The Keeper Exams

Chapter Twenty-Six - His Hallucination

User: PJHDstoryteller

Name: Roman Grey

To Roman, it felt like he had died. Everything around him felt like a blur, the people around him healing his wounds were just sounds. He looked over at Maris, who sat on the medical bed beside him. "I'm sorry." He said to her."For what?" Maris asked, her voice dry and cracked."For everything I couldn't protect you from." He faltered, seeing her red rimmed eyes, "I had to literally beg for my life.""I don't need you to protect me," She said quietly. "I need you to watch out for yourself. The thing that would kill me, is knowing that you died because you were trying to save me.""I know..." Roman wasn't the crying type, and he didn't want Maris to see him crying, not when she herself was so vulnerable, but he couldn't help it. A silent tear rolled down his cheek, and he held up his hand to his face, trying to conceal the ones that followed.Maris came closer to him, "I'm sorry," she said, making him look at her, "I'm sorry." Roman blinked, "No no, you didn't do anything wrong." He pulled her closer to him, hugged her tightly, breathed her in. "Who knew it would come to this?""Come to what?"He smirked, "The first time I met you, when we danced, I was actually pretty intimidated by you. You looked so confident, like you knew you had already one this whole thing." He paused, "I never Knew I would be the one to hold you like this."Maris paused,"Andreana and I, we agreed that if one of us made it to the end, we stop all of this. No more of these little keeper exams."Roman pulled her away enough so that their foreheads were touching, "That's a good idea, I'd like to do that too. No one in their right mind would want to do this again."She smiled. "Well that's good, it's more of chance with the two of us. And what do you mean you were in intimated by me. I should still scare you."Roman laughed and tousled her hair, "You do, you do.""You better be. I don't want to loose my reputation as one of the scariest people on earth.""I don't think anyone could beat you at that." Roman chuckled A guard walked into the room and they looked up as he said, "Apprentices, there is no time to waste. Follow me to your next task."They walked out of the room, and Roman took her hand. Maris smiled, "What do you think the next task is gonna be?""Something worse than the last ones probably." Her smile faded, and Roman quickly added, "But nothing you can't handle of course." "Congratulations on making it this far." A voice said. Kate. Roman almost didn't see Maris slip away, but he quickly grabbed her arm and held her back, "You can't do anything, Maris. At least not here, not now.""I'm going to make her pay for what she did, for sending innocent kids to die. I don't care what happens to her after this," She said. "I know, I know." Roman held her as she trembled with rage, "So do I, but not now, you'll get your chance, Maris. Just think, if you win this, you get to take whatever's keeping her alive. You'll be the one to kill her." The words sounded harsh, but Roman didn't care. Some of the other apprentices began to stare. "You will be surviving in a harsh environment on your own," Kate was saying. "Roman, Zander, and Samuel are going to the Feral Forest. Sabrina, Crysalis, and Loira to the Deadly Desert. Maris, Ripley, and Luke to the Wicked Wasteland." Maris froze. "No, we can't be separated, not again.""Damn it. Wicked wasteland? That doesn't sound too friendly." Maris paled as she stared at Roman. He laughed nervously, "don't worry about me, I've got some jungle skills." "Okay, okay, fine. Just while you're there don't worry about me, don't even think about me. Just survive.""I'll try, but you better do the same." "Please. How do you think I've survived all these years?" Maris smirked, "I love you."Roman smiled. "I love you too." He leaned down and kissed her, bringing her close against him. They faintly heard Kate say good luck and then they were surrounded by a bright white light. Roman landed on a wooden platform and looked around. They were in an ocean, the water sizzling. He saw two other platforms, three people on each.There were islands out in the distance, and Roman realized he would have to get there somehow. Unfortunately, he couldn't fly. Or protect himself from the acidic sting of the waves. He would have to swim through it all. He focused on the island he would head to, a jumble of trees that looked like a forest. He took a deep breath, and dived into the water. At first, it just felt cold, then the shock came to him and he felt as if he were burning. He fought the urge to scream under water, knowing it would burn his mouth, and kicked up to the surface. He gasped, breathing in the air, his skin burning like fire. But he refused to look back, and kicked forward, gritting his teeth in pain, cursing under his breath.He swam as hard and as fast as he could until finally, his felt sand beneath him and he jumped to his feet, scrambling onto the dry island and chocking for air. He coughed up burning water and collapsed onto the shore, breathing deeply. A wave crashed onto him and he jumped up again, heading towards the dense grove of trees. "Acid water, just what I needed." He mumbled, examining his irritated skin, which was now spotted with red patches and rashes.Once he was under all the tall trees, he looked around, wondering what he was supposed to do. He had already begun to sweat, the heat of the sun penetrating through the treetops. He licked his lips. He needed water, and food in fact. He couldn't remember the last time he had eaten. He stumbled through the brush, wishing Maris was there with him. She was better at surviving things like this than he was. And with all the forest sounds surrounding him, pushing in on him like a crushing weight, and the heat of the day suffocating him, he wished she was there to keep him company. She always made things better. Roman hear something in the distance. He tensed, listening intently. It was the sound of a monkey. Cautiously, he headed towards it, picking up a large branch as he went. He peeked from around a tree and saw a mother monkey with her two children, eating berries from a bush on the forest floor. The first thing he thought was why weren't they in the trees? But then, his hunger took over him and he stepped out from the tree, still on high alert for if they attacked him. The mother looked over at him and growled, bared her yellow teeth. Roman gripped the branch tighter in his hands. Suddenly, she froze, her face falling slack as she glanced at something above his head. Roman spun around, swung his branch wildly, but there was nothing there. He peered out into the green maze of trees, but couldn't spot any danger. He turned back around, but the monkeys were gone. He dropped his arms to his sides. Shrugging, he made his way to the bush and picked some berries, relishing their sweet taste. If the monkeys were eating them, then they shouldn't be harmful. Roman sat down on the wet grass, setting the branch down beside him, and reached his hand into the bush again, but he was interrupted by a sound in the forest that rose above all the others. It sounded like a dull roaring, but not exactly from an animal. Roman stood up and listened, realizing as a hot breeze washed over him, that it was the sound of running water. Roman bolted, running away from the noise as his mind worked at a hundred miles an hour. His eyes frantically searched his surroundings, looking for something-anything that he could escape to. He could feel the wetness in the air now, and it stung the back of his neck. He ran towards a tall tree with many branches and began to scramble up, off of the ground. He had reached maybe halfway up when he saw the water rushing towards him in a huge wave. He gripped onto the branch he was on and held on for dear life, closing his eyes tight. The water rushed over him with the power of a titan. He dug his nails into the tree, gripping it so hard it hurt. The water was acidic, burning him again. And when he thought he could hold on no longer, his head emerged from the waves. He gasped, reaching up for the branch above him and he pulled himself out of the water entirely. The air was so warm that he began to dry immediately. His fingers were bleeding, and his lungs were exhausted. He leaned against the trunk of the tree, sitting down on the thick branch, and waited for the water to recede. "Roman?" Roman blinked, seeing Maris sitting on the branch above him. She slung herself down to his branch, and tilted her head quizzically at him. "What are you doing?" Roman blinked again, Maris wasn't supposed to be here. She frowned at him, touching his knee gently, her skin rough "You look so tired, Roman.""What-" he tried to say, but she cut him off. "It's ok, I'm here now." She was leaning closer to him, her eyes snakelike.She bared his teeth, showing a pair of fangs. "It's going to be alright." She hissed. "You're not her!" Roman kicked at her and suddenly, his hallucination lifted and a snake launched itself at him. Roman yelped, holding out his hand and slowing time. The snake froze in midair, it's teeth glinting in the light, venom dripping from them. Roman scrambled to his feet, keeping an eye on the snake as he made his way down again. Once he felt the forest floor beneath him again, he took off running, away from the snake tree. The heat was making him see things, and his head hurt. He kept looking for a river or some kind of water source, but he couldn't find one. Instead, as the sun began to fall, he stumbled upon a cave. The heat was still as intense as it was in the day, and it sucked the energy out of him. He knew he wouldn't be able to go inside without having to encounter another animal, so he headed the other way. He found a small clearing and decided to take a small break at its outskirts. He looked up to the sky and saw a bird sitting in the trees. He used his powers to get inside its mind and used it to scout around the area, looking for signs of danger. For now, it all looked clear. He leaned up against a tree and closed his eyes to get as much sleep as he could.