Interlude 2: Arcadia


    “Are you all ready?” Jade asks. Demien and Guilia nod.


    “Good.” Torr says. “Come back soon. We might need your help.”


    Jade salutes him and sets off with her fellow guardspeople. They are leaving for Arcadia. They need to warn the Guards there about the wolf creature that attacked them. In the meantime, Torr will be searching for any other wolves in the area. Jade hopes that there aren’t. One was bad enough. Chrome is dead because of it.


    Erenfeld hasn’t really been the same in the week since Chrome died. In a way, it reminds her of when Zade’s parents died. Then, the entire Erenfeld community had mourned the loss of two important members of society, and had grown fearful of Zade. Now, the entire community is scared again. This time, it is a much more energetic fear. Erenfeld is terrified now. Terrified of annihilation. If one wolf can kill a guard and wound another, five wolves alone can decimate the community! Farmers are scared for their crops. Parents are scared for their kids. Kids are scared for themselves.


    It is a difficult time.


    Hopefully, Arcadia can help.


    Jade is walking with a crutch, leg broken. She walks a little slower now, but with a determined look on her face. She can take on a wolf if it tries to attack her.


    As they trek the trail to Arcadia, none of them talk. Even Demien has been mourning Chrome in his own way. Guilia in particular was hit hard. The only reason they don’t break down is because they need to keep going. If they stop for a moment, Erenfeld could be destroyed.


    There’s no time to mourn for real. So they mourn inside.


    And they hope.


    — — —


    Arcadia is an entrancing place. It looks like a bigger version of Erenfeld. While Magefell is a metropolis, Arcadia is more of a large town. It was created to have a homely feel to it. Even the royal family lives in a relatively simple home, though it is bigger than the average home.


    The Arcadian royal family is known throughout the world for their kindness and good rule. They always have at least one member listening to the pleads of the community, and often, if one is looking, one can find a member just walking the streets. Many normal people are good friends with the crown prince and princess. Arcadia is one of the only places where the royal family can marry whoever they want, regardless of status.


    Jade can hear the sound of a hammer from a blacksmith down the street, a friendly conversation between two women, and a man yelling his wares all at the same time. No noise overtakes the other, and they form a kind of symphony that Jade loves. Even their shoes clicking on the cobblestone warms her.


    Every house, inn, and shop feels like home. From a worn place like the tanner’s to the polished feel of most inns, every location gives a feeling of welcoming.


    Even the smells are wonderful. No piss. The mages take care of that. The smells are of warm meat and perfumes, of books and fires. It is the smell of living in a cold winter in one’s home with a cozy fireplace.


    In other words, it’s Jade’s home away from home.


    She has come here over a hundred times. She knows all the odds and ends of this city. One of the best parts about being a guard is being able to come to Arcadia for reports.


    Jade loves Arcadia.


    And she’s not the only one. Guilia and Demien both come here whenever they can too. Arcadia is one of the most popular cities worldwide, and one of the most loved. The only city that can compare is Magefell. And Magefell is only better because of the mages. Arcadia was made without mages. That makes Jade like it more. Zade loves Arcadia too. He loved telling her about how he would live here when he grew up.


    Jade wipes a tear.


    They reach the headquarters of the Arcadia Guards. Jade knocks at the door, and immediately the door is opened by a smiling figure. Kronos. Jade knows him fairly well. He’s one of the nicest men in the entire world. He would help someone out even if they had been proven to be liars.


    His smile disappears a little.


    “Jade! Guilia! Demien! It’s good to see you, but why are you here?”


    Jade winces. “I think it’s better we speak in private.”


    — — —


    The Arcadia Guards’ headquarters is exactly what the Erenfeld Guards wish they had. It’s beautiful, spacious, and homely.


    Only a few of Arcadia Guards showed up to listen to their story. Most are patrolling the city. The others are probably on a day off.


    Excluding Kronos, there are three people listening to them. Jade only knows one of them. Her name is Jin. She''s middle-aged with a protective nature around her. She treats the Guards like her kids. No one has died on her watch, which she is really proud of. Jade hopes it always stays that way.


    Jade tells the story of the wolf. She would prefer Guilia or Demien do it, but Guilia wasn’t really there, and neither was Demien. Plus, Demien would screw the story up.


    Once she tells about Chrome’s death, Kronos’ eyes fill with tears. Jade guesses he must be really sentimental. The other three watch mostly impassively, but I can tell Jin is shaken.


    “So it was just a lone wolf?” One of the people I don’t know asks. He looks pensive. His goatee is a little dumb, though.


    “As far as we know, yes,” Jade responds. “But we’re not sure. Torr is investigating as we speak, but we came here to tell you, so that you could spread the word to the royal family. And so you could send someone to investigate.”


    “Hmmm. That’s a good idea.” Jin says. “I think we could send a few.I can get a hearing in with the queen too, although I’ll probably have to send some of us hometown guards instead of you.” She rubs her chin in thought. “I need to go talk to Robb. He’s on patrol, but I’ll get him to contact the queen.”


    “Who’ll be coming with us?” Jade asks.


    “I’m going, obviously,” Jin replies. “Kronos should go too, if just because he knows Erenfeld Woods well. Ragnar,” She continues, pointing at the goateed man, “Will be coming. He’s our newest addition and a very welcome one. I’ll also bring Yung along. I’m sure he’ll want to see some action.”


    “Anyone else?” Guilia questions. “How about Addi?” Addi is one of Guilia’s closest friends. She was born in Erenfeld but moved to Arcadia when she turned thirteen. Jade knows her fairly well, but they aren’t very close. It’s not easy to be close to someone who lives half a day’s journey away. Same with Zade. Jade hopes he finds a way to contact her, because she doesn’t want the relationship to break while they’re separate. Friendship, she reminds herself, not relationship. Relationship makes it sound different than it really is.


    “Addi can come,but I’ll have to take her out of Patrol. Lan, can you take care of that?” The man to her right nods. He has an eyepatch over an eye and a handful of scars on his face. He’s never told Jade about his past, and Jade has never asked.


    “Alright, we should probably leave at midnight,” Jin says.


    “But—” Demien starts to retort.


    “If we left now, we’d only enter the woods at night.” Jin replies. “Do you really think that’s a good idea? I understand your urgency,but we can’t leave today.” Demien huffs.


    “She’s right,” Jade tells him. “Don’t worry. There’s plenty to do here in Arcadia.”


    “She’s right,” Jin smiles. “It’s good to see you all again.”


    “The feeling is mutual,” Jade’s lips curl upwards. “Just wish it was under different circumstances.”


    “Don’t we all?” Guilia stats. “Don’t we all?”


    — — —


    “You’ll just drink yourself to sleep, Demien!” The pretty barmaid exclaims.


    “Don’t worry about him,” Jade replies, eyes closed, hat over her head. “He’s like this all the time.”


    “But what about me?” She whines. Demien puts an arm around her waist.


    “I still have space for you,” He whispers in her ear. Jade stands up.


    “I’ll leave you two alone. Y’all really should keep some things private.” She exits the inn, and into the wonderful afternoon of Arcadia.


    She doesn’t have much to think about, but she always gets lost in thought anyway. She loves just thinking and walking around, not caring where she’s going.


    She’s thinking about Zade now. But not in a sad way. She’s thinking about him in Arcadia. She remembers the first time she came with him to Arcadia. He was really happy to show her around the places he knew so well, and he asked her to do the same, and she’d been glad to. By the end of that day, they had both felt like they’d seen a different side of Arcadia. While Jade looked for the more pretty, dazzling side of Arcadia, Zade looked for the more homely and friendly side. Jade never forgets that day. It gave her two perspectives of Arcadia, ones that she now sees are two sides of the same coin. She doesn’t even think of them as two perspectives anymore.


    It’s really only one now.


    She hears someone yell behind her, and barely moves in time to see a horse and rider gallop forward urgently. The rider looks familiar. Is that…


    Danni?


    What’s she doing here in Arcadia? Jade’s heart drops. This can’t be good news!


    “Danni!” She screams. Danni stiffens and stops her horse. She looks at Jade and smiles.


    “Hey, Jade!”


    “What are you doing here?”


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    “I’m not sure,” Danni replies. “I’m supposed to get a message to Jin and the Arcadia Guards.”


    “Good.” Jade replies. “I’m coming with you.”


    — — —


    “Why are you here?” Jin asks softly.


    “I don’t know.”


    “How can you possibly not know?” Jade laughs. “You’ve come here for a reason.”


    “Well, Torr told me to give you a message, but I have no idea what it means.”


    “All right,” Jin tells her, “What’s the message then?”


    “Torr told me to say: ‘It’s worse than we thought. No time to explain. Get here as quick as you can!’ That was it. Do you know what it means?”


    Jade cringes visibly. “It has to do with the wolves, but I can’t be sure what that means.”


    “This isn’t good,” Jin sighs. “Well, I guess Demien will be happy. We leave in one hour. Jade, can you get your friends here?”


    “I can,” She replies. “But I’d rather not be the one that disturbs Demien.”


    Jin gives her a questioning look, but Jade waves it off.


    She can’t help but feel a little excited about finding out what Torr was saying.


    She just hoped it wasn’t too bad.


    — — —


    They decide to go by horse this time. It’s faster, and, quite frankly, much more comfortable with Jade’s broken leg.


    There are eight people going, five Arcadia Guards, two Erenfeld Guards, and Danni. The guards will drop Danni off in Erenfeld and then meet up with Torr in the forest to see what the fuss is all about.


    The journey to Erenfeld is much more talkative than the one to Arcadia. Because they don’t see each other much, Jade has to catch up with all her friends and acquaintances. Chrome comes up sometimes but Jade doesn’t really want to talk about her. It’s a little painful, especially because it happened when Jade was nearby. She can’t help but feel just a tad guilty.


    Most of the news in Arcadia is pretty commonplace. Marriages, breakups, and even occasionally some sort of tension between civilians. Jade is surprised to learn about something called the Magefell Tournament. The more she learns, the more she wants to go, but she has work to do. Plus, she would never have a chance to win.


    Jin is shocked to learn of Zade going to Magefell. She knew he’d awakened and his parents had died, but she didn’t know he’d be going so quickly. She thought it would have taken a couple more months at least. She wishes she could have said goodbye.


    The walk to Erenfeld mostly takes her mind off the wolves. Spending time with people can be draining, but sometimes she just needs it. Chrome barely flashes across her mind after a while. Jade wishes she could have time to properly cry for her, but now is not it.


    “How is your family?” Jin asks.


    “Oh, the same,” Jade responds. “Not much ever changes. My dad is still working all day, every day.”


    “Some things never change,” Jin says. “Speaking of change, have you been able to get in contact with Zade at all?”


    Jade shakes her head. “No. I’m hoping he finds a way, though.”


    “I hope he finds a way, too. It must break your heart to be so far from him.”


    “It does. Especially with all this happening now, I’m sure that Zade would love to help me if he was here. But I’ve still been doing fine without him. I always have to keep going. I’m not going to let my best friend moving out ruin my life!”


    “That’s the spirit,” Jin smiles. “Although, I do know you didn’t just want him to be your friend, did you?”


    Jade sighs. “Why does everyone keep saying that?”


    “Because it’s obvious,” Jin replies. “There was more happening between you two than you cared to admit. There’s no shame in admitting it, Jade.”


    “Maybe you’re wrong,” Jade retorts.


    “Maybe I am,” Jin says, “But you’re the one who needs to answer it. Am I wrong?”


    Jade bites her lip and looks forward. “I don’t know. But it doesn’t matter now anyway, does it? He’s gone, and I’m here.”


    “Not for too long,” Jin responds. “Remember, you can move if you want to. And if you want to stay, I’m sure Zade will come back. He wouldn’t abandon you. He feels the same as you do.”


    “How do you know?”


    “Have you seen how he reacts around you? He’s struck. And for good reason. You are pretty, you know.”


    Jade blushes. “I guess. I just…Don’t want to think about it.”


    “You should. It’s better to face your fears.”


    “I’m not scared of it.”


    “Are you? I think you’re scared of life without him nearby.”


    “How would you know?” Jade responds sharply. She immediately feels guilty about it. “You live in Arcadia, Jin. You don’t know what my life is like!”


    “I agree. But I can see how you act while you’re here. You try to hide it, but I see it in you, Jade. You must face it.”


    “I know, I just…” Jade hesitates. “I don’t know if I’m ready to.”


    “That’s okay, child,” Jin tells her. Jin isn’t much older than her, but she’s always called Jade that. “But you must think about it. Don’t avoid your problems.”


    “Thank you, Jin. I appreciate it.”


    “Any time.”


    Jade urges her horse forward. She can see Erenfeld.


    — — —


    Torr is right on the outskirts of Farmer Holdstadt’s farm. He looks worried, and Jade immediately fears the worst. Not that she knows what the worst is. She just hopes it isn’t as bad as her imagination tells her it is.


    “Like Danni told you, my worst fears were confirmed.” Torr told the seven of them. “It’s better I show you what it is. Everyone be quiet. I don’t think I need to warn you, but I will anyway. This might be the most dangerous thing we can do. I don’t want to hear anyone talking when we enter. You are only here so I can show you what is happening. Once we have seen it, we must leave. One of you will need to warn the royal family. You will want to leave immediately. More than that, I would love for you to bring reinforcements when you come.


    “That’s enough chatter. It’s getting dark, which makes this even more dangerous. Let’s go.” He leads the way, and everyone follows.


    Jade immediately feels apprehensive as they enter the woods. It’s dark and eerie, just like any forest, but knowing there is a monster in here just makes it worse. Clearly, the others feel the same, as they all huddle together when they walk. Even Demien, who normally makes a lot of noise when walking, is able to keep the sound to a minimum. Jade makes sure to breathe softly, carefully. It wouldn’t do to have a wolf hear her. If there were wolves.


    She isn’t sure what Torr has to show them, but her imagination runs wild with ideas. She thinks that maybe there is a clan of these wolves, all with armor and swords. Maybe it’s a bigger wolf, or a family of wolves. Maybe the one she fought was a female and there was a male who was bigger. She shuddered at the thought of a larger wolf.


    Maybe it wasn’t about wolves at all. Maybe Torr found enemy scouts, or maybe some sort of information or conspiracy against the royal family. Jade doesn’t know why there would be a conspiracy in the woods, but anything is possible now.


    She even entertains the thought of an army of mages camped right outside Erenfeld ready to destroy it. It sounds completely impossible, and Jade doesn’t even know where those mages would come from, but right now all she can think about is that Torr said he would show them something bad, and mages would be bad news.


    They walk deeper into the woods, and Jade begins to wonder if whatever Torr even wants to show them will be in the woods at all. They went very deep in the woods when they chased the first wolf, and unless what Torr is speaking about is another family of wolves, it’s possible he wants to show them something outside of the woods. A big army wouldn’t fit in this forest anyway.


    Suddenly, a rustling noise comes to the left of them. Immediately, Torr puts his hand up, warning them. Jade kneels down low,making sure she doesn’t touch any sticks or leaves. Her friends do the same. The rustling noise continues.


    Jade’s heart beats faster. The rustling is coming closer.


    Snap. Demien steps on a stick. Jade turns to him, eyes wide. Demien looks back at her, horrified. The rustling gets closer, and Jade can now see a shadow. A big shadow. It looks like another wolf.


    The shadow passes right by them and stops. Jade holds her breath. She can’t hear any of her friends breathing. What she can hear is her own heart. She wonders for a second how the others don’t hear it. It’s beating like a drum.


    Eventually,the shadow decides it didn’t see anything and walks away. Jade breathes a sigh of relief.


    And then she realizes how bad seeing the wolf was.


    The wolf is heading in the direction of Erenfeld. Jade guesses he is going to Farmer Holdstadt’s farm, maybe to steal some sheep.


    Whatever the wolf is doing, it isn’t good. At least, Jade guesses it’s a wolf. It might not be, but it did have the shape and size. Hopefully, the wolf doesn’t get too close to the village.


    Now that Jade finally admits to herself that there were multiple wolves, she has to ask herself one question:


    Why are the wolves here? There were never any monstrous wolves anywhere near Erenfeld in her lifetime, and she assumed that any historical record of Erenfeld would say the same. It was very irregular to be anything like this here. Plus, they are monsters, clearly not a normal animal. The more Jade hears about this, the more confused she is.


    Maybe the wolves were here because their home had become too small for them. Maybe they were just vicious monsters who wanted to kill. Maybe it is a horde of these wolves. Each theory that passed through Jade’s mind was worse than the next. Torr won’t tell them the truth, and now Jade is burning to know the answer.


    They keep traveling in the forest. At this point, Jade thinks they must be close to the edge. Her past theory seems to be confirmed. They don’t live in the forest. Do they live down the cliff past the forest? She’s been there once before in her life, when she was seven. She barely remembers it. They might also live in the mountain nearby, in a cave.


    At this point, they must have been traveling for at least an hour. Jade is really getting tired, especially with her broken foot. It throbs painfully every step she takes. Not that she cares too much. She’s been trained to ignore most of her pain.


    She can see the end of the forest now. It looks surreal, like it shouldn’t exist. Just past the trees is a big drop. A cliff. Jade has never understood how a forest can be on top of a cliff, but it’s cool nonetheless. She looks past the cliff, though, to something that catches her eye.


    Smoke. Smoke rising from beneath the cliff. Clearly, something smart enough to make a fire lives underneath.


    The wolves? They were smart enough for armor and weapons, so they could easily be smart enough for fires. The smell of roasting meat reaches her. This isn’t a normal fire. It has to be man-made. Or creature-made anyway.


    Torr puts a finger to his lips. The meaning is clear. Any noise now could alert whatever is beneath the cliff. Shut the hell up. They weren’t talking before, but now there was even less noise. Like a more quiet silence. Clearly, everyone is just as worried as Jade.


    Torr waves them over, and they slowly cross the threshold from forest to cliff. From here, Torr puts his hand up and we stop. He goes ahead of us, looking for any scouts. Knowing what he’s doing scares Jade a bit. If he’s looking for scouts, then that means there must be a lot of wolves.


    Finally, Torr is done. He waves them over. Her fellow guards rush over as silently as they can, and Jade follows them, looking behind to make sure they aren’t being followed.


    Something rustles. She looks sharply at a bush, but there doesn’t seem to be anything there. She’s just being paranoid. Better paranoid than caught unaware.


    She reaches the edge of the cliff, still looking back. She slowly turns her head around. For a second, she doesn’t know what she’s looking at. Then her heart drops and her jaw drops.


    It’s an army.


    Not just any army. An army made of wolves. Thousands of them, possibly hundreds of thousands, all eating by campfire. They have to have killed hundreds of animals for that, Jade realizes.


    The camp stretches for more than a mile. She doesn’t know if she can see the end of it. All she can see are wolves, most of them massive and wearing armor. Some of the wolves are wearing more armor than the wolf she killed.


    She can see some of the wolves acting as lookouts looking up. They can’t see her, but she still ducks out of sight. She looks back at the army, unbelieving.


    Where did this army come from? Where did they get their supplies? Who’s running this army? Why are they here? What even are these creatures?


    So many questions run through Jade’s mind, and none she has the answer to. The only thing she knows is that this army is endangering the world.


    She watches in horror as one wolf stands up, clearly annoyed, and starts to walk away. Two other wolves growl at it and attack it, one with an axe and the other with a sword. The first wolf is quickly dispatched, limbs chopped, and finally, head smashed in.


    The other two wolves rip its flesh apart and immediately start to roast it. Jade wants to throw up. She barely survived against one of these. She can’t deal with three, much less hundreds of thousands.


    They need to warn the king.


    The wolves can only be here for war.


    And with their strength and numbers, they just might win.


    Jade is properly scared now.