Wander

//Mute//

Wander could not subdue his imagination, no matter how hard he tried. His thoughts where invaded with images of horrible scenes, filled with blood and bodies that had been mutilated far beyond recognition. He continued to rock back and forth, muttering to himself nervously.

He couldn't discern the amount of time that passed as he sat there. The whole ordeal was just the same events over and over, a continuous loop of what he had just witnessed dominating his thoughts.

He looked up blearily as he heard an odd noise from somewhere in front of him. The hallway he was in was poorly lit, a small flame flickering from inside of a rusted lamp on the wall a little ways down. It took Wander a long period of time to register what this meant to him, so he just continued to sit there and stare at the floor.

He jolted upright, finally putting the two pieces together. A lantern! Wander rushed towards the item haphazardly, not even waiting to fully regain his footing. Only by luck did he manage to make it to the wall that the lantern was on, as his limbs were sluggish and felt numb. He grasped for the lantern greedily, nearly tipping it on himself in the process.

Wander could not love an inanimate object any more if he tried. The metal was rusted and an ugly shade of brown due to the erosion, and the flame was small and nearly nonexistent - all trivial matters in light of what he had just been through.

With a final, mighty yank, he wretched his prize from the cold stone wall. He fell backwards, cradling the lantern as if it was the most valuable item in the world - which at this point, Wander could very readily agree with.

Once more, the same sound could be heard from somewhere to the right of Wander. He looked into the darkness, puzzled. It did not sound like any noise that he had heard from the monster up to this point, yet that didn't necessarily mean anything. Who knew what other horrifying secrets had been made in this prison of a castle?

Getting up slowly, newly acquired lantern in hand, Wander tried to discern any secrets from the endless sea of darkness in front of him. After a handful of moments, he let out a small gasp of concern as a small girl slowly approached him from within the pitch black of darkness.

She was a small thing, no older than six or seven years of age. She was visibly shivering, holding herself tightly. Her clothes where torn and tattered, covered in blood much like his own clothes. She had short, blonde hair in what would have been cute little curls had they not been frazzled so badly. She stared at Wander, crystal blue eyes opened widely in what he could guess was only surprise.

Wander held the lantern up to his face, putting the other hand in the air to show that he meant no harm. He attempted a smile, but only managed a grimace. "My god, this is insane..." His throat was raspy and hurt, but he suppressed the pain and continued to talk.

"What is your name little one? Are you hurt?" The girl shook her head slowly from side to side, creeping closer to Wander. He put the lantern down on the ground, holding one hand out to the young girl. Despite seeming frightened, he could see a distinct iron will in her eyes, and couldn't help but wonder what she had lived through to get to where she was now. What horrors had this young one experienced? Countless, no doubt.

The girl grabbed his hand tightly, cold against his palm. She kneeled down in front of him, staring at the flame with wide eyes. A small smile crept along her features, small dimples finally showing as her smile grew wider. He couldn't help but smile himself. He was no longer alone! No more isolation!

He moved a bit closer, trying to seem less frightening then he must look after his recent ordeal. "Do you have a name little one?" The girl looked up at him after a moment, tilting her head slightly. After a moment she pointed at Wander and then at herself. He nodded as if he understood. "Ah, so your name is Wander. How peculiar - mine is to!" She giggled slightly, her gaze drawn back to the dancing flame.

Something seemed off about the girl, but he couldn't quite place what gave him the suspicion. "Where are your parents? Are they here with you...?" The girl looked back up at him again, sadness filling her eyes. After a moment, she jumped at him, wrapping her arms around his neck in a tight hug. Hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around her tightly.

Then it hit him - up to this point, he had not heard he speak. He frowned slightly, breaking the embrace and looking into the girls eyes. "Can you speak, little Wander?" She shook her head, looking down at her feet in embarrassment.

He pat her shoulder putting on the best smile that he could. "That's okay. I promise that I will get you out of here, okay? I know that this place is scary, but I will do everything that I can to make sure that we survive through this." The girl smiled, pointing at him before pointing to herself once more. He nodded slowly. "Yes. I promise. Just stay with me, and listen closely - if I say something, do it no matter what happens. Can you do that for me?"

The girl nodded once more, staring at the small flame once more. Wander nodded, getting up slowly and holding his hand out to the small girl. She wrapped her small hands in his, carefully picking up the lantern and handing it to him. He smiled, taking it. "Thank you. Now, what say you that we go find a way out of here?"

The girl nodded, and the two walked down the hallway hand in hand, accompanied only by one another and the flickering flame from within the rusted lantern.