Rings of Fire: Echoes of Destiny

Amelia

"Something is going to happen to him." My head whipped around to see who had spoken those words. But instead of meeting someone's eyes, I was met with death.

Amidst the chaos, I found myself on a desolate battlefield, a far cry from the classroom. Screaming soldiers surrounded me, their cries piercing the air. My hands instinctively rose to cover my ears, futile against the cacophony. The once familiar scene was now replaced by a grim expanse of blood-soaked earth, stretching endlessly. Crimson stains tainted the grass beneath me, seeping into my skin as I stood frozen in shock. Every breath carried the metallic taste of blood, mingling with the pungent odours of smoke and decay.

I didn't know where to look. My stomach churned with fear and anxiety, making me feel nauseated. I wanted to throw up. As soon as I thought about it, it happened. The acidity burned through my throat, and all I could expel was pure bile, as if I hadn't eaten in days. I grunted in disgust at the contents I had just spewed while clutching my stomach, hoping it would help. Where the hell am I?

My eyes adjusted a bit more to my surroundings to just make it out what this was.

This was war.

In mere seconds, I found myself face down on the ground. Whoever or whatever had pushed me whilst they sprinted past me. I struggled to catch my breath from the impact, coughing profusely. Mud seeped into my mouth, adding insult to injury. I pressed myself off the ground into a sitting position to rest, knees lifted up. My eyes managed to locate the being that had pushed me. Its head was bloodied all over and its armour cracked against its bare skin revealing slashes of claws. The slashes draped over his back and looked fresh. Too fresh. As if he felt no pain, he paid no mind to his surroundings and continued to sprint to wherever. But why was he running? More specifically, who was he running from?

I stopped in my tracks. If I thought my heart was going to rip out of my chest before, it was now dangerously close to stopping altogether. I turned my head slowly to see what was behind me, and before I could scream, I heard:

"Amelia! Run now!"

I wasn't looking at Casper. I was looking at a bloodied warrior. He looked scared, thrashing his hands with a sword in his right, signalling for me to move. Even from a distance I noticed his brown eyes though his helmet. They looked at me so intently, holding emotions that I didn't know one could have.

'Casper?' I whispered to myself curiously trying to decipher the man's identity.

A low growl snapped me out of my trance.The creature fixated on me. Its pointed teeth gleamed, reflecting my terrified face. Its shape resembled a bear, but this was no ordinary bear. This was a monster. Its brown fur was matted with both dried and fresh blood, as if it had been on a murderous rampage for days. Its paws, as large as boulders, tightened, revealing even more of its deadly claws.

I had nowhere to go; this was my fate. I searched its hollow black eyes, hoping to find any glimmer of a soul. There was nothing—just pure, unadulterated death. My heart ached for this being. How could a creature be turned so evil? Nothing is evil without reason.

I turned my head back at the boy again. My heart sank for this boy. His eyes filled with terror as he looked at me. All I wanted to do was take that pain away for him. No one deserves this sort of suffering. While I was here at the brink of death he was still running towards me, continuing to scream at me to move but I couldn't. I felt glued to the ground. I wanted to move but I felt helpless, unsure on how to help. My hands trembled at my attempt to lift myself off the ground.

'Fuck.' Is this really it for me?

It can't be.

It won't be.

Struggling to stand, I push forward in a weak sprint. Adrenaline fuels me, ignoring the burning pain in my thighs. The boy ahead becomes my sole focus, each step bringing me closer to him and further away from the creature. I flopped my hands by my side to use as momentum but it fell to be useless as I heard the creature lunging its body after me. Each impact shaking the ground behind.

'Keep going Amelia. Keep fucking going.' I didn't stop, even if I was slow I kept moving one foot towards him. To whoever this was.

"Don't stop, Amelia!" His voice reached me, close enough to hear clearly. Despite the small victory, I knew the worst was yet to come. As he drew nearer, I extended my arm towards him, mirroring his gesture.

So close.

Just as I thought I had got to him. Everything vanished.