Meet me on the battlefield

Chapter 8

Ocha was resting her head on Bolt's shoulder, listening to his even breathing.
'We've been through a lot together. We left the country, found out that Tusta was dead, and...'
She couldn't even think about the creature and the thing. She had shaken the thoughts from her head when she heard a loud crash. Both she and Bolt jolted awake to see what was making a commotion, and when they saw them, they were overtaken by fear. They saw the creature and the thing fighting. The creature rushed over towards them, and scooped them up, before taking them away. They were being chased by the thing, and the creature had now taken them thousands of feet up in the air.

"What's going on!?" Bolt yelled at the creature. It was hard to hear anything due to the loud noises that the thing was making. The creature hushed them and eventually landed in the middle of a desert. The creature placed them down on the ground and guarded them against the thing. Bolt knew that he was far from Sydney, but there was something familiar about this place. He couldn't pinpoint where from though, but he didn't have time to. The creature started to sing. That same haunting tune.

"Meet me on the battlefield, even in the darkest night.
I will be your sword and shield, your camouflage, and you will be mine.
Echoes of the shots ring out, we may be the first to fall.
Everything could stay the same or we could change it all."

Then it hit him. It hit him hard. Like a hammer pounded into his chest.

This was where his father died.

The thing had landed, and the creature braced itself. Bolt and Ocha backed up behind the creature. Ocha tried to sign if Bolt was ok, but he could say anything: he was overwhelmed with shock, fear, and sadness. Then the battle began. The thing charged at the creature, and punches were thrown, swords were unsheathed, and the light was everywhere. The battle couldn't even be seen because of all the light. Screeches and screams could be heard from miles away, and the ground shook vigorously. After 10 minutes of fighting, the thing, tired and in need of healing, slumped into the ground, and the creature turned towards them.

"Who a-are you?" Bolt asked the creature, through breaths of shivering and fear. She smiled kindly at him.

"Don't be alarmed, Bolt." Her words were smooth and comforting. She lifted them, higher and higher until they were rested on a cloud.

"My name is Alana. I know who you both are, Bolt Jayden and Whilara Angela." Ocha looked confused, and Bolt spoke on behalf of her. "Her name is Ocha Nimiano. You must be confused." Alana laughed. It sounded like bells ringing. She kept laughing until she saw the looks of confusion on both their faces. She turned serious.

"You mean you don't remember?" They didn't reply. She sighed and started speaking.

"16 years ago, King Melonto Angela and Queen Mathura Angela had triplets. First me, Alana, then you, Whilara, and then Nivara. We were all given a gift at birth: I was given the gift of creation, you were given the gift of creation, and Nivara was given the gift of darkness. But, when we turned 4, a terrible war struck Astrono, our land in the clouds. Our father could only grab two of us though, and Nivara became overcome with jealousy. She pushed you out of Astrono and onto the earth, erasing your memory in the process. Mother and father were devastated, so they punished Nivara. They took away her ability to speak and banned her from Astrono. The war ended shortly after, and that's when I came down to try and find you. But instead, I trampled upon and dying man and his son. You, Bolt. I saw the fear in your eyes, so I came down to you, and started singing 'La Canción de La Curación', The song of Healing."

"The haunting song." Bolt interrupted.

"Yes. But you became fear-stricken and scared me away. I didn't want to cause harm, so I left. But I have been watching you both until this day. And I have tried to protect you both, but Nivara bet me to it. She took your ability to speak, and so I chased her down. Unfortunately, I can't get your voice back from Nivara. But, I can help you a voice." Ocha's face lit up instantly. She nodded as hard as she could. But Bolt wasn't so happy.

"Does this mean, that you were trying to heal my father? And that it's my fault he's dead!?" He started getting tears.

"Bolt, dear, he's not dead. I saved him. After you and your family left, I saved him. It was a close call though, and he has no memory of the event. But he is alive." He stopped tearing and looked up.

"Are you serious?"

"As serious as I'll ever be. I can take you to see him soon. But first things first. Whilara needs a voice."

She lifted the cloud higher and higher, towards Astrono. Ocha, or Whilara, was more than excited to get a voice, and Bolt, was lost for words.