What Lurks Behind The Trees

Keeping her safe

          

"Ada, I'm sorry for not telling you, but it was to keep our mother safe,"

"What do you mean?!" Ada said. They both moved to another room to talk privately.

"Our father...he abandoned our mother after she gave birth to you," Sam said, his eyes shifting to the floor.

Ada was speechless; she couldn't believe what her brother was saying. All her life she had been told that her mother died a few years after giving birth to her. She loved and admired her father, he was the person that brought her up and raised her and Sam.

"After mother gave birth to you, father noticed that she was beginning to lose her mind, she would talk to herself all the time and act strange to the point where it reached violence, from both sides."

"All these years...all these years I thought she was dead," She slid down to the ground.

"I'm sorry you had to hear this now, I was really young when this happened, I would see them fighting all the time, I was the one who took care of you when we were children," He crouched down next to her "Father was the one who raised us, but he abandoned our mother. He spent most of his time working for the Blackwoods, your marriage with Dyron was planned by our father, and he did that to improve our status and wealth."

Ada shook her head slowly, her eyes staring at nothing, her mind blank. She couldn't believe the words that were leaving her brother's lips. "Where is father now?"

"I don't know, he's probably working in the castle with the king,"

"My mother... I didn't even recognise her, what kind of daughter am I?" She sobbed.

"Ada, this is not your fault, Mother ran away from him, she ran here, the day she disappeared I knew it wasn't because she died, but because she ran from the abuse, from him, and from that day I promised myself I would find her. Many years ago, I came to Thronna for some duties, I saw her begging on the streets, I recognised her because at that time she hadn't changed much, she barely had time to enjoy her life before she became so mentally unstable. So I brought her a home in Thronna, I would visit her often, give her some coins,"

"Why didn't you bring her to Wilagorn?"

"I couldn't risk father knowing where she was, if he found us, he would find her,"

"But you still abandoned her Sam!" Ada said

"Ada, the king had been hunting down Blackwoods since he became king. Like this, mother is living peacefully, away from trouble, in a city of peace."

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Gregor's breath quickened as he rushed between the trees, each breath syncing with each step he took. The other men ran nearby, their eyes locked on the disaster behind them. The imps had snuck on them when they were sleeping, setting their bags on fire and in turn setting the grass surrounding them on fire. The person that was keeping watch at night had startled everyone awake by screaming at the top of his lungs, but the fire had already spread too quickly and burned some of the men alive.

Everyone immediately started running away, but the imps noticed this and a herd of them emerged from the bushes, hundreds of them, trampling and running over each other.

Gregor looked behind him, watching as the imps would jump on top of each other, displaying their sharp canines and hissing at them, their eyes no longer mischievous, but deadly and savage. Gregor gulped, wondering what would happen if he was caught again, but this time by hundreds of them.

One of the men climbed a tree in hopes of escaping, but Gregor watched in horror as the imps gathered around the tree, and started climbing over each other, he heard the man's screams of anguish as he was buried in a pile of savage imps.

He fastened his pace, but that stubborn protruding root caught his foot and made him fall painfully on the ground.

"Greg!" Aden and Alan shouted in unison. The swarm of imps was getting closer, a few of them leading at the front.

The ones at the front pounced on Gregor, and soon a bunch of imps were gathering around him as he tried to pry them off with his slayer arm. Alan and Aden came to his aid, taking out their swords and striking several of them. Rowan, who was further in front, took out his bow and started shooting. As soon as Gregor was free to move around, Alan and Aden pulled him up quickly.

"Thank you," Gregor said

"Your clumsiness slowed us down!" Aden snapped, and Gregor glared at him.

"We have to hurry!" Alan said, sprinting forward.

Rowan waved at them from the front "Hey! It's a dead end! We can't see what's down there, it's foggy!"

"Jump!" Alan yelled

"What?!" Barton said

"Trust me, jump!"

The imps were getting very close now, hissing and snarling at Gregor who was still the closest to them. He looked back, heaving in fear as one of the imps jumped on his face. He couldn't see. He tugged at the imp, but it was clinging and sticking onto him. He brought out his dagger and stabbed it repeatedly. That's when it went limp and let go, falling down.

He could see the end now; he inhaled, remembering the first time they jumped off that cliff in the first fraction. He could see Alan and Aden leap off the edge. He glanced one last time behind him before exhaling and jumping off.

He felt as though he jumped in clouds, the feeling was so exhilarating yet frightening, all the air rushing past him, blowing his hair back. He felt like he was flying, even though death was mere metres behind him and possibly in front of him. He didn't know if this time he would be lucky enough to land in water. He closed his eyes and repeated what he did the first time. He hoped this time none of his friends would have drowned. His heart beat fast, anticipating the landing.

Once he splashed into the surface, he almost cried at his luck. It was water, if it was land he would have splattered to a certain death. He flapped his feet, bringing himself to the surface.

"Greg! Are you alright?" Aden. That was Aden's voice. Gregor sighed in relief, he didn't know what he would've done if the events of last time had repeated.

"Greg! Can you hear me?!" Aden said, waving at him from the shore.

"Yes," Gregor smiled "Yes, I'm alright,"

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Chapter 27 done! Hope you enjoyed this chapter!