Warrior

Chapter Four:: Headaches

Copyright @ Lindsay Alida 2012

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UNEDITED

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Chapter Four-------------------------------------------->>>>>>>>>>>Headaches

We had been slowly hiking towards Cartha for hours. Night had fallen hours ago. My foot steps were a constant thud...thud...thud...on the ground, next to the clopping of Xiu’s hooves. With each foot step, my headache pounded against my head, trying to coerce me into stopping. A stray branch snapped under my foot, the sound rattled around my brain as if someone had first whacked me with the branch and then continued to scream bloody murder in my ear. The pain bounced around my poor head, but I trudged on.

“Are we close to Cartha?” Kaito’s voice was low, but the sound still pierced my head with the stabbing pain of a knife wound.

We had hiked up the steep trail on the cliff-face to get into this forest just before dark, if I was able to get on a horse without killing my head, we would have been to Cartha about two hours ago. An owl hooed somewhere out of sight, beyond that, my hearing was critically impaired. “Stay quiet for a minute and listen to the night.” I said, not wanting to mislead him when I assumed we were close, because there was tha chance that I was wrong. Everything around me fell silent, except for the sound of my footsteps and our breathing.

I looked back at Kaito, he had his head cocked with his right ear angled to point more in the direction we were headed. “I hear...an owl...the branches shaking...and a strange...crackling?” He looked to me for confirmation of the word.

“Like a campfire? Is that the crackling?” I said, nearly cringing at the higher pitched sound of my voice. He nodded, “We’re close, very close.” This time I kept my voice a bit lower to irritate my head less.

Our forward march continued.

It wasn’t long until the trees began to thin out and faint firelight began to penetrate through the dark woods. In response my steps sped up in anticipation, anticipation for a good, long rest. Kaito kept pace with me. Soon, the rough path turned into a smoother, dirt road and the hulking shapes of houses and other buildings, spaced far apart at first, but getting closer and closer together the farther we traveled. Twisting my head around, I glanced at Kaito, who’s head was rotating back and forth, trying to see his surroundings. I couldn’t tell if he was apprehensive, or if he was fascinated by his surroundings. But he wouldn’t have been able to see much, I looked around the dark town, only a few candles were lit in various windows, but shadows pervaded much of the village.

“Give me the reins so I can lead Xiu.” I murmured, struck by the peaceful quiet of the town. Kaito looked at me incredulously.

“I will just follow.” He muttered obstinately, I shrugged and abruptly turned right on a narrow side road. Mae’s inn was close enough to the main road of town, but you still had to wander through the narrow side roads to get to it.

Kaito followed me through the labyrinth of twisting alleyways, between houses and modest stables. Often I was navigating more by memory than by sight, the candles that the inhabitants of this village had left out were few and far between. Finally, we rounded the last corner and before us stood a large, log lodge. The building was humble in comparison to it’s contemporaries in larger towns, but bigger than nearly everything else in this village. It’s stone walls were weathered smooth from years in the wind and it’s tall wooden door was worn pale with age in the weak moonlight. There were two lanterns swinging from poles staked into the ground on either side of the door, casting strange shadows over the building. Trailing off the bottom of each lantern was Mae’s trademark ribbons: two dark green streams laced with a lighter, spring green. I never did understand the point of them, but now, upon seeing these ribbons in my exhausted state, I nearly jumped for joy.