by Kristen Day
Michael spoke up in her defense when he saw that I wasn't the only one who looked a little skeptical, "Scarlett is the one who came up with the idea to use memories to attack Daman. She did the same to her attacker when he arrived here."
None of us asked what exactly she had done, but there was a new respect for the tiny girl who couldn't have been any older than myself. I was even a little afraid of her, I did not want to be on the receiving end of her revenge tactics.
Next came Bridgette when Roman chivalrously insisted that she go first, "I'm Bridgette, I drowned." There was no further explanation offered as to the circumstances under which Bridgette had died.
Roman went next and explained that he'd been poisoned a long time ago. Around the same time that Gregor had died.
Gregor had simply died in his old age. Everyone already knew me and how I had come to be among them, the only mystery left was Maria. I explained for her.
"Maria was duped into committing suicide by Daman posing as her mother, Wendy, or as you know her, Cassidy. Maria’s here because we believe that Daman is going to attempt to infiltrate the compound and he might try to use Maria as bait to get me to betray you all." I said.
No one questioned the story; they all just nodded and proceeded to open bags containing all sorts of foods.
Sticky buns were passed around, along with a few thermoses of hot chocolate, and some apples. We ate in silence and began walking again. The sun had begun to rise by then, and as it did Maria slowly opened her eyes until she was able to walk by herself. Leigh kept holding her hand though and soon they began practicing Maria's speech again. I was no help so I caught up with Michael.
"Why are we going the wrong way?" I asked him.
"We're not," Michael said.
"But Avery told me--,"I began.
"Avery was correct in what he told you. When you asked we were going the wrong way, now we are headed in the right direction. We followed the trees around the compound. The trees keep extending until we reach the border of the main city."
Again, what Michael was telling me made no sense, so I just ignored it and pressed on with further questions, "How long until we get there?"
"If we keep moving at this pace we should be there by tomorrow afternoon. It's not far away, but we have to be careful about how we proceed. Especially now that we have Leigh and Maria with us." Michael said. He still wasn't looking at me, as he led our party through the trees.
"Are we ever going to sleep?" I asked, "Leigh is doing her best, but she's exhausted and Maria won't last long either."
"I know," Michael said, "We'll be at another clearing around two o'clock this afternoon, we'll sleep then and continue on through the night."
"How do you know the forests like this?" I asked.
"Did you honestly think I've sat in that compound like an obedient dog for the more than fifty years I've been here?" Michael asked. He finally looked at me and although the comment was supposed to be mildly sarcastic, there was nothing jovial in his eyes. He just looked worn out, sad, and slightly angry.
It was weird to think that Michael had been here for so long and yet still looked as young as he did. I knew that it was his choice to stay the way he was, but it was still slightly odd to me. It only seemed natural to age. Then I remembered that there was nothing natural about that place. The trees looked painted, the plants on the ground were far too aesthetically placed and there were no bugs, or animals to speak of. We were simply walking through a very well done set on a movie.
I didn't feel like asking anymore questions, I knew that any I did would be met with the same vague answers and disinterest so I walked alone behind Leigh and Maria and tried not to worry about what I was walking into.
At least the first time I died it hadn't been by choice, but now I was marching towards something that could very well end my life for a second time and I was doing it on purpose. It almost felt like suicide to me. I didn’t like that thought and tried to remember that it was going to be for the greater good and that even if I didn’t survive at least I could go to a place where people might be a little less serious.
Chapter Thirty-seven
Michael was off by three hours. We didn't reach his clearing until after five o'clock. By then it wasn't just Leigh who was exhausted. Avery was complaining loudly, Roman and Max kept exchanging testy words like they would like nothing more than to attempt to kill each other; even Bridgette looked like she could use a little beauty sleep.
Finally, Michael dropped his sack and turned around to face his down trodden group of followers. Scarlett spoke for the first time, "I think you underestimated that walk a bit."
Scarlett and Michael appeared to be the only ones who weren't ready to collapse on the ground.
"Why do you two look so fresh?" Avery snapped. He was breathing heavily, his face was more red than usual and he looked like a very angry dwarf.
Michael and Scarlett looked at each other and shrugged. I realized how beautiful both of them were, their features complimented each other and I couldn't help but think of them as a couple. An insane surge of jealousy made me grateful my cheeks were already red from exertion and sunburn. Sunburn, really!
"Let's make camp," Michael said, "We'll sleep here for the night and start at dawn tomorrow."
Dawn? Basically, Michael had fallen far down my list of favorite people.
Preparations for dinner commenced. Roman and Bridgette were on food duty and soon had some kind of edible something ready. I don't know what it was; I could barely keep my eyes open enough to see my fork as I ate.
Avery and Max pulled tents and bedrolls from the larger packs they'd been carrying. Maria, Leigh, and I all crammed into one tent around seven o'clock and huddled together. Within five minutes all of us were snoring and enjoying every second of the much needed slumber.
A hand touched my arm and I tried to scream before realizing there was a hand covering my mouth. I squinted angrily up at Michael and fought the temptation to lick his hand.
"We need to talk," Michael whispered. I rolled my eyes and slumped away from his hand back onto my portion of the ground, "Now."
I growled in frustration and propelled myself less than gracefully into a crouching position so I could crawl from the tent. Michael chivalrously held the flap open for me.
"What?" I snapped when I was in a standing position, "What is it that's so important you have to wake me up and drag me out of my nice warm tent?"
Michael didn't say anything; he just grabbed my wrist, put a finger to his lips and started to drag me through the clearing. A moment of panic set in before I realized that I would be able to scream before we got far enough away that we would be out of earshot of the group.
Thankfully, I was worried for nothing. The clearing wasn't much more than sixty feet behind us when Michael stopped at an evergreen tree and told me to climb.
"Are you serious?" I whispered fiercely. It wasn't that I was scared, tree climbing was one thing I could do when I was alive without fear, but I wanted to know why Michael was telling me to do it now.
"Just do it," Michael said, "I'll be right here in case you get scared, but you'll be glad you went up there."
Michael bent one knee and laced his fingers together to make a holster for me to boost myself into the tree with. I brushed his hands away and gripped the surprising sapless branches, "I've got it," I said over my shoulder to Michael. I could tell he didn't believe me, but I ignored his silent criticism and began to climb.
It felt amazing to be up in a tree again. The smell of the tree reminded me of Christmas, books, and summer all at the same time. I used to go to the park near our house just to climb the high evergreen tree that used to stand by the swings before it was cut down to be some important person's Christmas tree when I was sixteen.
I tried to get a petition going to keep the tree from being removed; Maria was the only one who signed it. All the adults I talked to were glad to see it go, they said it was a hazard for their children. I hadn't
climbed a tree as tall or strong since. This tree though was magnificent. Each branch was long and sturdy and it was probably close to fifty feet in height.
I climbed like a monkey, all gracelessness left on the forest floor below. I could hear Michael below me struggling to keep my pace. Even in the dark it was easy to find holds in the trees welcoming arms and soon I was more than halfway up the tree. I finally paused to wait for Michael to catch up.
I could see the stars through the branches of the trees. The sky was beginning to blush into dawn and soon the world would be alight with the glow of the artificially warm sun.
Michael finally reached me, his face was red and he was sweating a little as though he'd just run somewhere instead of moved twenty-five feet, "You never told me you could climb trees," Michael gasped.
"I guess it slipped my mind while I was comatose after I got here," I wasn't really paying attention to what I was saying. My eyes had left Michael's face and were instead gazing up at the stars. I couldn't help it, despite everything else that seemed too perfect, the stars seemed to still be real. There were the same constellations, when I squinted through the branches I even thought I saw a planet or two.
When Michael had caught his breath he told me to keep climbing until I could get a clear view of the sky. He didn't have to tell me twice. I grabbed the branch above me and pulled myself up another few feet before Michael even had time to get a good handhold on the branch I had just been occupying.
It really shouldn’t have been as easy as it was to climb the tree. The branches should have become shakier as they got thinner, if anything they got stronger. It also didn’t seem like it would be possible for me to fall, something in the tree made me feel as though I’d just float to the branch below me.
My clear view wasn't much more than ten feet up. The forest canopy was relatively low compared to others I'd seen. At 35 feet I was already up higher than most of the trees were at their peaks so it made it easy to see everything on either side of me. I couldn't really comprehend what I was seeing until Michael finally yanked himself up to my level again.
"It looks like your home doesn't it?" Michael asked.
He was right, it looked just like Nevada. The mountains were just as I remembered them, the roads were just as busy, and I felt like if I kept looking I could see the intersection where I'd wrecked.
"Why is everything here an illusion?" I asked, "Why can't one thing just be real?"
I was surprised to feel my voice almost catch, not with sadness, but with longing. I missed how my clothes would get sticky when I climbed trees and how bugs would sometimes land on me as I read a book or wrote my thoughts. I missed the real sun, and I missed real colors that were formed by nature, not memories that were too good to be true.
"I don't know," Michael said, "I think people just created here what they wanted when they were alive, but everyone's ideas butted up against one another, broke apart, and reformed into what we have now. To some it's the perfect world, especially for people who lost everything in life. But to people like us who were the ones that were lost, it's just an illusion, and sometimes a poor one at that."
Michael's words rang true within me. I ran a hand through my hair and suddenly realized how atrocious I must look. I discreetly began untangling my lopsided ponytail with my hands while keeping up a conversation with Michael.
"Why did you bring me up here?" I hissed in pain as my fingers caught a particularly nasty snarl in my hair.
"I wanted you to see the sunrise, if you catch it at just the right time it almost looks like the ones I used to watch back when I was alive," Michael looked wistful, as if he were caught in some memory. It was probably a memory that involved a pretty girl, summer nights, and the tension of war.
"So you robbed me of twenty extra minutes of sleep to watch something that's almost as good as the real thing?" I questioned. I was teasing and for once Michael caught on and looked as if he appreciated it.
"Only Bridgette needs her beauty sleep, I thought you would be okay without it," Michael said with a grin. I couldn't tell if he was actually attempting to flirt or if he was just joking. Thankfully, we were spared yet another awkward moment when Michael pointed to the horizon and said, "Look."
I followed his finger and saw a hazy pink smile form above the Nevada mountains. It slowly crested and the sky became awash in the colors of fire. When I used to watch sunrises when I was alive I felt like it was a promise from the loved ones who had left us. It was like they were saying, "Life is ugly now, but look at the beauty you have to look forward to."
Now it seemed like the reciprocal and more of a taunt than a promise. As though the sun was reminding us what we had left and how easily we had been duped into believing there was something better beyond what we knew on Earth.
I watched as the last of the stars were overtaken by the glow of their more powerful brother. The final star winked at me as it hid its face to sleep. Michael was the first to break the silence.
"We should go back down and wake the others. We have to get moving if we want to get to the palace in time."
"Where is the palace?” I asked as I followed Michael back down the tree.
"The palace is right on the border of the forest. Another ten miles from where we are. It will take us nearly all day to get there, but when we do, no matter what happens next, it will be over quickly. I'm sure Daman already knows we are coming, and if he doesn't he soon will." Michael said. I passed him going down and landed on the ground a full minute before he was low enough to jump.
"How would he know we're coming?" I asked, "No one has told him, you haven't seen him again have you?"
Michael shook his head, "No, but he still knows me, and he knows how I feel about what he's done. It won't take him long to put two and two together. In fact, I'm surprised that he hasn't sent a welcoming party for us already, but I guess he likes the anticipation and probably wants us to be tired when we arrive."
"I guess you're regretting not letting me have those twenty extra minutes now aren't you?" I asked. I jabbed Michael in the stomach with my elbow and set off in the direction of the clearing with Michael behind me.
Chapter Thirty-eight
I knew something was wrong as soon as we stepped back into the clearing.. Kinga, Maria's mother, Danny, and Katelyn were all standing there waiting for us to arrive.
"How did you get here so fast," Michael asked the instant he had processed the new arrivals.
"We knew you were leaving the minute Aida disappeared," Kinga said imperiously, "Get everyone up, pack your things and let's get back home. It isn't safe ou--" she stopped midsentence and it was easy to see why. A knife had pierced her left leg, another flew past my ear and lodged itself in Danny's throat. He didn't even have time to cry before he was exsanguinated. His blood seeped immediately into the forest floor and disappeared.
Katelyn knew Danny was a lost cause the minute she saw the knife, I watched as she dived into the tent containing Leigh and Maria. In that moment I loved her even more than I had before. She had obviously gone in to protect them and make sure they didn't attempt to leave the tent.
Kinga pulled the knife from her leg, she was still standing and now with a bloody knife and a bleeding leg she looked more terrifying than ever.
"Show yourself!" Kinga shouted. By this time Roman, Avery, Max, and Bridgette were all out of their tents, each holding their weapon of choice. Bridgette held a lithe looking knife that could have sliced through diamond; Roman held a shotgun, Avery a pistol, whereas Max held a heavy battle axe that was almost larger than Avery. Not really the assortment of weapons I’d been expecting.
Scarlett emerged from her tent, unarmed, still dressed in flowing silver colored pajamas, and looking dazed. Her brothers followed suit, but they were ready to defend the camp on their own if they had to. Each was carrying a sword longer than his arm. I wondered where everyone had gotten such heavy artillery and where mine was.
A man came walking out of the trees to my
right, a mask covered everything on his face but his poison purple eyes.
"What a fantastic haul," he said menacingly. Then he turned to leave through the trees again. Kinga moved so quickly I barely saw what she did. The knife that had been in her hand spun through the air towards the leaving man's back. It missed his head by inches and knicked the black cloak he was wearing just next to his neck. I thought he would turn around and fight Kinga, but I blinked my eyes and he was gone.
"Whe--" I looked to Kinga and jumped as I realized the man was standing right in front of her. I could see his eyes had gone completely black, whites and all. He had one hand on the side of Kinga's head, his thumb gently traced her mouth, while the other hand reached up and pulled Kinga's hair, causing her head to arch back painfully. Still, she did not cry out in pain.
"You shouldn't have left him Rose," the man hissed into Kinga's ear. He was taller than her and the way he had to stoop to get close to her ear made him look even more sinister, "Alecsander wants a bride, but you are too untrustworthy."
It was then I realized why Kinga had not ended the man, none of us could move. I looked around noted the frustration on everyone's faces as they tried to fight the force that was holding them back from destroying the insidious man where he stood.
In horror, we watched as the demon breathed into Kinga's mouth. I knew she would be feeling the burning of the poison as it worked its way down her esophagus and into her entire body.
The demon released Kinga but she stayed in the position he had held her in. Her eyes watered with pain and her leg continued to bleed, but the creature didn't seem to care. The demon gently took Kinga's right arm in his hand and carved a rose through her glove into the palm of her hand with his claws. Blood poured down Kinga's wrist and infiltrated the light blue tunic she was wearing.