Rime within the Embers
4. Of Oaks and Ravens
Just a little ways north from Berylia's mountain, the road forked; one branch led northeast and the other split off to the west. In between the forked roads was a small expanse of forest known as The Sylvan Thicket. Not the largest wooded area any of us had seen, but still large enough to easily get lost in without outside help.
Multiple stories had been told of the old alchemist that resided within. The aging Forest Titan always claimed to just be a humble alchemist, but we all knew he was more of a guardian than simply a mere hermit of the Sylvan Thicket. Only those he chose as worthy and without ill intent towards his forest would he let pass through safely. Those who didn't receive his blessing? Or ventured in by force? Stories said they were never seen again.
"You guys are so slooooow, come on lets gooo!" Kit said, jumping up and down like a child, as we neared the thicket’s entrance.
"Why do you always insist on having boundless energy?" Arileth asked with a sigh.
I smirked. "I don't think that's intentional, Arileth."
"Mm."
"Did you want to stay put? I know you are not overly fond of either the old alchemist or the thicket itself." I asked.
"...Perhaps. Yes, I think I will study my spells a little out here. Thank you for your consideration."
I nodded. "Don't mention it, besides what are friends for? I'll try to rein Kit in as best I can and be quick." I said with a slight chuckle.
"See ya later Aril!" Kit yelled out as she continued to march towards the thicket.
A small warm smile crept up Arileth's face as he pulled out his grimoire. Before long he started reviewing his spells, seemingly muttering to himself.
"This way, Rime!" Kit announced loud and proud, still marching ahead.
Before entering, I draped my blue wings around my chest like a cloak; just in case it got a little crowded.
It wasn't long before I could smell the conflicting scents of various alchemical brews at work nearby. Surely enough, Kit had stopped her advance in front of an open-ended 'shack' if you will. It looked like the inside of your usual alchemy or magical shop, yet there was only a roof of branches and leaves over top, seemingly being held up by four small tree trunks at its corners, with no walls or even a door to speak of.
The aging man that stood behind the display of vials and various herbs, towered over my vulpine friend. He looked like a tree given humanoid form, skin a greyish brown like that of an Oak tree's bark, with a similar rugged texture, his hair a pale forest green that faded to alternating colours of browning orange, yellow, and some red; reminiscent of fallen leaves in autumn.
Next to him Kit looked like a child. Even in her werebeast form, she would still pale in comparison. He's even on the shorter side of the spectrum, I've heard stories of some Forest Titans being as tall as 10 feet. If I had to guess, the old alchemist was somewhere around 8'5". Perhaps it was due to his apparent age? Or perhaps it fluctuated between clans? He was clearly of the Temperate Oak clan, but who knows. Forest Titans are known to be the rarest race in Falyndra, clinging to their sacred forests. I personally have only met one other one, up north...back when Frostburn Village was still in one piece.
"Hey old man! How've ya been?!" Kit asked in her usual loud manner.
"Ah. Miss Inazuki, a pleasure to see you again. Who may I ask is your companion?" The old alchemist asked.
"Oh! This is Rime! He's the friend I told you about!" Kit exclaimed, pulling me into a sibling-like headlock embrace, ruffling up my hair as she roughly rubbed her knuckles into my skull.
"Ah! Quit it alright, will ya? Aha! Or I'll give you one back! ...W- what are they called again?" I asked, trying to squirm out of her grip.
"It's a 'noogie' Rime! Come on, get with the times! Aha!" Kit laughed aloud, before releasing her hold on me.
"Right- come 'ere!" I said, trying to return the 'gesture'.
"Perhaps you two can continue your roughhousing outside of my company?" The old alchemist suggested, or perhaps it was more like a soft demand.
"Apologies, er- I don't think I ever got your name sir?" I stumbled away from Kit, attempting to ask my question somewhat respectively.
"Ah yes, this is our first official meeting, yes? I apologize then as well." The towering Forest Titan said before bowing in a surprisingly formal introduction. "My name is Xylen Oakenroot, a pleasure to be of service if I can. I assume you are here for supplies?"
"Rime Winterborn. A pleasure, sir." I said as I returned the bow. "But yes, we are looking for some suppl-" I froze mid-sentence as a lone black feather floated between us.
"Salutations then, Mr. Winterborn.” He said as he nodded respectfully.
Xylen looked towards an opening in the thicket's canopy, from whence the feather came. “Ah it would seem my assistant has come with the supplies I asked for."
A tan skinned individual with hair an indigo-purple so dark it could be mistaken as black in certain lights and feathered wings as black as ink flew through the 'shack'. With a flap of her wings, she landed gracefully beside the old Titan. Within moments she had pulled out a decently sized package from her satchel; more than likely these 'supplies' Xylen was expecting.
A Featherkin...great. This could go one of two ways and I really hope for Kit's sake that they are the non-village burning and peaceful variety.
"Ah, Laila. Your timing is as impeccable as always. We have guests, who also may be customers as well. Do say hello." Xylen said as he gestured to Kit and I.
She nodded and turned to us "Greetings. My name is Laila Branwenn, and you are?"
"The name's Kitsui Inazuki! But everyone just calls me Kit! This here is my buddy Rime!" Kit announced, slapping me on the back cheerfully.
"Right. The overly cheerful and vulgar one, I believe we met once, but in passing. Why is a Dragonling here?" She asked, unamused by Kit's behaviour.
Here we go…"What do you mean by that? Featherkin?" I said back, my tone a little sharper than intended. That put me on edge, especially after last night's nightmare.
“Whoah, hold the hostility there Scaleskin. I meant no ill will. I merely asked because I haven't seen many of your kind in this neck of the woods.” Laila said, holding her hands up in defence.
“Then watch your words....All the Featherkin I’ve met have given me unneeded hostility, all because of my draconic ancestry. I- I assumed you were all the same…” I said averting my gaze.
“Yeah? Well, we aren’t. So don’t go assuming what you don't know. I’m of the Nephelim Raven clan, we aren’t the same of those pinheads in the other clans. We know you scaleskins aren’t demonic or whatever they want to believe, and aren’t apart of their stupid hierachy. We don’t judge a whole race based on misconceptions. So if you had half a brain you won’t judge us or me by ours.” Laila huffed as she finished her rant.
Kit practically jumped between us, despite the wooden tree-like counter that divided us. “Oooookay, I see things are getting tenssse, maybe you both should take a chill pill or somethin’? Heh...no pun intended this time Rime. This time. Man that’s actually a good one...I should write that down somewhere.” Kit smirked with a devious grin at her unintended pun, after attempting to defuse the current situation.
Xylen cut in with a soft tone, like leaves rustling in the breeze. “I apologize for my assistant, she can be quite blunt at times.”
“...No, no...the apologies are all mine...I- I should not have assumed...I- I just keep having a recurring dream involving a lone feather floating past my vision. So uh- it just- it put me on edge when I saw yours...sorry….” I said, looking to Laila before I averted my gaze to the ground again, feeling the guilt of my assumptions.
“Mine? Did some of my feathers fall from my earlier flight? I do apologize then, trauma is never easy….So a dream, you say?” Laila asked, her voice much softer than her previous defensive tone.
"I- How did you know?"
"We all have our dark days, Rime. Now, tell me about this dream of yours." She said softly, yet keeping blunt.
“...As you wish...it- it was a dream of my past...my home village burnt down in some sort of...raid...when I was young. I- I don’t really remember much after seeing that feather….Sorry, this-... this probably isn’t something you wanna hear from a stranger-”
Having moved back beside me, Kit put her hand on my shoulder reassuringly. Her silent support was appreciated.
“What colour?” Laila asked bluntly.
“Colour?” I asked, confused.
“Did ya lose some brain cells there, birdbrain?” Kit jokingly jabbed.
She ignored Kit’s comment, “The colour of the feather. The one in this dream, what colour was it? What time of day was it?”
“I- the colour? I- I don’t know...white? Grey? I never really paid attention to the colour...probably white. It was daytime though, that I know for sure”
She sighed, massaging her temples. “Well, that’s better than nothing I suppose. That leaves out my clan, the Dodos, and the Phoenixes….White wing feathers that could fall off like that are rare in the Eagle, Falcon, and Hawk clans, so I am doubtful it was one of them. Snowy Owl Featherkin are uncommon within the Cherubim Owls, who even as a clan tend to like to strike under the dark of night anyways. So that leaves either the Songbird, Dove, or Crane clan as the culprit for this mysterious feather that haunts your dreams."
“Oh..I-...I thank you…. You- you didn’t have to…” I said, looking between the ground and Laila’s medium purple eyes.
“Don’t mention it. Besides, you seem like an okay kid. I apologize for lashing out.”
“It's alright, I more than deserved it” I said, giving her a small genuine smile.
Xylen broke through the small silence after a few tender moments. “Now that that is taken care of, and an understanding has been reached between you two younglings, what brings you to my humble shop, little dragon?”
As I was about to speak, Kit cut me off. “We came for supplies, old man! Like potions and maybe some antidotes if ya have any!” She said loudly and proud, earning a glare from Laila.
“Ever heard of respecting your elders Foxfur? You are being awfully rude.”
“Mehhh pipe down. I am bein’ respectful, this is just how I speak! Tell her Rime!” Kit blurted out.
Xylen spoke before I could retain the situation. “It is quite alright, Laila. We speak on multiple occasions, and never am I offended by her speech or nicknames.” Laila simply huffed and stormed a few steps away.
“Healing potions, I presume? Are you two going on a venture? I need details for said antidote you require as well.” Xylen asked, his voice as serene as the forest that laid beyond his tiny little shop.
“Yes sir, please. And to answer your other question, yes we are, us and another. The antidote however, we do not have much information on. We can give you what we do have, if that’ll suffice?” I asked.
“Here you are.” Xylen said as he pulled out several vials of a reddish liquid, placing them in front of us. “Ah yes, the Elven boy fixated on his book of spells, yes?”
“I- how did you know?” I asked, shocked by his insight.
“The plants and trees have eyes and ears far more reaching than most city dwellers would care to believe.” Xylen said with an eerie smile. “Go ahead with your information, I shall do what I can.”
I took a deep breath. “Well, we are on a job to find and retrieve a lost caravan to the northeast. I believe however, that there is a mysterious mist involved with its disappearance. Our sources told us that this ‘mist’ seemed to numb the senses and hide from the awareness of those to come into contact with it. We do not know if poison or magic is involved, or both. Do you have anything that could assist us?” I asked, after sharing our circumstances.
After a few moments to process the information, the aging alchemist spoke. “Hm...sounds like this mist uses a form of sensory paralysis, but for it to affect several senses at once so quickly, and to even hide away from one's awareness, it sounds to have complex magical properties as well. Unfortunately, I do not have any antidotes or potions for a deadly combination like that, especially without any specific knowledge of the magic involved itself.”
“Ah. It was a long shot, but I thought we would try anyways…” I said, almost sounding disappointed.
“Do not fret young one. I may not have or know of an antidote, but I do however know an alchemical recipe that could diminish the effects if taken in advance, or atleast slow the process of the sensory paralysis. What says you?” The looming Forest Titan asked.
“Sounds pretty good to me! Come on, Rime! Let’s take it! It’s better than nothin’, isn’t it?!” Kit announced as she jumped in, laughing before turning to me.
Kit’s enthusiasm made me chuckle. “Heh. Yeah, those’ll definitely better our odds. Thank you Xylen, I’ll take you up on your offer, how much do we owe you?” I asked as I smiled.
“...20 gold pieces for the potions...for the sensory preventative, 10 gold pieces...Yes, that will do nicely.” He said after taking a few moments to contemplate.
“Master! You need to charge more than that! You’re going out of your way to make something up front for them! Those potions and this preventative aren’t easy to make!” Laila shouted, slamming her hands down on the counter.
“Do not worry Laila, I do not have much need for money. You know this. Only to purchase what the forest cannot provide safely. Besides, I enjoy exploring new avenues and brews for this craft of mine. Kitsui also comes to keep me company often, which this old Titan appreciates deeply.” He reassured his assistant, his warm smile seemingly infectious.
She sighed, smiling to herself. “What am I to do with you, master?” Laila said as she chuckled a little, shaking her head.
“Wow! Thank you Mr. Oakenroot, sir!” Kit announced with a wide smile, clearly honoured by Xylen’s gift and words.
“I- Are you sure?” I asked the old Titan.
“I am positive, little one. Now go, reunite with your Elven companion. I shall send Laila once I’ve finished your special order.” He said with another warm smile that could melt the coldest of hearts.
After several thank you’s and a goodbye, we left the 30 gold pieces with Laila and made our way back towards the thicket’s entrance to meet up with Arileth.
