Chapter 2

As they neared Barkley, Alina struggled to process what had happened. In a span of minutes, her life as she knew it had fallen apart.

She glanced at Alex. He stared at the ground, silent and meek, unlike his usual fiery self, clutching Alaire's chipped and damaged sword in his right hand, his left hand holding onto hers.

"Let me think. I have to clear my head." She thought to herself. "Alaire-" A lump formed in her throat at the thought of him. She wanted to grieve more than anything, but she recalled his last words: "Be strong for yourself and each other". She needed to be strong for Lex right then and there above all else.

She gathered herself. "He mentioned Paxton a few times. From what I've gathered, he was a valuable contact and supplier."

She still clutched the orangish-green crystal in her hand. "This has to be related to his death somehow. Maybe it's-" Her fist clenched at the thought. "Maybe it's from the man who killed him. The man who destroyed everything."

Just as quickly as she was able to gather her thoughts, her mind was consumed once more by a swirl of emotions and memories, still raw.

Just then, they both noticed the skyline of Barkley in the distance. The town wasn't built with verticality in mind, so it could only mean that they were close. Smoke lazily puffed out of brick chimneys, a sight that they were familiar with when Alaire rarely took them out to go shopping or sightseeing.

As they entered the town, a few of the guards that protected the gate approached them.

"What are you kids doing all alone? Where are your parents at?" The first guard questioned gently, trying to coax an answer out of them.

"We don't have parents..." Lex mumbled. Before the guard could interrogate further, Alina interrupted.

"We're from the orphanage in the middle of the woods," She explained. "We're looking for a man called Paxton?"

The second guard chuckled. "Paxton? That's not the type of man two young'uns like you should be looking for. Where's that retired swordsman that runs the orphanage? Isn't he usually with you?"

Lex shakily extended Alaire's blade towards the two guards. Their smiles faded.

"What happened? I recognize this blade. Where's your guardian?" The first guard questioned, his initially warm face now filled with worry and dismay.

"W-we need to see Paxton. Th-that's all that I know." Alina stuttered. Her confidence failed her in front of the two imposing and well-armed soldiers.

The two guards appeared lost in thought. "Come through. It's getting dark." The first guard managed. 

"We'll get you to Paxton. You can meet with him." The second guard added, trying to be reassuring. To the siblings, however, the future looked bleak and hopeless.

A different guard led the two towards a looming tavern-like building. The sign read "Voltaris Professional Hunters' Guild - Barkley Branch". They are led upstairs to a two-bedroom guest suite.

"Paxton is away on some business right now. We've sent a messenger to inform him of what's happened. He'll be back as soon as possible." The guard promised unconvincingly. "We've gotten fresh clothes for you. Once you two freshen up, there's food whenever you're ready to eat."

Despite their ravenous appetites, the pair's hunger is numbed by their grief. They go to bed hungry after showering. Despite having two bedrooms, they slept in the same bed for the first time since they were 5 or 6 years old.

Hours pass, and they are only awakened by rays of sunshine beaming through their shutters onto their faces. Alina wakes first, and Lex is woken by the sound of her showering. The once-chatty siblings are now deathly quiet.

Alina turns towards the window and noticed the crystal she had been holding onto earlier on the nightstand. She grabs it and slips it into her pocket.

"I just know that it's connected to what happened. Somehow."

She pokes her head into the hallway. The building is filled with the reverberating voices of many a person who has business with the guild.

"Stay here." She orders Lex. "I'm going to find Paxton."

"But-" He protested. "No buts." She sighed. "Just listen." He swallowed whatever words were about to come out next.

As soon as she stepped out into the hallway, she noticed two men walking up the stairs to her left. One man had combed over blonde hair and a distinctive eyepatch on his left eye, wearing a standard dress shirt and blazer. The other man was dressed in regal white and gold robes with a monocle that evidently did not fit him. They were engaged in a heated discussion which she was able to hear a glimpse of:

"If anyone looks into this, it'll be the Voltaris authorities. That's final." The man with the eyepatch asserted.

"You know as well as I do that the Voltaris Civil Police don't have the manpower or resources to investigate this. Not with all the turmoil going on right now." The robed man insisted. "Plus, this is an issue of great importance to the Aureate as well. I don't understand why you're being like this."

Just as the man with an eyepatch was about to respond, he made eye contact with Alina.

"I'll talk with you later." He told the robed man. "I have that issue from last night to attend to."

"Fine." The robed man relented. "But we're not done talking about this!" He exclaimed angrily, storming back down the stairs.

The man with the eyepatch approached her. "Alina, I take it?" He offered her his hand. "My name is Paxton." He gestured down the hall to a set of double doors. "That's my office. Why don't we speak there?"

All Alina could muster up was a weak nod. For most of her life, she'd had minimal interaction with anyone that wasn't her caretaker, Alaire, or her brother Lex. In the past 24 hours, she'd had more interaction with some of the most imposing figures she'd ever seen than she'd had before in her entire life. 

As Paxton led her down the hall, her mind swirled with questions, her heart laden heavy with anxiety. 

"What's going to happen to us?" She whispered aloud without realizing.

Paxton glanced at her, his eyes a mix of pity, compassion, and something else she couldn't make out. "You're in good hands." He promised. "I put that on my honor and my soul."

Once in the office. He shut the doors behind them and took a seat behind a large wooden desk, gesturing for her to take a seat in a large upholstered chair that was far too big for her 12 year old frame. 

As she sank into the chair, he began to speak. "I suppose I should explain all this to you. I'm a merchant, fixer, and current head of the Hunters' Guild in Barkley." He sighed. "I was a longtime friend of Alaire. As a matter of fact, he was like a brother to me. I made a promise to him that, in the case of anything happening to him, I would pick up where he couldn't." He paused, uncertain. "With that being said, you and your brother will be my wards now, until the age of 18." 

Alina looked at him uncertainly. "What's a ward?" She asked.

"Right. I forget that you're only 12. What that means is that I'll be taking care of you and providing for you until you're adults." He clasped his hands together. "There's a reason I've only called you here and not your brother yet. It's my understanding that you're the older sibling, and also much more mature."

Alina nodded. "That's what Alaire always said. He said I was 'wise beyond my years'. I never really understood what meant, though."

For the first time, Paxton cracked a smile. "That's good. Did Alaire ever get to teaching you two magic and swordsmanship?"

"Nope. All he ever said was that I had a really really REALLY high aptitude for magic, and Alex's was also pretty high, but not as high as mine." She explained, more at ease than before.

"Curious. Well, either way, Alaire wanted you two to be taught that. I'd imagine he was going to start teaching you that soon." Paxton's gaze faltered, falling into deep thought for a second or two at the mention of his friend. He snapped back to reality just as quickly, however. "Right. Now, for the stuff that's going to be hard to hear."

He leaned onto the desk, making full eye contact with her. "We sent out a party to investigate the site of incident." He paused, choosing his next words carefully. "We don't know who was behind it, or why. All we know is that they were powerful enough to defeat someone who was easily still one of the strongest fighters alive, albeit past their prime. That alone narrows it down." He put a hand on her shoulder. "Did you see something, anything that might help us identify the culprit?"

Alina began to shake her head, but then her eyes lit up. "I found this crystal," she began, "on the ground by a crater." She reached into her pocket and offered the crystal to Paxton. For less than a second, a flicker of recognition entered his eyes. "I feel like I've seen this before." He scratched his head. "But whatever it is, it's escaping me at this moment. Hold onto that for now."

He stood up. "If you wouldn't mind calling your brother into the room, I'd like to speak with him too. Also," he added, "don't be afraid. I promise you're in good hands." He smiled at her, a genuine smile that reached his one uncovered eye.

Alina ran over and embraced him. "Thank you." she whispered shakily. Paxton hugged her back.

"Take care, now." He said. "Once I'm finished with Alex, I've got some things to show you."

Alina nodded and pushed open the double doors, practically running to get her brother.

"Maybe," she wondered, "things will be okay after all."