Young Bathe always wondered about the endless forests and mazes of mountains that surrounded his village and why no one dared to step near them. Elders spoke the tales of an undead evil sleeping deep inside the forests that must not be woken.
It al...
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'How big is our world?' the child asked in his sweet cold voice. His eyes were filled with curiosity and wanted to know or at least to imagine.
'It's not vast. You shouldn't imagine it like it can't be described,' the old bald man replied, sitting in front of him. His skin looked unusually white in his white clothing.
'But father says it's endless. No one can wander the whole world in his entire life,' the child answered softly, he must have had a belief that his father couldn't be wrong.
The bald man let a swift smile grow over his face. He moved his eyes above the child's shoulder and tried to rest his thoughts; the child was patient and waited for him to answer. The man gazing the calm evening was called Berathelmus, and the child was named Bathe. They sat on the grassy earth near the porch of the hut.
'You look interested in Geography, and maybe the history of places,' Berathelmus said but Bathe didn't reply. 'What would you do with all the knowledge you would gain from me?' he said again with a smile on his face, expecting that Bathe would give him a witty but innocent reply.
'I want to go in the forests; I want to go beyond them and I want to see what's beyond them.'
'You fear that you will lose your path?' Berathelmus chuckled and asked, clearly he liked Bathe and wanted him to speak his mind.
'Father says there is nothing beyond the forests, our world is only our village and then the forests surrounding us. He says forests are endless.'
'Did you ever go to the west of the village?'
'I went there a few times, with father and I saw mountains rising at the distances, but father says even after mountains there are only forests.'
Bathe's face remained expressionless. He was ten years old and had dark eyes like his father. His dark hair rose up and down with the breeze. Berathelmus frowned at him like he wanted Bathe to speak more. 'Father never lets me step near the forest. He says I would get lost. He says there are beasts hiding inside them; and will eat my legs and arms if they saw me.'
Berathelmus smiled more. 'And what do you think?'
Bathe didn't immediately reply, taking his time to gather his thoughts while his mouth remained open.
'There can't be beasts inside them; why would the trees give them shelter? Beasts hide in dark and bad places, forests couldn't be like that. I sometimes dream about the other end of the forest that when I would get there, I would find a silver girl, in white glittering silver clothes, lighting places.'
His eyes were fixed upon Berathelmus, expecting to hear that he might be true. Berathelmus smile didn't broaden.
'I can extend your knowledge. But it will not help you pass the wild.'
He took a deep breath before starting.
'This village is a tiny part of this vast world. There are other places full of lives too—kingdoms, ancient tribes and cities and many more.'
