With the first light beginning to seep into the edges of Farin village, as dawn stretched its pale threads between the stone alleys, the silence that covered the place was no longer the silence of a sleeping night, but one slowly shifting, as if the village was opening its eyes little by little, without hurry.
At the gate—
One of the guards stirred.
He did not rise immediately. A faint groan escaped him first, followed by a slight tremor in his hand, as if his body was not responding as it should. He opened his eyes slowly, his vision not entirely clear, a heaviness lingering behind them, and a dull ache pulsing in his head without any clear cause.
He took a deep breath, then tried to get up—
But stopped.
He was on the ground.
He froze for a second, then quickly pushed himself up into a sitting position, his eyes moving around in visible confusion, as if searching for an explanation he could not find. On the other side, the second guard lay there as well, still unmoving.
He reached out and shook him lightly.
"Wake up..."
The other stirred slowly, then opened his eyes and looked at him without understanding.
"What...?"
The first did not answer immediately, but said in a low, tense voice:
"Why are we on the ground?"
A brief silence followed.
The second looked around, then at himself, then back at him.
"I don't know..."
They both sat facing each other, as if each one expected the other to explain what had happened.
After a moment, the first spoke again, his voice heavier:
"I don't remember falling asleep... I was standing... and then—"
He stopped.
Pressed his hand against his forehead.
"Then nothing."
The other looked at him and tried to ease the situation:
"Maybe... we drifted off."
The first lifted his head sharply.
"Drifted off? While on guard?"
The second spoke in a less tense tone, as if trying to convince himself before anyone else:
"It was a quiet night... nothing ever happens in Farin... maybe it was just exhaustion."
The first was not convinced.
His eyes remained narrowed, thinking, trying to grasp something from his memory... but finding nothing.
"This isn't normal."
The other replied quickly:
"And if it wasn't, something would have happened... do you see anything missing? Was the gate opened? Is there any alarm?"
The first looked around.
The gate was in place.
The alley behind it was quiet.
Everything was normal.
And that made it worse.
"That's what makes it worse..."
he said in a low voice.
They both fell silent for a moment.
Then the first suddenly stood.
"I'm going to report this to the commander."
The other raised his head.
"Don't exaggerate... we'll make it bigger than it is."
The first replied firmly:
"No. What happened is not something I ignore."
Then he headed toward the gate, opened it, and stepped out.
Inside, the village had begun to wake. Doors opened, soft voices, footsteps—life beginning quietly, as if nothing had happened. Children ran along the edges of the alleys, people exchanged brief words, and the air carried the scent of a clean morning.
The guard paused for a moment.
Looked around.
Everything was normal.
But he did not feel at ease.
He tightened his steps and headed toward the commander's quarters.
After a short while, he stood before another guard.
"Is Commander Lior here?"
The guard looked at him with mild surprise.
"Why?"
He answered quickly:
"A private matter."
The guard looked at him for a moment, then said:
"Wait."
He went inside, then came out a few minutes later.
"Go in."
Inside stood Commander Lior.
His presence was unmistakable—his posture straight, his gaze sharp, allowing no leniency.
The guard said:
"Sir... I need to speak with you in private."
Commander Lior gestured.
The guard stepped forward, then said in a steady voice despite his tension:
"Something strange happened last night... during guard duty."
Commander Lior did not speak.
So he continued:
"I don't remember what happened... but I woke up on the ground... me and the other guard... for no reason."
Silence.
Then Commander Lior's expression shifted.
"What did you say?"
The guard spoke quickly:
"I don't know how it happened, but—"
Commander Lior cut him off, his voice sharper:
"Are you trying to convince me you fell asleep... without knowing how?"
The guard:
"Sir, I—"
Commander Lior:
"At the gate of Farin?"
The guard fell silent.
Commander Lior stepped closer.
"Is that what you expect me to believe?"
The guard lowered his gaze slightly.
"I'm not lying..."
Commander Lior said coldly:
"You are making excuses."
Then added:
"A guard who does not know how he fell asleep... does not deserve to stand at that gate."
The guard faltered.
"Sir, we didn't—"
""Enough.!!!""
Silence.
Then Commander Lior said:
"You and the other guard... are punished."
The guard lifted his head, shock clear on his face.
"Sir...?"
Commander Lior:
"Your rank will be reduced... and you will be removed from the gate."
He could not respond.
"Go. Bring the other guard. You will report to the royal palace."
The guard remained for a few seconds, then said in a faint voice:
"As you command..."
And left.
Inside the stable, the light had begun to slip in slowly. A thin thread of dawn slid through the opening in the roof, then stretched slightly, revealing the place little by little—the hay, the wooden walls, and the bodies of the two ostriches, which moved quietly with the beginning of the day.
Morning was not loud. It came gradually—distant voices of people waking, soft footsteps, doors opening, and scattered sounds of life beginning again.
Kael had not truly slept.
All he had managed was broken stillness, shallow rest that did not remove the exhaustion, but made him more aware of everything around him.
He opened his eyes before the light fully settled.
He did not move immediately.
He only looked upward, at the opening where the light slipped through, then at the shadows that had receded slightly.
"Morning has begun..."
he said in a low voice, without urgency, though he knew time was no longer on his side.
He moved his hand slowly and looked at it again.
Not much had changed.
But it still carried that pallor he disliked—that sense that his body was not in its natural state.
"It's still the same... my condition hasn't improved. That means I haven't recovered anything yet."
He lowered his hand, then added in a calm but firm tone:
"I have to move today. I can't stay here any longer."
Before he could decide how—
The sound came.
Footsteps.
Close.
Outside the stable.
Kael froze instantly.
His body returned to alertness. He pulled himself deeper into the corner, dragging hay toward him, hiding a larger part of his body, his eyes fixed on the door.
The sound drew closer.
Then—
The door opened.
Light entered first.
Then Rhea stepped in.
Zina behind her.
They stopped at the entrance, as if accustomed to the place, as if this routine repeated every day.
Zina said, looking around:
"I knew you'd come here before we started anything."
Rhea replied as she moved toward the ostriches:
"We have work. And these need to be taken out before the place gets crowded."
She stepped closer, then bent slightly and said in a softer voice:
"Iris."
Kael slowly raised his head.
Iris.
So that was the small one's name.
Zina smiled:
"I think she woke up before us."
Rhea moved closer and ran her hand over the small ostrich's head.
"She always wakes up before everyone."
Then she moved to the mother, patting her long neck.
"Come on, Laura."
In his corner, Kael remained completely still, unmoving. But when he heard Rhea's voice up close, and saw her clearly now in the morning light, a thought immediately crossed his mind:
This... is the same girl from last night.
He kept watching through a narrow gap between the hay, while Rhea untied a few bindings and checked something along the side of the stable, then led Laura and Iris out.
Zina followed her, saying:
"I'll take this side. Are you going to the market after?"
"Yes."
Zina said:
"I think you need to eat something too."
Rhea answered without interest:
"Later."
Zina laughed.
"You always say later."
Then they left.
The door closed again.
Kael waited.
He did not move immediately.
He listened. Their voices faded. The sounds of the market outside were growing louder and louder. After a short while, he was certain no one was nearby.
He stepped out of his hiding place slowly, finally standing on his feet. His legs ached from sitting too long in that tight space, and his back felt stiff. He moved slightly, regaining balance, then approached the door and opened it just a little.
He looked.
People were busy. Everyone working. One carrying something, another pulling a cart, someone else moving small crates, and children running toward the market. No one was looking toward the stable in particular.
He said to himself:
"Now... I have to move among them... without being seen."
Kael stepped out of the stable carefully. He did not open the door fully, leaving it half ajar as he slipped through silently. He stopped immediately outside, his back close to the wall, his eyes moving quickly, taking in the details of the place before making another step.
Morning had fully begun. Light filled the alleys. Shadows were no longer the ally they had been during the night, but had become limited, narrow, unreliable.
The sounds of the village were clearer now—men talking, women calling out, footsteps passing, constant movement—and all of it made his presence here more dangerous than he had expected.
"At night, it was easier... now, any wrong move will draw attention."
He moved slowly, keeping close to the walls, choosing the places where shadows still stretched between the houses. He never walked in the center, always along the edges, stopping at times, waiting for someone to pass, or for another to be distracted, then continuing.
His movement was not random.
It was calculated.
As if every step he took was a decision.
And then—
He saw something unfamiliar.
Ostriches.
But not ordinary ones.
They were larger, stronger. Some wore light armor decorated in a faded gold, covering parts of their chests and necks, with straps at their sides holding bags and small tools. He saw one of the guards mount one of them as if it were completely natural, then ride off along the main road.
Kael's eyes widened slightly.
"They use ostriches... for travel?"
He followed the movement of one of the guards with his eyes. The ostrich moved lightly despite its size, the man steady on its back, as if he had done this for years.
"Even the guards... rely on them."
Then he added quietly:
"This village really is different... in Doron, everything relied on direct force... but here, they rely on balance."
It felt strange to him, but at the same time, it revealed another side of the village. Here, even animals were not just animals. There was care, order, purpose—something entirely different from what he knew.
But his eyes suddenly stopped at another movement.
Two guards.
Walking on the opposite side, and behind them another guard, as if leading them somewhere.
Kael stopped.
Fixed his gaze on them.
It did not take long for him to recognize their faces.
Them.
The same guards from the gate last night.
His tension rose instantly. His body stiffened more than he intended. He was no longer looking at the ostriches, or the armor, or the market—but only at the two men's faces, as if the rest of the village had suddenly disappeared.
"Did something happen...?"
The question formed in his mind without sound.
He kept watching them.
They did not seem to be searching for him, but their presence here, at this time, away from the gate, did not reassure him at all.
"Did they remember...?"
He paused.
Then repeated the question more clearly within himself:
"Did they remember that a stranger passed through?"
He had no answer.
And that was the worst part.
He watched as the two guards continued walking toward the road leading to the palace, and he saw that their steps were not calm, not ordinary.
Something had happened—or had begun to happen.
And that alone was enough to awaken all the unease he had tried to push aside since last night.
Suddenly, the village felt narrower.
The people more.
The paths fewer.
And time—the thing he thought was still on his side—was running out faster than he had expected.
"If they've begun to suspect... I have to move ahead of them."
He lowered his head slightly, jaw tightening.
"Enough hesitation... standing here won't help."
He looked back toward the market.
"I need to finish what I came for before this place turns against me."
Only then did he move again.
But this time—
With even greater caution.