The Girl of Ossetia

Chapter Six

Chapter Six

Once Tisbeth was gone, Arrana turned slowly back to the ones awaiting her. They were all talking amongst each other in hushed tones, grave looks on their faces. They turned slowly to her; Saelam bowed his head gently to the side, his gaze long and hard.

“We should start off now and stop in the peaks for a mid day meal.” Amundil spoke swiftly, before glancing down the long mossy path, to where a group of Oanne people where leading gleaming horses and ponies; whom where all saddled and packed with food, for the steed-less travelers. They all swung up into the saddles, many of the dwarves having to double up on the few ponies.

They started off, plodding along carefully upon the moist moss, heading towards the high and steep hills ahead of them. It was very silent among them all, besides the gentle twittering of the lake birds and clops of the hooves upon the ground. The sun glinted off of the glass plate water of the lake that surrounds them on both sides, and the sky was a beautiful hazy blue.

Arrana sat rigidly atop of her horse, rubbing thumb and finger over the silky white cloak. It was still very silent, before a few of the Dwarves broke out in a soft song of meandering travel. Soon all of them joined in, voices cast out upon the lake, echoing back off of the high and looming hills soon before them.

She often looked back, for anxiety of one of the black hunters to come a top of them at any moment, but everything and anything behind her held the Dwarves and the empty mossy path. They reached the very base of the hill, in which they paused before the giant and steep climb that veered angrily to the left, before taking a jagged turn around a large boulder, where the path became very narrow and winding upward. Saelam took one long glance up the carpety green slope, before reassuring that once we got past the first few miles, the path widened. He heeled his horse onward and upward, Arrana was next to follow, Gunsynd’s hooves cranking down hard on the crumbly stones, grabbing at harder parts of the ground. She leaned close up next to the horses next, gripping his mane tightly as they ventured around the boulder. Now much higher out above the lake then she had expected, her stomach turned as the path became a narrow slat in the side of the vertical slope. They each went slowly one after the other, stones and large clumps of mud sliding out from under them and tumbling down the sickeningly steep drop to the sharp carnivorous toothed rocks below. Arrana now promised herself she would not look down, but more focus on the back of her horse’s ears.

They traveled at a slow pace for a very long while, winding up the path, which was beginning to get wider and wider by the pace, and another song hummed up from the back, but this time it was hushed, and more profoundly beautiful. Arrana glanced back to take note it was Luinil singing, her black horse haunches propelling her along slowly, her swathes of black hair twisting paths across her pale face. No one sang along, for no one knew exactly what she sang, but it put everyone to ease in the most eerie of ways.

            When at last they stopped at the slowly rounding head of the slope, it was much past mid-day. They all dismounted, and sat upon the ground, looking out at the large glittering lake far below. They silently ate their dried crackle bread and drank their cool water, soaking up the warming rays. Weariness rose in Arrana’s bones, but she fought it off with a long stretch, and looked over her shoulder at the now gradually descending slope, which led across a wide river, and on to rocky and small, shrubbed hills.

            “We should be getting on now, it is getting fairly late.” said Iasarith, who stood to her tall lanky height and walked to her horse. They all slowly followed, mounting back up and scaling down the hill. Low, grey clouds sat heavily in the east, directly ahead of them. Arrana slowed her horse down to walk along beside Liunil, who stared directly ahead. Soon though, her head slowly turned and she grinned at the girl, reaching out and placing a cool hand on her shoulder. Arrana felt the fear well back up into her stomach, and her muscles became tense. She looked back; noticing two new sapling trees standing at the very top of the hill, just where they had all been sitting moments before. She looked forward now, seeing the grass slowly fading away to brown burnt crisps.

            “Liunil, why is it this happened?” The question was random, but it had been swarming her mind for the past few days. She stared at her pleadingly; the air was stiff and muggy around them now. The centaur lady thought for moments on end, before looking at Arrana.

            “Because you are valuable to everywhere else that can not rebuild themselves.” Her voice was simple, and that was all she offered. She was still greatly confused as to what she was fully capable of, and her insides swam with the putrid thought that she was quite literally a prize to be won and used. Her jaw clenched and her eyes focused on the now large river before them. It was slow moving, wide and filled with dark black water.

            The water gave off no refractions of light, nor reflections of the bodies standing at the edge.

            “Get off your horses as we cross and do not make any threatening noises. If so; you may be too tempting for them.” Saelam said sharply and quickly, before sliding off of his horse and slowly wading in. Arrana slid off, and tore off her leather shoes, holding them in her hands as she led Gunsynd into the dark water. The bottom was muddy and thick, and the water was blood-warm, which was unusual for a mountain river. She wondered idly what Saelam had meant by them. Her heart reverberated in her ears, and she closely watched Saelam, whom waded slowly a few yards in front of her.

            It was then she felt what he meant, her lungs became tight with the restriction of terror. Something very cold and long was dragging down along her legs and feet. She dared herself not to kick at them and spring out like a lion, but kept her cool, gulping dryly. These were no fish, as they slid down her skin, gently tugging. They were long fingers. Sickness rose in the pit of her stomach as she looked down slowly into the water as she moved along, not being able to see anything but a black palate.

            A quick whispering snapped up her attention, and it was Saelam stopping quickly, urgently wishing they pause. They all followed his orders, waiting on edge for what it might be. He looked back in fear, as his glance rested on a large elk wading into the water some way down the river, its movements quick and heavy. It was suddenly yanked down into the water, its bellow so loud it caused Arrana to jump. The sudden action down the river caused the fingers to become more frantic, and suddenly start to violently rip at the clothes Arrana wore.

            “Get out NOW!” Saelam yelled, pounding out of the water. Arrana began to move forward quickly, her heart racing like a rabbit’s. Gunsynd pulled ahead, accidently ripping the reins from her hands and causing her to go off balance as everyone rushed past her. She felt the fingers suddenly grasp around her ankles and begin to rip her backwards. She let out a terrified scream as everyone but her made it the shore. She was tore suddenly under the water, which swallowed her whole. She thrashed wildly as the fingers began to grasp at her clothes and arms. The water was much thicker when fully submerged and made it much more difficult to move. Arrana’s eyes were wide with terror as she felt her body begin to press against the mud as though she was being pulled into it. Why weren’t here Oanne given powers working here? Under the dark and murky surface, she could make out unnaturally long and boney fingers swaying out of the mud, some frantically snapping sickeningly sideways, wishing they could grasp her down under the mud.

            When she felt death beginning to take grasp of her greedily, her skin began to chill and prickle, feeling almost electric. The limited vision she had under the water began to tunnel, her lips parting and water rushing in. Another electric burst and a low hissing noise escaped from under her as the mud was now grasping just around her waist.

            She felt the fingers slid away, the hissing growing angry and loud, but they slid back down into the mud as she was yanked out from the water and being quickly drug to shore. She was lain upon the hard and cold ground, where she spluttered up what felt like buckets of water, her chest heaving with quick breaths. Everyone crowded around her, eyes wide and wet with terror.

            “Almost lost to the Grippers. That wouldn’t have been good.” Said Cav, whose long beard wagged low to the ground above her. Her memory vaulted to the electric shock she had given off, and another unknown anxiety grew inside her. How did she do that?

            “Yes, but she is alright.” Said Luinil, who helped her stand again. Arrana shivered, before slowly making her way to her horse, clambering into the saddle.

            “Don’t we have to get moving?” She said through chattering teeth, and with that, stunned but agreeable life-forms began to mount and move off.