Unspoken

Chapter Ten

Despite my muscles screaming at the slightest movement, I blinked the water out of my eyes and tried to wake up. Wait, where was I again? Why was I in a tree?
Surely, I didn’t sleepwalk all this way… Wait, do I even walk in my sleep? No, I don’t think so…
Then the memories flooded. I recalled our failed attempt to avoid the soldiers searching for us, the ambush we’d fallen right into. I felt compelled to picture the men who’d held me back and forced me to watch as the man, Rusc, stood over my injured sister—as Fray so desperately protected her. Like the opposite of sparking a flame, the memory caused a cold chill to creep down my spinal column. I despised this feeling, the terror they’d incited.
I will never forget his face, nor will I forget to strike it the moment I see it again.
As I rubbed the sleep from my eyes, I was surprised to find dried tears. I thought for a moment, then remembered what’d happened just before I’d fallen asleep. After the events we’d endured that night, I had been unable to keep my emotions at bay. It was embarrassing, the thought of crying, especially since I’d tried to be stronger as of late. Ever since the vision had lit such a fire within me, I had told myself it was time to start over, to move forward. But this? This time I had been afraid of losing the only family I had left; it was no surprise emotion overtook me.
There is absolutely no way could come back from losing them…
The sound of foliage crunching beneath boots brought me back to reality. Panic was my immediate reaction, considering the possible danger. Had those Avartians discovered our hiding place?
“Oh, never mind,” I mumbled to myself, now peering downwards to see Kaine slowly pacing back and forth beneath the tree.
“What are you so impatiently waiting on?” I asked, making quick work of climbing down the small and trickier branches. When I was low enough, I merely dropped down, landing smoothly. I then dusted myself off and looked at Kaine, awaiting his response.
“I want my son, and to know why Avartian soldiers were after him,” he replied, as straight to the point as ever.
“Good to know you were so worried about my sister and I, Kaine,” I replied, obviously satire.
His stone-cold and serious expression softened, as if he realized the mistake he’d made. Yes, Kaine was a warrior—on constant guard—always ready for possible war to break out. Yes, he was known for sparing little time for festivities or fun of any kind, not to mention the ‘work-focused’ standard for his battalion he kept. But beneath the frigid exterior Kaine was still human, and honestly, if you asked me, he forgot that fact far too often.
“I apologize, Phoenix,” he said, speaking quietly now. “I assure you I am just as glad the two of you are safe.”
I heaved a sigh, then looked up to the branch Adara and Fray were still sleeping on. “We’ve become rather attached to him, you know, and I’m not just talking about Adara. This may shock you, but just yesterday I told him I consider him a family member.”
Kaine’s steel-like eyes indicated surprise. It was clear he hadn’t expected to hear me say that, though I couldn’t blame him. Kaine had known me my entire life, and he’d watched me grow up via occasional visits he used to pay Aridor. If anything, Kaine had been like an uncle to Adara and I, as odd as that arrangement sounds. Our two clans, whose shared past was muddled with blood-soaked battle fields, wars started over petty arguments… Surely, we would be the last to forge family bonds.
“I never thought I’d see the day when you would grow fond of anyone from my clan, much less welcome them as a member of your family, Heiress,” Kaine said, as if reading my mind.
No… Neither did I.
“Well, it seems I’m not quite as stubborn as my father after all,” I murmured.
“Yes, Isabel always had an open mind towards the other clans, especially Amarin.”
I looked at him, noticing the buried sorrow in those harsh eyes of his—the grief. He didn’t say anything more to me after that, though, and instead called out to Fray. It wasn’t long before the two sleepyheads stirred, though Fray didn’t raise his head one bit.
“Oh, Kaine!” Adara called eagerly, albeit half asleep. “Good morning!”
“Yes, good morning, Adara…” Kaine replied. “Would you please wake my son?”
I watched as she shook Fray’s shoulder, beckoning him to get up, but Fray only groaned and mumbled “don’t want to.”
“Come on, you cotton-brained Amarinian…” Adara joked as she tried to shake him again. “If you don’t get up so we can speak with Kaine, I’m going to shove you out of this tree, do you understand?”
Fray let out another groan, then reluctantly sat up, scrubbing at his eyes. “Fine…”
Soon enough the two of them flew down to us, quickly dispelling their wings after. I could tell how sleepy they both were and sympathized, but I knew we needed to get moving.
Who knows if Avartians might still be lurking about… The little pests.
“Good morning, Father,” Fray greeted, almost reluctantly, his tone and body language screaming: aloof.
Right, I almost forgot about the animosity Fray harbors against Kaine, and let’s not forget his mother…
Kaine nodded, though the gesture came off rather formal. Then he hesitated and held his chin, as if contemplating how to word his response. When he did speak, he didn’t sound at all sure of himself, but this wasn’t the first time I’d heard the Clan Leader of Amarin this way. I may not have been one for words, but Kaine?
“Tell me, son, are you missing home?”
Fray flinched, either out of surprise or perhaps his nerves were finally kicking in, I couldn’t tell. Nevertheless, he did his best to try and dodge the question.
“What sort of question is that?”
“One that was clear and rather answerable, or so I thought,” Kaine replied, rather diplomatically. “You may tell me otherwise if you disagree.”
Fray stubbornly looked off to the side. “Of course I miss home, father… Most of it, anyway, but not enough to want to go back yet. There are really, really important things I’ve found here.”
“No offense to the Heiresses,” Kaine said, casting my sister and I an assuring glance before continuing. “But what you’ve found, Fray, is an extremely dangerous undertaking… One that will lead you to a land where those dwelling in the shadows of Deor don’t even dare step foot. Do you think the snakes in Avartia are just going to let you walk right in because you’ve had a couple of weeks to train?”
Kaine shook his head, as if answering his own question. “I don’t want to lose my only son to people like that. Do you understand?”
Wait, how does he know that we’re going to Avartia? Did Fray send him letters...? Yes, that must be the case, there’s no other way he’d know.
It was chilling—both literally and figuratively—to stand near Kaine as he spoke. The intimidating aura of a clan leader radiating off him, the bitter chill that came with it… Not to mention that in his speech he’d said one of the ancient words that was so rarely said aloud. It was a serious, and—some say—real curse. The realm of Deor was believed to be just as real as Aeon, but a far more unpleasant place. Supposedly, it housed creatures such as devils, goblins, ghouls, and everything in between. It was said that just speaking the very name of that place could not only curse your soul, but also summon demons to our world. Yes, of course, there were many people who didn’t take it seriously and said it anyway, but it was still startling to hear Kaine speak it.
“I understand…” Fray began. “But know that I refuse to leave Adara’s side. If she must enter a place even worse than Deor itself, then I won’t let her go without me.”
I watched as Adara smiled slightly, seemingly moved by his words, then moved to take hold of his hand, interlacing her fingers with his. Kaine’s visage hinted surprise for a moment, but almost immediately switched to amusement. He grinned just slightly, which was unexpected from someone so serious.
“Courting, are you?”
I felt bad, but physically could not hold back my laughter and had to cover my mouth just to keep it to a chuckle as Fray’s face flushed the deepest red I’d ever seen. Adara only bashfully glanced off to the side—as if she didn’t really mind—but Fray?
Oh, oh no… Poor, poor Fray.
“I-I-I...” He stuttered. “W-we… We, uh... Um—!”
Fray continued struggling to get any words out, while Kaine merely stood there, arms crossed, knowing full well this was all his doing. All I could think was that this was his way of correcting Fray’s rebellious behavior.
Even still… He looks so smug, it’s almost shocking. No wonder Fray defies him.
“Come on, Fray, spit it out,” Kaine said sternly, though he seemed more amused, rather impatient. If anything, it felt like he was teasing Fray.
“Y-yes, we… Are…” Fray swallowed nervously; his ice-colored eyes practically melted by embarrassment. “We are c-c… Courting, Father.”
“Good, it seems you’ve improved,” Kaine replied. “A few weeks ago, I doubt I’d have gotten two words out of you before you ran off.”
Ah, so Kaine was testing him? That makes sense.
Fray calmed at last, and determination washed to replace his flustered appearance, perhaps rebellion again? Then he began speaking, going right back to the same tone that got him into the circumstance he’d just recovered from.
“I am not running from anything anymore, Father. I’ve decided not to, I’ve been shown I don’t need to… I can fight, I’ve finally found that I can fight.”
I noticed the look he cast in my direction, as well as giving Adara’s hand a squeeze. Then I saw Kaine look over at me as well, and I met his steady gaze, giving him a clear message.
I told you we’d grown rather attached to him, didn’t I?
Kaine heaved a sigh upon reading my expression, then looked back to the pair of lovebirds before him. “Alright, I’ll allow you to go with them, but you must come back without a scratch on you... All three of you are coming back alive, do you understand?”
I blinked, finding that to be a strangely wholesome request. Then again, he’d experienced the same loss we had, and I knew he didn’t want to lose us, so…
Adara grinned. “That might be the sweetest thing you’ve ever said, Kaine. Although, you must know we’ve already planned on doing that, so you’re a little late.”
He lightly scoffed. “Are you going to make the promise or not?”
“Yes, we are,” I said, finally speaking for the first time in what felt like ages.
I walked up to join them, taking a breath before continuing. “I, Phoenix, First Heir of Aridor, personally swear not to perish on this expedition to the dreadful wasteland we call Avartia.”
Adara rolled her eyes. “Well, diverting from Phoenix’s optimism… I, Adara, Second Heir of Aridor, swear not to ‘perish’ on our expedition to Avartia, either. I have faith we are strong enough to do this.”
Fray laughed a bit. “Alright, my turn it seems,” he said. “I, Fray, First Heir of Amarin, swear that I will fight and work as hard as I can on this journey to help everyone make it there and back safely. I know none of us will die, so I am not afraid.”
That… Was actually quite inspiring.
When Fray finished speaking, he received a pair of approving nods from Adara and I. Now that we’d all made our little pacts, we looked to Kaine in unison, silently asking if this was satisfactory for him.
“Yes, yes, obviously you can go,” he muttered, amusement glinting in his eyes like metal reflecting the sun.
Fray cheered and jumped up, grinning a bit. Considering his joy, I wondered if he was going to make it snow again, but no rogue snowfalls occurred. I assumed it was because he was on guard, given Kaine’s presence.
“Alright, you three, I think it’s about time we get you moving,” Kaine said, interrupting Fray's celebration.
“Yes, but how?” Fray asked. “We aren’t ready.”
“He has a point,” I said. “We’ve been saving up gold, but I doubt it’s enough for a boat just yet. Plus, we need to figure some other things out, we hadn't planned on leaving for a few more weeks.”
I shared a look with Fray and Adara, feeling uncertain. The recent event was still fresh in my mind, and it hadn’t quite fully set in for me. Our plans were ruined. We could no longer carry on with our training as usual, not with the looming threat of Avartians at our throats. So, what now, then?
“You won’t have to worry about any of that anymore,” Kaine insisted, though I had no idea what he was on about.
What? Does he have a surprise for us or something?
“What do you mean, Kaine?” I asked cautiously.
“You’ll see soon enough... Let’s take a walk down to the docks, shall we?”
“I… I suppose so," I replied, taken aback.
I shared a confused glance with Adara, who clearly didn’t hold any answers. Fray was just going along with it, like he was used to Kaine acting this way. No surprise there. Well, whatever was in store for us, I hoped it would help solve this conundrum. I knew we could rely on Kaine for help, but what could possibly make us ‘not need to worry about any of that anymore’? I’d find out soon enough, at least… But it was a long walk to the docks, I was sure to suffer small talk for the next twenty minutes. Fantastic.