SPIRIT ANIMALS FANS MUST READ!!! I created a idea for Spirit Animals series #3

Chapter Fifteen: Conor

UNNATURAL

Rain lashed down onto Conor as he crept along the forest floor. He shivered under the cold, stinging drops of water. They came down in steady waves, drenching his hair to the side of his face. He grumbled softly to himself, padding forwards on an unknown path.

The skies hung low with black clouds. Flashes of lightning shone above and a rumble of thunder in the distance. A storm was approaching and he had to hurry and find shelter before it arrived.

Quickening his pace, the boy's chest heaved with tiredness. It had been around a day or two since he had run away in fear. No food had left him hungry and allowed his mind to wander to places he wished would stay hidden. Things he regretted once, now resurfacing as easy as the sea overtaking a lone ship. He clutched his head and tried to make it stop, but the same words echoed from within. Leave and no one will get hurt. They have suffered for your lies. Conor now regretted not telling the group the truth. All of this is spiraling around that dream, the secret he wished to keep. But he knew the voice was telling the honest truth, even though he wished it wasn't. Stay and they will surely die. Worthy will die. Abeke will die. He said to himself. We don't even know where Rollan or Meilin are! They could be dead already? A tear slipped down his face, but he didn't seem to notice. The guilt was too heavy, weighing him down until his legs shook. He tried whipping his emotions away and reached for something comforting. Anything that would distract him from what had happened.

Abeke. Her dark face and braided hair. The look she gives him when she is thinking or knows the answer. He can always tell when she is sad and when she needs something. Her lips parting into a smile and the unmistakable laugh. Uraza rubbing against her leg and the girl stroking the big cat's spotted fur.

He stopped and felt his heart beat faster. He had never told her his true feelings. How much he cared for her and the pang in his chest when she is away. Over the years they had grown close, but he felt something more inside, like a flower blooming. Soft petals against his heart which made him want her more than he could admit. But now a disease was taking over and killing the plant and making him confused on what was real and what was in his head. He had left Abeke and now might not get to tell her how he felt. A mistake he wished he could go back and fix. I can't lose her like my other friends. I can't bear any other deaths that cast blood on my hands. I must find a way back, even if tearing my very body to do so.

He stopped and let the downpour drench his clothing fully, then felt his face hotten with tears. "I left her! I left them all!" He finally cried out. "I was afraid and left my family!" Cradling himself down to the ground, the boy fell under his own pain. "When they needed me the most, I ran away in blind fear. Why would I ever do that?!"

Dropping his head, the emotion flowed down and splashed onto a pile of dead pine needles. They darkened with every drop.

"If only I had told everyone... if only I had-" He cut off at the sound of footsteps close by. They were quiet and carefully paced, but he could still make out the easy shakes of the ground. He looked around for any cover and saw a fallen tree, a small dip under it where he could hide. Conor pushed himself up and made way for the hole, gritting his teeth hard. A flash of lightning shone in the sky and soon followed by thunder. The storm was upon him.

Sliding around in the mud, he threw himself under the tree and held his breath. Hoping the strangers had not seen his hurry, he lay face down and prayed to Briggan they would pass.

"We should stop for the night." Called a male voice.

Conor froze with anticipation, fear creeping over him like frost. Outside, he could see five figures, torn cloaks wrapped around their shoulders tightly. They were a few feet away, wore swords by their sides, and spears strapped to their backs. Their frames shivered in the sudden light bursts, then disappeared with blurred darkness. The tallest led the group to the side of a pine and they sat down with their bags still on. He then tossed his over and made way to a thicket, pulling over branches and dead leaves. He was cursing to himself, mumbling words Conor would only faintly make out.