Raezyr felt a bit silly, sitting in the portable wooden chair. It was supported by two long poles and carried by two monks, but he had no other choice, as he was still to weak to walk himself. Odilo and Saffron walked at either side, in case they were needed.
Evening assembly was held in the large stone temple in the center of the village, and it was lit with torches all around.
Apparently word had spread that he would be in attendance, and there were maybe twenty young people waiting in the large open area outside the temple where torches had been lit and flowers gathered in preparation for tonight's meeting. He could hear the excited whispers float through the small crowd. One of the younger ones stepped forward as Raezyr's small entourage approached.
"Sir. My name is Mannix, I saw your ship crash! I helped rescue you!" the young man exclaimed, bowing as he did.
Raezyr reached out his hand and touched the young man on the shoulder as he passed. "Thank you for that."
Mannix looked up and watched as they entered the temple. His face beamed as Raezyr disappeared through the large wooden temple doors. He stood up and turned to his brother, Baldemar, and Gall, his brother's friend. "I'm telling you, their arrival will mark a new beginning for our world."
Gall snorted his familiar laugh. "I didn't see anything special about him."
"Oh, but Mannix can sense things. He's a good senser. Just ask Varth," Baldemar mocked. The two laughed as they headed in to assembly, along with the other youths that had been waiting to get the first glimpse of their new visitor.
Mannix followed the others inside. "They'll see," he muttered to himself. "One of them is the chosen one, and he'll change everything."
Raezyr sat through the assembly, while Father Monahan conducted the meeting. The meeting hall was in the center of the temple, and was an auditorium-like room, with rows of stone benches rising up surrounding a raised circular platform where the head monk stood and addressed the community.
His chair had been placed on the floor, just off the raised circle, but in full view of everyone, and through their chants, and Monahan's teachings, he could feel everyone's eyes on him. It made him a bit uncomfortable, as he wasn't used to so many people paying attention to him at once.
Eventually, after their worship chants, teachings, and delegation of chores, Father Monahan turned his attention to Raezyr. "And last, but certainly not least, my Brothers and Sisters, I wanted to introduce one of our guests: Mister Raezyr," he said and gestured to the man sitting in the chair. Not knowing what else to do, Raezyr waved to the people.
"He and his brother, Mister Trychon, will be staying with us during their recovery. I would like everyone to treat them as honored guests.
"And like you all, I have heard the rumors that are going around, and I can assure you that at this time, there is no reason to suspect any of the rumors to be true. The High Council and I will monitor things, and will decide whether these rumors bear any truth.
"But now, I would like to bring up a more pressing subject: Upon their recovery, our guests will need a place to stay. I was wondering if there were any volunteers willing to take them in until we can find them a more permanent place to stay," he concluded. He looked around the room expectantly, and could and hear many of the 200 community members discussing this in hushed tones.
He didn't have to wait long, though. Within seconds, he spotted Mannix waving his hand excitedly.
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