Ré's Sacrifice

Chapter 20 Ressurection

First I started to feel tingling in the very tips of my toes. I wanted to lift my head, but it was impossible to do so. The tingling began to rise up my legs and I could feel the veins in them beginning to pump with blood. It started to spread all over my body. Finally I was able to feel every part of my body except for my head. Everything was so dizzy and I was still blind. The blood made its way up into my head eventually. My head felt lighter and soon my whole head was pumping with blood. There was still one thing I was lacking: oxygen. I couldn't breathe. I tried to but my lungs felt flattened and deflated. I needed air. My head felt like it was underwater. I felt soft lips touch my forehead, and something wet, like a raindrop, splash on my cheek. I heard a voice. "I miss you more and more everyday, I wish you'd come back to me" I heard a faint voice. Mama?. Is she here with me? No, it couldn't be her. It would be..Ebony!. She wished I'd come back to her. So I will!. I tried with all my might to breathe. I concentrated on getting all the blood to go to my heart.

After what seemed a long time, my heart jumped in my chest like it had been electrocuted. Then it started to pump. My chest started to hurt, it felt like I had been holding my breath for too long and I was desperate for air. I could hold it no longer. I opened my mouth and gasped for air. I held onto the first thing I could find with all my might. I was alive.

"Ré? Ré! Are you alive?!" I heard a voice cry. I opened my mouth to speak but no words came. My eyes were still closed but I knew they were there and ready to be used. I had to open them. I slowly opened my eyes. Everything was blurred but I tried to focus on the figure in front of me. I was sure it was Ebony. I blinked a few times and everything slowly came into clear view. I looked around and realised that I was on the floor, half of my body was in Ebony's lap. The wound in my neck was no longer there but my clothes were still blood stained. I saw Charlié's body next to mine and felt the sadness in my chest rising. It hurt. I looked at Ebony's face. She had a bloody gash running down the side of her face and she was crying. "I'm okay Ebony, I'm back! I'm here with you!" I said weakly. She smiled and stroked my hair. "Oh my sweet Ré, I never thought I'd ever see you again! You must have been so afraid on your own! Oh How I missed you!, it's okay, I will keep you safe forever and ever, I will never let them shoot you again! Okay?" She whispered gently. I was too weak to say anything else but I nodded and cried a little.

We couldn't stay for long, but when I was strong enough to walk, we both walked to the trench. "Wheres Evan?" I whispered. "Shh, soldiers are right near the wall, we must go through the drain again" She whispered softly. I didn't ask any further questions, but I was anxious to know where Evan was. I suddenly stopped in my tracks. "Charlié is dead" I said. Ebony looked at me in surprise. "How did you know?" She asked. I looked at her confused. " I saw him" I told her. She nodded sadly "I'm so sorry Ré, I couldn't stop him". "Its okay, he's happy, he belongs in heaven" I replied. "You saw heaven?" Ebony whispered, suddenly very interested. "Yeah, I will tell you later, first we need to walk through the drain, without the soldiers finding us.." I whispered fearfully. "You're right, it's alright Ré, we're good at hiding, they wont find us" Ebony smiled at me. I nodded and we held hands as we walked into the drain.

The drain wasn't massive, but it was big enough to stand up in. It was a long narrow passageway which only led to darkness. I could hear the sound of leaking water. Ebony and I started to follow the passageway and after a while we came to a fairly large space which was lit by little daylight from the drain plate up above us. I could see something red dripping down from it and it only took me one guess that it was blood. I whimpered and walked backward. Suddenly I stepped on something squishy like flesh. I looked down at what it was to discover that it was a dead body. I bit my tongue to force myself not to scream and my eyes filled with tears. The body was of a soldier who was killed down here. I shuddered and continued to walk with Ebony. We both were dead silent. Listening for the slightest sound or movement from up above. It was so risky to walk through a drain, when there could be soldiers down here.
Suddenly I heard a voice and froze. Ebony did too and looked around.
"I think they went down here!" A voice called. I jumped and clung on to Ebony. She didn't say anything and I didn't dare either. She pulled me to a wall and we hid in an opening. I hoped they didn't come any closer. I could hear their footsteps circling around the area where we had just walked through. I held me breath as they came near the place where we were hiding. Charlié, Amélie, please don't let them find us.. I prayed silently. After a while the soldiers gave up and went away. I sighed with relief. "Are you okay?" Ebony whispered. "Yes" I said even quieter. We walked and walked until we came to the deep part of the drain, where there was a long pool of water below us. I could touch it with my foot and it was cold. "What now?" I whispered to Ebony. "We'll have to continue I'm afraid" She responded. I didn't bother to argue, I had to do as I was told. We climbed into the pool. Surprisingly it was waist-deep but it was freezing cold and smelt damp. I couldn't see a single thing as it was dark. So I held onto Ebony for guidance. I jumped at every bump, voice and faint gunfire. I was terrified of the soldiers above us.

After a while we reached a platform and climb from the pool. It was light from the drain plate above us and we could see again. I was starting to become tired. "Ebony? Could we rest" I asked, feeling doubtful that she would say yes. She turned and looked at me with sympathy. "Yes, lets rest" She agreed and we sat down against the tunnel wall and she put her arms around me. "I'm very proud of you" She whispered. I nodded, not knowing what to say. I was too afraid. I needed something to distract me. "Could you please tell me a story?" I asked Ebony. "Of course, what would you like to hear?" She replied. "I do not mind" I told her. We pressed our cheeks together and I felt calmer. "Once there lived a little girl who was hated by her Parents. They wanted nothing to do with her and sent her off to live with her Aunty. She was so kind and gentle and cared for her like her own Daughter. When she was 11 years old, her Aunty died and she was sent back to her horrible Parents. Her Father forced her to steal from people and her Mother beat her often" Ebony told me. "How horrid" I whispered. She continued "She had no friends because she lived on the streets and her Parents didn't give her any money to buy a house and nice clothes to wear. She was so sad and lonely all the time and wished to die so she didn't have to live in this wretched world. Then one day, when she was fifteen, she met a very special little girl, who also lived on the streets, and was lost, she missed her Parents so much and the older girl wanted to comfort her and care for her as she had nothing else to care for".

"That was me, wasn't it? This is a story about us!" I exclaimed. "That's right" Ebony said "from the moment I saw you, I knew you needed help, so I made myself swear that I would always keep you safe, but when you died, I thought I had broken the promise, and I was so devastated. I felt so responsible for your death, but when you came back to me, I felt like I was given a second chance". I sniffed. It was so sad, we both sat there crying until we both fell asleep from exhaustion.

It felt like as soon as I closed my eyes, I was woken up again. "Ré, we have over slept! We must continue" she told me. I agreed and we both stood up. We continued to walk again in silence. The sound of dripping water was nearer now and was making me thirsty.  It had been a whole day since I drank the water of resurrection from the well.
As I thought about this, we once again approached another pool. "Oh No!  Not more water! Please don't make me do this!" I cried. Ebony understood and pulled me away. She kneeled in front of me so she was eye level with me. "Listen Ré, I should have told you sooner, I am taking you away from France, from the war" She told me. "Where to?" I asked. I was very surprised. "England, London" She replied. I felt myself turn pale. "But that's where my-" I started but Ebony cut me off. "I know Ré, but this is the only way to save us both..". I nodded. "So this is the way to the woods?" I asked. "Yes" she said. I said nothing else as we climbed into the 2nd pool. This one was deeper and went up to my chest. We walked through it in silence until I heard a voice in my head. Ré? Ré!. They sounded familiar.
Charlié? Amélie? I replied inside my head.

Yes, We're here came Charlié's voice

We're always with you Amélie's voice added.

But I can't see you? I said.
You can't see us because we are inside your head Charlié told me and I understood.

We came to warn you, not to go to the woods Charlié said.

Why? I asked.

Because I had a vision of hundreds of soldiers camping in the woods and the meadow, if you go there, you will be shot. Amélie told me.

But where else can we go? I asked.

There's no soldiers in the town square, you must go there, I promise you wont be seen, then you have to go to the docks and there will be a ship that will take you to England. You need to trust us. Charlié explained.

I stopped in the middle of the pool. "Ebony wait a minute!" I called and she stopped. "Ré, we must keep going on" Ebony told me. "We cannot go to the woods! There will be soldiers there and we will be shot." I said. "Ré, the woods are the safest place to hide" Ebony said. "No! You don't understand! We have to go to the town square! There will be a ship there to take us to England!". "Ré, you're tired, you don't know what you're talking about, now come on" Ebony frowned at me. I frowned back at her "you don't believe me.." I whispered. Then she understood. "Are you positive this will be true?" She asked. I nodded. "There won't be any soldiers to hurt us, but you must trust me" I told her. She nodded, still uncertain. "Alright, I trust you". We walked back through the drain to the town square.