I reincarnated in game

54 Answering the Summons

Hugh extended his arm and placed it around Judi’s shoulders and gave her a comforting hug.  “I am here for you … you know that.” 

Kenneth looked up at Judi and said, earnestly, “Me too!”

“Whatever your decision is, we will support you.  We will stand by you,” Hugh promised.

“Thank you, both,” Judi said softly.

Judi took a few deep breaths and tried to compose herself.  She began to relate her story.  “Laura had been orphaned when she was very young.  She had grown up in the streets fighting and stealing to survive.  One day, my mother was passing and saw her, crumpled and bleeding, in the mouth of an alley; her clothes in tatters.  She had obviously been beaten very badly.  She went over and could see that urgent medical attention was needed if Laura was to survive so she quickly arranged to have her brought home; the doctor was summoned to come and attend to her.  It took a while, but eventually Laura got over her wounds and told us about growing up without any family.  Mother immediately adopted her into our family.  She and I became inseparable; she was the younger sister I never had.  Unlike me, she was quite shy.  She followed me everywhere; she was my little shadow.   She even followed me when I suggested that we go hunting in the forbidden forest.”  Judi paused.  Hugh and Kenneth could see tears in her eyes as she recalled her past.  They remained quiet and listened.

“After I had shot the arrow at the source of the growls and ended up releasing the dark energy which killed Laura, I was numb with disbelief.  I went to where her body had disintegrated and I cried until I could weep no more.  I couldn’t just leave whatever remained of her there to blow away in the wind.  I tore off a piece of my cloak and gathered up the ground and anything that might be her ashes and tied it up tightly in the cloth.  There wasn’t much to gather … but whatever there was, it was from the last place where she had stood.”  She paused for a breath.

“I needed to get something to put Laura’s remains in so I went back home.  I went through the back because I didn’t want to be seen.  I went to my room and got a small ceramic jewelry box and dumped the contents out in a drawer.  It was one that Laura had given to me for one of my birthdays.  It had always been a favourite of mine and reminded me of her.  I tucked it in my belt.

“I knew that I wouldn’t be able to live with myself and my guilt much less the condemnation from my mother and everyone else.  I had made up my mind to exile myself to fourth level.  I grabbed a piece of paper and left a note for my mother saying there had been a terrible accident … that Laura was dead.  I told her that I couldn’t live there anymore because of my shame and the pain that I knew Laura’s death would bring to her.  I told her that I would bury Laura’s remains under the tree in the centre of the cemetery and then would be leaving Cowson forever.  I left the note on my pillow where I knew she would find it.”

“I managed to leave again without encountering anybody.  I went to the cemetery and headed for the large tree.  Laura and I used to come and sit under that tree whenever we came to visit the graves of our departed family.  I found a shady spot and started digging a small grave with my knife.  When it was large enough, I carefully poured the ashes and dust into the jewelry box and tied it securely with a string pulled from the cloth I had carried the ashes in.  I buried everything in that little grave.  I found a large branch which had fallen from the tree.  I cut off a piece from it then split it in half.  On the smooth side of one half, I carved one word … ‘Laura’.  I sharpened one end of the other piece and tied the two together to make a small marker for her grave.”     

“I went straight from the cemetery to the airship station and purchased a ticket to Fourth Level.  I didn’t envision returning to Third Level so stashed my ID papers behind a garbage can and boarded the boat.  I did my best to remain isolated from people while I wandered … that is what earned me the title of ‘The Wanderer’.  I never settled down to any degree until I came to Zerrot.  The people accepted me for who I was and didn’t try to intrude into my life … that is, until Hugh came along.  Ever since that happened, my life has been different.”

While she had been recounting her story, Judi had absentmindedly been twisting the end of her cloak in her hands; it was obvious that it was very stressful for her to be reliving her past.

“The reason why I am so hesitant about reconnecting with my mother is that with Laura being dead and me leaving, she was left with no one.  I know how she would have reacted and don’t know whether she would ever be able to forgive me; first for robbing her of Laura and then disappearing myself, never getting back in touch with her to let her know if I was dead or alive.  That would have added fuel to her anxieties.  Now, I don’t know if she can ever forgive me for what I have done; what I did to her.”

Judi fell silent; lost in her thoughts, her grief and the thoughts of facing her mother.  “I don’t even know if I can forgive myself …”

Hugh sensed that Judi had finished her story and spoke softly in her ear.  “You said the message you got was from your mother.  She must have heard of your return and is reaching out to you.  If she wants to see you, that’s a good sign.  She probably misses you as much as you miss her and Laura.”    

“Perhaps,” Judi reluctantly agreed. 

“Are you going to go?” asked Kenneth who had been following the story all along and was hoping that it would have happy ending.

“Yes, I will go,” she said with a sigh.  “With the two of you to support me and stand with me, I just might be able to manage it.”  She gave them both a smile.

“So when do you want to leave?  How far is it?  How do we get there?” Kenneth asked with enthusiasm.

“Hold on there, Kenneth,” Hugh said with a smile.  “We have to let Judi decide when she is ready to leave, and let her do it in her own time.”

It was Judi’s turn to smile.  “You are right, Kenneth.  I do need to do this.  I need to confront my past.”  She stood up.  Looking at both of them, she said, “We will leave tomorrow morning just after breakfast.  We will ask Shalana to make us a lunch that we can eat on the road because we won’t reach Riverlight until almost supper time.  We can travel light; just take a few changes of clothes.  I am sure Aywin won’t mind us leaving the most of our stuff here.  I will go and ask him now, and speak to Shalana as well.”  She took a deep breath. 

Hugh stood.  “Are you sure you are ready?”

Judi closed her eyes, and then said, “Yes.  I am.” 

The next morning the trio set out for Riverlight.  Although she was still apprehensive about what lay ahead, it felt good to finally be taking steps to face her past.  She had her friends to stand with her and she did miss her mother. 

The weather was beautiful.   They walked along enjoying the scenery.  They stopped to have their lunch on the bank of a river about half way to their destination.  Judi pointed out that this was the same river that flowed through Riverlight.  The rest of their journey would follow the river straight into the city. 

Towards late afternoon, Hugh, Judi and Kenneth reached the gates of the city at the outskirts.  Judi directed them along the streets.  “My mother stays at the castle.  We will have to go there to see her.” 

Kenneth was excited at the prospect of visiting a real castle.  Hugh figured that Judi’s mother was probably involved with the castle administration or perhaps was one of the ladies in the queen’s entourage … Judi had never said what her mother did.

When they reached the castle gates, Judi spoke to the guard simply asking him to tell her mother that she was here to see her.  The guard recognized her and signaled to a young page to escort Judi and her party to her mother.

They followed their escort through the halls, past several doors, to a room where two guards stood on duty.  The guards nodded as the page led the trio to the doors and then pushed them open.  Inside there was a large room with a fireplace; bookshelves lined the walls.  Light from the large windows streamed into the room, making the whole place warm and inviting.  There was plenty of comfortable seating throughout the room as well as a small table in the middle for intimate conversations.  There was only one person in the room.

Their escort strode up to the occupant, and then turned to face the three friends.  He cleared his throat and with a sweeping motion of his hand, announced, “May I present her Majesty, Queen Titania, Monarch of the Elves, Sovereign Ruler of Cowson; honoured Head of State and benefactress of the citizens.”  He completed a short bow.

The woman before them was tall and regal looking.  Her dark, wavy hair hung well below her shoulders.  Her sapphire blue eyes were complemented by the soft blue of the gown she was wearing.  Her small frame was well toned, and proportionate to her height.

Hugh and Kenneth were surprised that they had been led into an audience with the Queen of Elves.  They recovered from the unexpected shock of the introduction and bowed low before Her Highness. 

Judi bowed her head slightly and said, “Hello, Mother.”