𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆       𝑓𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑒𝑦

━━━ CAN IT EVEN BE CONSIDERED A WAR ANYMORE? It's been going on for the better part of a century now, but there's no other word to describe the level of destruction that's been caused in that time. The number of lives lost, sons and daughters killed, territory taken and stolen back, money wasted. The word war is simply not strong enough.

   It started over land. The Lakelands have fertile soil, whereas Norta has farmlands that can barely get everyone through the year, especially when you take into account that everything harvested gets taken by the silvers. Our king declared war, and they responded with violence as well. We have rivers and water mills that generate electricity and run the nation. There's a city near Archeon-the capital-where reds build machines to convert water into power. I don't fully understand how it works, but I don't understand a lot of things anyways.

   Neither side has a strong advantage over the other. We have advanced technology and therefore have better weapons, but the Lakelands have more soldiers than us. The only difference is they have more food and no electricity, the exact opposite of us.

   Mare used to laugh about the idea of fighting over food and water-she's not laughing now. It's not funny now. Kilorn is being sent away and we have no way to save him, it's not funny at all.

   "One week. One week and I'm gone." His voice cracks and he covers it up by clearing his throat. "I can't do this."

   "There has to be something we can do. They can't just take you away that fast." I insist. I know what I'm insinuating is a crime; one that would get us executed in the center on the village, but I don't care. This is Kilorn. If any of us deserves a chance to escape the war, it's him.

   "There's nothing anyone can do. No one have ever escaped conscription and lived, except Wendy's dad." His voice is defeated, the light in his eyes dull with the knowledge that he's being sent off to die.

     Every year someone gets hanged for trying to run, and everywhere we're forced to watch it. It's a warning to everyone that we aren't strong enough to disobey the silvers-we're normal. Common. Defenseless.

   Mare used to tell me that I could do something. She used to say that as a silver, I should be able to get them to listen. Back then, she didn't understand that me being different would scare the silvers. If they ever find out that two reds can have a silver kid, I'll be killed and so will my mom. I don't care much about the former, but I'll sacrifice anything for my mom.

   "No. We'll find a way." Mare decides, looking at me for agreement. I know it's a suicide mission, but I nod anyways because Kilorn looks broken and I'll do anything to bring back his boyish grin.

   He barely smirks as he says, "we?"

   "They're going with you." Mom says. My eyes turn to hers after nearly forgetting that she was there and lurching in my chair at her voice. "They'll both be conscripted soon. It's better this way."

   "Mom, what about-"

   "I'll be fine. You guys have to find a way out of this. You'll be killed if you get conscripted, you know it." Her words strike fear into me. She's never been one to talk about the inevitable with me, she prefers to ignore the issue until it happens or goes away.

   Kilorn shakes his head. "There's nowhere we can go. "We'd never survive the north in winter, the east is the sea, the west is more war, the south is radiated to all hell-and everywhere in between is crawling with silvers and Security."

   "So is the village. Crawling with silvers and security, and we manage to steal right under their noses and escape with our heads." Mare speaks. I can see the gears turning in her head as I stay silent and try to think of a way out of this.

   It hits me.

   "The black market trade." I mutter to myself.

   "What?"

   "The black market trade. They can get anything past Security, they can get people too." I state. Kilorn looks unconvinced but Mare is giving me a look that shows how proud she is. "It's our only chance." I plead to him.

   He looks like he wants to shake his head but smiles anyway, nodding.

   "Leave everything to us."

When you can't sell or pawn something to normal shopkeepers, you go to Will Whistle. He sweeps the streets by day, cleaning trash from the Square. And at night, he's the best smuggler in the stilts. Anything you want, Whistle can get you straight out of his old wagon. Mare met him when she was nine, and I met him a short time later when I needed medicine to make my mom better after she caught the flu. Will's small little branch of the market is a part of a much larger operation that runs through the whole country-even through Archeon.

   "Absolutely not." Will says upon Mare asking him to smuggle us away from conscription.

   In all the years we've known Will and considered him a friend, he's never said no to Mare and I. Kilorn would be laughing his ass off if he was here to see this right now. He's always loved seeing Mare fail.

   "Will, please. I know you can do it-" she pleads with him to no avail.

   He shakes his head, a gust of wind blowing his beard away from his neck. "I'm a tradesman, girls. The people I work with aren't interested in carting three teenagers around the country just so one of them can get away from the war like a coward."

   The word coward pulls at a string attached to my heart. He's right, running from conscription is cowardly, but what else are you supposed to do when your whole life and the life of your family depends on you staying hidden. But still, even with the excuse, the idea of Papa being a coward strikes my nerves in a bemusing way.

   Will must notice the distressed and desperate expressions on our faces because when he meets my eyes, the man cracks and beckons us inside with a wave of his hand. Mare thanks him hastily as we follow along to the inside of his wagon, shrouded in darkness. There's a single candle in the corner, but it doesn't do anything to provide us with eyesight.

   "Sit down and be quiet, girl. You too, Blondie." A stern voice says.

   Out of the shadows, a woman rises to her feet and comes forward into the blue light of the candle. She looks barely any older than the two of us, extremely tall with a clearly unauthorized gun strapped to her hip, which is tucked into a red sash belt. She's blonde, with fair skin, and her hair is frizzy which gives me the sense she's not from around here. Judging by the sweat shining on her skin, she's an outlaw. Just what we need. She waves us to the bench beside her and Mare and I quickly take seats, watching as she sits back down.

   "Mare Barrow, Wendy Allistair, meet Farley." Will introduces.

   "Allistair, huh?" The girl's voice speaks in the near darkness.

   "Yes." I say.

   "Huh." Her jaw tightens. "You wish to transport cargo."

   "Yes." I say. "Us and a boy-"

   She holds up a hand to cut me off, rough and calloused. "Cargo." My heart thumps in my chest and I can feel my hands begging to sweat. "And what is the destination?"

   "Somewhere safe from the Silvers. That's all." Made cuts in, tone showing that she means business as she looks at Farley in an unimpressed manner. I can tell she's intimidated by the twitch of her left eye.

   "Safety has a price, girl."

   "Everything has a price, girl. No one knows that more than us." Mare glances at me as if to ask for backup, but I can't think of anything to say so I just keep my mouth shut.

   Many moments of silence pass, hands shaking, heart thumping, muscles quivering. I can feel my mental clock ticking away; tick tick ticking as the seconds run from me and are stolen from Kilorn. After what feels like an eternity, Farley's mouth opens and she speaks with conviction.

   "The Scarlet Guard accepts, Wendy Allistair and Mare Barrow."

   It takes everything in me not to question her about what or who the Scarlet Guard is, but the excitement in me drowns it out quickly. However, I know this negotiation isn't over yet. We still don't know the price.

   "Payment is expected in full, to the equivalent of one thousands crowns."

   I can feel Mare's body go rigid beside me, a small gasp leaving her lips at the number that left Farley's lips. One thousands crowns, that's nearly impossible to find in the Stilts. We have no jobs, it would take us at least a month to steal and pawn enough stuff to get us that much money. There's no way we could get it all quick enough.

   As Mare squeaks our a repeat of Farley's price, the blonde continues to speak. "This can be paid in paper notes, tetrarch coins, or the bartering equivalent. Per item of course." Three thousand crowns. "Your cargo will be moved the day after tomorrow. You must pay then. Do you accept these terms?"

   "No!" I protest. "We need more time! This is the Stilts! How are we supposed to find three thousands crowns in two days."

   Farley shakes her head. "Do you accept the terms?"

   It's impossible. It's ludicrous. It's your only chance.

   With one look at Mare, I push myself to my feet and stick my hand out to her. "We accept the terms."

Mare and I part ways after we leave Will Whistle's wagon. She leaves to track down Kilorn and tells me to meet her at her home early the next morning, she tells me she has a plan. It's such a Barrow thing to do: devise a scheme only moments after something comes up. She always says her siblings are the smarter ones, that she's beyond unintelligent, but no idiot's mind works as fast as hers. A strategist, a thief.

   I find myself walking to one of the bars in the village, one where the owner knows me well and won't care if I join in on the fun. Felix and I have a mutual agreement, he lets me in without trouble, and I steal anything I want from his customers and give him half of the income the next day after I make a tally. Our little secret.

   The bar is also a dancing club of sorts. Obviously, clubs are something that were nearly forgotten about after the war centuries ago, but someone must've remembered them and decided to keep them around. Most young adults come here after work, sometimes there are soldiers that just got back from their service sentence and are attempting to drown their horrible memories in booze.

   When I enter through the back door that Felix always keeps open for me, I'm immediately met by the cheers of happiness that echo inside the four walls. People dance with each other in the center of the room, the lights flickering with the unfortunate lack of electricity rations. No one cares though, and they're too happy to know the difference between this and the usual light levels.

   I make my way to the bar, where a blond boy with a sharp jaw sits. He's wearing fancy clothing, something unusual for our ugly little village, and his hair seems slicked back. He's drinking a clear liquid, and he doesn't look like he's enjoying himself in the slightest. However, he's dancing a bit in his seat, a sight that looks almost like convulsions. It's extremely unattractive, but at least he's trying.

   "Hey, Felix." I greet the black haired man behind the counter. "Got any whiskey?"

   He chuckles at me, "how about a water, kid?"

   "Water's good." I sigh. The boy next to me sends me a lingering glance but his gaze turns away when I stare straight back. This happens a couple more times. "So. . ." I say, sipping a bit at my water. "Not to be a bummer but you look like you're not having fun."

   "What's your name?" He asks me at the same time as I say that sentence. We both laugh at each other, glancing away in embarrassment. I can feel my cheeks flush white, hiding my face slightly from wandering eyes.

   "It's Wendy." I say gently after my face stops feeling hot, shaking his outstretched hand. "What's yours?"

   "Silas." His voice is calming, something that immediately makes me feel at ease and reminds me of Kilorn. His eyes are soft too, just like Shade Barrow's. Comforting. "But I go by Si."

   "Well, it's nice to meet you, Silas."

   "Just Si." He corrects, chuckling deeply.

   "Okay, 'Just Si'. So, where are you from?" I know where he's from, his clothing is a dead giveaway, but it doesn't bother me and I'd rather test to see if he admits where he works with pride or with resentment. "You're clearly not from around here."

   "It's that obvious? Really?" It sounds like a whine but I cant help but laugh at the blonde boy, my mouth forming a smile.

   "Yeah. You're a horrible dancer, looked like you were convulsing. People in the Stilts aren't good at a lot of things, but dancing is a strong suit. Long days of work, fun nights of twirling." I move my finger in a circular spinning motion.

   "Yeah, I don't dance."

   "You don't say? I can teach you. Free of charge, of course." I tease him, setting my drink down on the countertop and sending Felix a subtle thumbs up. Just Si probably has multiple tetrarchs in his pockets, and I intend to get every single one of them. He seems like such a sweet guy, and I hate to steal from him, but if he works for the lords then he'll be fine. No harm done here.

   "Oh, you mean right now." I laugh at him. "Wait, you charge people?"

   "Well, no. But I suppose I can waver my completely made up fees for a cute blond in desperate need of fake dance lessons." I yank him towards me by his hand, dragging him out to the dance floor as a softer tune vibrates along the walls.

   "Cute, huh?" He smirks cockily, but then his eyes widen and his expression slips into a borderline offended one. "Wait, desperate?" I can tell he's trying to flirt with me—shamefully, a part of me is really enjoying it.

   I laugh loudly at him, guiding his hands to my waist, which he seems apprehensive to touch. His skin is cold and I fight the urge to shiver. I smile playfully at him, "don't be scared, Just Si. You look like you've never seen a girl before."

   He glares at me slightly. "I just don't want to make you uncomfortable is all."

   "I'll let you know if I'm uncomfortable." I promise. "Are you uncomfortable? Is this okay?" I place my hands on his shoulders, tingles shooting up my body. He nods at me. "So like this, and then you just kinda. . ." I start swaying my body back and forth, spinning us in a slow circle. Silas follows my lead, his face showing just how out of his comfort zone this is making him feel. I grin at him. "You're a natural!"

   His head tips back in a laugh with his eyes closed, distracting him long enough for me to quickly slip one of my hands into his back pocket, grabbing out a small bag that's heavy with money. I drop it into my own pocket with lightning speed before placing my hand back upon his shoulder.

   Slowly getting more confident in his ability, he grins. "So, why are you here? You seem too young to be in a bar."

   "So you do," I retort.

   "You're right. I am."

   "I could tell you, but I'd have to kill you." Which isn't true at all, but I would have to convince him to keep my thievery a secret, and even though he seems like a nice guy, no one's that nice.

   The constant laughter leaving his mouth is mesmerizing, rough and dark. "That's intriguing. You're the mysterious type then?"

   "No more mysterious than you. You still haven't told me what you do."

   He clears his throat, lowering his voice slightly. "I'm a servant, in Archeon. But you knew that."

   I nod unintentionally before catching myself, eyes wide as he smirks at me. He leans towards me, dipping his head down as his arm snakes around my waist, quickly dipping into my pocket to grab his money back.

   "You're a good thief." He says lowly, his icy gray eyes locked on mine. "But you might wanna be more discrete with your observation next time." He steps away, freezing cold hands leaving my hips as he smiles smugly. "This was nice, we should do it again sometime."

   Silas's hand tosses something into the air, my fingers reach out to catch it. I glance down at my palm. A tetrarch. Worth one crown.

   When I look back up, Just Si is gone.

𝑔𝑎𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝑑𝑠       𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐞𝐧

i know it took me forever to update but school and soccer just started and my grandma came to live with us so everything's a bit hectic right now. anyways, i hope you guys liked it! thanks for reading!

- gray