Journey to the mainland (2)

Thorjen

Thorjen was assigned to the last carriage placed at the back of the convoy. He was grouped with three other youths he didn’t speak much too. But he knew them by their faces. They were part of the select top youths of his generation. Two of which sneered once they noticed him approaching, the girl amongst the trio didn’t seem too disturbed by his arrival, and rather watched Thorjen approaching with a curious glint in her eyes.

She was rather short, with pink pigtails and a round delicate face. Before he stepped onto the carriage, he looked around and finally locked eyes with the one person he was going to miss the most. He felt wavering flutters within his heart. On one side of things he was desperately going to miss her, but on the other he couldn't wait to explore the wider world outside of the mountain.

Amongst the watching elders, the instructors and even Chief Raziel himself. Only one figure stood out to him the most, a tall and eye catching blonde elf. She wore a deep blue and silver set of gothic styled armour. And despite her domineering look, her eyes casted upon him were filled with nothing but warmness, enough to melt the glaziers of ice.

Thorjen saw his mother standing amidst the line of elders. His mother wore a proud smile whilst she gave him a deep look. Thorjen smiled and slightly nodded. They had already said all that needed to be said.

Despite knowing she would be tailing their convoy not too long after their departure. He still couldn’t help but feel a sense of change slowly occurring inside of him.

This would be the first time he was going to be away from his mother. For as long as Thorjen could remember, his mother had always been a pillar of support for him. A constant source of love and nurture. His heart felt heavy having to leave her. But Thorjen understood this was a change he needed to go through, especially if he wanted to fulfil his dreams.

A signal from the envoys riding in the first carriages alerted everyone to prepare for their departure. Thorjen sat closest to one of the windows. Besides him was the gentle eyed Elf girl who didn’t look troubled by his presence. Meanwhile the rest of the youths inside were busy having their own conversation to pass the time.

Thorjen wasn’t concerned of course with their behaviour’s, being used to the isolation he received from his peers whilst he grew up here, so there wasn’t much of a difference to riding with these fellows or having the entire carriage to himself in complete silence, he might’ve preferred the latter.

More so, he was rather entranced with the passing outdoor scenery. The carriage felt to be descending down a descending road whilst it trailed along an uneven rocky road, which he understood to be a slithering descending stone road wrapped around the blue mountain.

Time passed on.

Almost an hour into their journey and Thorjens peaceful isolation was disturbed by a light sounding voice beside him.

“Is it true what they say then?” A delicate voice asked him

“Hm?” He glanced towards his side to meet the face of the doe eyed girl with pink pigtails gazing into his eyes.

“Oh-you know that you’re a soothsayer and what not. My grandmother believes you’re a child of destiny. Chosen to see the threads of fate and time.”

“And what...what do you believe?”

“Hmm? Who knows...” The girl stared into his eyes with a vacant look. Thorjen couldn’t help but feel a cold chill crawling down his arm when she looked at him.

‘_There was an elder who always looked at me the same way. I wonder if they’re related.’ _Thorjen lamented about one of the elders who similarly spoke weird things concerning his future, the odd times he bumped into her. The earnest aged Elf floating around his memories also carried the same chilling uncomfortable look whenever she stared into his eyes too.

'But her hair was grey and not pink.' He reminded himself.

Thorjen wasn’t one to dwell too much on things such as fate, considering he had always heard stories about the ancient seers growing up. And how powerful those ancient Elvfen folk used to be. If there was a chance he had inherited such powers, he was sure they would've manifested themselves by now.

Even the illustrious current Queen of the Elves, Queen Hada. A figure held within the highest esteem amongst the Elven folk. Rumours said she too held the incredible ability of foresight, meaning the power had survived through within the royal lineage.

He didn’t have any lofty expectations for himself. Thorjen simply wanted to get strong enough to become a well-respected knight. He read all kinds of texts about the knights from the mainland. He even knew most of the famous bands by heart. The famed 10 generals, the illustrious 13 chosen golden swords of heaven. Or the famous guilds scattered around Lucien Kingdom. Thorjen couldn't wait to participate in the tournaments, earn himself a living and perhaps grow strong enough to aid his people for the times ahead. He felt a sense of untapped adventure stored inside his heart just waiting for him to explore it.

He continued gazing dreamily into the passing outdoor. Thinking about his dreams and the days ahead.

The carriage continued its unsteady descent through the mountainous plains. Whilst a few of the Elves shared some of the things they would miss about the azure sect. Thorjen decided to close his two eyelids and focus on centring the tiny wisps of Qi he could just about muster. Despite knowing he held no real talent to cultivate, that never held him back from arduously trying to purify enough pure Qi, large enough to circulate a flow of energy through his body.

He inhaled the air through his mouth whilst softly exhaling small breaths of purified energy through his nasal. A gentle smile freckled across his face. For the first time in a very long while. Thorjen felt at peace.

(???)

Time gently waded along.

And once the last carriage had just finished crossing over the final threshold of the blue mountains' territory. A few figures clothed in darkness, hidden amongst the near distant shrubbery slowly begun to unearth themselves from the still wastelands. Two men dressed in dark tight robes watched solemnly from a hidden distance. Their cold eyes focused on the acute stony ledge soon approaching the moving convoy. The stony ledge was almost fashioned like a bridge of some kind. So the carriages had to slow down before crossing over it.

The two fellows turned to face one another. In unison they exchanged a knowing nod. Once the last carriage rolled onto the narrow road. There was a small window they had to activate the trap, the main problem the two assassins faced was how to contain the blast from causing destruction to the other carriages.

Their employer was very shrewd with the mission needed to be conducted. Only one of the carriages needed to be taken out. Such an ask wasn’t usually something to be highly critical over, but concerning the mighty auras hidden within some of those carriage. They both understood they needed to time this to perfection. The first carriage had begun rolling over the detonation points. One of the masked figures took out a rigidly carved emerald orb.

He whispered into it and the jewel a d it responded back by starting to glow. Unbeknownst to the riders and guests on board. The long stony path was exhibiting a similar reaction, but the jewels expertly lodged into the stoned pathway were well concealed to the naked eye.

They waited for the fifth carriage to roll onto the pathway. One of the hooded assailants then cupped his mouth, allowing a hollow hole to form. Then the figure started to make a throat curdling squalling noise. After a moment of silence, the canyon spoke back to him.

A growing sound of flapping wings sounded from the near distance and suddenly a score of birds rose up from the unknown depths beneath the stone valleys.

A flood of dark speckled feathered birds rushed out from the gorge in a bid ascend towards the heavens. The trailing carriage rolling close behind was unable to avoid the rushing birds tearing through the skies in large numbers. Because of which, the two horses dragging the carriage were startled just as the driver was.

The driver swiftly jerked back the reigns in an attempt to slow the horses down. But...it was all too late.

Thorjen

The carriage ride felt peaceful. Thorjen was hoping to sleep a little more before they reached the mainland.

Yet for some reason, he felt unable to take his eyes off the deep abyss laying beneath the tall mountainous road. He looked towards the west, where he felt as though something dangerous existed there. Why and how he knew this he still wasn’t sure. But he always had keen sense of danger ever since he was a little boy. They said he could read the constellations and see the threads of fate. He wasnt sure what this actually entailed. But he was sure he could feel a strange sense of danger at times.

Suddenly, a loud bang shook the entire carriage. Thorjen held onto the edge of the open window frame, he quickly peered outside the swaying carriage and looked ahead.

He saw a glimmering golden light flash followed by a second large explosion . In mere seconds, their carriage wilted to one side before he felt a terrible sensation of the ground beneath him starting to crumble.

The bridge started to collapse in moments and a terrible feeling of weightlessness appeared beneath him.

Thorjen cursed inwardly before he took in the chaos around him. The two Elves who sat adjacently from him were caught off guard as well. With their bodies covered in Qi, they swiftly tried to make a swift escape. Their efforts proved to be in vain, as the huge blast's momentum had already toppled the carriage over onto its side.

But what made matters worst was that something had released a strange wave of energy that felt to have drained everyone of vigor.

Their carriage was now free falling without nothing to stop it. It battered and crashed against the edges of the mountain whilst it fell. The screams of the travelling youths' inside were quickly drowned out by the rushing noises of rapid heavy winds barraging against the falling carriage.

Thorjen could only helplessly watch in despair.

He saw the retreating azure sky moving further away from him, and suddenly at that very moment, Thorjen had come to realise something.

That truly, the guardians of fate did not wish for him to succeed at all.