The Fall of Eden

Chapter 16

Femi awoke in a daze. Her blurry vision didn't help recognize any of her surroundings. An icy chill sent shivers through her body. She pulled the blanket closer to her body. When her hand touched her bare stomach she realized she was naked. Her eyelids shot open. She looked beneath the blanket to see her naked body. Her legs were almost completely wrapped in bandages and a wet cloth lie on her waist. She lifted the cloth to see her scarred and boiled skin covered in a wet powder.

Her eyes darted around in search of her clothes but they were nowhere to be found. She was alone in a large tent she couldn't recall entering. The tent whirred and flapped in the wind and the entrance opened and shut with passing breeze. Any passerby could see into the tent if they wanted. She began to panic. Nothing made any sense anymore. She couldn't remember anything that could have brought her here. Then images of fire and bloodshed flashed through her head. She rubbed her eyes and shook her head. Then her mother's dead body appeared in her mind as clear as if it were right before her eyes.

Femi broke into a fit and pulled at her hair. She wanted to squeal. This couldn't be real. Please don't let it be real. She looked around for something to make sense of things, but nothing seemed familiar. Then, she heard bustling from outside. There was shouting and sounds of a struggle. She sat up and tried to angle her head to look out the entrance. All she could see was the white glow of snow.

The sound of footsteps was getting closer and closer. She looked around the tent for a place to hide. There were boxes and pottery stacked up, some wooden chairs scattered around, as well as a bundle of hay. A shimmer of light caught her attention. A sword was propped beside her bed. She wrapped her body in the blanket and grabbed the sword. The footsteps were now near the entrance to the tent. Femi pulled the sword from its sheath and rolled off of the bed.

She hid behind the bed and poked her head above it to see the entrance. She gripped the sword's hilt so tightly it burned her fingers. As soon as the first figure appeared she ducked behind and pressed her back against the canvas wall. Then it hit her; she could cut her way out of the tent. Too late. A man walked to the other side of the bed and stood before her.

"Whoa! Here she is." The man said.

"Stay back!" She pointed the sword at him. The man was bigger than her and she was in no condition to fight. She turned and jabbed the sword into the wall of the tent. However, before she could begin cutting the canvas, hands grabbed her from behind. They twisted the sword out of her hands and squeezed her tight so she couldn't fight back. The man turned her around to put her back on the bed. Then a familiar face caught her attention.

"Damien?" tears immediately swelled up in her eyes.

"It's okay Femi," he said.

"What's going on?" She asked. The other man released her and she sat down on the bed. "Where are we?"

"You were hurt," Damien sat beside her. "We're in Stormthrone."

Femi tried to piece everything together, but her memory was too fragmented. "I... I don't remember." The inability to unscramble her mind was too much to handle. Then a warm embrace silenced everything. Damien wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her tight.

"I thought I was going to lose you too." Damien's voice came through tears. "I was so scared." Femi wanted to speak, but she just had so many questions. Nothing made enough sense to decide which questions to ask. Then one name stood out in her mind.

"Where is Aiden?"

Damien released Femi and looked at her nervously. "You don't remember, do you?"

"I... don't know." Femi searched her mind and slowly images of a fight began to show. It all just felt like a dream she had long ago though, so she didn't know what memories she could trust.