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Feel the Silence

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Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Posts: 7,994 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
That night they reached the cliffs above the beaches. They left Rimmington and reentered the forest. As the hours passed, the vegetation became more thick and the air more humid. Pine, oak, and maple trees faded to leafy palm trees, and thick shrubs faded to flowering vines. It was summer, and the sun became even hotter further south. Finally they exited the forest altogether and came across a large plain, dotted with palm trees, that stretched out before them until it dropped off steeply. The air smelled of salt and far below, they could hear the waves crashing on the rocks. To the east and west, the cliffs eventually sloped downward to the beach.

Riders had gone to scout the beach in both directions, and when they returned, word quickly spread throughout the camp. The party they had defeated, that had burned Rimmington, was camped just east of where they were. What they were doing on the beach, no one knew. The camp buzzed with confidence; they had the Kandarins cornered, and they could soon finish them off. Lucas heard the soldiers passing the news along to each other: tomorrow, they would attack.

As he settled by a fire that night and laced his hands behind his head, staring at the open sky, he let his mind wander to tomorrow. What was going to happen? Since he had heard the declaration, he felt nauseous and sick. His skin felt clammy and he was restless, unable to lay still. The first time, he’d had no warning, and had been forced to act quickly, gather himself together and fight. Now, he knew well in advance, they all did, and he had all hours of the night to dwell on it and worry at his fears like a sore tooth. The questions rampaged through his mind. ‘What if I get hurt? What if I die? Will it be painful, or quick? Who will tell Justine? What will she think? What will happen to her?” He rolled onto his side, burying his face in the crook of his elbow. “No, no, Lucas…” he muttered to himself. “Just quit it, all right?”

07-Jul-2008 01:07:15 - Last edited on 06-Jul-2013 18:22:23 by Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Posts: 7,994 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
His other prospects weren’t much better. Lucas wasn’t sure he could stomach killing again - he wasn’t quite over his first kill. He still did*’t know how to fight. The helplessness was terrifying; it consumed every part of him and his thoughts, making his head pound and his stomach clench. Tomorrow he would have to wake up, go into battle, alone, unable to use the sword that was now tucked under his pack, and somehow make it out alive. It seemed impossible, and there was nothing he could do.

Lucas sat up, scrubbing at his eyes. “Come on…” he whispered. He had to get his mind off this, for it was doing him no good. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the letter to repeat his nightly ritual. He ran his fingers over the writing, grimacing at the words, then pulled out the paper and read the letter, mouth moving soundlessly as he went, squinting slightly against the darkness. When he was done he folded the sheets and slid them back into the envelope, then pressed his lips carefully to the writing. “Gods, please, protect me tomorrow. Just let me get back to her, all right? Let me make it out alive.”

Then he slid the letter back into his pocket and reached for his pack. After rummaging a moment, he withdrew his hands, holding a pad of paper and a pen. He bit the cap off and sat with his legs crossed, and then he began to write.

“Dearest Justine,

Forgive me for not writing before this. I haven’t been busy, exactly, but a lot has happened. There is so much I wish to tell you now. I just needed some time to process it. I fought in my first battle, two days ago, you see. It was exciting, to say the least. We were ambushed in the night, but somehow we managed to regroup and beat back the Kandarins. I missed it – I was wounded and passed out. Nothing serious, don’t worry! A small stomach wound. It doesn’t hurt, really. I did*’t fight well, though, I’m embarrassed to say. The truth is I have no clue what I’m doing here.

Today we came to Rimmington, and –“

07-Jul-2008 01:07:57 - Last edited on 06-Jul-2013 18:22:34 by Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Posts: 7,994 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Lucas couldn’t bring himself to tell her the little town was gone. He was still having trouble accepting that fact himself. Justine had always wanted to visit there, out in the country. He could hear her in his mind, talking about it with great excitement. *It must be so wonderful, all the little farms, and the countryside. I bet you can see the horizon, all the way to where the sky touches the earth. Not like the crowded buildings here in the city. The farmer-folk who come to the city always seem so quaint and rugged – I should very much like to meet them! If you see it, Lucas, you must write about it to me!” Sighing, he struggled to find the right words.

“—and a house had caught fire, just as we arrived. We stopped to help and were able to put it out, and rescue the people inside. I saved a little boy, Justine! It was scary, being in the burning building, but now I feel wonderful that I was able to save a life. It is nice to do some good.”

She would be proud of that, he hoped. He could imagine her reaction as if he was telling her in person. She would gasp in fright as he told her how he rushed into the building, then applaud, laughing, when he told her how he was able to carry the boy out. Oh, she would be proud of him!

“Now we have marched further, and tomorrow we are to go to battle again.”

Lucas hesitated, rolling the pen back and forth between his fingers, sighing deeply. He tried to sort out his emotions, but couldn’t seem to make sense of any of it. He wrote the first coherent thought that came to mind.

“I’m afraid, Justine. It shames me greatly to admit such, but I am terrified. I never learned how to fight. I cannot imagine what might happen to me out there. Oh, how I wish I could return home to you! I miss you more than you could ever know. It is thoughts of you that get me through these long days and nights.

07-Jul-2008 01:08:32 - Last edited on 06-Jul-2013 18:22:47 by Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Posts: 7,994 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Please, don’t worry about me, love. I’ll be fine. I have not meant to frighten you with all this talk. I will be brave when the time comes, and I will fight as well as I can and come home safe to you. Your father will no longer be able to deny me. We’ll get married and have the life we always dreamed of. Please, tell my mother I miss her and I’ll be home soon. And you must write soon! I want to hear everything that’s going on back home – all the court gossip, all the news, all the things you have been doing.

I love you, Justine, and I miss you.

With love,

Lucas.”

He capped the pen and carefully folded the sheet of paper. Unfortunately, he had no envelopes, so on the blank side of the letter he wrote neatly, “Justine Val’Myran, 12th on Main St, Varrock.” Then he tucked it into his pack to deliver at the next town they reached. Lying back down, Lucas stuffed the bag under his head for a pillow and tried to gather his thoughts. He wanted desperately to tell himself if would be all right, but knew it would be a lie. Whatever would happen tomorrow, he couldn’t change it. He could only wait and see, so he might as well try and get some sleep. Closing his eyes, he let sleep claim him.

His sleep was anything but peaceful. When he opened his eyes, there was fire everywhere, and after a moment, realized he was back in the burning inn, in Rimmington. Lucas tried to scream, but had no voice, and nothing more than a harsh rasping noise escaped his throat. He ran further into the building as the ceiling collapsed, trying to find an exit, but they were all blocked. Terrified, he stopped, spinning, and gasped as Kandarin soldiers poured into the building from all sides. They simply materialized through the walls and came at him menacingly with weapons drawn. His hand went to his hip and found his belt empty. He was unarmed and surrounded.

07-Jul-2008 01:09:16 - Last edited on 06-Jul-2013 18:22:58 by Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Posts: 7,994 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
The smoke clogged his throat and he fell to his knees, sobbing, as the first of the soldiers reached him. They laughed mockingly at his fear, and as he looked up at them to beg for mercy, their faces changed. The one standing over him with his sword raised was now Gavin, the craggy old soldier he had hoped to befriend.

“Foolish kid,” laughed the old warrior. “Thinkin’ you could fight.”

“Go back to your girl,” chortled Reynolds.

“You don’t belong here, kid,” sneered Martin.

“No! I can fight!” Lucas pleaded.

“Then stand up and fight us like a man!” He whirled, falling sideways in the process, more afraid than ever. It was a voice he knew well, a voice that had haunted his dreams ever since he left. As he scrambled to his feet, a sword appeared in his hand and he waved it awkwardly. A few of the soldiers jumped back.

“Oho! He thinks he can fight!”

“Put your toy away, boy!” growled the same voice. He cowered back under that steely blue gaze.

“You’re wrong,” he hissed. *No! I’ll prove you all wrong!”

But his sword felt as though it weighed a ton. It was dragging him down, crashing into the burning floor, and suddenly it seared his hands and he dropped it with a yell. The soldiers advanced again under the command of the man with the steely blue gaze, and Lucas retreated until he was backed up against the wall. There was nothing more he could do.

“No * please – no!*

He shot upright in his bedroll, the scream fading quickly in his throat. Panting, he stared around, fighting to get his bearings. There was no fire, no suffocating smoke; there was only the open plain, the cliffs, the crashing of the ocean far below and the deep blue sky above.

07-Jul-2008 01:10:00 - Last edited on 06-Jul-2013 18:23:08 by Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Crystal Smee

Posts: 7,994 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
“A dream…” he told himself. “It was just a dream. A nightmare. You’re okay, Lucas.”

Across the fire, another soldier sat upright. “Keep it quiet, kid,” the man grumbled. “Some of us’re tryin’ to sleep, a’right?”

“Yeah,” Lucas muttered, and lay back down. “Sleep. Right.” But no more sleep came, though he tried hard. So Lucas lay on his back, gazing sadly up at the sky. He watched it fade from blue to gray, heard the earliest risers in the camp wake and go about their business, and felt the pit in his stomach grow. Soon it would be time for battle.

07-Jul-2008 01:10:18 - Last edited on 06-Jul-2013 18:23:17 by Crystal Smee

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