Andrew

The path ahead stretched on to infinity, they’d traded the old beaten roads of Zannidue for greener marshes of the south and passed open fields, spatters of trees, and large hills Andrew, Natalie, Flynn, and Sophie continued their hard travel onwards to Aqua Falls. They’d left the sandy lands of Herbenry three days ago and soon the odd spotting of wild boars, deer, and sheep became a common occurrence as the land grew ripe with life. On a typical day, Andrew might have suggested that they eat up and rest, perhaps hunt some of the game here on their journey. The thought of any such thing now however stabbed Andrew with guilt.

To not be by his mother's side at this time was amplified by past regrets. He’d betrayed his mother before, to even think of relaxing now in her possible hour of need was to spit in her face once again. And so like a locked arrow Andrew kept his sight and mind on the destination ahead. For three days of eating dried bread and meat, camping, and sleeping in the open. Three days of putting all efforts into reaching Aqua Falls, Andrew felt the inpatients build up within him. The journey was moving far too slow. Ever since hearing Natalie the hunch she had about the dangers lurking around his mother's home everything they did to get there felt like it was not enough. Natalie had sworn that his home will not become another Lucas village. Although he appreciated the determined truth he felt in those words Andrew knew that she could not promise anything. And although he damned her for telling her this news-for throwing his world upside down he knew that it was not her fault. He wanted to console her by saying as much. But he could not get the words out in a way that would make her feel at ease, not yet. He was just too distracted to have a mind to clear that up.

The journey itself felt like wasted time, too little ground was covered for his liking. Every stop felt like imprisonment. He'd often stand at the very edge of their makeshift camp as the others ate and rested. As he listened to the wolves howl upon their distant mountain tops Andrew’s eyes gazed off towards the horizon of his destination with a great. Natalie had begun suggesting that he should rest. That simple advice helped him put these priorities in some form of order. He recalled the times when he was advising Natalie to pace herself in their mad rush to a destination. It also helped that by the time that he did lay down all the fatigue from the day crashed upon him like a tidal wave drowning Andrew in instant sleep. Although his body rested Andrew’s mind found little peace in its reverie. He dreamed up memories from his childhood, standing by his father Shinichi as they faced his mother Trisha by the cottage. Her hands tucked between her arms to fight off the approaching chill of autumn.

“Are you sure you want to leave with dad?” she’d asked. Recalling her standing on the stone steps of the cottage and hearing her ask that question once more turned Andrew’s blood to ice. Knowing that it was a dream was not enough to lessen its stinging chill. It only further exemplified the foolish answer he gave then. His younger self nodded against his will.

“I want to be with dad,” he said, it was a voice so young and alien to his current ears. It was a voice too young to be making such a decision. That thought only made him feel powerless. Helpless he looked up at his father, he was a tall man, his ebony face cut out of stone he held himself like a pillar of marble, grand, silent, majestic. His brown eyes were the only gateway revealing deeper depths of emotions only if you looked long enough. He wanted to know those eyes-to understand them, he wanted to know the face of his father. Often father left him and his mother for weeks at a time to take up hunting jobs, ‘mad adventures’ his mother once called it. Andrew recalled the days he waited for his father's return.

Curious about the whereabouts of his father- the adventures mum said he had. He’d never noticed back then that mother had stopped calling it adventures whenever he’d ask her, had stopped talking about what he does at his job with childish distractions like blowing raspberries on his tummy until he cried tears of laughter or served extra offerings for dinner along with a double serving of his favorite drink grape soda. It went over his head back then but recalling all those instances now only enraged him. How was he so blind? How did he not see the hidden pain behind mother’s every gesture?

He was young, foolish. and mother's lack of solid answers only made young Andrew more curious. That feeling became an obsession. By the time the day came when his father offered to take him along Andrew jumped on it.

He understood that he was going to be away from mum for a while, he will miss mum true but he had missed his father way more times than he had mum so to his mind it made sense. Father will come back with him in a few weeks, he always did. Mother would always be here, here in the cottage with her freckled face and warm smiles, a plate of hot fish patties, and a glass of grape soda on a table. Yes, he’d be gone two weeks-a month if he was pushing it. That’s how long fathers job always took him... He never knew, was never told that on this day his dad would leave home and never return to see mother ever again.

Why, why didn't he tell me, why doesn't he tell me anything? Questions he’d asked himself so many times that it had become white noise in his skull.

He watched helplessly within the cage that was his younger self as his father and he walked away from mum, watching her and the cottage shrink away into nothing. In pain, Andrew broke from this dream and fell into another. One dream he knew he'd been in before but he could never remember once he woke up. Natalie, often being the one keeping watch, just eyed him as he got up. No words were said between them, no words needed to be said. All she wanted to know was whether he remembered it, that dream. His declining neck Andrew shook his head. She looked away troubled, and although she did not say it Andrew got the feeling that her look of concern was not entirely for his sake.

There was not much talking done in those three days, not for Andrew at least. He and Natalie were the first ones up most mornings thus it fell on them to wake up Flynn or Sophie to take over watch duties. Sophie often shared some words with Natalie as she switched places with her, Flynn would sometimes chime in with a comment or two between them. Andrew would have asked what they’d said if he had the mind for it but he could not bring himself to care, his mind filled with the dream-with memories of how he’d last seen mother.

Their journey was filled with nothing but their footfalls as they blazed a hard trail south. This pattern of travel, eating and hardly sleeping continued until the fourth day. They were not far from Progmanfes now according to Andrew’s map. Sophie rounded it to be about two days to reach the river village given their current pace. Andrew nodded to himself but felt dissatisfied. They were just not moving fast enough, Andrew felt tired but his wish to make it to his mother's side won over the fatigue. He knew by experience that although she was not quicker than him on foot Natalie’s stamina recovered faster than his own… So why are they holding back? He’d been pushed to harsher brinks when on one of Natalie's desperate hunts before and things had worked out.

“We could make it there in one day if we push ourselves,” he said as he folded the map. Silence fell, Andrew frowned.

“And what happens if we run into a horde of demons or worse?" Sophie said as if to highlight the fact the sound of howling broke through the mountain tops. "I don’t wish to risk encountering conflict in this shabby state,” Sophie said. Andrew looked up at them puzzled. They all had eyes on him now, and though Andrew could not glean much from the muted stairs of Flynn and Sophie, Andrew understood the look Natalie was giving him. She was taken aback, puzzled that he’d ask for more from them. That bothered him.

“That rarely happens, wild predators keep away from civilization. Getting to Progmanfest as soon as possible should be our main concern.” Andrew said.

“But on the off chance that demons do appear we-” Natalie said before Andrew cut in.

”We train to handle that. And right now there might be something happening in Aqua Falls and we need to be there,"

"We don't know for certain yet, chances are we are rushing towards your mother's house for nothing," Natalie said.

"I can't rest on those chances.” Andrew finished. Natalie's lips tightened to a line at that, Andrew was sure that they’d understand, that Natalie of all people would understand. So it came as a surprise to him when it was Sophie laying a hand on Natalie's shoulder that broke Natalie’s incredulous gaze at him.

“It’s ok Natalie,” Sophie said, her voice sounding strained to his ears. Natalie looked about to protest until Flynn stepped up from behind. His silver eyes met his brown ones.

“An eager one I see," Flynn said.

"What did you expect from me?! Would you not want to go back home if you heard that it’s in danger?!" Andrew said. Flynn regarded him for a moment before shaking his head.

"I would, I never said that your eagerness is unfounded,” he said.

“Then what is it that you are trying to say, Flynn? That I should pipe down?” Andrew asked. Flynn shook his head.

“I think that your passion is an earnest one. I just hope that I can match your bravado.” Patting his shoulder Flynn gave him an approving grin before looking out at the long distance ahead. There was a placid coldness to his features. His silver eyes glowed with a strong sturdy will. Sophie solemnly nodded her head to herself. Had Andrew not been so narrow-minded he would have seen the clue in the words he said, signs in the way Flynn and Sophie acted what it was that irked them.

“Let’s be on with it then,” Sophie said. “Once we make it to Progmanfest perhaps we can find some news on what’s really happening in Aqua Falls. Until then, well, I’d say no news is good news.” They'd spent the next three hours doubling down on their pace. And although that put Andrew’s mind at ease, a different kind of tension-filled him as time moved on.

This tension, compounded with his own growing fatigue made the journey drag on like no other but he accepted it. Once they reached the village they'd be ahead of the curb. From there they can grab a riverboat and cut through the many farmhouses and open fields of crops and no man's land that stood between here and the deeper south. Yes, if they can get a boat they can reach Aqua Fall all resting up in good time. That way they can be ready to face whatever is waiting for them on the other side. That should have been how things went, but as they made out the dim lights of civilization over the horizon the cry of distant wolves descended from the mountain.