Twisted Fate
Chapter 14
Nariel had risen later than usual the next morning, though still before anyone else other than Rantuk, who had taken over the watch from Molikor at some point. The Tauren was sitting pensively on the rock that had become the default spot for whoever was standing watch, lost deeply in thought. All through the previous night the thought of her actions had tormented her: she had finally lost control.
I almost kissed him. She thought, her face turning red.
He was trying to comfort me and I took advantage of him.
A thousand different things ran through her mind as she heard Solarius begin to shift, sitting up with a yawn. Frantically she turned to Rantuk, looking for a way to avoid confrontation.
"Nothing exciting then?" she asked, the words coming out louder than she intended as she limped over to sit next to him.
"Hm?" came the deep voice of Rantuk as he turned to see who had spoken.
"Oh. No. Boring night." He said simply, adding "Though that's probably a good thing."
Boring night indeed. She thought to herself.
"Yes, I suppose so. I think I've had plenty of excitement for quite a while." She said instead, the deeper meaning known only to herself.
"You've still got another shoulder to give." Said Molikor, who had awoken and joined them with a smirk.
"And I'd like to keep it that way." She replied, giving him a playful glare.
Rantuk gave a low deep rumble as they sparred, his laugh echoing through the cave. It was an infectious sound that instantly lightened the mood for everyone around, and Nariel began to feel more at ease. Solarius had moved to the other side of their makeshift camp, busying himself with organizing his gear. He stayed there until it was time to depart shortly afterwards, and when the group got under way Nariel was relieved to find him quickly engaged in quiet conversation with Molikor ahead of her.
For the remainder of their trip through the Ghostlands they avoided each other completely; Nariel spoke to Rantuk or Molikor, but avoided group discussions while Solarius did the same. She wasn't mad at him over the other elf anymore; his apology had helped her finally push it from her mind. It was just that she didn't want him to see her face; to see the longing that still crept up, even as dread forced it back down.
It wasn't until they had entered the Eversong Woods that Nariel next spoke to Solarius. For the entire day prior they had avoided so much as looking at each other, but the morning after they broke camp in the quiet forest Solarius approached her, Molikor with him. Nariel sat quietly, watching Frostbite chase a butterfly that had strayed too near, when a loud grunt from beside her signaled the Orc clearing his throat.
"We're heading out." Said Molikor. "Silvermoon is only a day's journey away."
Nariel nodded. "Let's get a move on then." She said.
Molikor paused, glancing to Solarius who took a slight step forward. "Actually, I'm not going." He said.
"What?" Nariel asked, shocked.
"The road is fairly safe from here, and you will have no more trouble." He said, adding. "I need to do something. I don't know when I'll get the chance again."
"What is it?" Nariel asked.
"I'm going to Fairbreeze Village." He replied. "I haven't been back since I left."
"I'm not leaving for good." He added quickly, sensing her uncertainty. "I'll rejoin you in Silvermoon afterwards."
Nariel paused for a moment, thinking over his words. Fairbreeze Village…where it had all begun.
"I'm coming with you." She said suddenly, making up her mind.
"What?" Solarius and Molikor asked at the same time.
"As you said, the road is safe." She argued. "They won't need me."
Solarius glanced at Molikor, who gave a slight shrug.
"Are you sure?" Solarius asked cautiously.
"Yes." She nodded resolutely.
Solarius paused for a moment, thinking. Finally he gave a slow nod. "Very well then. Are you ready?" He asked, climbing atop his charger.
Nariel climbed atop her wolf before nodding. "Whenever you are."
"We will regroup with you in a few days." Solarius said to Molikor before turning to Nariel and giving her a small smile, and then nudging his charger forward.
The journey was quiet at first, neither saying much. They rode at a leisurely pace, and Nariel had time to gaze around at the forest, memories of her homeland streaming back to her. She had forgotten the smell of the trees, or the way the leaves twisted down through the air as they fell, as if caught in an invisible cyclone. It was Solarius who first broke the ice, stating much of what she was thinking.
"Quel'thalas is just how I recalled it." He said.
"Home…" She added quietly.
"Yes." He agreed. "I am glad to have left. I met friends, had many adventures, and sated my desire for excitement." He said. "But for all the world has to offer, this place is still home."
"More so for you than me." Nariel said.
"Oh?" Solarius asked.
"Yes." She replied. "I left very little behind, and almost nothing that I wish to have back." She said before adding "Except perhaps some of the memories."
Solarius said nothing but gave a sad smile.
"Still…" She said, pausing. "I suppose you are right. For better or worse, this is home."
Solarius nodded quietly before clearing his throat. "Nariel…" He said.
She turned her head quickly, staring off through the trees, aware of the source of his sudden uneasiness.
"The other night." He said finally, after a pause.
"I was not myself." She interjected quickly. "I fear the injury had a greater effect than I realized."
Solarius stared ahead, his expression confusing to her. "I-" he began, but she quickly cut him off.
"It won't happen again." She said firmly. "Let's just forget about it."
Solarius watched her for a moment before quietly nodding.
"Ok." He said simply. There was a hint of something in his voice but she could not place it; sadness perhaps?
I'm sorry Solarius. She thought to herself.
Truthfully she had been herself. She had known exactly what she wanted that night, and she had been unable to stop herself from trying to take it. She just hoped he would not think less of her for it.
If only I could make you understand. Solarius said to himself quietly.
He had felt something that night when she inched closer towards him and for the first time her recognized the feeling for what it was. His heart was now clear; Nariel was not just a friend to him. But I suppose that is what I am to her. He thought sadly, noting her desire to move on.
The next day the pair arrived at their destination. At first it was just the tip of a rooftop cresting the top of a hill as they rode. Then came the outline of a house slipping through the trees. Nariel saw a sign, then a fence. As each new part of the village came into view, her heart raced faster and faster. Beside her Solarius increased his pace slightly, and she quickly matched him, until the pair were moving at a gallop towards the town.
Then she saw it. The inn. Her racing heart suddenly stopped. Here was the place she hated, where everything old had ceased to be and everything new had come to be, crammed painfully into the gaping hole left in her heart as if it could somehow make her whole again. This was the one spot she would scrub from the world and erase from history if she could do such a thing. She had left so much here so long ago.
As they arrived she slipped off of her wolf but stood wordlessly in place. Beside her, Solarius dismounted as well. She felt a comforting hand placed on her shoulder as he came to stand with her.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" He asked.
Slowly she nodded. She needed to be here. After what seemed like an eternity she took her first step, then another. With each step towards the inn, Solarius kept pace never leaving her side. Finally they were upon the threshold. She stopped, gazing at the doorway as if it were a portal to hell itself,
And then…she crossed it.
Solarius watched her intensely, seeing the recognition in her eyes and knowing that her mind was replaying that terrible day all over again. He understood why she wanted to be here; she needed closure. She needed to see that the world had not ended after all that day, and that the parts of her that she left behind no longer weighted her down. Still, he wished he could make it easier for her. He would have gladly shared some of the burden if he could. The building was deserted – where the innkeeper was they did not know, or care. Quietly she moved to the bar. She ran her fingers over it where she had placed the letter.
"This is the last place I stood while I was happy." She whispered, more to herself than him.
Solarius said nothing as she turned. Just as she had done that day, Nariel scanned the room – all except for one spot. She didn't want to look there yet. She saw each chair and table, just as it had been, but without the people. The rays of sunlight crept in through the windows just as they had five years ago. She imagined the people who had been there, the barkeeper, the sights, and smells. Everything about that day came back to her as perfectly as if it were now.
Finally she turned. Slowly her eyes fell upon the small booth in the corner. Silently she walked over, looking at the table. She pictured him just as he had been, with the girl in his lap.
"This is where…" She said, her voice choking up slightly.
Solarius put a comforting hand on her shoulder again. "It's ok." He said simply.
Without warning she burst. Tears fell uncontrollably as five years' worth of pain and loss caught up to her. He pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her and she did not resist, burying her face in his chest. There they stayed, for how long neither knew. Time did not matter, except that he would give as much of it as she needed, but when she finally pulled away from him, he saw that she was changed.
He could see it in the way she looked at the place where she had lost everything. Her expression was no longer one of dread. She no longer scanned the room fearful of the painful memories that each corner held. Now she looked around defiantly, as if to challenge fate itself. This place was hell for her - it had been for five long, torturous years, but she was here willingly and she no longer feared it. The faintest hint of a smile cracked upon her lips.
Somehow…she had survived. Her old life had been torn unwillingly from her hands, stripped bare for her to see how pitiful it truly was, and then shattered upon the ground, but somehow she had lived on. It had come back to torment her relentlessly and somehow she had endured. It wasn't happy, or glamorous, or easy. It was just…Nariel.
"I think…" she said quietly "I think I'm going to be ok." She finished, a surprised sigh escaping as her smile grew slightly larger.
He pulled her into another hug, squeezing her tightly.
"You will be." He said. "I know it."
"So this is where you grew up?" Nariel asked as the pair approached the old rundown house on the edge of the village.
They had lingered a moment longer at the inn, but eventually Nariel had felt that there was nothing more she needed to do there, so now they were making their way across the Village, to where Solarius had wished to come.
"Yes." He replied. "Not exactly a palace, but it kept the rain out."
Nariel shrugged. "A roof is a roof." She said.
Solarius approached the house, stepping over the cracked wooden door that had fallen off its hinges and into the small common room.
"I suppose he could have cleaned the place up a little bit." He said sarcastically.
"He?" Nariel asked.
"Mhm." Mumbled Solarius, lost in surveying the ruins. "My Father." He added, noticing Nariel's confused look. "He raised me after my Mother died when I was a child." Solarius said.
"Oh." Nariel said. "I'm sorry."
Solarius gave a soft smile. "Such is fate I suppose." He said with a wave. "I miss her but we cannot undo what has been done."
Nariel nodded; she understood his meaning more than most.
"I remember this." Solarius said happily as he knelt down, sweeping the dust off of a long thin piece of wood. "My first wand!" He exclaimed, waving it around with a wild grin.
"Wand?" Nariel asked. "No wonder you're a lousy Paladin." She joked.
Solarius laughed and tossed it aside. "My Father was determined to turn me into a mage." He said. "I must have had to blow up twenty houses worth of furniture before he finally relented."
Nariel grinned. "Personally I think you would look ridiculous in a dress." She said.
"My thoughts exactly." He replied. "Plus I was never any good at it."
"If you could destroy that much furniture to make a point…" She said.
"Most of it was by accident." He replied with a dismissive wave before stepping across the room.
"Aha! Here you are." He said, picking up a large wooden sword. "My first training weapon."
Nariel watched him turn it over in his hands, an amused smile on her lips.
"This is where I used to sit every night as we ate." Solarius said, picking up a small chair near the cracked table that had tipped over backwards.
"On more than one occasion I found myself sitting here getting lectured about the dangers of whatever I had done that day as well." He added, scanning the room.
He glanced around as she followed him quietly through a side doorway. "My old room." He said simply, sitting down on the edge of a small bed.
"What's this?" Nariel asked, her tone changing as she saw a small red envelope that had at one time been placed upon the pillow, but had slipped off the side.
"Eh?" asked Solarius, looking over to her.
"It's addressed to you…" She said quietly, handing it to him.
Solarius picked up the letter, carefully opening it and pulling out its contents. Nariel sat down next to him and leaned in to read it as well.
My son,
Life has been quiet since you left. I suppose that was part of the goal; we both know that no good could have come from you remaining here, but I have still missed you these many years. If these words find you then my prayers have been answered and you have returned home safely. If they find you through this letter rather than my own voice then I fear that your adventures abroad may have kept me from seeing you one last time, for it is with a heavy heart that I write of my impending death. I know such topics are not pleasant, and if I had the power to spare you from the heartache I would, but I feel you have a right to know of my fate.
An old wound has caught up to me, suffered when the cursed Scourge invaded our beloved Quel'thalas. My time is drawing to an end, but please know that I am happily surrounded by memories of you and your Mother, and relics of a lifetime of accomplishment. With the knowledge that my only son is out in the world, living the life he dreamed of, I can truthfully say that a father could not wish for a more perfect end.
No doubt by now you are an accomplished traveler. In my younger days I had many adventures of my own. If you can take one more lesson from your old man, I have a final piece of advice I wish to entrust you with. It served me well and helped me lead a lifetime of happiness with your Mother - my greatest adventure.
Always keep those you love nearby, and never miss an opportunity you may later regret. For the cost of not chasing our dreams is far greater than the pain we may feel when we fall short of them.
I wish that I had more to give you, but you know that we were never a wealthy family. I pray that my love, and my enclosed gift to you are enough.
With love,
Dath'rek
As Solarius finished reading the letter he turned it over, finding a small picture behind it. In the frame was a man with long flowing hair and a radiant grin – "My father." Solarius said with a smile – and at his side was a beautiful woman with blond hair reaching down behind her back – "My mother." He added.
"They look wonderful." Nariel said quietly.
"I wish I had returned sooner." Solarius said bitterly, pausing before continuing with a sigh "I would have liked to see him again, but somehow I knew that I would be too late."
Nariel stepped towards him. This time it was her turn to embrace him in a tight hug. She knew how he felt, and knowing that he was sad brought on strange feelings. She wanted to help him. She would have given anything in the world to take away his pain, but she knew that the only thing she could do was be there, as he had for her so many times before. As Solarius stood there, locked in her embrace, his thoughts drifted to what his father had said in the letter.
No doubt by now you are an accomplished traveler.
He had never earned fame, wealth, or power, but as he thought about what he had done he couldn't help but feel his Father was correct. He had Molikor, Nariel, and even Frostbite. With the Orc he had engaged in some of his wildest adventures, and with the elf he had discovered another part of life that he had never before considered. His friends were his power, their experiences his wealth.
Yes Father. He thought, a smile breaking out. I wouldn't change things for the world.
