Behind the Bells

[Lark 2227]

“Oftentimes I think back to our childhood in Marna, where life was simpler, richer, and the world’s horrors seemed so far away.”

 

A terrible blizzard brewed outside the Vizmak keep, as it always did. Snow and frost clawing the windows, stained black and gray with age. The heavy ruined stones did little to insulate the heat of the fireplace located in the center of the fort. Tired men, young and old were huddled on the floor of the Initiate’s quarters, playing cards and reminiscing about times before they had put aside their lives for the cause of hunting beasts. Their stories carried their way to my own bunk as I lay there, thinking of my own past and what had led up to this moment in particular. The chilling winds screamed outside like a frightened maiden, terrified of whatever horrors lay out in the canvas of white. I had found a calming peace in the sounds of my comrades, it distracted me from the cold that I could focus on what mattered. The smell of burning oak and pine wood we had gathered in preparation for the storm, the taste of rich stew made from Travis’s latest deer hunt, it was, in a way, relaxing. But, it was an illusion. This was not leisure, this was a brief respite from what lay beyond the blizzard.

Upon closing my eyes, I’m back in a temperate climate once more. Where the sun smiled down upon me as I would follow Travis through the market streets towards the orphanage where we oft spent out time. While we were the sons of well-off merchants, Travis had seen their plight and decided that we should keep them company. I have fond memories of Travis and I exploring the city with children from the orphanage. It was quite a different life they led, they had no one and nothing except for each other. We had, about everything we could have needed at the time. It’s something I know Travis thinks about every day still, most of the money he makes goes back to that orphanage which he now owns. After all, it’s the most we can do. Living and growing up with them was an experience in how the world’s events are often out of our hands. That feeling of helplessness is hard to mitigate, even when you keep telling yourself it isn’t your fault. Perhaps it’s why our parents had us study around the world, to continue to experience new things, and so we did.

 

Life was simple and stayed simple for me. I preferred it so. To the academies and scholars of science and history I went, to gain a deeper understanding of the world around me where I could indulge myself in all of the literature I desired, as it was, and always will be a place of ultimate comfort for me. Travis studied for some time as well, but amongst the stacks was not his home. Travis, while intelligent beyond his years, needed discipline. He needed direction. Mother decided to send him to the Reiter Brigade to keep an eye on our Uncle Norman. He finally found direction upon being inducted into the Reiter Company as an unblooded initiate. After such news reached me, it was the last time I would hear from Travis, for what he learned there has only been passed onto me through stories I’d hear over dinner. He’s remained quiet about his deeds within the Reiter ranks to this day.

 

War was hard on Travis, it opened his eyes to the follies of man and to his path, at what cost I do not know. My brother did not seem a changed man but I do oftentimes worry about him. To know he survived is a testament to the fortitude of Travis, something I will back till the end of my days. He would later tell me how he and Hans met, from crawling out from under a mound of corpses from what I suppose is now known as the Battle of the Bloody Road. From there, a new mission was forged for him, and later on, I would find myself on that same path. To Whitepeak he went, using the family fortune to muster up a manor and begin culling Atlas of monsters. To what end he intends to go, I know not, but it inspired me as word reached me. To take up a new cause of danger to make the world safer for the mortal races. To be honest, I could have stayed comfortable, I could have stayed in at our family home. But the opportunity to discover a new life, a new perspective and experience is something I think, that to ignore would be a true folly. So, off I went to Whitepeak, finding my brother and Hans readying themselves to hunt monsters, at the expense of all the money we had.

 

So I sit here, in this freezing fort wondering how it all came full circle. I suppose it matters not how it all came to be, but where we go from here. The sound of Arhadir entering the room, his wise voice barking echoing off the broken walls of the fort as he calls out Travis and Hans for their reckless ways, much like a grandfather would. Even in the blizzards of the south, we knew what we signed up for. We knew what had to be done. As I ready my blade and head outside, Travis and I share a look, knowing that this is where we are meant to be.

[osumanduas 1442]

Moved to The Great Library. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.

 

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