The Forest Heart

Kale Part 2

"Are you doing alright, lad?" a gruff voice called out to him. Kale jumped turning on the intruders with his sword raised. Though he wasn't sure when he had gotten the blade in his hands. He was relieved to find the cool leather hilt helped clear some of the growing madness. Kale slowly lowered the blade as he looked over the group short men. Dwarves from Salvino.

"Something is off with him." The tallest of the four men grunted at the leader. Emerald. That was his name. Kale sighed, his mind slowly pushing back the fogginess. He was talking with the dwarven mercenary group, the Boars. Each member was named after a gem, Kale recalled, relaxing as his memory slowly came back.

"Boars. Didn't think you would follow me here." Kale stumbled at King Gregory's spies. There were four men in all for their little group, plus a mole hound common in the mines of Salvino, though Gregory had been hiring them more often for his own use. Most likely to keep tabs on Adam.

"Honestly, we weren't. We came to investigate Golder. Word got around of another attack by the Hounds. Gregory was facing backlash if he didn't at least investigate this time. What's with the statue?" Pearl, the leader, asked coming over by the fire and preparing some food. The other Boars went to work, gathering supplies for the night. Kale stood between them and the statue watching them work as his back leaned against the wagon.

"Lad?" Pearl coaxed trying to get his attention. Kale had been muttering to himself, patting the stone foot as he did so. He seemed to be slipping between states of madness which was unusual for him. Kale glanced up frowning at their worried faces before a low growl pulled their attention to the ugly red mole hound.

"Ruby, come." The smallest Boar, Diamond, commanded as the mutt shifted slowly, still on the defense against the stone man. Something in the air turned, causing Ruby to bark loudly as Kale hissed back.

"What the bloody hell is going on?" Emerald huffed at the smallest as Diamond tried to get his companion under control. She was agitated and Diamond worried she was even a bit scared. Very unusual for her. That statue wasn't natural. Though something about the way Kale responded to them was even more unsettling.

Kale was no stranger to them, in fact, Kale and the Boar's were mostly on good terms. Or at least Pearl thought they were. Kale felt the sudden pull as the heavy weight just vanished, leaving him stumbling.

"I don't know what happened, but it's over now." Diamond muttered as he rubbed Ruby's head as the hound whined softly. She curled up around his feet as the other Boar's helped Kale sit next to the fire.

"Kale, lad? Are you alright? What happened?" Pearl asked nervously as his brothers offered Kale a drink and covered the statue with the heavy cloth. Nobody wanted to keep staring at the naked man above their short heads anyways. Kale drank the water deeply, letting the cool water run over his face and neck as it spilled out the sides of the cup.

"I-I don't know." Kale stuttered. He shivered, rubbing his arms quickly to rid himself of the chill. "I heard a voice and then I couldn't remember things. Like I was in a fog, but I was scared and so very angry. I didn't even recognize you at first." Kale told them as the Boars quietly listened.

"Are you all right now?" Emerald asked softly, adding more wood to the fire. Kale took a deep breath, holding it in as he considered it. Finally, he exhaled as he nodded sure of himself.

"Yes, the feeling and voice are gone. Maybe I was just going crazy alone in this graveyard." Kale sighed glancing out of the shelter. Though full dark had settled, causing limited visibility outside of the fire light.

"Voices?" Emerald asked as Opal shrugged. They weren't hearing any voices and hopped it stayed that way.

"It doesn't matter. I doubt Soren could speak to me. It was probably all in my head." He muttered to himself before turning on his company, "How goes your mission?" Kale asked to make conversation as the Boars gave a collective sigh.