A/N: Hey! I'm back with a new chapter of Land of the Fallen.
Okay, can I just say how overwhelmed I am with the amount of reviews I'm getting for this story? You guys are making me blush! :')
I've taken all your ideas in as well, and I've good some pretty good storylines from them. Thanks:)
Without further ado, I present thee with the next chapter :D
Enjoy!
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"You are so much heavier than you look," is the first thing I hear when I open my eyes. The harsh daylight makes me wince, and I abruptly shut my eyes tight. "and I thought that you looked pretty heavy already."
My mouth opens in bewilderment. Why is this person criticising me already? And why are they carrying me? My brain seems to be foggy, hindering me from remembering a certain memory… "Who are you?" I ask curiously.
They sigh impatiently. "Not this again, troublesome…"
Something clicks in my mind. "Paul."
"That would be my name." He intones dutifully, but I can hear the irritation laced around his words. "And you're Dawn. Do we really have to go through this again?"
I shake my head before realising that he can't see me as I'm on his back. "No, sorry, it's okay, I was just, um, wondering..." I say, flustered by his attitude and also the way he says my name.
"Wondering what?" He snaps in exasperation.
"Where are we going?" I whisper pitifully.
He doesn't answer for several seconds but, when he does, his answer is short. "Somewhere safe."
"Safe from the Fire people?" I question him.
He tenses slightly, and his grip on me tightens. His answer gives me shivers. "Possibly."
I don't ask him anything else.
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We've been walking for quite a while now – or at least, Paul has – and I'm kind of feeling like a bag of unwanted items. Paul is refusing to acknowledge my constant whimpers as the pain I felt earlier in my head keeps increasing, nor does he ask me if I need water or food.
Eventually I decide that if he's not going to bother, then neither will I.
I cough loudly into his ear, muttering: "Don't worry about me, Paul. I'll travel on my own." I make a move to jump down from his back. His hand stops me.
"No."
"You really think that the word 'no' is going to stop me?" I laugh slightly, amused. "Because where I come from, it takes a lot more than that."
"The place that you come from is gone. Stop talking about your Kingdom as if it's going to be magically replaced. It's not."
I roll my eyes. "I guess some people just have more optimism than others." I sliver down his back like a snake. "Tell me, Paul: do you see the glass as half empty or half full?" I don't wait for his answer as I continue my way down the jagged path, my shoes making small zig-zag patterns in the sand. The only footsteps I can hear are mine, as they slap against the floor.
Then, I hear his answer; his voice soft as he speaks.
"I just don't see a glass at all."
I pretend that I didn't hear his answer, that his words didn't make my head spin with questions. Why is he so… different? Why can't I figure him out?
My feet continue moving regardless, even though I don't know where I'm going.
Great. Just great.
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"Oh, well done, Dawn. Anger the person who could have saved you. Walk away from him. Oh yes, Dawn, you are a genius."
I sigh to myself, ignoring the burn I feel in my back as I lay down on the burning sand. I have no clue where I am. Everywhere I look, there's just sand. Sand on the floor, sand in my hair, sand in my eyes. Just sand. Everywhere.
Suddenly the colour yellow isn't as appealing as it used to be.
I carry on my mini-dialogue, ranting to myself furiously, "He was probably the only person who could have saved you. You could be eating food; you could be drinking water…" I kick the stupid sand with the heel of my foot angrily. "Right now, you could be lying on a bed instead of sand!"
"You could also be talking to people instead of yourself."
I whip around quickly, trying to locate the source of this voice. My gaze falls upon a guy with sweepy brown hair, who is smirking at me arrogantly.
"You know, I think I could be your knight in shining armour." He grins at me brightly.
"What makes you think that I need help?" I roll my eyes at him. For someone I've only just met, he seems to be pretty confident about himself. "Besides, I'm not a princess."
"You're as beautiful as one." He says simply. "And I guessed from your conversation… with yourself."
My cheeks blush red, and I try to convince myself that it's from the latter comment, not from the former. I stutter out, "I-I might need help, b-but n-not from you."
He chuckles to himself, eyeing me curiously. "And why's that?"
"I believe in women, er, helping themselves. We don't need help from, um, men. Yeah, that's it…" I trail off when my mind runs out of stupid ideas. Really? I don't even think I count as a woman yet.
"Well then, at least allow me to escort you to where you need to go." He says smoothly, walking directly up to me and grabbing my hand.
My thoughts turn to Paul for a second, before they disappear. "If you insist." I grin, before pulling my hand away. "But don't try anything." I warn him.
He tuts. "Me? Try something?" He clutches a hand to his heart dramatically. "How dare you hurt my feelings like that!"
I roll my eyes but don't say anything.
"I'm Gary, by the way." He informs me suddenly.
"I don't really care, by the way," is my sarcastic reply. "I just want to get from here to… well, to somewhere that isn't here."
"I see…" We walk in silence for a couple of minutes. "So you don't have a name?"
"I do have a name, actually."
"And that would be…?"
"Dawn," I sigh, giving in to him, "but don't get too used to the name."
"And why's that?"
"Because after we get to a village or town or something, I'll be gone." I tell him seriously.
"Fine by me."
"Good."
"Good."
"Shut up."
"Shut up."
"You're so annoying." I snap before blocking his idiotic voice out of my head.
I really hope we find an inhabited place soon.
Like, really soon.
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A/N: Oh! A reader asked me to explain who comes from which Kingdom, and stuff. So here goes:
Uri (Kingdom of Light) - Dawn and Ash
Enya (Kingdom of Fire) - Paul
Tuwa (Kingdom of Nature) - Drew and May
Aukai (Kingdom of Water) – Misty
I hope that helps!:)
