Friends

Where mortal hearths in glad communion meet,
Dost thou not hearken to the spirit's cry?
A soul's deep summons, desolate and sweet,
That ringeth where the gathering shadows lie.

- "Let Me Wander", by The Sable Hue & The Sweetest Bane

...




After the winged calico cat Dancote vaulted into my lap, a peculiar sensation, both strange and familiar, spread through each grain of wood. I gently stroked his back with my rough hand. The cat let out a contented purr, curling up like a small loaf of bread.


Standing nearby, Nam saw the winged cat looking so amusing and adorable that his eyes lit up, reaching out a hand intending to pet its head:


"Oh, a cat with wings! Let me give you a pat..."


SNAP!

Before his fingers could even graze its fur, Dancote bared his teeth, bit down hard on Nam's fingertip, and swung a claw in a warning scratch.


"Ough! That hurts!" Nam yanked his hand back, wincing and hopping about. "You devil of a cat, looking so harmless yet acting so vicious!"


Dancote did not spare him a single glance, nonchalantly burying his snout into the folds of my wizard cloak to take a nap. Just as Nam was about to utter a few more curses, Lizette finished packing his things. The squid-boy carried only a frayed little straw sack slung across his shoulder:


"Ljus, I am all packed and ready."


"Good, let us go."


Just as I moved to stand, a familiar chime echoed from the deep recesses of my consciousness via the interface of the chat group The Recently Deceased:


[ YOU HAVE 1 NEW TRANSMISSION FROM: LARS ]


"Wait for me a moment, you two. I have a brief matter to attend to," I paused in my steps, standing still in place.


Nam and Lizette nodded obediently, turning their attention toward Dancote. Still refusing to learn his lesson, Nam sneaked up again, aiming to grab its tail. But the demon cat flapped his tiny bat wings, soaring into the air to strike a claw straight across Nam's nose, sending the lad clutching his face in howls of pain.


Meanwhile, Lizette merely leaned against the blueberry shrub, placidly popping berries into his mouth and chewing:


"The fruit here is truly delicious."


While the two of them bickered, I focused my intent to open Lars's transmission:


Lars: "Are you about to sit for the advancement exam? The coordinates you shared show you are very close to the border branch! Would you care to take the test alongside me?"

I pondered for a moment. Over the thirty years in this chat group, Lars and I were practically the only ones who regularly conversed. Even though my learning speed eventually far outstripped hers, I would never forget those early stumbling days, when Lars's foundational texts, patience, and tender concern pulled me out of the aimless stupor of a rotting log.


Very rarely did others speak in the group, and even then, they only posted updates on shifting tides across the strata or from within the penal vault where someone named Sirius was held. That individual named Sirius seemed deeply familiar to me, yet my memories held not a single scrap concerning him.


I replied:


Ljus: "Very well. I will arrive soon."
Lars: "Splendid! I shall wait for you ^-^"

Closing the optical display, I summoned Nam and Lizette to set out. I dispatched a message to Ancient Demon Lucidas; he stated he would arrange to send me across the boundary within the week, as governing order and codifying laws for an entire planet consumed nearly all his time.


...


We returned to the imperial capital of Vark-Aethel to rendezvous with Gli and Skugga.


Along the way, Nam gazed in wide-eyed awe at the spotless granite streets shaded by lush trees. Passing by a modest schoolhouse built of white stone, the bronze bell atop its high tower suddenly tolled clear, resonant chimes.


Boong... boong..., signaling the end of classes.

Nam looked up at the gleaming bronze bell, then blurted out:


"Hey, brother Ljus, take a close look at that bell... It looks as though it was melted down from slave chains and iron collars, doesn't it? Who would have imagined this world was once an earthly slaughterhouse? Look at those kids running and playing; it looks as peaceful as a park on a holiday back on Earth."


I followed his gaze. Groups of Sclerite children with slate-scaled skin glistening in the morning sun were playing chase around a fountain, holding sweet malt candy skewers in their hands. This place was once where the bones of their kin were crushed into ash; now, it bloomed with flowers.


The moment we entered the grand palace hall, Gli rushed out to welcome me. Catching sight of Dancote curled within my cloak, she gasped in wide-eyed wonder.


Yet peculiarly, the black cat Skugga was not surprised in the least. He padded forward, sniffing Dancote once as though the two had known each other for lifetimes. Soon after, Skugga even clambered proudly onto Dancote's back, letting the demon cat flap its wings and carry him aloft around the marble pillars of the palace, sending Gli into bouts of silvery laughter.


Right then, the palace doors opened, and two imperial women knights entered. Seeing me in the guise of a wooden figure draped in a wizard cloak and wearing a red-plumed knight helm, the woman knight Nelida froze in her tracks.


Her eyes locked onto me. She stepped forward slowly, her slender yet sword-calloused fingers lightly grazing the coarse wooden bark along my arm, her voice catching:


"This scent of pine resin... Years ago, the one who pulled me from the slag ash and tossed me that dry crust of bread... also carried a quiet warmth like this."


I looked down at her legs. Those knees once crushed to powder under overseers' boots, once dragging red streaks through coal snow like snail tracks, were now encased in gleaming silver greaves, straight, firm, and proud.


Farida stepped up from behind, resting a gentle hand upon her sister's shoulder. In her hands was a wicker basket filled with freshly baked honey-oat bread, steaming hot. The rich aroma of butter and grain immediately flooded the chamber, a scent that, twenty-five years prior, only the pampered bishops had the privilege to savor.


Farida smiled, a mother's boundless gentleness shining in her eyes:


"Welcome home, friends. Tonight, please remain and share in our celebration."


...


That night, the capital of Vark-Aethel plunged into a celebration grander than any seen before, the Jubilee commemorating the twenty-fifth anniversary of the liberation of the Sevran Continent.


Thousands of colossal bonfires blazed across the great plazas. The smoke no longer carried the stench of charred flesh or acrid coal ash, but the fragrant aroma of herb-roasted mutton and fermented malt ale. Tens of thousands of folk pouring in from former mine shafts held hands, singing and dancing around the flames.


It was also the very first time my companions and I witnessed an unimaginable spectacle:


Ancient Demon Barlahut, the colossal titan, now sat cross-legged in the plaza like a small mountain. Clamping an entire cut of roasted beef in one hand and devouring it ravenously, his laughter boomed like rolling thunder as he clumsily stomped his gargantuan feet to the beat of the children's wooden drums.


The Sclerite children showed zero fear, competing to climb up his calves to play hide-and-seek, stuffing wild blossoms into every seam of the ancient butcher's metal armor.


In stark contrast to the merriment, atop the soaring battlements in the distance, Ancient Demon Lucidas stood solitary. The night wind whipped the hems of his pitch-black suit. Holding a crystal goblet, he quietly sipped deep red grape wine, the solitary mortal indulgence he cared for.


His bloodshot red eye behind the thrice-fractured porcelain mask did not look down at the feast, but stared unblinkingly toward the southern mountain ridges far away, where an avocado tree cast its shade over the grave of the one who had dared put a leash around his neck.


Down in the plaza, the two cats stirred up an adorable commotion. Skugga sat firm as bedrock upon Dancote's back, directing the demon cat to swoop down over a grilling stall, snatching a skewer of dried fish before rocketing up to the flagpole to feast in triumph. Gli and Lizette dashed after them, apologizing profusely to the vendor, but the old one-eyed ex-miner merely chuckled, waving his hands and calling aloud:


"Let them feast! Tonight, every soul across this continent shall have their fill!"


...


As the night deepened and the fires dwindled to embers, the festival slowly quieted.


King Lugn earnestly invited us to retire within the palace. But as always, a body carved from timber held no concept of fatigue or slumber. I walked quietly toward the outskirts of the city.


The suburban roads were now smoothly paved in flagstone, flanked by low parapets guarded by sentries standing upright. Seeing me pass in my patchwork knight attire, they bowed their heads in deep reverence.


An aging guardsman even hurried over, timidly offering me a small flask of wine wrapped in coarse cloth. I could not bring myself to refuse his kindness.


I walked on in the tranquil dark until my footsteps halted before the familiar cave upon the hillside.


Beneath the lush green canopy of the ancient avocado tree, two stone graves lay silent under the starlight.


I approached Soren's long mound, uncorked the flask, and tilted my hand to pour the crimson wine over the parched earth and stone. The heady fragrance of fermentation mingled with the scent of post-rain loam.


"...Rest easy, my friend."


Rustle.

A gentle night breeze rustled through the boughs of the avocado tree. A broad, glossy green leaf fell softly, landing squarely within my open wooden palm. I curled my fingers closed, receiving the leaf like a silent nod of acknowledgment from the cold earth of an old friend.


I sat down upon the grassy bank nearby, leaning back to gaze up into the boundless night sky.


Suddenly, from behind me came the rustle of footsteps across the grass, along with a chorus of voices chattering all at once:


"So you were hiding here!" Gli's clear voice called out.


"Haha, Ljus, why did you slip away to sit here alone while the party was still lively?" both Nam and Lizette chimed in together, carrying woolen blankets and a basket of blueberries.


"Meow! Meow!"


Two small shadows, one pitch-black, one winged calico, bounded over in unison, leaping onto my wooden chest and squabbling to burrow into the folds of my wizard cloak.


I fell silent for a beat, before letting out a low, warm resonance from my hollow chest, speaking slowly:


"I am... out here to look upon the starry sky."


Nam heard that and burst into laughter, blurting out:


"Wait, but you do not even have eyes to watch the stars."




"..."




Lizette immediately nudged Nam with an elbow, clicking his tongue:


"Hush! Must you embarrass him with that big mouth of yours?!"


Gli sat down beside me, resting her head against my coarse, moss-draped shoulder, gazing up at the vault of heaven glittering with countless points of light:


"Brother Ljus is right... The starry sky is truly beautiful tonight, isn't it?"


"..."


I did not answer.


The night wind whispered through the branches of the avocado tree, carrying the murmur of leaves and the warmth of living souls gathered at my side. Yes, I had no eyes, and I could never behold the radiant stars out there.

But... perhaps I had no need to look anymore.

Because the brightest, warmest stars of my life were already sitting right beside me.


Gli tugged gently at my hem, whispering in a soft murmur:


"Ljus, are you asleep?... Everyone, let us all sleep right here together tonight!"


The wind sang on, and the night drifted into boundless peace.


...

The flight of years is lost to memory's hold,
And love hath withered in this weary breast;
I crave but wine to warm the creeping cold,
And savory fare to bring the wanderer rest.

- "Let Me Wander", by The Sable Hue & The Sweetest Bane

[ The End ]


September 20, 2026. Thank you for reading.