Xaryus' breath was hoarse; he was struggling to keep up with Zadius and the gap between them was slowly widening.
Zadius on the other hand had not yet felt any form of exhaustion from running past his limits. Adrenaline had been rushing through his body and his anxiety dwarfed any fatigue he would have felt.
Finally, they arrived at "Willow", a much larger tree than those surrounding it. In its immediate vicinity were no other trees, almost as if they were afraid to approach Willow's magnificence.
The bark was thick and healthy; it held plethora of green thick leaves that made its canopy look surreal.
It was obvious why Xaryus and Zadius' mother had spent most of her time under the tree. She often taught the brothers how to read and write there.
As such, they instantly observed the new addition to Willow's wondrous appearance. Just below the leaves thick canopy was now a freshly dug hole. To its side was a pile of dirt with a muddied shovel on top of it.
There was a moment of silence, Zadius' anxiety had reached its apex. His focus latched onto the obvious grave, he didn't even hear Xaryus' exasperated gasps for air
Then, Zadius took a step forward almost as if he was forcing his body to move. After his second step, a light shower of rain began.
By his third step, rain was pouring down onto Willow and its two visitors. Slowly, Zadius approached the grave with Xaryus close behind. Each step filled them with anticipation, as they got closer, they only wished to see an empty grave.
Perhaps it was all a farce to teach them to cherish their parents and she'd be waiting for them with a bright smile and open arms.
But she was already long gone…
What remained in the grave had burned itself into Xaryus and Zadius' minds like an ancient horror slithering its way into the deepest parts of their minds, staying with them…
Forever.
Their mother's body was mutilated by various slashing and piercing wounds. Her soft and now cold skin was now fully revealed under the heavy rain; the teal dress she wore had been ripped off her body and scattered around the grave.
But the most horrific part that had shaken the boys was her missing head.
Zadius fell to his knees in disbelief, his gaze grew distant as a flood rainwater steadily ran down his face.
Xaryus' face had shifted and contorted with a flurry of emotions. With them came a stream of heavy tears. Almost instinctively he turned away and stepped away, covering his face in pain.
After a few dreadful moments, almost drowned out by the heavy rainfall, Zadius turned his head at the sound of Xaryus' footfalls.
Xaryus had made his way down into the grave, covering his mother with what remained of the teal dress and pieces of loose mud.
After covering her he turned to Zadius, revealing a strained, pain filled smile that barely held back his heartache.
"Let's let her rest…" Xaryus spoke, each word forcing its way out his mouth.
As the downpour repeatedly slammed into the earth the two slowly covered their mother's body with dirt, making a mound above her corpse.
Their pain drowned their minds, a pain so deep and violent that no child should ever have to be exposed to such atrocities.
But it no longer mattered, they were already scarred too deeply, they were already broken.
***
Eventually the downpour had ceased and the two sloppily dragged themselves back to their home. The shock had long faded, and reality began to set in, their faces were hollow and void of life.
After returning home they both fell asleep. Not being able to handle or internalize all the suffering they had experienced exhausted them.
Hours passed and the day came to an end. Their exhaustion still lingered and so they hadn't moved from atop the bed of rags for the whole night.
At some point later that night, Xaryus had rolled over from his brother and pushed himself into the dirty bed to find some warmth. In his vain attempt he had felt something stiff beneath the rags.
His face shifted and he sleepily shifted the rags around. Sleepily, he opened his eyes to see what it was, but it was too dark to make it out in its entirety.
"A book?" he mumbled briefly before falling back asleep.
***
Another set of hours passed, and the sun had risen again.
Now the strange book was placed onto the small wooden table in the shack. Xaryus gently traced his finger along the header engraved on the book's cover.
"Basic Properties of Mana; An introduction to one's awakening." he said in a curious yet confused tone.