Lord of the Night Realm: Reunion [Preview]

Chapter 31

The streets of Phiana — capital of the Theocracy of Galviece — bustled with traveling residents and visitors alike, charging the city with anticipation for the upcoming festival. It was a celebration honoring the Joining; the union of the once-separated Shards — floating worlds sharing one sky in the seemingly endless Sea of Clouds. Phiana's celebration was among the greatest on the continent of Enmyda. As such, it brought in people from even the most distant corners of the land.

Though the city and main highway were alive with all the hustle, branching country roads received only a hint of Phiana's brimming excitement. Slow and peaceful, as it was most days, with the exception of farmers and orchardists rushing to fulfill orders placed by eateries and festival food stall operators.

Caught up in the modest countryside bustle was the Martel household. Vena Martel herself was an apothecary specializing in treatments for illnesses, wounds, and ailments common among adventurers. As was typical during the festival, many had traveled far and inadvertently spread minor colds and influenza. This, of course, resulted in higher foot traffic through Vena's lovely, flower-hugged walkway from the front gate to her workshop. But the excess of customers was expected.

The house proper was quite peaceful. While her youngest daughter, Lillian, assisted her with concoctions, Vena's son Irwin busied himself brewing tea for him and his father. The past few days had been a blessing, with several late-night storms nourishing the garden and reasonably quelling the heat. The weather was now perfect for the festival, assuming the storms themselves had long since passed.

A pleasant summer breeze danced lightly through the windows, wafting away steam billowing from the whistling kettle. The fifteen-year-old boy glanced up from his book at the dining table and scurried to the stove. Tucking a few strands of dark blonde hair behind his ear, Irwin mentally measured the water as he poured it into two ceramic cups to steep the tea.

Eagerly, he started up the stairs with tray in hand and carefully pushed open the door to his sisters' bedroom with his shoulder. Sunlight peered through the gap in the curtain, dimly lighting the room. Hunched over and fast asleep in a chair between the window and the foot of the far bed was Bram — his father. Irwin smiled at the sight of the auburn-haired man. Even though he was frail, still he'd been on constant watch over his elder sister since her unsettling return. It was a risk with his weak heart, as they all knew, but Bram was stubborn and hadn't left the bedside for more than a couple of hours at a time.

Irwin was barely halfway across the room when he noticed something from the corner of his eye; sitting upright in bed and smiling weakly was his formerly comatose elder sister, Ellie. Not a word passed Irwin's lips, for they'd all clustered in his throat and competed to escape first.

"Don't suppose one of those cups is for me?" Ellie whispered, a finger to her lips indicating not to wake their father. Despite this, Irwin was simply too shocked to catch her message, and the battle in his throat was concluded with a single shout.

"Ellie!" Only then did Irwin realize why his sister was so hushed, and he slapped his hand over his mouth. Doing so made him lose his grip on the tray for a fraction of a second, which created a racket that jolted their father awake.

"Confound it, Irwin," he groaned, glaring at his son as he rubbed the sleep from his face. "Your clumsiness lately is scaring me half to death. Better not've inherited that from me."

"Dad."

Irwin's firm tone directed Bram's attention to the bed, where his son's eyes were fixed. Ellie had been stifling a chuckle at the commotion and curled her lips inward to force her mood to something more serious.

"Ellie?" Bram slowly rose from his seat and reached for her. "Is this real? Am I dreaming?"

"Good morning," she said, chuckling nervously. "Or is it afternoon?"