From Embers

15 - Soup for the Soul Part 1

Twig couldn't remember the last time she'd gotten a good night's sleep. Whereas her bottom felt as if it was in permanent slumber. From a young age, she'd never been too fond of long trips. She longed to be home. In the flowers and mushrooms that her fellow winged creatures had lived in for centuries.

As if sensing Twig's sadness Kraneia let out a yawn and spoke, "I heard you grew up in Alvorlin. What's it like there? I've heard tales of the beauty of the flowers that grow on the mountainside."

Wings perking up, Twig fluttered them, excited to reminisce about her home. "The crystal flower fields that stretch far up the Alvorlin mountain range are breathtaking. Shades of violet, blue, and silver stretch as far as the eye can see. Even its history is interesting. The flowers were said to have magical healing properties. So when the first fairies made their homes in these plants, some of the flowers' magic infused into them."

Twig even found herself missing her training. Her wings drooped. Coming from a long line of gifted healers she was expected to carry on her families' work. It was how she'd met the twins. During one of their training missions, it brought the elves to Alvorlin. They'd been injured and were in need of food and medicine before carrying on their journey. It had been an instant friendship between the three.

"Are ye okay?" Alanis whispered, "Ye've been ratha quiet today."

The fairy ran a hand through her hair. "I'm not sure. I have this increasing feeling of dread as we get closer to Balfield."

"It's not just ye, even the air around us seems tae be stagnant. It's almost hard tae breathe sometimes. But then again, maybe it's just the nerves getting to me. Have ye seen that trail of smoke above the trees? Whatever's burnin' hasn't stopped for days."

"That would be Balfield," Sen interjected. "The dryads brought word to my father before we left. The surrounding village was destroyed. It's been burning for weeks. There's a high chance that we will only find ash there."

"Then why are we going?" Twig questioned Sen.

"Because we have no clue where the heart was taken. To find a lost item, one must start from the last place it was seen. We'll poke around for at most a day or two before leaving."

Kraneia piped up, "Won't the humans notice we aren't one of them? Why would they open their doors to us?"

"Exactly." Rhistel pointed to her ears. "A can't fold these in. They aren't exactly the same shape as human ones."

"Only drunk humans still live there. The real army left shortly after the attack. Keep them drunk and they won't notice any differences with us."

"A sense a big if coming up."

"Mud humans have been sighted spending a second force towards the city. If we make it there before them, the plan is foolproof. If not, well, let's not think about it."

"So no plan B?" Rhistel gave Sen a skeptical look.

"There won't be a need for one."

"That donna seem like a very solid plan there. What if ma hat falls off? A'd rather not be skewered before our adventure even starts. Plus ye've got some real pointy teeth there. Canna miss those if ye tried."

Sen straightened his back. "Trust me, we'll be fine. Elven alcohol is potent to humans; their stomachs can't handle it. It has been known to cause hallucinations in mud humans who've drunk it in large amounts. These men have had unfiltered access to barrels of this stuff. They wouldn't realize if a dragon flew over them."

"If a die, A'll haunt yer wee ass." Rhistel threatened.

Twig laughed. "A fate worse than death."