Aide Me

Chapter Eight - Enlighten Me

A Northern Elf.

She had never seen one before, but then again, no one had. There was no doubt whatsoever, though; The man they called 'Aide' was a Northern Elf.

Everyone seemed to have gone into a state of shock. Emaia gasped and covered her mouth as Aide looked upon them all with calm eyes. Nobody moved or spoke or even breathed. They all just stared and he stared back.

His features were so different from a Southern Elf's. Emaia had only seen one or two Southern Elves in her life, but the difference was obvious; His skin was lighter and his ears were longer, pointier. His features were also sharper, whereas his cousins had softer, rounder markings. Furthermore, she couldn't recall ever hearing of an elf with silver hair, but she had to admit that she found it quite beautiful. A plain, even silvery-gray color, all throughout his hair. It was almost... hauntingly attractive.

Emaia was brought out of her daze when everyone seemed to snap out of their shock. All the men lifted their swords and pointed it towards him despite his previous statement of being unarmed. They took a few steps forward, led in the front by Hanke.

"You're an elf!" He shouted, needless to say. "A Northern Elf! It's impossible!"

"Obviously not," Aide replied. It was as if he had expected this to happen and it didn't surprise him one bit.

"We killed ye' scumbags!" Hanke continued, getting redder and redder by the second. "We drove ye' to ye' fucking extinction!"

"Well you certainly tried," Aide countered and rose a flat brow. "But a few clans were smart enough to hide way up in the Arranhade Mountains where no humans could ever travel."

"You..." It was obvious to anyone with eyes that Hanke was losing his last nerve. Emaia was scared on behalf of her rescuer, but Aide seemed perfectly calm despite the thirty swords pointing at him. "Ye' dare have the nerve to come here and ask to join our group!" Hanke roared while the vein in his forehead was close to popping. "Ye' kind is the reason we're here fighting!"

"You're wrong," Aide somberly said, "We had nothing to do with the murder of the old King. We were framed."

"And now ye' insult our intelligence!" Hanke roared, froth flying around his mouth. "I should kill ye' and have ye' corpse raised on a stake in town!"

"If you managed to kill me, I would say that you've earned that right," Aide remarked with a sarcastic amusement. "But let's save that futile attempt for another day. I want you to give me the benefit of the doubt long enough for me to explain myself."

That request pushed Hanke over the edge . "Ye' son of a—"

"Stop!" Suddenly Emaia shouted.

Everyone turned and looked stunned at Emaia. Everyone except Aide who simply curved a smirk to his lips. That, along with all their stares, made Emaia flame up into a vivid red shade. She wasn't used to this sort of attention.

"Emaia, this is no' business for a lady," Hanke snapped at her through clenched teeth. "Go back to the carriage and stay there!"

A fire lit up inside her body and made her curl her fists in rage. "No, Hanke. As I recall, you agreed that everyone should have a voice, even women," Emaia growled and stepped forward. "So now I'm speaking."

Hanke looked as if he had just eaten a lemon. "Emaia, don't ye' understand?! This creature is dangerous!"

"Really? Because from where I'm standing, you're the one holding the sword," Emaia said and stepped up to Aide.