The Rogue World Of Dostira: E.D

Noctissian

She ran faster than she ever had in her life, ignoring the cries of Charlie who was screaming for her to come back. As she turned around to look at him, she noticed the creature was not far behind. Chasing her, its black mist blended into the shadows of the trees in the forest. She dared not turn her head again, in fear of seeing its face up close and confronting whatever consequence would follow if she were to be caught by it.

She felt like she was on fire, slowing down only to catch her breath and try to remove a layer of clothing. The heat was unbearable, it made her eyes water and blurred her vision while she struggled to stand still. Panting and puffing for air, she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and looked all around her.

"Where is it?" She said to herself.

While slowly spinning around in all directions, looking for the creature, the heat remained persistent. Small specks of light began swarming her perspective, and she blinked repetitively in an attempt to try and make them fade. Her eyes grew large when she noticed the outline of a face lurking in the darkness of the trees ahead of her. She squinted, trying to control her vision as she saw the creature emerge. Her panting intensified, and so did the scorching heat she could feel spreading all over her body. Within seconds she was aflame, covered in a vibrant inferno. She stood still, the ground beneath her burning as she stared at the creature.

Charlie ran into the forest, looking around frantically for Audrey and calling out her name until his throat became coarse. He could smell and hear the cracking of wood on fire and looked to see smoke surrounding an orange glow ahead of him. As he hurried towards it, he shielded his eyes from the heat with his forearm. He struggled to look at Audrey, her burning body emitting such a light that he felt he was looking directly at the sun.

"Audrey!" He cried out, "What the bloody hell are you doing!".

She looked over at him, her eyes wide and almost begging him to help her. But he couldn't, he didn't know how without hurting her.

The creature stood close to her, unbothered by the heat and looking as if it was waiting for something or someone. Its head tilted towards Charlie, almost as if it wasn't looking at him but behind him.

Charlie turned around to see a man dressed in a dark blue suit with a white collared shirt. His brown hair, that was so dark it appeared black, was slicked back. The man wore black gloves that held a long black cane decorated with strange emerald flecks and was much taller than Charlie. He gave the boy a wink.

"Mr Harkness, sir, I don't even know how this happened. She just ran off..." he began until the man gave him a look that silenced him.

"I would think that you know how to handle this Charlie. Do you believe she has the fever now?" He said.

Mr Harkness spoke in a firm and eloquent manner, enunciating each word carefully. He seemed unbothered by the blinding light ahead of him, his eyes unyielding while Charlie struggled to keep his own open.

"Tell me," he said, "shall we let the forest burn or should we do our best to contain her?".

"I understand sir" Charlie said as he began to take off his sweater.

"That won't be necessary" Mr Harkness replied, lowering his eyes at him.

He lifted his cane and hit it against the ground. The creature turned to face Audrey as if it had been commanded and its arms stretched out to hold her. Gripping onto her shoulders, unaffected by the heat, it lifted her up in the air before slamming her into the ground. With a resounding thump, the light around them had vanished and in the dirt surrounded by ashes lay Audrey who was unconscious.

Charlie stared, breathless and in shock at the sight of her frail body covered in the surrounding grime. The creature then bent down and with one of its talons, scratched her arm. A thick scarlet river oozed from her wound, the creature examining the blood covering its talon for only a moment until it licked her wound and the bleeding stopped immediately. It turned its head to look at Mr Harkness and let out a low guttural hum.

"It is official. She does have the fever. You didn't think to warn her about the Noctissian?" Mr Harkness said unamused.

"She asked about her father just as we were arriving, " Charlie replied and this unnerved the man who looked down at her and shook his head.

"When she saw the Noctissian she just took off running into the woods" he continued, kneeling down beside her.

"I expect better from you Charlie. You are her guardian, not her friend. Don't let your personal feelings interfere with what is required of you. If that means you hunt her and hold her down while the Noctissian ensures her blood status, you do it without hesitation".

Charlie kept his eyes on Audrey, lifting her up into his arms.

"I trust you don't need me to escort you both to the gates?" He said as he turned around and began walking away into the forest with the creature tailing him.

"Oh and Charlie" Mr Harkness cried out, the outline of his figure only just visible in the fumes of the burnt trees.

"Yes sir?"

"You're welcome" he said before disappearing.