Chapter 4. Fond Farewell

The yellow-tinted sky of dawn woke Kyni from his doze, his nightmare completely forgotten. He stretched and got out of his bed. He dressed quickly, pulling on his burgundy doublet - he had to make an impression. He left his room and journeyed through the living room to the kitchen. There, he saw his mother busying herself cooking. The smell of cooked sausage wafted its way towards his nostrils and his stomach gave out a low growl in reply. Freda turned at the sound and smiled at him.

"Good morning, Kyni. Sleep well? I'm currently cooking tomatoes, sausages and nice crispy bacon if you want some."

"Aye, that'll about do, thank you," replied Kyni, pulling a chair out and sitting at the table. Freda brought over his food and placed it upon his plate, where Kyni immediately ravished the plate without pause. Soon, he was scraping the last remnants of food across his plate. All the while, his mother watched him, concerned. Kyni pushed the plate away and spoke.

"That was lovely, thank you."

"You're welcome," she replied, "Kyni. Are you sure about this?"

"About what?" said Kyni, bewildered.

"About going up to the mountain. About digging around and finding out about your past. The past can hurt."

Kyni put a hand upon his mother's and looked into her eyes. "Yes. I am sure."

"But-"

"Look," interrupted Kyni. "I know you are only thinking about me and my wellbeing. But I think I need to do this. For too long, this idea that I am different and unwanted has plagued me. Now I have the chance to find out the truth."

Freda studied Kyni's face for a while. She saw how set he was upon this and knew that it was a lost cause.

"Okay," she relented. "At least take this with you."

She slipped her hand away from Kyni's and went into the living room. She came back holding something in her hand. "Here, take it."

She passed it to Kyni and he saw that it was a beautifully decorated belt and dagger sheath. It was made of leather, with golden silk woven into it. Stitched along the length the sheath, were the words 'A Lord of Stone'.

"It's beautiful," whispered Kyni. "but I have no dagger for it."

"I wouldn't say that, son," came a gruff voice from the doorway. Kyni turned around in his seat and saw his father framed in the doorway.

Elboran walked into the room and grinned. In his hand, he was holding an ornate dagger.

"I know it's not of Dwarfish-quality, but it's the best blade I've ever made."

He handed it to Kyni, who rotated the dagger in his hand. It had streaks of gold laced through the handle, as well as a small pommel with what looked like a sapphire fashioned into the hilt.

"They're both beautiful," said Kyni, sliding the blade into its sheath. It fit perfectly. "Thank you."

Both of his parents smiled back at him.

A silence followed where none of them knew what to say.

"Well, erm, you'd best get packing, oughtn't you, lad?" said Elboran, after several more seconds of awkward silence.

"Yes, I'd best do that."

Kyni got up to leave. On his way out though, he hugged both his parents.

"Thank you," he whispered again, before navigating his way through the rooms to prepare himself for the journey ahead of him.