J.A.N.E(book 1)

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE.

𝐊𝐚𝐫𝐲𝐧.
I walk downstairs dazedly, last night's events replaying in my head. The smell of coffee wafts from downstairs and I spot Calen humming in the kitchen. He looks up, smiling when he sights me. I join him in the kitchen, deciding immediately that I would like to cook something.
With his help navigating the giant kitchen, I soon have giant pancakes ready. Arem walks in, his dark hair tousled from sleep.
. At least one of us was able to sleep last night .

I turn away from him, grabbing the tray filled with mugs of coffee and bringing it to the table.
"It smells delicious in here." Jasper calls out, coming in from his morning jog, a face towel around his neck. I grin, making a curtsy as I place the plate of giant-sized pancakes onto the table.
"Karyn made breakfast." Calen informs, placing the bottle of maple syrup and the bowl of omelets onto the table as well. Jasper makes a face of sweet surprise, and I roll my eyes at him. As usual.

"Where's Asher?" Arem asks, and my smile disappears like the morning mist. Sighing, I sink into the chair, using the serving soon to place four pancakes onto my plate.
Calen settles in beside me, just as I sip my coffee. I notice something as Calen and Arem do the same. I scoop a healthy helping of omelets, grabbing the bottle of syrup.
"He's at the greenhouse. He's upset about something." Calen replies and my brow furrows. I turn to Calen worriedly.
"What's wrong with him?"
"It's nothing you cam do anything about. He must have had one of his nightmares. Time spent in the greenhouse will renew him, don't worry." He replies, holding my hand on the table.

"Good morning." Seb sings, settling into the seat beside Arem. He hums appreciatively as he grabs some pancakes, pouring a healthy dose of syrup onto them.
We eat in silence mostly, before Jasper joins us, dressed in fresh clothes. We talk about everything and anything but the Serenade festival and I notice all their attempts not to trigger me. Their attempts make it worse though and I can tell from Arem's expression that he knows it too.
"What's that inscribed on your mugs?" I ask, in an attempt to diffuse the awkward atmosphere.

"It's our roles in each other's lives. We designed it such that we never forget how much each balances the other. It's nothing special." Calen replies, staring at Arem.
I look between the two of them, deciding immediately that it's no use trying to decipher the hidden message communicated between the two of them. Inclining my head towards his cup, I ask;
"What's on yours?"
"Mine's loyalty, Asher's strength, Jasper's joy and Arem's brave." He answers and I can't help the small smile that creeps onto my face.

Seb clears his throat over his cup of coffee.
"I think, I found something. I was going through the library as you asked me to, Arem and you were right. I found something. A small reference to the hellbringers." He says and I gape at him.
"Seb, that's awesome! What did it say? Where d'you find it?" I ask, chewing my food quickly and washing down the huge bite with the slightly warm coffee. He nods, grinning.
"I found a small book of tales. And, I think it could be stories on the bellringers. It's a child's book really. Clever, if you ask me. I wouldn't have noticed it, if my thoughts were not occupied with the baby on the way." He mutters.

Asher's still a no-show after breakfast, even as we all gather in the lounge beside the pool, going through the book of tales together, methodically. Arem's eyes darken when he spots the book, his jaw clenching. He has a murderous aura around him, even as we continue to avoid each other and the big issue between us.
Who am I kidding? I'm the one avoiding him and the big issue, skirting around him like a skittish foal. I pick the small book up, it's pages are yellowed at the edges showing signs of age. The book is small, fitting in my hands seamlessly.

I open the book, surprised at the very vivid creatures displayed at the front page. The book is titled,'Tale of the Promised Fall.' It depicts the story of a girl blessed with the power of creation who takes a walk across a desolate land, deciding to create beings to inhabit it. The beings she created, begin to grow and flourish and with their growth and advancement came great conflict and disagreement.

Clan rise against clan, people against people, zone against zone and family against family. Plagued with worry for her creations, she had an idea. She created another set of beings, making them superior in every way against the first creations. She called them bringers of peace. It took a lot out of her strength to create them but she was pleased with the outcome of her efforts.
Her peace bringers were filled with compassion, wisdom and for decades they maintain peace in the land. That is until the head of the peace bringers decided that as superiors they should be revered in the same manner as the girl who made them.