Silence in Sagas

6

Oliwa walked in sand that reached her ancles. The beach was enormous, and on the long end lay a structure she'd been inside of just a few minutes ago. She'd stepped out of its door and found it to be a shipwreck.

Oliwa walked some steps behind Arlos. Ismina behind them, and in front of her walked the man, Denevon.
The shore was narrow and framed by two cliffs. They walked away from it—over sand that stretched at least double the distance of the shoreline.

"Why a shipwreck?" she asked Arlos when they were half way to some rocks that led up to a green hill.

He looked at his father who was walking with determined steps, consistently staying in front of them. Arlos was staring ahead and stumbled on a rock in the sand. He regained his composure and cleared his throat. "It's our headquarter"—Oliwa furrowed her eyebrows at that—"It has been located here as long as I can remember, but if you want to know why..." he looked around. "I don't know, I guess this is a pretty hidden beach—not many people know about it."

"Headquarters? In that little ship?"
Arlos shook his head. His eyes gleamed, and he turned to Oliwa. "You see, it's actually a lot bigger than that. You didn't see it, but if-if you look closely, there are hatches that lead down to tunnels underground—countless of them.

Oliwa nodded at the same time that Denevon turned in front of them. "Son," he said curtly, and Arlos looked uncomfortable. "Don't go around telling people our secrets without knowing if you can trust them."

Arlos said nothing, and an Arlos twisted in the silence. Something compelled Oliwa to speak up. "You can trust me," she said.
Denevon looked at her, and she thought she understood why Arlos had looked uncomfortable. Having those unpredictable eyes pierce you wasn't a pleasant experience.

"We can?" Arlos asked.

Oliwa looked Denevon in the eye and swallowed her discomfort. The decision had been made some place between the shipwreck and the rocks Arlos had stumbled over. "I'll help you," she said and meant it. "I'll help you take down the Tournament."

Denevon raised his eyebrows, but said nothing.
Arlos smiled cautiously. "See, Dad?"

Denevon didn't reply. He studied Oliwa. Their walking had come to a stop. Ismina caught up to them.

"Why?" Denevon asked. "Why would you help us?"

"Isn't this what you wanted?" Oliwa said.

"Yes," Denevon scratched his pointy nose. "But if my Order is going to trust you, I need to know why you're doing this."

Oliwa stood her ground. "If it is as you say—and I don't see why you'd go through all this trouble if it wasn't..." she shook her head, frustrated. "Willa is my friend"—she took a breath—"I want to save my friend. You want to take down the Tournament. Why not do it together?"

Denevon nodded. "Very well." He reached a hand towards her. She took it.

Ismina stood behind them. "It's good and well to shake hands to seal the deal and all, but I have sand up to my thighs, and I really want to get going."

Denevon nodded, and they walked on.

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A/N

Hi there👋🏻
Thank you so much for reading my story—it really means a lot.

Writer's block hit for the first time while writing this chapter, so it's a shorter one, but I kind of don't think it needs to be any longer (excuses, excuses🌞).

Anyways, thanks again for reading.
If you find it good enough for a vote, consider hitting that star. It'd mean a lot to me :3

~Olissa