Poisoned Lips

37: beginning of the end (part 2)

Barely edited. Play the song if you want or dont whichever you choose. Id recommend though.

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Freyja jerked awake, desperately trying to clean the blood she thought was still dripping down her neck.

"It's alright, Freyja." Devland gently grabbed her arms. "You're okay."

She inhaled deeply. "How long have I been out?"

"A couple of hours, I think. The sun is set already. Azalea is by the fire. Come outside," he said, opening the tent for her to leave.

She crept out of the tent and joined Azalea, devland behind her.

Azalea sat on a wood log, swaying with her eyes shut as she hummed a tune only she could recognize. Her long hair floated around her as the wind picked up slightly.

"You're awake," Azalea remarked without turning around. "How do you feel?"

"Fine. Did you see what attacked me?"

"I saw a shadow behind you," Devland answered. "How did you get injured?"

"It wasn't a shadow," Freyja said, sitting beside Azalea. "It was an animal. I simply don't know what."

"It wasn't an animal," Azalea said, finally opening her eyes. "It's called a Kazuah. It's a mix of animals and humans that live in shallow waters. I thought it only existed in the legends my mother would read to me. It's quite venomous. You got lucky."

"Does it cause hallucinations? Because the forest—"

"What you saw was real." Azalea turned to face her. "The Kazuah touched you. It's a cursed creature, just like the howler. We can be affected by the illusions of black magic, but they can't. When it touched you, for a moment the effect wore off. You saw the forest for what it was."

Freyja observed Azalea closer. Even with the fire as the only light source, Freyja could tell the darkness under her eyes had deepened and her skin had gotten much paler.

"Azalea..."

"Let's eat!" She quipped, nearly sprinting to the tent.

Devland glanced at Freyja and whispered. "She doesn't want to admit it. Her illness is back. I think she may have another episode soon."

Freyja nodded. "The sooner we find the cure, the better it will be for Azalea. We don't even have the herbs to manage it."

Devland sighed. "I'm worried."

Freyja said nothing. Instead, she focused her attention on the crackling fire. She would be lying if she told him everything would work out fine. She bit her lip. They didn't know that Felix was coming after them. Everything would not be fine. Would they be able to find the cure and leave before Felix and his men arrived?

"Okay, I have some apples and dried meat. I propose we—"

"Shut up," Freyja ordered, straining her ears.

In the silence, a twig snapped.

Without thinking, she angled her body and let her dagger fly out of her hand.

There was a whimper.

Then a thud.

"Holy skies," Devland said in amazement.

"I'm going to check it out. I need my favorite dagger back." She stood up, but Devland stopped her.

"I'm coming with you. It's dangerous—"

Freyja sidestepped him. Although she appreciated the gesture, she didn't need him to protect her. "Stay with her," she whispered. "She needs you."

Devland gave a short nod. "Don't go too far, please."

Freyja hummed. Azalea was staring at the fire, almost entranced, paying no attention to them.

She unsheated her dagger and made her way to where she heard the noise. She ducked under a few branches, hopped over some vines, and avoided the shrubs. Good thing it was a full moon tonight. She would've fallen so many times if not.

Freyja saw the culprit. It was a small animal. It looked like a dog. As she inched closer, she realized it wasn't a dog; it was a howler. Her heart dropped. Howlers were pack animals. If there was one...Freyja looked up, and dread filled her bones as she saw beady purple eyes multiply in the darkness.


Hastily, she dislodged the dagger, and in a split second, she was on her feet, running towards the fire.

"Run!" Freyja shouted as she approached them.

Howls echoed around the forest, sounds of breaths and snapping twigs behind her.

"Run!" She shouted again. In the distance, she could see Devland dragging Azalea and running in the opposite direction.

As she approached, they both came to a halt and turned around, running towards Freyja.

"No! The other way!"

"Howlers!"

Shit. They were surrounded.

Freyja's eyes darted everywhere. If she could get to a tree—

But the howlers had them pinned in the clearing. They had formed a perfect circle around her and her friends. They bared their teeth. Howls echoed, almost taunting.

Azalea slipped her cold hand into Freyja's.

"I'm not ready to die," Azalea cried.

One howler separated itself from the group and advanced towards them. As it pounced, Freyja aimed her knife at its heart.

It whimpered before falling.

The full moon was disappearing behind the heavy clouds that had begun to form.

"I need my sword," Devland murmured. "I'm not dying without fighting."

"If you move, they'll all attack. Stay still."  The crack in Freyja's voice betrayed her calm demeanor.

She was scared. Of course, she was. There were bloodthirsty animals surrounding her. She only had 2 daggers and a few knives on her. She couldn't possibly fight over 50 of the howlers alone and win.

Azalea sniffled. She cried even harder as a few howlers simultaneously approached them from all sides. "Oh, no. Oh, skies, please."

Freyja's lips quivered, but she took a stance, aiming for a howler.

She missed.

She tried again, and this time, her knife found the creature. She turned around, aimed, and let another knife fly. The knife lodged itself in the creature's shoulder. It howled and whimpered but kept inching toward them, baring its teeth.

It began to drizzle.

Freyja now had two daggers left.

And four howlers were slowly closing in on them.

Freyja aimed a dagger, and just as she did, all the light disappeared. The moon vanished behind the dark clouds, and the fire had quenched.

Disoriented, Freyja could only blink, her hand still in the air.

Devland screamed in pain.

She tossed her dagger to his position. "Devland, there's a dagger!" She shouted in the dark.

After some grunts and struggle, there was a loud crunch.

The rain got heavier.

Freyja was completely defenseless and vulnerable. She could not see and therefore could not anticipate the danger. A howl resonated beside her. She jumped back, bumping into Azalea.

The rain got even heavier. It started to feel like stones were falling from the sky.

"The tent!" Devland shouted.

Freyja grabbed Azalea and headed for the tent. If the howlers wouldn't eat them, the rain would most definitely kill them.

The howlers began whimpering, scuffling in every direction.

Freyja pushed Azalea into the tent before entering it, falling nose to nose with Devland.

Azalea let out an ear-deafening scream. In fear, Freyja twisted around and saw a howler entering their tent, teeth bared. Did it come here to seek refuge or eat them?

Both.

Freyja stabbed the Howler's neck just as it opened its mouth and kicked it away from her. She scampered back, her heart pounding in her ears. The only sound she could hear was the heavy rain pelting against the open tent.

Even Azalea's cries were drowned out by the rain.

Devland squeezed her hand. His mouth moved, but she couldn't hear him. She twisted her fingers and interlocked their hands instead, the only appropriate response.

Azalea placed her head on Freyja's shoulders, still sobbing. Freyja held her hand and let her cry. It took everything in her not to break down like Azalea. She had to stay strong.

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"Well, last night was fun," Devland said, as he was about to peek out of the tent.

The sun was rising, and most importantly, the rain had stopped. Freyja hadn't slept a wink, and neither had Devland.

Azalea fell asleep a while ago. Freyja felt as though she'd been awake for three days straight, eyes wide open and flinching at the slightest sound she heard.


"Outside is clear," Devland confirmed. "Just the dead howlers."

"I'm going to get my knives and dagger."

"I'm coming with you."

She shrugged and crept out into the dawn.

Nearly emotionless, she dislodged her knives from the carcasses and yanked her dagger out of the howler. The night felt like a dream. Devland handed her her second dagger. He winced as he stretched his arm.

Freyja frowned. "You're hurt."

"Yeah. Just a scratch."

"Where?"

He was about to protest, but the look she gave dissuaded his attempt. He raised his shirt, revealing claw marks on his side. "It's not bleeding anymore. It's fine."

"We still need to disinfect it."

"We don't have any herbs."

"Azalea could find something useful in the forest, no?"

"I doubt. Our best option is to find the cave and leave this island as soon as we can."

"Should we rest before moving or leave now?"

"Let the day completely break. It should be safer then."

"Let's eat before leaving. Come on."

They headed back to the tent and ate some apples and dried meat before waking Azalea up. While they packed up their belongings, Azalea replenished her stomach, still half asleep.

Once they had finished, they set out in search of the cave. Devland led them, the map in one hand and his sword in another. Silently, they navigated through the forest, making as little sound as possible.

They walked for hours and hours. They were scared to take long breaks, afraid a howler would jump out of nowhere and kill them in a state of vulnerability. Freyja's legs were heavy, and her soles hurt. She was beginning to get a headache. Surprisingly, Azalea hadn't complained. Well, not so surprising. Azalea had been in her head since she woke up. She hadn't said a word, and Freyja knew she was getting worse.

"Devland," Freyja whispered his name.

"Yes?"

"I need a break; I'm sorry."

"It's alright, me too. We can rest for a few minutes."

Wordlessly, Azalea sat down. Freyja's eyes widened in concern. Azalea looked like a corpse. Paper-white skin, purple lips, and deep, unnatural eyebags. Her eyes were so empty and her body so limp. She had lost so much weight in a short time, almost like her life was being sucked out of her.

The island was doing this to her.

Azalea began convulsing.

Skies.

"Help me turn her over," Devland said in concern.

As they did, Azalea vomited purple liquid. Just like in prison, it burned holes in the ground.

"We have to get her out of here."

"The cure." Azalea croaked.

"Let's keep moving, Devland. We have to hurry."

Devland carried Azalea on his back. Freyja led the way with the map, cutting down vines. They withered just as quickly. Beady eyes observed them from a tree. It cawed, flapped its wing, and flew away. Unaware, Freyja followed the map.

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The Cerulean Cave.

Freyja blinked slowly.

"Is that it?" Devland asked in disbelief.

Freyja laughed dryly. "Of course not. It can't be. Azalea can't even fit in there. It's not even a cave...it's more like a giant rock with a hole."

"Then we're lost?"

"No, I followed the map. I stayed on the path. I don't understand."

"This can't be happening." Devland was about to rip his hair out. He dropped Azalea.

"Are we there yet?"

Neither of them responded. Freyja dropped her belongings and approached the cave. It was small, so small she had to get on all fours to go. The space inside was nearly nonexistent because half of her body was still sticking out.

She scoffed.

What the hell was this?

Did the skies take pleasure in her shame and suffering? All this work and sacrifices just for what? To end up discovering...a rock.

Where were the magical angels that were supposed to heal her? The only being here was an ant crawling up her hand. She swatted it away and crawled out, unable to believe what was happening.

She leaned against it. "You guys should see the oh-so-magical cave that is supposed to remove our curse. Come see."

The cousins approached, nearly in tears. They looked in it, disappointed.

"I hate my life." Azalea sighed.

Freyja laughed, but it slowly turned into tears. All she wanted was freedom. To be free. To be free of a curse she did not deserve. Was that too much to wish for?

Devland and Azalea hugged her. They cried. All three of them.

In that moment, years of hope were destroyed. Their dreams were snatched away from them. Hopes to be free, hopes to be healthy, and hopes to live the life they wanted to live, gone. Once again, their lives would be controlled by forces they were not aware of. They would be condemned to a life on the run, hunted like animals for being different. All they wanted at that moment was freedom—freedom to be normal. They couldn't have that.

Azalea was on the point of death, and this was her only hope. And she didn't even have that anymore.

Freyja wished; she wished with all her heart that something would happen. Anything.

The skies headed her prayers this once. The ground beneath them opened up. They fell and landed on a wet surface with a bone-cracking thud.

"Such fragile humans." A distorted voice commented

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A/N

i don't have anything to say. Don't forget to vote byeeee (ps. Two more real chapters and we're DONE omg)

See you soon!