The Heart of a Warrior ch. 2

Recovery

The night was filled with unholy cries from the woods that surrounded them. Tafe was racing down the trail to the fort, but it wasn’t in sight. They had a long way to go. Zeight was holding on by a thread, but soon she wouldn’t be able to hold on any longer. Tafe looked at her and saw that she was struggling just to hold on to him. Tafe pushed his horse to limit and spotted the fort over the hill. He jumped off of his horse and rushed Zeight inside as soon as they reached the door.

When the door swung open, the team jumped. Tafe was covered in his comrad's blood. Aeris's eyes widened and questions ran through her head. Instead of asking them, however, she rushed over to the table in the middle of the room and swiftly removed the things on top of it. Zeight was placed there, and Aeris began to examine her wounds.

"Aeris, can you do something for her?" Tafe asked.

"I can try, Tafe, but it doesn't look good. She's bleeding out," she explained.

"Do whatever you can."

Aeris (their medic) nodded. Then ordered people about having them get things for her as her hands shook and hurried about. Tafe held Zeight's hand as Aeris had someone apply pressure to her wounds. Zeight squeezed Tafe's hand implying that she was going to pull through. After everything was finished, Zeight was put in the bed upstairs; and Aeris was left to look after her. Everything calmed down. Tafe, along with the rest of the group, gathered in the back room to discuss the attacks. The room was rather dark, but a fire danced about in the fireplace. The air was thin and moist. Dust could be seen falling around them. Tafe began to speak of their plan.

"If their numbers keep increasing at the rapid pace, then we'll be overrun. We're going to have to pull back soon," Tafe said as he stood by the fireplace, "Once Zeight has recovered, we're going to go find Kerrs. For right now I need you all to take up defensive positions just in case the night has more terrors in store for us. Don’t give up hope."

While they all went to their posts, Aeris was still sitting by Zeight making sure all was well.

"Zeight, you're going to pull through. We need you... If you can hear me, open your eyes."

"Kerrs?" she mumbled.

"Open your eyes."

Zeight's head convulsed, and she saw everything a blur. She turned her head to look at Aeris, but couldn’t keep her eyes open long enough to tell who it was. Zeight knew she was safe now though so, she closed her eyes and held on to Aeris's hand as she fell into a deep sleep.

In her dream she saw herself as a child. She was dressed in white and her hair was short. She was picking flowers, and Kerrs was there with her. They started to play around pretending they were knights. They picked up sticks and started sparring till Zeight fell through the ground. She ended up in a void. Nothing was happening till suddenly a wolf appeared in front of her. Zeight backed up and saw that there were many more she hadn't seen before. Soon, she was surrounded by wolves (the same kind she fought at the ruin), and they all looked the same. She backed up again, but they growled at her. She fell onto her back and they pounced on top of her. She saw the creatures face get closer and closer to her till waking up.

She started panicking and sat up in her bed screaming like they were still there in front of her. Her mind couldn’t tell the difference between what was real what wasn't. Aeris woke up from her sleep too and came over to Zeight. She was shaking, and her eyes were wide open. Aeris held her till she stopped crying, which was quite awhile.

"Aeris, I don't know if I can make it without Kerrs. He's the only part of my family I have left," Zeight whispered still quivering.

"Zeight, you've made it this far. Don’t give up now. We'll find Kerrs... I promise," Aeris said trying to comfort her friend.

"I hope you can hold true to that promise..."

The days seemed like years. As they passed, Zeight suffered considerable agony. It was a slow recovery, but she was determined to find Kerrs as soon as possible. When she felt strong enough to fight again, she got up before everyone else and started training. She still had her bandages on, but her wounds had formed scars. Even though she felt suitable for battle again, she still looked defeated. Zeight took her sword in hand and started attacking the training dummy in front of her. As she trained, memories ran through her head.

When Kerrs and Zeight were just children, their parents were slaughtered in front of them. They ran and hid as the screams of their family members and neighbors rang in their ears. Their lands were taken by the evil people of Vlandar. Vlandar formed the darkness of the world, but their people were even darker. They would sacrifice innocent beings, kill off the people that were weak, and beat the women that lived there. They sacrificed children to their gods—ignoring the screams as they were consumed by fire. The heinous king Vland would hold tournaments. In these tournaments they'd have Nayonarian family members that were starved fight which other for food. In the end one would end up torn to pieces. Their hate and contempt for other people drove them into madness. Ever since the queen Evashtee married the king Vland, she'd been using him as a puppet to feed her evil desires.

Nayonar, on the other hand, was a place of peace and unity. The people there lived in the plains. Waterfalls were often found on their land. They seeked something more than what was before them. They were looking for something to explain their being on this world. Every year they'd celebrate the beauty of things. They would dance and sing for their king Cyre and when an heir to the throne was born they'd offer gifts to the child. The one thing this kingdom had wrong was the prophets. They'd have them tell their child's future to them, and if it was something bad then they'd keep the child locked away and have guards keep watch over him day and night. If the child's future was well with him then they'd proclaim his good fortune with the rest of the kingdom.

The peace that kept balance amongst the people didn't last long. Soon, the people Vlandar broke the Nayarian's defenses. They clashed and fought the most terrifying war they had in years. Hell's gates seemed to have been opened upon them. They were crushed beneath the claws of Vlandar. The people had to flee into the wilderness to find safety. For many months, they were still being followed, but now they have found for themselves shelter in a storm. This is where Kerrs and Zeight fled to with the rest of the survivors. Now there are few places in the world where peace can thrive. But recently it has been disturbed.

Kerrs was taken from Zeight and the rest of them. He was their leader, and now that he's gone their hope is fleeting. But a spark still lingers in Tafe and Zeight's hearts. At this moment, they had a heavy burden resting upon their backs—Kerrs had to be found. All of these memories haunted Zeight, and it ate at her. If she couldn't find Kerrs soon then she'd lose all her will to survive. Tafe wasn't about to let that happen under his command. He found her training by their fort then came out to Zeight and began to speak with her,

"Aeris, told me she promised you that we'd find your brother. We're going to head out today and search the mountains. We believe they've camped there. That's where the wolves are coming from. You must promise me this before we leave though. Promise me you won't go off by yourself. That you'll stay with the group," he said as he watched her hack away at the training dummy.

"I can't promise you that, Tafe," she said turning to him, "But I promise I will live to a ripe old age if that's what you want," she continued wiping her sweaty face with the back of her hand.

"Sounds good to me. I know I can't stop you, Zeight. You're the most stubborn person I've met," he said with a smirk.