June 21, 2012
William opened his eyes to see that he was in Simon’s hut,
following Kayla.
“Where are we going?” he asked as he rubbed his eyes.
Kayla looked at him, puzzled.
“We are going to see Simon,” she said, “Just as I told you
only a few moments ago.”
“Right, right,” William said, “Sorry, I lost my head for a
moment.”
Again, Kayla looked at him, puzzled.
“But it is right there, still between your shoulders.”
William paused for a minute, hoping she wasn’t serious. By
the look of her face though, she couldn’t be more serious.
“No that’s not what I..”
William tried to think of how to explain. Unfortunately, he
was not much of a talker, especially when it came to women, so he failed to
explain even a simple expression.
“Never mind.” He said.
Kayla smiled.
“Okay,” she said as she pointed into a small room, “Simon is
waiting for you in here. I hope you find what you are seeking.”
“Thank you.”
William walked into the room and saw Simon sitting in a
chair, waiting.
“Have a seat.” He said with a voice one would expect from a
man of wisdom.
William sat straight across from Simon. Simon sat still,
eyes locked on William.
William assumed that Simon was analyzing him, but William
was doing it right back.
Simon was a tall, older man. His hair was a bright shade of
blonde, with not a single bit of hair on his face to hide his intimidating
looks or signs of age. Though William heard Simon was an older man, he looked
no older than Marcus. Despite of these things, there was something about Simon
that made William too intimidated to speak, which made the silence even more
unbearable.
To William, it felt like this silence would never end until
Kayla walked in carrying two wooden cups. She placed one in front of both Simon
and William.
“Thank you, Kayla.” Simon said with a smile.
She smiled back and left the room.
William looked into the cup. It contained a dark colored
liquid and what looked like several leaves, like some kind of tea. He was
unsure what it was.
“Interesting.” Said Simon.
William looked at him, nervous, as if he and Simon were in a
duel, and he had just made a flaw, leaving himself exposed for attack.
“W-What?” he said, slightly stuttering.
“You have yet to drink from your cup,” Simon began, “In
fact, you have yet to take your eyes off of it since it was placed in front of
you, almost as if you are pondering what it is, which means, of course, that
you are unfamiliar with this drink. This means that you certainly are not from
Woodspring. Are you even familiar with Aldenin I wonder?”
William didn’t know how to respond to that. His more
sarcastic side wanted to apologize for not immediately drinking the dirt
colored water coated in grass that was placed in front of him, but he was too
nervous to show even the slightest bit of humor. He decided to simply answer
the question.
“That’s just it, sir,” he said, “I’m not, and I apologize
for not drinking from the cup. I mean no disrespect. I am just unfamiliar with
it, and the fact that you haven’t taken a drink yet either makes me cautious.
Simon glanced at his own cup and smiled.
“Ha! I suppose you are correct,” said Simon, “It is I who
should be apologizing. The drink that sits in front of you is composed of fresh
spring water and some special herbs grown by Kayla. She is studying herblore
and is quite good at it. In Woodspring, we drink this sort of mixture quite
often. It is good for the body, and the mind.”
Simon took a drink.
“See? It is perfectly safe.”
It seemed logical enough to William, so he took a risk and
drank from his cup. To his surprise, it tasted good, and he felt his mind
almost immediately calm itself. His head no longer felt bogged down with worry
or pain.
Simon could see the relief in William’s face.
“Well now that we seem to trust one another, I believe you
have come here for a reason…”
Simon gestured for his name.
“William.” He said.
“A pleasure to meet you, William. Please, call me Simon.”
Somehow, the people of Woodspring had the ability to comfort
William with a simple smile, and Simon was no exception. All of the
intimidation had left.
“Now then, William,” said Simon right before he took another
drink, “You say you are not from Aldenin. Where then are you from exactly?”
William was tired of the question, and even more tired of
attempting to answer it. If there was anyone else who needed to hear it though,
it was Simon.
“It may sound crazy to you,” William began, “But I remember
things from another place, another time, completely different from this one. In
this other place, I have lived seventeen years in a world completely different
from this one. I know the other place is real, but this place shares many
authenticities with the other world. In fact, I only come to this world when I
am asleep in the other world, and it doesn’t happen that often. I have entered
this world over five times now over the course of about two months or so, yet
not even a day has passed in this world. I know it sounds foolish, and equally
foolish to expect you to have an explanation, but Simon, I fear I am losing my
mi…I mean, going crazy.”
William finished talking and immediately took a long drink
from his cup then caught his breath.
Simon sat still for a moment, and absorbed everything he had
just heard.
“Is that all?” he asked in a way that William could not
decide if he was being sarcastic or not.
“Actually, no. No it’s not.” William said before taking
another drink.
Simon took a drink as well.
“Interesting,” said Simon, “Obviously you are not here by
chance. There is a reason you are here, because there is a reason for all
things that occur. Aldruhim has a purpose for your presence here.”
“Aldruhim?” asked William. He had yet to hear that name.
“You do not know of Aldruhim?”
William shook his head.
Simon immediately stood and walked over to a shelf where he
grabbed a small statue of an eagle. It was similar to the one outside of the
hut, but small enough to fit in one’s hand.
Simon showed William the statue.
“This statue is a common portrayal of the great eagle
Aldruhim,” Simon said as he sat down, “Aldruhim is our guardian, the voice in
the wind, the champion over evil.”
William knew where this was going. He couldn’t decide if it
was a religion or a cult. Either way, William didn’t like the sound of it. He
had tried religion before, but his life was far from good.
“We believe that he watches over us, and that he speaks to
us in the wind that blows with the beating of his wings. It is because of
Aldruhim that Woodspring and places like it are still a haven from darkness and
evil.”
“Darkness and evil?” said William, “But what I have seen of
Aldenin is so peaceful.”
“Have you been outside of Woodspring?”
William thought about it for a moment.
“I’m not sure.” He said.
“Well,” said Simon, “Darkness dwells everywhere, even in the
hearts of all men and women. However, it can not take hold of the hearts of
Woodspring.”
Just as Simon said that, Kayla walked into the room.
“Excuse me, Simon,” she said, “But it is almost time for the
village gathering.”
“Of course,” he said, “Thank you Kayla. We will be right
out.”
Kayla walked out of the room and Simon stood.
“We must go now, William. The village gathering is happening
shortly.”
“But I still have all of these questions.” Said William.
“Do not worry, we can meet again every day until you have
every question answered if that is what it will take.”
William was disappointed, but was glad he at least had made
a little progress.
“And a word of wisdom for you,” said Simon, “You may not
know why you are here, and may be aggravated about being here, but if you come
here in your dreams then I doubt you can control coming here. I suggest you
make the best of your visits. Aldenin is an amazing place, and its people are
equally interesting. You never know what you might discover when you explore
with an open mind.”
It was good advice, even if the people were religious
fanatics or cultists, it was their way and William would respect it. It was
here that he decided that he would go along with it all and try to make the
best of it.
“Let’s go, William,” said Simon, “We don’t want to be late
for the gathering.”
William followed Simon out of the hut.
