[TGT] 1. Dearth

Uncle Lusio had been gone for three days.

Elpis skillfully worked the old lead rope into a thief’s knot, securing Cloud to the fence outside the stable—the male steed had been born prematurely, but what he didn’t have in size he carried in attitude. Out of all the villagers who helped keep the stables in Cuey, Elpis was the only one who had yet to receive a kick or a bite, and thus the only one who still held some fondness for the horse. He doused his sponge in the bucket and turned to scrub two weeks’ worth of grime from the horse’s coat.

In the distance, he expected to see his uncle returning to Cuey. But the golden hills stood solitary, rippling like the surface of a pond broken by a pebble.

After a grueling day working in the fields, Elpis and the rest of the village wardens had only recovered a wagon of stunted, graying wheat. All but four of them had gone home to their families. They lingered under the nearby oak tree with Kailani, hoping to rest before returning to their posts at each of Cuey’s gates.

“What about Ilysa?” asked Echo. Nearly thirty years their senior, Echo was the eldest of the group, yet it was also his age that often led him to say whatever was on his mind, not caring what others might think or whom he was speaking to—there were exceptions, of course, but Kailani wasn’t one of them, even being the son of Lusio, the village chief.

“She’s pretty, just not my type,” Kailani responded, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Well, what is your type, then? You need a wife.”

“I just don’t know how to choose.”

Echo smacked Kailani in the back and gave him a proud smile. “Seems like every girl in the village is after you, Kailani.”

The comment got a laugh out of two of the others.

“That’s not what I—”

“Maybe he can have concubines, like the Emperor,” Echo joked. The laughs were less enthusiastic this time.

“I guess I really can’t help it,” Kailani lied. “Why choose one when I can choose all?”

Despite being cousins, Elpis and Kailani were practically raised as brothers, and as far as Elpis could recall, Kailani had only ever had one crush, and that passed quickly after he learned she wanted to join the Scorcan army. Still, the comment got a chuckle out of the wardens, which is what he must have been aiming for.

“If you break every young lady’s heart, our village is doomed,” Echo teased. “None of the women will talk to the rest of us.”

Elpis grabbed a brush and set to work on the mats in Cloud’s tail, hoping to tune out the rest of the conversation. Rue, the youngest of the group, wandered off to the gate, likely looking for an exit from the conversation. At his youthful age of sixteen, Rue didn’t quite fit in with the older wardens. He seemed to enjoy their company but rarely participated in their banter.

“What about you, Elpis? You’re still young and not so bad looking.” Echo frowned at Elpis. “Maybe you can dress normally, though.”

Dust had stained Elpis’ pale pants and blue waistcloth, nearly concealing the proud banner of old Cuey, but it wasn't the dirt Echo was concerned about. Elpis was the only one in the village who still wore this specific design—everyone else wore the Scorcan-approved purple waistcloth.

Echo wasn’t wrong. Just last night as Elpis was heading back to his quarters, he overheard his neighbors from down the street calling him a “ghost” after he walked by. He didn’t pay attention to those comments anymore, but he was aware people were bothered by his choice of attire. Elpis switched his attention back to the horse.

“Were we expecting the Imperial Army?” asked Rue. It was strange to hear him speak, and even stranger for him to change the topic so suddenly. Everyone turned to look at Rue and followed his gaze past the west gate.

On the road leading to Iris, a cluster of figures was making ground fast. They were hard to make out, but there was no mistaking the garish gold flag that cleaved through the darkening sky—it could only be the Scorcans, perhaps a dozen of them.

Kailani shot Elpis a look: you can’t be here.

Elpis directed Cloud towards the stable. His pulse thrummed in his ears as he guided the horse into the westmost stall, hoping Cloud wouldn’t make a fuss. But when Elpis went to remove the halter, Cloud reared its head out of Elpis’ reach.

“Calm down,” Elpis cooed.

When he reached for the halter again, Cloud threatened to bite him. Elpis went to tie the lead to the stall instead. It would be better than leaving it loose where Cloud could get tangled. The sound of approaching hooves got louder as he looped the rope once around the stall’s gate and then...