As night yields to day, so must darkness to light. They say in the heart filled with darkness, seek thyself- for you maybe the light. Two millennia have passed since the Gods last walked this realm, in the absence of the overseers, humans too adapted under the gravity of overwhelm.Albeit mankind evolved, without a guiding hand, civilisations will crumble and see their own end.
In the land far towards the north, encircled by mountains and covered in frost, lay a village nestled in the shadow of the frozen volcano- Azkaroth.
The moon hung low in the sky, barely visible through the serene expanse of white and blinding snow! The wind was howling, pushing through every crack and crevice as if trying to tear it apart. Outside, the blizzard was roaring, white and wild.
Seven-year-old, Caden Starhaven stood by the window, gazing at the distant silhouette of Azkaroth. His hands were pressed against the glass and his breath fogged it! He wanted to go fishing with his father, it was supposed to be his first time but the weather had other plans. He was stuck in the walls of the house and he hated that. He was the kind who loves to explore, the house felt almost like a prison to him.
"Sigh!"
He let out a frustrated sigh, his eyes lingering over the fishing rod but today simply wasn't his day.
Then, just as he was about to turn, he caught something move outside in the corner of his eye. It was a shadow, of a person. It was moving slowly towards Caden's house. His breath froze. He rubbed his eyes, thinking it was a dream, but no, something was moving out there.
"Why is there someone outside in this blizzard?" he thought.
His heart picked up a pace, his hands were locked onto the window frame, his fingers went numb against the cold glass. The figure wasn't slowing down. He took a step backward and ran towards to find his father to tell him about what he saw.
Caden burst through the hallway! His heart was pounding as he sprinted toward his father. Thorian was sitting beside a small fire, gently cleaning the blade of his sword. The crackles of the fire filled the quiet room.
"Father!" Caden's voice was breathless. "There's someone outside in the storm!"
"Huff." Thorian's eyebrows furrowed and he carefully set the sword down beside him. "Caden! You are about to turn eight and you will go to the academy next year. Don't tell me you are still hooked to those little pranks of yours! Is this one of them?"
"No father! I am telling the truth." Caden's voice cracked, growing more urgent. He grabbed Thorian's arms and started pulling him towards the window to show him that he was telling the truth.
Before Thorian could respond, a sharp knock echoed through the small house. The noise was out of place in the howling storm, a chill went down Caden's spine because he knew that no one in the right mind would wander in a blizzard like that.
Thorian's demeanour changed. He picked up his sword and whispered in a calm voice to Caden, "Stay here!"
Thorian moved towards the door cautiously. The house seemed quieter than usual as if the storm had ended and the wind stopped howling.
"Who's there?" he called out in a steady voice.
When Thorian's voice cut through the silence, a reply came in a soft and a melodic tone!
"I am a traveller and i have no shelter! May I please spend the night here till the storm passes?"
Both Thorian and Caden were shocked, not because of the calmness of the voice but by the fact that the voice was of a woman.
Thorian hesitated for a moment but then he gently pushed the door open. She indeed was a woman, standing in the doorway. She wore a long black coat that was strangely still in the storm. She had her head covered with a thick cloth, her silver eyes gleaming through the fabric and her long dark hair that were invisible in the shadows of her cloak.
For a moment, neither of them spoke. The cold air was rushing in, Thorian's grip was tightening on the door's handle. He felt uneasy, he felt that there was something different about that woman, it unsettled him, but yet there was no immediate threat, at least none that he could see.
"Please, come in." said Thorian in a calm voice.
"Thank you, kind sir." her voice was soft.
She stepped in, first step, second step. As she crossed the threshold and entered the warmth of the house, her body gave way to the exhaustion. She collapsed.
Thorian was quick and he caught her before she hit the ground. Thorian than gently guided her to the ground next to the fireplace.
Caden's mother, Layla was at her friends house. She couldn't leave early and the storm had already begun.
After gently moving the woman toward the small fire, Thorian started preparing a meal for her. He decided to make boiled vegetable soup because that's all he knew about cooking!
Despite the chaos, the room once again became quiet and filled with the crackling of the fire. Thorian prepared a bowl of soup and brought it but the woman was sound asleep! Caden was just sitting beside her in complete awe. It was his first time seeing a complete foreigner. He had never left the village and had never met any other people besides the villagers so he just kept staring at her with glowing eyes. But neither Caden nor Thorian could bring themselves to wake her up.
Eventually, they let her sleep and both went to their own bedrooms!
The next morning, the storm had settled. The sun's weak rays barely pierced the grey clouds. The silence was broken by a knock on the door.
Thorian opened it and it was Layla. At first her eyes widened in shock as she saw a strange woman sleeping in her house. She didn't say a word but Thorian could see the concern on her face.
"Thorian! What is the meaning of this?" she asked! Her voice was laced with suspicion.
Thorian first stepped aside, letting her in.
"Layla!" he began, " It's a long story… she was caught in the storm. I just couldn't leave her out there."
"Well this doesn't sit right with me Thorian! She is a stranger! We don't know who she is or where she is from!"
She looked at her once again and said, "we should call the knight and let them take her to the city. It's safer!"
Before Thorian could respond, the woman stirred, letting out a low groan as she stretched her arms and legs.
Her eyes fluttered, she looked around for a while and seeing the unfamiliar house and people, the realisation hit her all at once.
Her face flushed red as she quickly sat up, glancing between Thorian, Layla and the surroundings.
"Ah I…. I am sorry!" she stammered, embarrassed.
"I didn't mean to cause you inconvenience. Thank you for letting me rest here, I will take my leave now!"
She frantically began gathering her things, trying to make herself scarce.
Thorian glanced Layla in her eyes and went on, "wait, wait. You have still not recovered. I am going to Noxthistle today, you can tag along with me! For now, eat up and try to rest!
"Thank you for your kindness- for letting me stay here. The storm outside was not meant to be endured alone. Oh! I almost forgot. Pardon me for not introducing myself earlier, my name is Celestine Avernight. I am a traveller from afar."
The name Celestine Avernight echoed in Thorian's mind. It stirred something, a lingering memory perhaps, buried beneath years of fighting and war.
"Avernight….huh" Thorian murmured. "Where have I heard that before?"
As Thorian was deep in thoughts, he is disturbed by a sudden yell of Caden.
"Father! Look something's coming."
Caden's voice rang with urgency pointing at the shadows shifting in the snow beyond the village. Marching. Approaching.
Thorian squints his eyes through the frosty window pane. Carriages— ten of them —their wheels grinding against the frozen earth.
"Ten…. Each could hold five." he muttered. "That's fifty men."
His instincts kicked in. These weren't travellers. This was an invasion.
"Layla." He yelled striding towards the wall where his sword hung.
"Go! Warn the villagers and the chief now."
Layla without second thoughts, bolted toward the chief's house.
Thorian turned to Caden and Celestine.
"Caden, Celestine, listen to me." he spoke in a low voice. "Go to the storage cellar and stay hidden. Don't come out no matter what you hear."
"But father—"
"No arguments!"
Caden flinched, then nodded, his small fists clenched.
"Celestine, please take care of him."
Thorian moved to the door. Outside, the echoes and cries had already begun.
Within time's cruel wheel, what be a single breath? Shall it matter— a soul's quiet death?
Fleeting is man, who knoweth not a century; And as death doth knock, is this not but treachery?
Philosophies and ideals shall not matter as much, when faced with death, all things lose their touch.