The Lost Voices (OLD VERSION - New Version to Come)

CHAPTER 5... ACCIDENTS (PART 1)

Recording 2: The Fatherless

8-19-1620 A.R.

Location: Brickshaw, Terrarin

Malien waited for his best friend, Jack Aevum, at the dirt crossroads between Brickshaw's capital, the nearby mining village, its largest port city, and the road to the Britonia Wall. He'd grown up near this spot, but it only recently occurred to him how expansive the land really was. 

To the west stood the tumbling forests and pulsing rivers he played games in as a kid with his sister. Malien still had a small scar somewhere on the back of his skull from smacking it on a rock. She had accidentally pushed Malien into a stream while they were playing tag and she wasn't the least bit concerned when he started bawling. Then, before he realized he was doing it, Malien's hand was touching the spot on his head with tender pokes, as though it were still sensitive.

Not far off to his right, toward the east, were stretches of farmland and the faint noises of livestock could be heard with the wind. Flaking woodlands dotted the fields, but were vastly overwhelmed by the olive pastures, which felt arbitrarily painted in swaths of bronze ink. Shades of yellowing green and soft copper stood beside leaves of brightening oranges and sunbathed auburns. 

Eventually, several miles of tamed hills stretched down to the capital, which was an oddly huge gem to the surrounding farm country. Malien chalked up its bustling grandeur to how close Brickshaw was to the Britonia Wall in the north. Just beyond it was the industrial monarchy fueling the new machines and ideas of the age, which had rapidly trickled into Terrarin. 

The titanic wall loomed in the distance like an iron fortress between Frayix and Terrarin. It even stretched from sea to sea and was, supposedly, built long before either nation was founded, if the old stories are to be believed.

Then, to the southeast, rested the state's largest mining community. The mines were one of the few projects run by Terrarin's federal government, so only a handful of businesses were in that area, due to the factorial structure that dominated the village. Most of the town worked in the mines, especially the residential gear-heads. Hours were grueling in the caves, but it paid just enough to sustain a small family, even if you were one of the many workers that regularly visited the nearby tavern.

As Malien turned back toward the direction of the port city, he saw Jack coming up the path. Although the same age as Malien, he was bald and almost half a foot shorter than him. Despite the difference in height, Jack weighed much more than Malien due to his metal arms and shoulders. Otherwise lean, his gear-head appendages were entirely mechanical and bore no flesh. He donned a simple, dark overcoat, wore tight-fitting gloves to hide his metal hands, an austere, plaid vest, and faded trousers. Also, an unassuming pocket watch's silvery chain barely peaked out from the sown patch of his congenial vest. 

Usually, the one outstanding article to a passerby would be his powerful, great sword that was sheathed in a thick belt over his shoulder. However, even when this hulking item was present, Jack's amber eyes were easily the most piercing element Malien knew in his life. 

That is, his gaze made the world tremble with honesty. 

No matter how much Jack strove to hide his semblance, those eyes were the open blade that everyone took to noticing because no one's heart could conceal itself from his sight. At a distance still, he emotively waved to Malien. Instantly, Zoey barked from Jack's side before sprinting forward, her mouth agape with glee at seeing her master.

Malien leaned down, slapping his knees. "C'mere, Zo!" She leaped into him and he caught her in a bear hug, her front legs propped on his shoulders as she licked his forehead. "Blah, Zoey, c'mon." He let her down and she immediately tried to hop up again, but he caught her front paws on his arm. "I missed you too, girl, but you gotta stay down now." Zoey complied as he rubbed her nose, but wouldn't take her eyes off of Malien as she sat beside him, waiting for Jack.