DEVIANT

The Warlock

Emmy traveled tirelessly for two days, knowing she needed to get away as far as she could, covering her tracks as much as she could. From her Grandfather's books that she use to read in his study, she remembers reading about about on hunting. She knew about dog trackers and human trackers. She ran wildly until she reached a stream. She entered the stream without hesitation as she traveled up the stream, knowing that they would think she traveled downstream.

She walked in the stream for four hours, her feet cold and wet, but she kept walking until she felt it was safe enough for her to rest for awhile to change her socks and shoes before moving on again on the other side of the stream.

Emmy quickly drank some water and ate a small slice of bread and cheese before moving on. Even though she read books on hunting, animals and plants, she never went inside of a forest before. This was her first time. The forest she entered was more dense, as she could no longer see the stars to guide her. She did not notice when the animals stop howling, hooting and chirping.

She did not notice that the forest around her became darker and more sinister as she moved deeper and deeper into the woods. She did not notice as the grass that was once green became grey, then it became just dirt. As if life was stolen away from even the grass. She did not notice, the trees that was once dense with foliage, were becoming bare.

Emmy was just happy she could see the stars again and travel North. Wherever North was, she didn't know, she just knew it would mean her freedom.

Emmy did not notice until it was too late, that she had been traveling in circles. The stars were supposed to guide lost travelers, then why was it that she kept going around in a circle? Emmy stopped at the same tree for the fifth time looking around her.

A sudden eerie feeling came over her as she saw the shadow from behind the dead oak tree move. The tree moved on its own as the limbs whips out and reaches out for Emmy with it's branches. Emmy quickly moved back, but she was captured from behind from the tree that she was just resting on. The branches wraps itself around Emmy and hangs her upside down as it brings her high above the ground.

"Let me go!" Emmy shouts and she tries to struggle out of the tree's hold.

The more she struggled, the tighter the branches squeezes her. When Emmy had no more strength to struggle she stopped moving and cursed her bad luck.

Maybe she was an ill omen like they said she was. Maybe she was born under a malicious star. Maybe is was a temptress who enticed men to their darkest desires. Maybe she is the reason why her mother killed herself and the reason her grandfather died. With her bad luck, everyone she loved, betrayed her and died.

Emmy had been hanging upside down for a couple of hours before she noticed him. How long he has been standing there, she didn't know. But what she saw scared her. The man wore a long black robe covering his whole body. But he was tall and sturdy. He had broad shoulders and long legs as he walked towards her. She could not tell if the man was young or old, his aura was dark and menacing.

This is it. Emmy thought. This is where I die.

The man flicked his hand once and the tree listened to him as it brought her down. Her body was still bound together by the branches, so she could only stare up at the dark figure as it looked down at her.

Emmy didn't plead for her life. She knew it would just be a waste of her time. She didn't ask for her death to be quick and fast. She didn't ask for the man to let her go. She knew she was going to die by his hands.

Without a word, the man reached out and broke the branch and pulled her along behind him. The ground scraped against her, but she didn't cry out. Not in fear. Not in anger. Not in pain. Emmy didn't even pray. For she knew. Praying did nothing to help her. There was no one who could help her.

---

When Emmy woke up, she was hung right side up this time and she was in a cave. It was dimly lit with a fire in front of her as the damp air blew in a cold wind. Emmy's eye searched for the man in the robe but there was no one. Emmy tried to wriggle out of the branch to free herself, but the more she wriggled, the tighter the branches became. So instead she resigned herself to her ill fortune fate.

Three hours pass by before she saw him again. He slowly walked in with a group of men all dressed in a guards uniform that she recognized. Her eyes enlarged as the man dragged all five of them so easily.

The man strung them up one by one. All of them facing Emmy as they were knocked out. Dread filled Emmy as she could only watch as the man stripped the guards of all their clothes. Once naked, the man waved his hand and the branches that was wrapped around her body, moved for a moment, before the man reached out and removed her clothes as well.

Once it was removed, the branches came back to wrap itself around her body. The man then bent down and looked through her bag. Finding nothing of importance, he pulls out a small pill and gives it to her.

"Swallow." He ordered.

Without even saying a word of protest, Emmy knew she could only open her mouth to swallow the pill that was given to her. Once the pill entered her mouth, it immediately melted into liquid and she swallow it down her throat. She soon became drowsy and sleep overcame her.

At first she could only hear. Hear as the five men shouted her name to wake her up. But for some reason, she couldn't wake up. She could only listen as they cursed at the mysterious man to let them go. Then, she could only listen as the man tortured the guards. Bleeding them slowly as they plead for their life. As they plead for him to kill them quickly.

How long she was tortured into hearing them all beg for their lives, one by one, she didn't know. But in the end of it, she wished she could just tell the mysterious men to put them out of their misery already.

But she couldn't. She couldn't see, nor could she speak. Whatever pill she swallowed made her unable to witness the horror in front of her. But she didn't know what was worse. Seeing it, but not hearing it. Or not seeing it, but hearing everything.

When Emmy's eyes opened, the light shined through the cave's opening, and she could finally see again. What she saw, she wished she could unsee. But it was too late already.

The five men had 1000 cuts up and down their bodies. As if they were slowly bled. They were no longer recognizable. If Emmy could have thrown up, she would have, but her stomach was empty and the only thing she could do was watch as the mysterious man pulled them down one by one then drag them out.

The cave floor was stained red with blood and for a split second, she was happy that she was hanging instead on the dirty and bloody floor. When the five bodies were brought out of the cave, the mysterious man's attention came on to her.

He reached out with a dagger in his hand and the branches moved without any words. He commanded it as if he was their Master. The blade entered her lower abdomen on her right side and it slid across her body horizontally to her left side. Blood quickly flowed as a large green stone was pushed inside of her.

Emmy didn't scream. She couldn't scream if she wanted to. The mysterious man then used the dagger to create another opening on her body. The blade entered her again, right above and in the middle of her chest. It slid into her so easily as more pain than she would ever know erupted inside of her.

She once thought she knew what pain felt like, the first night she was sold into the Cherry Blossom House. She once thought she would no longer feel anything. But she was wrong. The pain intensified as he pushed another green stone inside of her chest before she lost consciousness.

"What an interesting little girl." He said as he pushed her short hair back. She didn't plead for her life. She didn't barter for her life. She didn't scream out in pain when he cut her open and pushed the Souls of Amaratu into her. Nor did she wake up as he bound her soul together with the Souls of Amaratu.