A Tamer's Tale

The following day, Rue was surprisingly left alone. Jerimiah had left to tend the fields, Eliza had gone to return a couple of sets of repaired clothes, and his siblings had left to play Griffle.

Looking at the wooden ceiling, he could help but think he was happy his mother didn't take him along this time; he was probably getting too big to ride on her shoulders.

Blinking, he turned his attention to 3 sparkly gems in his hands. He hadnt absorbed them yet because he was worried that if he attempted to last night, Jerimiah would have sensed something. He recalled how Jerimiah had told his family the number of Affinities each newly awakened had gotten after the ceremony. There had to be some method or skill that allowed him to sense the awakening of affinities, and Elias didn't know how sensitive it was. And honestly, he would rather not test it either.

But luckily for him, he was all alone. Polishing them, Elias neatly lined the gems before his sitting figure. Luckily each was a different color, which he assumed meant they represented different attributes. One of the gems was dark brown, which Elias assumed was an Earth Aether crystal. Another was bright orange, which Elias guessed could be fire or something similar. The last one was a pale gray. Elias had no clue what it could be. Anything from shadow to some sort of metal affinity, it really could be anything.

Shrugging, Elias decided to go ahead and see what he would get. He placed his hand first on the dark brown crystal and felt a suction force from his Soul Ocean pulling the Aether in. Like a ravenous lion that hadn't eaten in weeks, the Aether was quickly consumed, and the crystal fell apart soon after.

Within Elias's Soul Ocean, he felt a single point form in the sky, a dark brown ball collecting and condensing into a brown star. After it had finished forming, Elias immediately felt a connection with the ground beneath his feet. He thought he could push and pull the ground whichever way he chose. So he raised his hand and willed the earth beneath the floorboards to raise.

The floorboards creaked, and Elias dropped onto his knees. He panted as sweat trickled down his head. But a glint of excitement flashed in his eyes—he had succeeded. A small mound of earth now stood where a floorboard once was.

Flipping on his back, Elias's legs and arms flailed out. His body lay rag-dolled on the floor. 'That was exhausting.'

Panting, he glanced over at the foot-tall mound of dirt, 'I guess I shouldn't expect to be shaping mountains anytime soon.'

After a short rest, Elias plopped before the two other gems. 'Let's see what the other two are.'

Elias grabbed the bright orange gem, pulling the Aether into his Soul Ocean. Unlike before, the Aether didn't condense into a star, merely dissipating into his Soul Ocean. A frown couldn't help but form on his face as he watched the orange gem collapse into a pile of dust. 'No burning my enemies to crisps, I guess.' Elias inwardly joked, but he was still disappointed at the loss. He inwardly knew that he most likely wouldn't have the opportunity to awaken an affinity with each of these gems, but he couldn't help but hope.

Shaking off his failure, he turned to the last gem. It glowed a pale gray light. Picking it up, Elias absorbed it. At first, there was little reaction, but hope sprung from his chest as the Aether continued to pool into his Soul Ocean.

Another star began to form in the sky above his Soul Ocean, mirroring the last gem's color. But this time, the star was not as bright as the initial brown star. 'Maybe it represents a difference in the strength of each affinity,' Elias concluded. As it finally condensed, Elias felt a distinct connection with certain parts of his home: certain floor boards that were more weathered than others, beams of wood that were a little more wet.

Pushing the door to go outside, Elias continued looking for clues of this new affinity. A large portion of the topsoil, as well as fallen trees, pulled his attention. 'Did I get some sort of wood affinity?' Pausing, Elias rejected that. 'That wouldn't make sense; topsoil isn't wood. Plus, it's only fallen trees, not the live ones.'

Elias glanced around at the towering pines and meadows full of golden grain. 'Maybe it's a death or decay attribute.' Elias concluded, marching back inside. He had another plan he needed to prepare for. He had decided it was time to learn to read.

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Jerimiah crouched, hidden within the mature golden grains of a field. His feet slowly inched forward as his gaze stared straight ahead. A particular squirrel sat up ahead on a cobblestone wall lining one of the dirt paths in Verdant Hamlet.

The squirrel's big fluffy tail twitched back and forth as the sun's rays barely reflected on the dull but somewhat shiny stones adorned on the creature's hips and shoulders. A bright silver chained ruby necklace danced in its hands as the Treasure Squirrel examined its new treasure. It had just worked very hard, 'borrowing it' from a nice lady nearby.

When the squirrel saw the woman showing off to her friends, her friends pointed and gawked. After seeing all the positive reactions to the jewelry, the squirrel couldn't help but want it. All the young ladies looked so jealous of it.

As the lady walked away from her friends, her face filled with pride and arrogance, the Treasure Squirrel jumped from a nearby tree, grappling the woman's face.

The lady screamed like a goat after puffing its first ounce of Fire-weed. But the scream stopped when the squirrel stuffed its tail in her mouth, muting the frantic woman. Coincidentally, the lady fainted just as she felt the tail enter her mouth. With the target now incapacitated, the squirrel slipped the necklace off her neck and scrambled away, climbing up a nearby pine.

Jerimiah just so happened to be working in a nearby field when he heard the guttural scream, rushing over as fast as he could. Just as the woman came into view, he watched the squirrel scramble up a nearby tree, holding the lady's necklace in its mouth. It stopped to glance briefly at him, showing its teeth.

Jerimiah stared back. He couldnt help but feel it was smiling at him.

As the squirrel disappeared into the trees, Jerimiah summoned Billy. Rubbing the big dog's head, he asked the lovable dog a favor: "Help me find that squirrel."

With Billy following the squirrel's scent, he led Jerimiah to the field where he now crouched. He unsummoned Billy so he could sneak up on the Treasure Squirrel, hoping to get rid of the scourge once and for all.

As Jerimiah advanced, he used his affinity to soften the ground beneath him to quiet his approach. Each step bringing him closer to the mischievous fellow. Just as he arrived close enough to pounce, a much bigger squirrel hopped down from a nearby tree with several smaller squirrels following nearby, their bodies slimmer but their ears twice as long. Their tails also tipped with a snow-white color.

Jerimiah was quick to conclude that they were female Treasure Squirrels.

As Jerimiah glanced at the new arrival, he noticed it was nearly twice as big as the gem squirrel, its joints and chest covered in shiny silver metal. The other female squirrels flanked the larger metallic Treasure Squirrel, each with their heads raised high as the metallic squirrel rose on its hind legs and looked down at the smaller gem squirrel.

The metallic squirrel: Squeak!

The gem squirrel: Squeak?

The female Treasure Squirrels: Squeak Squeak Squeak Squeak.

The metallic squirrel landed on its front legs. Now full of confidence, it hissed at the gem squirrel, its back and fur raised in challenge. The gem squirrel shifted back unconsciously, glancing from side to side, desperately looking for an escape. Then its eyes landed on Jerimiah.

Though Jerimiah often thought of himself as a reasonable person, he couldn't help but feel his temper dissipate as he stared into the gem squirrel's eyes. He remembered when he was younger, his brothers would often bully him. Sometimes, one brother would take his toys, bed, or clothes while the other kicked and punched him. He vividly remembered each beating, some more graphic than others.

A particularly strong memory emerged from his mind.

On one sunny day, a young boy approached a cute little blonde-haired girl. In his hand, he held a pink flower. As he approached her, she turned and waved at him, squinting her eyes and showing off a beautiful smile. The boy returned the smile with one of equal measure. But as he took steady steps towards her, a hand grabbed the back of his shirt.

The little boy turned and was met by one of his older brothers. Grabbing the flower from the little boy's hands, he chucked it on the ground, stomping it into the earth. "Whatcha gonna do about it?" he mocked. "You gonna tell Mom again?"

Anger bubbled in the little boy. He pulled back his arm and swung. To the side, another hand came, stopping the punch. His eldest brother crushed his hand before kicking him to the ground.

Both brothers stood over the little boy, occasionally kicking him as they mocked, "No girl would ever want a runt like you!"

"Useless, can't even fight back."

"How does it feel to be ignored by father?"

The insults and kicks continued to rain down on the little boy, but no matter what, he just kept quiet, curling up in a ball. From the edge of his vision, he watched as the little girl looked away. His torment ignored. Other kids nearby joined in on the 'Fun', insulting and occasionally taking turns kicking the little boy.

After everyone had gotten their fill, he crawled to a nearby hay pile and slept. Not daring to go home to his bed. They would undoubtedly beat him again.

Returning to the present, Jerimiah felt his anger disappear entirely. Making up his mind, he decided to stand, giving up his sneak attack. He waved his hand, summoning Billy. Charging, he yelled a war cry.

He didn't want to kill the squirrels now; he just wanted to scare them away. 'Maybe that would give the little guy a chance to escape.' He thought

With the sudden appearance of a new threat, all the squirrels scrambled. They all leapt towards nearby pine trees or hidden holes in the ground.

But the gem squirrel stayed behind for a brief second. It flicked its tail and blinked, but Jerimiah could tell that the little guy was thanking him. Dropping the necklace, the gem squirrel jumped from the cobblestone wall, scrambling underneath a root, disappearing from view.

Jerimiah slowed his charge, coming to a halt near the cobblestone wall. He looked down at his shaking hands and gripped them tightly. His gaze briefly scanned the cobblestone wall before turning to look at a series of wooden homes nearby making up the Hamlet. Smiling, a resolute expression formed on his face. "It's going to be different here," Jerimiah stated.

Holding Billy's large furry head in his hands, Jerimiah stroked Billy's long snout, "Thanks, buddy. Let's go home."

Decided, he grabbed the ruby necklace of the wall before turning and marching back home. He was ready for a warm and hearty dinner with his wife and kids.