This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.
The original was posted on /r/hfy by /u/RangerFrank on 2025-04-07 16:58:40+00:00.
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Sylvia Talgan’s POV.
Great, we just had to be separated, and fate just had to match me with these two.
I turned back slightly and watched Cerila and Kaladin’s mom sign to each other at a rapid pace. I could follow along…somewhat. The two were going so fast, and I swore they were doing things I hadn’t seen before. Was it just a simplified version of things? Or slang?
Could there even be slang for something like this…?
Whatever the case, I sighed as we trudged through this damn forest. The place we got dropped into could be summed up in one word: unnatural. An entire forest in a dungeon was already unnerving, but the fact that the trees, which were underground, looked to be alive and healthy while there wasn’t a single sign of animals or even bugs. The stagnant, although cool, air also only added to the abnormal atmosphere.
We were heading deeper into the forest when I heard a loud explosion echo far off into the distance. I saw an enormous fireball spreading in the sky when I looked up.
“Mmm, that looks like Kal’s magic. It’s difficult to judge, but they are probably half a day away,” Kaladin’s mom said.
I asked.
She nodded and gathered mana into a spell core, and after a few moments, a large glacier flew into the sky. I sent an arrow of blood directly into it, and the shard exploded into an icy mist. It wasn’t as loud as Kaladin’s explosion, but they should have been able to see it. We waited a few minutes, but nobody else launched magic into the air.
“Are we the only three that were separated?” I mumbled.
“There’s a chance the others got sent somewhere else entirely. This forest appears to be rather large, but it clearly has an end, as we can see the ceiling and the walls. We just happened to be close to Kaladin and whoever else,” Kaladin’s mom answered.
“Either way, we can change course slightly, and as long as we all walk in the same direction, we will eventually meet up. Should we run for a while?” I asked.
Kaladin’s mom put a finger to her chin as she thought momentarily. “It could be dangerous to run around blindly. We don’t know what’s lurking in this place; the last thing we want to do is spring a trap. Let's maintain our current speed,” she said.
“Alright, let’s do that,” I agreed.
We walked for a long time after that, but it was all the same. The same type of tree, brown bark with green leaves, shrubbery, and dirt, was all so similar. Honestly, if we couldn’t see the ceiling, it would have been easy to think we were walking in circles, as there was so slight variation in the greenery. However, after a few more hours of trudging through in silence, the first change happened. I looked around with a frown; the shadows had changed, and when I looked up at the giant glowing rock on the ceiling, it seemed noticeably dimmer.
Cerila tapped my shoulder and shook her head. She signed
Although I wanted to reunite with the others, she had a valid point. Moving in utter darkness in such a place was basically asking for problems. And if something were to happen, it would be in the darkness.
“Let’s move for a while longer, then set up a small camp,” I suggested.
The other two agreed, and once darkness was on the verge of taking over, we stopped and set up a small camp—just a fire for light and dry rations for a quick meal, not that I ate anything. I offered to take the first watch as I wasn’t tired, and I didn’t think I could sleep in this forest even if I wanted to. It felt like something was gnawing at the back of my head, but there was nothing whenever I tried to find something out of place.
I sat with my back to the fire and stared into the darkness, waiting. It made me nervous…not being able to see, but I just had to do it. Guard duty would be pointless if I were too afraid to look beyond our camp. I made sure to pay attention to our surroundings, but I was more scared of something coming from the forest's center. So I jumped slightly at the noise behind me and sighed deeply.
How embarrassing…I’m too tense.
“Did I scare you? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Kaladin’s mom asked.
“Just a little,” I admitted.
She giggled, sat down next to me, and smiled softly. “Sylvia, you keep sighing. And you didn’t look happy to see that it was us who were separated together. Do you dislike us that much?”
“Ah…no, I don’t dislike you or anything,” I mumbled sheepishly.
I looked over at her slightly. Kaladin’s mom was truly beautiful with her long golden hair and sharp eyes. She had an elegant atmosphere around her, that of a true noble. Maybe it was just the way she talked or held herself. Something I felt that I lacked.
She hummed to herself and stared off into the forest. “Then do you think that I dislike you?”
Well…maybe a little. It’s clear I’m not her favorite. Not that I could say that aloud.
She chuckled to herself again and smiled. “You really aren’t afraid to let your emotions show, huh, Sylvia?”
“Wait, I didn’t—”
She put a finger up while still smiling. “It’s okay. It’s not like I don’t understand your feelings. A few months ago, you wouldn’t have been wrong.”
My heart sank slightly at that. “So…you really don’t care for me. Can I ask why?”
She shrugged her slim shoulders and laughed. “Not for any valid reason. How can I say this…it felt like some vixen had come from nowhere and stolen my son’s heart.”
…
Well, that’s how I felt about a certain someone…
“Of course, that wasn’t the case. I was being too harsh and selfish. You are a wonderful girl, Sylvia. And I’m very thankful for all you’ve done and all you will do in the future,” she said quietly.
My eyes went wide as I looked at her. “Do…do you really mean it?”
Her smile softened. “Yes, I do. You see, I’m a greedy woman, Sylvia. I…don’t deserve much. I’ve done evil things to people: some who deserved it and many who did not. Even so, I still wanted to find happiness. And I managed to. And now, the only thing I want in life is for my family to be happy. And you, Sylvia, are a part of that happiness for my son and granddaughter, and that’s all I can ask for in this life.”
I felt tears well up in my eyes. I honestly hadn’t expected her to say that to me. I believed that she just tolerated me because of Kaladin and Mila. That if she could, she would remove and replace me.
Her hands were cold as she softly gripped my hand. “I just want you to know I don’t hate you, Sylvia. Not even a little bit. I feel blessed to have met you and that you were the one who helped my son during his darkest times. So, will you promise me to keep making them as happy as you have been?”
“Yes, I promise to do that. No…I’ll make them even happier,” I choked out.
Kaladin’s mom squeezed my hand and drew back. She closed her eyes and mumbled quietly, “Good, that puts me at ease knowing I can trust you because I won’t be around forever.”
“Huh? Wait—what do you mean by that?” I asked hesitantly.
“Mmm? Well, one day, I will die. Just like everyone else,” she shrugged.
I shook my head. “No, no…you didn’t mean it like that. I can tell. Why did you say it like that?” I asked adamantly.
Her smile faded as she asked me, “Can you keep a secret? I don’t want you to tell anyone, especially the boys.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat and answered, “Yes.”
Kaladin’s mom lifted, put a hand to her head, and parted her hair to expose the roots close to her scalp. It was challenging to make it in the darkness, but it wouldn’t be that easy to spot regardless unless she showed it to someone on purpose. A small section of her roots amidst her golden hair, some of it…
Was graying.
“How long have you known?” I asked.
She let her fall back down and smiled again. “I noticed a few months ago that I felt more tired in the mornings than normal. I thought that maybe I had gotten pregnant again, but that wasn’t the case. I noticed my hair changing, so I’ve been dying it regularly. But I haven’t had the chance with everything that’s happened recently,” she explained.
I shut my eyes and looked down at the ground. I…never really thought about getting old, and it never occurred to me that Kaladin’s mom was at that part of her life. If anything, it felt too soon. Wasn’t she too young to be entering her final decade?
“It’s okay. Getting old is a part of life, even you will experience it one day. And it’s not like I will suddenly keel over from old age soon. I have many years ahead of me to look forward to. I’ll be able to see Kal and Dallin grow up even more, maybe see them raise their families before I’m gone,” she said softly.
“Then why haven’t you told anyone? Does Alanis know?” I asked.
She shook her head. “You are the first, Sylvia. And I want to keep it that way for some time. I don’t want to worry everyone when there is far more to be concerned with,” she said.
“You should tell Kaladin and Alanis, at least,” I told her.
“Perhaps. But for now, I want to keep it this way. I did tell you I was a greedy woman, right? If a little makeup and dye is all it tak...
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