Early the following morning, with a silvery dawn just breaking through over the treetops in the distance, a lone, somewhat hunched man trudged his way towards the entrance of Silvershade.
Even as he felt the same brisk breeze that rustled through the leaves, and beheld the morning birds that twittered and sang songs only they knew, the man wore an expression devoid of any joy or liveliness. The man had unkempt hair and uncared-for clothes, and walked as one with the weight of the world on their shoulders.
As he approached the gates leading into the village, however, the man staggered a little. He squinted his eyes, then gasped, a rush of cool air filling his mouth and lungs. And before his mind could even finish thinking a single thought, his feet took him running in that direction.
...
At the sound of the thudding footsteps fast approaching them, Arin and Siel looked up from the conversation they had been having.
'Sir Veylor!' called out the younger tower magician, waving a cheery hand at the running man.
'You – you are-! You've woken up! But -?' even before the man had completely reached their sides, he'd started asking them what might have been questions, had his brain had a chance to process that aforementioned thought.
'Whoa, man,' Arin whispered softly, watching as the man hurtled towards them at breakneck speed. It seemed as though he might somehow end up running past them and into the side of a nearby building. Reaching out what was meant to have just been a steadying hand at first, Arin then had to almost pull him to a stop to prevent a concussion.
They couldn't have that. There was important work for the man to do today.
'Steady there…' he said, silently thanking Rin's well-built physique for the umpteenth time.
Siel just stood by his side, watching the scene unfold with those wide eyes of his.
'You! You are awake! What cause this damned, cursed sleep? And then – then! My sister – everyone –!'
'Still not awake!' Arin interjected in a firm voice.
'Oh.' And almost immediately, the man seemed to wilt, to the point that a particularly strong gust of wind might have blown him away.
'But they will be!' added Siel quickly. 'We assure you, sir Veylor, that everyone shall be awake by tonight!'
'Oh! Then -!' the man was straightening up again.
'Only if you do what we ask of you,' interrupted Arin again, pressing down on the man's shoulders before he could start buzzing with excitement and shooting off to ricochet off of walls or something.
They really didn't have the time for that…
'Of course, sirs! You must know that I'll do anything that is required of me. Anything at all!' the man exclaimed, his voice breaking a little. To Arin, he looked more alive now than even the first time he had seen him.
Good, because he'd need the energy.
And without stepping away from the village entrance, or even leaving to find a seat nearby, Arin started speaking.
'We have a few questions for you. First; how long had we been asleep for?'
Sir Veylor blinked at the suddenness of his question, but answered promptly anyway. 'If we count your first night in Silvershade - when you first fell asleep, as well as last night - when you presumably awoke, you sirs had been sleeping for three nights. Two whole days.'
Arin turned to Siel, and they exchanged a quick nod.
Time within the dream world passed the same as time on the outside.
Good to know.
'Thank you, sir Veylor,' he said. 'Now, before anything else, mobilize healers.'
'Mobilize -?'
'Healers, yes. Call upon as many as you can. From the surrounding villages and hamlets, from the nearest cities; anyone who can make it here by tonight, or tomorrow morning at the latest.'
'But… but I've tried already. There aren't – '
'Offer them money, tools, whatever they might ask for. Sell your belongings – sell everyone's belongings if you must, to afford their services. It is a matter of life and death.'
Siel pushed his shoulder-bag into the haggard-looking man's arms. 'There are a number of magical tools and artefacts in there. Use them all if you must,' he said. 'But if we are to save the villagers' lives, it is imperative that we have healers available for tonight.'
'It doesn't matter if they only have strength enough to heal a sore throat. Every little bit of help will be needed,' added Arin.
Sir Veylor merely nodded dumbly, gaze flitting between the two tower magicians as he clutched at the bag in his arms.
'We shall be visiting Willowshade again in some time, and shall speak directly to the village head and tradesmen we encounter, to send for light and replenishing supplies. Make sure that someone is here to receive them,' Arin continued listing out instructions.
'And in the meantime, call for the help of a few strong men, and gather all the sleeping villagers – every single one of them! – in one area. The central hall, or the marketplace, perhaps. Anywhere that would make it easier for us to monitor them and administer aid with ease,' added Siel, his voice almost uncharacteristically intense. 'Can you do that, sir Veylor?'
'I… yes! Of course! I shall get to work at once!' rasped sir Veylor. The man squared his shoulders, and set his mouth in a firm, determined line. 'Everything you sirs have asked of me shall be done before the sun has set.'
'Good,' nodded Arin, patting the man on his shoulder before stepping away. 'In that case, the two of us shall be leaving presently. We'll also be back before sunset. Even so… Siel -?'
Siel bounded forward, pushing a folded piece of paper into sir Veylor's hands. The man adjusted his hold on the shoulder-bag, grabbing at the paper.
'We've helped ourselves to a contact glass from the headman's estate. There is another one in the recordkeepers' building. Use that to help with your tasks, and use this mark to reach out to us, should you need any immediate or urgent assistance,' said the boy.
'I will, I will…'
'And finally, before we leave,' said Arin. 'There is just one more thing we'd like to know.'
'Did miss Lana pass away while we were asleep?'
Sir Veylor frowned at his words. He paused, almost as though he was waiting for either of them to add more context to the question. And when none was forthcoming,
'I'm afraid I am not familiar with the miss Lana you speak of,' he said. 'You must forgive me for my lacking knowledge, but I've been away from Silvershade for so long that I cannot be blamed for being unfamiliar with all its residents.'
'However, I can assure you that, besides the three unfortunates I told you of when you first arrived, no one else has been lost yet. No one else had died while you were asleep.'