"Papa!" The distressed cry rang through the forest, bouncing off tree limbs and reverberating through the gathering dusk. "Paaaaapaaaaa!" Birds stirred in their nests at the forlorn call and settled more tightly on top of their nestlings, wild cattle raised their ears and lowed in uncertainty.
Only a few eyes spotted the small figure wandering through the brush. A human child, only about six or seven years old, was lost in the woods. Her hair was an earthy brown and hung mostly down to her shoulders, apart from the bangs that framed her frightened face and fell into icy blue eyes. The girl's feet were bare, muddy and scraped, and her blue jumper was ripped in several places.
"Papa!" Emily sniffed and wiped her eyes on a grubby forearm. What had started as a fun game of hide and seek with her toddler brother, Joakim, had turned into a terrifying trek through the acres of woods that surrounded her house. Angrily the girl swiped at a branch, yelping when it whipped back against her side. She was almost seven; she wasn't isupposed/i to get lost! Joakim was only four! If anyone got lost it should have been him! Instantly Emily felt contrite for wishing such a fate upon her little brother and she sniffed again, looking up at the darkening sky.
Her father and mother had warned her expressly to inever/i be out after the sun set. While their iron golems kept the area directly around the house safe, farther out was dangerous as monsters were always lurking. Emily wasn't that scared of zombies, they were slow after all; but skeletons were terrifying, as were creepers. Spiders could iclimb/i, and the clacking noises that their hairy legs made on the ground had echoed through many of her nightmares; however, what she was absolutely petrified by were the endermen that walked the night. Her father Rythian had told her that she must never get near an enderman, or look it in the eye. Looking them in the eye was a challenge, and a challenge could not be refused in their culture; her mother Zoey had said that even if she didn't look at one, she should stay as far away as possible. Somehow the endermen were very angry at her father, and that anger might cause them to want to harm Emily and Joakim, but Emily could never get a straight answer from either parent as to why.
A noise made Emily freeze, and she crouched in the bushes, heart hammering against her ribcage. Twigs poked into the girl's back, but she resisted the urge to shift as it might give away her position. Slowly the noise became more audible; a hollow rattling sound. A skeleton! Emily clapped both hands over her mouth and nose to stifle the sound of her terrified breathing, and she remained absolutely still as the dead monster hove into view. One of its lower ribs was missing, and the others clacked against each other as the creature stalked through the trees. It carried the traditional bow and a quiver of arrows; one was nocked to the string and ready to fly if prey was spotted. Empty eye sockets scanned the undergrowth, and a toothy grin was frozen in place as the monster walked right past the trembling girl.
Emily relaxed as the danger passed before slipping from her hiding place, leaving a scrap of her dress on a branch as she wrestled free of the undergrowth. Casting a panicked look around, the girl began to run through the woods. Her eyesight was good in the darkness, a gift from her father's side of the family, and she ducked under branches and hopped roots that would have injured another person. Catching sight of a figure, Emily threw herself down onto the ground behind an oak tree. Had it seen her? What was it?
A strange ihssspop/i noise made her jump, and then there was silence. Was it gone? Had the creature left? The same noise sounded again right behind her, and Emily shrieked in surprise, whirling on the mystery assailant. A tall black figure, a swirl of particles, and a pair of purple eyes that were nothing like the loving ones she looked into on a daily basis. An enderman; and she had just made eye contact.
Rythian frantically cast about in the gloom, his violet eyes piercing the darkness in search of his wayward offspring; by his side was Ghost, his faithful wolf. Elsewhere in the forest Tee was searching for Emily as well, his bow drawn at the ready. Zoey had stayed with Joakim at the house in the hopes that Emily would find her way home on her own.
The enderborn sighed, running a hand through his hair in exasperation. Two children had left the house that afternoon and only one had answered Zoey's summons from the back porch. Joakim had turned up immediately, saying that the two had been playing hide and seek, and that Emily was a really good hider because he had been looking for a really long time. Zoey had picked up her son, cradling him in her arms and saying that Emily would be back any minute and that he could ask her where she'd been hiding. They had waited, but Emily hadn't shown up. After ten minutes Rythian had struck off into the trees, calling for his daughter. Tee had gone in the other direction to cover more ground, his scaly brow creased with concern for his foster niece. Rythian had summoned Ghost after ten more minutes of calling that had yielded no reply; setting the wolf on her trail, he had followed the shaggy form into the dark.
The trail wound back and forth through the trees, over rocks and around hillocks. They had followed it for almost twenty minutes before stumbling on a thicket that held a scrap of her dress. Rythian picked it up, frowning; Zoey had made Emily the jumper, and the girl had striven to take care of it. He picked up the pace, following Ghost anxiously.
"Paaaaaaaappppaaaaaa!" The terrified cry froze him in his tracks before galvanizing him into action. The enderborn and his wolf sped off into the gloom.
Emily was unable to look away from the monster that was advancing towards her. She was paralyzed with fear, her body trembling against the rough bark of the tree behind her. The girl and the enderman had exchanged stares for what seemed like an age before the creature had released a horrible rasping cry and begun to walk towards her. The jaw had dropped open almost to the creature's chest, and she stared at the empty mouth with a sort of horrified fascination. As the enderman reached for her with skeletal black hands a scream tore from her throat.
"Paaaaaaaapppaaaaa!"
The monster paused for a moment, seemingly confused by the cry, before hissing at her and leaning down. Emily curled into a ball in a futile attempt to shield herself from its touch.
"Emily!"
The girl jerked her head up as two forms crashed through the brush behind her. Glaring, the enderman retreated a few paces from the snarling wolf and furious man before it. Ghost stood in front of his master's child with his hackles raised, yellow eyes narrowed furiously at the threat to his pack and fangs bared. Rythian drew the blade Enderbane, narrowing his eyes slightly at its stinging touch before pointing it threateningly at the black form.
"How dare you threaten my daughter!" He gritted out.
The enderman hissed defiance at him before disappearing. Whirling around, the enderborn's eyes darted hither and thither in search of a sign as to where the monster would reappear. Seeing darkness gather beside the oak trunk, the man threw himself at his daughter, shielding her with his own body and grunting as sharp claws raked down his shoulder. Ghost snarled and lunged at the monster, latching onto its arm and biting hard. Screaming, the enderman was unable to teleport with the painful anchor tethering it to the terrestrial dimension. The scream cut off abruptly as Enderbane was shoved through the narrow chest and yanked back out. Ghost let go as the assailant crumpled to the ground in an undignified heap.
Emily looked up at her father with awe; she had barely seen him move he had been so fast! Climbing to her feet, she rushed at him and hugged him around the waist, burying her face against the rough material of his shirt to stifle a sob.
Rythian wrapped his arms around his eldest child, breathing a silent sigh of relief. He'd nearly had a heart attack when he'd realized that his foe was about to strike at his only daughter. Kneeling, he began to check her over for injuries; seeing nothing other than a few scrapes and bruises, the enderborn turned to his wolf.
"Good boy, Ghost." The gray tail wagged at the praise as the beast stepped forward and licked Emily's cheek.
Hoisting his daughter up into his arms, ignoring the flaring pain of his injured shoulder, he began to walk back towards his home. Emily hid her face against his neck, feeling the material of her father's facemask brush against the top of her head. Looking down slightly, she could see Ghost padding proudly alongside them, his tail up in the air like a victory flag. Somehow the walk back to the house seemed to take much less time than her walk away from it had, and when she saw the reassuring glow of the torches Emily couldn't hold back a whimper of relief.
The door was thrown open and Zoey rushed out onto the porch, her fiery hair seemingly ablaze in the torchlight, Joakim followed behind her clutching his purple baby blanket for comfort.
"Rythian! You found her thank goodness! Where were you, Emily? We were so worried and you didn't come when I called and Joakim said that you were playing but he couldn't find you and didn't we tell you not to wander too far away from the house? What were you thinking with the sun almost going down? The mooshrooms hadn't seen you and Tee is still out looking and I was going crazy waiting for someone to bring news but it's all ok now because you're safe but really messy and I think you need a bath!" Zoey stopped to take a breath.
Smiling fondly, Rythian deposited Emily into Zoey's waiting arms. Turning to Ghost he tuned out his wife's rant and spoke to the wolf. "Ghost, bring Tee home." The wolf yipped at the command and spun around before loping off into the brush. Turning back around, he tuned back in.
"…..and your clothes are all torn and why on earth did you go so far from the house? Thank goodness Joakim didn't get lost too which surprises me that it was you because you're older but I guess you must have inherited my sense of direction instead of your father's and –"
"Zoey." Rythian tried to interject.
"—you're probably hungry because you've been all over and you're lucky you didn't see a creeper! Your feet are a mess too!"
"Zoey."
"What?" she finally turned to look at him, her blue eyes afire with relief and leftover anxiety.
"She's asleep." He pointed out gently.
"Oh." Zoey looked down at her daughter, who was snoring gently against her mother's neck. "Well, I suppose a bath will have to wait until tomorrow morning."
Ghost emerged from the trees with Tee in tow. The dinosaur's eyes roved from the sleeping Emily to the relieved looking Zoey and he let out a sigh and a toothy grin. He motioned to the snoozing child questioningly.
"She's fine." Rythian nodded reassurance, "Shaken up, but fine. Thanks for all your help tonight, Tee. I know you've been up since dawn, why don't you go home and get some rest?"
The sharpshooter saluted rakishly with his bow before turning to make the trek to his tower, which sat hidden among the trees to the west. The darkness seemed to swallow him as he stepped from the torchlight, but Rythian had no doubt that his faithful friend would make it home safe and sound. Behind him he heard Zoey's footsteps as she took Emily into the house, presumably to tuck her into bed.
A brush of fur against Rythian's leg made him look down to see Ghost staring up at him. "Good boy, Ghost." The enderborn scratched his pet behind the ears. "Thank you for finding my daughter." The wolf chuffed softly and padded off the porch, disappearing around the house to his den which he shared with his mate Willow.
Rythian turned and entered his home, trying not to jar his shoulder, which had become a knot of stabbing pain; little Joakim followed behind him. Zoey came down the stairs and briskly stepped into the living room, massaging her temples.
"Are you alright?" Rythian asked her gently.
"I was so worried!" Zoey sighed, resting her head in her hands."She was missing and I just didn't know what to do and I never ever want that to happen again! She could have been hurt or worse or—"
"Papa," Joakim's voice was quiet, but it didn't' mask the alarm, "You're bleeding."
Zoey's head snapped up like she'd been struck, her expression stricken. i"What?!"/i
Joakim pointed his little hand at the floor beside where his father was standing. The thick purple cloak hid the injury well, but enough blood had leaked from the wound to soak the side of Rythian's shirt, and now a few spatters of scarlet dotted the worn floorboards like little blooming flowers.
"Joakim." His mother's voice was clipped. "It's late; you should go to bed now."
"But Papa—"
"Will be fine." Rythian cut his son off, smiling fondly. "Go to bed, Joakim."
Uncertainly the boy looked at his parents. His father's expression was one of resignation; and his mother looked taught somehow, like if she were pushed too hard she would snap. Deciding discretion was the better part of valor, he retired upstairs to his bedroom with all the dignity a four year old could muster.
Rythian timidly turned to meet Zoey's gaze; she was staring at him, face frozen in that same expression of shock. "Zoey, I'm sorry. I was trying not to scare the children by waiting until they were in bed, but….." He sighed, "Instead I wound up scaring you."
"What happened?" she demanded, finally snapping into motion.
"An enderman." He said as she unfastened his cloak. "It had Emily cornered."
Zoey drew in a sharp breath. "Did it touch her?"
"No," Wincing, he raised his arms so that Zoey could remove his black shirt. "Ghost and I stopped it."
As his shoulder came into view Zoey gasped, "Rythian!" One hand rose to cover her mouth.
His shoulder was a mess. Four long, bloody furrows ran from his collarbone to his shoulder blade like some sort of morbid crop rows. The flesh around the gashes was angry and black, and blood seeped from the injury to drip down his lean torso. Zoey balled up his shirt and pressed it to the wounds, stemming the blood and murmuring an apology when he flinched.
"When we jumped in, the enderman teleported; he was going to appear right next to Emily and attack her. There wasn't any time to think, I just jumped in front of her." Rythian resisted the urge to shrug. "I would rather it be me than her."
"I would rather it was neither of you." Zoey snorted as they walked to the bathroom. Sitting on the edge of the tub, she dipped a cloth in warm water and began to gently wash the blood from around his wound.
Biting back a hiss of pain, Rythian managed to grit out, "Yes, well if I'd had the option."
Zoey rinsed the cloth free of blood. "Are you ready?"
"No."
"Me neither." Her voice shook as she wrung the clean water out directly over the injury.
Rythian's vision went gray around the edges as the gashes began to hiss and smoke; the blackness from the flesh around them draining out into the air. Zoey lunged forward with an exclamation of alarm to catch him as he slumped sideways.
"Rythian?" She bent to look him in the eyes. i"Rythian ?!"/i
"I'm alright." He gasped out. "Didn't hurt at all."
"Liar." Making sure he could sit up properly, she rummaged in the cabinet before bringing out a roll of bandages and a pad of gauze. Tenderly she began to wrap the injuries. "I'm sorry that there isn't a better way to clean enderman wounds."
"Me too." He offered her a crooked grin as she neatly tied off the bandage.
Most of the burning sensation from the wound had ceased, and now his shoulder was just a dull ache. Zoey pulled a small bottle down from a high shelf and sat before Rythian, gently pulling down his facemask; obediently he drank the healing potion that she pressed to his lips before she returned the mask to its rightful place. The potion would help dull the pain, kill the infection, and stimulate tissue healing.
Standing, Zoey disappeared down the hall for a moment before returning with another one of his signature black shirts, helping him to don it. Supporting Rythian gently, Zoey walked up the stairs to their children's bedrooms. Checking Joakim's room, they were surprised to find his bed empty; but a short walk down the hall revealed him curled up with his sister.
"He was very worried about her." Zoey murmured, leaning down to brush the dark brown tuft of hair growing in her son's lighter brown bangs.
"We all were." Rythian tucked the purple baby blanket tighter around both of his children. Gazing at them both, safe and sound, made his injury suddenly ache a lot less.
"I'd hoped that I would be braver when I was older." Zoey sighed, "But now I feel like I just have different fears instead of less of them."
Rythian wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "It's natural to worry for your children." He squeezed her gently. "And you're the bravest person I know."
She turned to see him better. "I worry for you too." Her blue eyes were bright with unshed tears in the glow from the hall. "You go out and you come back bleeding with these injuries and act all cool about it and…" Her voice was strained. "I just don't know what I'd do if anything happened to you. What if one day you go out and you don't come back?" A tear slid down her cheek.
Rythian brushed it away and leaned his forehead against hers, their eyes locking. "Thinking like that will only upset you." He murmured. "Do you think that I don't worry for you as well every day? Right now we are safe, and we are together, and that is all that matters. Here and now."
"Yes." She felt like she was drowning in violets. "Here and now."
That night as she lay curled into the crook of Rythian's side she repeated the mantra to herself in time with his breathing and heartbeat, taking comfort from the fact that her family was safe and together as he had said.
iHere and now, here and now, here and now./i