Days passed as Benny the horse roamed lazily around the wide expanse near the veil. The horse didn't really mind much, there were no predators this close to the mist and there was plenty of grass. He roamed for miles but always came back to the spot where his master had disappeared. He'd take his biggest rests there just in case the silly human came back.
Benny was terrified when on this day he walked back to his usual napping spot and the human was tossed out of the mist. Its body flew through the air and landed with a thud. Benny screeched in terror and reared on his back legs. He ran for his life away from the scene of the horse-eating witchcraft.
Benny stood a long way off and stared hard at the body on the ground. He took a good look out of his right eye, then a good look out of his left eye, then he focused with all his might with both eyes.
He finally decided that he was a brave horse and that nothing else scary had happened in a while. He walked towards the familiar-smelling human. When he reached the body he was able to take in the scent even deeper and confirmed that this was indeed his missing rider. He wondered where the human had gone for so long.
The human groaned. Every muscle in Benny's body tensed to run again until he remembered that human noises weren't scary. Humans were pretty decent masters except for the ones that screamed at you or hit you with sticks. This human had never done that to him so he decided to trust him just a little more.
Tate's eyes fluttered open and the first thing he saw was a giant brown nose inches from his own. Benny snorted at him and flecks of mucus splattered Tate's face. He cringed and reached up with a clumsy hand to wipe it away. Slowly he rolled to his hands and knees then levered himself up. How much time had passed?
Benny was still here so probably not much he decided, a few hours at most. What had happened?
Benny was in no state to communicate that days had passed and not hours, he cocked his head at the human muttering under his breath.
The last thing Tate really remembered was his heartbeat catching as he'd seen what he was sure was a dragon's shadow going across the ground in front of him. After that nothingness.
His body still tingled from the overwhelming magic he'd been immersed in. The air out here felt polluted and dirty compared to what he'd been breathing in.
He looked at Benny, the saddle was askew and some of his bags were missing but Benny was mostly as he'd left him. He walked towards the horse clumsily and mounted.
It was almost painful to ride away from the veil, but he did it. His mind was racing and it took every ounce of his self-control not to turn around and race back into the mist. He pulled the image of his mother and Aliya to the front of his mind, he had to go see them. Maybe after...maybe he'd come back.
He spent the rest of the time back to the capitol thinking of nothing else but how he could convince the Emperor to let him return to the veil. Although he knew that there was nothing for him in the Capitol, he was still the Emperor's man and at his disposal. He'd have to come up with some kind of legitimate reason for returning to the veil.
By the time he entered the gates of the city he had half of a plan worked out, but first, he had some things to do.
=====
He rode straight to his father's house. When the servants saw the disheveled man with unkept hair and a scraggly short beard enter the courtyard they had panicked at first. When they realized it was the young master they all called out in greeting or bowed with a smile on their face.
Lord Tate had not been expected today. His father may have had some inkling of the window of his return but due to the security around Aliya's return to the capitol, it was not known to many, especially not their servants.
The head butler came out to greet him.
"Lord Tate, what a pleasant surprise."
Tate dismounted. "Clairmont, good to see you." He returned the greeting. "Can I trouble you to arrange a bath and shaving materials? I want to clean myself up before my family sees me."
The butler nodded. "I wise choice, young master. Please make your way to your chambers. I will send staff to air out the room and prepare what you have requested."
"Thank you. Where is the family at the moment, are they here?"
Clairmont shook his head. "Your father is at the palace, your brother is at his own residence, and your mother is attending a tea."
Tate nodded. That worked well for him. He wanted to be clean and rested before he saw them.
He headed to his rooms and opened the doors. A few maids were already hot on his heels carrying linens, candles, and firewood. Sheets were removed from his furniture, his windows were flung open, and a fire was lit. Soon male servants followed carrying basins full of hot water into the tub that was located in his washroom. They filled the tub until it was full of steaming water.
Tate couldn't wait for them all to leave, even though he hated to rush them. He just wanted to get clean.
When they were finally gone and he sank down into the water he finally felt his mind calm. He was still thinking of the veil but for the first time since leaving it behind, he felt clarity return. He sighed as he enjoyed the heat surrounding his body and the quiet of his own thoughts.
After he was thoroughly washed. He got out of the tub and went to his wash basin. One of the servants had laid out all his shaving supplies that had been in Benny's bags. He supposed that was one of the bags he hadn't lost. In truth, he'd been so distracted he'd never stopped to take stock of what of his possessions were missing.
When he looked back into the mirror he was looking at his familiar reflection. He smiled to himself in satisfaction thinking that he didn't look so bad. He dressed himself in clothes that he had left here.
Now he was done.
He was presentable.
He had to wait.
It was torture, he hated having nothing to do. He eventually went to the library to look at the history books he knew were there that mentioned the veil. He sat in an armchair and began to read once he found the book he was looking for. A fire was lit here too although he hardly noticed the servants light it, they were very good at their jobs.
"The veil of mist is a mystery to this day. Nothing can be known about it, for what had been passed down as 'knowledge' has no source to verify it. It is said to be the barrier to the land where dragons come from. It is said to have been created by a 'Dragon King.' Is any of this a fact? This author does not know. The only thing that is known is that it is impenetrable. Those who have tried had described their experience as 'running into a wall.' No one has seen the other side and no one has ever been able to even pass their hand into the mist."
-Lord Westly Birch, Year 2670
That was the only passage regarding the veil in the well-renowned textbook. "History of the Realms" by Lord Westly Birch, written almost one hundred years ago. It was this account of ancient history that is still used to this day yet it had no details about the veil or its true purpose and origins.
Tate had known this, he'd read it when he was at the Academy taking the required academic classes. Still, he'd wanted to verify that his memory was correct. He put the book down and looked out the window. He heard chatter from the streets of the capital, birds chirping, and horses neighing. In the distance, he even heard the distinct sound of a dragon roaring.
One thing he did know was that the book claimed no one had passed into the mist, yet he had. He'd once told Aliya the history of the veil that he knew. He'd told her of the experiments he'd remembered studying. Now he doubted his memory. What had those studies discovered? Had anyone else been able to enter the mist itself? For those answers, he was going to have to take a trip to the Imperial Library in the palace.
He must have fallen asleep at some point because his name being yelled startled him awake.
"Tate!"
His mother flew at him, thankfully he woke up enough to catch her in his arms. He stood and held her. She laughed and cried and called his name over and over again.
She looked up into his face, her eyes sparkling. "You're home." She breathed.
Tate looked down at her. He wanted to say "Yes, I'm home." and give her the smile she wanted.
This didn't feel like home.