Chapter 5 Part 2:
Idleness
It felt like time had slowed. Silas spent most of the trip sitting on the back of the carriage, looking outside. After their rough mission, no one questioned him. This was his first mission after all. It was also his first time killing someone.
Jacob’s disturbing demeanor had subsided and he was back to his usual jovial self. He was still excited buzzing around, but not as excited as before. He traded with Henry and took over the reins for a while, took over his shift to keep Pierce’s body cold, and even sat by Silas and chatted with him. He seemed like an endless pool of energy. Silas felt slightly annoyed by that.
The next day had passed much faster, and they soon reached their main village. It was hidden deep inside the northern forest of the Yurseur Kingdom, where many humans refused to travel. The wild animals here respected the elves and allowed them to inhabit this forest with them.
When their carriage had arrived, the village chief was alerted and many of the villagers came to see their brave soldiers. It was not long before they were alerted to Pierce’s death. Many of the elven parents sent their children back inside, while Pierce’s family was brought forward to receive his body.
The rest of the elven warriors from the mission left the cart and stood nearby, passing the body over to the grieving family for a proper elven ceremony. He would be received with high honors and, because the elves did not believe in cremation, his body would decompose in the forest, giving back to the woods that endlessly provided for the elves.
Pierce’s mother and father came to retrieve his body, both barely holding back tears. Silas hung his head and closed his eyes until he heard the man’s body being carried away.
The rest of the soldiers quickly returned to their families or other duties, and Silas followed suit, quickly walking through the clearing to his own home, where his mother and his younger siblings would be waiting for him.
As soon as Silas opened the door, two small children came running towards him. Their light colored heads clung onto his arms and legs, leaving him to stand still and wait for their grips to soften.
“Big brother!”
“Brother!”
His younger brother and sister, Cirdan and Aurelia, grasped onto him tightly, not letting go. It had been almost a month since they last saw him, but they were still as adoring as ever. He could not help but smile and pat their heads with his free hand. Aurelia’s straight, long blonde hair and Cirdan’s lazy gold waves became a scattered mess on the tops of their heads. Their light brown eyes looked up lovingly at Silas.
His mother walked in slowly, smiling brightly at her son. “Silas, we’ve missed you.” She walked up to her son and hugged him, maneuvering around the two young children. After she drew back, she plucked the younger two off of him and chastised them, telling them they still had to complete their chores, even if their older brother was home. They didn’t seem to mind, now that they would have Silas back to play with them.
After Cirdan and Aurelia ran back into the kitchen, his mother grabbed his arms and looked him over thoughtfully. “You look terrible.” Those weeks he was gone had had their effects, and his mother could see it. “Let's sit down and talk.” The young ones did not understand what deployment meant.
Silas sat down next to his mother on the wooden bench, looking into her thoughtful, light brown eyes. The corners of her eyes lifted and exposed the crows feet next to them. “How are you feeling, Silas? Do you want to talk to me about it?” She stroked her son’s head, pushing his long bangs out of his eyes.
Silas clenched his hands. “Mom, what happened,” He paused with a shaky breath, “It was awful.” He spat, feeling the tremors rake this body once again. His mother saw this and grabbed his hands into her warm grasp.
“They attacked our ancestors long ago, and our people still hold that grudge, even today. That doesn’t mean we should continue this grudge.” She looked at her son. “But the humans continue to hold this anger too.”
“So we kill innocent people too?” Silas finished, still trembling.
His mother stopped and asked, quietly. “Did something else happen?”
Silas bit his lip, feeling his eyes heat up. “Mom…” He whispered, choking back tears, “We killed them. Not just the soldiers. Even… even the children...”
No matter how hard he tried, Silas couldn’t hold back the tears. He cried, facing down at his lap in shame. His mother wrapped her arm around her son and pulled him close to her as she rubbed his back, comforting him. “It’s going to be okay, Silas.” She shushed him. “The first time you kill someone is incredibly difficult. It was for me, and I knew it would be for you.”
His mother closed her eyes and sighed as if she were deep in thought. Silas wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes, catching his breath. Finally, she replied, “You have to forgive yourself, because you coming home is more important to me, and to the twins, than anything else.”
Maeir grabbed Silas’s drooping head and forced him to look at her, “Do what you have to to make sure you come home safe.”
A brief moment of silence and solidarity fell between the two of them.
“Aurelia! You forgot to clean this plate!”
“No, I didn’t, Cirdan!”
“Yeah you did! I’m gonna tell mom!”
The arguing in the kitchen brought Silas back, and he quickly stood up. His mother stood up as well, preparing for an argument between the two children. Silas quickly walked up the narrow stairs to his room before his siblings could see him in such a sorry state. He was too ashamed to be seen by them. But before Silas could open his door and enter, his mother called to him at the bottom of the stairs,
“Silas!” He released his hand from the door knob and turned to look at his mother’s tired, but determined face, now set into a deep frown as she looked as her son’s bent back from the bottom of the stairs, “I just wanted to say that-” She paused for a moment, unable to summon the words. She paused and sighed, then said, “Just know that whatever you did out there, I forgive you, and I love you.”
Without another word, she turned and went into the kitchen, scolding the twins for not finishing the dishes. Silas turned and opened his door, letting it swing open on its own.
I’m so sorry. He knew no one could hear his words, but he still apologized to himself and to the victims of the war anyway. He dragged himself to his room and closed the door. He locked it behind him and fell down to his knees, behind the door, hugging his legs. He tried to keep himself quiet as his body was racked with sobs.
…
The prince was swiftly returned to his parents, who were currently residing at the Queen’s brother’s castle, Duke Louis of Yurseur. His castle was stationed over thirty miles away, in a larger, more lively town. This was the queen’s favorite vacation spot as well. Unfortunately, even after arriving, they were not able to rest.
The king and queen had escaped the castle after receiving warning from Esther, Prince Clarence’s personal maid. The other palace servants were asleep and murdered before they were able to escape, and unfortunately most of the castle’s knights, including the special forces, were outside of the castle walls, investigating a possible elven settlement on the eastern side of the border, between the Yurseur Kingdom and Bethell Kingdom. The two kingdoms were allies, and they also held very similar views about the elves, going so far as to create elven hunts and providing trophies to those who could kill the most elves.
After this incident, the castle’s cellar and main hall were destroyed, leaving only the stone structures to support the building. Otherwise, the castle would have collapsed, just as the elves had wanted. The special knights were dispatched to clear the castle, and they were the first to discover the gruesome scene that laid wait inside.
The king and queen were quickly briefed via messenger, and were the first to hear about the state of the castle. They had the knights searching for their young son, Clarence, as well, but the identification of the bodies was difficult, due to mutilation. Fear enveloped the castle as they found a child’s body that looked a great deal like Clarence, but relief came quickly as they realized it was not the Crown Prince, but a nobleman’s child. It was quickly deduced that the elves must have killed the child, thinking it was Clarence. The relief was short lived; however, when Clarence still was not found, even after the castle and the surrounding area were searched multiple times. The queen wept, fearing the worst for her young son, and began to break down the morning they arrived at her brother’s castle.
What they did not know was the prince was quickly discovered not far south from the castle, housed and treated by two humble human farmers that had happened to travel the trade path early in the morning. The husband quickly alerted the royal knights and they were able to retrieve him just outside a small village to the south. Now the prince had finally arrived at the castle, and his parents were anxiously awaiting his return.
“Mother, Father!” The prince was led by two knights into the dining room. The queen quickly opened her arms and hugged him, crying tears of joy at the sight of her young son.
“Clarence! I am so relieved you are okay!”
The boy hugged his mom tightly, not saying a word. He was too relieved for words.
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