~Her Existence~

CHAPTER 9

Heart throbbing and knees buckling, Nagi stood there motionless under the pale moonlight. She didn't notice how long she was standing there after Hao disappeared, but when she did . . she only sighed. He's going away he said, He'll come back for her he said. Somehow his words kept repeating itself inside her head. And the more she tried to accept the fact, the more she hated it. Firstly, she did not want him to go yet, not after everything that's happened recently. There was still some things she hadn't done, some things she hadn't said yet that she wanted to, at least before he goes. She wanted to get the chance to kiss him again and be the one to initiate it this time, she wanted to hug him from behind and see his reaction and she wanted to be able to tell him how she truly feels for him. She would have done all those things if she knew he was leaving. But of course he didn't bring it up until the last minute, and with only a short goodbye she really couldn't do anything anymore.

Nagi's eyes flickered toward the spot where Hao stood five minutes ago. She absentmindedly touched her bottom lip as she closed her eyes. She would trust his words, they will see each other again. Holding on to that, she slowly peeled her gaze from that spot and head back home. The forest seemed darker this evening, somehow absorbing the mood that she was feeling.

She walked under the pale moonlight, her sight adjusting to the shadows of the forest and was able to see the path towards home. But as she passed the intersection at the heart of the forest, she heard a sound. It was coming from the east part of the forest near her plantation. Even though she much rather go home and lie in her bed awaiting a sleepless night, she forced herself to step towards the plants to find out what and where that noise came from. Her shoulders were slumped and her eyes were heavy, all her thoughts were still bent on Hao. Sadness was clear in her features, but it was soon replaced by horror as she saw the scenario before her.

Her eyes scanned the place. The small clearing on where her plants reside was half destroyed. Nagi gasped and bit her lip as she stare at the limp plants on the ground. She slowly walked to the closest one, and touched it. Many were still standing but it was obvious that the safe ones are less in number than the ones that were destroyed. Nagi whimpered as she thought about all the time and effort she gave in all this and yet now more than half of it were ruined. She heard a sound of engine and machinery nearby and her eyes darted at that direction. She slowly stood up and started marching towards the noise she heard until she saw a flicker of light up ahead. Her paced slowed as she got closer to the culprits and her eyes bugged wide as she saw seven grown man, four of them holding chain saws.

Her knees started to buckle. The first thing she thought was to run, but she couldn't move from her place because they might notice her. Fear clouded her mind and all reasoning seemed to leave her. Calm down! She mentally screamed. Nagi let go of the breath she didn't know she was holding and slowly came back to her senses. She thought of the many reasons why these men are here tonight.

"Are we really going to do this?" The man on the Far East asked. He was holding a huge axe on his left hand and a lamp on the other. He was a thin yet tall fellow with harsh, angular features. "What if we get caught?" he asked.

"We won't." Nagi sucked her breath as the man nearest to her spoke in a deep, grave voice. He wore a dark blue heavy coat and black boots. The man reached out his hand to flick his cigarette to the ground. "We've been doing this for months, and no one's even noticed. Why worry? No one even comes here." He's words seem to calm the others, from what Nagi has seen, it seem like the Man with the deep voice was their leader.

"That's because this is a reserved area." The Long haired man said, he seemed younger than the rest.

"Exactly. It means, no one expects us to cut trees here." Their leader replied with a chilled voice.

"But –" The long haired man tried to argue.

"Do you want in or not?" The man with the Deep voice yelled. The long-haired man nodded weakly. "Then quit your yapping and start Logging 'em!"

She watched as they started their chain saws and did their first tree. Nagi wanted to scream, She hated what they're doing. How dare they!? She was getting mad, and she was glad, because right now her anger was the one fueling her courage and confidence. She came out of her hiding spot to walk right up to the Man with the deep voice and give him a piece of her mind. But as she took her third step, they noticed her presence and stopped their actions. The man with the deep voice slowly turned to face her, and as he did the light coming from the lamp slowly lit his face and to her dismay, it was someone she knew.

"You?!"All her courage and confidence fell as fear and betrayal sunk in. It was one of their town council, McGerald . . . something. She couldn't remember the name but she has seen him hundreds of times around town celebrations, issues and elections. She couldn't believe it, the one who lead this group of loggers was one who they trusted the most? How corrupt is he for him to allow this?

"Hmm… aren't you a little lost kid?" Said the big fellow next to McGerald. She felt weak and alone and she hated it. She just stared wide eyed to the men in front of her. She couldn't speak. "Ah… so you want me to take care of you, huh?" The big fellow taunted but McGerald halted him. He took a few step towards Nagi and analysed her. She returned his stare with anger and fear in her eyes.

"I know you." He announced. "You're that granddaughter of Old lady Len Len who lives at the end of town, near the lake." He concluded with that deep voice of his and a blank expression.

"OH NO! so you know her! And now. . . now she knows you! We are dead. We are soo dead!" The paranoid, thin, tall man exasperatedly said. "We're gonna get caught, she's gonna tell on us!" he screamed while pointing his axe on Nagi with huge, wide eyes.

"Shut up Jansen!" the big fellow yelled.

"You. . . . allow this?" She demanded in a weak voice after a few seconds of silence.

"Go home kid. You have no business here." He stated before turning around and ordering the men to continue what they were doing. Anger flamed within her one more.

"And you have no right in doing this!" Nagi exclaimed.

"You can't just let her go!" The thin man dramatically said. "She knows too much!"

"This is not right! This area is reserved! You can't log here, it's illegal." Nagi told them yet none paid too much attention to her.

"We know that kid, why do you think we do it secretly in the first place?" McGerald mockingly asked. "Just go home kid."

"But you're a member of the council! You of all should be stopping this, not encourage it! I planted seeds in this area because I want them to grow, not to be logged by some ruthless loggers someday!" She shouted while stomping her feet. Mcgerald turned to look at her with stern eyes.

"That was you." He announced realization. Something in his stare silenced Nagi, he stepped towards her ones again. "What now then?" he challenged. She felt fear now, clearly there's no making sense to this guy. Panic came to her senses and the urge to run was getting stronger. "Are you going to tell everyone in town? Cause I guarantee you that no one will believe you."

"If I tell them you're involve, they might give it a second thought." She blurted out. All the men watched them and listened intently towards where the conversation was heading. Why would you say that?!

"See? She'll have us all in jail by morning!" The paranoid Jansen reacted. He panicky grabbed something from his back pocket and raised it in the air in a familiar, frightening way. Nagi took a step back at the sight of a pistol on the grip of the thin man. "I am not going back to that place. I am not!"

"Woah, Jansen. Let go of that man. " The big fellow slowly approaches him but Jansen remains panicky and with his shaky grip, Nagi thought he could pull the trigger any minute. "She's just a kid. You're not gonna shoot her are you?"

"If she tells on us, I will." Nagi begins to realize that Jansen may not be as sane as he looks. His actions are very alarming. He still hadn't lowered his gun, and Nagi couldn't move.

"Put the gun down." McGerald instructed in a stern voice. Nagi watched slowly as the thin man shakily lowered the gun, it wasn't aimed on her head anymore but she still felt that it was aimed somewhere on her lower body.

"Please." She whispered.

"I warned you to go home kid." He angrily said.

"Please, stop this." Nagi continued to plead. She wasn't sure if her plea was about the gun or still about the logging. Either way, it didn't matter. She didn't know what else to say, she couldn't think properly under the situation. And under all those feelings within her, she didn't hear the booming sound that echoed the forest at the slight pulling of a trigger.

There was only pain beneath her left breast. . . and then there was nothing.

"YOU IDIOT! You just shot someone!" Nagi heard one of them say as she look down on her lower torso to see blood flowing down her shirt.

"I'm SORRY! But she was going to tell on us!" After that reply a loud crunching sound was heard followed by a thud on the ground.

"Now you're definitely going to rot in jail!" Another booming voice said. Nagi tried to look up but she couldn't take her gaze away from her blood stain hand. She lifted her right hand to get a closer look as her sight begins to blur. No! Her hearing was off as well as she can see the men behind her bloody hand, yelling and arguing and yet she hears nothing but ragged breathing.

Nagi fell on her knees, still looking at her blood stained hand. Having sound left her, sight slowly leaving her and life being sucked out of her. I'm bleeding. . . bleeding.

Help, was her last thought as she felt her body limp to the side. Nagi shut her eyes, thinking of the one good thing that she could thank the gods for giving her in this life time. She squeezed her eyes tighter as she felt the ground on her hip and expecting her head to hit it as well. But with a gentle blow of the wind, instead of the rocky soil that awaits her head, it was soft leather that caught her fall.

In a split second the only thing that her senses, or whatever is left of her senses, can comprehend was the stillness and silence of the night and with it was the cold wind that brushes her skin. She couldn't hear anything, she couldn't speak, she couldn't see . . . she could only feel.

Suddenly she felt heat.

Heat all around her, on her chest. . . through her heart. And with that she knew. He was here.

The men stopped arguing when they saw the girl fell, but just before her head hit the ground, a strong wind blew that made them shut their eyes and blew the flames on their lamp. McGerald squinted in the darkness as he tried to search for the girl's body on the ground. Slowly his eyes adjusted in the darkness, and he could see the girl. . . and another.

"What is it?" One of his men asked. He could see it caressing the girl's cheek. He took a step closer and it moved. The men halted their movement as fear sunk within them.

"You . . Jackasses." A deep, grave, THREATENING voice announced in the dark before everything BURNED.

The men tried to run but there was nowhere to go, everything was on fire. Mcgerald stared at the one before him, a young boy with long spiked hair and unholy eyes that screamed hell. Those eyes, those flaming eyes. . . .

Devils eyes. . . was the last words he uttered before the flames engulf him and his soul..

I'M SORRY FOR MAKING YOU GUYS WAIT. YOU'RE PROBABLY ITCHING TO KNOW THE NEXT THING THAT HAPPENS, I WILL TRY TO POST IT AS SOON AS I CAN. BUT PLEASE I WOULD REALLY WANT TO HEAR WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY. . . . .

NAGI DYING IS KINDA SAD. . . IT'S GONNA BE A CHALLENGE TO BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU GUYS A SATISFYING ENDING. I HOPE I WOULD BE ABLE TO DELIVER IT.

Thank you for your patience,

Kate =]

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