The Oracle Saga: Assassin's Oath

Chapter 7 - Journey

Chapter 7: Journey

            ‘You eat rather slowly,’ Hasaki remarked, taking a bite off his second leg. I was sitting on a tree log, trying to digest the view of deer meat. ‘You are not a vegetarian, are you?’

            I stared at him, shaking my head. ‘No but if I did not need to, I would not eat meat.’

            ‘That explains it,’ he muttered, taking another bite.

            ‘Explains what?’

            Hasaki smirked, and this time he didn’t try to hide it. ‘Why you are as weak as you are.’

            I glared at him but decided not to respond.

            Suddenly the ground underneath us began shaking. I looked over to Hasaki, only to find him nowhere in sight. It did not take long to realize that it was not the ground but rather me. I was the one shaking vigorously.

            ‘Girl,’ I heard Hasaki’s voice roam freely. It echoed several times and with every echo bits and pieces of the stump began falling to the ground. The tree was going to crash down on me. Before any emotion could settle within me, I felt someone jerk me backwards.          

“Girl.” My eyes snapped open and landed on a familiar figure. The first few seconds were the most puzzling…until I realized I had been dreaming about dinner last night. At least up to the point where Hasaki mocked my strength.

I frowned at him as I noticed the sun hadn’t even risen yet. I turned around, letting him face my back. “Leave me alone.”

I heard his footsteps approaching me. “Get up. We must leave now.”

“But I am tired. It is not even morning yet. Few more hours…,” I heard myself mumble. The amount of pain my legs were in was indescribable. I was not used to walking such lengths and I just wanted to sleep the pain away.

One second I was lying on the earthly ground, the next Hasaki had me in his arms. He had me hauled up and into his chest so quick that I could barely understand what had happened. Abruptly he pulled away from me and repeated, “We must leave. Now.”

“But I am tired,” I whined, almost automatically. When I realized what I had said, I blushed.

Way to show him just how strong and capable you really are, the voice inside my head mocked.

Hasaki’s expression didn’t falter. It was the same it had been since he had woken me up.

“I have lost enough time looking after you,” he said, giving me his water-bag. “Go wash your face behind the stump. You have two minutes.”

“When did you get the water?” I asked, sceptically.

“While you were asleep,” he answered, shrugging.

“When did you wake up?”

“I have been awake.”

Revelation crossed my mind, before I blurted, “You did not sleep, did you?”

“No. And I do not have time for these questions,” he bent down to gather items and began putting them under his cloak. How many pockets did he have in there? I wondered. Hasaki probably realized that I hadn’t moved as he sternly stared at me and said, “Now go.”

Instead of arguing, I grabbed the water-bag and walked away. When I returned, Hasaki was waiting for me outside the stump; his arms crossed against his chest and his back against a smaller tree.