Chapter 30

A shadow passes over me and I snap my eyes open. I jerk upright, fists held out in front of me. Malik towers over me with an expressionless look, arms crossed. The muscles in his arms bulge and I swallow thickly. His dark hair is tossed over his head carelessly and those unnerving gold eyes seem to stare into my soul.

Unsteady, I climb to my feet to face him or whatever he throws my way. The silence grows as he continues to stare, and a strange tension fills the air. Finally, the ever-pressing silence ceases as he says, “We’re leaving. Lead us to this talnarin you’re hunting.” His stare turns hard. “No tricks, girl. If anything seems off, I kill you, understand?”

My brain’s not caught up, but I give a jerky nod in his direction. Still groggy from sleep, I rub my eyes. I must have dozed off sometime in the night. The last thing I remember was debating my next move and getting nowhere. My body must have just shut down on me after everything that’s happened over the last few days—bodies tend to do that when they’re under too much stress.

Malik barks out a “move” before leaving the room. A frustrated sigh escapes me as I take my. As I walk, I stretch out my tired and sore limbs, and chase away the remaining wisps of sleep. No matter how much I thought over everything last night, I still don’t have a plan of action. Every option I deliberated resulted in an outcome I didn’t like.

I had refused to think about where I might end up or who I might end up seeing. The possibility frightens me more than I care to admit. I’m not ready. It’s far too soon. I thought I’d have months to prepare myself for this, not days. My life is suddenly on fast forward, or at least it has been since I left that terrible place all that time ago. I feel like I can’t even catch my breath anymore.

I need more time.

Unfortunately, it seems like Malik isn’t feeling very generous this morning. Just as I’m about to step through the doorway, his looming figure stands in my way. A fierce scowl marks his handsome face and I take a step back. Without a word, his hand grips my arm with that familiar death grip. Malik pulls me down the hall and out the door where the sun momentarily blinds me.

I jerk to a stop before a capalt with shiny dark blue scales. The giant beast swings his horned head around and noses my stomach briefly before bowing low. Introduction over, I’m suddenly lifted from behind and settled onto the beast. I gasp, making a grab for the twisted horns so I don’t slide off the capalt. I situate my legs in front of the folded wings and scoot forward.

Inhaling a small, calming breath, I relax my death grip on the horns. Despite having read about these docile beasts, I’ve never actually seen one up close, never mind riding atop one. I take a quick look around to find Malik, Zeke, and two others astride their own mounts. With a pull of the horns, Malik slides up next to me and hands me a folded parchment.

Without a word, I open it to find a detailed map illustrated within. This map is far more detailed than the one Lori gave me. It shows both human and talnarin villages.

“Lead us to this village, girl.”

I glance up and meet his golden eyes. I study the map once more. Not knowing what else to do, I point north. For now, I’ll lead them in the right direction. There will be time to lead them astray once I have a game plan.

“Move out.”

Without any action from me, the beast I ride follows Malik. Belatedly, I notice a thin rope attached to the beast neck. Malik guides my mount. Zeke rides to my left, the one I assume is Kelog is to my right, with the final talnarin bringing up the rear. I’m completely boxed in.

*******

The next few days pass in a blur. My emotional state is such a mess, it’s hard to focus on anything around me. My thoughts and memories fight for control and it’s like a never-ending battle trying to keep them at bay. The idea of possibly seeing Him has my mind and stomach revolting.

The horrors of my past become more than a distant nightmare the closer I get to the place where it all began. Over and over, my memories surge to the forefront of my mind, threatening to drag me under. Memories of what He did, or what He ordered, suffocate me. I’ve had no reprieve since this journey began and it’s weighing on me. My physical self has worn itself past exhaustion.

I’ve been vaguely aware of what’s happening around me. I recall gesturing to our destination. I recall Malik casting a suspicious look my way once or twice. I recall stopping for the night and setting up camp. I recall short bathroom breaks along the way. I recall distant murmuring between the talnarins surrounding me.

And now, here we are, sitting at the outskirts of the forest where it all went wrong.. While I had remained lost in my thoughts the entire journey here, I had somehow led Malik and his men to this haunted place. Now, it’s too late, far too late.

Gazing upon the forest, I realize it isn’t the same place I entered the first night I arrived at the talnarin village and met Him. Subconsciously, I had led us to the other side of the forest.

Knowing my home is on the other side is unnerving. I can’t handle seeing that place, I can hardly handle the talnarin village we are soon to enter. I’m not ready to face what that community has become because of what I did. Seeing that abandoned and forsaken prison would only break me. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to face my village.

I force my thoughts away from my past; this is no time to drown, not when I’m about to see Him. I need my wits about me and I need to be prepared. I must harden my mind and strengthen my resolve. I cannot afford to be weak and vulnerable, He will feed off of that. I must be stronger and more capable than I was the first time I came here. I must succeed. I cannot afford to fail here.

With those thoughts, I look to Malik only to find his golden eyes burning into mine. His expression is unreadable and I fight to control my breathing.

I can do this.

“It’s just through here. But be prepared for talnarins, I’m not sure what to expect.” I look away from Malik, unable to handle his stare any longer. I take a deep breath and will my heart to slow. My palms are slick with sweat and my chest heaves. I start to count my breaths in my head, hoping to calm my rising panic.

Without another word, the five of us move forward, past the tree line. The sunlight disappears and the temperature drops a few degrees. I shiver despite the present warmth still floating through the air. There’s no sound besides our stomping Capalts. Not hearing the sounds of wildlife in the forest is unnerving, unnatural.

My heartbeat thuds in my chest and the blood rushes in my ears. I need more time. I can’t face this yet. What am I doing? Far too soon, we arrive at the village entrance. My breathing stops and my tears fall. Nothing’s changed, not really. Seeing it all again draws the memory to the surface in a rush.

This village, if you can even call it that, looks nothing like anything I’ve ever seen or heard about before. To the left lies a three story wooden home. The windows all along the walls have light pouring out. I can see the inner walls are painted warm colors and tapestries hang from various sections. The home is in pristine condition, better than even the Elder’s hall in my village. Despite the intention for the home to appear inviting and welcoming, my gut screams at me to stay away. It screams that terrible things happen here. I startle when shadows pass by a couple of the open windows. The brief sign of life, disturbing and unnerving.

I shift my focus to the middle of the village where a large rounded hole is dug deep into the ground. How deep it goes, I cannot say from this distance, but four rows of wood benches are situated around this hole. There looks to be a seat for a leader and his wife, in the midst of the benches, under a richly colored awning. From the looks of the rest of the decorations in this place, I would say that nothing pleasant happens in that pit, that nothing pleasant happens in this village period.

To the right, there is an even larger structure than the wooden home made of concrete that seems to reach for the sky. Had I not been staring directly at it, I’d say that a whole building constructed from concrete was impossible.

Where they were able to gather that much material? This building lacks windows and from my location, it seems only one large metal door allows entrance. This dark structure stands so imposing against the night sky, it gives off an aura of menace. The feeling is only further intensified with the three large, occupied, metal cages along the side of the building.

None of the tales the Elders told could warn me of places like this. Even the Trader’s stories that speak of new things, the talk of their journeys are always to villages similar to mine. This place is horrible and terrifying. I’ve never heard of a place like this.

It must be a terrible dream. I fell asleep in my bed and this whole night has been nothing more than a dream. This isn’t real. There aren’t people in those cages.

But it is real. There are live humans in those large metal cages alongside the huge cement building. From this distance, it’s hard to make out the details, but it appears as though they are all bloodied.

They don’t quite look like normal humans either. Their skin is a ghastly shade of green and brown. Some appear bald or close to it, some have bent and misshaped limbs. I imagine if I were to get closer, they would smell awful too.

These people don’t look right. They look sick and dangerous, like they carry diseases that have no cure. The biggest mystery though, is why they are here. Why are they locked away in metal cages in the middle of the forest? What in the Hellvian is this terrible place? What have I stumbled upon?

With a loud gasp, I pull myself free from the grips of the memory. A large hand grips my throat and squeezes. I flinch, snapping my eyes up. Malik’s expression drains the blood from my face. If looks could kill.

In a voice so dark and quiet he says, “What the fuck was that, girl?”

“What?” I manage to wheeze out.

His eyes narrow. “Your eyes glazed over as soon as we passed through the barrier. You didn’t so much as twitch when I grabbed your throat. Then that noise you made… what the fuck happened, girl?”

Understanding dawned. “Memory,” is all I can manage to say with his hand enclosed around my throat.

Even the three other talnarins are on edge. Their skin glows as they survey the burnt village. Malik releases the grip on my throat ever so slightly. Air rushes back in and I start hacking and coughing. Malik’s hand still encompasses my throat in warning but at least I can breathe again.

Once my breathing is under control, and the coughing stops I say, “It was a memory.” My voice is hoarse and my throat sore. “I couldn’t help it, and it took me by surprise is all. This place doesn’t bring back fond memories.”

Unconvinced, he says, “Don’t play games with me, girl.”

I grit my teeth before spitting, “It’s the truth.” Without a word, Malik’s hand released my throat completely as he slides off his mount. With a quick tug, I’m pulled from mine and I drop into Malik’s arms. I keep my eyes downcast as Malik sets me on the ground and grips my arm.

His face is suddenly inches from mine; I can feel his hot breath as he speaks. “If you try anything, you’ll be dead faster than you can blink.”

I snap my eyes up and meet his hard stare. With that, he releases my arm and straightens.

The four talnarins box me in again and the feeling of being suffocated engulfs me, but I don’t say a word. I’m afraid of angering them more. I’m afraid of the repercussions. I’m already treading on thin ice, no need to push my boundaries further.

In a matter of seconds, we are moving to the center of the village. I brave another look around this place and spot the differences from the first time I was here.

Where the once pristine wooden home stood, now sits burnt ruble. The wooden home no longer brings a bit of life to this haunted talnarin village. Instead, the burnt ruins make this place feel desolate and abandoned. The lack of life and sounds in this village only adds to the creepy feeling. This place appears to be completely abandoned, I’m guessing They all left after the incident.

It’s more than likely He isn’t here either, and I’m not sure how that makes me feel. On one hand, I’m relieved I don’t have to face Him yet, but on the other hand, a small part of me was looking forward to ending this now.

As I take a closer look around, I spot scorch marks all along the grass leading to the cement prison too. The only building still standing, seemingly untouched, is the jail. Even the pit in the middle of the village is burned, the edges are crumbling in, and the benches that once stood around the pit are broken, blackened with soot. Meanwhile, the cement prison shows no outward sign of scorch marks or burns, alluding to an untouched structure.

But I know better. As we slowly make our way further into the destroyed village, I keep my senses peeled, my attention focused. Who knows what, or who, might be lying in wait.