Thomas walked along the town walls, having just finished checking the defenses for what felt like the thousandth time. He paused for a moment and looked out over the town, then decided something needed to be written.
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"Everyone in River Falls is prepared. The few troops we have left aren’t saying a word—and I can’t blame them. Just a few days ago, we were talking about home and celebrating. Now, most of them will never make it back. Some of the survivors should be resting, trying to recover from their injuries. Cole, who told us he's from a distant land beyond the horizon, has a broken leg. The Priests' Blessings can only do so much. He’s got splintered wood strapped to it, and he drags that leg everywhere.
Mathew, from Bragg, can only use one arm now. His hand and forearm were crushed. I don’t think he’ll ever regain full use of it again. The ones who escaped without physical injuries were lucky, but we’ll all carry the wounds in our minds for the rest of our days, no matter how short those days might be."
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Since returning, Thomas had little time to mourn Dareth. He had always known there was a chance any of them could die, but he never imagined it would happen like it did in Silver Falls.
We were outwitted, he wrote, crouched against a wooden plank that had once been part of the barricade.
"We walked right into a trap. The Harbinger wielded the four elements against us. He poisoned the air with death and decay.. it was almost impossible to breathe. That should have been the moment we turned back. But hindsight is funny like that. You only know you had a bad idea when it’s already too late. We made our way toward the church. Just as we got close, someone slammed the doors shut. Then came the fire. The Harbinger set the homes surrounding the church ablaze. A poor soul came out of one of the burning buildings, she was on fire, I will never forget the sound of her screaming in pain as she ran towards us. The Commander put her out of he misery. I thanked the Creator for Rhaine giving that woman mercy. After seeing what Douglas did to Father Lucas. I was not ready for this. The flames devoured so many… Stephen, from Dren, died in that fire. A cruel irony. He once told me he joined the Church’s army because he was too wild to control at home, so his parents forced him into service. He hated them for it until the Usher slaughtered everyone in Dren. His parents included. After that, he said he’d fight to avenge them. Only to be taken out by the Harbinger. Dareth saved me from the flames. It hadn’t fully dawned on me until now, as I write these words—I could have been Stephen. Dareth saved my life. And that wasn’t the only time he did so that day.
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Our commander, Rhaine, had spotted a clearing. In the chaos and confusion, no one stopped to question why that particular area had been spared. We just ran. But once we escaped the fire, the Harbinger turned to water. At first, we noticed only a light drizzle falling from above. But by the time we realized what was happening, it was already too late. A wall of water crashed down on us. It struck like a hammer, scattering our forces in every direction. I was swept away, struggling to breathe, gasping as the current pulled me under. That’s when Dareth saved my life for the second time. Then Tyler turned the earth itself against us. The poisoned people of Silver Falls emerged from the forest, silent, twisted, and deadly. They caught our troops completely off guard. In the chaos, people were stepping on each other. Some were trampled to death by their own allies.
Dareth saved me again."
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Thomas stopped writing. Those last words struck something deep inside him. He struggled to find the right way to continue, and these were the best he could manage,
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“I hate you. Of all the children in the orphanage—Long Legs, with all his bravado and his stupid nicknames, why did you have to become my biggest hero? Not just my friend. Not just my comrade-in-arms. In that moment, you became my big brother. And that’s why what happened next will stain my soul for the rest of my life. I saw my big brother stand up to a bully. The Harbi—no, I’ll use his real name, the one that will be carved into his tombstone: Tyler Langston. A foul, disgusting creature. He toyed with Dareth like a child playing with a doll. He let Dareth think he had the upper hand. The truth is, he could’ve ended it at any time—but Tyler loves an audience. He wanted a show. He killed Dareth. And he looked me in the eye as he did it. When I was knocked away by the surge of water, my journal slipped from my hands. Tyler found it. He wanted me to write his life’s story. I would have called it A Perspective of Unhinged Chaos.”
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Thomas felt his throat tighten, the ache making it hard to swallow as he wrote. His emotions began to rise, and he didn’t care who saw.. this needed to come out.
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“I’m sorry, Dareth. I said stupid things to you. At every point on this journey, you were such a jerk—but only because you were looking out for me. It’s easy not to think about others. We’re trapped inside our own heads, locked into our own vessels, and all we ever truly know are our own thoughts.
But now, as I sit here, waiting for those poisoned souls to come and end this in one final stand, my thoughts are with you. I wonder what yours were. What did you want from this life? What truths did you come to understand? What was that voice in your head, the one we all have, what did it tell you? And how did you become who you were… a hero?
I swear to you, Dareth, I will keep your heroic tales alive. Your deeds will be immortalized. People will know who you were.
I’m stopping here. Another one of the volunteers just came in. It looks like we may meet our fate at any moment. I know I’ll see you again, Dareth. I just hope I can do something down here to make you proud.”
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Thomas signed the bottom of the page with the pen name he had finally chosen,
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Copper Thomas.
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Elle sat at the window, gazing out over the town. "I like him," she said, her eyes fixed on Thomas.
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"What do you mean? What do you like about him?" Melissa asked as she joined her.
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"When Lucas died, that man over there tried to stop me from seeing his body," Elle said, still watching Thomas. "Nobody else thought to stop the children from seeing that. Everyone but him,"
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Melissa said softly. "Despite everything we've seen, Elle, there are still good people in this world."
She watched Elle carefully, still unsure of the girl's true intentions.
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"I think the number of bad people and the number of good people change all the time," Elle said thoughtfully.
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"That's an interesting thought," Melissa replied. "Tell me, Elle… do you think you can be either?"
She wanted to see which side Elle would choose first.
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"I think so. You were given free will for a reason," Elle said, turning to look at her. "Why do you ask?"
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Melissa spoke calmly. "Why didn’t you include yourself among those with free will?"
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Elle paused. "I guess so… all I can ever be is who I am, right?" she said with an innocent smile.
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Melissa nodded. "You are a wise little girl."
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