Voices in the Dark (Part 3)

After waiting in an air of fear, she watched intently as Hirow emerged from the shadows.

Talia stood up delighted, "Did you find a light."

"Yes I did," he said, setting a candle down and pulling out a box of matches. "Thankfully they were where I remember them to be."

Hirow struck a match and held the flame to the wick cradling it with his hand until it caught fire. Then he blew the dwindling match out.

Holding the candle up he turned to Talia, "I need your help to get some stuff."

Talia got up and followed. The light illuminated the room ahead casting large shadows that stretched and pulled at each other in the flickering light. The room they entered was large and open with mats among other possessions littering the floor. Several large wooden crates that looked as if they hadn't been moved in a long time sat in the back, collecting dust. Above the crates hung a few worn shelves holding well-used wooden bowls and plates.

Talia ran her fingers against the wall and examined the dust on them. Then after blowing on her fingers, she released a cloud of dust, and turned to Hirow, "Where are we?"

"It's the Orphanage I used to live in."

"An Orphanage," Talia said, confused.

"It's a place where children go when they don't have parents." Hirow knelt down and opened one of the crates and started rummaging through its contents. "I was sent here after my parents died in a famine about ten years ago. What little food we had they gave to me. They say my father collapsed in the field and my mother," Hirow stopped his searching, "I found her dead the next morning."

He stood up and moved to the next crate and continued looking. He pulled out a thin white shirt, brown pants, and worn leather boots. They were old but it would work.

Hirow threw the clothes and boots over to Talia, "Here put these on."

Tali stumbled as she caught them, "What about the cloak?"

"You can keep it."

She went to the far end of the room and started to change as Hirow moved on to the final crate. The entire thing was filled with toys and books the Orphanage had collected over the years through donations or the possessions the children came with. He carefully took out each item and placed it gently on the ground. Without the children themselves to tell him, there was no way to know which of them were highly valued so he took great care of each one. Once the entire box was almost empty he saw it. A book lay at the bottom, thick and tattered. The spine was broken with small lines weaving their way from top to bottom like ancient mountains and canyons. The front was a faded red with a soft bronze title that barely stood out. It read The History of Gladia. Even though he had left a year ago to start working in the fields they had still kept the book. Indicated by its location in the crate it seemed not many others had enjoyed it since. After admiring the book he set it aside and kept looking. After scouring the rest of the crate he took the things that were set aside and put them back in with the same care he had taken them out with. At this point, Talia finished changing and came back over. Hirow was so concentrated on making sure he had put everything back that he didn't notice Talia come up behind him and grab the book.

"What is this," she said, flipping through the pages in curiosity.

Hirow turned around quickly and swiped the book from her hands, "It's a book, it's delicate, and it's not yours. Do you even know how to read?"

"Next, ask me before ripping something out of my hands, and to answer your question, yes I think I know how."

The answer surprised him, " Really, prove it to me." He flipped to a random page and pointed at a paragraph near the top, "Try reading this."

"Why is this book so important to you?"

"It's the only thing my parents left me, so when you read be careful."

"Ok." Talia sat down and pressed her fingers against the page and started, "The forest of Ori lies just past the . . . Saddle of the Sun is a portion of the Kings mountains. This portion of the king's mountains is called such since from most areas during dawn or twilight, it appears that the sun rests on it as a man would rest on a saddle. To enter the eastern side of the forest you must pass through this section of the mountains. The forest is home to a race of people called the Luminaries. Not much is known about them due to their isolationist nature. Ever since 525 AAT the Luminaries have shut themselves off from the world, seldom letting others pass through their lands. What is known currently is just a rumor but it is believed that they live long lives and have an ancient ability to control starlight. This power has attracted many humans seeking it. The most famous of these examples happened in 543 AAT when an expedition of 300 men invaded the forest. Their leader was named . . ."

Talia paused trying to pronounce the name but Hirow told her to stop. She closed it and laid it down softly. 'What is this book?"

Hirow took the book and put it with the rest of the things he had and then answered, "It's a history book. The legends and chronicles of our world are all in there. It describes all the places of the world, the people, and the mysteries that have yet to be solved. I've read it from cover to cover many times hoping I could be there myself. Yet I never got the courage to leave. Always being held back by something, family, friends, responsibilities." He sighed and stood up, "but now it seems I have no choice. The whole village has rejected me and you still owe me for last night."

Talia sat there confused then she remembered, "But how are you going to do that?"

"We'll go wherever this book directs us. Who knows, someone might help us along the way, but one thing is for sure we are not going to find anything if we're still in Celestate. I promise I won't stop until you know who you are."

"This all seems so sudden. Why would you leave everything behind for a girl you just met yesterday?"

"Because you've finally given me purpose, something meaningful to go after. This village never had a purpose for me. Ever since my childhood, I knew that my goal in life must lie beyond here. I may have friends and familiarity but if I stay, my life will spin into nothingness. That is why I'll follow you.

This was a new side of Hirow she hadn't seen yet. He really seemed excited for the first time. She watched as he busied himself wrapping up the things that were laid out. She was glad this was the first person she had met. His excitement enthralled her and gave her hope to leave the worries she had.

She got up and asked with a smile, "Can I help?"

Hirow paused, considering what was left to do, "No, as long as you're ready to go."

Talia went back to the door they had entered and waited. The crowd outside had grown louder since a few minutes ago. What were they doing, she wondered to herself. Soon Hirow came wearing a ragged cloak with all his things gathered in a worn sack. He placed the sack down and turned to take one last look, gazing across the barren room. Talia watched wondering what he was doing as she grew impatient.

"Let's go," he said, grabbing the sack.

With those last words, Hirow left another remnant of his past behind as he continued on out the door.