Son of Soron (10 page)

Ava hugged him tight. “It’s okay, Nathan. We will get through this.”

Nathan tried to compose himself, with a sniffle he wiped the tears away. “I know we will. It’s just so hard to accept. You know what one of the last things my father said to me was? For the first time ever he told me something about my family. My full name is Nathan Stoneblood. And that I have birthrights in the north, whatever that means.” This was something that confused him. Why had they never told him about his last name. What did it mean? Why was it a secret? he thought while waiting for Ava’s reply.

“Stoneblood? That sounds ominous. Well, it always was strange: A northerner marrying a woman from Balta and living in a small village like Elderwood. You had to know they were keeping some secrets from you,” replied Ava.

Nathan admitted this was true; this wasn’t the first conversation he and Ava have had about the subject. “Well I always knew there was something, sometimes I could see it in their eyes when I would ask about their pasts, they wanted to tell me but something always held them back.”

“Well you promised your dad you would keep us out here for a week, let’s keep that promise then we can try figure things out.” Ava said.

Nathan agreed, they could get through the next few days easy enough. What came after might be a different story though. 

On the seventh day since the attacks, they had yet to see another soul. “Rose I have very bad news,” said Nathan.

Rose gave him a very stern look. “Pardon me?” she said in a haughty voice.

Nathan had forgotten, ever since he told her they would be a building a castle she had insisted on being called ‘Queen Rose’ and that he was a lowly servant there to provide for the ladies’ entertainment. Ava had further enhanced the game, building her little sister a crown out of vines and flowers. “Forgive me your highness, Queen Rose, I’m afraid that our castle has been bewitched and is no longer safe for your highness to sleep here. I must insist that we go back to the village today.”

Rose looked at him and then gave her a sister a big smile. “We are going home now?”

Ava returned her smile and nodded. They were finally going home.

Rose turned back to Nathan “Very well, good sir, by royal decree I declare this castle no longer our home. To the village we go…” she turned to Ava, “Can I keep the crown?”

Ava laughed and replied “Of course you can, your highness, now come on let’s go home.”

By noon, they made it back to the village. Nathan sat for a few minutes at the edge of the woods and surveyed the situation. He noticed a few homes were completely burnt and there seemed to be no one around. Once he was sure that no soldiers were around, he carefully took the girls into the village, going directly to the Dollan house to check if they still lived.

When he opened the door to the Dollan house, Nathan was full of trepidation. Would old Bends be there? Were the girl’s parents alive? He didn’t even want to think about his family or the rest of the village yet. He just focused on finding the girl’s family. But as soon as he opened the door his questions were answered. Right away he saw Suzie Dollan. As she recognized him she froze with nervous energy “My girls…” she started to ask. Before she could even finish the sentence, Rose and Ava ran past Nathan and into their mother’s arms. The trio sobbed with joy, re-united.

As the mother and her children huddle in joyous reunion old Bent came into the room and spoke to Nathan. “Glad to see you son, we began to worry that you wouldn’t be coming back.” But as cheerful as the words were, Nathan felt the sorrow behind them.

“Bends, my parents are gone aren’t they?” Bends, with tears in his eyes, confirmed Nathan’s fears.

“I’m sorry son, they both died during the attack. As well as many others…” Bends said as his eyes shifted from Nathan to the girls who had begun looking around for their father.

“Mother, where is father?" asked Rose. She looked around, hoping that he was hiding in a corner and would appear at any second.

Suzie still holding both girls looked down with sadness “Your father is gone. He was very courageous and brave. He tried to help fight the soldiers, but there were too many, and they killed him.”

The joy of being home was now lost to the girls as a wave of sadness hit them. Bends took Nathan outside to leave the girls to mourn with their mother. Outside Bent filled in Nathan on what happened during the attack and the week he spent in the swamp. “The king sent a company of men to track down bandits and they followed the tracks of one group to the forest east of here. One of the scouts saw you and your father training. The leader, a duke, decided that the village was full of bandits. At the same time a group of horsemen from the south came up the main road. So this duke thought it prudent to attack the “bandits” before the horsemen could help us.”

Nathan interrupted at this point. “But the village has been here for over a hundred years and we trade with Salba all the time. How can they assume we are bandits?” Nathan exclaimed. Anger edged every syllable and sound coming from his mouth. He wanted to sob, to hit, to scream. He wanted ...well he really did not know what he wanted. His worst fears had been realized. His fragile hopes that his parents would be waiting with open arms were dashed.

“This duke was ignorant of our long and peaceful history of trade with Salba. He refused any help from Salba or any council from its leaders. He wanted the glory of defeating the bandits all to himself. Hours after the attack, the horsemen from the south arrived. They helped with the wounded and with burying the dead, then continued on to Salba. The next day, the count’s men arrived with supplies and medicine. They took the wounded back to Salba and said anyone who wanted to leave with them would be looked after in Salba. The count made it clear that this duke was the one at fault and that the king felt terribly sorry for the actions of his men and would do whatever he could to help our people.”

Nathan listened as Bends explained. He was glad to hear that the count and king were sad and wanted to help but even a king can’t bring back the dead.

Bends continued his story. “Only a few families are still here. Some of us older bodies that didn’t want to go to Salba and Suzie who needed to wait for you to bring the girls back. A few of the young ones are still around as well. From over a hundred villagers down to barely a dozen now, Elderwood will never be the same.” Bends spoke with regret at the tragic loss of life. “The count left word for you. When you are ready he would like you to come to Salba so he can talk to you.” But Nathan wanted nothing to do with anyone from the kingdom at this point. He was too full of hurt and anger over the loss of his parents.

Chapter seventeen

DURING THE WEEK in the swamp, Nathan accepted that his parents were likely dead and had gone through a range of emotions. From being angry at whomever was behind the attack on the village, this duke people were speaking of or the bandits that caused the soldiers to come, to sadness and the grief from the loss of his loved ones.  Now he was alone and all he felt was numb. Except for when something reminded him of his parents, then the bouts of anger and sadness came roaring back.

“Bends when I came and got the girls, you said that you and my father had made a plan for if something were to happen. What did you mean by that?”

Bends put a caring hand on his shoulder. “When your parents first came to Elderwood, they were strangers here. They worried that people from their pasts would come looking for them, that your life would be in danger. They made me promise if the day ever came that someone came looking for them, we would hide you. As years passed, this fear faded but was never forgotten. I never did learn what they were worried about but it was always obvious that your mother was a lady, and that your father was a warrior. Definitely not the normal sort of people who would choose to live in a small village, but they made it their home and yours as well. They gave you a good life here.”

Nathan took in this. Bends didn’t know any more about his parents than he did. He could see that Bends was eager to get back into the house to see his grandchildren. “Go back in, Bends. The girls missed you terribly when we were in the swamp and will need you more than ever.” Bends looked grateful to hear this. Bends wanted to do more for the boy who had made sure the girls were safe, but he truly needed to be with the girls right now.

“I can never thank you enough, Nathan. If there is anything you need, come see me,” said Bends as he turned back to his grieving family.

Leaving old Bends to be with his family, Nathan walked towards his own home. He came past his father’s blacksmith shop on the way to bringing the girls home. It looked intact. He was glad the shop looked to be okay and would inspect inside later but right now he just wanted to go home.

As he walked closer to home, the degree of devastation increased. Many of the homes in the area around his parent’s home were burnt to the ground. The Burning Candle, the local Inn run by the widow Noggins, remained intact. Nathan could see signs that the Inn had been cleaned up; hopefully the kind widow was still alive. Not ready to speak to anyone right now Nathan did not go in. While the Inn still stood the next three houses had burned completely to the ground. When Nathan came to his own home he was not surprised by the fact it remained partially standing. It certainly had not escaped the fighting unharmed. Most of the roof was gone, as well as the front door.

His father had built the small cottage himself using cob, a mixture of clay, straw and sand. The cob was not as quick to build with as lumber but retained heat better in the cold months and stayed cooler in the hot months. It obviously was harder to burn down Nathan noted, as he walked into the wreckage that once was his home.

The cob walls had not burned and were probably the only reason there any of the house remained. Once the roof finished burning, along with the interior support beam and the door the fire had obviously died off. This left the house furnishings blackened and partially burnt yet intact. The smell of burnt wood and soot assailed his senses, normally he would enjoy the scents but right now they triggered visions of burning houses, and images of his parents burning filled his mind. He could not be here right now.

It would take a lot of work, but if he chose, Nathan was sure he would be able to rebuild the cottage. At this point he wasn’t sure if he wanted to. Right now it seemed all that had made this his home was gone and being in the burnt home reminded him of what he had lost. Nathan decided then, that for at least a while, he would head back to the woods and the solitude of the swamp.

It was only mid-summer now so there were months before it would be too cold to stay out camping in the woods. Nathan went through the house grabbing what supplies he could find: a few changes of clothes, his mother’s herb satchel, with a handful of vials, his mother’s tools and a large pack of food such as dried meats and small blocks of cheese from the pantry.  The forest would provide everything else he would need. Nathan gathered his supply packs and his daggers, took one last look around the house and headed off to say good-bye to Ava.

He headed back to her house and knocked on the door. Bends answered the door. Bends noted right away that Nathan was packed to leave. “Are you sure you want to do that, son? I know you lost your parents but there are still people here that care about you. The girls will be devastated if you leave.”

Nathan knew this was true but was feeling overwhelmed by the sadness of losing his parents. He wanted to leave as quickly as possible to get away from the pain. “I just need some time to myself. The house and everything in the village reminds me of mother and father. I think I will be back soon, but I need to say goodbye to Ava. Can you get her for me?”

Bends certainly understood what Nathan was going through. Everyone that remained in the village had lost family or good friends. “I’ll get her right now.”

When Ava got to the door she looked terrible. The joy of finding her mom and grandfather alive, followed by the pain of learning of her father’s death had been hard on her. When she seen Nathan at the door she ran up and gave him a huge hug. “Are you okay, Nathan? Bends told me about your parents.”

Nathan held her tight. To leave her right now was so hard to do, but he had to get out of the village. “I’m at a lost. When no one came out to the swamps to get us I knew something bad had happened. So I was somewhat prepared for the news. It wasn’t bad ‘til I got home. Now everything reminds me of them, it hurts so much.”

Ava held him tight before finally letting go. It was then that she noticed his bags. “What is going on? Why are you packed? You can’t leave me.” Ava started to cry.

Nathan held back his own tears. “I’m sorry Ava. I need to go away for a while. I can’t stand being here. The cottage, my father’s blacksmith shop every time I look at them I think of my parents, and I am so sad and angry, I think I am going to burst.”

Ava thought about how hard it had hit her finding out her father was dead. She could only imagine how it was for Nathan losing all of his family. “Promise me you will come back. Swear it.”

Nathan exhaled loudly and took a deep breath. He gently lifted Ava’s chin so that he was looking into her eyes. “Ava, I swear I will be back.”

Ava held his gaze for a moment longer then leaned in to give him a kiss. The kiss seemed to last forever to Nathan but in reality only seconds passed when their lips parted. “You better come back, Nathan. Don’t make me have to come find you.”

With that, Nathan released Ava and took up his packs. If he lingered any longer he would lose his nerve and stay. He needed to be away from everything for a while. He turned and headed for the forest.

Nathan knew every inch of the land within a day’s walk of the village but, beyond that, found himself in new territory. To the East of the village lay the road towards Salba and the kingdom of Broguth.

To the south about two days walk away was the village of Birchone, a slightly larger village than Elderwood. Nathan and Velaina would visit it once every couple months to sell herbs and medicinal salves at its daily market. From Birchone it was a quicker journey to Salba. During the summer months, most travellers would take the direct route until the few creeks ran dry, making it expedient to take the more northern route pass Elderwood.