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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cevalic" data-source="post: 1440933" data-attributes="member: 171">Chapter 8It was mid-afternoon when I came out of my reverie, which was odd considering I should have been up a few hours before. Even stranger, I could have sworn that I had dreamt during it, something elves rarely do. To humans, reverie is just sleeping, but it is no where near that simple. It is a level of self healing, of the body and mind almost turning in on themselves and knowing nothing else. To dream in a reverie is bad. The fact that I came out of it with a chill up my spine, is something I care not to mention.There was a light lunch laid on the table, with a pitcher of now warm water next to it. I was sure that I wouldn’t see Helan today, or maybe even ever again for that matter. In a way I regretted scaring her, but she was a human, and I couldn’t let myself worry about one of their kind’s feelings. To do so, would be to turn my back on everything that I was ever taught.I ate the lunch quickly and drained the pitcher, water running down off my chin as I tilted my head back higher. I tossed the metal container onto the table where it made an empty sound, as I looked around for my sword. Noting that it was no where in sight, I finally noticed the note on the door.Elf,I brought your sword to the smith. There are some clean cloths on thechair, and a wash basin is on the south side of the cottage. Derrin wishes tospeak with you once you get the chance.HelanAs I read the note, I knew what she wanted to write, but wouldn’t. She wanted me out, and I would oblige, but first I would clean myself up. There was no need to walk around covered in the blood of a dead foe, at least not this early in the day.* * * * * * * * * * *After cleaning up and putting on some clean cloths, I headed down into town. I wasn’t sure what to expect from Derrin. Had Helan told him of her encounter with me from the previous night? Had he gazed upon the remains of the gnome and decided that I was the greater monster? Pondering these types of thoughts, I took my time.Before I could go to town, I walked past the place of last nights skirmish. I slowed my steps even more as I passed. The tree and ground were covered in blood, although it looked like someone had made an effort to clean away some of the mess. Most of the bones were missing, although as I bent down I found a few shards lying in the grass.I quickly returned to my route to town, as a knot of fear welled up inside my stomach. There was something inside of me that scared me. It was almost like another being living there. And I was sure I would have to face it more than once in the coming days, as my personal war against the gnomes was about to begin. The only question I had was, would I be able to regain control of myself or be swept away in the rage never to return?* * * * * * * * * * *I found Derrin sitting outside his house, speaking with an elderly man clearly approaching his last years. I stopped outside the yard, so as not to interrupt their conversation. From what little I could hear, the older man was concerned about a problem with the town well, and Derrin was doing his best to assure the man that it would be taken care of.Thoughts kept floating through my head, most filled with extreme amounts of violence. More often than not they were more gruesome ways to maim and kill those damn gnomes. I might have been lost in my own world had I not had a tug on my sleeve.“Hey,” a quiet voice said.Looking down, I found a young boy, no more than five or six staring up at me. “Yes?’“Are you really a demon?” His question caught me completely off guard as his blue eyes shone in the afternoon sun.“Where would you get that idea, child?” I asked, kneeling down to look at him face to face.“Mommy says that whatever killed the gnome last night must have been a demon, cuz she never saw anything like it in her whole life,” his words didn’t have any ill intentions, they were just statements from an child with an innocent view of life. Yet they started to anger me. “And I heard Old Gill say that you killed the gnome.”It was all I could do from not backhanding the child. The rage that I had let in the night before now sought entry and it was all I could do to hold it back. It was my right to slay my attacker, and my right to do with his remains as I wished. There was no honor in a surprise attack; therefore the attacker deserved no honor in death.“Do you know what I went through at the hands of the gnomes?” I asked the child, my face turning into an evil sneer. “Did your mother or Old Gill ever think of that?”The child was visibly shaking as he began inching backwards. Immediately I felt ashamed, for even if the child was human he did not deserve my outburst. His mother and this Old Gill fellow were the ones I should be angry with. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out a piece of candy that I had taken from Helan’s table.“I’m sorry child, I did not mean to scare you,” I tried my best apologetic voice, as I extended my hand. “Forgive me little one, I’ve had a long few days.”Still the child backed up. He would have broken into a run had he not backed into a pair of legs. Startled the child wheeled around, as I looked up at Derrin, who had finally freed himself of his business with the old man.“Troy,” Derrin softly said softly. “What do we do when someone asks for forgiveness?”Troy turned partially around, but wouldn’t bring himself to look me in the eyes. “You’re forgiven.”“He’s offering you one of Helan’s candies, are you going to take it?” Appartently the child hadn’t realized that it was Helan’s candy, for his eyes lit up as he cautiously walked over and took the candy.“Thank you,” he said, still averting his gaze.“You’re welcome young Troy,” I dutifully responded, standing up once more.“Run along home now Troy, I think I heard your mother calling for you,” Derrin had added the last part just to help hurry the child along. It worked wonders, as Troy was running in the direction of his home before Derrin could finish.As the child disappeared from sight, Derrin walked over. “Your time in our village has yet to be a good time for you.”“It will never be a good time,” I replied curtly. “Do not take this the wrong way, but I am not one of your kind. I do not belong here. You and your fellow villagers have been most gracious, but I could never truly enjoy myself here.”“Why is that?”“Men and Elves are different, our outlooks on everything are too opposite. The same can be said of our lifestyles. Where Man is brash and quick to make a move, Elves prefer to contemplate and look to the affects each action will have in the future.”“By your saying then, you are more Man than Elf,” Derrin spoke, looking to the great tree in his yard. “You wish to run off and attack the gnomes with no planning, just for the sake of a quick revenge. That is why you came here, is it not? You would like your sword, so you can go as soon as possible to attack some gnomes. Welcome to the World of Man, Elf. I think you’ll fit in perfectly.”He let the words hang there. There was nothing I could say and he knew it. He knew he had caught me in my own words, and bold words at that. I gazed at the tree along with him for many moments, watching a gentle breeze blow through its branches.“Rumor has it that you killed a gnome last night,” Derrin broke the silence, with the only topic he could probably think of.“I did,” I confirmed. “And in doing so I have alienated some of your fellow villagers. Apparently there are some who think of me as a demon.”“Those that say that have never been in combat,” the tone in his voice gave me the impression that he was thinking of something else as he spoke to me. “Trust me when I say that you have alienated very few in this village. And those that you did are as easy to win back as they are to lose.”“Even so, I have no desire to stay in this village any longer. I ask you for a sword, and although I have no way to pay, I will work it off in the form of slaying our mutual enemies.”“I would ask you only to wait one more day,” Derrin said quietly. “Tomorrow night I am having a council with all of the village’s rangers. I would be pleased if you could add your knowledge and counsel to our gathering.”I owed him too much to say no, although every part of my body and mind wished to charge into the forest and go gnome hunting. “Very well, although I do not think I will be staying with Helan anymore after last night. She was frightened to say the least.”“I spoke with her this morning and she mentioned nothing of the sort, but if you want you can stay here,” he replied as he started moving towards his house.“How come the meeting is tomorrow night? Why not during the day?” I knew I came off as impatient the moment I asked the questions.Derrin paused mid-stride and slowly turned around. I noticed his eyes filling with water as he looked back at me. Suddenly, whatever he had been thinking about was out in the open.“Because you weren’t the only one attacked by gnomes last night…”</blockquote>

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