The Evidence

Just beyond where the dirt became black as night and the tall trees began to thicken sat a cabin.

Perhaps not so much a cabin and more of an abandoned run-down storage shack. Whoever created it had used the wood from the very same trees, so the entire structure almost blended in with the surrounding black bark of the plants.

It didn't take Adaline long to find it, how could she forget?

It was the first piece of forgotten civilization she had stumbled upon after walking around in circles in the forest.

Back then this creepy run down place had quickly become her savior, if she hadn't found it Adaline would have lost her mind.

She tried to shake the heaviness that clung to her as she walked up the steps. She was not here to dwell on the past. Furthermore, she was here to secure her future, with her lover and their newborn son.

The thought of Azra had Adaline stalling before the door.

During the month they had spent together Adaline had come to learn the tiny human like the back of her hand. The way he sometimes smiled in his sleep, how she needed to encourage him to finish his milk and how he would sometimes reach his small hands out to her, asking to be held.

But by far the most hilarious thing she had witnessed was what an utter fool the high and mighty King became in the presence of his son. Hovering over Azra as he slept, taking him for his daily heart check up and proceeding to glare at the healers the entire session and even going as far as to make the strangest faces to get Azra to laugh despite his numerous failures.

Yes, this was for both of them and for herself too, though she was reluctant to admit it.

With a smile on her face, Adaline opened the door.

Her feet covered in simple leather shoes still managed to kick up a fine layer of dust that sat across the floor like thickly fallen snow.

The inside was packed with barrels, boxes and tightly folded cloth that had long succumbed to the vast amount of time that had passed. It seemed as though the original owner was using the place as a fail-safe as well as an emergency life support.

There was everything from dried goods that had long grown moldy to expensive silken clothes that had rot where they lay.

Moving deeper in, Adaline stopped in front of the tallest barrel. Her breath stuttered in her lungs as she took in the dust that was disturbed around the large object.

Her head whipped around and her eyebrows drew tight at the smaller set of footprints that had followed her exact same path. She hadn't noticed them because they were much lighter and smaller than her own.

A child?

It must be.

Though she could tell they were no longer here.

With anxiety now eating at her stomach like corrosive acid, Adaline quickly shoved the barrel off to the side. The sound of glass bottles within clinking against each other echoed into the air, but Adaline couldn't hear it.

All she could hear was the beating of her own heart because if what she had left here was taken... then she may become responsible for altering the entire course of the Alfonsi nation.

No, I'm getting ahead of myself. It's dead by now and who ever took it will probably think it's a useless shiny object and throw it out. Unless they decide to open it first...

Adaline groaned in frustration at her own thoughts. She was running around in circles and the only way to calm her hectic thoughts was to confirm it with her eyes. Still, she paused for a moment before lifting a section of the wooden floor that would lead to a storage space beneath.

After a short silent prayer to God, the All Father and whoever else was listening, she opened the handless door. The space was only large enough to fit both her head and one arm in.

Working with the little brightness that filtered through the thick leaves and past the dirt caked windows, Adaline squinted into the darkness.

When she had first entered the shack, she decided to leave her amour, a gamble that paid off. If she had wandered into Dimcliff Town decked out in bright shiny steel plates that covered from her neck to her ankles, she would have been jumped. Or worse, ostracized.

Later on she returned to hide something else with it. It was practically useless now, but she couldn't bring herself to completely destroy it...

A potentially stupid decision on my part.

Her eyes scoured the space desperately, searching for an old, bulky cloth she knew she left there.

Even going so far as to stretch her arm in to brush her hand against the bottom in case her eyes deceived her.

When her fingertips came back towards her face with nothing but a light coating of dirt and dust, Adaline's stomach dropped to the soles of her feet.

"No, no, no, no, no. No, it has to be here."

The armor, she didn't care for... but her-

"You came."

Adaline whipped her head around.

Standing at the door entrance was a child or maybe a teenager, no more than thirteen or fourteen years old.

Short midnight black hair and bright red eyes stood out against his light clean skin. He was dressed normally in clothes that looked two sizes too big, the long shirt hung from his shoulders and the black pants were rolled just above his ankles.

Although Adaline could tell the boy was talking to her, he refused to lift his head. His gaze instead focused on the old set of footprints that were most likely his.

"Do I know you?"

The child blinked owlishly before moving his leather-bound foot to step exactly into the old footprint he left last time.

"You came. Michael said you would, but I'm not supposed to be here. I'm supposed to be learning about the mana pathways in the heart."

Adaline blinked and when the child was halfway through retracing his steps he stopped and seemed to finally address her presence by briefly glancing at her hand which was now empty as Adaline stood to give him her full attention.

"I found what you left. Michael laughed when he saw the armor, he wants to meet you. I don't understand what was so funny about it. I didn't show him the other thing. I like this one, I want to keep it."

Reaching into the pocket of his pants, he pulled out a small black rectangular item. The pad of his thumb brushed against the smooth cool surface as if it were a pet.

"I like this, touching it feels nice. I like touching ice but that's too cold, this one feels better. It is smooth all over except for these things that stick out at the side. I'm not learning about mana pathways because I wanted to know. What is this?"

Adaline breathed a sigh of relief, sure the situation was far from ideal, but having a clueless kid bring it to her was definitely better luck than she was expecting.

Her phone was useless here, so of course this kid had no idea what it was. It was good that he treated it as some kind of toy instead of trying to open it up to see what was inside.

That phone might as well have been a portion of her brain. There were memories and important notes on that... not to mention the files. Adaline knew she probably wouldn't need any of those things now, she still kept it anyway. 

"That's mine, it doesn't work anymore but I'd still appreciate it if you gave it back to me. Can I have it?"

Adaline almost sighed when the boy hugged the phone to his chest and shook his head. Looking down at his own shoes instead of up at her.

Deciding to try again, Adaline put a smile on her face. The last thing she wanted to do was scare him but she really needed that phone; for herself and for her family... new family that is.

She went on her knees so she was looking up at him instead. He wasn't much shorter than her but it never hurt to try and make him feel more comfortable.

"What's your name?"

After what felt like a small infinity, he finally mumbled out an answer, though his face remained impassive despite the smile on Adaline's and the warmth she injected into her tone.

"Joran... Michael won't let me say the rest."

"Well Joran, what you have there is actually very important to me. Will you really not give it back?"

"What is it?"

He began fidgeting as his voice lowered to a mere whisper. His eyes entirely focused on her hands.

Concerned with the way he was now gripping onto the device, Adaline reached out to hold his shoulders. She didn't mean to frighten him, she didn't mean to do anything to him at all. She was just worried.

So when he dropped the phone and backed away as if she were the devil herself, Adaline immediately zeroed in on the device. She dove for it and caught it in her hand as if it were a precious piece of expensive china, and it might as well have been.

Breathing a deep in relief, she looked up to check on Joran. He had moved so quickly it surprised her. He was a strange one to say the least but Adaline would never want to make any child feel threatened in her presence.

She did not expect the small sharp shiny object that was moving towards her neck at the speed of light.