The sound of dry wood crackling under the fire swallowed the silence in their midst, the sound of the munching of flesh soon followed.
Ash tore through the meat with little interest, it tasted cooked but bland. He was more used to having seasoning on his meat or at least salt. Given the conditions he could only be grateful for the meal but he could not bring himself to say anything at the moment.
The assassin tore through the meat like a ravenous animal, Ash was forced to stop eating and look at her. It was his first time seeing a girl eating without any sense of manners. But then again she was an elf, and elves were savages.
The assassin noticed him staring, she seized from devouring the rabbit and said. "I eat a lot, don't know what you find worth watching about that."
"Sorry." Ash apologised as he brought himself to look away, he stared back at the meat in his hand. His appetite had long gone after what he had seen, he just looked at the burnt rabbit and thought.
"Tomas, I'm sorry..."
"Old man, Orric...."
Tears started to rolled down the sides of his face, his grip released the meat. It landed next to the fire, the images of those he had laughed and shared his life with burnt up in those flames came up in his mind once more.
The assassin gobbled up the last of the meat she could nick from the rabbit and tossed it into the fire, she took out a water bottle and had her fill before handing it over to him.
"Here, even humans have to stay hydrated."
Ash looked at the water bottle, he had once shared a drink with the baker in emberfall and some of his friends. He wanted to reach out his hand to take it but his muscles froze, "Why are you helping me?" He asked.
The assassin took back the water bottle and sat on a small rock nearby. She dropped her chin on her knees and wrapped her arms around them, she stared into the fire and said nothing.
"I want to know what I've become." He said, his voice hollow.
The assassin hesitated for a brief moment before saying. "It's not what you've become it's what you always w—". She paused for a long time before saying. "I am so sorry, for what happened to your village."
Ash could sense her words were empty of emotions, he wondered if she was trying to sympathise with him or making fun of him but he chose not to dwell on it. "I want to know why they had to die, I want to know everything you know about me."
The assassin looked up at him and said. "You are not ready to know everything human."
Ash stared her dead in the eye with burning confidence in them. "I have a name, it's Ash."
She sighed. "I'm not calling you that." She leaned back and threw herself on the ground by the fire, bathing in the warmth it offered. "The moon goddess watches over us tonight, it's a good omen."
The light of the moon covered them both, Ash did not feel any sense of greater purpose under the moon.
"I never thoughts elves were superstitious." He hated how she avoided every of his question. But he trusted that she knew she would have to give him some concrete information if they would be in each others company.
"Elves, you humans have no clue. Or at least your backwater part of the world." She said as she looked at the moon with great interest. "Do you know about the divide, how our kinds became divided? The story about magic?"
Ash nodded gently. "Only a little, the village chief and elders tell stories but even they don't know if it's true or not. In the past humans and elves went into a war that lasted years, the war resulted in the dragons dividing our worlds never to be crossed again. Our worlds was stripped of magic and the harsh winter came."
The elf looked at him for a while, studying him. Ash avoided her gaze and stared into the fire. "You are not totally wrong. There's some real truth to the lies you've been told. In the past all of the earth lived in utopia blessed by the dragons and gods who created this world and blessed us with magic."
"Every race, elves, dwarves, dragons, fairies, nymphs and even humans lived in harmony. I hear it was beautiful, there were no wars, no discord. Only peace and order."
A cold wind blew by them threatening to give them a chill but the fire kept them warm. "No one ever told me that. I always thought it had always been like this."
The elf assassin heaved a deep sigh. "Of course you humans would forget, it is in your nature to destroy and forget. Other faces still suffer, in the end. Would you like to hear how humanity destroyed the world and the balance that has held it in place?"
"How does that have to do with me?" Ash asked.
She placed her hand over her stomach and said. "Everything."
Hi there, I would love for you to read this before embarking on this journey. This book is meant to be a high fantasy series that I hope will be one of your favourites.
It doesn't start slow but you will have to be patient with some elements for them to develop over time. The world is vast and immersive so I won't just be informed dumping at the start.
Feel free to always drop a comment if you have any complaints and please enjoy the work. Let cooperate to make this book a long lasting one.