Hamel stood in the sitting room, looking out the window. The anticipation in his heart was overwhelming. It was a day of great honor and privilege.

He heard Lillel's light footsteps come to a halt beside him and felt her soft hand slide into his. When he looked down into her eyes, there were tears of joy.

It was a day of joy and sadness. The children they were to adopt would be their children, and they would love them and care for them. The reason, however, was because of loss. They were coming to Hamel and Lillel because they had lost their parents to the Dusk. It was a day all expected would come, but there was great pain.

"I hear my son is thirteen. I wonder if he is taller than I am," Lillel said. A Matir always received a son to raise, while a Patir always received a daughter. "If he is rebellious, he might be a lot to handle."

"You do not stand alone, Lillel. I will be a Patir to him as well," Hamel said. His heart was bursting with pride. "Do not worry, my dear. You will be a wonderful Matir to him. He will grow to be a man of honor from your teaching. Besides, I have heard great things about this young man."

He placed his hands on her swollen belly. She was due in less than a month. It was a lot to take on the birth of a child as well as a newly adopted son, but Lillel would manage. He felt his face break out into a large grin, and his heart burst with pride, knowing his wife would succeed at such a venture.

The gate squeaked open and drew Hamel's eyes back to the front walkway. "I told you to oil that gate, Hamel," Lillel said. Hamel could hear the smile in her voice.

"I like knowing when people are arriving," he replied, also with a smile.

Three people approached the door. The Matir's son always came first when children were adopted. Hamel's new daughter would come soon after.

The two adults walked in front, blocking Hamel and Lillel's view of the boy coming up behind them. They came to the door and, in line with tradition, stepped aside and allowed the boy to enter on his own.

Hamel turned and walked to the back of the room. It was proper to give Lillel the chance to meet her new son without distraction. It was a moment to remember, and while he would watch intently to share in her joy, he would not intrude.

The boy came around the corner and stood, facing Lillel. He bowed low to her, bending his knees, then stood up straight while she bowed her head, just at the neck. Lillel was not a tall woman, and the boy towered over her.

"Welcome, my child; I am Matir Eatal Lillel," Lillel said. Hamel could see she was nearly shaking with joy, but the formality was necessary.

"Thank you, Matir; I am a boy without a parent," the young man said, his voice cracking with emotion.

Lillel approached the boy and knelt down on one knee. She looked tiny before the young man. Hamel noticed the boy appeared to be at the end of a major growth spurt. "You are not without a parent, my son," Lillel said. Hamel had never heard her voice shake with such nervousness. There were few privileges greater than the adoption of a child. "I am your Matir, and I love you. I am tied to you and you to me. We are one. We are honored family."

The boy bowed again before his Matir and when he spoke, his voice shook as well. "I believe you, my Matir. I am not alone. You are my Matir. I commit to you to follow you to the ends of the earth and back."

Lillel opened her mouth but closed it again. She took a deep breath but was overcome by emotion. She dropped her chin down onto her chest and then laughed. "Forgive me, my son. I am just so honored to take you in that I am losing control of my speech."

The boy nodded, but Hamel noticed the sides of his mouth curl upwards. He reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "It is okay, my Matir. I am honored too. When I heard I was being adopted by Matir Lillel, I could not believe I could be honored so."

Hamel's face broke out into a grin. The young man was already a man of honor.

Lillel took another breath before she continued. "Thank you, young man." The adoption ceremony was a beautiful moment in a family's life. Rarely did it ever happen perfectly according to tradition. She continued on as best she could. "And I commit to you, my son, to lead you faithfully, and I will give my life to get you to the ends of the earth and back again. As a token of faithfulness to you, I give you my name, Eatal. It will be yours forever and a seal of my promise to you."

The boy smiled. It was a moment of great honor to receive a family name. "If this is true, will you give me my Matir's kiss?"

He bent his head down. From her kneeling position, he was too tall even with his head bent. He smiled, and Lillel laughed. He bent down low at the waist for her to give him his Matir's kiss on his forehead, the kiss of blessing.

Once the blessing was given, she rose to her feet and asked, "Who are you, my son?"

The boy stood straight with a proud smile on his face and said, "I am Eatal Lemmel, son of Matir Eatal Lillel."

The ceremony was complete. Lillel embraced her new son. The difficult days still lay ahead as they learned to be one, but this day was a day of joy.

There was the sound of the door opening again, and Hamel realized his daughter had arrived. His stomach lurched, and he broke into a sweat. He had faced enemies and even Beasts and risen up victorious, but even on the battlefield, he had never felt so weak. He was about to meet his new daughter.

He moved to the center of the room. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Lillel and Lemmel stepped off to the side. They would give him his space but share in his joy.

The young lady stepped around the corner. She was only nine years old and quite tiny for her age. Hamel stared in awe. She was a beautiful young girl who stood straight and confident. He could, however, see the fear in her eyes. Her life had just been turned upside down in the loss of her parents. She was about to be adopted into a family, not even meeting her new Patir until that moment. It was often the case that even the two adopted children would not have met prior to the moment of adoption.

While her face betrayed fear, he could also see a strong intellect. Her eyes bore into him, and he felt for a moment that she could look into his very soul. She would grow to be a woman of great honor. Perhaps even an Honored Matir one day.

She bowed before him, bending her knees and then stood up. He returned the gesture with a slight bow of his head.

"Welcome, my child, I am Patir Rezin Hamel," Hamel said. He shook with joy and felt tears forming in his eyes.

"Thank you, Patir," she replied. "I am a girl without a parent."

Hamel approached the girl and knelt down on one knee before her. "You are not without a parent, my daughter. I am your Patir, and I love you. I am tied to you and you to me. We are one. We are honored family."

The girl bowed low again before Hamel and spoke. While she had managed to keep her voice steady until that point, he could hear a shake in her voice as she said, "I believe you, my Patir. I am not alone. You are my Patir. I commit to you to follow you to the ends of the earth and back."

Hamel smiled. The family bond was precious. "And I commit to you, my daughter, to lead you faithfully, and I will give my life to get you to the ends of the earth and back again. As a token of my faithfulness to you, I give you my name, Rezin. It will be yours forever and a seal of my promise to you."

The girl blushed and lowered her eyes for a moment before catching herself. The ceremony was difficult to get quite right.

"If this is true, will you give me my Patir's kiss?" She leaned forward, and Hamel kissed her on the forehead.

Hamel was overcome with joy. The kiss of blessing was an honor to give. He leaned back and asked, "Who are you, my daughter?"

The little girl stood proudly and said with a big smile on her face, "I am Rezin Karotel, daughter of Patir Rezin Hamel."

* * *

Hamel awoke with a start. His dreams were often troubling for him.

It had been twenty years since they had adopted Karotel and Lemmel. It had been such a wonderful time and filled with so many joys and challenges. Now, twenty years later, Lillel and Lemmel were dead; Karotel had proclaimed Hamel to be a man without honor; and his Mariel had rejected him as her Patir. Even his name, Rezin, the very name he had given to each of his adopted children had been taken from him. He shivered at the memory.

He pulled himself to his feet. Most mornings, he awoke feeling sore, but the hard ground of the Council Chambers seemed to have added to the aches.

He opened the door to the hallway just enough to see through the windows that the sun had not yet risen. He wasn't sure it would be safe to go outside until the sun was up in case there were night predators. He closed the door again and added a bit more wood to the fire, stirring it to bring it back to life.

Once the fire had grown enough to see clearly in the room, he stretched and began a time of exercise and training. It felt good to do his morning routine.

After a good hour, he stretched each of his muscles. His muscles felt tired and sore, but he always enjoyed the feeling after exercise. What he was not prepared for, however, was the smell. He rarely allowed himself to get to such a point. It was so bad that he wasn't sure he even wanted to be around himself.

Hamel picked up his waterskin and made his way outside. The early morning air was dry and cool. The sun had come up, and there were no signs of predators, so he made his way to the fountain. He took the time to refresh himself, clean up, and top up his water before wandering over to check on the horses.

The five horses were all safe and sound. He led the two horses that had pulled the cart out and hooked them up. He needed the cart closer to the Council Chambers, and once the cart was moved, he released them in the area around the fountain. He then led the other three horses out and released them as well. The animals grazed and drank deeply from the pond while he set to work.

The wagon turned out to be an unexpected benefit. He would be able to make use of nearly all of it. He started by carrying the sacks of salt into the Chambers, setting them down just inside the doorway to the left. There were four layers of sixteen sacks. It would be far more than enough.

He focused on one layer at a time and carried all sixteen sacks inside before starting into the second layer. By the end of the second layer, his legs, arms, and shoulders felt like jelly, and his back ached. He pushed himself and finished off the third layer before taking a seat down by the water.

The horses themselves were tame and had not gone far. They seemed content to remain by the water and continued to eat and nibble on the vegetation. He still had not yet figured out what he would do with the extra horses. It would not do to wander into Olmos, dressed as a man of authority, leading four horses, two of which were cart horses without a cart. He suspected showing up in such a manner would raise many questions.

He allowed himself to doze off for a few moments, soaking in the warmth of the sun which had crept up over the buildings and shone down on the small oasis. When he awoke, he returned to the cart. There were sixteen bags left, one full layer. Hamel wrapped his arms around the first of the sixteen, but the weight was wrong.

Hamel shifted the bag and set it on the tail of the cart to examine it. He leaned in and took a sniff. The smell was familiar. It seemed to have a refreshing scent. The smell gave him an overwhelming sense of thirst. Part of him wanted to rip open the sack and eat whatever was contained inside.

He used his knife to cut open a corner of the sack. It had been sewn shut, much like the sacks of salt had been and, unless someone tried to pick it up, it would appear to be salt.

The substance inside was a light brown powder. He felt the urge to taste it but shook off the thought. It would be ridiculous to eat something when he didn't know what it was.

He picked up the sack and carried it into the Council Chambers, careful not to spill the sack or even breath in the powder. The other fifteen sacks were likewise filled with the same powder. He set all sixteen aside, away from the salt. He wanted to save the powder for closer examination when he had more time and others to help him.

Hamel then returned to the cart and set to work on disassembling it. It was hard work as the cart was well built, but he wanted to make use of the wood. Most traders from Ridge carried some weapons, tools, and a few small parts, just in case something broke along the way, and he was pleased to see Olmosite traders did the same. The tools came in handy as he pulled piece after piece off the cart.

When he had finished disassembling the cart, it was nearing the supper hour. He wandered around and collected the horses, returning them to the stable. The traders had some oats in their cart, but he saved it for a later time. They had moved freely for the day and eaten their fill. He secured them within their individual stalls and closed up the building before returning to the courtyard.

He grabbed a few apples from the trees to give him a bit of energy before setting back to work. He wanted all the pieces of the cart inside the Chambers before nightfall.

When he had finished carrying all the parts from the cart into the Inner Chambers, he closed the door and took a look around the entire building, checking each and every room. The Council Chambers were quite large and built to allow people to move from one room to the next, flowing throughout the building. Only the Inner Council Chambers, the room in which the Council would meet, had only one door, although the Inner Chambers in the Capital had a small door built behind the Honored Matir or Patir's seat to offer the Council members a way of escape in an emergency. He suspected the Benjelton Council Chambers had a similar exit.

He was able to move through most of the building without too much trouble. The structure was surprisingly solid, considering the years of neglect. Only one room in the entire building appeared to be anything but structurally sound. The windows around the outside of the building gave a great deal of light for his exploration.

When he had finished his exploration of the building, he returned to the Inner Chambers and lit a fire before closing the door. There were small windows at the top of the room to let the smoke escape, but they did not offer much light. He took the opportunity to check on the door behind the Honored seat and, sure enough, it was not only there, but simple to open. It led into a hallway, opening behind a ripped tapestry. He stepped back inside and closed the door behind him.

It was time to think matters through and lay out his plan. He took some food and water and climbed into one of the top Council seats. From his position high above the area, he could see all his supplies at once.

The cart had provided a great deal of wood and even some extra rope and more, which would all prove to be helpful. He wished to set up traps throughout the building. He needed to use the materials well and efficiently.

As both a General and as the Honored Patir of the nation, he had developed the skill of looking over his list of resources and quickly laying out a plan to make efficient use of everything available to him. He stared at the materials in the flickering light of the fire and mentally walked through each room of the building, laying out traps, along with how he would make use of them.

He wasn't entirely sure he would need such a thing, but he wished to be prepared. If he ran into danger and could return to the Council Chambers, it would be good to know he would be ready.

By the time he had laid out his plan, mentally making use of every piece he could, the sun had set. Hamel committed the plans for each trap to memory and settled down for the night. The next day would be busy. He hoped he could complete his tasks and be on his way the day after that.

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