Age of Lions

Chapter 2

A Struggling Heart

June and Talia walked straight back to home from after assisting Blinky as the troll-citizens new leader from losing their home of what was once Heartstone Trollmarket. June stepped onto her front porch, took out a small ring that hold the keys and flight through the one for her work at the pharmacy, one from her troll-home, the garage, and last but, not least the key to their house. She unlocked the front door and took a good look of the inside of their home. "I can hardly remember the last time I was in this place," June sighed looking at the living room, dining room, and the kitchen.

She set her bag on the counter and opened the fridge, "What do you feel like for dinner?" she asked. "I'm pretty sure you must be hungry from all the excitement." She looked back and saw her niece all silent and gloom. This was something that she was not expecting. June had always known Talia to be so quickly resilient, but now she appeared to be depressed a sudden. "Hey? Are you okay?"

"Huh?" Talia heard her aunt grabbing her attention. "Oh. . .yeah. I am just. . .tired is all. I'm gonna go to my room." June watched the young girl walked up stairs holding on to the wooden rail slowly and makes a turn to the right.

Talia opens the door to her chamber and turns on the light from her lamp showing her art, desk, bookshelf, and hammock. She takes a seat on the swinging bed and gently lays back with her head hanging viewing the whole room upside down with the floor above and the ceiling below. She takes a deep breath and lets out a depressing sigh. Talia was glad that she and her friends got the trolls out, but. . .they weren't able to save everybody. They lost their second home and Vendel. The thought of him crossed her mind from what when Blinky had told her during their time helping the trolls take refuge in an old warehouse they had found for them to stay.

. . .

"Blinky. What happened while I was missing?" she asked.

"What? I thought that your aunt had told you everything." He raised his stone eyebrows astonished.

"Only about the part of about Usurna being the traitor and all. But. . .Vendel being. . ." Talia couldn't bring up the 'D' word.

Blinky sadly sighed and slightly angry grasping his staff tight remembering watching the display from the Anamnesis stone of Vendel being murdered burned raging deep inside his heart. But Blinky however remained calm, looked at the girl and answer, "When we informed him of the changeling spy during the trial. He- - Vendel- - "he could not find the words 'til he finally explained. "He- -somehow knew or was onto Usurna, before- - ".

"Before?" Talia looked at him hoping for him to answer.

Blinky's six eyes were starting to show tears, "Usurna took his life. Before he warned us from his dying message."

Talia eyes bulged out wide with complete shock and distraught feeling the pain taking its toll in her heart.

. . .

Another soul, another person she had cared about taken away from her. She had may have known Vendel for a short time. But somehow, someway, she did idolize him as her surrogate grandfather. The grumpy old troll with the long goatee beard always bossing her during her checkups and training before she had learned the origins of her powers. Even remember the times she gets into arguments with him sometimes. But when she finally came home from after dealing her time struggling through the Darklands. They were really starting to warm up to each other. Vendel making sure she was in good condition recovering from the poison, sharing the knowledge of her people with him that Marshall had acquired, and even help her and Jim more of their training. She believed the old troll was starting to have faith in them. The thought of him pictured in her head came to mind her face started to cringe as her eyes shut tight and tears begin to shed. The overwhelming pain of loss was starting to consume her.

Then a ding was heard from her hoodie pocket. She raised her upside down head from the hammock and reached over to read a text from Toby: Yoh! Amazon! Emergency! We've got a major madhouse going on!

Talia replies her text in response: What is it?

But her answer was: Just get over here fast!