The Burden of the Protector Read Online Free Page A

this day, I cannot cross without a deep feeling of dread.
    I was standing at the edge of the bridge, shaking, uncertain and scared. It was one of those days when I was unable to find the courage to cross. I had relieved the previous protector and should have already been patrolling the highlands. That was when Vìr arrived.
    At first, I had a strong feeling of disdain and turned my head away. I knew of the black barbarian of the west… Then, I realized the obviousness of my predicament. Vìr could easily tell I was scared. I felt humiliated and braced myself for the mockery to follow.
    But it didn’t come.
    Vìr stopped beside me and took in the scenery.
    “Beautiful, isn’t it?” he said, his voice deep and profound, with a touch of unexpected respect.
    I gave a reluctant nod, not wanting to be associated with him.
    “One can only feel tiny in the presence of such dazzling grandeur.”
    He was almost twice my size, a beast, many said. He could have been such a great protector and yet he was a scholar, working directly for the League. Many called him an impostor because he came from the west.
    “Is there another way to Yurita?” he asked then.
    I shook my head.
    “I was told there wasn’t, but what harm could come from asking a protector, just the same? One can always hope. That being the case, can I…ask a favour?” He continued without waiting for a reply. “My studies are bringing me to Yurita this day, to the plateau known as Farana. I came one time before, guided by good Maéva. You see, this bridge…how to say this, without demeaning myself.” He looked up, then far away, obviously uncomfortable.
    “Let me guide you across,” I offered, disbelieving my own words.
    *
    Vìr was probably never intimidated by the bridge or the depth of the ravine. As we met day after day, he continued to ask my help to cross the deep chasm. I accepted each time, comforted by his presence and forced, in a way, to confront my fears.
    The crossing of the bridge of Saril was the bond that led me to befriend Vìr, to learn to know him when others seemed to have only distrust and contempt for him. I admired his strength and his confidence, the way he would stand tall in a place where he was the only one with black skin, in a place where he didn’t belong. When Vìr stood in the middle of a group, be it on the road, around a table, or in the wild, those around seemed to diminish. His knowledge was as impressive as his size. He knew parcels of information about anything and everything, which he would happily discuss with anyone.
    Although I liked spending time with Vìr and learning from him, I still disapproved of many of his ideas. On many an occasion, I mumbled some weak excuses to get away. At other times, I would go so far as not listening to a single word he was saying. The reality was that some of his observations terrified me.
    Vìr’s ideas were unorthodox and dangerous. The way he talked infuriated me. On the other hand, the strange man intrigued me more. And in those rare moments when I gave him a chance to influence me, I still didn’t comprehend most of what he was saying. Vìr didn’t understand Ta’Énia, the Sy’Iss, the knights, the Borders…our world. He came from a place where our dangers were unknown. He didn’t understand the necessity of the firm rules of the Sy’Iss, the important role of the knight protectors.
    Vìr was a loner and a rebel, both of which amazed me. It was said that he came to Ta’Énia fleeing a tragedy. He never told me his whole story, although he promised on many occasions that he would, when the time was right. Vìr shared many of his opinions, all of it calculated, as if he knew that by going too far, too fast, he would push me away.
    “There is something special in you,” he would say, hinting that he liked me.
    In the end, I think he never really trusted me, which was probably why he kept the details of his past to himself. For this mistrust, sadly, I have no grounds to