"So" Arin patted Auriya, "Tell me about you two, how did you two come here? Where are your parents? Tell me if there is any way for me to contact your parents, so that you two can get reunited with your friends and family!"
Auriya did not reply, but became quite; very awkwardly quiet. Lumiyan suddenly turned his head and looked at her sister. Arin could notice the little boy suddenly trying very hard to suppress his tears. Arin felt a bit awkward, a pang of guilt in his heart. He did not exactly know what had he done wrong, but realized something was amiss.
He looked at Auriya. She was staring at the Moon. Her stare was blank. Or, it also might be that she was trying to look at far, far away; further than the moon or any distant stars, and far to the past. Arin noticed that in the soft pale moonlight of the night, this little girl's eyes were glistening with unshed tears. The alien moon's silver light had woven its delicate silvery threads across her darkened face, casting an ethereal glow upon the tiny, glistening teardrops that pooled in the corner of her eyes.
Arin was a bit perplexed, and decided to change the topic. But before he could stop Auriya, the girl started speaking, "They are, …. they are there…." She stretched her tiny hand to point her index finger at the Moon. "My mother had told us that, when their people die in this world, they go to the field of sky, and hunt in eternal glade of Suhaniya."
"But dad would say" Lumiyan interrupted, "after our people die, they go to the Golden Field and enjoy the abundant harvest of Dahaniya"
"Suhaniya, Dahaniya, who are they?" Arin asked.
"Suhaniya is Goddess of my mother's people", Auriya gave a sad smile, "the Dusk Elves!"
"And Dahaniya?" Arin asked enthusiastically.
"He is God of Abundance, revered by people of my father" Lumiyan replied, "the Dawn Elves!"
"Okay" Arin nodded, "but why were you kids roaming alone, away from your people?"
"My parents lived in a remote place always, only friends they had were uncle Nerath and aunt Sora" Auriya replied.
"So, how can I contact them?" Arin asked as he felt that at last he could find a glimmer of hope in this desperate and depressing situation right now.
"You can't" Auriya again gave a sad smile, "they have died with my parents"
Arin became intrigued, "Tell me, what happened actually! Tell me in details"
"My parents, and uncle Nerath and aunt Sora were a team; and they would go adventuring together. But after we were born, my parents would alternate for staying one of them with us, and another going with Uncle and Aunt. They had agreed to continue with a three-party team until I become old enough to take care of myself and this idiot brother of mine!" Auriya replied.
Arin glanced at Lumiyan, this time he did not make face or pulled some childish antics. Arin felt impressed as well as sad at the same time.
Auriya continued, "One day uncle Nerath and Sora both came to our home. Both of them were looking gloomy. They did not greet us like before. That night they did not celebrate like they would always. Rather, the four of them talked whole night that night. I could hear my mother sobbing from the other room. But I could not check for my brother would wake up." Auriya paused and took a breather, and then started again, "Next day father and uncle Nerath- both went somewhere. Mother and aunt Sora both worked together whole day in packing things up. Next day, when we woke up, we saw our parents were ready to leave. Uncle and father had brought a horse drawn cart. Mother had told us that this time they were taking us as well for adventure. Hearing this, Lumiyan was too excited to leave and he hopped on the cart. I knew Mother wasn't telling the truth, but I didn't dare to ask her exactly what was wrong, and so I followed my brother. Father lit a torch, and my mother joined him in setting fire on the house. I felt like they were crying, but the sound of fire crackling was too loud and suppressed their hushed sob. We did not know what happened, but both of us were sad as it was our only home since childhood. We could not control our tears and our mother was consoling us on all the way!" Auriya paused again. Arin could feel her voice was getting heavy, as if her tiny throat was getting choked with tears.
"Okay, let us end here…." Arin tried to stop her, but Auriya continued, "We rode for two days, stopping in a village to resupply. On third day, when we were passing through the narrow cliff of Mountain Deraz, we were ambushed by bad guys." Auriya stopped again, and gulped, probably to suppress the tears that were trying to come out. She then continued, "Mother told me to run away with brother and go to nearest town. Aunt Nora told us to wait for them in that town's Adventure Guild, as they will meet us there."
"Oh that's good" Arin jumped with excitement, "then we just need to take you there, as your parents, and uncles and aunts must be waiting for you there!"
Auriya smiled and pulled up her shirt to show her back. It was burnt. Arin did not had a beating heart or it would stop as this reminded him of some past trauma. Before Arin could say anything, Auriya continued, "just as we had managed to get down from the cart, there was a huge explosion in our cart, and we fell from the cliff. My back was burnt, but my only concern was to protect my brother. I wrapped her tightly in my arms as we fell down from the cliff and then I lost consciousness."
"So what happened after that?" asked Arin as he was unable to control his curiosity. Auriya replied, "after I came to sense, I found myself on a mat inside a hut. My brother was sitting beside me, looking at me, as if he was waiting for me to wake up. I discovered myself laying on my stomach. As I was trying to wake up Lumiyan stopped me saying I had medicine applied on my back, and this I should stay laid down like this before the scars get healed. I asked him how did we get there, which Lumiyan replied that he too did not know, for he too wake up a while ago and found us like this. He was just waiting for me to wake up, and didn't move to discover our location for he wanted to protect me as I was unconscious!"
Arin smiled and patted Lumiyan's head, "You are a gallant Knight, are not you?". Lumiyan, for the first time, give him a genuine smile, as appropriate for a kid of his age. Arin ruffled his hair in affection, and Lumiyan skidded a bit towards Arin to get closer to him. Arin put his hand on his shoulder and waited for her to start from where Auriya had stopped.
Auriya also was smiling now as he appreciated the idea that how his brother. After all these ordeals the little boy had started to feel relaxed and feel secure around an adult. She thanked Arin in her heart, and continued, "after a while those bad guys came inside and smiled at us. They gave us two bowls of food, it was porridge with some vegetables. They asked us to eat it and take rest. We ate it and fell asleep. But next time when someone entered the house to take out the empty bowls, I woke up. However, I was still feeling groggy and thus decided to lay down closing my eyes. The person who had entered to take the empty bowls left the room closing the door form the outside. Then I suddenly overheard some people talking outside. Those humans probably had forgotten or did not know that Dusk Elves had great hearing capability, and I got that from my Dusk Elf mother." Arin could feel a sense of pride in her voice, first time something positive in her tone was observed. He patted her head as well, and she too gave him a smile, like her brother a while ago.
Auriya continued, "So, we overheard them discussing about giving us to someone. One of them was thinking of selling us to some slavers, while another wanted to sell us to some prince. But then I could hear a third voice, who stopped both of them and said that he had got a better contract, something like 'Conclave' or 'Enclave' I could not hear properly that time."
"It's 'Conclave'" suddenly Lumiyan interrupted her, "I too had heard it."
"You were not sleeping?" Auriya was surprised.
"No, I was," Lumiyan replied, "but as soon as I heard 'Conclave' I woke up. I have often heard my parents and uncle mention the name; and whenever one of them would mention 'Conclave', all other would go silent. So, I knew it is a bad thing. That was why I woke up as soon as I heard the name!" Lumiyan talked like an adult, as if he was also trying to give his input in the conversation and establish his importance. Arin felt amused but did not interrupt them.
"Now as you mention it," Auriya replied, "I too had noticed it. Anyway, I decided we had to run away. I woke him up and made a plan to escape. In the night, when one bad guy came to give us the food, and was going to leave, we quickly jumped and darted away past him and ran like anything. They too kept chasing us and that is how we met you." Auriya stopped, took a deep breath and suddenly said, "Thank you!"
This 'thanks' was completely unexpected for Arin. He pulled both of them to his chest and said, "No need to thank me. From today onward you two have a big brother, I would not let anything happen to you!" Arin suddenly felt relieved, as he always had wished if someone had also told him the same when he was of their age. But at least he could speak it to someone else.
"But you smell brother" Lumiyan said pressing his nose.
"Yes, you do" Auriya replied frowning and shrinking her nose.
Arin pulled both of their cheeks with each hand and said with mock anger, "Speak it again!"
"Brother we are sorry!" they cried, "spare us" and all three of them laughed loud.
Two Revenants who were patrolling heard this, and it seemed their rotten lips had a smile on it.