“Black pine on the left,” I remind him as the village disappears behind us, “keep your eyes peeled.”
Golem nods and keeps his gaze steady to the left of us. We walk for what seems like ages, the forest looming tall around us in every direction. We stop once for a quick drink of water and press on, the gloomy trees all melding together and looking as insignificant as the next.
After almost a full turn of the sun into our walk, something flashes from the side of the road that catches our eyes. It’s a small reflection sparkling a ways away, the flash catching the right angle of the missing sun above and beckoning us towards it. I look at Golem and point in the direction of the glint, my heart picking up in speed as the two of us run down the road to investigate.
The trunk of the reflecting pine is definitely black, though it’s hidden behind a few larger pines that stand in their normal brown and green. This one looks polished, as if the bark is painted with a near-black glaze that reflects in the daylight. It isn’t anything extraordinary, but it is the most unique looking thing in the woods that we’ve seen all morning.
I move around the pine and look for any sort of path that will lead to the mills.
“Here, Golem,” I spot a flat inlet in the grass, the lush green trampled on from heavy boots. It’s wide enough for a single person to follow along but doesn’t look well used, surely not used enough for the number of feet that should be traveling to work every day.
“You ready?” I ask without hesitation.
Golem nods, his features just as determined as mine. I grin at the look on his face and walk down the path of trampled grass straight into the gloomy woods beyond.
The path continues for a while, leading us deep into the forest as the trees become so thick that I nearly consider asking Golem for his lantern. It takes some time for my eyes to adjust to the moody grey but we push on, every now and then relying on a small opening in the pines that allows for a beam of sunlight to push through.
It’s curious that this is supposedly a standard walk for the patrons of Fumagalli who go to work every day, yet they haven’t thought to set up torches or crates of fire to lead them down the path? What are they trying to hide? Why not just-
“-Do you hear that, Golem?”
My eyes widen in surprise as the sound of running water flows from the path ahead. Golem nods and looks over my shoulder, his eyes narrowing in surprised suspicion as well.
“Maybe there really is something out here,” I whisper, “let’s take this slow and quietly.”
Our movements are near mute as we walk slowly down the path. The sound of the running water becomes louder as we continue on, the grass path disappearing completely once the trees open up to a steady stream ahead.
I crouch behind a large pine and look towards the gushing blue. It’s a powerful stream, not wide in diameter but definitely fast in its flow. I let my gaze follow along the bank before it stops on a large stone building in the distance, my eyes going wide at the sight.
Ancients,the water mill is massive. It’s moving in quick circles as it catches the power of the stream and sends it cascading in a fall below.
“That makes no sense,” I stand up and shake my head to Golem, “it’s real.”
“Of course it’s real, Alexis,” Keane’s proud voice responds.
He’s watching me from his stance next to the stream, his eyes dancing with playfulness as he grins, “did you think we were lying?”
I push away the curiosity that wants to know where Keane came from and why I didn’t spot him earlier, then glance again to the water mill at the top of the stream. There’s a second building standing tall behind the first, that one even larger and looking like it can store hundreds of barrels.
My eyes roam back to the Prince standing just as proudly in front of me, his posture owning the powerful mills at his back as his shoulders straighten with pride with the stream gushing behind him. He’s wearing a deep green tunic that nearly mimics the colors of the forest around us, his brown hair slightly swept to the side from the breeze and yet tasseled to perfection. He takes a step forward and watches me with intensity, everything about his presence just as proud that I found this place on my own.
“Warrior,” he smirks.
“No,Keane.”
“Oh yes, Alexis,” he nods, taking another step forward, “while all of your friends go about their day in contentment, you seek out the unknown. While they remain happy to continue their normal routine, you throw that to the fire and find something new to captivate you. Even when I give you free reign to roam a place of simplicity, one that you’re familiar with,you barely make it around the second floor before letting the thrill of a daring adventure take over.”
I shake my head even as I feel his words tug against my heart.
“I’m just a curious person, Keane.”
The Prince laughs, “curiosity leads those from Knowledge to libraries and old boys’ clubs where they can either read or talk about the ideas that interest them. It never leads them todo.”
“Discussing ideas is just as import-wait… were you locating me? In the library?”
“No,” he replies, brown eyes still holding mine, “I didn’t need to. From the moment you told me about the nature of your travels for my father, I’ve made sure that there will never be a time that you enter a library on my lands without my knowledge.”
Ancients.
