Voyage

"So, you two have made the decision to go?" In a big room, two men were seated across from him when Vixen asked. They both sighed while nodding. Standing close by, Atlas simply zipped his mouth shut and remained silent. "Unpredictably, all of a sudden." Vixen composed himself in order to appear more professional. It was his particular method of handling melancholy.

"Our family relies on us." Alaric spoke, hardly audible above a whisper.

"You were the only one who wrote the letters; they never sent any to you. Why is this so?" He caught Hermes and Alaric off guard as they searched for an explanation to change the subject. However, Vixen interrupted them with a harsh statement before they had a chance to respond. "Do they even care?" Alaric made a fist out of his fingers, but Hermes put a soothing hand over it to calm him down. Everything that Vixen spewed was motivated by worry and fear—fear of losing yet another friend. He recalled how, a few years prior, Odin had left the fortress immediately after hearing the folktale, and he had since never mentioned it to anybody else. After telling Alaric and Hermes the same tale, he cursed himself because they were about to leave as well. He was terrified, and it was obvious in his eyes. He feared that they were carrying out Odin's actions exactly as he had. He realized what he had said in his wrath and apologized. " I'm really sorry; it wasn't my intention."

"We are aware of that, but we must go home to our families. So much time has passed." said Hermes. His voice was soothing and serene. "We were meant to depart the day after we arrived. We are travelers." He put his hand on Vixen's shoulders.

"Since he hasn't spoken since the morning, I assume you have already spoken to the king." said Vixen.

"Yes, we informed him the previous evening." As his eyes began to well with tears, Vixen gently chuckled. "After speaking with the king, we wanted to tell you first."

"Am I supposed to feel delighted about that?" Vixen wiped away his tears. "Let's stop talking about it now." Alaric and Hermes puzzledly regarded him. "I have to go, work call." Vixen turned to face Atlas, a heavy sigh exiting his mouth, and turned on his heel to leave the room. Alaric wanted to stop him, but Atlas warned him against doing so and reassured them that he would be okay. He's just a little worried and upset.

Alaric and Hermes walked to their shared room to prepare their belongings for the journey ahead of them. They tried to make things as simple as possible, so they simply took a few clothes and a map. The next morning, food and water would have to be packed. Alaric began to glance around the cramped room where he had spent the last several years after the most of the packing was finished. His eyes were welling up with tears. The chamber was ordinary and bland, but he was so bonded to this kingdom that it felt like a second home to him. Hermes observed Alaric's behavior but didn't interfere because he felt the same way; instead, he went back to neatly folding the clothing.

"I hardly recognize myself," Alaric said as he observed his own image in the mirror. I've never felt like Alaric in all my years in Fenoira. Mikael was always there in the reflection, but now he too seems strange to me. Alaric was examining how he looked. He was well-groomed as a prince and then as a king, therefore he never worried about appearance throughout those years. But when he saw himself in the mirror, he noticed that his beard had grown out, his eyes were puffy, and his shoulders and muscles were even bigger, likely as a result of the effort he had put into being Mikael. Additionally, he didn't dress as elegantly as a monarch would have in his own realm. He couldn't believe he had been hiding out for almost six years.

"Yeah, I know, we really do look like nomads right now." Hermes grinned. "We're skilled at hiding our identities; I even assumed you were Mikael instead of Alaric," They both laughed softly. "I truly understand how difficult it is to say goodbye now. You are truly remarkable. Alaric, how did you manage this? How did you become ready to deal with them and those teary eyes?" Alaric had never seen Hermes show his emotions like that, though they had shared their childhood together, but as soon as they were older, Hermes was sent to the troops, and Alaric was supposed to be trained to take the throne after his father. Up until this point, they had never been friends as adults. Alaric was also relieved that Hermes had become a friend once more and that he felt at ease with him because he stopped using honorifics and simply addressed Alaric by his first name. It felt familiar.

Alaric remarked, smiling, "We both said farewell."

That's not what I mean, you know." Alaric sighed while nodding. Hermes had left his family at a young age, when his father abandoned him in the middle of the road. He promised to return, but he never did, and Alaric's father took him in. There was no information regarding Hermes' family; it was as if they had vanished into thin air. Hermes didn't bother to look for them instead, and he discovered a family with Alaric and Levin.

"I suppose my urge to continue is my desire to save the family." Alaric paused to examine his promise ring, which he wore as a pendant. The ring appeared to be quite expensive, so he hid it to avoid being discovered. "It's difficult, but needed." Hermes responded with a nod and got up to look for their traces in the trunk and drawers. Since they were hiding, it was imperative to wipe out any evidence before departing. A couple bundles of paper dropped to the ground just as Hermes was about to close the drawer after making sure it was completely empty of anything questionable. Hermes took them and brought them to Alaric. He questioned, "What about these?"

Alaric raised his head from his squat position to inspect the area under the mattress. Some paper stacks were extended to him. He wrote those letters; the ones Vixen was referring to. In order to appear more genuine, Alaric and Hermes pretended they had sent those letters while in the town. For the sake of the kingdom, himself, and Hermes, his name and whereabouts should not be known. All of the letters were addressed to Diona, his late wife. His suffering eased over the course of his stay in Feroina and the creation of fictitious letters. and began speaking in those letters, describing his visit and his desire to see Aura for his deceased wife. He expressed every emotion with words that he kept to himself. The heaps of documents he piled on the bottom of the drawer, out of sight and reach of others, contained his suffering and everything else.

When Hermes offered him a sympathetic look, Alaric shrugged and folded the papers, keeping them in his bag. "We appear to be so close to achieving our objective." Alaric flipped through his papers and muttered, "Let's shift the subject." Hermes noticed but went along with it.

"Yes, I do believe that the sooner it ends, the better."

"Hmmm." Alaric spoke, his eyes filled with joy and newfound hope. " I'm becoming impatient to see my daughter." His main thought was to track down the warlock, make things right, and get back together with his family. But was it truly as simple as it appeared to be? All they were experiencing was the possibilities.

"She must be as delighted as you are, I'm sure."

"But what if she is completely unaware of me? Within a few weeks of her birth, I departed." His earlier, cheerier smile was replaced with a scowl, and his mouth dropped open in despair. "What if she doesn't want me?" Now he was afraid to go back to his house. He was afraid his own daughter wouldn't like him. He feared being despised by his countrymen. perhaps his brother would despise him too.

"She is your daughter, Alaric, and nothing can replace that." Hermes tried to comfort him because he wasn't particularly adept with words, but he tried to keep it casual and not harsh. Alaric gave him a sharp look as he observed him. Let's put things off until later and concentrate on getting where we're going. Hermes said, a slight awkwardness in his tone.

"You're pretty lousy at things like this." Alaric remarked, clenching his stomach to keep from laughing out loud.

"Yes, at least I tried."

"Okay, we are almost finished packing." They took one last glance around the room before departing, leaving their things on the bed. The day went by awkwardly since Vixen and the king were nowhere to be seen, and Atlas was upset. On his face, it was evident.

Later that evening, the monarch summoned them both to his chamber. The fact that the king wanted to see them made them both feel better because they had one less thing to worry about. In the familiar king's chamber, Hermes and Alaric were positioned close to the edge of the big bed. The king was perched on the bed and was gazing out the window. He had his back to them. There was a split-second of pin-drop silence before the king spoke. Then he spoke after clearing his throat. "You know what the worst thing about being a king is?" With his back to them, he posed the question while turning to look up at the stars in the sky. "It's the inability to express your emotions; the desire to stand up for your people; the inability to form attachments to anyone; and the constant need to think more logically than personally." He swung his head around to peer over his shoulder at them.

Alaric and Hermes were silent, unable to talk. Alaric could relate to the king's emotions because he had recently made the decision to leave the realm. The choice was difficult; it may have led to many more questions than he had anticipated, but he had to use his good judgement. He also trusted that his brother would be able to run the kingdom on his own. Alaric knew that Ezekiel would have offered to help if he had been told why he was leaving, and he could not risk losing him. Alaric was staring at the king of Fenoira and wanted to comfort him, but he refrained.

"And here I am, being vulnerable. A tiny nation called Fenoira. It's hardly really a kingdom, in my opinion. People used to live in peace without a king, but a very long time ago, when this land was assaulted by enemies, it was necessary to choose a king. But even so, we coexisted peacefully. It never felt like I was ruling them. I always had the impression that I was guarding and guiding them. But right now, this is how I'm feeling emotionally. What should I do? I'm still a human being with a heart." He said, turning his entire body to face them both. He was looking for signs of compassion in their eyes. "I've lost many people in my life; my parents, my brothers and sisters, my friends, the troops. I've always kept everything inside, but I believe I've reached my breaking point because I can't any longer. Even though I am aware that one day you two were meant to depart, I can't help it. Though I won't hinder you". " Every time you require assistance, keep in mind that you have a brother her." He remarked after taking a long breath. He approached them and hugged them tightly, strong emotions streaming from their eyes.

They were obviously bonded by the entire kingdom. They had always been regarded as brothers by the king, and now they were going forever. " Go meet the others now before you depart." After ending the hug, the king spoke. " Oh my, what you must be thinkin." He replied as he brushed away his tears. He chuckled, "I am truly very bad as a king.

"Unless by "terrible" you mean "amazing,"

"Yes, you are a bad king because others don't even fit into a category." In an effort to lighten the mood, Alaric made a joke. The king simply motioned for them to depart as he began to laugh at his remark.

Except for Vixen, Alaric and Hermes met everyone in the castle. There was no sign of him. After their argument, Atlas had claimed that he immediately departed for the town. Alaric and Hermes made their way back to their room after supper with a certain amount of reluctance. Their stay in Fenoira had come to an end. Their heads were split between happiness and a small amount of sadness since they were getting close to their goal. They sighed and closed their eyes, drifting off to sleep knowing tomorrow would be a long journey.

The king and a few of his guards had gathered close to the port to bid Alaric and Hermes farewell. They had to cross the great ocean, leaving their horses in the king's care. The early ship bound for Antares was where they were scheduled to board. Although Antares was not their intended goal, going for it would have avoided two situations. They were initially dressed as travelers from Antares. Second, their voyage was simple because the ship was traversing most of the water. Alaric and Hermes looked around for Vixen, but he was nowhere to be found, and Atlas informed them that he hadn't returned yet. They stepped onto the ship with a heaving sigh.

"Wait." When a sound was heard behind them, their heads snapped around. It was Vixen h is hands were resting on his knees as he knelt down, gasping for oxygen. After he calmed down, he took slow, clumsy steps towards them. Due to all the running, he felt woozy. Atlas gripped his shoulders to keep him from falling. Hermes and Alaric got down from the dock. "Please take this as my apology for your daughter." Vixen handed Alaric a satchel. Taking the satchel, Alaric pulled it open. Inside the pouch was a small piece of white cloth with a small figurine attached to it. A number of chains connect the hanky to a fox figurine made of the lightest wood. Alaric grabbed the token present and put his arms around Vixen while sobbing and murmuring "thank you." "It's not just a present; it's a promise that someone will be there for you whenever you ask," Vixen said. Specifically, a vixen is a female fox. Vixen once revealed to Alaric the origin of his name. He was names as Vincent and he loved his mother a lot. But the locals always referred his mother as Vixen. After his mother passed away, he started referring to himself as "Vixen."

He then gave Hermes a big hug and wished them both a safe trip. When the ship was ready to move, the anchor was raised and the rigging was adjusted as Alaric and Hermes waved at them one final time. With each wave, Alaric and Hermes' figures traveled further and further away from Fenoira's territory. Having lived in hope and possibility ever since leaving the Josen realm, they had no idea what lay in store for them in the future. Despite the fact that the folktale's guidance made their goal appear a little clearer, they nonetheless embarked on another uncertain path.