Wild Beasts

They started sloping down after breaking their fast when the sun was barely on the horizon. Gala wished to sleep more if she could, but Alvaro was giving her a stern look right after he woke her up, and she had no choice but to obey the young warrior as she was tired of their non-stop arguments. She also understands Alvaro's concern about what the barrier had told her.

The trip down the mountain's base wasn't as difficult as the previous day's trek. In fact, Gala even had a delightful moment in her life when Ejonna urged her to slide down the icy slope. When the sun was already out on the horizon, they were already at the mountain's foot.

Gala was baffled when Alvaro cut some crystallized branches nearby with his brute force. Gala mouthed an inaudible 'wow' when Alvaro expertly snapped them off from the trees' trunks by using his hands only. Gala could not help but wonder how strong the young warrior really is.

"Why is he suddenly cutting those branches?" She asked the elder faye; the young warrior's random actions amused her.

"They'll be our canes as we climb up Hill Gillead; we're going straight to this path where the hill is; Spîcolion is above the hill," Elderifrey explained, pointing to the barely visible cobblestone road on their left. "We will reach the village before the day ends."

Gala nodded nonetheless, despite being still confused. "I don't get it; we just climbed a mountain without using any of those; why use one when it was just a hill this time?"

Alvaro was approaching them now. "You'll know once we get there," he said, handing us our canes with a stern look, exhaustion clearly painted on his face, and a day-old beard growing on his face. "All right, let's go."

--

Gala was flabbergasted when they reached the hill, finally realizing what the cane was for. In comparison to the rocky mountain they climbed up the day before, Hill Gillead was extremely steep, bald, and conical. It appeared to be a massive boulder of sheer ice, and the surface was extremely slippery, making it difficult for anyone to ascend.

Gala wonders if the cane would be useful, given the steep ascent. Alvaro and Elderifrey were both as perturbed as she was. She had no idea whether she would be able to climb up.

"I'll go first," Alvaro said as he moved past Gala and took a position in front of the hill. He poked the surface with his cane to inspect it. "You follow me, Gala, then Elderifrey," he said as he looked up at the hill. They couldn't see the village yet, but the faint smoke steaming upwards was an indication of the settlement perched atop the hill.

The ascent began slowly and cautiously, with everyone's attention focused on the slick surface. Despite the cold temperature, Gala was sweating profusely. It was fortunate that Alvaro's cane had a sharp tip, which made it easier for them to poke it on the surface. Gala had to hoist herself up strenuously with every step, yelping in the process. In contrast to her reaction, Alvaro and Elderifrey were relatively calm.

--

The sun had perked up above them when they reached the top. Gala was exceedingly thirsty and tired from the strenuous trek on the way there, and she even lay flat on the cold surface as she caught her breath.

'Dear heavens! I would never ever come here again.'

"Alvaro!"

The silence was broken by a feminine voice. Gala turned to face the source when she noticed a female faye approaching. The faye was dressed in an animal skinned robe with a woolen beret atop her head. Her skin was a gorgeous tan that glistened in the sun, and she was just as tall as Alvaro. Gala wasn't sure if her big, doe-eyed eyes actually sparkled or if it was just a figment of her imagination.

"By the king, you're here!" The faye excitedly told Alvaro when she finally reached them. Alvaro and Elderifrey were smiling at the young faye while she silently observed them, feeling a little left out.

Gala was momentarily mesmerized by the faye's beauty and her amicable demeanor. Contrary to most of the fayes she had encountered in the palace, she carried herself in a very dignified manner.

"Sharaya! It's been a long time. Much to Gala's surprise, Alvaro hugged the young faye. Alvaro was never friendly to other fayes in the palace, which made Gala suspect that this faye might be a close acquaintance of the young warrior. "The king sent us here right away after receiving the report from one of your oinkfreys. I'm with Elderifrey and Galatea." Alvaro pointed in her direction, and she hastily plastered a smile on her face to hide the fact that she had just gawked at both of them.

"Hi," she greeted the faye shyly.

The faye looked at her cautiously, and that made Gala flustered in embarrassment. It turned towards Alvaro, "Who is she? I don't think I've seen her before, and why does the king send her with you and Elderifrey?" The faye asked Alvaro.

"It was a long story, Sharaya, but Galatea here is a human and possibly our land's whisperer." Alvaro responded while turning towards her. The faye named Sharaya was about to ask him another question, but Alvaro urged her to stop. "I'll answer your questions later on. For the time being, bring us to your father."

Sharaya nodded and gave Gala a small smile before she led them towards an old, wooden pathway. Gala notes that the houses that she saw in the kingdom resembled a lot of the small, quaint houses in this region, except that the roofs were made of woven palm leaves.

In front of each house were clay stoves with firewood burning beneath them, emitting a sweet aroma of spices and coffee. It brings back her memories of when she was still with her family.

The villagers were nodding at Alvaro and Elderifrey, acknowledging their presence, while some gave Gala a puzzled look. It reminded her of her first day in Aelfrey.

"Come in." Sharaya said when they finally reached the door of the house at the center of the village. Gala deduced that the owner of the house must be the most important faye in the region. "Father had been expecting you since yesterday."

Elderifrey only nodded before they finally entered the house. Gala smiled involuntarily, seeing that the interior resembled a lot like her home, although theirs was relatively small compared to this. The living room was spacious, and the burning fire from the fireplace kept the room warm. An old grandfather's clock was sitting beside the nook of the room, the hands of the clock indicating that it was already 4:30 in the afternoon.

"Greetings, Abdon." Elderifrey addressed the stocky old man who was sitting comfortably in a rocking chair in front of the fireplace.

"Elderifrey! Alvaro, finally you're here. I thought the king hadn't responded to my message." The faye has a rather raspy and unpleasant voice, much like the king. When the man finally noticed her, standing feebly behind Alvaro, he inquired about her identity from her two companions.

The man and his daughter, Sharaya, were exceedingly puzzled when Elderifrey told them everything about her. They could not believe that their sacred spirit-frey chose a human to be their land's whisperer. Although Elderifrey corrected them that she might not be, the two still ranted over their reproach of having a human as their whisperer.

Gala's stature shrank next to Alvaro's, greatly offended at the obvious objection she felt from the two fayes. She absolutely had no idea why these beings strongly disliked her kind, wondering if their behavior was heavily attributed to the king's prejudice against humans.

"With all due respect, your liege, I think Gala here is not the issue that we should talk about. After all, we were sent here by the Majesty to resolve your region's predicament." Alvaro interjected, causing the old man and his daughter to stop their rants. They fell silent for awhile after realizing their despicable behavior.

"You were right, Alvaro. We sincerely apologize if we offended you in any way. The news came out as a shocking one, to be honest, and so we are truly sorry for reacting that way." The old man approached Gala and gently clasped her hands. Gala could tell that the apology was sincere.

Gala smiled at the old man. "Apologies accepted, your liege."

Two fayes served them coffee and dry bread after the old man motioned them to a long, sitting cushion in the corner of the living room. When everyone had settled in, the old faye began talking about his region's plight with Alvaro and Elderifrey. Sharaya was actively involved in the discussion, as Gala learned that her father, Abdon, was the region's leader. Hungry and exhausted from the entire trip, Gala munched on everything, along with Ejonna, who selfishly gobbled up two portions of bread and coffee.

--

When the sun had finally set in the west, everyone in Spîcolion doused off the fire from the stoves and fireplace, making sure that no embers were left. As early as 6 PM, all the fayes in the region were inside their houses, preparing to sleep. It's been a month since the fayes in the region had to sleep during the night in the extreme temperatures without a fire to keep them warm.

The once-tamed wild bests of Spîcolion had gone berserk every night when they saw fire, and the village had suffered such severe damage that Abdon finally decided to seek the king's help. A lot of the fayes had gone ill from suffering the freezing cold during the night.

And so that night, Gala was trembling from the extreme cold. She hugged her knees tightly as she sat on top of the bunk bed. She could hardly grasp the region's plight and the reason why no one in the village was lighting their fireplace as she was busy filling up her stomach.

The whole village fell into a daunting, uncomfortable silence. Gala had to hold her breath momentarily, afraid of making any sound. Gala was petrified on her bed, having chills run down her spine when a continuous shrill voice echoed throughout the village. She looked up at the roof, wondering if it could withstand the beast's weight in case it would leap to the roof. She snuggled closer to Elderifrey, who pretended to be asleep, while she could hear Alvaro's steady breathing above them.

It wasn't long after when they heard loud cries from a house next to Abdon's; a loud stomp reverberated across the village. Alvaro swiftly rose up from his and jumped in front of them, holding his spear with his right hand.

Gala noticed Elderifrey following the young warrior, so she had no choice but to follow as well. Abdon and Sharaya, along with their servant fayes, had awoken and were making their way to the village's circle.

Gala covered her mouth to stop screaming when she saw a giant beast wildly stomping on a fire in front of the house next to Abdon's with its bulky and sturdy hooves. Its thick, gray skinless body reminds Gala of an animal back home called a rhinoceros, except that it does not look like one at all! Its neck was extremely long and thin and the head resembled a dolphin with a gray tusk that protruded from its snout. Its mane looked similar to a lion's and its curly tail was similar to a pig's.

"Someone must have forgotten to put out the fire!" A faye exclaimed behind Gala.

"It would take approximately five hours before the Aremihc finally calms down and retreats back to its cave." Elderifrey explained to Gala.

"Aremihc?"

"That's what the beast is called." Elderifrey responded to Gala's question.

Gala mesmerizingly gaped at the wild beast, but it was replaced with fear when the beast was now towing the village's houses with some of the fayes still inside. Gala horrifyingly screamed when she heard the fayes' cry for help. Alvaro, along with the other fayes, tried to restrain the beast with a thick rope, but their collective effort was deemed useless against the monstrous strength of the beast.

'We are cold!'

Gala was briefly staring blankly into space when she heard it. She broke into a sprint towards the beast, moving past Alvaro, who scurried after her with a concerned look on his face.

"I didn't tell you to come near the beast Gala. Return now!"

Gala only turned to Alvaro before she replied, "The beast wasn't stomping on the fire!"

Alvaro halted, confused what the young girl meant.

Gala faced Alvaro. "The beast was cold, Alvaro! They deliberately left their caves and went down to the village when they saw the fire in an attempt to get warm, but they were obviously misunderstood by the villagers." She explained to the young warrior what she had heard from the beast.

Alvaro was taken aback for a few seconds, and without any warning, he dashed off towards Abdon to tell them the news from Gala.

Gala approached the beast and addressed it. "I hereby order you to stop towing the houses, and I have instructed them to light a fire for you to keep you warm."

When the beast heard her, it turned to her with a grateful expression. The frozen surface trembled with each step from the beast, but Gala was surprised that the icy surface had no trace of cracks on it.

"You speak Aeyalafreyn?" The wild beast asked Gala bemusing, her monotone voice surprising her.

"I think I just did?" Gala quipped at the beast. Their conversation earned loud gasps from the fayes who witnessed Gala speaking in Aeyalafreyn.

Somewhere in the midst of the crowd, Elderifrey flashed a proud smile. Gala was a whisperer chosen by Dylareia, she was ninety percent certain.

"I can tell that you are not born of this world, khäremluash. Dylareia must have a good reason for choosing you. This being can feel that you have a pure soul and is deserving of the gift bestowed upon you. This being can feel that this won't be the last time we will see you, and when that time comes, I expect that you will accomplish great feats by then."

Gala remembered hearing the same thing from Ejonna about the great things that she was about to do, and it scared Gala a bit.