Trail of Tears -- written by DarkMoon
Chapter 2-- Wingly Logic and More Adventuring
As a clock somewhere chimed 6 'o clock, two guards came in. Fiora was deep in conversation with Dart and Haschel, but Albert inclined his head towards the guards, both of whom were looking very surly.
"You have something to report?" he asked them. One of them nodded curtly and stepped forward.
"There's another person who presumably wants to see one of you," he said, gesturing at all of them.
"Why presumably?" Dart asked, pausing in his conversation with Fiora.
The guard looked embarrassed. "Well, that's the funny thing. This one's even stranger than her," he said, nodding in Fiora's direction. She narrowed her eyes, but didn't say anything. The guard continued. "He won't talk, for one thing. We asked him what he wanted, but he didn't respond. And he's got a funny feeling about him, like he's radiating energy."
Fiora glanced at Meru briefly, then stood up. "He's a friend of mine, and I'd advise you not to question him too much. Strictly speaking, he's not a 'people person.'" The guard stared at her as if this statement made the both of them that much stranger.
Albert rolled his eyes. "Well, you heard the lady. Send him in." The guard blinked, nodded once, and left the room, followed closely by the other guard. They came back a few minutes later, marching a cloaked man between them like a captured prison escapee. Fiora's face split into a wide grin when she saw him. The guards seemed to interpret this as a bad sign; each gave ashort bow and practically ran from the room.
"Albert, you really should try to find some braver people to guard your castle," Fiora said, moving forward to stand in front of the newcomer. "Alright 'Sri, you don't have to hide anymore. Actually, you didn't have to in the first place. See, she isn't hiding," she said, jerking a thumb back over her shoulder at Meru. The cloaked figure turned slightly to look at the petite girl, and then raised a hand and pulled the hood of the cloak back. Eyebrows raised all over the room as the cloaked man was revealed to be a Wingly. The guard had been right; he was stranger than Fiora. His muteness was explained by a long, jagged scar running across his throat, a reminder of some battle fought long ago. He was dressed in plain traveling clothes, and carried no visible weapons, but had two large bags slung over his shoulders. As he handed one of these to Fiora, he narrowed his eyes at everyone, as if daring them to comment on his appearance. Using his free hand, he said something in what was very obviously sign language to Fiora.
"Well, what? What did I do?" she asked, her hands on her hips. The Wingly started to sign something else, but she interrupted him again. "And don't you dare say that I left you behind, 'cause I didn't."
The Wingly raised an eyebrow and "spoke" for about a minute. When he finished, he was smirking.
"Well, you got me there. But-" she said, holding up a hand to stop the Wingly from talking again, "that doesn't mean I agree with you."
He opened his mouth as if he wanted to really say something, but closed it again as Fiora hugged him around the middle. She let go of him and turned to the others with an arm around the Wingly's waist.
"Guys, this is Aasrin. He's been my best friend and constant companion since I was born," she said. Aasrin signed something to her and she blushed. "Shut up, you. That was a long time ago."
Albert grinned. "Pleased to meet you. Any friend of Fiora's is a friend of ours," he said, standing up and shaking hands with Aasrin, who seemed to know who he was dealing with.
Fiora snorted. "You may not say that after you've gotten to know him. But, then again, he may be a complete angel around you guys. I never really know what to expect."
Aasrin glared at her, then suddenly let out a tremendous yawn. Blinking hard, he spoke to Fiora, who nodded.
"I'm gonna take him to my room. He's been traveling for almost a week now. I'll be back in a few minutes," she said, grabbing his arm and leading him out of the room.
Dart sighed. "Great. Looks like life's going get exciting again."
Shana swatted him on the arm. "Don't be rude. He looks like a perfectly nice person to me."
He coughed loudly, disguising something that sounded suspiciously like 'Lloyd'. Shana shook her head at him.
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Fiora found them again about half an hour later. She was looking grumpy because they had moved to another room without telling her. She strode into the library after asking a passing knight where they had gone, and plopped down in a chair by the fireplace.
"That was more than a few minutes," Dart said, laughter barely disguised in his voice. Fiora stared at him for a minute with narrowed eyes, then snatched a pillow from the chair next to her and threw it at him.
"That would be because somebody decided to pack up and move while I was gone," she said, glaring. Dart grinned at her.
"It was getting too cold in the other room," Albert said, not looking up from the book he was reading. "We wanted to come somewhere with a fireplace." Fiora nodded.
"That I can understand. But you could have left a guard or something so I'd know where you were."
Albert turned a page in the book. "Yes, well--" He stopped suddenly and a puzzled expression crossed his face.
"What?" Dart asked. Fiora stood up and went to stand behind Albert. Laying on top of the right-hand page of the book was a separate sheet of paper. It had two lines of something that looked like a poem, with an arrow pointing to the left followed by the word "tresed" and an arrow pointing up with the word "crystal" below it. Underneath all this were four words: "Behind the sacred tree."
Albert regained his composure faster than Fiora did, and told the others what was on the sheet of paper while she continued to stare at it. Miranda, who had stopped giving Albert the silent treatment sometime after Fiora had arrived, looked intrigued.
"What do the lines of poetry say?" she asked.
"Building towers underground, passing life without a sound," Albert read. Fiora exhaled sharply and shivered as the energy flow of the room warped briefly.
"What happened?" Dart asked, having seen her shudder.
"You didn't feel that?" she asked, glancing once around the room as if something was hiding behind the many rows of books. He shook his head.
"I sorta felt something," Meru piped up. "Like the energy in the room changed, right?"
"Yeah," Fiora said, nodding. "Great. I bet it's a Wingly thing, whatever it is." Walking over and sitting back down in the chair she had vacated, she listened to the others try and make some sense of the rest of it.
A few minutes later, Aasrin wandered in, looking disoriented. He signed to Fiora and she pointed at the table that everyone else was now sitting around.
"He felt it too, Meru. It woke him up. I was right. It is a Wingly thing," she said, looking bothered by the idea. Aasrin went and looked over Meru's shoulder at the piece of paper. After digesting what it said for a minute, he turned around and spoke to Fiora, who chewed on her lip.
"You may be right. Albert, try and make a different word out of the word by the arrow pointing to the left."
Albert nodded in response and scribbled on a sheet of parchment under his right elbow. After a few minutes, punctuated by him muttering to himself, a look of comprehension appeared in his eyes.
"Tresed. . . desert. . . I've got it! Tresed is desert spelled backwards!" he said, looking as if he'd found the answers to all of life's mysteries. Aasrin grinned and started speaking, his hands flying like lightning. Fiora translated, trying to keep up.
"He thinks the arrows are map directions, and the words are. . . slow down, 'Sri!! The words are what we go to in that direction, so in theory, we would go west to the Death Frontier and then north to. . . where? Oh, I see, the Crystal Palace in Deningrad. But what about the rest, 'Sri?"
Albert answered her before Aasrin could. "Well, if we're going to follow this trail, then we'll figure it out when we get there."
Fiora stared. "Follow the. . . I'm surprised, Albert. I wouldn't think you'd want to go out adventuring again so soon."
Dart sighed. "See, I was right too. Things are going to get interesting again."
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Author's notes: When I started this chapter, I had absolutely no idea where the story was going. Then, suddenly, I had the idea for the poem and the trail, and now I have the plot for the whole story (more or less.) o_O It does have a mind of it's own, though. They weren't supposed to figure out what the clues meant that quickly. Stupid Winglies. . . Also, for anybody who was wondering, in the part where Aasrin says something to Fiora after she tells the others that "He's been my best friend and constant companion since I was born," he's most likely saying something like "Best friend? What about that one time we. . ." Heh. The whole concept's sorta like Chewbacca from Star Wars.
Chapter 2-- Wingly Logic and More Adventuring
As a clock somewhere chimed 6 'o clock, two guards came in. Fiora was deep in conversation with Dart and Haschel, but Albert inclined his head towards the guards, both of whom were looking very surly.
"You have something to report?" he asked them. One of them nodded curtly and stepped forward.
"There's another person who presumably wants to see one of you," he said, gesturing at all of them.
"Why presumably?" Dart asked, pausing in his conversation with Fiora.
The guard looked embarrassed. "Well, that's the funny thing. This one's even stranger than her," he said, nodding in Fiora's direction. She narrowed her eyes, but didn't say anything. The guard continued. "He won't talk, for one thing. We asked him what he wanted, but he didn't respond. And he's got a funny feeling about him, like he's radiating energy."
Fiora glanced at Meru briefly, then stood up. "He's a friend of mine, and I'd advise you not to question him too much. Strictly speaking, he's not a 'people person.'" The guard stared at her as if this statement made the both of them that much stranger.
Albert rolled his eyes. "Well, you heard the lady. Send him in." The guard blinked, nodded once, and left the room, followed closely by the other guard. They came back a few minutes later, marching a cloaked man between them like a captured prison escapee. Fiora's face split into a wide grin when she saw him. The guards seemed to interpret this as a bad sign; each gave ashort bow and practically ran from the room.
"Albert, you really should try to find some braver people to guard your castle," Fiora said, moving forward to stand in front of the newcomer. "Alright 'Sri, you don't have to hide anymore. Actually, you didn't have to in the first place. See, she isn't hiding," she said, jerking a thumb back over her shoulder at Meru. The cloaked figure turned slightly to look at the petite girl, and then raised a hand and pulled the hood of the cloak back. Eyebrows raised all over the room as the cloaked man was revealed to be a Wingly. The guard had been right; he was stranger than Fiora. His muteness was explained by a long, jagged scar running across his throat, a reminder of some battle fought long ago. He was dressed in plain traveling clothes, and carried no visible weapons, but had two large bags slung over his shoulders. As he handed one of these to Fiora, he narrowed his eyes at everyone, as if daring them to comment on his appearance. Using his free hand, he said something in what was very obviously sign language to Fiora.
"Well, what? What did I do?" she asked, her hands on her hips. The Wingly started to sign something else, but she interrupted him again. "And don't you dare say that I left you behind, 'cause I didn't."
The Wingly raised an eyebrow and "spoke" for about a minute. When he finished, he was smirking.
"Well, you got me there. But-" she said, holding up a hand to stop the Wingly from talking again, "that doesn't mean I agree with you."
He opened his mouth as if he wanted to really say something, but closed it again as Fiora hugged him around the middle. She let go of him and turned to the others with an arm around the Wingly's waist.
"Guys, this is Aasrin. He's been my best friend and constant companion since I was born," she said. Aasrin signed something to her and she blushed. "Shut up, you. That was a long time ago."
Albert grinned. "Pleased to meet you. Any friend of Fiora's is a friend of ours," he said, standing up and shaking hands with Aasrin, who seemed to know who he was dealing with.
Fiora snorted. "You may not say that after you've gotten to know him. But, then again, he may be a complete angel around you guys. I never really know what to expect."
Aasrin glared at her, then suddenly let out a tremendous yawn. Blinking hard, he spoke to Fiora, who nodded.
"I'm gonna take him to my room. He's been traveling for almost a week now. I'll be back in a few minutes," she said, grabbing his arm and leading him out of the room.
Dart sighed. "Great. Looks like life's going get exciting again."
Shana swatted him on the arm. "Don't be rude. He looks like a perfectly nice person to me."
He coughed loudly, disguising something that sounded suspiciously like 'Lloyd'. Shana shook her head at him.
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Fiora found them again about half an hour later. She was looking grumpy because they had moved to another room without telling her. She strode into the library after asking a passing knight where they had gone, and plopped down in a chair by the fireplace.
"That was more than a few minutes," Dart said, laughter barely disguised in his voice. Fiora stared at him for a minute with narrowed eyes, then snatched a pillow from the chair next to her and threw it at him.
"That would be because somebody decided to pack up and move while I was gone," she said, glaring. Dart grinned at her.
"It was getting too cold in the other room," Albert said, not looking up from the book he was reading. "We wanted to come somewhere with a fireplace." Fiora nodded.
"That I can understand. But you could have left a guard or something so I'd know where you were."
Albert turned a page in the book. "Yes, well--" He stopped suddenly and a puzzled expression crossed his face.
"What?" Dart asked. Fiora stood up and went to stand behind Albert. Laying on top of the right-hand page of the book was a separate sheet of paper. It had two lines of something that looked like a poem, with an arrow pointing to the left followed by the word "tresed" and an arrow pointing up with the word "crystal" below it. Underneath all this were four words: "Behind the sacred tree."
Albert regained his composure faster than Fiora did, and told the others what was on the sheet of paper while she continued to stare at it. Miranda, who had stopped giving Albert the silent treatment sometime after Fiora had arrived, looked intrigued.
"What do the lines of poetry say?" she asked.
"Building towers underground, passing life without a sound," Albert read. Fiora exhaled sharply and shivered as the energy flow of the room warped briefly.
"What happened?" Dart asked, having seen her shudder.
"You didn't feel that?" she asked, glancing once around the room as if something was hiding behind the many rows of books. He shook his head.
"I sorta felt something," Meru piped up. "Like the energy in the room changed, right?"
"Yeah," Fiora said, nodding. "Great. I bet it's a Wingly thing, whatever it is." Walking over and sitting back down in the chair she had vacated, she listened to the others try and make some sense of the rest of it.
A few minutes later, Aasrin wandered in, looking disoriented. He signed to Fiora and she pointed at the table that everyone else was now sitting around.
"He felt it too, Meru. It woke him up. I was right. It is a Wingly thing," she said, looking bothered by the idea. Aasrin went and looked over Meru's shoulder at the piece of paper. After digesting what it said for a minute, he turned around and spoke to Fiora, who chewed on her lip.
"You may be right. Albert, try and make a different word out of the word by the arrow pointing to the left."
Albert nodded in response and scribbled on a sheet of parchment under his right elbow. After a few minutes, punctuated by him muttering to himself, a look of comprehension appeared in his eyes.
"Tresed. . . desert. . . I've got it! Tresed is desert spelled backwards!" he said, looking as if he'd found the answers to all of life's mysteries. Aasrin grinned and started speaking, his hands flying like lightning. Fiora translated, trying to keep up.
"He thinks the arrows are map directions, and the words are. . . slow down, 'Sri!! The words are what we go to in that direction, so in theory, we would go west to the Death Frontier and then north to. . . where? Oh, I see, the Crystal Palace in Deningrad. But what about the rest, 'Sri?"
Albert answered her before Aasrin could. "Well, if we're going to follow this trail, then we'll figure it out when we get there."
Fiora stared. "Follow the. . . I'm surprised, Albert. I wouldn't think you'd want to go out adventuring again so soon."
Dart sighed. "See, I was right too. Things are going to get interesting again."
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Author's notes: When I started this chapter, I had absolutely no idea where the story was going. Then, suddenly, I had the idea for the poem and the trail, and now I have the plot for the whole story (more or less.) o_O It does have a mind of it's own, though. They weren't supposed to figure out what the clues meant that quickly. Stupid Winglies. . . Also, for anybody who was wondering, in the part where Aasrin says something to Fiora after she tells the others that "He's been my best friend and constant companion since I was born," he's most likely saying something like "Best friend? What about that one time we. . ." Heh. The whole concept's sorta like Chewbacca from Star Wars.