The Core

It felt good to have a knife in her hand again and it felt even better to get all of the frustration out. Lark threw her knife with such deadly accuracy; she was as good as Andor when it came to hunting. She cleaned her knife off on her pants as she and Taylon made their way back to their home.

Lark had picked up on throwing knives rather quickly when Zorac had decided to teach her. She had always admired his ability to wield a knife better than anyone she had ever heard off. No one ever saw the blade coming until it was too late. On many occasions, she would wait in his room and touch the cold metal simply because she liked how they felt. Soon enough, he taught her everything he knew as long as she kept it a secret, which was easy enough for her.

Lark didn’t understand many things about Zorac but, there was one thing she did understand. She understood why it was so easy to kill, especially with a knife. It was simple to let the blade fly through the air, make contact and then kill. When she was hunting, her mind went blank. Perhaps that happened to Zorac, he didn’t even see the pain people felt. He just saw the knife and that was the only way it was bearable. Or maybe, just maybe, he liked it.

Taylon heaved their bags down underneath a tree and tied them up tight. He pulled himself up the tree, glancing down at Lark. Although she was puzzled at first, she soon followed suit and they both sat on a sturdy tree branch in silence.

“Your hour is almost up,” Taylon said to her with a smirk sliding onto his face. “Anything else you want? I could give you a foot rub or teach you how to make cornbread.” He chuckled and pushed her shoulder lightly. However, Lark was still sensitive to her failure and didn’t quite
find it funny. “Too soon to joke?” He asked, smiling.

“Yes,” she answered plainly, staring out over the hill. “Is that the town down there?” Lark asked, pointing to the cluster of buildings and smoke from down the hill. She may be an Advisor but they never leave The Core’s building, really. She had never seen Palimea before and the only thing she knew of it was what they created.

“Yeah, but it’s nothing special. It’s just another run down town,” he stated shrugging his shoulders. The idea of a town fascinated Lark to no extent. She wanted to see the hustle and bustle of people and the dynamics of a town. She would have to careful notes on that.

“May I tell you a secret?” She asked, turning towards him. She never thought she’d say that to anyone because no one deserved to know what was going on in her head. She had so much she could tell someone and in a few words, she could destroy everything The Core had worked so hard to create. But, this was a just a little secret, it would be the only one she would share.

“I’d be honored, your highness,” he answered, chuckling.

“I’ve never been to city or even a town,” she said, staring off in the direction of the town. “I’ve seen them, of course. They’ve been on countless screens and I’ve made a lot of decisions towards towns but, I’ve never really been in one. It must be different than seeing it on a screen, right? The smells, the sounds and sights will all be more vivid.”

“That,” Taylon said, “Or they’ll totally ruin your dream of a ‘beautiful town.’ It really isn’t all that great. You’ll probably gag, princess.” He looked up at the sun to figure out the exact time it was. He shimmied down the tree and helped Lark down as well. “We need to be getting back now."

“Promise me something?” She asked, still looking off in the distance.

“Anything,” he answered. He was being totally honest because something within him wanted nothing more than to give Lark the world and then some. He wanted to see her dazzling smile and her crystal eyes light up with glee.

“Take me there, one day,” she said, grabbing her bag and throwing it over her shoulder. It was a simple request. Taylon’s father went into town every day and one day, she may have to run errands for the women. It wasn’t a ridiculous request, but it was a strange one.

Taylon smiled, “Maybe, if only you weren’t so strange. Come on, we should be getting back before a fox isn’t the only thing that’s hunting us,” he said holding his hand out. She took it gently as he assisted her over a branch.

Lark smiled softly because it was nice to meet a man that was so chivalrous. The only men she had come in contact with were the men in The Core. Zorac was self-explanatory; Anthrax was a stern man who spoke few words; Ornic, the Advisor of Sin, never left his twin’s side and Treticha, the Advisor of Technology and Advance, didn’t care for Lark. In fact, he said she kept “too many secrets.” So, meeting Taylon gave Lark a whole new perspective on the male gender.

“Tell me more,” Lark said, breaking the comfortable silence between them. Taylon glanced back her with a questioning expression. He didn’t exactly know what she wanted to know more about. They had been walking a good twenty minutes without speaking.

“About me or the town?” He asked, stopping so Lark could catch up. It was evident that she had never walked in the snow before because she continuously stumbled and slipped on patches of ice. She cringed every time the snow made an awkward squeak and couldn’t really see past the small flurries of snow.

“Either or, I suppose,” she answered, standing at Taylon’s side. He glanced around them quickly, because standing in one spot in the middle of the forest made him nervous, before nodding and continuing their walk. Lark followed close behind him but certainly not close enough for him to keep her safe. Then again, she handled knives well enough.

“Well, I’ve been to town a few times with my dad. He used to take me when I was little, there used to be a candy store. There are a few stores but mainly, there are just vendors everywhere. Most people here work at the factory to make weapons so that we can properly defend ourselves from any animal that comes into town. But, some people sell things. Mom and Helena sell vegetables and herbs, for instance, but there are people who sell soup, tools, meat. It all depends.”

Taylon shrugged thinking off all the little stations throughout town. To an extent, he was almost embarrassed of his town. Lark probably lived in an amazing place with anything she ever wanted at her fingertips. Everything she knew was lavish and beautiful, he assumed. While everyone in Palimea was, well, barely surviving.

“The stores do fairly well. There’s a bakery, blacksmith, stable and a general store,” he added. “It’s simple really. The factory is probably the biggest thing in town, big and metal and tall with smog always billowing out of it. There are a few apartments, mainly belonging to the elders. Everyone else lives in cabins like ours.” He ruffled his hair, waiting for her to speak.

“I would love to see it,” she finally said. She wanted nothing more than to see all the people and the vendors. She wanted to try the soup and feel the fresh cooked bread. Perhaps the baker could teach her the proper way to make cornbread because obviously Helena and Rhiana didn’t teach well.

“May I ask you a question?” Taylon asked. “I promise, I won’t ask for you to divulge any secrets.” He chuckled and managed to get a small laugh from Lark. Taylon had assumed that she just had a poor sense of humor or just didn’t show much emotion so, this small laugh was a great success to him. She nodded then. “What’s The Core like?”

Lark bit her lip, wondering what exactly she could tell him because she wasn’t sure what was allowed. She glanced around her slowly. No one was going to hear them; they were in the middle of the forest, with only quails and foxes listening. “It could be considered grand. It’s centered around a circular room where we all meet, The Meeting Room has a round table made of cherry wood, gold statues and a golden throne for Zorac. Everyone else as wooden chairs to surround the circle, it’s where we talk. Small hallways lead off of that to everyone’s rooms; I have a hallway to myself. Some people do come down it, though, because it holds the library.”

“I imagined something so much bigger,” he chuckled. He thought of a golden palace, soaring into the sky in the middle of nowhere. He thought of a deep moat surrounding it, full of alligators or electric sharks. “Bigger and certainly more impressive,” he added.

Lark casted him a look of disdain, “Well, you didn’t let me finish. Did you?” She asked, raising a brow. He smiled and ‘locked’ his lips, throwing away the key. She smiled back and spoke again, “There’s a garden and a courtyard for us to play games or sports. There are servants everywhere, dressing in all red and gold, that responds to any beck and call. I suppose it’s kind of ineffable because you have to see it to believe it. But, it’s really much nicer out here.”

Taylon laughed and rolled his eyes. He couldn’t imagine Lark liking Palimea more then she liked The Core. He considered his home a rather dull place and longed for a different place to be, but there was nothing else. Apparently, there was The Core which made him wonder if there was more. But, that went against anything he had ever learned. “Right,” he said, sarcastically.

“It’s true!” She exclaimed, causing her words to echo off the trees and some birds to empty from them. In one swift motion, Taylon pulled Lark to him and whipped an arrow out. Then, he shushed her and closed his eyes to listen. “What are you doing? How will you defend yourself with your eyes closed?” She asked, in a whisper.

“You can hear better when you focus only on one sense,” he said and then fell silent. It was the most serious Lark had seen Taylon in the three days she had known him. He lowered his arrow slowly and put it back in his pack. “We’re good but, let’s go, quickly.”

They walked swiftly; Lark stumbled on the tree roots and fell occasionally. Taylon kept his hand locked onto Lark’s wrist and pulled her up whenever she fell. He wasn’t in the mood for talking anymore; he simply wanted to get out of the forest. It was getting darker and Lark was causing them to move slower than he was used to. They broke through the thick of the forest and Taylon released Lark’s, now sore, wrist.

“We can talk more after dinner, okay?” He said. She nodded as they walked inside. Taylon took her bag to the kitchen and began speaking to Helena and Rhiana about how well Lark had done. Lyrius was the only one who was against Lark hunting, but Lyrius wasn’t home from town yet. The women were ecstatic, however, and found it admirable that Lark did so well.

“Lark! Set the table! Dinner is almost ready,” Helena called, stirring a pot over the fire.