Chapter Two: Into The Wild

Credit: www.rupertkogler.com

"Ela." Ethan gulped. How long has it been since he last spoke her name? 

Despite her marred cheek, the tiny girl fashioned a beaming face. Her lips stretched from ear to ear, baring her stained teeth. She donned what appeared to be a decent attempt at a typical Shen'ay gown: long, loose in the wrists and wide around the neck. Obviously, it was a little too big for her. Fortunately, with that large grin, she'd easily pass for adorable anytime, at least to him. But the problem, quite apparent to everyone except her, was that her gown was made of burlap.

Ela reminded Ethan of everything his father fought for --- everything Ethan wanted to fight for, if only he hadn't been so...

"Did Ethan not miss Ela?" She glared at him, probably irritated by his serious countenance.

Ethan forced a smile on his face as he strode towards her. He had many things to inquire of her: if her cheek still hurt; how she's been all this time; what she's learned; how they treated her when he was gone; what on earth made her come to his Naming Ceremony; and most importantly, why burlap.

As usual, words won't escape him when it came to her, so he did what he did best. He pulled her close in an embrace and felt her marred face with his cheeks, before letting out what felt like a hundred years' worth of a sigh.

His face warmed after realizing that Ela has grown after all. Taller? Yes. Wiser? Hopefully. But more noticeable are a few areas that made her well...a lady. He pulled away gently and gazed into her eyes --- the color of the meadows in spring, the day he found her or rather the day she found him. 

She bared her teeth and hissed. She did love to cuddle, he thought. Ethan lamented the fact that Ela might be a tad bit too old for cuddles, long or short for that matter, with men in particular --- him included! He must remember to educate her with that before they part ways. He cleared his throat.  

It was hard to look at her now without appreciating her beauty --- the sparse freckles on her full pink cheeks, her square jawlines that made her appealingly youthful, her adorable snub nose, her bright red curls and her full lips.What am I thinking? Well, she certainly cleaned up nicely. Ethan thought as he cleared his throat.

"Ela, I have something important to tell you. Listen carefully." Ethan paused as he collected his thoughts. How many times has he rehearsed his speech. 

"There is a war in the Borderlands where many of my brothers are fighting and I must join them soon. The place is very, very, very far --- farther than Egula. And more importantly, I don't know when...nor if I will be coming back." There, he finally said it --- a big lump off his chest. He sighed in relief and waited for a response. 

A moment passed since his companion turned her face to the mountains. Still a moment more. Yet, she remained very, very still. The silence bothered Ethan. Did she understand? Did he need to explain everything to her bit by bit? 

Was I really  that  horrible of a teacher? In retrospect, Ethan was quite sure Ela aced her geography lessons; and war was definitely a word he made her use in the past. Very well . From the beginning then...

"Ela, there is..."He continued before being interrupted by her gesture of silence --- her finger on her plump lips. Plump lips???  Ethan, what in heavens are you thinking!?! 

Awoooo! Awoooo! Awoooooooooooooo! One after another howls echoed in the mountains running chills down his spine. Wolves. Large wolves. Thrice the size of Ethan. He has met them, of course --- a pack of three males.The leader was a large, black wolf and the other two were slightly smaller --- one had a white mane and the other a golden one --- Ela's father and brothers so she told him. 

Immediately, Ela leaped to the balustrade and squatted before throwing her head to howl back. "Awoooo!" A very awkward sight indeed.

Ethan did warn her not to do that in the palace grounds, as it made the Shen'ays detest her. Few knew Ethan's purpose for bringing the feral child into the palace, but even those who knew were reluctant to befriend her, fearing she may be a sorcerer of some sort. Ethan conjectured the latter as an impossibility, since it is common knowledge that the great mist in the mountains would not permit a sorcerer to enter Dakeldum, let alone live there.  

"Come, brother." The tiny girl demanded before grabbing Ethan's arm, almost yanking it off his shoulders. 

Before he could protest, Ethan observed his feet obediently leaping past the terrace, past the northern gardens with white collonades of overhanging racemes of wisteria lavender falls, off to a familiar journey --- a journey into the wild, into the Dark Mountains or Dakeldum in the Old tongue --- the place Ela calls home.

Two moons lit the path of their frivolous escape. It was the brightest time of day when the red moon of the night met the blue moon of the day.

Ah, the sweet scent of pine. We're almost there. Ethan's blue eyes gleamed of excitement.

A twenty-foot high wall stood before them --- the kingdom's northern fortress.

Glancing here and there, he sat facing the wall and using his feet pushed the large stone that had a marking. He poked his head through the opening before crawling out and gesturing she follow suit.

"Who goes there," shouted the man on the watchtower behind them.

"Why it's his highness the prince," answered another.

"What in heavens! The Emperor is almost here! Hurry! After him!" The first sounded the bell, signaling the lowering of the drawbridge, and called on the royal guards.

Arf! Arf! Ah, his mother's trusted hounds. They knew his scent all too well. Ethan wondered briefly if his mother raised them for that very purpose.

Wait. What am I doing? Heavens, what was I thinking? The fate of the kingdom and my people lie on my shoulders and here I am running away from all of it. Was it the thrill? Did I truly miss Ela that much? Or am I simply trying to escape my destiny? The young prince, a prodigy of of wisdom and ingenuity, a title that perhaps alludes to the possession of a certain degree of common sense, diagnosed his current state as nothing short of sheer insanity. His body simply moved faster than he could think.

Before he came to his senses, he'd already sat Ela on his shoulders; slid down the river cliff; scurried downstream to a familiar ford where the waters leveled his chest; and then, cautiously crossed the raging cold. This time though, the water only reached his waist. As soon as Ela was safe and dry on the other side, he quickly plunged himself into the water to wash off his scent.

He shivered as he hurriedly took off his snug-fitting black vest and white tunic to wring off the water. His chiseled torso, now proudly baring a decent number of manly scars, glistened in the moonlight.

Noticing her stare, he timidly put on his damp clothes and ran his fingers along his hair. She HAS grown.  He chuckled.

He strode towards her and bowed in a jest. "Milady, if you would be so kind." He motioned her to take lead.

Ela's cheeks turned pink, but before he could fully appreciate the sight. She dragged him along a little more eagerly than the first time resulting to a particular numbness on his right shoulder. 

Yep, damage done! Hearing his groan, she turned to him shortly. Did she just smirk at me? Ethan was delightfully taken aback. It 'has' been a while. Ha ha ha.

Ela knew the woods like the back of her hand. And so, although the shadows of the trees left little light through, she dashed in dragging along Ethan, who ran almost blindly.

The terrain was certainly unforgiving and the ascent quite taxing. One moment, they ran on soft, damp moss. Another, they were leaping off what Ethan hoped were dead tree trunks.

The smell of wild berries, pine and decaying foliage filled the air. And for a while, all Ethan could hear was the sound of cracking twigs, hooting owls, chirping crickets, and so on --- a beautiful monotonous orchestra briefly disturbed by Ela's occasional...

"Duck."

Too late. Poor Ethan fell flat on his back.

"That hurt." He grunted as he ran his hand across his spine.

Ela grabbed his hand and hastily whispered, "Brother, we...hurry."

He 'was' hurrying. Ela was simply too swift.

As they ran, Ethan reminisced their many adventures on the mountains: the time they rode on the wolves' backs, the time they went hunting for wild boars with the centaurs, the time he wrestled with the ogres, the first time he saw the red moon in the West Sea and so on. Staring at her from behind, he marveled at the power this tiny creature possessed to have alleviated him of such a tremendous weight --- his regret and his destiny. Was there nothing he could give her in return?

His ruminations were abruptly interrupted by his oblivious liberator who came to a halt before a large shadow, a large oak close to the treeline. 

"We here." She pointed up.

Ethan ruffled her fierce red hair in gratitude of many...many things. How he dreaded that she now tied her hair in a low bun like the handmaidens of the castle. She hissed at him for taking too long and motioned him to start the climb.

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