Chapter 6: Alna's Hero

"Your dad?" I turned to see Alna's face right next to mine...her features were quite beautiful especially in the night light. She smiled and finally pulled away but I did notice her face get a bit red as she put some distance between us. I passed it off as nothing 

"Yes...his name was Rafel...he was the city's defender for a while before I grew up and took that role over. Though...as you can tell we rarely need a defender, the nights here are most of the time peaceful." She sighed and I could tell thinking about her dad was causing her some pain. 

"You don't need to tell me..."

"I want to...let me please. I haven't in a while and me talking about him makes me feel like I'm keeping his memory alive" Alna sat down on a nearby spot of grass. I walked over to her and then joined her. She didn't speak right away, probably mustering up the courage to bring up memories of her dad but when she was ready, she looked up and began talking.

"My dad was as I said the defender of this city..."

Alna would tell me quite a story. In her youth, her family migrated from a land far from the city to escape poverty and plague. Her mother would die from an unknown illness around the age of two but her father made a promise to keep her and their home safe. In order to stay in the city he took on the job of a nightwatch and while it didn't give them a lavish life, it did ensure they had shelter and the chance at a normal less taxing life. As Alna would grow up. her father began to train her. He often took her from the sanctuary of the city and into more dense forest areas. Still, he would never endanger her and that's why what would occur next would be quite bizarre. 

During one of their retreats, Alna now 10, wasn't an excellent fighter or hunter like her father but she could hold her own as she told me. 

"I was able to kill and hunt small pray. I didn't need to as we had food on the table at home but dad insisted. Maybe because he so accustomed to living in the wild more than not, he believed hunting and fighting were a necessary component to life." I didn't interject, I just sat on the ground and kept listening. 

Alna and her father Rafel, would enter a small forest pocket far from the city during a typical hunting migration cycle. However, the two would witness something strange in the distance. A horde of minor goblins, as Alna told me after seeing my confused look that these were like smaller goblin that would hunt in larger groups but usually were nocturnal and not seen during the day often eventually entered their sight. Alna didn't understand what made them so scary as they were akin to baby sized beings but her father knew minor goblins weren't to be taken lightly. One was nothing and even a child warrior could best it with a weapon or tool of some sort. However, in larger groups, minor goblins tended to throw caution to the wind and attacked using their numbers and some tact. Rafel warned his daughter to stay out of sight letting them pass but her ego got the best of her, something she would later regret. The horde of minor goblins spotted the two of them and attacked almost instantly. Alna being a decent warrior felled a few with minimal effort but soon the few became a dozen and then even more. 

"To this day I can't recall how many of them there were but it had to be at least 50. They seemed to just appear out of thin air...and my father stepped in."

Rafel wasn't a large hunter for his breed but he was, as Alna told me, strong. He killed two dozen of the minor goblins and  leaving  them in pieces. However, despite his strength and the fact that only a few dozen remained, they ambushed him all around and began attacking his vitals. They would use their little tools and weapons to hack at his Achilles heel and then began to stab him in various areas on his legs and lower stomach. Before he could muster any type of counter attack, they jumped him and stabbed one of his eyes. Alna, struck with fear at seeing her dad downed, sat there paralyzed with fear.

"I remember as he laid in his own blood, he screamed for me to run. I at first couldn't but after seeing the horde of minor goblins continue their onslaught, I finally got up and did run. I ran all the way back to the city. The guards saw me alone and out of breath. They were also confused wondering why I was without my father and I tried to tell them through my exhausted breaths. It took them a few minutes to realize what was happening and they sent out a small team of hunters to the area we were last. They found none of the minor goblins left showing Rafel somehow managed to kill the remaining few despite his injuries, but he clearly had taken too much damage and they found him near a tree, lifeless. 

"I'm sorry Alna..." I wanted to say more but couldn't. I knew it was a long time ago but I'm sure reliving this story even now caused her immense pain. I thought of my own family...wondered if they knew I was gone and if they were worried. My dad was like me, calm but when it came to us...he would always strove to ensure we were safe...just like Alna's dad. 

"My dad was my hero. He not only saved me but him killing so many of those minor goblins meant the city didn't have to worry about others being sent in at a later date. Minor goblins weren't often seen but they were eliminated if they began to populate large areas." Alna looked up at the stars above. 

"He sounded like a hero." I said smiling. 

"He really was. He saved me but he also saved others constantly. As a nightwatch he was often stopping small threats from entering the city so people could sleep easy knowing nothing would enter their homes. Mizuki...being a hero doesn't mean you need to be famous or powerful you know? I think being a hero means being like you, brave despite being scared." Alna slowly  got up and patted me on the back.

"Is it that simple?" I said not moving from my spot.

"I think so. That entity you call Mr. Voice seems to think you have the potential to be a hero and maybe you weren't special in your world but here...you might be able to change the world." Alna smiled and then said goodnight as she entered her house once more. I could see tears running down her face and she probably didn't want me to show concern. I didn't move from my spot though. I just kept thinking the same thing, over and over again. Was it all so simple? I thought of Rafel and wondered if I could be strong like him. When the need arose, could I sacrifice myself for others? Could I protect my so-called party when we met our enemy? Or would I be like the other hero summoned here? Just run away and hide...

"I'm a hero..." I sat there and pondered these words for what felt like hours. The night sky just staring at me from above. It didn't judge me...but I kind of wished it did. 

The morning came and I found myself exhausted but awake enough to get dressed and ready. I had eventually went to sleep but I swore I saw the sun rising from the backdrop when I did finally decide to sleep.

"You ready?" Alna had a small backpack and her armor on.

"What's in the bag?" I adjusted my cloak ever so slightly. 

"Some food, canteens and few make shift mats we can sleep on. Reaching the mountain where the former "hero" is won't take more than a few days if we push till the nightfall each day but it still will be taxing for someone like you." 

"I'm stronger than I look." I laughed and Alna flashed a smile.

"Yes, yes Mr. Hero. Now come on, let's leave and head to our destination." Alna and me passed by some guards and then left me to talk with them. They nodded and we left the city.

"What did they say?" I asked as we hit the road, my feet already a bit sore to be completely honest. 

"They wished us luck and warned me to avoid heading to the mountain."

"The area where we are going?!" I stopped moving at the casual warning.

"Yeah...there was sightings of a powerful Dragon not far from there and it seemed to be nesting..."