Fool of Knight 1: Strength

Chapter 5

"Fight back already!" Every punch Zelle threw got heavier. "Don't make me stop holding back!"

Jumping in the air, she kicked my forearm as I raised it to deflect. My arm smacked the side of my face, ringing my ears and flustering me.

"Hurry up and fight! If you die right now, what do 'you' think will happen!?" She jabbed my sternum knocking the wind from me.

"What would happen... If I died now... She wouldn't kill me, would she?" I lifted my leg, countering a low kick. Grabbing both of her wrist, I pulled down, somewhat restraining her. "Stop acting crazy!"

"'Crazy'." Zelle lunged forward, firmly connecting her forehead to mine. "'That's crazy' isn't it."

I fell to the ground, covering my forehead. "Aaaagh," I wailed. My head throbbed and I felt nauseous. "Why?"

She prepared to kick me, stopping before contact. "Get up."

"If I can die that means I'm alive... So, she has been lying!" I shifted the weight off my charred knee, remaining close to the ground.

"Get up," she screamed. Raising her other hand, she caught her sword. "'You're' not allowed to hold Abi anymore, let's go."

"No..." I felt my face getting hotter.

Swinging her sword towards me the air swiped my face, knocking my head to the side with the breeze pressure.

"I'm getting tired of tryin to be nice. If I hurt your feelings, 'I' didn't mean to but if I wanted to kill you it would happen. I don't know what's going through your head, but we have somewhat specific orders to get back as fast as we can and you're 'not' making it easy!"

I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes. "I can't let her keep telling me anything she wants!"

She leaned closer. "Are you zoning out again?!"

I glared at her. "Stop lying and tell the truth! Where is this place and what's really happening to me!"

Zelle rolled her eyes and waved her hand once before jumping to the void far ahead, avoiding the final stretch of thick grass on the decline. Before passing through, her face shifted to a somber expression.

Watching her vanish took my breath away. "Wait..." An overwhelming chill invaded the back of my neck, and my knees shook.

The bushes rattled again, drawing my attention towards the wilted plant.

"Should I go back... But if I do what's stopping her from coming to get me again..." My palms began to sweat. "But going forward can't be any better... What do I do?!"

My body ached and hands vigorously tingled.

"She's stronger than I thought... she said that muscles have nothing to do with it, then where did that physical strength come from..." I wiped the blood from my cheek, cleaning my hand on the grass below.

Two loud thuds quaked the floor.

I stood and examined the area again. "Wait... Have I heard an elephant since we got here?" Pausing for what felt like an eternity, I braced myself to hear another cycle of screeches.

The still silence felt staged as even the bushes hushed.

I sighed in relief. "Maybe if I don't follow the path, I'll be fine..." I hastily veered, pushing into the bushes on the left. "As long as I watch my step..."

The massive roots of two adjacent trees connected, bending at its junction low enough for me to climb over. Lifting myself up, I stepped into the dimly lit innards of the forest.

Lack of light took nothing away from the beautiful setting. The vegetation somehow still vividly sparkled and even the rough clay below the grass shimmered.

"Pretty misleading," Zelle's voice echoed in my head.

Shaking the thought away, I moved forward. "There has to be more people here... it can't just be us." I continued further in, walking along the broken path of roots.

Every step forced grass into the soles of my feet, progressively pricking deeper.

"Is the grass getting harder!?" Squatting down, I placed my hand onto the stiff grass, applying pressure until it crunched. "If it keeps hardening like this, eventually I'll be walking on needles..."

In the distance I could see another hollow void burrowed in a tree. Thick black vines covered the top making it barely visible.

"Is that the way out!?" I smiled, trotting closer.

The crisp sound of grass being trampled came from my right.

"Zelle," I instinctively called out, pausing before continuing at a faster pace. "Is she trying to scare me again... Or prove that stupid name thing...""

The trampling moved closer.

"People!? No, something bigger is coming... Elephants!?" I ran faster, ignoring the pain as grass continued to thrash my feet. "Please don't slow down again!" As the thought passed, my body felt heavier, slugging my stride.

The blunt sound of hooves slamming against dry clay and roots closed in on me.

Running to a large root, I firmly pressed my back against its rough surface. It shook with the mighty boom of the approaching stampede.

"Will they see me?!" I slowly slid to the ground, doing my best to stay composed. My knee split from its cauterized section as I hugged my legs. "What do I do if they stop," I yelled to myself, biting my lip in agony.

A large buffalo flew over my head. Its matted copper fur and four large dark horns were all I could make before the rest of its herd followed.

"Are those... buffalo?" I shielded my eyes from the dust cloud of countless followers.

Clay in the air invaded my nostrils, coating my throat in a thin film of grit. I burst into a coughing fit, struggling to keep my body still with every heave.

Finally passing by, I prepared to stand, barely catching a glimpse of the 3 gigantic figures swiftly chasing after them. Wood chips flew onto me as their claws shredded through the root.

"*sigh* That could've been bad," I exclaimed, in a whisper. Clutching my chest to aid my sporadic heartbeat. Standing, I looked in the direction they came from. My knee grew hotter, making my leg feel swollen. "Is this from earl-" I locked eyes with a six-foot-tall lioness as it casually strolled past.

Its deep amber eyes pierced into my soul, immediately paralyzing me. The smooth, glossy sheen of its golden yellow fur was surreal.

"This can't be happening..."

"Too skimpy," it murmured in a soft gravelly voice. Its vibration constantly rattled me.

"I have to run for the opening!" I prepared to lounge for the void. "Can I actually make it..."

"Don't take that path, you'll surely die," she calmly warned, looking to the void in the tree.

"Is that thing... talking to me?!" I stood still, shakily taking shallow breaths.

She stopped in front of me. "Does your friend plan to leave you out here alone?"

"Am I going crazy?"

"Hmmm, maybe it's good I didn't pounce on you yet. Tell me, were you brought here this broken on purpose?" Her eyes shifted to my left eye.

"B-broken...," I replied, fighting my urges to run.