The Blade of Kenai

Part 2: Chapter 2

"Are you sure we're going in the right direction?" Kazdyn sounded bored, and honestly, Kenai felt the same. They had been walking for almost an hour and darkness was beginning to fall over the forest, consuming the light.
"I don't know," Kenai sighed, beginning to feel silly for making them travel towards people who could be long gone by now. Could it be Zolhorn? Kenai tried not to get his hopes up. I don't think he would make a lowly fire.
"I feel like we should have been there by now," Kazdyn complained, causing Kenai to snap.
"Well, if I were hiding out here and I heard your loud footsteps crashing through the trees I wouldn't want to stick around to see who they belonged to." He said it sharply and didn't want to see Kazdyn's reaction.
"Well I'm sorry, you're not exactly the most delicate walker either." They hadn't even spent one day together and they were already arguing under the stress. They continued in silence, both of them trying to avoid branches that would crack under their feet, and fell into a bit of a crouch.
They were now almost completely surrounded by darkness, and Kenai jumped at the smallest of sounds, trying to convince himself that if Pae wasn't worried then there was nothing to fear. Kenai began to feel very tired, yawning and struggling to keep his eyes open.
"I think we should set up a camp, we can sleep on it." Kazdyn nodded and dropped the alert stance he had been stuck in.
"This isn't going to be very comfortable." Kenai knew this and was not excited for the long night with little sleep, but they had no choice, they would only get even more lost than they already were in the dark.
"Should I start a fire?"
"Yeah you go find some wood, I'll get leaves to make a bed." Kenai bent down to begin pulling the leaves together into a big pile.
"Okay." Kazdyn's footsteps grew farther until Kenai could only hear his own teeth chattering as a cold breeze flew at him. This is useless. Kenai stood up and took a step back, looking at his creation. He heard Kazdyn come from behind him and drop the wood he had found in a circle a few feet away from the pile of leaves.
"I tried." Kenai looked up at his cousin, who was not impressed.
"It's not much of a bed." Kenai laughed, putting his hands on his hips, an action he had adopted from Kazdyn.
"Yeahhh it's not worthy of being called a bed." Kenai punched him in the shoulder lightly, not meaning for it to be aggressive.
"Ouch." Kazdyn rubbed his bicep and turned to Kenai to return his playful punch.
"Are we done fighting?" Kenai asked as he rolled his shoulder. Kazdyn gave him his trademark smile.
"Yeah we can be done, I guess." He heaved a sigh, as if to say he'd rather stay enemies. His stomach growled and Kenai grinned.
"Here," Kenai reached for another strip of Mara's jerky. "Tomorrow we should focus on hunting, and looking for flowers or whatever." He was referring to the book on herbs he had been given. Kazdyn folded his arms and shivered against another gust of wind.
"Yeah just start the fire already." Kenai grabbed the small vile of instant fire starter and let three drops land on one of the pieces of firewood. It burst into a small flame, growing as it began to eat at the other logs.
They both scootched as close as they could to the fire, also pressing their bodies together to preserve any other heat they could. Pae made her way between the both of them and curled herself into a ball, tucking her quivering nose as close to her body as possible. In a matter of minutes the forest had transformed from a dreamlike place into one of nightmares.
Wind continued to relentlessly beat down on the small crew, threatening to kill the small fire with its strength. Kenai and Kazdyn frequently moved places around the small circle to act as a barrier to protect it from the wind as needed. The howls of the wind were accompanied by growls of unknown beasts as the night continued on, making it impossible to fall asleep in the unfamiliar territory.
"Kenai you can take a rest, I'll keep watch for a while." Kazdyn offered with a yawn. Kenai felt bad for agreeing, but the truth was that their short K.O. earlier in the afternoon hadn't done anything to make up for the night before and had been equally long and exhausting.
"You sure?" He asked, making sure Kazdyn was really alright with it.
"Yep, I'll keep you safe little brother." He promised. He said it with a laugh, but Kenai could hear the yawn he was trying to hold back. I'll take most of tomorrow night. Kenai promised himself, and Kazdyn.
"Okay, I'll try."
Despite the countless hours Kenai spent trying to lull himself to sleep, he was unsuccessful and in the end, kept watch when Kazdyn drifted off to sleep. That night he did a lot of thinking, which was something he didn't often have time for.
This is the end. This is the end. This is the end. No matter how many times he repeated the truth to himself, his brain still refused to believe the reality, which may have been part of the reason he wasn't able to fall asleep. This must be a dream. If I fall asleep now will I wake up in my bed at the academy? He sighed before continuing to his next conclusion of thought. Or will I still be lying here, in a pile of leaves on the surface? Getting closer to death every moment I am breathing.
Typically, Kenai was not one for dwindling in his sorrows, and usually dealt with them by participating in physical activity or was able to work them out in his head within an hour or so.
This, however, was something he knew he would not be able to process until he woke up in the afterlife. A new fear suddenly took over him.
If I am going to die a bad person, a Demon, where will I end up? Kenai had never worried much about the afterlife and had honestly never given it much thought at all. I think I'm a good person. But will my last days change the entire direction of my values? Will the Goddess understand? His unanswered questions developed into fears that refused to stop racing in his mind.
What will I turn into? One of the small Demons that terrorize Elhein? Or something much worse? He gulped. Will I end up like Zolhorn? Pella had also not been able to tell him how long he would live in his Demon state.
Will it be hours? Or years? Centuries?? Kenai sighed and leaned his head against the back of Kazdyns. They had taken to a position of leaning against each other, acting as backrests for themselves. They must have decided without speaking that anything would be more comfortable than the sad attempt at bedding Kenai made.
Kazdyn was taking in deep breaths, occasionally twitching. A bad dream? It would be more surprising if Kazdyn was able to sleep peacefully after the events of the past twenty-four hours. Kenai sat deep in thought for the majority of the night, only able to drift off into short shifts of sleep in between the minutes his brain shut off. He was quickly awoken by the eyes of Zolhorn, which had burned a permenant image into not only his arm but also his mind.
It was difficult to distinguish between the howls of the wind and noises made by creatures of the forest, and even more tricky to guess how large or dangerous the creatures making the noises were.
A book on animals would have been a lot more helpful than a damn book of flowers. Of all things to keep from the surface, why would it be that?
Kenai began whistling as softly as he could to himself, certain it would be drowned out by the wind, and sure that it would be impossible to wake Kazdyn from his much needed sleep. It was a tune that he'd heard Wade repeating mindlessly to himself when he was sharpening blades or in the library when he was helping Kenai understand something he couldn't get down. Which, Kenai had to admit, was a lot. Although he excelled at the physical demands of his training, he greatly lacked in whatever part of his brain was used for useless information.
Kenai had never been able to make out the words Wade mumbled with the tune, but the melody had stuck after consistently hearing it for nearly half of his life. It was somber but felt appropriate for the mood he'd taken for himself that night. He eventually drifted off to sleep, aided by the comfort and familiarity it gave him.