From Ashes

Goodbye

As I approach Cedar Ridge I pull my hood up so it shadowed my face. I don't want any one here recognising me. Even though Cedar Ridge was the smallest of the three towns, rumors travel fast here. I don't want them to come looking for me. I enter through the back of the town, climbing a steep hill that brought me up behind the main house. Usually the lords of a town were located in the center, but who ever built this place decided to be different. As risky as that was it was beneficial to me in this moment.

I slip in through the back door quietly so I didn't alert the guards out the front. Once safely inside I walk towards the kitchen where someone was leaning over a stove. "Narwal,"I let my hood fall as my dearest friend turns to look at me. She didn't seem at all startled by my sudden appearance.

"Uni? What brings you here," she sets her wooden spoon down on the counter next to the stove. She had been stirring something in the pot behind her.

"It's time I fled, my town is no longer standing and I fear the worst,"I grit my teeth as I speak. I found the words hard to believe. The three towns were once strong and prosperous until a newer stronger enemy attacked. We were doomed from the start and before long my fears came to fruition. With my people either dead or missing, I had to flee or I would of had to face my own demise.

Narwal nods trying to look calm but I could see the terror in her eyes. If my town had fallen then her smaller village was doomed to burn. "I understand. Though why risk a visit here? Why not just leave with no trace?" I humor the thought for all but a second before slowly shaking my head.

"I couldn't just abandon you,"I tell her,"I came to see if you wanted to come with me." I wait for her to respond even though I already knew my answer. Narwal was as stubborn as stubborn could be and she wouldn't just leave her unknowing town. If they died she would die with them.

A deep sadness shadowed her features, making her gray eyes look nearly black. "You know I cant go with you," she begins her voice sounded heavy,"but I can aid you in your journey." Slightly confused I watch as she goes back to stirring the liquid in the pot. After a second she took it off the heat and poured the pink substance into a clear bottle. Next to that bottle were a few more, all different colors. There was a light blue one, a pink one, and a gray one. She popped a cork into the new bottle, effectively sealing it off from the air. Narwal then handed me the bottles one by one.

"The blue potion will give you the ability to travel faster, the pink one can help heal any wound and the gray one will give you the strength you will need to finish your journey,"she then handed me a small satchel to store the potions in. As I gently set them in the bag she continued to speak,"they only have one use each so use them wisely Unicorn. I assume you have your bow and sword already?" I slip my arms through the straps of the satchel, and when I nod Narwal pulls me in for a hug. "I know not where you will go or what you shall encounter, so I must only ask you to be careful and wise in your decisions. If not for me, then for those who have fallen."

"Of course I will,"I tell her hugging my friend back,"I will continue on the legacy of Casus. Don't worry."

We break the hug and I pull my hood back up over my head. I walk to the back and as I push open the heavy door I look back one last time. Nar had already gone back to doing the thing she loved the most. Potion making. She was known throughout the lands for her potent potions, so it made sense she die doing what she loved. I disappear out the door before I changed my mind and stayed. I had to leave this place behind. As much as it hurt my heart I had a greater plan waiting for me elsewhere. Though that didn't stop me from looking back from the top of the mountain.

I looked​ out over Cedar Ridge and the great plains across the river from the small town. Farther still near the bay I could just make out the very market place my ancestors had built, as well as the tall buildings of Beacon Point. The large plumes of smoke coming from the much larger town warned me the enemy was approaching fast. They would soon devour the land I had once called home. All the generations of work destroyed in only a weeks time. And I was helpless to do anything.

All I can do now is start over elsewhere and say farewell to the three great towns of Casus. My old home.