Its been a while but I'm back

Chapter 4 ~First sign~

Claire watched through the window. The murmuring rain was soft music upon the rooftop, and the tree swayed against the window ever so often. The young woman could not deny her appreciation and love for such weather. A proud pluviophile.

Still, her relaxation did not last long. There the feeling came back. A region of her chest felt like it choked her. Claire turned away from the window and used a chair to support herself to remain standing.

Leah came into the room with a candle in her hand. "Claire, are you alright?"

The time traveler bit her lip. She wanted to open up to Leah to feel better. But that desire cannot be done.

"I feel like a child just opened my eyes into the world." Then, Claire paused for a moment then stood straight. "After that, I was left alone to learn and grow up."

Leah heaved a sigh and placed the candle on the ground. The hostess cannot quite understand what this must feel like, knowing that Claire is far away from home. To lose one's sense of home is a terrible pit of despair.

"I'm alone too, Claire," Leah replied. "I could be your family. You are welcome to live here with me until you want to move away."

Claire glanced back at the raven-haired woman and smiled, followed by a sorrow-filled chuckle.

"I guess I should thank the lucky star I was brought here to you."

Leah reached with her hands and pulled Claire into an embrace. Claire murmured the word 'thank you' in her ears.

Lightning flashed in the room for a second, and the sound of thunder followed again. The duo stayed silent for a moment, watching the storm outside.

"You never thought about getting married?" Claire broke the silence. "Sorry, I mean, do you have someone?"

Leah smiled back at her. Not the first time someone inquired about this topic, and this will not be the last.

"Altair used to be my partner." She continued. "We were together for a couple of months, but things just didn't work out between us. He is just too much of a closed book, and I couldn't look past it. We remain on good terms with each other."

Claire finally smiled, and she replied. "Do you mean to tell me that creepy man who does not even have emotions within his voice is actually a closed book? I'm so shocked."

Leah chuckled. "Amen, sister."

Once the storm ended, Claire walked out of the house independently for the first time. Most of the villagers are still in their homes. Only a few walked outside, checking for damages from the storm. Claire picked the bench near the wooden gate for a place to sit. It gave her a good view of the overall village.

The time traveler almost came to accept that she would be living here from now on, and who knows if she will ever be able to understand what happened and come back home. This is her new life; no need to dwell in pain any longer. She just had to try to accept this and start a life for herself here.

The question is, what could she do? It's doubtful she has skills this village could use. There aren't any office jobs and seemingly undead monsters.

Maybe she could ask to be hired by the military as someone who could take care of the survivors. But who knows if they will accept her, to begin with? Moreover, since she is a foreigner, they still don't know where she came from and what happened to her.

She placed her head between her hands and breathed. The stress is too much. Unbeknownst to her, someone watched her and then approached.

"Milady." A voice severed her train of thought.

Claire gazed up only to see Altair standing in front of her, his face still not visible enough for her to see... she could not see what he felt.

"Altair, right?" She answered. "Can I help you?"

For the first time, she noticed Altair flinch slightly at her, and she wondered if her tone came off as rude.

"I'm going for a horse ride. You want to come with me?"

That question felt really out of nowhere and a surprise. The time traveler hesitated for a moment, unsure how to answer that. Then, a thick, awkward silence fell between them for what it seems to be hours.

"Why?"

Altair crossed his arms and answered. "Because you look like you are carrying the weight of the world upon your shoulders." He offered his hand to her.

Another surprise. He is actually offering help.

"O..kay." She mumbled and took his hand. Gently he helped her to her feet and started leading her toward the gate.

Something she did not notice when she went out to the pond for a shower.

There was a wooded stable to the left of the gate. The stable had several horses. Some were hitched in a small wooden fence planted in the ground. Different colors and sizes, and there were some haystacks in the middle. Smelly as expected. Altair went ahead of her and picked a grey horse. He removed the reins and started leading the horse out to the path. He placed his foot on the stirrup iron and pulled himself up on the saddle.

Altair looked down at Claire and offered his hand.

Again, the time traveler felt hesitant. Although she never rode a horse, this was the first time she saw a horse for real. The animal looked large and intimidating, with its thick tail moving ever so often, its eyes darting around. This was ridiculous. Claire Redfield, the bioterror survivor, the woman who faced zombies and tyrants, is afraid of a horse. She would be the butt of all jokes for a very long time if Chris and her coworkers knew about this.

"Are you afraid?" Altair broke the silence

Claire looked down at her hands and nodded slightly.

"Take my hand. It's alright." Altair spoke again.

She trembled slightly and took his hand. Slowly she lifted herself up with his help. Color spined around her as she finally rested behind him and dangled her legs to the side. Her breath hitched in her throat.

"God." She whispered.

Altair guided her hands to his waist. "Hold on." He whispered before beckoning the horse to accept his command and then using his heel to pat the horse. The animal started galloping down the road. Claire felt the cold air kiss her face... and slowly, she began to feel better. This reminded her of going on a highway to enjoy feeling to possess control of her life with less speed.

The time traveler observed the scenery around her. Green land was a sight to behold, along with the strategically lined trees.

Claire laid her head on his shoulder and took a breath. "This is nice."

However, she realized what had just happened. She was close to another man. This is wrong. She has a boyfriend, which is just not okay.

She flinched slightly and corrected her posture.

"Sorry." She whispered.

The horse finally stopped in front of what seemed to be a dead-end. Altair dismounted and offered his hand. Claire accepted and pushed herself down, her feet landed safely on the ground, and oddly enough, she felt like the ground was titled with her.

"Woah," she said as she felt herself almost falling to the side. Altair held her arm tight and stopped her.

"You never rode a horse before?" Altair asked. "No offense intended, but your reaction does not reflect an experienced rider."

Claire did not feel like pretending to be someone she was not. "Yeah, it's my first experience. A bit scary." She scratched her head.

His lips moved slightly, but it was enough to see a genuine smile for the first time. He wasn't mocking her.

Altair let go of her hand and pointed to a nearby path.

Claire did not notice another path split off the road she traversed earlier without the luxury of street signs on everything. Hidden between weeds and dead leaves, a way to climb up to what seems to be a small mountain.

The two walked in silence. Oddly enough, the sunlight was almost hidden by dead tree branches. It cast a long shadow. Claire felt her legs get heavy, like climbing up to Masyaf castle back in the village. It took them about a minute to reach the top. The moment she stepped out of the tunnel-like path, a loud gasp escaped her lips.

There was a field filled with flowers of all colors and all kinds, the scent of the air was the best natural perfume she experienced. No modern fragrance would ever come close to the aroma in this place. Several butterflies flew near her and gathered around pink flowers. That was the only moment Claire wished she had a camera. It would be a shame to not have a picture of this.

"What is this place?" Claire asked.

Altair wanted to give Claire a little more time to absorb the area before his gaze scanned the flower garden.

"We have a folk tale here," Altair replied. "There was a man who planted a flower for himself because he lost his home. However, he knew other families had suffered like him, so he planted a flower in their honor. As you can tell, he planted for every family that has suffered from the needless war that blighted the land."

He looked around at all the vibrant flowers that had never changed in years.

"All of these flowers represent someone from his home and his family members. These flowers never withered... The mentor discovered them when he was a lad and later found out about the legend from his parents. We have a belief that anyone who needs a blessing for their lives should come here and stay for a time."

Claire took a moment to allow his words to sink in. This place is actually a beautiful legend from a tragedy.

Slowly she allowed herself to lie down between the flowers, eyes focused on the sky. Then, after a moment, her eyes lulled shut.

'Beware the dark god's wrath.' A voice echoed in her ears. She jumped to a sitting position and searched around her.

No one was there but Altair who was standing a few feet away from her.

"Did you say something?" Claire asked. Silently Altair shook his head no. Once again, she was hit with a vision and didn't understand what that meant.

Dark God? Her mind would not conjure up anything that could explain that.

So she chose to switch up the mood for a bit.

"You know, you are the strangest man I've ever met." She said with a chuckle. "You look like a wolf, but your actions are something else."

Altair tilted his head and replied. "I get that a lot."

Claire nodded with a smile. He almost reminds her of Leon because of his stoic attitude. However, Leon is much more expressive than that.

Leon . . .?

The mention of his name brought heartache. Deep down, she wondered what was he doing at this very moment. Was he looking for her?

"Pardon my intrusion, milady," Altair spoke. "But why do you carry burdens upon your shoulders? Life is too short to dwell in pain."

If only Altair knew . . . he would never say that to her. But, unfortunately, no one here can soothe her stress.

" No one can help me." She sighed. " I will be fine on my own It's okay."

Altair heaved a breath. " I understand where you are coming from, certainly. Sometimes happiness is from within, validation from others would never fill the void in your heart."

Claire glanced at his hidden face, such words hit too close to home. Curious, what did he experience in his life to speak such words?

"Can you tell me what happened the moment you realized this?" She said. Altair's shoulders sagged slightly and his face dropped. Claire understood, he didn't need to say anything. He didn't want to talk about it. At least for now. Maybe when they are good friends, she could ask again.

"Thank you for what you did for me." She bowed her head slightly." I'm sorry about the question."

Altair sighed and watched the sky. Clouds gathered once again, a sign of the storm coming back again. It was time for them to leave before they got drenched in the rain and end up sick.

Altair turned his back on her and started walking back to the tunnel-like path." We should go back to the village."

Claire rolled her eyes as she pulled herself onto her feet and dusted her dress's leftover leaves. The moment she started following him, something at the pit of her stomach alerted her. A horrible feeling like she was about to barf. She stopped and placed her hand upon her fast-beating heart.

Her mind screamed that she would regret it if she returned down to the horse, and it's unclear why she felt this way. However, Claire learned to never ignore her instincts and it helped to save her life in many instances.

"Altair, wait." She called at him as he almost reached the path.

Altair glanced back at her. He noticed the apparent fear in her eyes immediately. Her chest moved up and down rapidly.

"Milady?" He faced her again. " What happened?"

Claire shook her head. "Don't go in there, not yet."

"Is something the..." He was cut off when the sound of a screech echoed. The sound seemed far away like it came from...Altair froze and listened carefully.

The screech shocked him to his core. He never heard a sound like that before, and he witnessed horses getting killed during battles. It was a rough and harsh neigh. Like a person begging for help but unable to speak it.

Another voice followed. A chuckle that slowly turned into laughter. A sound so odd it felt like the person was trying to laugh and cry simultaneously.

Claire felt waves of nausea hit her even stronger... this isn't right. It cannot be.

Altair heaved a breath and started walking, his footing was so light he didn't make any sound like he was merely floating through the path. She followed behind closely. With each step she took, her heart hammered in her chest. Unfortunately, she knew this feeling all too well.

No, not here too.

Once the two of them reached the end, a large pool of blood caught their attention. Altair placed his hand on her shoulder and gestured for her to wait there.

However, a man appeared in front of them. His mouth and teeth were covered in dark blood. His hair was disheveled, and his robes were tattered. A sign of a red cross on his chest that got mixed up with blood.

"It's a gift like no other." The man spoke. His voice was cold. "You will be honored to be chosen."

Altair tilted his head slightly and saw his horse on the ground with its stomach open. Its entrails were out and looked to be chewed on.

"What in God's name did you do?" Altair asked with a sense of fear evident in his tone.

Thank you for reading

Thank you The95will for your help