Aldryn smiled at his friend. He quite enjoyed looking how everything about this world seemed to amaze Klyran.
'What an honest reaction' the blonde grinned.
When the Ryan expressed his emotions about the forest and called it amazing, the apostle agreed.
"It is" the blonde nodded, "But you should also be careful where you land", he said with amusement after hearing about his friend's attempt to land on the trees.
"The Yakards don't enjoy someone standing on them", he explained upon seeing the confused look on Klyran's face, which only made him more confused.
"The Yakards are also known as the forestmen. They look like trees, only that they can speak and move around. They live for the sole purpose of protecting forests and their inhabitants."
The black-haired man could only nod, taking note of those words. He then started being more careful as to where he stepped, cautious in case one of the branches or roots sticking from the ground turned out to not be trees at all.
'So many species live in this world. How do I even know if one of the trees is a Yakard?' the Ryan thought confused, his sharp eyes analysing every tree for even a twitch.
"Don't worry", the blonde reassured him, "they tend to stay deeper in the forest and generally don't walk around those paths."
Despite those words, Klyran could not help but feel as if the forest itself was watching him, measuring his every move, assessing if he was a danger to it or not.
'Creepy' the serpent felt a shiver travel down his spine.
It made him jumpy and obviously nervous. He would always glance from one side to another, as if expecting someone to attack him. With all those feeling swirling around him, Klyran even forgot his previous obsession with the watch that was attached to him arm.
"Poor thing" the fox suddenly commented and drew Aldryn's attention to his friend.
"It's not like there is anything that I can do" the blonde sighed and looked pitiful.
"Yeah... Even I am feeling uneasy around here" the Thrae silently nodded.
The two of them walked slowly, or what would have been considered slow to them, as their pace was still a bit faster that than of a normal human.
"I feel uneasy", the Ryan mentioned.
"Must be the enchantments. I often walked around here so it's fine, but you are right, the air feels heavy around. Must be the spells", Aldryn replied and muttered at the end, thinking about the new spells that he heard Zevram laid upon the forest to protect its inhabitants.
"What sort of spells?", Klyran then asked having perfectly heard every word, looking around.
"They are meant to keep those with ill intent out", he offered a brief explanation, not wishing to go into details.
"So… like the spells around Diarum?" the brunette offered, wanting to understand.
"Yes", the blonde simply nodded and gave a smile, "Just like the enchantments that surround Diarum."
The two of them walked for a whole day before they finally managed to encounter something. At first, it was nothing, but then, Klyran heard branches creaking, making him jump. He questioned Aldryn, who simply titled his head, but was unable to hear a thing.
Then, in a matter of seconds, a few people jumped from the trees and landed around them. They all wore similar attire to the two men who took their horses at the entrance to Diarum, Klyran quickly noticed. Only this time, half their faces were covered by masks. Their clothes ranged between brown, green and black, or even a combination of those colours. They all had bows strapped to their backs and daggers could be seen near their hips.
They were all looking at Klyran, as if trying to understand if he was a threat or not. They looked between the Ryan and the oracle and then, the only man wearing black clothes nodded and approached them.
'Greenyards... We must be close to the village' the Ryan decided happily. He couldn't wait to enter the village and get out of those creepy woods.
"Welcome to Morien" one of them said, and looked straight at the pair.
"Were are you off to?" Aldryn asked instead, stepping up and stood as a barrier between the man and Klyran.
"We are teaching the children about various plants and where to find them", he replied, nodding toward the young men wearing brown clothes, who, now that the Ryan could inspect more clearly, were shorter than the others.
"Well then..." Aldryn then begun, "I would not want to be the reason that you wasted daylight", he said with a cheerful voice, "We will be on our way."
He then swiftly grabbed Klyran's arm and started pulling him away from the group. At this, the man only frowned, but did not say anything else. He simply turned around and barked an order to the young men that stood around him. They all jumped and the started running again, jumping back up in trees with practised ease.
"So... those were the Greenyards right?" the Ryan asked after they made some distance between the group and them.
"Not the best sort" Aldryn said with a grimace.
"That was Barion. He is a good warrior of the Greenyards, but he is not overly frond of newcomers", the blonde tried to explain.
"Ah...", the Ryan said, understanding the near-glare that was send his way by the man.
"He was the one wearing black….was he not?" Klyran then asked, despite already being sure of knowing the answer.
"Yes. Black clothes are mostly worn by respectful warriors of Morien, who were acknowledged by Zevram. Then, there are those wearing green. They are simple warriors and brown are children or young people who are still learning the art of fighting and survival", the oracle explained with ease.
"How interesting", the Ryan murmured as the two continued to walk.
They spend all day walking around the forest. While Klyran was sure that the two of them were lost, the blonde would always wave his hand dismissively, or look insulted.
"Like I would ever get lost here" he huffed at the mere thought.
"Not like it ever happened before" the fox then said nonchalantly.
"It happened only three times" the blonde shouted in his mind, "And only because the Yakards kept messing with me"
"Sure. Sure. Blame it on the poor Yakards" the Thrae then said with a yawn and went back to sleep, causing the oracle to wish that it had it's own corporal form, just so that he could punch the fox.
To the Ryan, all the trees looked the same, the path seemed similar wherever they went. Even the sounds around them did not seem to change. He would often glance at the watch on his wrist, which at some point begun to irk the oracle, but he did not say anything on it.
"We are almost there", the blonde then said.
And true to his word, Klyran finally begun noticing some changes. The path became more clear and was no longer littered with leaves and branches. The noises of wild animals was reduced and gave way to the soft voices of people heard from far away. Even the smell of humans and their food filled the Ryan's nostrils.
"Finally", Klyran said with a sigh.
"Told you I was not lost" Aldryn then gave him a wide grin.
"Could have fooled me" the fox then said slyly, making the blonde's eyebrow twitch in annoyance.
"I am still not sure about that" the Ryan replied with a scowl.
"See? I am right" the Thrae proudly said.
"Then climb up a tree and see how far in the forest we are for all I care", the blonde huffed and crossed his arms, while ignoring the fox.
It was a tempting suggestion. The Ryan looked upward contemplating whether it was worth it to climb up the trees and look around the forest from above.
'Is he really doubting me?' the blonde was shocked, while the fox only begun laughing.
"Climb the trees later, we are here on business", the oracle suddenly said and started pulling his friend by the arm.
'Yup' Klyran nodded, 'We definitely got lost on our way here' he decided, if the apostle's reaction was any indication.
As they entered the village, Klyran could not help but look all over it. It looked like any ordinary village, only filled with more trees. Then, he looked upward and his eyes widened, while his mouth gaped. There were houses build on trees, with various bridges connecting them. There were even platforms installed his up in the trees were people seemed to simply sit around and laugh.
"This way" Aldryn said and started leading the way.
While the Ryan followed his friend, he could not help but be amazed by this village, which seemed to be more of a small city. Klyran saw many cities and villages during his short time travelling, but the most marvellous ones were the Silver City and Diarum. And now, Morien, which he could not help but think was the combination of the other two cities, what with its structure and bridges, both up in the trees and over the river.
The two of them approached a small and rather empty area. There were barely any trees around, but there were plenty of flowers, most of them already drying out. There, a man stood, dressed in a similar attire to the Greenyards, only his clothes were of a combination of Green and Black. It made Klyran wonder for a minute if he was another warrior, in between the two stages. Then, as they came closer, he felt an energy different than that of a human. It was akin to Aldryn, which made the Ryan quickly realised that it was Zevram.
Noticing the interest, the blonde was quick to explain.
"You are wondering about the clothes right?" he asked, as the two of them made their way to the man surrounded by children, who were listening to a story he was telling.
"The green represents the Forest, while the black is supposed the represent the earth and the roots of the trees. It is supposed to show his love for the element that he represents. The Greenyards wear similar clothes of a green colour, which is supposed to imply that they are warriors of Morien and of Zevram. The black colour, since its a small aspect of his clothes, are used only by few Greenyards who have his favour, or have done great deeds", Aldryn explained, making Klyran admire the dedication and thought put into such insignificant things as clothes.
It once again amazed the Ryan, how humans were able to find and put meaning to everything around them. How a colour for a Greenyard shows his love for his home, while the clothes Aldryn wore matched his happy and positive attitude. He remembered Ildurin and his family crest, the Roses that were meant as an eternal reminder of those who passed when the city collapsed and the falcon whom they graced as saviour.
He then thought further back, remembering a night in a village, where he heard some young girls gossiping about the flowers that one of them received. Flowers, whom Klyran found out at the time, also had meanings and can relay a message depending on its name and colour.
It made this world rich and precious in a way. While the Ryan missed his own home, from time to time, and those he left behind, he could not help but think about how empty his own world was compared to this one. How little meaning it had, spare for survival and power.
By the time the pair finally approached the Oracle of Wind, the man just finished his story and stood up straight to greet his guests. The children around him looked at Aldryn and greeted him in shouts, then looked at Klyran and did the same. After the noisy welcome, they all ran in different directions. Some went to the edge of the forest to play, while others made their way back to their homes.
"It has been a while", the blonde said and nearly jumped at the other man, taking his in a crushing hug.
"A while indeed", came the amused reply and a pat on the back.
"This is Klyran", Aldryn then quickly said and gestured toward his friend.
"It is nice to meet you", Zevram then said and approached the Ryan, extending his hand, which Klyran firmly shook.
"Are you two hungry?" the Oracle of Wind then asked, looking at the pair.
After receiving two sets of nods, he shook his head with a chuckle and led them to his own house, claiming that Ranya was previously told about his arrival in the forest and must have prepared some food for them.