The Ring Thief - Chapter 11 - Back Again

 One moment, Han was standing in the woods. The next, his skin was being shredded to ribbons by an eldritch forest horror. Then, there was darkness: a black nothingness that blinded his eyes and deafened his mind - paralyzing him to a numb slumber. Nothing, not even the pain of his mortal wounds bothered him. But as quickly as that feeling…or lack of feeling began, it vanished - replaced by a memory. The sweet scent of fresh-baked crems, jungle air, and waterfalls crawled through his open window and filled his empty stomach. Smacking his lips and rubbing his eyes, Han looked up to see several faded painted stars coating a mahogany ceiling that he and his mother had created years ago during the summer solstice - in his childhood bedroom.

"Boys! Breakfast!" Ara, his mother, said from the living room. Quickly recognizing the sweet aroma of his favorite dessert and breakfast treats, Han erupted from his bed, throwing blankets and pillows aside before making his way downstairs. His mother was a middle-aged Kandan woman, clothed in a soft blue cloth robe. In her padded arms was a steaming plate of hot crems, which she added to the large redwood table full of plates piled with sausages, pancakes, and jugs of milk and fruit juice. Already seated was Jun, his father, who was dressed in his standard red robes, traditional farming elite attire. Both he and his mother were young, but the hints of crows feet and the shadows of wrinkles peaked over their rich caramel skin. However, their beaming smiles shattered those aging signs as soon as they saw Han and his younger brother, Tehn arrive at the table..

“Well I think that’s a record, Jun, wouldn’t you say?” his mother said to her husband as she sat down.

Ku laughed, “Well they gotta be fast if they expect to beat me to the crems!” he patted Goh’s head of brown, messy hair and smiled. When Han sat beside his mother, he looked over the mountain of food and felt drool threatening to leave his mouth. 

“Well, dig in now. You’re gonna need a full belly if you expect to help your father and Han in the field today,” Ara said, clapping her hands together like she was initiating a race.

Tehn, whose face was already stuffed with a pancake, nearly choked at the thought of work. “W-what?” he said, gulping down a massive piece.

Ku chuckled, “What? You’re of age now. You’re going to have to earn your keep around here somehow,” he said. 

Han’s hand shot for a honey-glazed crem stuffed with a fruity pink cream. Without hesitation, he slammed the treat into his mouth. His tongue watered beneath the sweet melody of flavors.

"Han can show you how to reap. How’s that sound?” Ku said.

Shaking his head, almost pouting, Tehn reached for another treat. His parents, watching as it spilled from his face, couldn't help but laugh at the sight.

"Well, I suppose that can wait till after," Ku said, digging his fork into a pair of sausages. 

Looking up for a brief moment, Han couldn't help but grin. Those times, the simple ones filled with family and food and uncaring. Those were the ones he'd always remember. Even though he knew it was a dream he was just observing, he felt it was his new reality. One he'd rather not leave for the one his body inhabited now.

Or maybe this was heaven.

Looking over his family, he turned to his brother, Goh, who'd all but glazed his face in a thick wall of honey syrup and spit. It was a gross sight. But to see his family and his brother so happy… It was almost too much for him to bear.

For a moment, Han pretended to ignore the rising heat coming from the windows and the dark-clad armored soldiers who created them. He envied the childish ignorance that saved those moments. Nothing was wrong. Their fields were ripe with dozens of rows of wheat, their cows were bloated and fat, nearly toppling over their ankles from their own gluttony. Everything was perfect. That is, until it became impossible to ignore the men of metal and fire who burst into their home, breaking away the freshly remodeled interior and shattering their family history - tarnishing the few portraits they had with cinder. Ku, jumping for his sword, was succinctly shot through the back with a serrated arrow by a man dressed head to toe in iron armor. A singular red spot - the emblem of the Kandan imperials - was painted on his left breastplate. 

"Take them!" He shouted, his voice booming across the room. Several other faceless figures rushed into the dining room with drawn swords and iron shackles in hand. 

"Dad!" Han shouted as his father fell to the ground in a puddle of blood and spilled food. Jumping out of her seat, Ara raised a hand towards a pair of soldiers quickly approaching them and chanted a phrase in aqua. Droplets of water sprouted from the palms of her hand and quickly morphed into a giant liquid barrier that connected to the home’s walls and ceiling, momentarily stopping the soldiers - and whatever ignis magic they might dare summon.

"Run!" Ara shouted at Han and Tehn, then pushed the wall forward - drenching the soldiers, who, seemingly unaffected, exchanged confused glances before raising their swords towards the woman. To their misfortune, however, Ara uttered the phrase, “Fris,” and the lingering liquid condensed into ice, freezing and shattering them into piles of blood and snow.

The leader who had shot Ku watched, amused as his soldiers crumbled into powder. Then, eyeing Tehn, he sprinted forward - igniting his blade with a flame spell that boiled away any water or ice soaking the floor. Grinning with rows of dirty, plagued teeth, the soldier swept his blade down at Tehn. 

"Get away from him!" Ara shouted, summoning a whip of water that snapped towards the soldier, biting into his arm and freezing it and his sword in place. Grunting, the assailant grabbed a chain from his side - wreathed in a tightening curse - and shot it toward Ara. The enchanted chains whipped towards her like snakes, and wrapped against her form tightly, squeezing the air out of her lungs until she lay on the ground, unconscious.

Crying, Tehn ran to his mother while Han stood, frozen as even more soldiers poured into the house, caking the walls in flames with their magic and torches as they entered. 

Tehn sobbed over Ara’s limp, hitting his hands against her iron chains until the skin of his knuckles broke and bled.

"Damn mage," the man grunted as his sword finally melted away the ice incapacitating his arm. Then, he shot another volley of chains at Tehn. 

Han’s eyes were nearly blinded from the tears falling down his face. Though every instinct in his body told him to help his family, his fear forced him to turn and run through their home’s backyard door, tears and spit and snot flying from his face as he tried to process what had just happened.

Dodging past the various pots and fences that outlined their backyard, Han sprinted to the fields where he quickly witnessed flames igniting the horizon. The village in the distance, and the homes of their neighbors, were reduced to pyres of flame.

Sprinting as fast as his legs would carry him, he escaped into the jungle. He ran until his feet were so covered in lacerations, mud, and blood that he could no longer see his own flesh. Then he ran further, until he lost all feeling, only stopping when his memories faded to black.

But, as the vision of his past self began to fade into nothing, he could feel his own eyes sting back to life. Before he knew it, Han found himself lying on a couch, facing the ceiling of a strange building he didn’t recognize. Turning his head, he noticed a large fireplace. And though his vision was still blurry, he recognized Taenith and Grizzel. There were two others as well, but he didn’t know them. Coughing, Han groaned and placed a hand on his chest - still sore from his wounds. His mouth nearly dropped when he noticed there were no longer any gashes across his body. In fact, there were no markings at all to suggest he’d been attacked in the first place. But this amazement was short-lived. Before he could even force out a word for his friends, he felt a blistering heat scrape against his flesh. In seconds, he was flying through the air with his couch. When he hit the ground, he felt its weight fall upon him. He winced at the pain, but relished in the protection it gave from whatever explosion had occurred.