Hey, good peoples of the world. Matthew Matherne here with the long expected ninth chapter of the Chronicles of Koeleth. Due to reasons which are probably good ones, it took longer than planned to get this to you, my dear readers. To compensate for your arduous wait, I have a gift for you that I will post up here either later tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on when I finish it. Now, it is an honor to present you with the next episode in this humble adventure.
Chronicles of Koeleth
Chapter IX
Travelling Companions
Tom didn’t sleep well that night. He was plagued with nightmares and visions of a dark nature. After a particularly horrid dream, the young man awoke, unable to endure the torment any longer. Dreams and nightmares are not exclusive to magic users, but magic users can sometimes feel them more tangibly. Sometimes it is simply intense experiences, and sometimes it is a prophetic dream. Tom hoped that this situation was the former, and not the latter, because it bred in him an ill sense of foreboding. He never worried about his own death, but something in Tom told him that his companions were in danger.
The warrior had little time to ponder this, however, as he became acutely aware that an unknown entity was watching him from the shadows of his moonlit room. Carefully scanning the eerie darkness around him, his vision finally set on a pair of predatory eyes glimmering in the doorway. He was briefly unnerved by this visitor’s intrusion, until he remembered the youngest of his guests.
“Rydia, is that you?”
A timid whimper affirmed his suspicion.
“What’s wrong? Can’t sleep?”
Another whimper.
“Me neither. You can join me if you like. I might be awake for awhile.”
Cautiously, the pup approached the bed, her distinct golden fur illuminated by the light of the stars.
“Look at you! I’ll bet one day you’ll be a real beauty! A natural heartbreaker, what with your lovely hair and vivid blue eyes! You’ll have to beat the boys off with a stick. And a few girls, I imagine. Or you could hit them with a war hammer, too. Whatever suits your fancy, I suppose.”
Though she didn’t quite understand everything that Tom said, Rydia felt the kindness in it, and she jumped up next to him. Curling up into a ball and lying next to the kind man, Rydia felt very much at ease. Tom began to stroke her fur in a further attempt reassure her—and himself—that everything would be alright. Soon, Tom began talking again, telling the young girl about why he agreed to help.
“You know, you’re part of the reason I joined this adventure. You remind me of another little girl I made a promise to. In fact, you two could be twins. She’s a couple years younger, but other than that, she’s the spitting image of you. Same blonde hair, same blue eyes. Same timid disposition, even. Why, if I didn’t know better, I would say you were sisters.”
The wolf pup perked up her ears at this news. Another little girl that looked just like her? How much fun would that be?
Continue reading Koeleth 9, The Future of Eirmoda, and Compensation
Verbal Realms 