I feel like SareG's manager. If you want her to continue, you'll have to bug her for me. Her e-mail is the_morrigan9@hotmail.com. PLZ! This is all she had written. I'm going to have to steal the next chapter, if it's written. Yeah, yeah, the characters don't exactly match their original profiles.
People, I present to you, SareG's work, Escape from Terrafu.
^-^ klinaime1
~*~
Quatre was to die. His life would end at the hands of strangers, in a foreign land, and then sacrificed for alien gods. An Englishman would be forfeited to keep alive a race of people he knew nothing of. Still, Quatre was fight for his life against the warriors of Terrafus', which was better than nothing, he supposed.
During his captivity, Quatre only met, saw, and communicated with one person, the guardsman outside his cage. As to the demeanor of the rest of the race, he had no clue. Through the long hours of waiting for his demise to come, he heard the talk of commoners through the wall of his cell. While the jailor talked to him in fluent English, these people seemed to be communicating in some language unknown to him.
At twenty-one, Quatre was no great combatant. A known scholar and voyager, he had never so much as hefted a sword, let alone whatever barbaric weapon these people had in store for him. In short, he was doomed.
Raye sat in the sun, basking in her own despair. Why she was so dismal was the question. This was a great day for Terrafu. They had a prisoner to sacrifice to the gods and throughout the settlement there was an air of excitement because of the coming battle. The Terrafuians had been having strings of bad luck for the past twelve years because of the lack of human sacrifice. Sheep and goats could satisfy the gods into short-lived contentment, but no human blood on the altar had made them extremely short-tempered. Besides, a clan needed to eat, and precious few animals could be spared.
Raye cast her mind back four days and thought of the prisoner they had finally abducted. He was of the enemy, Leader said. But thinking back, she found that he had seemed so young and innocent before he had been kidnapped and subdued. And he was all alone. Surely there had to be others? What if he had a whole army behind him and they came looking for him, tearing the camp and its inhabitants to shreds?
"There are too many questions that need to be answered before we sacrifice him to the gods," Raye mused aloud.
"True, but the people are looking for his blood to be spilt. Surely you would not disappoint them in that?"
Raye whirled, not recognizing the usually familiar voice and drew her dagger. A rather large wolf emerged from the brush behind her. Sighing with relief, she sheathed her dagger and looked at the completely black wolf standing in front of her. Smiling, she rubbed Reyulc behind the ears. The wolf sat down at her side and stared down the slopes of far-off hills.
"But I feel as though I know him from somewhere and he'll play and important part in all of our lives." Raye sighed and lay on her back to look up at the clouds. "I know how important this event is for our race, but what if we're making an extreme mistake? He could be our savior and we'll never know it."
Reyulc looked at her with eyes that held the wisdom of a thousand years. "Time will tell, little one. If the gods truly wish him to help us, they will let us know. Come, Raye. We must head to the altar."
Reyluc turned and trotted off towards the settlement. After a few moments, Raye stood up and followed her wolf friend.
Quatre looked up as the door to his cell opened. After four weary days without food and with little water, his stance was wobbly and he trembled with the effort of holding himself upright.
The guardsman led him up a flight of narrow stairs to a small, well-lit room. In the center of the room stood a long wooden table covered in food. Enchanted by the sight of real food after so many days of starvation, Quatre ignored all else and dove into the food.
"The gods like them with full stomachs," the guardsman intoned before leaving and locking the door behind him.
Only slightly disturbed by this statement, Quatre continued on for half an hour before the door opened again and a tall slender woman entered the room. He glanced up at her and did a double take at the solemn expression on her pretty face.
"Who are you?" he asked, gaping at her sudden appearance.
Carefully forming the words, as though unfamiliar with the language she replied, "I am Raye. The gods are expecting sacrifice, as are my people, but it must not be you. I have come to save you from your fate." Then, hearing footsteps outside, she hissed, "Come quickly before they find us in here!" Without waiting for a reply she dashed towards a door on the other side of the room that Quatre had not noticed before, took a key from around her neck and opened the door.
Seeing that he was not following, Raye turned and grabbed his wrist with surprising strength and pulled him bodily through the door. She slammed the door with her foot just as the other door was opening.
Raye and Quatre emerged in a long corridor, obviously part of a palace. Panting to keep up with Raye's quick sprint, Quatre asked, "Where are we going? Why are you saving me? Aren't I supposed to be your enemy?" He tripped and Raye hauled him up from the tiles.
"There will be time for questions later. Now, we must escape quickly. Shh!!"
Quatre didn't quibble. He had no idea what was happening to him or how he would end up surviving this terrible ordeal but right now he focused on the burning sensation in his lungs. That seemed to ease the confusion even if it amplified the pain.
Suddenly, Raye stopped in front of him and he crashed into the back of her, sending them both headfirst into a locked door. Quatre's companion whirled around to punch him but thought better of it. Sending him a reproachful glare, she turned back to the door and placed both hands on it. Quatre moved to better see what she was doing. Raye put her ear up against the door. After listening for about five seconds, she quietly murmured words to the door in the strange language and the door sprang open silently.
Quatre's thoughts were forgotten when Raye bounded out the door in front of him. For the first time in days he tasted the richness of clear, cool, fresh air. Breathing deeply, he didn't notice his intent friend had started scrambling down the slope directly in front of them. Hearing heavy footsteps and shouts behind him, he banished his wandering thoughts and began to descend the hill.
In front of him, he heard a scream and rocks slipping ahead of him. Raye began to slide down the hill. Quatre tried to catch up with her before she his the sharp rocks at the bottom, but in the process he lost his balance and tumbled after her.
As they careened down the hill, Raye tried to seize a passing bush to stop her fall, but all evaded her grasp. She hit the base of the hill with a sudden intensity and cried out in pain. Quatre landed heavily on top of her.
"Soory. Are you all right?" he asked, scrambling up again. "Oh, no."
Raye's eyes stared, out of focus, at the sky as she murmured, "Must reach the forest…Reyulc will help…do not delay…run…" Consciousness left her and she went limp.
"Oh, God no! I don't know where I am! How am I supposed to get to the forest? Where is the forest? Who's Reyulc?" (you can just see disaster) Quatre raised her head and saw the blood on his hand. Raye's head had struck on a particularly sharp stone.
Quatre heard the running steps and voices following down the hill. He hoisted her over his shoulder and set off jogging in the direction of the forest, hopefully.
After half an hour of quick pace, Quatre stopped and sat down at the edge of the forest. He rested for a few minutes, regaining his breath and trying to see if they were being followed. They were. Hopefully, their pursuers would not come into the woods behind them.
Carefully replacing Raye on his shoulders, he carried on his trek. Once he entered the woods he felt the cool, clean air and smelled the damp earth. Closing his eyes, he breathed in deeply. When he opened his eyes again he blinked several times and nearly screamed.
Standing in front of him was an enormous black wolf. Quatre stared at him, trying to decide whether he was real or a reaction to his sudden intake of food and exercise. He decided on the former. Stepping back a few paces, Quatre considered his options. He could try to turn around and run, but running at all would probably send the wolf tearing after him to rip him to shreds. Standing still would result in either the wolf leaping at him or the guards would catch up.
Glancing at the wolf, he weighed both the options. Then, Quatre noticed that the wolf seemed to want him to do something. Taking an enormous chance, Quatre took a solitary step towards the wolf. The wolf backed up, whined once, and turned tail to trot towards the heart of the woods. Quatre, curious, picked Raye up and followed.
Trying to keep the wolf in sight was easier said than done. The most Quatre could usually see was the tip of the strange wolf's tail. Once, Quatre lost sight of the wolf completely and hastened to catch up with him. Frantic, Quatre sprinted forward and emerged in a small clearing. There was a good-sized stream running through the center of it. The odd wolf was sitting quietly on the other side of the clearing, next to the brook.
Keeping a weary eye on the wolf, Quatre laid Raye down near the stream and began to dribble the sweet water into her mouth. Within moments, she was awake.
Raye sat up and her eyes went immediately to Reyulc. "Oh, he found you! I was so worried!" A glint of humor passed across Reyulc's face. "Actually, I found him. He was hopelessly lost."
Quatre had gotten over the initial shock at hearing a wolf talk and shot Reyulc a resentful glare. "Why you arrogant little…"
Raye cut in, laughing. "You found each other, alright? Now, let's continue on before one of those stupid henchmen catches up with us and we're all sacrificed." She got up and started away. Quatre noticed the dried blood on the back of her head.
"Don't you want to wash the blood out of your hair before we go on?"
"Oh." Raye sat down at the edge of the stream and started to wash the back of her head.
Quatre got his first good look at her face in full light. The flat planes of her face were bronzed from the sun and squinted in concentration.
"What?" she asked sharply. Quatre had noticed that she had finished cleaning her wound and was now looking at him as though he had rabies.
"Nothing," he replied sullenly, "Shall we continue?"
Reyulc intervened with a quick yelp. "Yes, let's. Your not-so-subtle pursuers are on their way."
As if on cue, two guards crashed through the undergrowth. Raye dispensed with one of them by hurling her dagger at his chest. He dropped with a grunt. The second guard hesitated, dumbfounded. This gave Reyulv his opportunity. He attacked. The second guard was dead within an instant. A quiet fell over the clearing.
Reyulc turned away and began to clean his blood-covered muzzle. Raye retrieved her dagger. Sighing in disgust, she wiped it on the grass before sheathing it.
Quatre hesitated before coming forward. "Why are you saving me?" he asked quietly.
Raye stared at him levelly. "You will play a crucial part in all of our lives. I have foreseen it."
This was the only explanation she provided. The two humans and the wolf turned silently and continued into the forest.