Jhon Burston. The demise of the Nainka heir

The Nork, the Asteri, and the new guardian

The Nork, the Asteri, and the new guardian

We accompanied ourselves with the breeze, with the silence, with the silhouettes of the horizon.

Why was I beginning to feel afraid of what I had agreed to with Jhon and Jake? I asked myself repeatedly; perhaps because a docile-looking stranger woman was patient enough not to snatch our lives in an oversight of our immaturity; perhaps it had to do with the fact that for a moment I felt I had signed a pact of criminality with subjects coming from a parallel universe. But it wasn't about me or what I felt, it was about an agreement that depended mostly on the Burston in charge. It was also about Jhon. After them, the rest had to do with me.

On the way back, the journey became longer and more boring, Hendor was waiting for us on the outskirts of the forest, preventing the night from playing a dirty trick on us, although I don't think any of us could've forgotten the paths we had walked so far, they're like scars that marked our memory. We arrived tired, dumbfounded and nothing more. In spite of the little desire to talk, we sensed that Hendor would interrogate us.

We made it! Jack, Jake's horse, was less extroverted than the others, instead of getting lost in the woods, it lay down on the roots of the trees to rest. I was the first to enter, and as if mirroring Jack, I threw myself into one of the chairs in the parlor waiting for my sleep to take over, my stomach begun to grumble unashamedly. I had no choice but to wait for dinner. Then the others came in; the pouches dropped dead weight on the misshapen table in the center. The Sebian went to the kitchen and reappeared with a large tin full of food. Hendor had an impressive domain of the culinary arts. We ate so much that we could see the bedrooms miles away from us. We didn't mind spending the night lying on the floor. Hendor watched us without speaking, glancing from Jhon to me and then to Jake, waiting for someone to mention a thing. Anyone would've loved to tell him about the journey, but our weariness was even greater than our enthusiasm. I closed my eyes opposing the possibility of being questioned. Hendor cleared his throat again and again, no matter how much we ignored him, the guardian kept waiting for someone to tell him about the trip, about Aridya or how we got the seba.

—Hendor... —Jhon, unwilling to drag out the night, in the driest tone that could intonate his weariness and dissatisfaction, went straight to the point. —We'd better leave it for tomorrow. I don't even have the strength to breathe...

—Jhon, son! Jake can handle it.

—And why me? I'm just as tired!

—Easy, kids. Go get some rest then. My sir Jhon, I need you to hand over the seba first.

—It's in the pouch. Take the medal too.

Jake and I also noticed the discouragement in Jhon's rude manner as he left without saying goodnight to Hendor. The guardian paid no attention to him, instead he wished us a good night. Other than that, I remember nothing but our cadaverous appearance. I went straight to my assigned room and knew no more.

Since we left home, the days became more intense and our energy reserves were easily depleted, all due to inexperience, of course. We weren't Hendor, who was used to long journeys on foot. And with his false modesty he kept telling us that he had already lost his rhythm. I don't want to imagine what he was like when he was young!

Jhon and Jake had already woken up by the time I joined them for breakfast. This time I did mind asking Hendor what he was feeding us, he replied indifferently that it was nothing but forest food. He also told us that it was very important to keep us healthy, well-nourished and fit for the new duties ahead. We looked up intrigued by his confession. The deal between him and Jhon was supposed to be to go to Viena, to get the seba and find out what we could about his father. Once the mission was over, we would return home. We were supposed to... However, Hendor had new plans for us. He waited for us to finish eating and cleared away the dishes, returned with the seba, and from his shoulder hung a long black bag.