The Swords of Memory: Second Chances

Chapter 10

Zara appeared in the training room again. Eli was sitting against the wall but he was dressed differently than he had been before. He was wearing a plain pair shorts and a shirt. They looked to be made of the same material as the clothing Aaron had been wearing every time she saw him. Zara wondered why Eli's cloths were so plain while Aaron's were so colorful. Aaron usually had his black cloak, but without it his bright red clothing stood out in stark contrast. "Eli, I'm so glad to see you. What happened while I was gone?" He put his finger to his lips telling her not to continue.

"Zara, I'm so glad you're back. Eli had said he thought you would be coming back tonight. Hopefully your disappearing will take on some routine and we can consistently train at night, assuming you aren't tired from lack of sleep. I had one of the workers bring a pair of cloths for you. That way you can get rid of those dirty ones and won't have to wear that warm cloak." Aaron had come into the training room at the sound of her voice. He must have been waiting for her with Eli. Luckily Eli had warned her soon enough to keep her from revealing the secret of her disappearing. She had almost talked to him about this mom.

"Actually, I was hoping I could keep the cloak. I've gotten used to it and it will really come in handy if I ever have to pretend to be Daphne."

"About that. I've made a decision. With Garrett gone I am the effective head power core attendant so the decision really does fall to me. I want to introduce you to the villagers. I think that keeping you hidden or in disguise is a ridiculous idea that won't last. No matter what we would run into difficulties somewhere down the line. If not with you then with Eli. Instead of training tonight how about we all go tour the village?" Zara was thrilled by the news. She hadn't even been visiting the portal game for that long and was already itching to explore it. The only downside about inside was that it didn't feel like a new place. Every room had similar walls and there wasn't a lot to see overall.

"I would love to. Are you up for it Eli?"

"I don't know. Garrett said that it was safest for us to remain in hiding. Daniel thought so too."

"Come on Eli. Neither of them are here. I'll be right there with you guys to help explain your unique situation and to protect you if things end up escalating. I doubt they will though. Daniel and Garrett don't give our people enough credit. We are the historic peace keepers of the portal game. They seem to ignore that sometimes."

"I guess I'm all right with it then. We can always retreat to the castle if we get in trouble right?"

"That's what I'm saying." Aaron said. "Follow me. I'll give you guys the grand tour." Aaron gave Zara the cloths and then he and Eli waited outside while she changed. Once she called them in Aaron took Zara's old cloths and cloak. He took them into one of the rooms and then returned emptyhanded. Zara missed the cloak, but figured it wasn't really necessary. The village was very moderate in temperature and even in the tan dress she now found herself in, she was plenty comfortable.

They followed Aaron out of the castle and stopped to admire the sky. Again, Zara noted the lack of stars and the bright moon. They had only been outside at night in this place so everything still looked like it had when they first arrived. They traveled around the village and met the people who called it home. They met every adult in the village and got told about every kid. They visited all of the occupations that kept he village running. Every person was associated with some type of work. The village had farmers, smiths, glass workers, clothing makers, carpenters and people to manually pump water from the ground. There was also a home for the elderly and all orphans worked in the palace doing odd jobs. They found out along the tour that there were three power core attendants in training, the eldest of which was a boy named Hayden who was seventeen, just like Zara. Eli counted a total of 46 people, 49 if he included Daniel, Aaron, and Garrett.