Ascendance // a DreamNotFound fanfiction WITH AN UNSATISFYING ENDING

Chapter 2: Job Opportunity

**Please keep in mind, this story will contain graphic depictions of mature themes, most notably depictions of prejudice and death. Reader discretion is advised.**

[3790 words]

~Dream, farm worker of Orlan~

Five communities populated the Kingdom of Flor, but they did not contain equal portions of the population. Half of the Florean Kingdom's residents dwelled in Orlan, where a Tejan landlord supervised and collected property taxes from each neighborhood. My neighborhood's landlord, Sir Ernling, was also the father of my childhood friend Sapnap.

In the lush, quiet hills at the base of the Yukay Mountains, Teja exclusively housed nobles, politicians, and other political allies of the royal family. The prestigious community's geography and close relationship to kingdom law enforcement prevented surprise influxes of residents of other communities. As I hiked through Teja, I glanced behind myself occasionally for signs of followers, but I walked the lamp-lit streets alone.

Although the night air kept me from overheating, my breathing became labored as memory guided me along cobblestone streets past roped-off parks, empty carriages, sculpted hedges, and white-painted two-story wooden homes. Resisting the urge to sniff at the community's gaudy displays of material wealth, I adhered to the darkness away from lamp-lit pathways. My water canteen dangled from one numb hand, empty. My other hand's clutch on its stone knife had relaxed, but did not release the weapon.

Panting breaths, insect chirps, and rustling leaves filled the nighttime air as my journey neared its end. On foot, taking the long route from Orlan to Teja proved less risky than accompanying the panicked Orlanian civilians who permeated the business and market communities of Mingham and Hassee.

Within hours of losing their agriculture, I imagined the decisions my Orlanian neighbors might have made. Did some enter the kingdom's central Hassean marketplace in search of food to purchase? In response, shopkeepers would have raised their prices to profit off the buyers' panic. Other Orlanian residents at home must have gathered their belongings to search for new lands outside the Florean Kingdom. Another portion of Orlan's population may have hunkered down, woozy with disbelief as they faced the destruction of their livelihoods outside. Finally, other Orlanians like me travelled to other communities in search of food and financial assistance. Most pleas for help from the Mingham community would lead to rejection, for its merchants, traders, and businesspeople would have boarded their windows and doors in anticipation of the crowds' arrival.

Sighing heavily as I continued through winding Tejan streets, I fought the guilt consuming me. I wished my pursuit for assistance from Sapanp could benefit more people than my family alone. From a young age, I received comments remarking I was "capable" for an Orlanian, but my capability was essential. Years ago, my father disappeared without a trace; in his absence, the responsibilities of paying taxes and tending to the farm split between my mother and me. With an ominous shiver, I reminded myself I now did the same thing my father did before his vanishing: traveling away from home in search of help.

My family required money for food, taxes, and education for my younger sister Sandy. Sapnap would gladly donate money to support his childhood friend, but while a donation would be beneficial now, the possibility of famine meant long-term issues which a single donation would not solve. Instead, I planned to request a job opportunity. Employment would provide steady income, and the noble status of Sapnap's family would allow access to a larger pool of opportunities than I could enter without a recommendation.

A hill loomed on the horizon, where two oil lamps betrayed the single, massive house perched upon it: the Ernling residence. Situated between two fully-grown willow trees against a backdrop of wild spruce forest, the esteemed house occupied a sizable plot of land overlooking the valley below. Although darkness cloaked most of the house beyond the reach of the flickering oil lamps on both sides of the front door, an image of the building displayed in my mind: three stories, a cobblestone archway, a shed for the servants' quarters, and an air of regality rivaling the royal castle. If I had not visited this location many times in my youth, I would have trembled with intimidation at its monstrous presence.