TEN

THEY'RE GOING TO KILL ME

The growling noise didn't stop. She didn't stop running away. She tried to see what was chasing her. But every time she turned around, she couldn't see anything. The darkness in the forest prevented her from spotting the creature that had its sights on her.

Zeema the Egyptian ran past boulders and dead trees. She could feel a drop of sweat forming on her forehead. She took quicker breaths as she gained a feeling of exhaustion after fleeing from an unseen enemy. She knew that she would have to stop for rest, but first, she had to find either an appropriate escape or a hiding space too small for anything grown up from an average human size.

She constantly hoped that she would find her friends. Perhaps Denin had survived and now began to look for a familiar face such as hers. But instead, she found the outskirts of the Silent Forest. A row of empty hills devoid of trees and bushes stood in her way. She had no choice. She ran up the hillside and tried to reach the top. She didn't look behind her anymore.

This time, the growling stopped. But that didn't stop Zeema from making it to the top of the hill. And when she did, she didn't stop. She had only one thing in her mind, and that was to make a dash to the other side of the hill. She didn't realize, however, that the other side would be steeper. She lost her footing and tripped. She rolled down the hill in a hurried fashion. Not only did it hurt, but it also made her dizzy. She finally managed to land at the base of the hill. She only felt mild pain on her body, so she assumed that she didn't break any bones.

She started to get up, and when she spotted something at the corner of her eye, she immediately wielded Denin's dagger. She had lost her primary weapons back in Perem Doris. If only the dragon didn't abduct her. Thanks to the moon, she had a clear view of what lay just a few feet in front of her. She gasped. She recognized the species of the dead carcass. A dragon lay still on the dirt floor. It looked to have been decaying for quite some time. Parts of its body had been ripped open, revealing its bones and rotting organs. Its open eyes absolutely lacked any expression.

Zeema stood up and looked around. The dead dragon didn't become the only one that she discovered in this small area. Several more dragons lay dead on the base of the hill. They had the same features on their bodies. She had to cover her nose. She couldn't handle the ghastly smell on these rotting corpses. She couldn't handle the sight of these dead beasts. She did notice something strange. At first, it looked like dry blood on the dirt. Upon closer inspection, they appeared to be the same black liquid surrounding the coastal village and the dead Vikings.

Zeema turned around. She wanted to leave the scene. All of a sudden, she heard the sounds of a twig snapping in the distance. She remained cautious as she wielded the dagger in her hand.

A young teenage girl ran in her direction. She was slim and had blonde hair. She looked to be fourteen or fifteen years old. Her attire signified her Scandinavian origins, most likely Viking territory. And furthermore, she looked frightened, something that Zeema couldn't question seeing as how this island didn't include any positive content.

Zeema called to her. "Stop! I won't hurt you."

The young Viking girl almost ran into her. Zeema had to grab her to get her attention.

"Calm down! No one is here to hurt you."

The Viking girl's eyes showed absolute fear. "I can't stop! They're out to get me!"

"Who?"

"The riders! They're going to kill me! You have to let me go!"

The Viking girl managed to escape Zeema's grasp and fled in a random direction. Zeema suddenly heard the distant roar of a beast ready to strike. She turned around and spotted a single individual standing on the hilltop. It wasn't another Viking. The individual's clothing and armor could only originate from a place called the Mongol Empire.

Zeema gasped. The Mongolian man standing on the hilltop gave her an icy stare that made her shiver. He stood still. He didn't give any signals that he himself would attack her.

Zeema took one step back. She could think of one Mongolian that would frighten her with his eyes.

Genghis Khan.

The supreme Mongol leader slowly raised his clenched fist and yelled something in his native language. Zeema didn't understand his declaration, but the loud roars in the distance gave her a hint. She decided to flee and follow the Viking girl who tried to escape her fate.

She exited the dragon killing ground. She could see the Viking girl almost disappearing in a new part of the island. She had to quicken her pace in order to keep the young girl in her sights.

She followed her as they entered a realm filled with mountains and sleep cliffs. Tall and dead evergreen trees hard it hard for Zeema to see further in the distance. She shouted at the Viking girl to keep running. Otherwise, they would fall victim to dragons ready to feast on human flesh.

The distant roars didn't stop. Zeema looked up to see if she could spot any dragons flying in the air. For only one second, she could see a shadowy figure that resembled a dragon in the sky before it blended in with the darkness. Just a few seconds later, she caught sight of another dragon-shaped figure before it disappeared behind a nearby mountain.

Zeema had to move forward. She had to make sure that the young Viking girl would leave the island unscathed.

She could hear wings flapping from behind her. As soon as she heard the roar, she ducked down and lay flay on her stomach. She looked up to see a red-colored dragon flying right past her and disappearing between the mountaintops. She noticed a man riding on top of the dragon before both of them flew away. She couldn't get a good look at his face since the two of them had their backs turned.

Everything happened so fast. It seemed like a blur. The dragons and their riders could have been teasing their prey. Zeema just couldn't find a reason for it. She could only hope that she and the Viking girl would reach safety in time.

The Egyptian pirate was about to run past a dead tree. Suddenly, something loud and bright descended from above. Zeema caught sight of it. A bolt of lightning struck the tree, causing it to explode. Bits and pieces of wood flew everywhere. Zeema had to stop and protect her head with her arms. It seemed strange. The sky remained clear, and yet a bolt of lightning had made its startling presence in the most authentic way possible.

The tree burst into flames. She looked around, and in a split second, spotted one of the dragons disappearing into the mountains. It left with a giant howl in the sky. The tree's fire grew at a fast rate. She grabbed a long thick branch with the top set on fire. Another dragon let out a loud howl. Zeema made a quick decision. She turned around and tossed the branch at the incoming reptilian projectile. The dragon flew straight up. The branch missed its entire body by a few feet. Zeema couldn't see who the one who tamed the creature really was. Both dragon and rider vanished. In fact, everything went silent again. She could no longer see any other entity anywhere.

Zeema didn't have time to think. She continued to make a run for it.

A few minutes later, she found herself in a deep rocky valley. Steep cliffs stood between wide and flat terrain. She looked behind her to see not a trace of a dragon nor a ride charging after her. She kept herself from feeling relieved. She had to find the young Viking girl. She stepped deeper into the gorge. She looked up and predicted that the rocky cliffs must have been at least a hundred feet high. Still, the ground below was so wide and large that dragons easily had enough room to wander around if they ever let their curiosity take over.

Zeema had to be careful. It became too silent at a time like this. Only the twigs snapping below her made any noise. She almost forgot about the dagger in her hand. She took a deep breath and looked around.

She heard the distant sound of someone sobbing. She spotted the Viking girl sitting near a lone dead tree in the middle of the gorge. She put the dagger away in her strap and ran up to her to see if she had been hurt.

She whispered, "Listen, what's your name?"

The Viking girl looked at her with frightened eyes. "My…my name's Larissa."

Zeema checked and didn't find any wounds on the teenage Viking. "What happened? What do the dragon riders want from you?"

"I have to get out of here. I don't want to be on this island anymore."

Zeema looked around to see if she could spot anyone. "Don't worry. You and I will leave this island together. But first, you must tell me why they're trying to kill you."

Larissa wiped away her tears. "They want to kill me…because I don't want to be like them."

"How can you become like them?"

"They want me to drink his blood. But I know that bad things would happen if I did. I don't want to be like the riders. I don't want to be one of his children."

"Whose children? Genghis Khan's children?"

Larissa slowly nodded. "I've seen what happens when you belong to him. The dragon riders have been poisoned. They're no longer themselves. Now, they're nothing but barbarians. I've seen what they've done to our own people. They killed them. They tore them apart."

Her eyes slowly widened. "They killed my parents. They killed my little brother. I've never seen so much blood."

"Oh, Larissa. I'm so sorry."

"I can't believe it. The riders want us dead. It shouldn't be like this. They used to be heroes. Why is this happening to us?!"

Zeema tried to calm her down. She didn't even realize what transpired on the cliff. An enormous beast used its paws to climb down the cliff with minimal noise involved. It had its eyes on the two humans resting near a lone tree. It licked its lips as it prepared itself for its imminent strike.

Zeema didn't notice it reaching the ground and slowly standing up. But Larissa did. She screamed. Zeema turned around and saw it. She was speechless.

A gigantic wolf creature stood on its hind legs. It had the shape of a human as it had arms and hands instead of forepaws. It had thick gray fur and sharp teeth. It must have been at least forty feet tall. The giant anthropomorphic wolf stepped closer as it growled.

Larissa kept screaming as she fled and left Zeema behind.

Zeema was about to follow her, but the giant wolf raced right past her, causing her to step aside to avoid being stomped on. She watched as the giant wolf chase Larissa through the gorge.

The teenage Viking never had a chance. The giant wolf had already caught up to her. It had her cornered. It reached down and closed its fingers around her. It lifted her up off the ground as she kicked and screamed. Her desperate attempt to escape its grasp could only prove to be meaningless. The giant wolf opened its mouth and pushed her entire body in. Zeema could do nothing but watch as it crunched down on her waist, and then on her flailing legs. She disappeared completely as the wolf swallowed her in one gulp. Zeema could no longer hear her scream.

The giant wolf slowly turned and now saw the Egyptian pirate as its next target. Zeema had no other option but to run as fast as she could. Since the wolf blocked the only known entrance of the gorge, she had to run the other way. She hoped to find another way out of this deep rocky valley.

She could hear the sounds of giant stomping feet from behind. She couldn't tell whether or not the beast would catch up to her. But then, she noticed that the gorge grew thinner. The passage in front of her had grown narrow. She made one sharp turn, and all of a sudden, she found the end of the path. It led her to a dead end. She was now surrounded by steep cliffs from left to right.

Refusing to see this as a bitter end to her life, Zeema tried to climb the rocky cliff. It started with several seconds of success before the cliff had already become too steep for her to ascend. She slipped and slid down to the ground. She tried to repeat her climb, but the sight of the giant wolf slowly treading closer toward her made her stop.

She looked around to search for an effective weapon, and could only find rocks and small sticks laying around. Instead, she pulled out Denin's dagger from her strap and hoped that it would do enough damage to the giant wolf that now towering over her. She tightened her grip on the hilt and tried to stay composed.

The giant wolf crouched down and reached out with its arm. It surrounded her with its giant fingers before they closed around her. Even if she felt its grip tightening, she still did everything to escape its grasp. She tried to push the fingers away, she punched them with her fist, and she stabbed them with the dagger. The blade did only minimal damage by making scratches rather than puncturing right through its skin. The giant wolf hoisted her up from the ground and raised her up. She squirmed in its grasp and couldn't stop kicking. But Larissa had done the same thing and it didn't help her at all.

Zeema finally stopped moving as the giant wolf gazed at her with solemn eyes. It started to growl after quickly licking its lips.

Zeema showed off the dagger in her hand and swung it in front of the wolf's head. "Put me down now!"

The wolf raised its other hand and used its finger to flick the dagger away from Zeema's hand. She watched in horror as the dagger fell to the floor. She was now defenseless in the eyes of her predator.

She waited for it. It would only be a matter of time before the wolf would open its mouth and push her in. She would join Larissa as they would slowly melt in the wolf's stomach. She began to tremble in its grasp. She had never felt so frightened in her entire life.

But then, the wolf took a step forward. It began to take a walk with the pirate still in its hand. Soon, it exited the gorge and back to the place where the lone dead tree was struck by lightning. Zeema still waited for the wolf to finish its dinner. She held her breath for a moment.

The wolf stopped walking. It lowered its hand and loosened its grip. As soon as its hand reached the floor, it let go of Zeema and let her feet touch the ground once more. She could have run away had it not for the supreme Mongol leader and his battalion of dedicated soldiers standing in her way.

One look at Genghis Khan and Zeema almost went weak in the knees. She refused to faint.

Genghis Khan grabbed her by the arm and, once again, spoke again in his native tongue. She watched the giant wolf walking away, moving deeper into the Silent Forest without looking back. Now, she had something else to worry about.

Genghis Khan spoke again. This time, two of his combatants grabbed her and dragged her away without her knowing what would happen next.

She noticed the dead tree that had been struck by lightning. The flames had now been smothered, dissipated presumably by water.

TO BE CONTINUED…