THE KINGS SCEPTRE

part 4

Her father never left the city as she. Their house was on the second street from the town market, it was decent looking house made from basalt stones.

Irina from across the road could see their kitchen door wide open it was also the backdoor. Her mother loved to leave it open as she cooked they usually joked the smell of her cooking alerted the meal hours to the workers passing nearby and they would take a brake to go and eat that was when she still lived in the house. since the fights started the streets became quite even business in town markets lowered, occasional passing of soldiers on streets didn't help either it kept everyone on their toes.

As she expected her mother was in the kitchen cooking, the aroma hit her the moment she set foot in the backyard, her mother was busy with pans in the stove.

"hello mom." irina greeted her.

Her mother was startled by the voice she turned and saw Irina.

"Irina." her eyes light up with joy, she went and hugged her. "come on in don't just stand there. well its been some time since we last saw you."

"yeah, been a little busy doing this and that..you know." Irina explained

"launch is nearly ready, you can stay and eat." she welcomed her.

"Is dad home? I have something to tell him." irina cut straight to the point.

Her mother saw urgency in Irina's face, her look become quickly of concern.

"everything arlight?" she asked looking bit worried.

"yeah, no big deal." she lied while shaking her head.

Her mother watched her closely, she knew Irina was hiding something but didn't want to rush her to speak up.

"your father will be home soon, let me go and get you a cup of tea as you wait." she told her with a smile.

Irina dropped herself on the coach once her mother was out of the room, irina knew that her mother saw right through her lies, but that was always how mother acted she didn't rush irina into anything until she is ready to open up.

Her father came home by noon, he had a big body despite of leaving the army years pass, his eyes were brown as irina though his looked more calm and calculative in his hand carried a leather bag. After he'd retired from the army he became a mechanic, he always ate his meals at home and now was back for eating lunch. when entered into the sitting room he found irina seated on the couch.

Irina had not visited home for nearly three month due to the training she was undergoing as an elemental at the camp to be prepared for serving the capital, before that she had graduated six month ago from an academy then went home for short holiday and then taken to the camp for start to sharpen her skill of elements. When mountainers started attacking she was one of the air elementals who was highly recommended to join the capital's army for war against them due to being successful in her training camp while being prepared for deployment that's when lord Vincent called in for favor.

"Hi dad." she greeted him with cup of tea in her hands.

"how you doing?" he asked while lowering his bag to the ground.

"fine." she answered short, then added, "am here to tell you something."

"that you've been deployed to eastern zone." he told her calmly as he removed his coat.

"you know about that?" she questioned looking him in awe, and she thought that her father was still in the dark.

"Mmh, commander told me yesterday that he was going to choose you to be in his troop." he told her before going on. "I agreed to it not that he required my permission or anything."

"That's great and for the record he wasn't going to keep me close in real fight, he just wanted me doing some heavy lifting on the supply and bombs for motor guns and other soldiers." she said with a smile.

Her father gave low hearty laugh,

"well that's the way he always did his job keeping new recruits off from the field, still I'm proud of you." he praised her, now he was on the couch opposite from her.

The praise gave irina joy, she was afraid that her father would be against it for her going to war and all that, she didn't know he was the one whom permitted her deployment in the first place without a fuss.

"I won't be going off to deployment, there is another mission I've been assigned." she informed him calmly.

Her father slowly leaned back on the coach as he looked at irina. Irina could almost hear the gears turning in his head.

"I understand your decision. Hell even me I was scared on my first mission."

"no, I ain't scared its just that lord Vincent gave me a mission of retrieving the sceptre."

The statement made her father sit upright by then her mother was coming with lunch dishes from the kitchen.

"same one lost eons ago on earth?" he asked seeking confirmation, irina shook her head in agreement. "that's insane."

"that's why I am seeking for your blessings before I leave for luck." she told them.

her mother took her husband's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze then looked back at irina.

"don't worry about us, you have our blessing." she told her with a smile.

her father let out a long sigh then scratched his forehead.

"well, what your mother said." he grumbled then went on. "Lord Vincent himself gave you the mission if we disagree it will be selfish of us."

at that irina's face beamed with joy.

"so we going to eat now or what?" her mother questioned as she looked at both of them.

"always." irina and her father replied at the same time.