"Maelta? Maelta!" someone forcibly said as they shook me viciously. And, with adrenaline pumping through my blood, I scrambled to my feet after clawing at whoever that was. Harsh, heavy panting left me as I stumbled to my feet. But realising where I was only made me more confused.
"Who- Who's Mael..." I started to ask before I began to look around. Where had I seen this all before...? Of course! It was the village I was in not that long ago...
But...
"What's going on out here!?" someone older snapped as the loud clanging from behind me stopped.
"I don't know, Maelta seemed to be sleeping but she then... Ah..." a woman explained before she gently touched the thin streaks of blood that I must've drew.
"She's been spending too much time around that layabout we call a son." the man said as he came into view. The reddish-brown tone of his skin had struck me as particularly peculiar. Whatsmore, the way his face was shaped in general reminded me of an Eusorochiian... Even if his skin didn't.
"I-I'm sorry... I need to..." I began to stutter out before I made a desperate run for the outdoors. Something I kept up even as the man from that place shouted after. Shortly after as well, several other men started to get involved. And I ran as fast as I could as their voices continued to maintain their distance.
Their bodies likely as well.
"W-Where am I!? Why is that village full of people all of a sudden!?" I panted out as I suddenly flung myself behind a tree once I felt like I had gotten away from them. Yet, as I patted away at the bark in an attempt to find a place of purchase for my sweaty hands. I realised that this was the same forest that those machines were in!
But why was there no mist...?
"Keep quiet down there..." someone idly complained with a yawn. Their tone, though, was enough to convince me that they were not likely chasing me. So I looked up at the branch above me and walked away slightly.
"W-Who're you?" I asked them as I closely inspected the plain rags and leather sandals that they had. Whoever they were, they were simply dressed and red-skinned like everyone else. Including me as well...!?
"Oh? I'm not letting this one down, Priestess of Nagging Rememberance." this boy declared as he suddenly lost his tired, laid-back nature on the hop down.
"No! Stay there!" I demand of him as I held up my hand at him. I may have spent most of my magic in that emotional display, but I had just enough to...
"What're you doing, Maelta?" the boy asked as I violently shook and thrust my arm about. Why was nothing happening!? I didn't use up all my magic, did I...? No! I clearly felt my own power within me before I...
"N-Nothing!" I chirped all of a sudden as I brought my arm and nervously smiled. I had no armour, weapons or magic... So, I figured that my only way of surviving this was by acting. Just go along with whatever it was that was happening...
The boy then scratched his head before he turned around to look at the rustling of the bushes. Then, several adults burst out to meet us before that muscle-bound one I first saw appeared. He frowned and looked about before another shot towards me. Their large, calloused hands took a hold of my arms as they looked up at me in concern.
"C'mon, Maelly, talk to me." they coaxed gently as they tried to reassure me with small movements and gestures.
"I..."
"Thurge! Did you put her up to something!?" the first man I met demanded to know as he stomped towards the young boy.
"You know full well I wouldn't." the boy answered with an uncaring, impassive tone.
"Alright, back into the village, both of you." the man ordered as he firmly patted this Thurge back the way they came.
"We should go back too, Maelly. Or would you prefer a moment of quiet?" this man asked as all the others disappeared. Their complaints and mutters being all that I heard for a short while as I stared at the man before me in confusion.
"Yes, let's..." I tell them with a nervous smile. But such behaviour only made this man's behaviour switch from caring to angry.
"You best have a good explanation then, come on." he told me with a reserved voice as he let go of me and walked off. He was not, however, ready to leave without me. So I slowly followed him until we made it back to the simple village. Vast as it seemed to be...
"What happened? What was that all about!?" a worried woman asked as she rushed out of what must've been her home as we got back to the village. Whoever she was as well, she treated me just like this man did before I made that mistake.
"I don't know, and I'd like to know." the partner of this woman said as he opened the door with a firm hand.
"Maelta! What did you do?" the woman demanded to know as they began to corral me into the house. And with a firm, aggressive shove, I was put down onto a wooden stall.
"Well?" the man asked as he crossed his arms. But, as I truly had no idea of where to even start. I couldn't help but nervously shrink as I started to panic. How was I going to act out of this!?
There were too many details that I was unaware of! I didn't even know who these people were for Thurnmourer's sake! What was I going to do... What was I supposed to do!?
"Cyclind, hold on for a moment." the woman said gently as she brushed her lengthy robe and kneeled before me. And as her face moved closer so her eyes could look into mine. I moved my head back, unfamiliar with this person and not appreciating the gesture.
Then, with a gulp, I opened my mouth, "Wh-Who are you...?"
"W-What...?" Cyclind let out as he recognised the fear in my eyes. Who were these people!? Why couldn't I feel my magic!? WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO MY BODY!?
"Maelly? Stop joking around, you're scaring me." the woman let out fearfully as she suddenly brought me down into her bosom. And although it was a comforting gesture, I couldn't help but fight back against it.
"I'm getting the High Priest!" Cyclind let out with clear panic before he rushed out of the door. And, the moment that door slammed. I quickly got up and moved towards one of the rooms nearby. Then, having quickly found a lock of some kind, I slammed it shut.
"Maelly!?" the woman nearly screeched as she began to bang the door about. A futile effort to open it that at least gave me some closure as I took it all in.
"What is this place?" I let out clearly as I began to poke around the various things about this room. Whatever it was, it was a little cramp and that was just from seeing what was in here! It was clear it was designed to hold more than just some cupboards and draws... Then, I found a large piece of polished bronze roughly nailed into the wall.
And, as I put a hand to myself, I found myself perplexed at the foreign face looking back at me. I did not recognise this dark, earth-toned hair or the soft face. This athletic body was not mine either... This amulet I seemed to have was certainly not either!
"It's well-made, I suppose." I comment in an effort to alleviate some of the pressure as I held it before my face. The bronze was well-polished but it wasn't good enough to look at something in detail. So I held up the amulet to my eye to inspect it the old-fashioned way.
Surely this thing was dedicated to Thurnmourer? It had all the trappings of such a thing. What, with its clear depiction of an anvil and lightning... Wait, anvil and lightning... This village...
I was still on or within the Anvil-Peak!?
I mean... Of course, that was the case but...
"Young Maelta, open this door, please." an elderly man said after he knocked on it carefully. And, after hearing that, I registered the sound of sobbing as I moved closer to it.
"Who is it?" I wanted to know as I took advantage of their blindness to try and find a weapon.
"You don't recognise my voice, Drifting Cloud?" the old man asked, clearly hurt by my words. Even if it was clear he seemed to be made more determined by the uttering of them.
"I... I don't recognise any of you." I tell him as I finally find something that might be useable. It was metal at the very least so I could probably...
"Is it alright if I alone come in, then, please?" the old man asked softly as I saw his shadow under the door move.
"Why?" I asked them immediately as my grip on the item tightened.
"I want to talk to my granddaughter." he explained as the door rattled slightly.
"Just you?" I asked as I moved closer to the door.
"Go on you lot, out!" the old man then snapped before the sound of footsteps became distant.
"I'm opening the door, then..." I tell him slowly as I quickly unlock it. Letting them walk in before I locked it back up with a determined glare.
"Please, put that down. I wouldn't want you to break your gift." the old man urged me with a saddened expression as he slowly lowered himself onto a stall.
"No..." I say slowly as I shook my head.
He then sighed, "Do you really not remember a thing?"
"If this gift was as dear to me as your voice made it out to be, why would I be holding it like a common club?" I ask him with a firm snap as I levelled it before him. Taking a brief look at the fancy robes he had on before he started to strength his lengthy beard.
"I see... Well, your name is Mae-"
"My name is Einervaene Bosphama. I was somehow brought here by the lightning of Thurnmourer himself!" I interrupted and corrected. But I ended up looking away when I began to think about why Lightning brought me here.
"And why did he bring you here? Why did he steal my granddaughter away from me?" the perplexed old man asked as he tried to maintain a straight face despite the evident heartbreak.
"To... To beat Thunder in the Festival of the Fallen Star." I explain. Though, I ignored the second question as I could not really answer it.
"There's no one called Thunder here, Maelta."
"Einervaene!" I asserted, annoyed by the confusing nature of being called by another name.
"No, you are my granddaughter. And you always will be." the old man tearfully explained as he suddenly got up and rushed me. Yet, my hesitation in swinging my improv weapon led to his arms enveloping me. But, he just proved that I didn't need a weapon.
"I'm... I'm sorry, but, I'm not this Maelta!" I try to make him understand as he tightened his grip around me.
"It's okay, Maelta, I will try to understand why this has happened. Now, you said something about the festival? The one a few nights away?"
"If it is the Fallen Star one, then yes..." I nod slowly as I try to worm my way out of this uncomfortable situation.
"Then please, trust me for at least this moment. Come with me to the Anvil of Newborn Truth so I may beseech the First-Born Son!" the old man pleaded as he tried to gently take away my weapon.
"I'm not going out there unarmed..." I explained as I resisted his grip as strongly as I could. And, with a sigh, he relinquished his grip on my weapon. Then, he went into his robes and pulled out a jagged dagger. And the moment I saw that I brought my weapon up and put as much distance as I could.
"Then, please, take this. I know you won't hurt me, Maelta." he explained as he relinquished the sharp tool to me. It was clearly ceremonial in nature, but it was also distinctly sharp. There was also an odd familiarity about it...
Wait, Brewbrt produced such a dagger after he desecrated someone's skeleton... Was this old man that skeleton!? Yeah, it must've been, a lot of the fancy treasures I had dumped before me he was wearing! The rings, bracelets and, of course, this dagger...
"Okay." I eventually answered with a firm nod as I took the dagger. However, with a lot of regret filling my mind and growing uncertainty, I placed it against his back.
"It's alright, I'll explain it to everyone as we head there." he told me with a soothing but shaky voice as he went ahead and unlocked the door.
"Dad, is sh- MAELTA!?" this body's mother began to say before she screamed in horror at what I was doing.
"It's alright everyone, she's just scared. Stay back, please. For her sake." the old man explained as he began to gesture for everyone to stay away.
"Let's go..." I squeaked nervously as a mixture of anger and horror was directed at me. I just didn't know how to feel about it. Was any of this real? It had to have been, right?
This was a real elder I was threatening with a weapon...
"I'm going to put a hand on this bar, you hear?" the old man warned as he took ahold of the support by the steps.
"Hurry up!" I urged him as I cautiously spotted some people stepping out of their blocky homes with bows and arrows. For a brief moment as well, I was surprised to see that their tips were golden!
"Everyone, please, so room and time. Do not come up here!" the old man called out to everyone. And he gave an especially firm tone to those who were sneaking up after us.
"Alright... Help me understand this." I demanded from the old man as I put some distance between himself and me.
"So you say you were brought here to beat Thunder at the Festival of the Fallen Star?"
"Yes." I reiterated as he began to pour some kind of powder over the anvil. And with a sudden strike of lightning, something appeared out of nowhere on top of it.
"This man?" he asked once again as he held up a cherry hot sheet of metal.
"H-Hey!" I started to let out before I saw that he was unharmed by such a thing. And I was even more surprised to find out that it didn't hurt me either. In fact, it only felt mildly uncomfortable holding such a freshly forged piece of metal...
"He must wander into our village somehow then, before the festival." the old man explained as he took his answer from my gaze alone.
"No, he's definitely here, somewhere!" I assert as I try my best to recall what Lightning told me or had explained unintentionally.
"A grown man with charred skin, his face having been made black by it..." the old man explained before he moved to stand before the gathered village people.
"You recognise the face?"
"No, but, I think I know who might fit your conditions at choice times." the old man explained as he held out his hand to point at someone in the crowd. And his finger's target was clearly taken aback by it as it briefly made his family the focus of all the stares. I was already familiar with those lot, though.
They were the people I first 'met' when I suddenly found myself here.
"You think Thunder is the father?" I asked, just to make sure I was checking this properly.
"No, his son, Thurge. Breehop is too old to partake... If this 'Thunder' is to be a part of it, it would have to be one of the children."
"Right... I have to beat him..." I say as I recall what Lightning said. It made it clear that I had to beat Thunder in order to secure his power. The power to save Mother... To prove to all the world that I was no ill-conceived bastard...
"Now, I know it's not much to go on. It could be really any of the boys, really. But, I think I can say with all my heart for more reasons than him just being the son of a blacksmith that he is this 'Thunder,' he must be..."
"Why do you think Thurge is Thunder?" I decided to ask after having seen the way he looked at that boy.
"When you were born... And I held you above that shrine, before the First-Born Son. I did the same with all other children of your age. Using that sacred dagger you have right now, I sliced open your favoured arm with it so we could hear you cry for the very first time."
"What..." I couldn't help but let out as I looked down at my arms. A queazy sensation then filled me as I saw a long pale line going down my arm.
"Then, when it was young Thurge's turn to cry before the village. To have his future let out before him. All he did was whimper. He did not wail like Bolunch did. Nor did he scream as did you. He just, whimpered, like no one had ever done before."
"Right..." I let out, unsure of how to process that kind of information. It just struck me as so savage...
"And that's that, so, for whatever reason it is that you are here, in my granddaughter's body. I wish you the best of luck."
"Thank you?"
"And I demand the greatest sense of urgency." he added on, his frustration coming ahead of himself.
"For the sake of someone I care about to, I will." I tell him with a reassuring nod before I looked down at the dagger slowly. Though, I was not sure of what to do with it. Would I be in danger if I just let it go...? Or was I worse off still holding it?
"Thank you." the old man said as the dagger clattered to the floor. And his hand soon went onto my shoulder and he looked me deep in the eye.
"I will need you to tell me all about this festival when you can. For the sake of your family and myself."
"I was going to help my granddaughter cheat a little anyway... But, now I just have to do it to save her, right?" he told me before he nervously smiled as he patted my shoulder.
"I am sorry... I didn't mean for this to happen to her..." I started to say before cautious men began to come at me from behind.
"No, it's fine. I'll take her somewhere quiet so she can reflect."
"But, Honoured Elder!"
"It's fine!" he asserted with a booming voice that I did not expect at all.
"So... Who are you, anyway? It would probably be better for me to have a name to call you by."
"Granddad would do." he laughed in dismay as he looked down.
But, I shook my head even as I tried to reassure him with a smile, "I'm sure Maelta will call you that forever once I have succeeded in my task."
"Yeah... I won't ever tolerate her calling me anything else after this disturbing day... Torque."
"Well, it's nice to meet you then, Torque."
"While I can't say the exact same for you, I can say your appearance does excite me somewhat. It is rare we get such peculiar visitors." he greeted, his words clearly showing the trouble he was having accepting me.
"I promise I will be gone as quick as I can be." I tell him as I nod firmly at him as he starts to guide me elsewhere. Far away from the village and its disturbed occupants.
"That's all any of us can ask for. So, while you are here, though, perhaps you can tell me about where you are from? You clearly have travelled a long way." he asked as we started to walk a lonely path going around a small mountain. Or would it be a strange, internal peak given what was outside of this place...? I honestly couldn't figure it out.
"Indeed, I have been unfortunate enough to travel a great distance..." I answer, expressing my sadness as recent words entered my mind. All this effort and it was nearly perceived as for nothing... All the pain just came rushing into me as my magic went out of my body.
"You are safe here, Mae... Einervaene. And, while your welcome will be directed not at you, I want you to know that you are very much welcome here at Anvil-Peak." Torque explained as we came across a vast view.
Green fields as far as the eye could see but no other landmarks in sight. And, if I looked behind myself, I could clearly see the great peak of the mountain. The pointed end of the anvil... Yet, I was still so unsure, seeing so much green instead of gold.