Revival: Of Cethore ✔

Chapter Six

Chapter Six: Sore Feet and Heavy Loads

It was the seventh day since Samari left her home village, and all she had been doing was travelling. The past two days, she had either ridden in the cart of a traveler or walked on foot over the hilly area of Magmia. Another full day's journey lay ahead of her, so she had to move quickly if she hoped to arrive before dark.

She hoped that she was correct in her assumption, because the village she had left that morning was the last one until the temple. If it was abandoned, she would be spending the night in the cold.

Samari was hot, tired, and had quite sore feet. The feeling was familiar to her, but not at all pleasant. Most of the trees in Magmia were in small clumps rather sparse in the land. It was rare for any to be by the path, for they were hewed down when the road was carved out from the hills.

After days on the road, she felt grimy from travel and wished there was a water hole she could bathe in. If she saw herself in a mirror, she would probably be horrified by the sight.

The bag with all her valuables weighed her down, making her shoulders ache from the straps. As much as it hurt now, it would have been a lot heavier if she had not convinced herself to leave all but one of her books behind. All that she had left to read was a blank book she was filling with all her stories she hoped to pick up beyond her home village.

Sweating atrociously, Samari decided now was as good a time as any to eat some of her rations. All she had was bread and salted meat, but it was enough to last her a week if need be. As for her water, if she didn't find clean water in a few days, she was doomed.

Taking a swig, she started building her pitiful sandwich. Since she didn't have time to stop and rest while eating, she had to be careful not to trip over the uneven path. Far off the path, there was a herd of a few hundred cows enjoying their lunch as well. Most likely, there was a pond or well nearby that they could drink from, and a herder not far off.

Magmia was full of herdsmen and cattle. Even after Cethore was united, most Eartherns kept their traditional lifestyles. The Gruilers who lived in the hilly lands used the meat and skins from the cattle for food and clothing and forging weapons out of their horns.

Having been so lost in thought, Samari took a while to process the scene before her. There at the bottom of the hill was a small tree not too far from the path. Clinging to the branches were beautiful peaches that looked just about ripe as they weighed down the tree's small branches.

It couldn't be more than five years old based on its size, but it was very full. Judging by the state of its health, she knew that someone had to have been caring for it. She quickly went to take a closer look.

They didn't have trees in her village in Trilous as the grasslands didn't have enough water to grow trees. The only one she had seen was a fallen oak the children had made a playground out of. There were some trees in Fryco she had seen from the boat, but this was the first time she had seen a sapling–and it was a peach tree!

All her curiosity screamed at her to touch it, to feel the smooth leaves, the grooves in the bark, and the fuzz on the fruit, but she knew that her touch would hurt the tree if she touched the wrong place, same as the crops her village always grew.

"Hey! What are you doing!"

Samari fell back in surprise, scooching away onto the road. "I'm sorry, I–I didn't touch it. It was...just so pretty, uh, and I...wanted to see," she mumbled, her vocal cords strained after their extended rest.

Her eyes turned to see the caretaker coming slowly down the hill in his wagon. He paid little attention to her when he hopped down to inspect the sapling. A deep sigh of relief left him before he turned to her.