The Waters Secret

A man Named Finn - Pt. 1

Rosila sighed as she sat on the side of the road, watching the old donkey graze nearby. She had stopped to rest her feet and eat some lunch, finding herself staring out over the golden fields. She had left the forest yesterday afternoon glad to be out of that suffocating place.

She had seen a sign last night just after she crossed the bridge that claimed Welpion was only another day's ride away. However, after traveling well into the afternoon she was uncertain she would make it there by night fall.

She stood and dusted off her hands on her skirt looking down the road. From what she could see; it was just miles and miles of gold and sun. She removed her sweater and let her hair down, enjoying the sunlight. She grabbed the reins and pulled the old donkey into a walk beside her. She had a way to go, and she knew it wouldn't take too long before someone was after her.

She worried about Clair and Hank, hoping that they would be ok. She had tormented Raven because she had always had something she had wanted. Parents that loved her no matter what. She had begun to wonder what life might have been like if she was their daughter instead of the village whores.

Rosila had worried about her mother for a moment, but Kielia never seemed to notice whether Rosila came home or not. After Rosila was old enough for high school her mother's lovers began mistaking her for Kielia. She was tired of being touched by drunk strange men so decided that she wasn't going to live there anymore. She had gotten a job working after school so she could afford her own studio apartment. It wasn't the finest place, but it was her own and she never had to sneak in or out.

The walk was getting increasingly more tiring as she realized the road was inclining. She was climbing a small hill and hadn't realized it from the bottom. She quietly laughed to herself as she realized that the further from Trayson she got, the happier she felt.

Trayson had always felt like a golden cage to her. Something pretty and safe, but never free. She looked around making sure she was alone before she ran up the hill the rest of the way spinning and laughing when she reached the top. Elvis jogged up behind her stopping once he reached her to graze off to the side. The wind blew her hair, and she closed her eyes feeling the breeze push the sun rays from her face for a short time.

She opened her eyes and gasped when she noticed the path she had traveled to get there. From there she could see all the way to the forest edge and the bridge she used to cross the river early this morning. With the twists and turns in the path and the endless golden grass, she hadn't noticed she had been climbing the hill since she crossed the bridge.

The wind blew at her from behind and she turned to see Welpion, the Kingdom of the valley. It was a large bustling place from what Rosila could see on her hilltop. It was an array of bright colors and mismatched architecture making Rosila love it instantly. A small little off shoot from the large river separating the golden fields from the forest, circled around the edge of the kingdom. Sparkling in the afternoon sunlight.

"We made it!" She told Elvis who huffed and continued to graze. She laughed picking up his reins and heading down the hill. It took longer to get down than she had anticipated. It was late afternoon as the sun warned her of the coming night. She hurried to find a stable for Elvis and got him bedded down for the evening. So far, Welpion was nothing like she imagined with friendly people and bustling markets filling the streets.

She looked at the letter in her hands considering where she might find the man Hank sent her to. Who was this Finn and why did Hank think he could help her? Wasn't Hank friends with the king? Rosila blushed as she considered the elf from the ball.

Surely the king might have an idea where to look for this man Hank sent her to find. Rosila blushed as she hurried to the warrior academy. Suefarlin had told her to visit there when she was in town. She got little lost in the chaotic markets filled with every little thing one might want or need. After asking around at a few stalls, she found the academy hidden in the market.