The Missing Piece

When her mother assured her that her request did make sense, a relieved grin warmed her features. As the lesson of family history began, Talyssa couldn’t help but make herself comfortable, easing herself into a seated position where she had stood in the garden- her attention settling on her mother as she went describing how the Armada had been founded. Though something that immediately raised more questions in her mind was the mention of the Ashen Empire. She remembered her father glossing over them in a different discussion, however, she had not pressed him to elaborate at that time. Now that it had come up in conversation once again, she didn’t feel like she could pass up the opportunity to explore their identity further. “Ashen? Are those the Kleins?” Talyssa interjected as soon as she had a moment of silence to do so. She remembered her father mentioning the name, and she had simply inferred their identity on her own without confirmation. In anticipation of clarification, it was difficult to contain her enthusiasm.

Though as the cadence of their story eased into the introduction of all her aunts and uncles, she did her best to commit each name to memory. However, it became more difficult to do so the more her mother went on. She quickly realized she hadn’t even met half of her Fatalis family. “Wow, you do have a lot of siblings…” Talyssa echoed softly, running through the names in the back of her mind once more. She couldn’t imagine what it must be like to be one of sixteen. She sometimes thought it was hard enough keeping up with the brothers and sisters she had now, and there were only four of them.

Next, Briar offered a similar value- one that was easily understood. Family was everything. Something that had always been known to her- as far back as she could remember. The notable difference that she was given was far more interesting. The Armada was originally intended to be the fighting force for the Ashen Empire. Her brothers and sisters had always been more fighting inclined than she was- Dusk, Thorn, and Ciaran having always been in competition for knight status. But none of it seemed to compare to the militant nature of her mother’s family. It made her wonder how different things would have been had they been raised with their Fatalis relatives. In the end, she couldn’t picture herself fitting in very well. “Grandpa would probably be disappointed in me then, since I haven’t really trained to fight, huh?” She noted softly. It was a statement not really weighted with emotion, more of an observation as she tried to draw a conclusion in her own mind.

Talyssa blinked away the thoughts as she noticed the brief hesitance before her mother declared how different it was compared to her life here at Hearthstone. “It sounds like it.” Lys agreed a little more confidently, but the acknowledgment did little to dissuade her interest. “But maybe one day we could visit?” Hearing about the Armada would satisfy her cravings for now, but the idea of immersing herself in it was that much more captivating.

"Talyssa Carpathius"