The Darkest of Truths

Chapter 14

We repeated this pattern until we found ourselves in a dead forest. Everyone seemed to be on edge at this point and I couldn't understand why until I saw it. A small ruin, it looked like it was a village once with houses made of carefully carved wood and animal skin.

The kind of houses that I had seen in Lunara.

The kind of houses that I used to live in as a child.

The kind of houses that I had watched burn while the families who lived there were slaughtered by soldiers.

Eldwyn.

We were in Eldwyn and I didn't recognise it.

Although, I guess it wasn't really Eldwyn anymore but an oversized graveyard smothered in old ashes.

"Are you alright?" asked a kind voice, I turned and found the King.

"I didn't realise," was all I could force myself to say. My voice sounded distant and fragile. I swallowed the lump in my throat, glancing back at the ruin then back at the King.

"I didn't realise that we were already here."

The King's eyes softened and nodded, "we've been here for a while," he said gently.

The dead forest.

We had been travelling through it for at least an hour and I was only now realising that it used to be my home.

It was so different now. It used to be so full of life and vibrant colours and now there was nothing, just black and ash. I couldn't even tell which part of Eldwyn we were in, for all I knew that ruin we had passed was my childhood home. My chest felt tight at the thought and I tried not to imagine the burnt branches beneath us as the bones of my family. But the image was there in my mind and it was all I could see. Everywhere I looked there were burnt bones of children and families, my family.

I tried not to think about the crunching sound with each step our horses took. I tried not to think about what they were stepping on. Who they were stepping on. But it was all I could think about.

Crunch. There's papa.

Crunch. There's the kind old woman who aided my mother when she was in labour.

Crunch. There's the child I used to play with whose face I'll never remember.

Crunch. Crunch. There's Dion with his wife and unborn child.

I hated this. I hated this. I hated this. I wanted out of this forest. I wanted out! I didn't want to hear the bones or see the charred up memories.

"We can stop if you need to?" the King suggested.

I shook my head, "no we need to keep going."

"Karma it's alright if you need to rest."

That was Aleister that time.

"I don't want to stop!"

It came out harsher than I would've preferred.

"I'm sorry. It's just ... if we stop here it's just going to get worse. I need to keep going, I'll be fine. I promise."

I think everyone understood, or at least I had hoped that they did. I felt a firm hand on my shoulder, Olenna's hand.

"We'll keep going then but if you change your mind and want to stop all you need to do is say."

I nodded to show that I understood and we kept going.

There were less ruins deeper in the forest and I was able to settle for a bit.