The Breathing Treasure (Merome)

The Breathing Treasure

~~~

He ran into the forest, barefooted. Tattered cloth wrapped around his body, he stopped the tears that threatened to fall.

"Catch him! Catch the kid!"

Jumping over logs and ducking when the branch was too low, the small teen easily ran across the deep jungle. Climbing vines into a huge tree, he parkoured his way across the treetops.

Crouching between a bunch of leaves, the teen silently hoped that they couldn't find him.

"Its all your fault! You let him out of the fucking cage!"

"I didn't know he would run!"

"We lost that damned treasure!"

His heart beated harshly against his small chest.

He didn't know when he became a treasure,  or his name, future, parents, anything. But he do know that those men will do bad things. Use him to find treasure, use him for anything.

A twig broke at the other end of the forest. The two men looked up, smiling like the idiots they are, and made a mad dash towards the sound, directly away from the boy.

He breathed a sigh of relief, clutching his stomach and sitting down on the pile of leaves.

"So... hungry..." picking the leaves, he plucked a fresh apple from the tree, munching on it. It would be able to last him for the rest of the day.

Digging out from the leaves, he looked around.

Jungle... more jungle... oakwood planks... more jungle... wait... oakwood?

Looking at the oakwood plank treehouse in a distance, the teen, who had lost all hope, smiled. He knew nothing, but he does know that the smooth plane of the planks of oak is not amything natural.

Running towards the tree house, scaring all the ocelots along the way, the teen reached the house.

"I find entrance... entrance..."

Spying a door, he opened it, and looked in.

A bunch of furnaces, a crafting table, a bed, chest, everything for a survivor in the woods.

Walking in slowly, he looked into the chests.

"Oakwood plank, fence, chicken...?" Picking up a piece of chicken, he poked at it. Is it edible? Or is it poisonous?

The teen sighed, placing the chicken back into the chest, instead going for the 5 apples that was lying at the back of the chest. He had only eaten those red globes of sweetness for his entire life.

Munching down, he sighed, hos hunger refilling.

"Who're you?"

The teen froze, turning back. What he saw was a furry monster. He gasped, running back, but falling. Turning towards the creature, he rummaged through the chest, holding out an axe.

"Back... no... hurt.." the teen stuttered.

Just then, for some reason or another, he began to feel nauseous. Head spinning, he fell into a deep slumber.

~~~

"Huh, he fell asleep,"

Jerome looked at the sleeping boy. He must have scared him, being a bacca and all.

The bell rang, and he went to answer it.

"Excuse me, bacca, have you seen a lil kid?"

Thinking through, he muttered a 'yes' but pointed at the direction of the city.

"Thanks, bac, known that you be the best to look for," one of the men said, running towards the city. The other followed quickly, not wanting to lose the kid.

Jerome looked back.

"He's just like me, eh?" Jerome smiled. Carrying the boy up with a bacca's super strength, Jerome placed him on his bed, then went on with his daily work.