#thorbane

“Goodmorning” she greeted him as he hugged her shoulders before sitting down.

“How long have you been up?”

“Oh not too long, here drink up”

They sat together in easy silence for a while until waylan got up to put on his shoes and cape.

“Im gping to the river, need me to bring anything back?” he asked, putting on his bow and quill.

“no sweet drop ill be okay, dont stay out all day i have a surprise”

“Is that surprise wallnut and mint pie?”

She laughed, raking a sip of tea, “maybe, youll have to be back before sundown to find out”

“okay mum ill try my best” he smiled at her as he left.

The sun qas even brigjter outside waylan covered his eyes as he looked at the sky, no clouds in sight. The vast range of trees were turning brown the autumn wind was blowing warm.

“waylan!” a woman called out from across the way jogging towards him.

“aisling, morning, how are you”

“im okay, you heading out today?”

“not fae just to the river”

“oh! Being me back some wild flowers, please” she took his hands smiling

“okay i will” he brought her into an embrace “where is everone rigjt now?”

“The market opened early today, its been a busy morning mostly grain in trade though couple chickens”

He let her go “chickens and grain no way!”

“not all of us can backflip off trees and steel gold”

“bit of a basic way if describing my more than human achievements but ill take it”

“Speaking if taking things please no mushrooms. Robin is getting lazy”

“hearing you and its done. Ill leave the spores for winter to take”

“thank you. Okay I’m going back to the market – they are juggling fire”

Waylan laughed, patted her on the shoulder then took off jogging through the forest toward the river.

Waylan striped when he reached the river, eased into the cold water where he sat for moments feeling the sun and the current of the river.

Suddenly waylan was pulled out of his comfort and serenity by a man running toward the river. Waylan jumoed out the river and pulled on his clothes as the man got closer.

“waylan!” he shouted “waylan!”

Waylan slicked his hair out of his face “what is it!”

“you have to hurry!” the man rested his hand on his knees huffing out of breath “we are being attacked!”

Waylan grabbed his bow and quill “are you armed”

“of course” the man pulled out a dagger showing it to waylan

“Great. make your way back to the camp, slowly, take out anyone you see. Try and stay out of sight .”

Waylan took off running, once he had enough speed he directed to the nearest tree, when he was close enough he pulled two arrows out of the quill and pierced them into the tree one by one he pulled the arrows out, piercing them over and over to climb up the trunk. Once high enough he re-holstered the arrows. Looking out over the trees he marked his course through them. Waylan jumped tree to tree looking out below for enemies . The branches crunched under his feet leaves shook and fell twigs broke. Waylan moved through the trees like a feral bird.

Screaming tore his attention to the ground, he stopped grabbing his bow, swiftly loading an arrow. The string was tight on the fingers, a great weight in his hands, waylan aimed at the intruders and let his fingers free the strike.

His first arrow took the first intruder in the heart the second in the shoulder then the head. They fell to the ground blood spilled over the forest floor freeing the villagers who ran back toward the camp. Waylan followed them quickly surpasing thier speed.

He made it back to the camp, hidden by the trees he look out below seeing a dozen of attackers in the market. Stalls were uoturned huts on fire, animals runing wild. Waylan rearmed his bow letting arrows fly one after another striking the intruders again and again. After a few fell the attackers began fleeing.

Waylan lept to a lower tree, hung off its branch, dropped down and then jumped to the ground through a roll. He looked around as the people began coming out of hiding, they instantly began putting out the fires and chasing down the loose animals.

One of the camps leaders approched waylon placing a hand on his shoilder from behind, waylon grabbed the hand bending the leaders fingers back before turning around. Seeing wjo it qas he let go immediately.

“Eamon, what happened here”

“We got attacked out of no where, none of us seen it coming we think a few of the royal gaurds snuck in with worn clokes during the market. Where were you”

“just at the lake. I didnt see anything sam ran to get me, i dropped a few bodys on they way here”

“Did you riffle thier corpses”

“i didnt waste any time”

“They might have orders on them”

“ill go back after i check on my mother”

“Okay ill wait by the end of the market”

Waylon watched him walk away, for all his honour Eamon was cold in his manners. As Emon dissapsared into the crowd waylon went the opposite way making his way to his hut, there were injured along the way, they would get seen to quickly by the physician.

His hut was coming into sight, he began to jog, he thre open the door. “mum” he called out but it was quieter than he imagined. He slowly made his way through the hut finding no remains of his mother. There was rubble on the floor precious woven baskets and furniture scattered.

There qas a scream behind him before he could turn there was a red hot pain in his shoulder, his mum had stabbed him in the shoulder. He screeched in pain instantly his mum dropped her hands, crying she grabbed him by the face.

“Waylon, by dragons , im sorry my baby”

He wrapped his arms around her “your safe” he winced in pain and drew back from her “good stab, next tjme if its a real intruder go for the head”

“I cant believe i got you”

“ dont worry about it”

“Are we still jnder attack?”

“no, i helped run them out, i dont think they will be back”

She laughed through tears, “lets get you to fionn”

“There are others wounded ill have to let them go first”

“dont worry about that”

“mum its a little blood the blade is keeping most of it in ill be okay”

“we are not waiting”

When they got fionn’s hut there wasnt a line for his healing abilities. Waylons mum walked into fionns hut without knocking.

“fionn. Fionn!” she called out for the physician

“stay in the main room!” he called back from behind a curtain of tanned hide.

After a few moments fionn entered the main room “wow, aaylon you finally got stuck”

“Not in battle”

“Dont tell me youre trying to steal cows these days”

Waylons mum laughed “no i actually- it was my fault i thought he qas an attacker just closed my eues and stabbed”

“yeah mum we will have to work on that tactic” waylon sat backwards on a wooden chair whike fionn poked and proded around the blade. Waylon looked at fionn “there were a few people injured, where are they?”

“bute on this stick” waylon took the stick in his mouth instantly the blade was dislodged from his shoulder his teeth dug into the stick. Fionn poured various fluids over the wound and began sewing it up.

Fionn spoke out into the quiet air “there were a few injured no one died...yet”

Waylon muffled round the stick then took it out “what do you mean”

“Well... i dont know how to say this”

“The truth will do”

“the wounds are strange. The patterns of wounds are random, most of them seemed to be aimed without concern of target. Most of our people have been wounded but they seem to be sick. Im still figuring out what thier weapons were laced with”

FIonn finished sewing up waylons wound. “thank you.” Waylon walked over to the curtain fionn crossed his arm over it walking in front of him. “i dont advise looking”

“Then what am i supposed to do”

“Leave it in my hands”

“i want to see the damage”

“I can tell you that we have twelve wounded, four are children. Noone has died...yet but i dont know how long they will last. The weapons i pulled out them were covered in some type of goo. The goo is what i suspect is making them sick”

Waylon moved past fionn and opened the curtain, there before him was his people, his community of children and adults alike laying in beds. Their skin a pale grey thier viens were green with deeper green and brown spots surrounding the viens.

“Is this magic?”

“i didnt want to say this soon but i beleive it is”

“how are they doing this?”

“Why use a weapon the likes of who you hunt”

“the likes of?”

“im sure it is magic based but im yet to understand what type”

“How long do they have”

“i dont know but i am seeing its effects ruin the younger faster”

“Do the others know?”

“Only Emon and myself”

“thank you fionn. I have to find him”

Waylon replaced the curtain, “mum im going to take you home” helped her with her cloak “then i have to find Eamon”

“Will you be gone the whole night?”

“I dont know.” He kissed her on the cheek.

After taking his mum home waylan waited at the end of the market by a tall torch. Eamon was coming back from the forest dragging the corpses of the fallen soldiers, waylon reconed they were the attackers he took out earlier.

“you dragging them by yourself”

“you didnt show up and i gave orders for the others”

“What orders”

“Youll find out soon”

Waylon helped eamon drag the bodies to the graveyard.

“We giving them marks?”

“We shouldnt mark our eninies”

“they are people too”

“people who attacked us, to kill us, lets just dig these graves”

Night began to fall, torches through the village were light. Waylon climbed out of the grave and helped Eamon roll the corpses in, they filled up the grave and left it unmarked.

Eamon walked ahead of waylon “follow me”

Waylon followed without a word, Eamon took him to the edge of the village to a large hut lined with torches. The more advanced in age and combat were inside mumbling and talking with anger. Eamon walked to the front of the hut and got everyones attention.

“Now that we are all present we can begin our meeting. Im sure youve all had some time to talk things through so all in favour raise your hand”

Almost everyone in the hut raised thier hand, waylon pushed ti the front of the people

“what are we voting on”

“war”

“war! We cant go to war”

“We have been posioned, our homes have been burned and our people keep dying “

“there has to be more steps we can take, other routes of action that isnt full blown war”

“what do you suggest”

“well for starters we can take small groups into the royal city. Look around for what they poisoned us with”

“Clearly it came from the palace”

“Then we go there”

“ would you be willing to take on that duty”

“Yes i would. It will save our people, supplies and will have almost no conflict”

“All in favour”

Half of the people raised thier hands

“Okay i give you a week”

“A week is handly any time”

“How do you think our dead feel. How do you think our injured feel. They might not even have a week”

“war gices them all less”

“and a week is more than nothing”

Waylon left the hut and made his way home. There were candles burning when Waylon approached his home a deep feelijg in his gut squirmed, slowly henopened the front door. The hut had been put back together since the attack.

Mary was in the corner shrouded by shadows candles flickered across the room. She had her leg up on a chair holding a candle to it.

“mum?” waylon spoke low but it didnt stop mary from jumping jn fear pulling her dress back down over her leg.

“what are you doing” he asked slowly walking towards her

“nothing”

“well then, mystery solved” waylon walked closer to his mother placing his hands on both of her shoulders “whats wrong”

Mary ealked away from him letting his arms fall by his side, “i didnt want to worry you”

“worry me?”

“when we were invaded i got wounded”

“What are trying to say”

“i might get sick like the others”

“Are you sure”

Mary lifted her dress to her knee showing off her ankle where the skin was turning grey. “its like the others in fionn’s hut” she let her dress fall back down “i drank some elixsers i dont know if they are helping. It has been spreading since i was injured”

“ill be leaving for the royal city tomorrow dont worry im sure with somthing this new it will be easy to find”