Chapter 7: Chapter 7

Langrion’s wounds ached with every step, but he was still able to outrun the girl. It was a no-brainer – he was taller and probably better-trained than the silver-haired girl that he rescued. It was amazing though how fast and quiet she could be with each step she took. He could see that she too may have had some training in the science of run and pursuit. She was definitely way too different from Lady Edelfina who would never be able to run a race even if meant saving her life.

They can hear the bandits scramble about through the forest after them. ‘We would never be able to outrun them,‘ Langrion thought, ‘they are far too many!’ Langrion immediately tried his best to scan the woods and find a place to hide.

Suddenly, they heard someone scream. It seemed to be one of their pursuers. If that was the case, someone or something must have been pursuing them too...

Seeing a large tree nearby, Langrion pulled the girl closer over to him in an embrace, and mouthed the words “Let’s hide here.”

Once again, they heard someone scream. It sounded somewhat nearer now.

Langrion’s body tensed up. ‘Who – or what – could be chasing the bandits?’ he thought.

The sound of shuffling feet became nearer and nearer. Sweat was now generously pouring down Langrion’s back and forehead. Any minute now, they can be found. His body tensed up even more, and his heart was beating wilder than ever.

Suddenly but silently, the tree trunk opened up in half and encased Langrion and the girl inside.

Langrion shook his head in disbelief. He had almost forgotten that the girl’s special power involved trees. The inside of the tree trunk was dark. Only a little light coming in from just one or two holes were illuminating them, but Langrion can still make out the image of the girl. Like him, she too was soaked in sweat from head to toe and was breathing rapidly.

“We’re safe for now,” she whispered.

The inside of the tree was about three meters in diameter, big enough for two people. Perhaps realizing this at the same time, the girl and Langrion pushed each other away awkwardly and stayed at the other ends of the tree trunk. They were on guard as they listened carefully for what was going on outside.

Langrion could still hear the footsteps of men pacing around the woods. Judging by the sounds of their gait, there might be three to four men who were circling the area.

Unexpectedly, they heard a yelp of fear followed by a period of silence. Then, there was another blood curling scream and another eerie silence ensued. This time, the scream seemed much nearer than before. Langrion’s heart felt so much closer to his ears than to his chest.

A third scream took place, and this time, it seemed that it had happened right outside the tree trunk. A loud thud followed, and something seemed to have smashed against the tree from the other side that it suddenly shook.

The ordeal seemed to have frightened the girl, and she abruptly clung to Langrion’s side.

The scream continued. Someone – or something- must be torturing the bandit, tearing him from limb to limb! Despite reassuring himself that they were safely encased inside a tree, Langrion’s heartbeat began escalating rapidly. Whatever it was that the bandit faced, it felt very dangerous.

The girl seemed openly frightened too. She tightened her grip to his arms even more that it felt like claws were seething through his armor.

To distract himself from the noises of the alarming squabble, Langrion surveyed the girl. By now, her thin clothing was so drenched in sweat that it clung too close to her body, revealing her curvy silhouette and a pair of full bosoms that kept rubbing against his side.

It was not the time to be thinking of such a thought, but Langrion must admit that it was working well as a distraction for him.

Suddenly, he remembered who she was and why they were together at the cave that morning. He remembered following the smoke in the woods two nights ago and seeing a group of bandits with a prisoner – a young, olive-skinned girl with silvery, flowing hair that dazzled in the moonlight. She had a pair of big, brown, captivating eyes that looked so sad but dangerous at the same time. He remembered how she seemed to sleep so uneasily throughout the night and how suspiciously she had looked at the bandits. It was as if she already knew their next moves but chose not to do anything. He remembered how well she had fought him too near the foothold trap where he pretended to be caught (but was still roughly injured in the process) in order to rescue the girl. Finally, he also remembered how they escaped through the river.

Langrion’s thoughts were broken by a sudden silence which lasted for about a minute. Then, without warning, there came a guttural, blood-curling sound just right outside the tree trunk. The animal – or entity – was trying to scrape through the trunk! Whatever it was from behind the tree, it did not feel friendly.

The girl clung to Langrion’s arms even harder now, and he saw that the girl’s chest began to rise and fall more rapidly that before. She started to make louder, gasping breaths. She seemed to be utterly frightened of the thing that was trying to get through to them.

She turned to him wide-eyed and hysterical. “You killed them! You killed all of them!”

Tears began to flow down her eyes. Her sobs mingled with the frightening noises from outside, but Langrion heard her quavering voice loud and clear and felt her body tremble with each word.

“How could you?! My parents and siblings, they had nothing to do with you! You killed them, and I did nothing!” she sobbed, “They turned to dust, and I did nothing!”

Her body trembled even harder, and suddenly, the insides of the tree trunk began to shake. Without a warning, the walls began to push against them.

Langrion yelled and tried his mightiest to push against the trunk that was slowly closing in on them. The girl, seemingly oblivious to the fact that they will be crushed inside the tree at any moment now, continued to scream and weep.

“You killed them! You are a monster! And so am I!”

At that exact moment, Langrion realized that the girl must have been the reason of whatever is happening inside the tree. It must be reflecting her emotions. Very quickly, he folded his arms against her trembling form as the trunk continued to push against their bodies.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispered to her, “It was my fault. I know I deserve to die. But you, you did not do anything wrong. It was not your fault. It was never your fault...”

******************

“It was never your fault...” the man said.

At that moment, the gentle face of Shia’s father floated in her memory. “You were never at fault...” he said.

As if a great weight has been lifted from her, Shia suddenly collapsed into the man’s arms. The tree trunk had stopped moving, and everything began to relax. Little by little, it went back to its original form and opened up to the sunlight. At that point, Shia lost her consciousness completely.

“Don’t be frightened, my daughter,” Shia’s father said. He brushed a strand of silvery soft hair away from her face. Somewhere in the fields, Shia could hear the laughter of her sisters and brother.

“Your father is right. We have never been so much at peace, my dear,” Shia’s mother said as she smiled.

They – Shia, her mother, and father - were resting under the shade of their favourite tree back in Tightwater. The twins, Alia and Noram, were running around the big, open field with her brother, Ran, and little Aram was cooing softly in her cradle beside Shia’s mother.

“Don’t be too hard on yourself. What happened has happened for a reason. It was never your fault,” Shia’s father continued.

Up ahead, the trees reflected the passing of the clouds. They made many funny shapes, and her mother and father pointed out some of the shapes to her, making her forget all of her worries.

Finally, Shia’s father said, “It’s time we leave.”

Shia exclaimed, “Can I not come with you?”

“Not yet, my dear,” Shia’s mother replied. She touched her face tenderly. “Your journey has just begun. Be strong.”

They got up and began to leave. Shia tried to go with them, but the harder she tried, the harder she fell behind them more and more. She started calling onto them.

“Mother! Father! Don’t leave me, please! Alia! Noram! Please come back! Ran!”

They looked back on her one last time before everything and everyone was engulfed by a blindingly white light.

******************

“It was never your fault...”

As soon as Langrion said these words, the girl melted in her arms, and the tree trunk began to relax and go back into shape.

From outside, the sound has also changed. Instead of the frightening animal sounds he heard a while ago, there were now a few soft whimpers that he immediately recognized. He also heard a familiar voice.

“Chibi!”

Langrion knew who that voice and animal sound belonged to. He began to grin wildly.

“Khailis,” he called.

“Chibi, what are you doing there?” the voice from the other side demanded. The animal continued to whimper and scratch against the tree trunk.

Langrion called once again, “Khailis! Chibi! In here!”

A bewildered set of purple eyes peeked into one of the tree holes. “Prince Langrey?! How in the world did you get in there?!”

“It’s a long story,” Langrion said. Before he even finished speaking, the tree trunk parted in half, revealing him and the unconscious girl whose body was still encased in his embrace, to the amazement of his pet Chibi and his Second-in-Command, Lady Khailista Humphrey, his most trusted guard and childhood friend.