KEEPERS OF THE WOODLANDS.

chapter 13:THE KEEPER'S DOMAIN

My night was peaceful.i had an internal clock.i could never sleep past four a.m .so at four i snuck out of Daimakn's room and went to my mother's side.there was a chair by her bed so i sat there till the sun came up.i felt a bit at ease.the shock had gone down replaced by  faith  .i just felt it. i wasnt going to lose Ma'  . At least not like that.

later that day

the road to the keeper was short from  my home about thirty minutes on foot.we left as soon as D woke up and got ready.it was a bit cold .not to the foggy point.the wind was crispy up here.it blew hard but we had structures that could break the wind and leave just enough of a breeze to carry the morning scent from flowers and fresh baked pastry.lucky for D, the keeper did not live in the tree top  village .it was the end of that nightmare for him.

we had been walking in silence.i didn't want to say anything.i just didn't know what to make of what  had happened  .i knew no one would believe me especially my sister ,madison.she'd never buy it.i just fell asleep in his arms.i mean what?

i took in all the air my lungs could carry .then exhaled and turned to him."ummmm thank you for yesterday.i really needed the company . i was on edge."

was that too weird .that was usually the part where i start overthinking.did i use too many words."don't mention it."he said it coldly as if he wasnt the same person who held me to sleep last night and calmed me down.a frown formed on his face.he didn't even look at me.'well i guess that's that'. i thought to myself and shrugged my shoulders.it did not have to be that much of a big deal unless i made it to be.

finally we got to the keeper of the woodland's domain.it was at the top of multiple steps.i looked up and it was devastating.i could fake being dizzy and make daimakn carry me up the stairs again.not.that .that's what happened the first time.okay abort mission.he wasnt in the mood this morning . i couldnt tell what his deal was and frankly i had bigger problems."you know i'm feeling kinda dizzy."i took weak steps on the first steps of the naturally formed stairs.

he looked at me for a second then walked on like i hadn't even said shit.oookay .can't blame a girl for trying.since that plan didn't fly ,i decided i was gonna beat him to the top.just because i could.looking up in determination, i took the first step.

the keeper lived on the slopes of a mountain .the steps were naturally made.it's like when people use certain paths for a long time.over the years the path distinctly forms and grass barely grows there.similarly.this was the only way to the keepers domain .so over the years the steps naturally formed.

after what seemed like forever we were at the top.so first, we had to go through a cave. a small tunnel with light at the end .daimakn was held in suspense.not sure what to expect .the last time we went through a tunnel there was a big orange fish like thingy that almost ate us whole.

it was beautiful once we got there.the place was an institution carved inside a cave in the mountain .the structures were made of rocks just like the walls of the cave and plants grew on the walls of the structures.crawling and twisting their vines .swallowing the structures. some of the  buildings looked as if they were suspended but really they were rocks that were attached to the walls of the mountain.they were hollow,so people carved them into rooms and made the best out of it.

the place was where most protectors came to study about all the living beings and how to protect them.there were so many new creatures.including the ones that had gone extinct a couple of thousand of years ago.they had been regenerated and cross mated to form new species.it was our job to keep track and ensure no specie was endangered ,ensure the food chain was balanced and no being was corrupt or unfair to the other.the latter was rarely implemented since it was woven in our souls since birth .

we were at the mercy of the planet.the fact that the keeper had chosen to build his  base inside a cave that could be a possible vent to a once active volcano,was precisely for that purpose .to teach us protectors that we were at the mercy of the planet.the volcano could erupt any minute.therefore we had to take care of it and protect it and it would habour us peacefully in return.