Death's Hunt

Chapter 7

I searched the forest for Chiyoko. I kept calling out for her, but I wasn’t sure if she couldn’t hear me or was ignoring me. I wouldn’t blame her if it was the latter. I had already sent out my friends to look for her, but not a single member of the flock had returned yet. I was not so much worried for them as I was for Chiyoko. There are some deaths out there who were really, really nasty. We may not be able to kill or hurt each other, but there were those who seemed like they were just looking for a fight.
As I glided down to the forest floor, I saw someone coming. Well, not so much coming as flopping around. There was only one death I knew that moved in that manner.
“Hey there Kakrix!” the death called out as he flopped in front of me.
“Cherg,” I simply said. Cherg was… an anomaly to say the least. He was perfectly capable of walking with his salamander-like legs, yet he insisted on just flopping around like a fish out of water. I guess for him old habits die hard since he had been a shark in his last lifetime.
“So, what brings you here?” he enquired.
“I’m looking for someone. Did you see a death with only legs, no arms, around this high?” I put my hand up to my thigh. “Looks like a little girl, bird feet… Seen anything like that?”
I believe Cherg was thinking. It was difficult to know for sure since a shark head does not convey emotions clearly.
“Well… I’m not sure if I saw her or him… whatever gender they were…”
“It’s a her,” I acknowledged.
“Anyway, I don’t know if I saw her, but I did see a silhouette fitting your description.”
I quickly grabbed Cherg’s body and pulled him up to my face. “Where? WHERE?”
“Take it easy! Take it easy! She was about… hum… around northwest, I believe…”
“Are you sure about that? That flopping around didn’t disorient you or anything?”
“Kakrix, I was a shark before I died. A great white shark like what I was, has one of the best natural navigation system in the mortal realm. I can guarantee you she was northwest.”
Part of me wanted to drop him right then and there to go find Chiyoko, but I remembered what Vlagor had told me earlier. Instead, I placed him down gently, apologized for picking him up, thanked him for his help, and flew off to find that little death. Gliding over the forest, I whistled to call back my monsters.
As the flock arrived and entered me, I began to think. It’s strange that humans are the only ones who can seemingly tap perfectly into their souls, able to convey emotions and have higher thoughts. I mean it’s not like I was able to do that when I was still alive. And honestly, I really wish that I could still not understand all these feelings. Maybe then, I wouldn’t feel so horrible.
Suddenly, I was snapped out of my thoughts as I heard someone crying. Quietly, I perched myself into a tree. I then climbed down slowly. Sitting behind a cluster of boulders was Chiyoko. Carefully, I walked up to her. When I got close enough, I spoke up.
“Chiyoko, is everything all right?” Her head snapped in my direction. She tried to get up and run away, but I guess the position she was in made it hard for her as she immediately fell onto her back.
“Stay away from me!” she yelled.
“Chiyoko… please… I just want to…”
“Leave me alone! I don’t want to see you. I don’t want to see anyone!” she shouted backing away from me. I didn’t say anything, and only looked at her. I tried to take a step closer, but she screamed, “GO AWAY! You’re nothing but a monster!”
Once again, I didn’t reply. I took a few steps back and sat on the ground. “You know Chiyoko, you’re absolutely right.”
Her face suddenly changed from one of fear to one of confusion. “I… I’m… what?”
“You’re right. I am just a monster. Figures I could only see this after I died. Listen. Chiyoko, I have made a lot of mistakes. I mean I’m rude, a jerk, scary. I don’t know how many things I’ve killed. I don’t even see why Vlagor and Anga put up with me. And I’m pretty sure that those who do talk to me are just scared that I’ll do something to them. I’m not the hero. I’m… I’m not… a good soul. I’m not even going to try to lie. There’s no use in it. So yes, you are right. I am a monster. But I’m a monster who cares. And right now Chiyoko, I care about your wellbeing.” She simply looked at me, still crying slightly. “I’m not asking for your forgiveness. I’m not even asking for you to believe me. You can do whatever you want, just know that I am trying to help you. I don’t know what I did that caused you to become so sad before, but I’m sorry. You don’t even have to tell me. I just wanted you to know that I do have a moral compass.”
As I finished my speech, I got up and began to walk away. When I was about thirty feet from where I had started, I felt something bump into me. I looked down to see Chiyoko bawling her eyes out. I bent over and picked her up, wrapping her small frame into a hug.
“I don’t know what to do,” she blurted out.
“It’s okay Chiyoko, it’s okay.”
“You… you didn’t do anything. It’s all my fault. I’m my own worst enemy.”
“Chiyoko, I would like for you to listen to me, and answer me truthfully. Are you sad because of something that happened while you were still alive?” I felt her small head nod against my shoulder. “Then we can do this together. We can learn to let go together.” As I finished speaking, I flew away with Chiyoko and said, “I want to show you something.”
As we flew through the fog, I felt Chiyoko’s talons grip my body tightly. “It’s okay. I won’t let you go,” I assured her. Finally, we emerged from the dark mist, revealing where we had arrived. The scene below us showed a rocky landscape – mountains and crevasses dipped in and out of the valley. Small grasses and bushes grew around us while small patches of snow appeared here and there. As we landed on top of a hill, I tapped Chiyoko’s back lightly.
“Look,” I said pointing up. As she opened her eyes, I could see them widen in wonder. Dancing above us in the night sky was an aurora.
“It’s… it’s so…”
“Beautiful,” I finished.
“Where are we?” she asked.
“I’ve seen where you lived Chiyoko. Now it’s your turn to see my home. And it seems like we came just at the right time of the year.”
“But you didn’t answer my question.”
“This… this is Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta, Canada. This was where I lived so, so long ago. My home may have changed a lot since my last life, but I see that the northern lights still shine bright. You want to take a closer look?” She nodded and I spread my wings out as we joined the lights and their dance. I don’t know how long we were out there, but as the show finally ended and the sun began to rise, the two of us landed in a secluded valley.
“Are you feeling better now?” I asked Chiyoko.
She smiled at me before answering, “Yes.”
“Good. Now, come on Chiyoko. Let’s go,” I said as we re-entered the black fog.
As the view faded away, I closed my eyes, and I swore that I could hear the sounds of home.