Jaeden grunted slightly, his gaze locked with the Journeyman for a moment before the arrow flew. He soon got that feeling as if his breath had been stolen from him. His life feeding the divine bow was more taxing than anything he had encountered. His knee gave out on him as he fell to a three point stance for a moment, his other gripping Woodland Wrath for support as it leaned up against him. He spent the next time just trying to remember how to breath properly as his gaze remained fixed on the degrading form of the Jouneyman, the body smoldering as its flesh became ash.
A small sweat had formed over his brow as Caiyha’s voice began to ring inside of his head. His brow soon rested along shaft of the bow as he sucked in deep breaths as he waited for a moment for the feeling of extreme fatigue began to lessen at a slow pace. It made him wonder if this is what Olevar felt every time Woodland Wrath was damaged under while he possessed it. He wondered if everyone felt this type of drain over a two year span, only so slightly over those two years that they couldn’t even notice.
Finally Jaeden found enough energy to push himself off the ground, standing there still for a moment as he found tried to make sure he had balance enough to walk. With feet that dragged along the ground slightly, Jaeden began to approach, cautiously still, towards the ashes of the Journeyman. He reached into his belt pouch, pulling out a small leather sack. Opening it up, Jaeden dumped the mizas that had rested into the belt pouch proper before slowly lowering himself to the ground. Jaeden soon began collecting the ashes as Caiyha had suggested, grabbing handfuls as carefully as he could and dumping them into the pouch. When he had collected all he could, he sealed it up, once again slipping the sack into his belt pouch.
“Do I even sell this?” Jaeden thought to himself as he slowly stood back up.
It had taken him longer than he would have liked to return back to Olevar’s camp. Part of it may have been from effects Woodland Wrath had on him, but most of it was the feeling that it was now over. He had done what he had set out to do when he found Olevar dead, and now that it was over, he had final goodbyes to say to the man who was essentially the only family he had had left in the world. And so, as Jaeden stumbled into the clearing, seeing the still freshly dug up earth that was Olevar’s grave, he found that twinge of emotional pain once again entering him. Jaeden slowly slid Woodland Wrath over his shoulder, letting the shaft of it rest along his back as small vines began growing out from the shaft, wrapping over the front of him and securing the divine bow to his body.
“It’s over. It’s done Olevar.” Jaeden said, his voice at the edge of breaking as he lowered his head.
“I know it’s unlikely that such isn’t likely what you wanted, but it’s something I had to do.”Jaeden let out a shaky sigh.
“You took me in when everything else had been taken away from me, when everyone else either turned me away or tried to take my very freedom or life.” Jaeden continued, his gaze moving back and forth over the grave.
“You taught me everything I know, every lesson I would need to survive in the wilds. You taught me how to track, hunt, build shelter, trap and how to fight. I’m not sure what you saw in a skinny little boy like me, but I’m thankful that you did. I thank you for everything Olevar. My teacher, my mentor, my friend.” There was a long pause then as Jaeden dragged the back of his hand over his eyes, wiping away some tears that had began to well up.
“My father. Whatever it is you had seen in me, I only hope I can live up to that expectation in the future to come, but I will need my time first, and like you, I must have no attachments. My family was taken from me and now you were too. People around me die. If I‘ve learned nothing else from today, it is that.”“So this is goodbye, I hope you find you next life as good, if not better, as the one that was just taken from you.” Jaeden finally said, lowering himself to the ground and placing his hand along the earth. He closed his eyes, finally let out one last silent prayer, closing his eyes. He then paused for a moment, his eyes shooting open as he felt a vibration along the ground. His hand slowly moved back, his print being left behind as he soon saw the loose dirt shaking, felt the ground almost moving beneath his feet. He slowly stood as he began to see the earth of Olevar’s grave breaking apart, causing him to take a few steps back. Jaeden’s eyes widened seeing that first sign of green breaking through the ground. That tiny sprout, however, didn’t end growing there. Loud echoes of straining wood and rumbling earth filled Jaeden’s ears as the plant soon grew into a small tree. Further still it grow as the trunk grew wider, the bark thicker. It grew taller, soon reaching fifteen feet as it continued to reach skyward, branches beginning to grow out in all directions, leaves and flowers growing out to form a thick canopy overhead. Further still it grew, its height seeming to not want to stop, but it eventually did as its top finally reached close to fifty feet in height, the trunk at its base nearly seven feet wide. The ground around it began to form lush grass and wild flowers, giving the area a sense of peace and serenity to it, a calming feature. It grew tall and strong, and in the formations of its bark, Jaeden stared in awe at Olevar’s visage somehow staring back at him.
All Jaeden could manage, now staring at the mighty tree Caiyha had formed from his mentor’s body, was a gasp of awe as he fell to his knees. Looking up to the branches, he saw the flowers begin to form various fruits, nuts and berries along it’s stems, their branches drooping and lowering almost instinctively as animals began to gather around it, eating the fruits it offered. The tree formed from Olevar’s body seemed it was now providing for the forest, after it had provided for him for so many years. Jaeden dropped to his knees, suddenly feeling a need to linger. As this feeling only began to compound, an apple began to grow from a branch Jaeden’s head. Only a second passed before it fell from its stem, heading strait down before bouncing off the top of Jaeden’s head.
“Ow.” Jaeden said, flinching for a moment over the pain, his hand instinctively raising to rub at the sting.
He slowly looked down at the red apple than now laid at his feet before he finally gazed up back to the tree, at the image Jaeden saw in the tree’s bark.
“Yeah,” Jaeden said finally, giving a nod and looking to the ground,
“I get it.”With a final exhale, Jaeden slowly began to turn, falling silent as he made his away from the tree. There would be times when he would return, but today, with what he had just lost, he would have to move on. As blissful as the tree was, Jaeden would have only fallen into despair staying, more than he already was. So Jaeden did as he had been instructed, Olevar’s influence and guidance still lingering from the tree formed from his very body, and he began to leave. A silent thanks was given to both Caiyha and her children for the final symbol of respect they had paid to the man who had, for so long, lived his life by their grace and philosophy. Jaeden’s life had once again been changed by tragedy, he only wondered whether that tragedy would lead to something more in the end, like it had when he met Olevar for the first time.
![[Featured thread]](./images/medals/Featured-Thread.gif "[Featured thread]")
