phir. Soon, they will come to your village. Your choices are to either gather your strongest men, aiding us in winning this war, or taking everything and fleeing to the farthest side of the country.” Said the knight firmly. “Thousands will die.”
A war, eh? For every world that she went into, Ray had yet to see one that was void of war.
The old man looked fearful after hearing the knight’s words and gripped the door’s knob tightly. “We will do as you say… tomorrow I will inform the village. However, we will not join you in any way. If the other side were to hear of our alliance with the kingdom of Phir, no matter how insignificant we are, they will have our families burned and our bodies were thrown into a pit.” The old man huffed, “If that is all you have to say, you are free to leave. The frost is starting to bite into my skin.”
“At least help heal my injured soldiers!” asked the Knight, gesturing behind him to the men who lied on the horses, their wounds badly bandaged.
For a while, it seemed as if the old man was having an internal argument with himself, but then he said with a sigh, “Alright. We only have one healer in this village, and he lives up there in the mountains. Just follow the path, and it will lead you into his cottage. You can’t miss it.”
“Thank you.” Said the knight, a small amount of relief showing on his face. This person wasn’t a bad guy, Ray can tell. Just by the tone of his voice, you can tell that he is a bright person. “Men, follow me!” he yelled as he jumped back onto his horse.
Time to do her job.
Ray ran in front of the knight’s horse and held her hands up in order to block them. “You can’t!” she yelled, her face in a fake panic. “You can’t go to the healer!”
The knight frowned at the cloaked woman, unable to get a proper clear on her face. “Pray tell, why must I listen to your words? I have men on the verge of death.” His eyes… his eyes were dark. They glared at her without remorse.
“The healer in this village is a liar! A thief!” all of her words were lies, but what was a little lie? She has done far worse. “He will take your money, and will give you medicine, but the medicine that he makes are all fakes! He is nothing but a fraud.”
“And I must trust you, why?” immediate response, nice.
“You have to believe me…” she begged. “To save your lives…”
“You are wasting my time, move woman!” he gave her a harsh kick, causing Ray to fall into the snow. It caused her pain for only a few moments. During her fall, Ray’s hood fell back, revealing her black hair and her… lavender eyes. “Re-“the knight restrained himself, swallowing, he asked, “You are a Liya?” close, but not close enough.
“Please, good sir, take your men away from this village. If you head north, you will meet up with a town, a town with good people and good resources. They will be able to heal your men, and will perhaps give you aid in your battles.” This time, she wasn’t lying.
The knight was avoiding her gaze. Was it perhaps because she resembled Rehenna? That must be it. Ray would have to use this to her advantage.
Ray walked forward slowly and placed her hand gently upon his. A hand that was placed prepared upon his sword.
“Please…” she whispered. Her eyes fearful, and her face expression so genuine in appearance.
The knight pushed her away gently, his eyes not meeting hers, and held himself high. “Men, we will move north!” he ignored her and led his soldiers outside the gates of the small village, not even looking back at her again.
Ray watched, making sure that they made it outside without disturbance, and sighed in relief when they left her sight. That was easier than she thought. A bit exhausted from that experience, Ray pulled her hood back on and started walking away. She needed to find Gabriel and Cronus; hopefully, by the time she went back, her mirror wouldn’t be broken.
Why had she prevented the meeting between Rehenna and her knight? That is another story for another day.
“Here, take the money.” Said Eku, handing the healer the bag that was filled with twenty gold coins.
“Wow, I didn’t think that you would actually pay me… I was expecting you to run off with the girl once she finished healing. I misjudged you, dangerous dagger fellow who wears a lot of leather. Perhaps you should change your outfit. It misleads one to think darker things.” The doctor grinned as he counted the coins, happy when it reached his desired amount.
Ekubar shrugged. Those were his favorite pair of knives. He had bought them a long time ago in a small town, a town that surprisingly had amazing blacksmiths. It was a rare find, and he almost felt disappointed that he had to part with them. However, any price, even 50 gold, was nothing compared to the price of losing Rhea again.
Eku leaned against the wall right next to Rehenna’s bed, closing his eyes and sighing in content. There was not a lot of things he can do for her right now, but one this is for sure. He will get her back to her home safely.
Once again, the doctor heard a knock from outside of his door. “Huh, I’ve been getting a lot of visits lately…” he walked over to the door and opened it, “What is it? Oh…”
Outside, was a middle-aged man, behind him was a small group of others, “Sir, I’m afraid that you must come with me.”
Backing away, the doctor raised both of his hands up, “Listen, I am not the one who has been selling the funky medicine. Trust me, just because I’m the only person in this town who knows how to deal with plants, that doesn’t mean that I am the culprit.”
The man took on a confused expression, “Uh no… What I mean is that you need to accompany us with the evacuation. Recently, we have word that a war from the east, the kingdom of Phir, is starting to spread. It wouldn’t be long now until foreign soldiers arrive to invade our village. We must have you with us. You are the only healer we have. We must leave… now.”
“What, no, I have a patient over here that needs my attention. She is bedridden. I can’t just leave her right now.” The doctor said gesturing over to where Rehenna was sleeping.
The man furrowed his brows, frowning at the sight of both Ekubar and Rehenna. “I’ve never seen them before… it’s best that you leave them.” Ekubar made no change in his facial expression, seemingly as if the conversation was not about them, “Especially that one.”
“Well, he already paid me, so I have to go through with our deal.” The doctor shrugged and went back to sitting in his rocking chair.
“W-what, do you not understand? There is a war coming! We need to escape!”
A war.
Ekubar closed his eyes. Another one. What was it going to be about this time? The Liya or just for the fun of it? Most of the time, it was both. War never came to his kingdom, most of the time, others were too afraid to attack Resama. Resama was one of the wealthiest kingdoms out there, and that meant that they were one of the strongest.
The kingdom of Phir was next. That was Rehenna’s kingdom. A small kingdom like that wouldn’t be able to last long, maybe a week at most, but by the end of that week, it would already be in ruins.
“I’m afraid you have no choice in the matter, healer.” The man grabbed the herbalist by the arm and pulled him out the door.
“What are you doing!? Let go of me!”
“Unhand him.” Ekubar stood up and took out an ordinary dagger. He may have sold his best knives, but that doesn’t mean that he was completely unarmed. He still had the ones he stole from the ones that were about to sell thee both of them as slaves. He needed that healer around for Rehenna.
“Stay out of this foreigner, it’s best that you take your woman and flee. This area is about to be engulfed in the flames of war.” The other men helped the other in taking the doctor, making sure that it was easier throughout his struggle.
“Wait-, DAGGER GUY!” the doctor yelled, “Inside the cupboard, there is a wooden box. That contains the medicine that you need to apply to her wounds daily. Take it!” he stopped struggling, and sent him a wink, “Take care of that girl… I’m sure if she had her eyes, she would be very special.” With that, the door was shut and both Rehenna and Ekubar were left alone.
Therefore, the doctor wasn’t completely oblivious after all. He knew that she was a Liya, and he never mentioned a thing. He was quite an eccentric person; Ekubar would’ve liked to spend more time with the man.
He sighed and sheathed his dagger into his leather boots, and walked over to the cupboard. Indeed, there was a wooden box inside. Eku looked around the house and found a small bag. He was sure that the healer wouldn’t be coming back anytime soon, he wouldn’t mind if he took something.
After packing up, Ekubar was still deep in thought.
Should he bring Rehenna back to Phir, or not? A war was happening… that meant death and bloodshed. A place that would be unsafe for Rehenna.
“Rehenna… Rehenna we have to go.” Ekubar gently shook her awake, careful as to not touch any of her wounds. He wrapped her around in the blanket she was sleeping in and moved to gather her.
“W-why…?” Rehenna weakly croaked, her voice still clouded with sleep. She wrapped her arms around his neck when she felt him pick her up. “Where are we going?”
Ekubar kicked the door open, making Rehenna jump. “Ah, sorry.” With the princess in his arms, snug warmly within the blanket, Ekubar made his way down the small mountain.
Where were they going? To Phir? He wasn't sure anymore.
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