"Get him!"
Sora was on the verge of heaving. His lungs felt constricted, as if someone was ringing his them out like a soggy dish rag. His high was coming down, his legs were ready to give in, and he could taste the metallic blood in the back of his throat with each breath. He didn't know how much longer he could go. He was going to vomit.
It was getting dark, the dimming sunlight now barely illuminating the forest. Dark shadowy trees growing taller as the sunlight quickly declined. They loomed over him at every angle, and ass menacing and scary as they were, he continued to follow the dark winding path they made for him. He wasn't sure if he was going to successfully escape. If they were on his trail now, they probably wouldn't give up later.
Deep in his bones Sora felt something was wrong when a group of hooded figures first approached him. When one of them asked him about the heavy leather bound book he was holding he knew he had to run. The book was the one that gave him the push he needed when it called out to him to run. He didn't question it and he ran.
The remaining adrenaline was dwindling in his blood. He was running in blind through the now dark forest, going head first against the unseen branches that reached out for him, stumbling over inconveniently placed stones, and when a tree root managed to snag his left foot, his body lunged forward. The book that he was holding tight under his arms fell further in front of him.
"Where is he?!" A raspy angry voice called out. Echoing through the dark empty space of the forest.
Fuck, fuck, fuck! Sora was panicking. The hooded people were closing in on him, and they were going to find him.
"Sora, quick, get up." The calm soft female voice called out to him. It was a demand but there was a polite air to it that made him obediently follow her orders. The book before him flipped open and the pages began turning on their own. He pushed himself to get onto one knee, legs weakly shaking while he tried to steady himself. He tried to catch his breath. "I have a spell... But I can't get us both out of here."
"Wh-what do you mean?" He exhaled out the words. When the book stopped on a page he cocked his head and furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to understand what he was looking at. A strange language scrawled on its' page in black ink. He didn't know what any of this meant.
"If they get their hands on me they'll have immense power that could change world as we know it, but I don't have time to explain. You have to trust me!" The book was quick on her words but Sora really didn't understand what was happening. Clairvoyance was one thing. He was born with that gift. Simply an extra sense that some people would cal a gift, but magic and spells? Did such thing really exist? If talking to the dead and seeing the future was something he could do, why couldn't magic truly exist? These were thoughts he had to shake out, for now. The book was right though, he didn't have time to be skeptical. Hell, a book was talking to him. He was in no position to argue
He took a deep breath. "Okay."
"What I'm going to do is use the power that's dormant inside you and mine to transport myself out of here. But... I can't do both of us... We're not strong enough. To make an actual portal requires a lot of power and I'm small enough for a simple transport spell." It was like the book almost read Sora's mind, leaving his mouth half ajar as he was about to say something. Was he really going to be left behind? Was he going to get away free? If these people were that dangerous, dangerous enough to screw up the world, he had to help. Right? There was that heroic urge that always hit him when people were trouble so he let her continue.
"I need you to forget everything that's happening right now and just listen to the sound of my voice. Clear your mind... Take a memory... imagine a place special to you, where only you would know. Feel yourself there."
Sora closed his eyes and angled his head up towards the dark sky. He took in the a deep breath of frigid air. He began to picture himself at his secret spot. He thought about how he'd let himself bask in the warmth orange glow of the sun, the soft green grassy hills off in the distance, how he'd hear the steam engine exhale below, and the large chime of the clock whenever it struck to the hour. The memory of the sweet and salty taste of his favorite frozen treat lingered on the tip of his tongue. He thought of the days he went there alone to get away from it all.
The soft voice of the book chimed in, just subtle enough for him to remain focused on his memory and to pay attention to her words. "Sora... now repeat after me. Mitte librum coram me in somnis tutum locum."
Obediently Sora repeated her words. Feeling their energy swell at the pit of his stomach. Electrical impulses pushed their way from his inner core to his fingertips and toes. It was almost on instinct when he splayed his arms out before as he chanted the spell over and over.
"Mitte librum coram me in somnis tutum locum. Mitte librum coram me in somnis tutum locum.
Mitte librum coram me in somnis tutum locum!"
His eyes slowly opened when a warm bright light emanated from the book. It began to levitate off the ground, and the trees were rustling all around him. The forest was becoming alive as the book continued to be lifted in the air bathed in light. Slowly the leather bound book started dematerialize off into the light.
"Sora... Thank you. I'll come back for you somehow. I promise... We're connected and we need each other. Give me time." The soft voice called out. Her words were comforting and the gave him chills. He felt that connection in his bones and he really did believe in her.
The last of the light faded away. The forest was finally calming down and darkness began to encircle him.
And before he knew it... the book was gone.
Everything came flooding back.
He was alone. Alone in the very same dark forest with the very same dark hooded people.
He didn't have time to react when he felt a sharp pinch like pain on his neck. He was about to reach for the spot but his body became heavy, crashing back onto the cold forest ground. Eyes half lidded heavy leather boots stepped in front of him.
"You guys we got him." The voice was dark, menacing, and Sora could almost hear the smile in his words as he lift his chin up with his boot. "-poor boy couldn't escape fast enough. Look at his cute little face." He clicked his tongue a few times. Sora had troubles keeping his eyes open. Nothing but blur and shadows. There was no fighting chance. His body had given up. He could no longer move. He was done.
And that's when everything went black.
