They left the castle, turning left, following the path to the town's central square. As the couple walked, they passed houses that vied for space with clothing stores and one or another pharmacy.
Sindar explained what these stores were for and the reasons for using medications. The star does not understand how people got sick, but found the healing wounds very interesting. Recover your body faster in a more effective way after a battle seemed something magical.
— So you can fight for months by recovering your bodies and returning to the battlefield?
— What? No! No, no, no.... — She put the hand on her face. — Look, it's not instantaneous, there's still a lot of pain, and it takes time for recovery. By Ulmo, you really have a soldier's mind.
— Ah. — He got a little disappointed.
As they walked, people stopped to greet the princess and looked curiously at him. When they noticed her eyes, they bowed and thanked him for saving her. The boy was smiling and scratching his head, answering gently. It looked like he had become famous in the city.
As they entered the square area, a group of children surrounded them.
— Hey, sir, are you the star boy? — said a little girl in a flowered dress and messy brown hair. — My father said you're very strong.
— Star boy, show us how you beat those huge bulls. — A black-haired boy punched the air and spun around while shouting "pow, pow".
— Hey, guys, calm down. — Eastar smiled and looked at the princess, who also smiled and shrugged. — All right, I'll tell you.
The couple headed for a bench at the edge of the great circular square, there were trees that formed corridors at some points with their wide crowns, and from where they could see an altar in the center of the square where the statue of King Trembor should be, the stellar still couldn't see her from the foliage, but he was in no hurry.
Sitting on the bench with the princess by his side, the young stellar saw the children scatter on the floor around him.
He began the story, from time to time an adult would pass and pause to listen. Some, with baskets of fruit, offered them to the refusing children, focusing on the candy vendors who wheeled the square with carts.
Eastar recounted what had happened faithfully from the moment he descended to Earth, but the princess took the spot where they met and took the line.
When he opened his mouth to retort, he only received a poke in the ribs in response. At that moment, he realized that two older boys sat with the children, they was the same boys from training the day before.
Sindar continued the narrative, dramatized the situation and magnified it. Eastar caught himself with the same face as the children, focused and increasingly fascinated with the beautiful, slow manner in which she described the scene of the fight with the cornaro, it really made it seem epic, a big, beautiful lie.
When the story was over, the children asked for more, but there was not, that story was already largely a creation of the princess's mind to entertain them.
The young woman smiled at the group and raised a finger.
— I have a better idea, why don't you make a joke of the story you heard?
— Yes! I'm Eastar! — Said the little black-haired boy.
— And I'm Princess Sindar. — The little girl with brown hair rolled in the dress and hugged the boy. — We'll beat the animals and then we'll get married.
— Get out, Tina! — The boy let go of the girl. — Let's go, people! You will be the cornaro. You have to be able to get both of us.
So he and the girl ran while the others chased them, mooing and putting their fingers on their heads to look like horns.
The couple of narrators stood and smiled, Sindar hugged Eastar's left arm, and the two headed for the center of the square.
— Did the girl mean carried?
— How?
— She said "get married", intead of "get carried", you know, like heroes.
— Oh no, no. This is… something else, but not important… coff… never mind. — Sindar said, waving the hand in front of her face, trying to hide the redness that began to take over hers cheeks.
They crossed the square, past the sturdy fruit trees. In the center, eventually they could appreciate the great statue made of bronze and star dust. It was on an altar with the inscription:
King Trembor
Ruler of the City of Londrian and the Southern Sirion Kingdom
The greatest of all sirion warriors
The Eagle Eyes
5.240 - 5,978 DP
— Why do you only have his statue? What about the other kings?
— Whenever any king stands out we melt the statue and remodel it, stardust is not so easy to get to spend on so many statues, but we still keep the paintings of previous kings.
— Ah ... and what does this "A.P." mean? — He approached to look more closely.
— Our calendar began after God's Prediction came to pass, "A.P." means "After Prediction".
— I see, but why "God's Prediction"? Ulmo sacrificed himself to create our universe at the beginning of everything. He no longer exists.
— This prediction isn't from Ulmo, it's about one of the gods humans worshiped. — In the holy book they followed, this god caused a great flood that flooded the world, survived only one man with his wife and children, plus a couple of every race of animals that existed. — Sindar pouted as she stared at the statue. — If I'm not mistaken, the man had to build a boat.
She folded her arms and turned to Eastar before continuing:
— Well, what matters is that when the continents of the earth collided, six thousand years ago, as you know ...
— It's been six thousand years?
— Didn't you know?
— Honestly, it's been a very short time for me. My appearance was basically the same as it was today. My father left my training to go down and help, but my mother didn't let me come along and, of course, I couldn't continue training with Sorya, since she sacrificed the left arm to contain the tides and was being treated. Until this day I don't understand how it happened… — He caught the glint of curiosity in the princess's eyes —, so it's no use asking me.
She bowed her head for a moment, but something caught her attention and she looked him over.
— Wait.... — Her eyes widened. — You trained with the Moon? Theee Moon!?
— Well, she was the first person who raised me, since my parents came down in the Fall. — He felt a shudder remembering the moments when he was left in the hands of the general, then gave a yellow smile. — Luckily that didn't happen much again.
The princess noticed the discomfort and laughed.
— Was she heavy?
— My father looks like the peace embodied near her.
— Wow.
— Yeah.
The two began to laugh, the princess sighed and resumed her explanation.
— Well, the fact is, many began to say that that ancient holy book contained predictions of the future and began to call the flood "God's Prediction", the name caught and stayed.
— At least more humans were saved than just one family.
— Yes. — She raised an eyebrow and gave a small smile. — I think this is a way of seeing some good in that catastrophe.
Eastar turned his gaze upward, the statue towering five meters, the man in it was muscular and wore a sleeveless chain mail that hung to his knees, holding a double-edged ax on his shoulder while a bow was stuck on his back, had a wild smile on the face, the hair was pulled back in a high ponytail and had a goatee braided that fell to his chest.
— He must be very strong. Your father said he died in battle.
— Yes. They say it was the more powerful sirion ever. His strength was admired even by the stars, and was called Eagle's Eyes, for could see as far as you. — She reached out and touched the statue, sighing. — Unfortunately, he died with my brother in the battle of the South Void, fighting against the East Glenn Kingdom.
— That must be terrible. — The star looked at the Princess carefully.
— What? — She turned to him.
— Losing someone like that, most stellars have been through this, many have been in wars, but I haven't. Sorry if I don't know what to say about it.
— It's ok, Eastar. You know, it's terrible, but over time we get used to it. Wars happen, people die, and life goes on. — She shrugged, with a sad smile on his face. — We just have to remember the good times we had with those who left. — Sindar felt her eyes getting swollen and decided to change the subject. — But what did you think of my grandfather?
Eastar smiled, sympathetic to the change in conversation, the feeling of losing someone you know should not be a good one to focus on.
— Now I understand why my father seemed to like your grandfather so much, he must have been a truly formidable warrior.
The young man still admired the statue and realized that the star dust mixed with the bronze made it glow differently in some places, a glow that alternated to more yellow or blue instead of the reddish bronze.
— So, now that you could admire the statue, what do you want to do?
He looked up thoughtfully.
— Can we eat? I know I don't have to, but I miss it after a few hours ... is that what you call addiction? I don't think is so bad.
She looked at the stellar not knowing what to say, started to laugh and hugged his arm, dragging him out of the square.
— Of course we can eat, you idiot ... After all, it's time for lunch.