Chapter Four

It hadn't been long since the bandits left her she presumed although it did feel like an eternity. They had dumped her in the woods; she could feel the dirt and foliage beneath her feet. And the sound of wind beating against the branches of the trees frightened her. She could swear it sounded like a banshee but she knew that wasn't true. She was alone. Completely and irrevocably alone.

The blood had dried but she could still feel the wrenching pain as it had only happened a moment ago. And the loss... It did not take her long to realize the depravity of her situation. Her father was dead, her mother might be too. And her brother... She had no idea but she hoped he was safe and untouched.

And yet deep down in her gut she knew he was safe, although perhaps not untouched by the disaster. She imagined he was mourning them all, even her.

She couldn't stop the tears then and the eventual sobbing. She cried until she felt there was no liquid in her body. Drained. She had lost everything and soon she thought, she would die. It did not take her long to think of all the ways she might die. It was cold, she might die from a lack of heat during the night or perhaps without proper medical care she would die because of blood poisoning. Several different ways popped up in her mind and each way was more inviting than just waiting here. Waiting to die.

Oh Avo! She chastised herself, what was she thinking? This wasn't her. She was never the girl to think about death, to savour for it. But the situation had changed her, perhaps not for the best. Yet it was useless to think she would be saved from this mess. There was no one out there to watch her back and keep her safe. She would never see her family again.

The tears, somehow, managed to come back. She cried until they made her hurt. When they were finally gone she curled up into a foetal position and tried to sleep. Hopefully she would never wake up again.

But she did wake up, although in a much weaker position. She was thirsty. Hungry and she did not try to satisfy those demands. Every movement caused her anguish as did every thought. She ended up lying there on the forest floor for who knows how long. It was like a blur, she could not recollect time and every wandering moment she grew weaker and weaker.

She hated the waiting; she absolutely loathed it but with each, slowed breath it brought her closer to the end. It had to be close, it had to! She begged Avo for her release but he would not relinquish. Perhaps he had forsaken her.

In those moments she would sometimes hear the sound of a creek, the water lapping against the earth walls. It tempted her, to draw her out of her fate but she would not give up. The promise of being with her father in Avo's haven called to her. That thought was the only thing that aspired hope in her thoughts. She imagined her father's droopy smile, his stubble and his warm brown eyes. She also could feel him ruffling her hair and calling her 'his sweetheart.' She loved her father with all her might. He was her favourite person in the world and she had never told him that. She honestly thought she had him for forever. What a fool.

And everything was black. She may have almost all of her senses in working order, but the fact that she would never see the vivacity of the things around her was depressing. She would never see a flower in bloom, witness a friendly smile or even read a book ever again. The cold truth crawled all over her skin and blackened her heart. It made her feel sick and the waiting ever more insufferable.

Let her die already. Avo, please.

And of course he did not grant her plea. Perhaps the waiting amused him. Oh would it please him. Humans, she thought in that moment, were probably the best toys. Like the ones she used to share and play with Anita. Her friend was probably dead now, ashes...

Anger boiled within her core. She hated what had happened; she absolutely hated the ones who caused it. If she had all the powers of the Gods, she would then and there destroy her attackers. But not quickly, she conceded, it had to be slow and so painful they would wish they lived in Skorm's company. And Jack...She would make him cry for an existence without her. It was a promise...

She quickly turned her thoughts to something else; for she knew she could never enact these wishes. Thinking about them more would only prolong the pain, disappoint and deflate her. It was no point dwelling on them.

But what could she think about? Everything was so wrong with the world and she was so tired.

Please. Let it end soon.

And she slept once more.

.x.

She woke to the sound of men.

"Pick the girl up, we'll take her to camp." A gravelly voice ordered. Then the sound of a few dissenting whispers.

"Chief," someone else muttered. "But she's probably dead, what's the point?"

"What's the point? You say. The point is that you follow my orders or I'll gut you where you stand. We are not fucking heartless bastards and we do not leave behind vulnerable children. Plus-"

She felt a slight kick to her leg, she moaned.

"The girl is bloody alive. Now do I have to pick her up and take her to camp myself or-"

She was soon hauled up and placed in someone's arms. It was comforting but the smell of a stranger's sweat made her feel queasy. She vomited.

"Are you okay?" The tone was gentle but different to the other two voices she had heard before. Somehow the pain she was feeling before was fading away. Was she dead?

The stranger carrying her stopped walking and wiped the gunk off her face with some fabric. It was coarse. She wasn't dead.

"Don't worry." The stranger said. "We will take care of you. The place we're heading is rough but you will be safe. I promise."

Soothing words. Perhaps she was dead after all. One could hope.