his fingers trail along the damp rock as he listened to the
shallow footsteps of those with him.
Bren let out a sigh of relief when he noticed
a thin stream of light coming from the end of the tunnel. As he
stepped though the opening in the earth, Bren found himself
standing on a large cliff overlooking the forest. He was so high up
that he could even see the edge of the forest and the Brotherhood
soldiers, who looked like small specks in the distance.
“Why have we come here?” Bren asked the man
standing closest to him.
“Our task,” the man said quickly, his
attention staying focused on the forest below.
“And what is that?” Bren asked slightly
frustrated.
“To watch and help when we can,” The man said
returning his frustrated tone.
“Can you at least tell me when the battle
will start?” Bren asked sounding defeated.
“When the sun has set, our men will move out.
We do not have the numbers for a direct conflict so we shall do
what we do best and take them out in the silence of the night.”
The news didn’t set Bren’s nerves at ease,
but he knew that it was the best he was going to get. It was easy
to tell from the man’s aura that he held little faith in Bren and
saw him as more of a hindrance than a help in the current
situation. Bren was sure that he wasn’t the only one that thought
that way either. Most likely most of the soldiers that would be
risking their life would much prefer if Bren and his friends were
cast out from the village. Why should they risk their lives for
strangers? Bren forced away the thoughts, knowing it was his own
weakness pushing through. They had offered their aid, and any
deaths that came about would not be his, nor his friend’s fault.
No. Those deaths would fall squarely on the Brotherhoods
shoulders.
I half thought you would leave on your own
again in some vain attempt to lead the Brotherhood away.
Foolishness always ran in your father, and given your past actions,
I thought it had run true in your blood as well. I am glad that for
once I was wrong.
“If I left, my friends would follow, and
their risk of capture would be even greater,” Bren replied. “The
best chance for all to survive is to work with the village, so that
is what I will do.”
It seems that you have finally grown out of
your naivety.
“I don’t think I have grown out of anything,”
Bren said with a hint of remorse. “It has been lost along with many
other things.”
“What has you looking so sullen,” Cass asked,
bumping into Bren. “Well, other than the few thousand soldiers that
have come to separate you from your head.”
“Nothing really,” Bren replied, giving his
friend a weak smile. “Just wondering if this trip was really worth
it.”
“No use to worry about that now,” Cass said
encouragingly. “You sought your goal and followed that path with
single determination. Even should you fail, there is no shame in
that.”
“Even if others have to pay the price for my
path?” Bren asked looking at his friend worriedly.
“We each had a choice, and we all made it,”
Cass said, shrugging his shoulders. “When I was young, my mother
often said that I should always strive for perfection but wallow in
sadness when I didn’t reach it. There is no point in life if you
can’t find happiness, even if it is in failure.”
“I don’t know if I can live a life like
that,” Bren replied honestly.
“Then I pity you, my friend,” Cass said as he
looked down at the forest below.
Chapter 7
A s the light began
to fall, Bren shut off his normal sight and hearing and used his
magic to search for his friends. Brenda and most of the guards
waited near the hidden entrances to the village while Faye, Jin,
and Phena moved among the woods below. Bren could understand Faye.
She grew up on a small farm and seemed at home among the trees, not
to mention that she could make herself completely invisible to the
naked eye. He still worried about her safety, but it was Jin that
truly
shallow footsteps of those with him.
Bren let out a sigh of relief when he noticed
a thin stream of light coming from the end of the tunnel. As he
stepped though the opening in the earth, Bren found himself
standing on a large cliff overlooking the forest. He was so high up
that he could even see the edge of the forest and the Brotherhood
soldiers, who looked like small specks in the distance.
“Why have we come here?” Bren asked the man
standing closest to him.
“Our task,” the man said quickly, his
attention staying focused on the forest below.
“And what is that?” Bren asked slightly
frustrated.
“To watch and help when we can,” The man said
returning his frustrated tone.
“Can you at least tell me when the battle
will start?” Bren asked sounding defeated.
“When the sun has set, our men will move out.
We do not have the numbers for a direct conflict so we shall do
what we do best and take them out in the silence of the night.”
The news didn’t set Bren’s nerves at ease,
but he knew that it was the best he was going to get. It was easy
to tell from the man’s aura that he held little faith in Bren and
saw him as more of a hindrance than a help in the current
situation. Bren was sure that he wasn’t the only one that thought
that way either. Most likely most of the soldiers that would be
risking their life would much prefer if Bren and his friends were
cast out from the village. Why should they risk their lives for
strangers? Bren forced away the thoughts, knowing it was his own
weakness pushing through. They had offered their aid, and any
deaths that came about would not be his, nor his friend’s fault.
No. Those deaths would fall squarely on the Brotherhoods
shoulders.
I half thought you would leave on your own
again in some vain attempt to lead the Brotherhood away.
Foolishness always ran in your father, and given your past actions,
I thought it had run true in your blood as well. I am glad that for
once I was wrong.
“If I left, my friends would follow, and
their risk of capture would be even greater,” Bren replied. “The
best chance for all to survive is to work with the village, so that
is what I will do.”
It seems that you have finally grown out of
your naivety.
“I don’t think I have grown out of anything,”
Bren said with a hint of remorse. “It has been lost along with many
other things.”
“What has you looking so sullen,” Cass asked,
bumping into Bren. “Well, other than the few thousand soldiers that
have come to separate you from your head.”
“Nothing really,” Bren replied, giving his
friend a weak smile. “Just wondering if this trip was really worth
it.”
“No use to worry about that now,” Cass said
encouragingly. “You sought your goal and followed that path with
single determination. Even should you fail, there is no shame in
that.”
“Even if others have to pay the price for my
path?” Bren asked looking at his friend worriedly.
“We each had a choice, and we all made it,”
Cass said, shrugging his shoulders. “When I was young, my mother
often said that I should always strive for perfection but wallow in
sadness when I didn’t reach it. There is no point in life if you
can’t find happiness, even if it is in failure.”
“I don’t know if I can live a life like
that,” Bren replied honestly.
“Then I pity you, my friend,” Cass said as he
looked down at the forest below.
Chapter 7
A s the light began
to fall, Bren shut off his normal sight and hearing and used his
magic to search for his friends. Brenda and most of the guards
waited near the hidden entrances to the village while Faye, Jin,
and Phena moved among the woods below. Bren could understand Faye.
She grew up on a small farm and seemed at home among the trees, not
to mention that she could make herself completely invisible to the
naked eye. He still worried about her safety, but it was Jin that
truly
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