Sacred

Chapter 9

   The rain seemed endless. It poured down all night and Nick was afraid that it would make a puddle underneath their shelter, but it never did, luckily. Alex slept soundly all night, but Nick was awakened by every strange noise. He hated his light sleeping nature. Why couldn't he just fall asleep and stay that way for a few hours?

   That's when a different noise came to his ears. A sort of snuffling. With the sound came a tingling sensation at the base of his skull, accompanied by a sudden tensing of every muscle in his body. A Darklen.

   He got up and grabbed his knife which lay beside the ruined fire. He quickly bent and blew on the embers, stirring them to life before adding in leaves and twigs. The fire revived itself and continued to burn brightly. The snuffling creature got close, but as it saw the glow from the fire, it turned and retreated into the forest as fast as it could. Even the simple light from a fire could kill it. It was possible for a Darklen to come out during the day when it was raining, but it pained them and made them weak according to his father's teachings about the elusive creatures.

   Nick trembled where he stood, gripping his knife for all he was worth until the sensation in his skull faded away. He sat down wearily and shook his head. That sensation gave him splitting headaches that lasted for almost an hour at a time, but if the Darklen got too close, it could give him one that could last a day. The one that had attacked earlier that day had gotten so close above his head, he'd barely had enough focus to get Alex out of the tunnel, but dad would say he'd get better as he aged.

   A sigh passed through his lips and he laid back, letting himself relax as Alex all but melted against his side, wrapping her tiny arms around him and linking her legs with his. He sighed and kissed her head, pulling the cloak up tighter around her head to keep her face warm. He fell asleep later to the steady drumming of rain on leaves.

   The morning came quickly. Almost a little too quickly for Nick. He moaned as his eyes opened partially to reveal almost blinding sunlight coming from between the branches. He rubbed his eyes and moved his hand to the right to wake Alex, but his hand landed on dirt.

   He gasped and sat up, looking everywhere. She was gone. She wasn't by the fire and certainly not under the Tentmaker. He jumped up and looked for tracks and soon saw a small pair making their way north through the woods. He didn't understand that. North was the direction towards the castle. Maybe she'd been mistaken and not known which direction was which.

   He sighed, shaking his head before running after them. He ran only about thirty yards before a small body stood up from behind a bush. He tried to stop, but the mud was too slick. He and the body collided, rolling off into the bushes. They came to a stop and he ended up laying on top of the princess.

   She growled and shook the hair from her face as his hands grabbed her wrists. "Ow! I was coming back! You didn't have to chase me down you..."

   His lips stopped the near dirty word in its tracks. She gasped and then moaned, pushing up into his lips. He pulled away and rested his forehead on hers. "Don't ever do that again, please! I was scared half to death."

   She smiled and blushed, her eyes flickering up to meet his. "It flatters me that you care."

   He met her eyes and saw a deep emotion in them that he recognized. It was the emotion his father used to have in his eye  whenever his mother was around. Love. Did she truly love him? If so, the prophecy was right. He blushed and got up, helping her up from the mud puddle where she'd fallen. She glanced back and groaned, staring at her back which was covered in thick brown mud.

   Nick gulped, but knew exactly what she'd need. He looked around and listened closely for the sound he wanted. In the distance, he heard the steady trickling of water and he judged it was a pretty decent stream or creek. He took her hand and urged her through the dense woods until he found it. It actually was a very decent creek that was deep enough to hide her body and it had gentle sloping edges for a quick getaway if needed.

   He gestured to it and then turned away, keeping his eyes on the trees. He heard the sound of clothes moving on skin and then gentle splashes in the water. His head twitched as he began turnaround, but he held back the urge, imagining the men who had been hanged for offenses against the princess. That's when she shrieked behind him.