Part 1: Asfalia Chapter 5: From Under the Stars

We walked to the edge of town where the forest started to take over allowing the light of the city to fade revealing the stars. I looked over at my friends Darla wrapped tightly in her coat, Laurel blowing warm breaths on her hands and the guys running ahead tackling and tossing over each other. This left me, I didn’t mind this cold, it was manageable comparatively. I kept my hands in my pockets trying desperately to relax until finally we arrived.

The tower was just an old building from a different age. Maybe at one point it could have been a training facility teaching new recruits how to guard an outpost properly, now the local youth used it as a den of unsavory affairs most adults would have frowned upon. The large stoned building had an internal structure with a spiral staircase that reached all the way to the open aired top. When we entered we reached down gathering our stash of flashlights dispersing them amongst the group so no one tripped over the uneven cobblestone stairs.

The kids who hung out here always kept the place stocked full of activities and provisions, it was a well kept secret of the town and before the eighteen year olds were sent off it was tradition to visit one final time.

Tonight we were doing something that had never been done before, coming up here not just before Friday night but to send off a girl. Friday this place would be stuffed to the brim with after party kids ready to drink their troubles and smoke their worries away. Tonight I was going to keep my wits about me. Well, I thought, for the most part.

When we got to the top of the tower Darla and Laurel wasted no time before passing around some small bottles of alcohol making sure to leave me with the larger one.

“Whiskey?” I frowned, “Really?”

“It’s supposed to keep you warm,” Darla shrugged.

“That’s rum.” Laughed Cooper.

“It’s both,” grumbled Rodrik who sniffed his bottle, “Whatever this was, it's sour.”

“It’s for the toast!” Darla snapped and forced everyone into a tight circle, “Me first!” she raised her glass pointing to me, “Ashai, out of everyone, the fae better be scared they are sending you most. You’re one badass bitch and I’m going to miss you.” She paused and cleared her throat turning to a more somber tone, “I’ve known you far too long to not keep seeing you. Come back, and when you come back make sure you come back as more of a badass than ever before!”

We clinked our glasses and I gave her a hug before taking a small sip, big mistake. It went down far too hard for my liking and I was not going to be able to do this with everyone.

“Mine!” Cooper stepped forward blocking Rodrik, “You better be assigned to the same outpost as me. If you’re not I’m going to hunt you down and give you a stern talking to.”

I stuck out my tongue and shook my head at him playfully. Before he continued, “We’re going to do this together. We’re all going to come back.” he looked over to Francis and nodded, “I promise you we’re going to get through this together.”

We clinked once more and I smiled sweetly at him and then turned to Francis who nodded at us both. Thankfully it would seem he spoke for everyone except Rodrik who stepped forward next.

“Ashai,” he spoke low and wrapped his arm around my shoulder pulling me close, “I never imagined you’d be leaving this way. Thank you for being a part of our lives. You and your family have been nothing but welcoming and-” he paused looking down. We all stayed quiet while he struggled back to his speech. It didn’t matter if he planned what he was saying or not I knew every word was spoken from the heart, “You’re going to go so far and please, come back.”

Laurel decided to give him a reprieve shouting, “To Ashai!” We clinked one final time and finally my bottle was empty.

We stayed out under the stars as long as we could stomach the cold. It wasn’t nearly long enough for me but I figured it was probably for the best. I would never have left his tower if it was up to me. I would have stayed well into the next day missing my appearance orders and I never would have thought back. My life was not long for this moment though. It felt wrong, every part of me wanted to stay but as the cold air whipped through the night it drove us all back below into the safety of the tower.

“Want to head back?” Laurel offered first her teeth chattering, “I think we’ve made our point with your father.”

I nodded and gave Rodrik’s hand one final squeeze, “I’m going to walk back home alone okay? I’ll be alright, I just really need some time alone.”

They all nodded and a line formed behind Darla who forced her way to the front, “You’re going to write me every fucking day!” I nodded and gave her the tightest hug. “Every day!” she said once more.

“Promise!” I laughed.

Francis was next, “Train hard, if we cross paths in the service you’re going to need all the help you can get.” He rubbed his palm over the top of my head but I pushed past and embraced him just as tightly as Darla.

“You train just as hard and we’ll see how good of a fight you can put up.” I fought back and Cooper jumped in to join our hug.

“Don’t get all mushy! We’re going to be the most badass three in the service!” He beamed.

When we parted Laurel stepped up and hugged me through her tears, struggling to speak, “We were supposed to stay here together. You’re not meant to leave.”

“I’ll be back.” I smiled.

She nodded, “Just like Darla you write me every day. “Promise!”

Rodrik was last and I was thankful as everyone else had left the tower leaving us a moment alone. “I really don’t know what to say.” He kicked the ground, causing some pebbles to clink across the floor. “We never expected this.”

“Apparently the best things that happen are the ones you least expect.” I tried to stay positive but being faced with the uncertain future, my mind raced with everything that could go wrong.

“Be safe.” the words he finally settled on were less than stellar but I decided to remedy that.

I jumped over to him, wrapping my arms around him and forcing my lips to his. When we parted I stepped back and offered my hand as a simple shake, “You’ve got to watch out for Darla and Laurel. I’m going to write you all as often as I can please make sure you do the same.”

He nodded and took my hand.

Leaving on a handshake seemed like the perfect conclusion to our relationship right now. The kiss was going to be on my mind until I got home but that hand shake feeling his warm hands against mine was going to stay with me through the chilly walk home. They left me in the best way. We had our fun and now it was time for me to continue on to the next phase in life. Tomorrow I wasn’t going to be Ashai Sumter, a stagnant school graduate with no direction. I was going to be the next generation of soldiers ready to defend my friends. Despite how much I hated being chosen I knew if I didn’t commit to this I wasn’t going to get far at all.