Stellar Saber by Gege16
"That costs twenty five coins, Mr. Hasbún" Aliosha told a client who was trying to choose a cake from the spot his family had in the small market of Barkistán. He worked in this place with his mother and despite his young age took the responsibilities of the small business very seriously. His personality had changed completely since he was a child, he had become quite serious, a little reluctant. He did not pay much attention to fun and sometimes forgot even some important dates.
While Aliosha was counting the coins that Mr. Hasbún had given him and his mother counted the ones inside a jar, Dylara appeared surprisingly behind him wearing a wide smile in her face, and hit him with a wet olive branch, making him throw all the coins to the ground.
"Ouch, that hurts! What the..." said the boy a bit annoyed. "Wait!..."
"Don't you remember what day is today? Today is our birthday!" Dylara shouted excitedly. Both friends, in addition to being almost like family, were united by their birthdays, which turned them into what sometimes people call "twins of a different family".
" What? How did time pass by that fast?" he asked surprised. "That explains the Branch thing. You know, I always thought we should reconsider that tradition..."
The face of Kira, mother of Aliosha, suddenly lit up with a smile and she said to her son "Surprise!"
Then, she approached Dylara saying, "I can not believe he did not remember his birthday on his own. That shows that he should take a break.
"I agree", the girl replied " It seems that he has forgotten how to enjoy, he always acts like a bitter person, he is even worse than me".
He was with his hand on his head, recovering from the branch beat, when Dylara's parents (who were a few stands away, selling tunics, headscarves and other clothing pieces) approached him and said:
"Congratulations! Now, in a little while, go to the bank of the Op River ... we prepared something special for you and Dylara".
Aliosha raised his eyebrows and looked with a little reluctance, though he thought that maybe a little break would not be a bad idea. He put the coins on the floor and placed them in the jar that was on the table, and went riding a donkey with his friend and his mother to the Op River.
The distance between the market and the river It was only a few kilometers, enough to appreciate the place during the trip. Barkistán was a small town, simple but pleasant and with an aesthetic quite particular to the eyes of the foreigners, like the great majority of the Moskovar cities. This town was formed by small and colorful houses made off stones and wood with pitched roofs. The streets were irregular, made of large stones and covered by fallen leaves from the brief autumn, which was about to leave its place to the white winter. There were also in this place some mosques and other temples with their iconic domes covered by some snow from the first snowfall, stables for donkeys, horses and some camels. And, obviously the colorful market of food, clothes and nonsense stuff where the duo helped their families working for a living, located at the town's central area and near the dilapidated Kremlin (fortress) that years ago used to protect some important buildings, but ended up in ruins due to the pass of time.
After a few minutes, the three arrived at the edge of a very shallow river, where Dylara's parents and other kozzakhi family friends were waiting for them. In the place was a cart full of packages, some comfortable and large pillows to sit next to a beautiful carpet of colorful and extravagant oriental prints. On the carpet were several bowls filled with fruit juice and a large forest fruit cake.
"Do you like it?" Dylara's father asked. "The cake was Oleg's idea," he said, pointing to a short, blonde boy who was holding a gift under one arm while greeting the birthday boy.
" I know that it is nothing compared to those baked by Aliosha but I baked it with love" Oleg said a little blushing looking at the toasted cake that was on the carpet, which looked a bit disheveled but still looked delicious "Now well ... Let's start the party!"
The honoree and guests ate cake sitting on the pillows, spent a couple of hours dancing while some friends played music, played hide and seek in the meadow and even ended up a little wet for falling while trying to cross the river jumping from stone to stone in a foot. It was a much funnier day for the children than the rest of their birthdays in Barkistan. It has been a long time since they were seen laughing together for the last time. Finally, as the sun began to go down and it was getting colder, the moment when the gifts had to be delivered came. Kira began to take out the packages that were inside the cart. Among these were things like embroidered shirts, hats, jars of jam and a drum, but she hadn't taken out all the things inside the cart.
At the end of the event, as it had already darkened and started to snow slightly, everyone said goodbye to their friends and returned to their homes. The atmosphere became silent. Dylara decided to stay with Aliosha and her mother to help them pack the presents and the little that was left of the cake, and then reach her parents on the way home.
Kira removed the remaining objects from inside the cart, looked around several times to verify that there was no one left but them three. The teenagers looked at each other by raising their shoulders.They thought it was senseless being left alone in the snow after the party, so they were silent for a while. Finally, Kira broke the ice.
"Today you both have received beautiful presents from our friends, but these are the most special of all " Kira said with a strange looking in her eyes, holding the aforementioned elements behind her back." These ones have a very deep meaning and I have been keeping them for years."
Aliosha and Dylara opened their eyes wide, they were very intrigued to know what kind of gifts them were. If no one else could be present to see them, it was a sign that they were something really personal.
Kira swallowed and brought her hands to the front, showing an elongated bundle of cloth, tied by a rope, which she unleashed revealing two long curved sabers with a bronze-colored handle, inside dark red sheaths embroidered decorated with delicate golden floral patterns. The teens took them surprised. What an extravagant gift!
They carefully watched the scabbards
and unsheathed the weapons. Their blades were of a platinum color with a slight coppery shine. They were very beautiful, but for some reason they felt that no one had used them for many years.
"Wow, how beautiful! " Aliosha said very confused looking at the saber in hand " But ... What am I supposed to do with this?
Dylara meanwhile was looking her saber from top to bottom and moved it in the air. To test what kind of cut it had, she tried to use it to make grooves in the bark of a small log that was next to her.
Kira looked down and said, "These two are not common sabers. They are a relic of our people, because they belonged to a very special person. They used to be owned by...".
" Hey, look! There's something else in here" Dylara said, looking into the holster of her sword, not realizing that she had interrupted Kira.
Aliosha approached the girl to observe what was inside the scabbard. It was a small object that was at the bottom, where the blade of the sword did not reach. He lifted her up in the air and turned her around, shaking a few times to make the mysterious object fall. What seemed to be an old piece of yellowed paper that was quite folded fell to the ground. Aliosha grabbed it, unfolded it and saw that it was written with a very elegant calligraphy.
The children began to read it. In the first lines, there was a dedication towards them, but below, instead of appearing the typical text of a letter there was a legend. This story was about two beautiful stars that used to take care of the sleep of humans from the sky, and due a fight between them, they both ended up in who knows where, leaving the world at the mercy of demons and negative feelings. As they read the text, they began to remember that they had heard that story before, however they were not able to remember from where they knew it.
"How strange" said Aliosha"why would someone write a children's story to leave it in such a place? And... What does it have to do with all this?"
They kept reading until they ran into the letter itself:
"Dear Aliosha and Dylara.
The moments we shared together were beautiful, but now with great sorrow I am forced to say goodbye. I will fight against the army of Tsar Ivar and I doubt If i'll be able of seeing you again. I know that this moment is very hard for us and all our people. However, do not worry because I am with you even though you cannot see me. I fully trust that Kira, Samaria and Vadim will keep our families' happiness and strength intact despite the worst happening and, that they will prepare you both very well.
As for the way I decided to start writing my text, which is not what someone would expect when opening a letter, why I chose to write before that legend that you heard hundreds of times as children, it is because there is a sinister darkness that it is stalking this kingdom, which will end up expanding throughout the world if we don't prevent it.
I leave you with great honor the custody of the sabers that have been owned by the most courageous warriors of our family for generations, as you will need them. For what? you will surely wonder... well, for the adventure of your lives. When you are finally ready you will know what I am talking about, and if you are intrigued to know when that moment will be, the only thing I'm going to say is: it will be when you receive this letter.
With all my love, see you forever,Vladek Vasiliev Takhmanov"
The children froze, especially Aliosha, who raised his head and looked at his mother with a expression of awe on his face. There was a really awkward silence for a little while that felt like an eternity. Finally his eyes began to fill with tears, he had begun to remember the sorrow that he thought it remained in the past. In an impulsive act and without saying a word, he ran to the dark forest behind the meadow.
"Oh God, no!" Kira and Dylara shouted at the same time.
The girl ran after him but surprisingly Kira didn't move. She looked at the woman with a gesture of strangeness, wondering why she wasn't taking action, as she expected her to have the same reaction.
While he was running, Dylara yelled at her "Tell my parents! I'll go find him."
"The time has come" Kira thought as she watched the already darkened sky and the falling snow with a melancholic expression. Then, she headed back to the village.
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