Page 56 of A Simple Truth

The bright, full moon sparkled amidst the dark sky. Not a single cloud stood in the way as silver rays glistened on the overgrown ruins of what must have been a grand castle.

We carefully followed all the directions of the papers Kauis retrieved, arriving at the precise location of the stone just before dusk. Finnleah and I studied each corner of the crumbled walls, each block of the ancient remains, for the signs described in the elvish writing. Yet, only when the sky turned pitch-black, and the moon crept high above us in all its glory, did we notice a small beam of moonlight pointing to the center of the previously-tiled flooring. We ripped the lianas and clawed at the ground until a large stone plate shifted.

And then we were met with nothing.

Empty.

The little hidden pocked in the ground was totally empty.

Since then, in absolute silence, we continued tearing the ruins apart, until there wasn’t a single rock unturned. I ripped through the long thorns and prickly bushes, running my scratched-up fingers against every stone and pebble, looking for anything resembling the clear stone described in the elvish text.The previously hell-like temperature now shifted into an almost freezing night air. Yet, we continued. I wasn’t sure if it’d been hours or minutes, as with each passing second, quiet defeat crawled its way to us.

The sky cracked with bright lightning followed by loud thunder, as heavy, ominous clouds slowly covered the last of the moonlight. Large drops of cold rain landed on my skin as I ultimately came to terms with our reality.Nothing.There was nothing here.

“Finnleah—” I uttered through the rain, but she ignored me, still tearing the prickly greenery away from gray stone. “Finnleah—” I repeated, this time walking towards her, my boots splashing the rapidly forming puddles. Yet, even now, she dismissed me as she viciously plucked more overgrown vines. “Finnleah!” I shouted through the rolling thunder, this time grabbing her shoulder until our eyes locked. “The stone is gone. It’s not here.”

“Ithasto be here. We are just not looking in the right spot,” she argued with such conviction, that I could have believed her; I almost did, but there was no denying it.

The stone was not here.

“It’s not. We’ve looked and it’s not here. We have to let it go.” I raised my eyes to the sky, watching the dark clouds spread even more throughout, hiding any remainder of the starlight. “Come on, the storm is only getting worse.”

“No, we have to keep looking.” She shook her head, but I didn’t listen as I grabbed her hand. She winced and my heart sank with heavy worry. I pulled her hands up closer to my face so I could see.

“Gods, Finnleah, you’re bleeding,” I seethed, as the muscle in my temple twitched.

“It’s just a scratch.” She tugged her hands back to herself, though I was acutely aware of the small flinch as she pulled them away.

It was much more than a scratch. Her palms were shredded.

“You either follow me right now, or I will carry you. You decide,” I growled, and started walking towards the small alcove. I glanced back after a second, fully prepared to pick her body up and carry her to safety even if she kicked and screamed. But, with shoulders slumped, she obediently trudged through the puddles a step behind me.

“Sit here.” I motioned her to the half-dry spot. “I will be right back,” I instructed through the mercilessly pouring, icy rain, but didn’t move until she nodded in confirmation.

We had no stone. Finnleah was hurt. The fucking rain made the little supplies we had all wet and cold, and I couldn’t summon even a godsdamned spark. The compelling desire to burn this place to the absolute ground was increasing with each breath. I cut a few large branches off the trees and bushberry growing around, dragging them back to the small alcove. Resting them against the wall, I began to make a meager shelter.

“It will not keep us completely dry, but it’s better than being out in the open.” I shrugged, crawling into the tiny space, bringing the rest of our bags with me. The branches ruffled my hair and I crouched even lower, so as to not disrupt the cover. “Your hands,” I commanded. Ignoring me, she leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. Only the loud thunder hid the brash beating of my heart against my chest as furious desperation roared within me.

“Gods, Finnleah, now is not the time to be stubborn. Give me your hands,” I insisted, adding a broken, “Please.” Realizing, that I would beg her; I would beg to let me help her. To let me have at least one purpose for the night. But before I could say anything else, she quietly extended her hands to me.

I closed my eyes, letting out a heavy breath. Her palms were torn to shreds. Blood mixed with rainwater ran down her forearms soaking into her shirt. She winced but didn’t pull her hands away as I yanked out a few splinters and thorns wedged deep in her skin. The gooey salves covered her bleeding hands as I wrapped the bandages around her palms and fingers with tender care.

“We will have to check tomorrow for any remaining shards once there is daylight, but the salve will help with pain right now,” I said and she just shrugged uncaringly, her eyes still closed as she leaned against the wall.

The loud thunder sounded through the air, shaking our small space. I reluctantly let go of her icy, pale hands.

If she got any colder, I would summon fire, damn the elves and their fucking Destroyer wards and anything else that might await us in these jungles. I adjusted our bags until I too rested against the wall, tiny streaks of water running down our backs.

We sat there in silence, listening to the relentless storm.

I stared into the dark void. Our touching shoulders providing the only source of heat in the freezing night.

“Kaius died for this. He died forthis,and we’ve failed,” she whispered into the night after a while, her broken voice like a whip tearing into me.

“It was a wild guess. We knew that. He knew that.” I attempted to comfort her. Though, I too found myself scrambling on the edges of the abyss. She knew of Kaius, but there was also Odafa, who grew up alongside me. And there was Stephania, a mother who died on a mission I assigned to her, leaving three children orphaned. And there was Potak, a genius Creator, destined for greatness, not death. And then there was Eralio, the kindest man I’d ever met. And so many more. Each name seared against my heart in an unending requiem. Brave, loyal men and women that I had lost for a piece of knowledge,a tiny bit of progress. So many people had sacrificed their lives,volunteeredtheir lives, forme. Only for me to find myself amidst the ruins, without a stone, and without a clue of what to do next.

“What are we going to do now?” She finally turned to me, her keen eyes looking up, asking me, as if somehow, deep down, she had such unwavering faith that I would know.

But they all did.

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