Chapter 12: Part 8 - Bizarre World

The empty plate on the ground was lit only by the dying embers. The passing of time seemed more like a lie as the darkness surrounding us continued for longer than I could ever remember it having done. My eyes never grew heavy because I was busy thinking of my own regrets again.

I drummed my fingers against my knee and tried to decipher what I could do to make myself feel any better. How could I apologize better to Angel? Should I try to get Tobih to talk to her about “them”?

No, it wasn’t something I was really willing to do. It felt like it would be a disservice to Tobih to try to force him into something he was trying to avoid. Maybe he had come to the same revelation about her idea of love long before I did.

I drummed even harder at this point, as if it would help. If it wasn’t already enough that I was drained mentally, I was also feeling the full effects of the physical strain on my body at this point. I was sore from sleeping on the hard ground and sitting on it, too. My legs ached and the balls of my feet were blistered from the amount of walking I had done since the start of my journey.

That bookish girl locked away in a noble’s residence was feeling very far from the comforts of home.

I wanted so badly for the journey to be over already.

In my restlessness, I stood up and knocked the dirt from my clothes the best I could. They were stained with old blood and mud now and hadn’t felt completely dry in days.

“Maybe I should apologize again,” I whispered to myself. It’s the only thing I could agree on since it also wasn’t out of my comfort zone. When I turned to find Angel, though, it was clear that I probably shouldn’t say anything just yet.

The unmistakable form of a sleeping Angel had caught me completely by surprise. Her lips were slightly parted and it was the first time I had seen her limbs so relaxed. Her rigid nature had finally fallen prey to an undeniable need.

Tobih lay just next to her, his plate of food still resting untouched and within arms reach. Angel had draped her right arm over him and together the both of them really did look like an odd couple.

Not only could I not bring myself to wake her for something as trivial as another apology but I also felt my stomach churning again. She was comforted enough to finally find sleep so I thought that maybe I had judged her intentions too quickly. Maybe Angel was right and there was more to why she wanted to be with Tobih than I could understand.

I was jealous, too, because I wanted to be sleeping by the person I loved.

However, right now my friends seemed happy in a setting that wanted to only see us suffering. I wanted, instead, to be happy for them.

I turned back to my post and watched the unending darkness for any signs of life or ‘unlife’ and for a while I didn’t. It’s only when I started to doze off that I saw shadows dancing in front of my eyes. I wasn’t entirely sure that they were real at first. The sound of a shadow slipping in the mud, however, confirmed their existence. Not only where they close but I could also see many eyes reflecting light back at me.

The creatures of this bizarre world had come for us again and I wasn’t entirely sure how to handle the situation.

“Angel, Tobih,” I burst as a quick warning and readied my staff. The heat coursed through my arms much quicker than it normally did. I tried to focus that power towards my palms and fingertips.

Three risen were converging on our camp. I sent the power from my fingertips towards the two that happened to be grouped up. While it seared the flesh on one of them, it illuminated the other two.

Metal scraping against the ground alerted me to my awakened friends. Angel dashed forward, her sword in both hands by her right side. The same sword soon broke through bones and rotting flesh without much resistance. Before it really began, the battle was over.

“Insignificant scum,” Angel spat as she moved back towards the camp. Tobih joined my side as he waited for her to return.

The ground quaked slightly beneath our feet; an abomination stepped from the darkness to reveal itself. It was a horror that looked norn at its base but also as if it had multiple limbs from different monsters attached to it as well. Chains and rigging from ships were tangled in the multitude of extra parts; in one of its hands it wielded an anchor from a ship.

Behind this beast stood enough risen creatures to qualify as a small army. Some of them I had only heard of their living forms from books. Creatures native to Orr that I would never be able to see alive. Even if I wanted to be more fascinated, I was instead terrified.

We knew this would be a possibility when we saw the bird flying above us before. As we entered deeper into Orr, the three of us would find more and more resistance. It seemed, too, that as we kept pushing forward we were finding smarter enemies. It was now making more sense to me why everyone else steered clear of Orr.

Tobih sheathed his sword and removed the staff from his back. I held firm to my staff and focused my energy as much as I could.

“Now this looks like a much better fight,” Angel spoke and a reckless smile played across her lips.