Minutes turned to hours, the silence stretched longer than expected. The trader and his coachman Turnip continued to ride the carriage in a certain direction past the snow covered forest and down the half frozen forest path. Tomas had nothing but the spund of horse hooves smashing into snow to comfort him in his present moment.

  His face was forlorn of a void that needed filling, but did he want it being filled or did he chose to remain empty?

  The trader did not bother him for a while, he would occasionally come into the carriage to check if he was fine, and keeping warm. Tomas barely reacted each time he appeared before him, he only clung tight to the book that was the only reminder to the home he had lost.

  His purpose in life now seemed uncertain, his future he had drafted now ash.

  A few more hours passed and it was nearing nightfall, that was when he heard the voice of the Trader again, this time it sounded very bright. "Hey kid, we're here." His voice reeked of optimism.

  Tomas barely looked up from where he sat, he wondered if they had a location in mind from the start. He had hoped the carriage would continue to ride on forever, he had never left his village before. Only adults were allowed to leave but he had always wanted to.

  He tried to silence his thoughts as the carriage wheels filled over a small stone bridge that arched over a small street. It was big enough to allow a number of carriages to pass at once but not as busy as it should have been. It looked to be made of several rectangular blocks of rock cemented together, only that it had been covered in a bit of snow and frost.

  The carriage soon came to a stop by what seemed like a small market, the trader urged Tomas to exit the carriage which he surprisingly did without delay. "Welcome to Larshak." The trader said with a heart warming smile.

  As Tomas' boots crunched on the snow covered ground he straightened his shoulders and looked out at the village before him. It looked similar to his tiny village but a bit bigger, close to being said to be a proper town. Many of the buildings were made of stone blocks unlike his village which was more primative and used wooden houses.

  It felt like stepping into a new world unlike any he had ever known, the roofs of the buildings before his eyes were made of a slate. Some buildings even grew to be two stories big which seemed impossible to Tomas. His eyes filled with wonder and confusion at the sight, he watched people walking about in the market region. They did not look very special from his people but they dressed slightly different.

  They had fur coats which was not something new but they had an air about them that seemed— odd. Tomas had never seen a market before, but he had heard from his father that some of the fish they caught were sold to some villages for some bare necessities they needed.

  Back at Emberfall everything was shared equally, there was no reason to buy things. There was also no need to have a market.

  Tomas staggered a bit, his vision grew a bit hazy and his head felt lighter but he managed to shake it off. A number of people were starting to approach him, shouting like wild animals.

  "Hey boy, are you the new errand boy?" Screamed a woman.

  "Got some fine cabbages?" This time it was a gruff looking ma that looked as fat as a pig.

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  "Speak up you poor sod, what have you brought for us this time?"

  Tomas' heart palpitated, he took a few steps back only to feel the carriage behind him. His breath became raspy and his eyes darted every which way, the air seemed to freeze his lungs the more he breathed it.

  The trader hopped out of his carriage and waved his hands to the group of unruly strangers. "Calm your horses down, there's plenty of vegetables and fine wine too. I never disappoint now do I?" This seemed to calm them a bit but not enough. The trader then turned to Tomas and addressed him quietly. "Head along to Turnip, he'll take you to see a physician."

  Tomas was still struck by the sight he had just witnessed when the quirky coachman pulled him away from the carriage and deeper into the village. A few moments later they were walking down a huge path surrounding by buildings with thatched roofs.

  Turnip who had kept silent for a while finally spoke to him, his voice was a bit sharp almost joyful. "Don't worry, there's a pretty good physician here. He's the only one for miles really, and you don't look hurt on the outside so I doubt he'll charge much."

  Tomas said nothing, he followed the man quietly, only holding on to the book in his hand and instinctively counting his steps to keep his thoughts grounded.

  Within two minutes they reached the two story building that was supposed to belong to the physician. They went in and Tomas was then escorted to a small room to wait for the physician. He half expected the room to be bland but it was not, it has a wooden bed made of something soft. It was different from the mats he was used to, it almost felt impossible that something was so soft.

  "What is this?" He asked as he accessed the strange soft substance better, he felt it and caressed it. His fingers pressed on it harder but it did not fold or break. He did not know why but his mind told him to tear it apart and find out what it was and he almost did if a voice had not stopped him.

  "I wouldn't assault the foam if I was you", the voice was soft and melodic, it resonated with him in a way no voice ever did. "It's hard getting one down here anyway."

  Tomas jumped and turned around so fast his head started to hurt and his vision blurred again, he held on to the wooden frame of the bed to prevent himself from falling to the ground.

  He felt a hand wrap around his waist a few seconds afterwards, the hand was small and delicate. They wrapped around him with precision and maneuvered his body till it was seated on the soft material from earlier. He could see tiny fingers pressing into his sides for a second before the person retracted.

  "Don't go killing yourself before my dad gets here." Said the warm female voice.

  Tomas finally rid of his dizziness looked up to the one that had helped him. It was a young girl around his age with long golden hair, her eyes were yellow and her face looked radiant and smooth. Her frame looked petite, she wore a small blue shirt and a white apron on. Her golden hair was braided and packed up neatly.

  What took up most of Tomas' attention more than her beautiful face was her hair colour. It was his first time seeing someone with golden hair, it made him wondered if his tiny village ever existed in the real world.

  "Hi there, I'm Mera daughter of the physician of Larshak. My dad will be here soon, I would like to do a number of tests before he arrives." She said with a heartwarming smile, even her eyes seemed to beam.

  Tomas simply stared at her and said nothing.

  Mera's smile faltered slightly, "You're really attached to that book huh?" She gestured to the huge leather book he had been clutching tight for a very long time. She watched him from top to bottom and pulled a stool nearby so she could seat a few feet from him. She then took out a huge piece of parchment, a quilt and ink and started writing something.

  Tomas watched her work in silence without saying a word more, she looked like someone who enjoyed what she did. Her smile never once left her face and that made him feel a bit insulted. "That should be me." He told himself.

  Didn't he deserve the privilege of being the one to smile, after all he had done for Emberfall they had to die. But why did they have to die anyway? Nothing really mattered anyway, everything was gone.

  Mera stopped scribbling on the paper and looked up at him, their eyes connecting but his gaze felt hollow. She cleared her throat nervously and said. "I'm really sorry, I heard about what happened from Monsieur Turnip."

  Tomas did not know why but he fumed within, "Shut it." He told himself.

  Mera continued, her voice growing softer, her eyes almost watering. "It's a painful thing having to go through that, I can't begin to understand. But I want you to know that we are here to help you."

  In that moment... Tomas sparked. He jumped to his feet and threw his hands on her, the huge book he had been holding slipped and fell to the ground. His hands clasped her shoulder and squeezed it tight, the sudden outburst of energy caused her body to jerk. She let go of the quilt and paper, the small bottle that held the black ink tipped over and ink painted her white apron black.

  "Shut up! Stop saying things you don't understand!" He barked at her, her body trembled visibly. "Stop looking at me with pitiful eyes, it's sickening."

  Despite his outburst she simply stared at him, her chest heaving. Tears started to roll down the sides of her face and she opened her mouth to speak but they trembled and she shut them. This infuriated him even more, he shook her violently and barked again. "Say something damnit!"

  More tears rolled down her face, she opened her mouth to speak but broke into tears. Tomas pulled back afraid of what he had done and why he had done it, he had never wanted to hurt anyone. What pained him even more was the fact that he had attacked her because she was trying to help.

  He looked at her, she had her face hidden between her gloved hands and weeping. "I'm... Sorry. Don't try to help me when you can't."

  The sound of her sobbing soon filled the quiet room, she rose to her feet and left the room almost immediately. Tomas was left behind to reminiscence on what had just occured.