Chapter 17

Past Answers

It was a warm spring afternoon, and Fillan was asleep under a tree. He awakened when he heard a voice calling him. He slowly opens his eyes and looks around. It was as if he had forgotten where he was. Again, a voice calls him. He looks and sees a girl walking his way.

The girl was young, around five years of age. She is light-skinned and has blonde hair with ponytails. Her eyes are green, and she looks human. She wore a worn-out grey dress with stitching all around. She stops in front of Fillan.

Fillan looks at her and asks what time it is. The girl tells him that Father Williams is waiting for him. Fillan looks at a lake in front of him and gets up. He takes a bucket with fish. He asks the girl to take the bucket.

She happily agrees. Fillan cleans the dirt from his worn-out gray clothes just like the girls. He asked for the bucket and said they would head back. The girl then reminds Fillan about his fishing pole. Fillan looks back and sees it.

"Thanks, Cloe Father William would have been mad if I forgot it. He told me I wouldn't get another one for some time."

Fillan smiles and goes to get the fishing pole. They walk for some time along the side of the lake. They head up to a road and walk some more. They eventually reach a small town. They kept walking, and the townspeople saw them.

They wave at them, and some ask Fillan about his catch. Fillan showed them, and they were amazed. They crack jokes about how Father Williams only knew how to fish. Fillan laughs with them. Cloe seems to have a shy personality. She stuck close to Fillan.

Fillan and Cloe walked to a chapel. Fillan notices a boy playing out in front of the chapel. Cloe said she would take the bucket with fish inside. Fillan hands her the bucket. She ran inside the chapel. Fillan walks out back to a shed. He opens it and places his fishing pole next to another one.

The voice of a boy calls him. Fillan answers that he is going and closes the shed door. Fillan makes his way to the front and sees the boy playing alone. Fillan calls to him.

The boy was another light-skinned human. He has red hair and brown eyes. He was also around five years of age like him. The boy also wore stitched, worn-out clothes. The boy has an outgoing personality. He asks Fillan to play knights with him.

Fillan was interrupted by another girl who came out of the chapel. The girl calls the boy Rick and tells him to stop playing. This girl was also the same age as them. The girl has messy orange hair, black highlights, and a tail to match. She has red eyes and animal ears.

The girl was a fox beast girl. She was looking at the boys with a mean stare. The girl looks at Fillan and asks why he is late again. Before Fillan could answer, Cloe asked the girl to be nice to Fillan. This made her angrier with him.

Fillan looks at the girl and apologizes. The girl feels embarrassed and tells him not to do it again. Cloe calls her Misaki, and they go back inside the chapel. Misaki tells Cloe not to spoil Fillan.

Sister Angie, the nun, working with Father Williams, came out and told Fillan and Rick to come in. The boys enter the chapel and walk back to a door. They entered, and it was a house. The chapel had a house attached to it.

The boys behind Sister Angie walk through a hallway. They pass some rooms and get to the living room. Sister Angie tells them to get ready for lunch. Sister Angie continues to walk and arrives in the kitchen. Cloe and Misaki were cleaning plates.

Sister Angie sees the basket and looks inside. She praises Fillan for getting so much. She takes some fish out and begins to prepare them for lunch. Cloe and Misaki finished, and Sister Angie told Cloe to check on the boys.

She gives Cloe two milk bottles, and Cloe leaves the kitchen. She walks to the living room where Fillan and Rick are waiting. Cloe sees Fillan playing with two younger human children. They were smiling at Fillan. Conner was a human baby who was about two years old. He was blonde hair with blue eyes. Rudy was the other human baby. He was the same age but had black hair and brown eyes. They wore large worn gray clothes.

The baby boys were lying in a crib. Cloe walks up to them and gives them their bottles. The babies began to drink their milk. Fillan smiles at Cloe, and she gets embarrassed. Fillan goes over to a shelf and takes a book. He sat on a chair and read.

Cloe told them that lunch was being made. She left the room and headed back to the kitchen. Rick was staring out a window and then went over to Fillan. He sits next to him. Fillan looks at him.

Rick pulls out a wooden knight and pretends to polish it. He asks Fillan what he is reading. Fillan told him it was a book about landmarks. Rick smirks and continues to shine his wooden knife. Fillan gets back to reading.

Sister Angie entered the room and saw Rick playing with the wooden knife. She gets mad that he had it again. Rick argues that he needs it to protect everyone in the orphanage. He calls himself a knight. Sister Angie shakes her head.

Sister Angie then reminds Rick that knights always do what they are told. She asked Rick to take out the trash. Rick remembers her telling him about it. He apologizes and gets up. He promised to take the garbage out and leaves. Sister Angie laughs.

Fillan laughs with her. Later that day, Father William came back from a trip. He stops his cart outside. Sister Angie tells Fillan to go help out. Rick was told to look after the babies. Out, Father William was getting off the cart. With him were two other boys.

The boys were older. They both have farmer's clothes. One boy was Blake, and he was human. He looks about ten years old. He was light-skinned with black hair. He has light brown eyes. The other was Max, another ten-year-old cat beast man. He has black and white hair. His eyes were yellow.

The older boys went to help Father William deliver food to the church in King's Land. Once home, they unloaded empty buckets. Fillan came out and helped. Father William sees him and asks him how the fishing went.

Fillan was excited and told him about what he had caught. Father William was excited and said he would go with him next time. They put the empty buckets and other farming supplies in the shed. Father William took the cart and parked next to it. He unhooks the donkey and lets him walk.

Father William went inside and walked to the living room. Blake and Max were sitting on some chairs. They were exhausted. Rick wanted them to play with him. They said no to him. Father William told Rick to let them rest. Sister Angie yells that the food is ready.

Everyone gets up and goes to another room. The dining table was set with food. Cloe and Misaki were already sitting. Fillan and Blake bring the babies and place them on high chairs. Max and Rick sit while Father William puts some things away. Sister Angie brings one more dish out.

They are finally all seated. Fillan looks around at everyone. They were talking and laughing. Father William tells them that they will pray and then eat. Once they pray, they begin to eat. Father William looked at the fish and was excited.

Cloe and Misaki were talking. Blake and Max were complaining about working. Rich was playing with his wooden knife, and Sister Angie got mad. Father William was laughing, hearing everyone. Fillan smiles as he eats.

Fillan closes his eyes. When he opened them, he was in the shed. The candles were off. He gets up and opens the door. The sunshine hits him, and he gets dizzy. He falls to the ground. It took some time for him to feel better. He goes over to the well and gets water.

Fillan walks over to General Musashi's quarters. He sees the demon captains coming out. They walk past Fillan, and he hears some talk about attacking again. Fillan continues to make his way to the door. Fillan knocks on the door. General Musashi was finishing talking to one captain.

"By summer's end, the fort will be finished. Make sure that all new soldiers are ready to move."

General Musashi looks over and sees Fillan. He tells him to go in. Fillan then sits on a chair. General Musashi looks a Fillan and then asks him about his visions. Fillan mentions some of his life living in an orphanage. He then said that he could not remember much.

General Musashi tells him that the more time he spends in the shed looking at memories, he will find something about himself that holds him back. He also tells him that he will forget what he saw, like a dream.

General Musashi tells Fillan that he will continue to meditate and look for answers. He said he would join his group for combat and formation training after meditation. He also told him he would help the blacksmiths on magic training days.

"Fillan, this is the last chance I can offer help to solve your problem right now. You have until summer's end to figure out what has happened to you, as I told you when I found you. You possessed a strong lighting affiliation. Whatever happened is in your past."

General Musashi told Fillan to report any progress. He said to him that he would be too busy to hear all of his problems. Fillan said he would work hard and see where the training would lead him. General Musashi saw a cheerful look in him.

Fillan salutes and leaves General Musashi's quarters. General Musashi draws Mana and activates a magic circle on his desk. A secret compartment opens up. He takes out some crystals and other magic items. He calls for a messenger.

Fillan goes to the cabins and lies down. He remembers little about his visions. He, however, began to remember the other children at the orphanage. He thinks about them for the first time in a long time. Fillan took a nap after.

Later that day, he woke up when he heard Shia talking. He opens his eyes and sees him talking to Barret. They were coming from practice and saw Fillan lying on his bed. Shia asks him how his training went. Fillan told them what he did.

They listen to him talk about the candles and what they do. They were interested in the candles. Shai asks if he could have one after he is done with what he is doing. Fillan said to ask General Musashi. Shia then told Fillan what they did for practice.

Shia and Barret then relaxed as they waited for dinner. A few minutes later, Fearty walks in. He is mad and talking to himself. He was saying that he had won at something. They did not hear what dose. Shai questions him, but Fearty would not answer.

Fearty reached into his drawer, pulled out a notebook, and began writing in it. Fearty was mumbling, and the rest could sometimes hear the name of the group he and Fillan fought. They let Fearty vent and continue to relax.

The horn for dinner is heard, and they get up. Shai ran out first while Fearty continued writing in his notebook. Fillan and Barret walked after Shia. At the dining hall, Fillan saw the other group. They were making fun of them.

Barret looks at them, and they stop. Fillan tells him that he is still not bothered by them. They get their food and sit. Shia was again with some other soldiers. They always make a mess and laugh about it. Fearty came in late and ate with them.

Fillan waited for Fearty to finish eating, and they returned to the cabins. Fearty was surprised that Fillan stayed. He still didn't want to get close to him. They got to the cabin and got ready to sleep. Shia came in late and went straight to bed.

The following morning after breakfast, they head to the training grounds. They are told that they will work with magic. One of the instructors goes over to Fillan and tells him that he will help the blacksmiths before he heads over to meditate. Fillan accepts what he is told and leaves.

Fillan walks to some buildings near the training grounds. They were open buildings. He sees demon blacksmiths working on weapons and armor. They were also making other things for the fort. Fillan visits the head blacksmith and goes over to him. The blacksmith sees him and puts him to work.

The head blacksmith was intimidating. He has Fillan load a cart with weapons. Once it was done, he was told to take it to a group training outside the fort. Fillan pulls the cart outside the fort. He sees the group practicing formations.

The captain of the troops sees Fillan and calls his group to gather. He tells them to get their weapons. After everyone had a weapon, Fillan was told to head back. Fillan took the cart back to the smiths. He then moved some material.

The head blacksmith told him he could go after he was finished. Fillan was tired because he was moving heavy material. He walks over to the shed and opens it. He began to light the candles and waited for the fumes to spread. He enters after a while.

Fillan sits and meditates. He breathes in the fumes and waits for its effects. He began to hear his thoughts. He hears the voices of Fearty and Shia. He also hears his conversation with the demon boy he fought.

Fillan's mind wandered, and he could only see darkness. Suddenly like static on television and he then hears some familiar sounds. Gunfire followed by talking in a language he has heard. It stops when he hears a branch break.

Fillan was looking down. He hears noises and looks up. There were two other children with him. They were both human, one boy, and one girl. The boy looked older than Fillan. He has black hair and brown eyes. He was a little husky, and he looked unmotivated.

The girl looked to be the same age as the boy. She has long black hair with brown eyes. She was a lighter skin tone than the boy. She was a little chubby. Their clothes were newer than Fillan's. Fillan calls them, and they are Daniel and Amara. Amara looked like the responsible type.

They were collecting wood in a forest near the town. It was getting colder because of the season. They had enough and headed home. They stroll because Daniel is slow. Amara told him to walk faster. They finally reach the chapel, and the other children are playing outside.

Sister Angie sat under a tree, looking after the two younger children. Rick was playing with Cloe and Misaki. Sister Angie waved to them, and they walked over. She welcomes them back. They place the wood down, and Daniel relaxes next to Sister Angie.

Rick calls Fillan to play with them. Amara also sits and looks after the children. It was a nice excellent day. After some time, Father William came outside and also sat with them. They watch the kids play. Rick and they were playing knights.

Cloe and Misaki were princesses in need of rescuing. Rick was the hero knight, while Fillan played his support. Misaki got mad because he would only save Cloe. Fillan laughed, and they ran around the yard.

It got late, and they headed inside. The girls went to shower first. Once they were done, Sister Angie sent the boys next. Rick was playing around, and Sister Angie got mad at him. Sister Angie and the girls go and prepare dinner.

They finished, and dinner was also ready. They prayed and began to eat. It wasn't quiet at the table. It got quiet when Father William asked Rick about his plans. Rick told him that he wanted to be a knight and help people.

Sister Angie joked about him being lazy went asking him to do something. Rick told her he would change and prove he would be a hard-working knight. The children laugh. Father William asks the girls what they want to do when they grow up.

Cloe is embarrassed and whispers that she wants to be a bride. She looks over at Fillan. Misaki sees and shouts that she is going to make money. Father William asks if she is going to be a merchant. Misaki said she was going to give the orphanage lots of money. Father William chuckles.

Amara said she was going to be a nun like Sister Angie. Sister Angie looks at her and feels proud of what she does. Amara wanted to help others as they did. Father William was also happy about it.

Father William then asked the rest of the boys what they would do. Blake started by saying he wanted a family. He said he would make a big family and work as a farmer. Father William encourages him to do so.

Max said he wanted to teach. Father William was surprised because he didn't look like the academic type. He told Max that he would be a good teacher. Father William looks at Fillan. Fillan looks at everyone. He then said that he wanted to live a carefree life fishing.

Father William felt a little disappointed, but it turned to laughter when the two youngest said fishing. After a nice laugh, Father William turns to Daniel. Daniel was embarrassed and said that he had not thought about it. Father William told him to take his time.

They continue eating and talking about their dreams. After they were done, they went and got ready to sleep. Sister Angie and Amara clean the table. After Sister Angie goes and tucks in some of the children. A knock is heard at the door.

Father William goes and answers it. A messenger hands him a letter and leaves. Father William goes to his room and opens the letter. He read it, and Sister Angie walks in. She asks him about the knock at the door.

Father William told her that the church had sent a messenger. He also said to her that they wanted to talk with him. Sister Angie asked him when he was going. Father William told her that he was going in a few days. He also said it would be for a few days.

Sister Angie didn't question it anymore. They both get ready for bed. The next morning breakfast is served. After the children eat, they go to a room with desks. The children learn to read and write a few days a month.

Sister Angie began with class and taught the children some sentences. The girls were listening while the boys tried to pay attention. Daniel was not motivated at all. Blake was writing on his paper. Max was paying attention.

Rick tries to learn but gets distracted by what's around him. He then drifts into his little word about being a knight of justice. Fillan looks out a window at the mountains. He thinks about going and relaxing. Cloe looks at him and smiles.

Misaki sees and feels jealous. She raises her hand and asks Sister Angie about the races of the land. Sister Angie sees that they are not all paying attention. She gets mad and answers Misaki's question. She starts with the human race.

Sister Angie tells them what she knew about the human race from ancient texts. It said the humans were not here that long. After constant battles, one man took power and became the first King. He was known as King John Umbridge the first.

Sister Angie said that now King John the fifth rules the human Kingdom. She then talked about the dwarf race. She knew little besides the king's name and their friendship with the human race. The name of the dwarf king was Sloan, and she had trouble remembering his last name.

Sister Angie said that dwarfs were a fierce bunch. The men constantly want to fight, and the women are strong. She also noted that dwarfs are great builders and artisans. The children were now listening.

She then mentions the Beast race. She said that the beast people come in two forms. She talks about those who look human but have animal characteristics and those who look like animals and walk like humans. She said they live like humans on the continent's western side. She then brings up that they have a new king.

One of the children asked if she knew their name. Sister Angie said she didn't know. She then talked about the elves. She said that the elves are the longest-living race. She also said that they keep to themselves, and not much is known to the public. Sister Angie mentions that they had a civil war after their king died.

Rick asks her about it. Sister Angie said that she only knew what the church taught her, and the fighting was because one of the king's children wanted to be the next king. Rick asks her how many children he has. Before she could answer, Fillan asked about the demons.

The children look at him when he asks that. They begin to talk about the demons that have attacked and call them fake. An argument starts, and they talk about it being another race pretending to be demons to scare them.

Sister Angie tells them to settle down. When she finally has them quiet down, she tells them Father William would go to the church for a meeting. She also tells them that they will go to the city for supplies. The children get excited hearing it.

She dismisses them, and Rick is the first to leave. He yells at Fillan to play with him. Sister Angie yells at Rick for yelling. They all leave, and Fillan follows Rick outside. Amara follows Sister Angie while the other girls also go out.

Before Fillan could step outside, he woke up. He was inside the shack. Fillan walks out and felt sick. It was better than the first time. He takes some time to feel better. He has thoughts about what he saw.

"More memories about the orphanage. There must be something I am missing. I should focus the next time and hope I get answers."

Fillan heads to the cabin. He went to rest on his bed. The others were still training. Fillan closed his eyes and thought some more. His mind then hears other voices. Those voices were hard to understand. He wakes up and sees the other coming into the room.

Shia asks Fillan how his meditation went. He tells him that all he remembers is the same. He told them about some children he grew up with. He asks Shia and Barret if they have memories they want to forget. Shia stayed quiet, and Barret nodded.

Fearty makes fun of Fillan. He then wants to talk about the battle he heard about. He tells them that the grown-ups are getting ready to go to war. Fillan mentioned hearing that too. Fearty asks if they would also go to fight.

Fillan had his thought and said that General Musashi would not send them if they weren't ready. He also said he heard that new soldiers would join them when the fort was finished. Fearty felt relief hearing that. After their talk, the horn for dinner sounds.

In his quarters, General Musashi was reading some messages. He then feels a presence and looks up. A young boy was sitting on a chair. General Musashi asks him what he wants. The boy told him that the king wanted to talk. General Musashi stops what his doing and looks at him.

The boy gets possessed and talks differently. General Musashi gets up and bows. He greets him. The demon king begins to speak to him through the boy. He asks General Musashi about his project.

General Musashi tells him that the children are learning but need more time to be battle ready. The demon king tells him he only has until the fort is done to show results. He wants General Musashi to prove that the other races are worth saving. General Musashi has doubts about some of the king's plans. The king gets upset, and General Musashi glows. He then forgets and tells the king that he will have them ready for battle. The demon king tells him how he plans to attack.

General Musashi does not question him. He agrees, and the boy gains his senses. He tells General Musashi that he should have left them to die. General Musashi gets mad, and the boy laughs before disappearing. General Musashi sat and thought about the past. He hears laughing.

"If only we could go back to those times?"