The journey

What I needed

(Dear reader. This chapter is a bit different than the others, for this time, I invite you, for a little situation game. Take a memory, from your childhood. A bad one. One where you were hurt by someone. Your parents, your friends whoever. I know, its not comfortable. Now imagine, what was it, that you needed? What did you wanted to hear? Or what did you want tto happen? Give yourself that talk, or that event even if its just in the head. Give yourself the parenting and love you missed as a child. For an example, read below. Until we meet again!-the writer.)

The company was still clueless on how to get back on the road. They explored the entirety of the forest but found no way out. The traveler did not give up, though. He tried to climb the trees, junp over the bushes, and even look into every rabbit and fox hole they found. Though the animals were long gone from here, it was clear that before the cultist cast his spells, they lived here. Perhaps they would return once the curse was broken.
Regardless, the efforts of the unconventional wayfinder bore no fruit. The company ran out of ideas just as fast as they ran out of rations. The food and drink they bought in the latest town grew thin. Without animals to hunt and without water to drink, they would not survive for long. The whole group was exhausted and silent. Not a word came from any of them. They were all lost in thought.

Maybe that's why they could hear it so clearly.

The sounds of crying flow through the woods. It was quiet, but undeniably there. 'Did someone else get trapped here?' The man asked himself. He and his guides started to make their way in the direction of the sound. It was far away from them, almost at the other end of the trapp.
Wolf was the first to see it.

'That spineless bastard,' he cried in anger. 'How could he target a helpless child?'

When the others caught up to him, they were all shocked, but the traveler more than any other.
Between the two trees, there was a little boy. Could be no older than eight. He buried his face in his hands. He was crying and sobbing. He did not even notice the group. He just stood there, with all his sorrow, alone. No adult or parent was in sight.

Just the boy.

'Oh my. This is horrible!' said Scythian. 'How could he even find his way here? He must cry out of fear.'

'What do we do now?' the enraged veteran asked. 'Do we take him with us? We don't even have enough supplies for ourselves.'

The shocked warrior did not hear the question. His thoughts raced in his head.
'How could he be here? Why does he see this? Is this another trick of the spell? How does the cultist even come up with this?' His heart grew heavy. Like if it were in a grip. All at once, the pieces came together in his mind. It was not  the spells  doing.

Still, what should he do about this? What could he tell the boy? He did not have the answers. But in his mind, he knew he had to talk to him. He had to talk to this child. This time, he did not want to run from him.

'Wait here,' the man told his companions.

They looked puzzled but did not ask a thing. The traveler approached the sorrowful child.

'Hey, kid.'

The man approached the child, who, in fright, took two steps back.

'Hey, hey. Its okay. I'm not here to hurt you. No one is going to hurt you here,' he said, sitting down on the ground and watching the child's reaction.

The little boy stopped; he still had tears in his eyes. He stared at the man. There was silence. The boy saw something in the man's eyes. Understanding.