Glowing Embers

M

"Break a leg," Dyno commented smugly. "And not the stage kind. I want you to break every bone in your body for what you did to Ruby and Twinkle." Willow no longer felt the need to stifle a laugh. Her face was locked in an 'O' and Dyno had the key. They were surrounded by the ruthless predators on all sides. The circle was five or six layers deep with the animals. They all had a mutation of some sort, whether it be a messed-up face, or three legs instead of four.

"Listen, bro, it doesn't have to be this way," Archer reasoned, taking one step towards the boy.

"Start running, your head-start begins now," Dyno stated curtly. Panicked, Willow widened her eyes at Archer, clutched Whitney's hand and began to run without looking back.

"Why don't we climb a tree?" Whitney asked as they sprinted.

"He has flying animals," Willow tersely responded.

"3, 2, 1!" Dyno screeched inhumanely. Willow turned her head. Archer was still standing there, his eyes closed. The animals leapt forward.

"You have to run!" Archer yelled out to the girls as the first animal struck him.

"No!" Willow screamed, attempting to turn back towards him. Whitney used her mustered strength to pull Willow forward. "No! We have to go back! Archer!" Tears streaked down her face as the animals continued to pounce on him. She could hear his whimpers as the attackers continued their fight.

"Willow, we have to move forward or else we'll die," Whitney told her, struggling to run.

"I am NOT living without him!" Willow responded, escaping Whitney's grasp and rushing back to Archer. She clasped her sword and swung recklessly at the mob of animals. Some collapsed to the ground, and the circle thinned out as they wildly targeted Archer. Willow noticed Whitney kicking animals beside her. Dyno stood to the side, pleasure reflecting in his eyes. Archer fell to the ground, causing fury to grow in Willow. "I hate you!" she shouted as she raced toward Dyno with her bloody weapon. Shocked, the animals withdrew from attacking her and observed as she thrust her sword into Dyno's stomach. The boy fell to the ground as the life drained out of him. Willow retrieved her sword and turned to the animals, flames in her eyes. "Your master is dead. You are free. Go." As if understanding, the animals darted away in all directions.

"Willow," Whitney murmured meekly. Willow whirled around and followed Whitney's attention to Archer on the ground.

"No," Willow huffed as she dashed over to him. She fell to the ground and placed his head on her lap. He was bleeding out, and had an immense gash in his stomach. His Peter Pan outfit was ripped and he had scars on all limbs. "Archer! No! This can't be happening! Tell me you're okay!" Willow shrieked with alarm. 

"Thank you Willie," he breathed softly, opening his eyes and gazing at Willow weakly.

"Stop it! You're gonna be fine!" she proclaimed loudly. He eyed Willow admirably.

"Make it out alive," he managed to say. "Please." Willow glanced at Whitney, her eyes glazed with tears.

"Whitney! Do you have anything?" she questioned, looking back down at Archer.

"Willie. I love you. Please survive," Archer whispered, closing his eyes. 

"No!" Willow screamed as he respired his final breath. Her tears dripped on him like a rainstorm. He was the dry pasture, and she was the thundercloud, ready to explode at any given moment. Now, her rain was tired of hiding, and she let it pour down. The forest was silent except for the sobs and screams of the miserable girl.

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Sorry for the very short part today. I wanted to have this chapter dedicated to Archer and I kinda wanted to end on this point. There will be three more chapters, and possibly a plot twist at the end. I will probably have a sequel to this novel if I get enough requests. Anyway, thanks for reading Glowing Embers so far!

~ Maddie