Broken Promise

Rising Banners

War drums reverberated through the desolate forest like a beacon of death. Each Strike of the drum was a reminder that life could not exist without chaos. Eddon sat trying to ignore the petrifying sound, his leg shook involuntarily knocking at the worn-out table in the center of the small living area. The orange tongues of the fire licked at the firewood as it crackled in the blackened hearth, keeping out the bitter cold. Eddon was sure he could see the water in his pitcher vibrate to the drums' violent rhythm as he poured some into his parents' cup, some of the water splashed out being soaked into the grey cloth that covered the table.

"Don't worry son, they are just passing through" His father said reassuringly as he reached over to steady his hand.

His father's smile provided a sense of safety from the terror that crossed these lands. Eddon returned to poking at his vegetable stew, it had been a long while since he had tasted anything different, even though his belly grumbled for food he couldn't bring himself to take another spoonful. From the corner of his eye, he could see his mother looking at him worriedly, he could always tell she was troubled by the way she scratched at her long brunette hair.

"Eddon, it will be a good idea for you to follow your father to the village gathering today," she said.

"That's a good idea, Melly. What do you say?" his father added as they both waited for his response. He hated when they did this, making him feel like a child still nursing in need of more special treatment. Soon he would be a man and expected to do important village duties, not that he looked forward to the latter part, he always found sitting around a table hearing people's complaints boring. However, this time getting a bit of fresh air away from the war drums made him jump at the opportunity.

"I'll get my boots on" he replied as he quickly rushed out of the room to find his shoes.

By the time he put his leather boots on his father was waiting for him at the door. Eddon grabbed his thick woolen cloak from a hook. Soon they began walking towards the village center, the snow crunched underfoot as they stepped. Flakes of brilliant white snow lazily drifted down onto them, the sun shone like a dim flame in the cloudy sky, its warmth had abandoned these lands to nothing but frigid coldness. Even with the cloak, his father's muscular build could still be seen, his brown hair was tied into a knot showing a strong jawline. Eddon's similarities to his father ended at the same brown hair, he was a scrawny youth with long limbs that made him tower over most of the villagers.

"Mother worries about me too much"

"Can you blame her?" his father replied

"You can't shelter me forever, I need to find my way without having you both looking over my shoulder."

"Eddon. You didn't see yourself when you were gripped by the sickness. You were as hot as burning coal, we thought we were going to lose you. With your brother gone we can't lose you as we-" His father choked as he stifled his emotion.

Eddon immediately regretted what he had said, he had an annoying knack for speaking without thinking. Ever since his brother Ebrin had died in the Mage Wars a piece of them had all been shattered, Eddon had been left feeling empty. That emptiness had quickly been filled with hatred towards all mages, they used them like tools to fight their tyrannical wars. His brother had worshiped the mages like most. Eddon could still remember the day when he had woken up to hear his older brother had abandoned them to join the raising banners, believing this war was about protecting Emporia. It still felt like yesterday that he would be getting up to mischief with Ebrin.

"Sorry, I didn't mean....I won't leave you and mother. I promise."

His father gave him a warm smile as he reached over ruffling his hair, Eddon began to complain but ended up just smiling.