Chương 63: Side Story: My Name Is Lowell And I’m A…

"Chop faster it's dying." Lowell almost broke his jaw gritting his teeth as he swung harder on the stupid block of wood. It teetered and almost fell off of the stump it was sitting on. Proud and defiant it regained it's support. A mere chip on it's side was the result of his efforts. Patience. Patience was crucial to his livelihood. Everything in his life required patience. He looked down on those who ran short of it easily. Taunted them. Jeered behind his eyes at their inability to compose themselves.

"Chop your own damn wood!" Lowell threw the axe at the stump and it lodged in the wood finally in an act of defiance. I've never wanted a sap's life more. Ears tucked close to his head, he smothered homicidal fantasies and smoothed out his poor ears. The axe was having none of it. The blade see sawed back and forth just to fall off the side still attached. He clutched his head in agony as that blasted wolf laughed his fur off. Gods and Goddesses help me. Help me.

He chanted prayers and promised mentally to devote more time to the Temple. Yet to no avail.

"Don't be afraid it's not going to hurt you."

"Cease your laughing dog." Lucian did exactly the opposite, admittedly as I would do if someone else were in my shoes and laughed his ass off at my incapable hands. I hate this man. I hate him. He's loud and obnoxious. He needs a shower and he reeks of wolf. Anger floated above me and heated my cheeks like I was basking in the sun. Forget it! I walked away to a log not far from the fire that was dying down. My tent sat behind it and got colder every minute. Where is he?

Erichean had disappeared with the little monster in training hours ago and we hadn't seen even the corner of his clothes since. Must be getting the bath of his life, living it up in a big house, or dining at a canteen. Son of a..: Kissae was bartering with some of the witches for food on our behalf and Nolan... I looked over at the man I was increasingly losing respect for.

He was surrounded by pixies that illuminated his picturesque solitary features that seemed to be carved from dark stones painted with the finest kohls... He just sat there. Without purpose. Barely breathing. Occasionally wiping a tear and rubbing it on his lips. He belonged here. And I did not. Niathe had informed him that they were due for a chat later on. He deflated upon hearing those words and had sat on that log ever since. He did not eat even though I could smell the rising thirst from here.

Potent and desperate. Starving but reluctant. He did not close his eyes or blink. If he could live as a statue he'd probably never leave that spot. Just sits and waits for a spanking like a child. Lucian is a pompous jerk but once he realized I had no intention of letting him mock me any further. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. He got up, swung that rusty axe, and created more wood to burn. Just to burn all through the night.

A waste of life but I had a grudge to nurture. The beach was in sight from our campsite. The moons hung low on the horizon. Black seas for as far as the eye could see crashed against the beach. Glittering blue sand was pulled back and spat out. We must be close to the islands. Salty air collected around me and brought the smell of roasted food. Beans, vegetables, bread, and some meat. My stomach gurgled uncomfortably and I shifted in my seat embarrassed at the volume. Something else comes back through. Seagrass.

Finally. Kissae stalks up the mountain with a twine and branch basket on her back. Fog collects around it and I realize she was the origin of that scent. Thank the gods.

"They're ruthless. We need to start hunting soon. Finding our own food won't be too tough but your presence..." She lifts the basket off her bruised spine and I stood to help her. We set it on a stump nearby. Nolan doesn't move or even let his expression change. We can all smell the rising hunger though.

"Perhaps the pixies know of somewhere we can harvest food from?" Kissae nodded and put her hands on her hips.

"I know we're not allowed to cross the valley or go to the beach when it's occupied."

"How do guardians survive here?" Confused, I knitted my eyebrows. They're making it nigh impossible even with Niathe's standing among them. I've seen other families in their small hutches. Most were couples or single women. Some small children ran between the legs of their father as he hoisted the laundry on a string. Preferential treatment at its finest. However I had not seen any of them go down the mountain. Not even to see their own children. Some did head to the beach.

"Fishing. Perhaps we are supposed to sustain ourselves via fishing? There must be some kind of general store that we can have access too. How can they not have a market?" Kissae busied herself setting out the food on the stump and I snapped out of my thoughts to help her. Her scales glinted in the moonlight and light from her eyes cast an amber glow on them. Strange. I'll have to look into that.

"I don't eat meat. Thank you." I carefully scooped some of the roasted quail into another bowl so that someone else may eat it.

"May I ask why?" She helped herself to some greasy red and yellow beans drowning in wine. Just looking at it had me salivating. I guess it's not a problem to share it now. We will be quite familar by the time Miseria is done here. I bet it'll only take her ten years to master herself. Ten years. A decade just strolls by in a minute when you think about it.

"Due to my nature I'm often a sympathetic eater. Sometimes I can feel the emotions or pain left behind by the creature that I'm eating." I make a point to look at the roasted quail and she pales. Plants are just easier to eat. They feel very simple emotions. Death is just a natural process that contributes to life. An exchange and a natural end. Animals. They feel such visceral terror and defeat. Fear is a very strong taste and I don't have the stomach for it.

"Poor lad. Now where's my share?" Lucian interrupted and used his bulky shoulders to crowd me out. I gave him an unimpressed look and turned to go sit on my log. Kissae followed behind me with her own bowl of food. Thinking better of keeping quiet about it I decided to say it outloud.

"Thank you. For everything." She beamed at me and shrugged.

"There's no need for such things. Just eat while it's still hot." We ate in silence. Wine ran down my chin and I calmly wiped at it with a hankerchief. Lucian displayed the manners of a boar and burped when he was done. He looked off in a daze at the valley beneath us. Smoke piling out of chimneys. Witches running drills with their impressive powers. Some sneaking off to get a good seat at the canteen. Instructors walking around barking orders at them while they honestly corrected themselves.

"..." Lucian's face slipped into something twisted and cold as he stared at them. Longing flashed in his eyes before those piercing mirrors changed to something else. He curled his lip and spit a few words out like fish bones.

"There's a market at the top of this mountain every three days. Some of them..." His gaze lingers on a girl struggling to lift a boulder.

"They sell game to a butcher named Morris. He's always at the market." He tips his chin up to the sky and sticks out his tongue a little.

"We need better lodging than these damn tents. Almost winter. Trying to freeze us to death now." He mumbled to himself while murderous expressions crossed his stony face. Kissae looked askance at me and I shook my head. I didn't know either. He's an oddball that one. If his words are to be trusted then we have something to look forward too. He is right though about our housing situation. We need an actual roof over our heads.

We could always cut some more trees down but if I'm honest I'm not feeling great about the amount of sacrificing we're doing. It's too much of a strain on the environment. It'll harm their sense of community. A pixie with a mushroom hat sat down next to me and squeaked at me excitedly. I smiled and listened attentively as she illustrated her recent encounter with Sasa. The squirrel. Apparently he's quite a menace in there parts. She cried about his thieving habits and I agreed vehemently that he must be stopped.

"Will you help me?" Her glassy blue eyes looked up at me with so much trust my chest twisted. Adorable.

"We're not allowed to leave this mountain but if he lives around here maybe I can aid you?" Her blue cap rustled as she nodded like a woodpecker.

"He does! You can! Don't worry you'll be rewarded handsomely. Winnie promises." She put her tiny hand on her chest and promised me. Then she offered her tiny hand with a shy smile. Helpless I shook it and cursed inside. This is not what I'm here for.