The Chronicles Of The Council #1: The Sun's Tears

Chapter 31: Laelia - Superstition

"What the mind doesn't understand, it worships or fears." - Alice Walker

Over the next few days, I feel a subtle change in the air. The ever-familiar humidity starts to dry up, albeit minimally. The daily rains that I have known from my youth get sparser and become absent.

The thought of leaving the forest, thinking it would be a momentous occasion, made me as excited as a butterfly newly hatched from its cocoon at. I thought that one moment I'd be in the forest surrounded by trees, and the next that I would find myself in a barren landscape without any trees. In reality, I did not even notice us leaving the forest. Over the course of two days, the vegetation thinned out. The familiar forest trees were joined by trees I have never seen before. The moist forest floor gradually changed until I found myself standing under the open skies with the unfamiliar ground beneath my feet.

The clouds above my head paint the blue skies with white blotches. I can see various types, but our curriculum never covered clouds in great detail. Clouds always bring rain, but these clouds, shaped like wolf heads and broken leaves, do not seem like storm-bringers and life-givers.

"Laelia, you see that cloud? It almost looks like a dragon," Aedan says to my left and points to the one I had thought was a wolf's head.

"How would you know what a dragon really looks like? There are no true depictions of them," Elorhim shouts over his shoulder.

"Seriously Strongwind, do you have to be such a mudslide? Would it kill you to just keep your enormous mouth closed for once and allow other people to continue their conversations that do not involve you?"

Elorhim ignores Aedan and catapults into a lengthy explanation of the dragons and their disappearance. Aedan rolls his eyes at me when Elorhim continues to bore us for the remainder of the day.

At night we sleep under the stars. There is no need for shelter against the moonlight. Zoe Pherenike, the Third of the Council, is the twin to our Lord, and every night we enjoy her benevolent gaze and protection.

A week after our 'leaving' the forest, the third of our journey, Faolan announces an addition to our daily routine of travelling towards Raven's Peak.

"We will have a duel each sunset to keep us in shape. Every second morning we will start with practice before we travel. There is always room for improvement. The Darkelanders from the other side of the Mountains barely pose a threat to us, but we cannot allow humans to tarnish our reputation should they see anything falling short of perfection. We pride ourselves in the majesty of our surname-givers and their ancient customs, and thus we must continue to build on their legacy."

Faolan, ever the leader and humble prince, start the daily duels by challenging Elorhim. Their duel is tense and watching them is truly magnificent and awe-inspiring. I've seen Faolan fight many times as both Aedan and I have trained against him, but I realise now that he was holding back. Faolan is playful yet deadly, toying with Elorhim before each onslaught. I am surprised by Elorhim, whose fighting I haven't witnessed in centuries. He was a hot-headed imbecile who could never predict an attack once he was enraged. Now Elorhim, knowing his friend and ignoring his taunts, is cool and calculating, never allowing his emotions to cloud his actions. A flicker of annoyance and anger passes his face when Faolan manages to win the duel, but he wipes it off as he congratulates my brother.

Aedan and I are excluded from participating in the duels and training as we are not of the Order. Faolan tasks us and the handful of others who are accessories to the company with reciting The Book of Origins or recounting the tales of our great ancestors after the duels.

The first human town we encounter consists of a handful of houses, a well, and some bigger buildings that I do not recognise. We set camp outside the town's borders – using our tents for the first time.