What Lurks Behind The Trees

Cloudy

They walked in silence, their eyes blank and their minds an empty void. Their bodies were covered in blood and dirt, their clothes were tattered and ripped like their hearts, but they were too exhausted to feel anything. Aden and Alan supported Rowan, placing their arms around him as he limped over the dried leaves.

They were lucky enough not to come across another Dethien, or that would be the end of them. This time the morning did not bring warmth with it, the air was cold and the sky was cloudy, as if sensing their mood. Gregor's heart clenched as he remembered the events of last night, his brain couldn't process it, he was too shocked, too tired to even think.

They didn't know how long it would take them to reach Aigronyth, but they knew they couldn't waste anymore time and the more time they spend in the Stygian forest, the more trouble they come across.

"We need to eat," Alan muttered.

"No," Gregor said. Alan lifted an eyebrow at him, "Let's carry on walking,"

"If we don't eat, we'll collapse,"

"Please, Alan," Gregor said, "I don't want to be here any longer,"

"Do you think I want to?"

"No but-" Gregor's words got stuck in his throat when he heard a distant scream, he looked at the others "What was that?"

They stopped and listened again, "That was definitely someone yelling, let's go see,"

They walked to where the scream was coming from, and the closer they got the more it started to sound human, a human groaning in pain.

Rowan's eyes widened "Hey, that's Finn!"

They ran to the voice and gasped when they saw the scene before their eyes. Finn's legs were stuck between a dead Dethien's jaw, its needle-like teeth digging into his legs, he was crying and thrashing, struggling to release his limbs from the deadly grasp. Next to him was another man named Felton, he was laying on the ground unmoving.

"Finn!" they all yelled in unison and ran to his aid.

He looked at them and cried harder, a feeling of relief washing over him "Help, please help!"

Gregor tried to lift the sharp teeth off Finn, but they were dug too deep into his legs. Aden went to check on Felton, he pressed two fingers to his neck and sighed in relief when he felt a faint pulse. Alan went to help Gregor.

"They're not moving," Gregor said, gritting his teeth as he tried to pull the teeth.

Alan tried to use his sword to break the teeth, that only made Finn scream louder as he struggled to stay conscious.

Aden gave Felton some turquoise water. Gregor transformed his arm and climbed on the Dethien's back, he slid down to the mouth and used his claws to remove try and remove the teeth from the Dethien's gum, but it didn't work. Aden walked to them after making sure that Felton was alright.

"We have to amputate his legs," Alan said.

Finn looked at him in horror, shaking his head frantically "No, no, no, please, no!"

Alan crouched down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to comfort him "I'm really sorry Finn, but even if we do get your legs out, you won't be able to use them again...I'm sorry"

Finn's chest heaved as he started to panic, his eyes were unfocused and his breathing was ragged.

"Hey, hey, breath," Gregor said to Finn as he struggled to stay awake, "You have to stay awake,"

"Finn, listen to me, if we do this, you'll live, I promise we'll get you out of here," Alan said to him in a low calming voice.

A tear fell from Finn's eyes, falling sideways to the ground, "Without my legs, I'm of no use to you... You should just kill me instead."

"No, we won't kill you, we are so close to Aigronyth, don't you want to see the sky with no tree canopies? Don't you want to see the mountains and breathe in the fresh air?" Alan said.

Finn closed his eyes and sobbed, "I want to see my daughter... I want to see my wife, but I don't want them to see me like this, weak and frail."

"No, they'll know how brave you were, they'll know how you fought till the last moment, how you survived all this," Gregor said.

"So, what's your decision?" Alan asked.

"I don't want to be a burden,"

"You won't, we'll find a way to move you around, don't worry," Alan said.

Finn inhaled deeply and closed his eyes, he stayed quiet for a few seconds and Gregor was scared he passed out, but he opened his eyes again and exhaled "...Alright...alright, I'm ready and I'm really sorry,"

"Don't be sorry,"

"Here, put this in your mouth and bite on it," Alan said, placing a roll of cloth in his mouth.

"Who's going to do it?" Gregor asked.

"I'll do it," Aden muttered and took out his two swords.

"Greg you hold his other hand, even if he scratches you, don't let go," Alan said as he took one of Finn's hands in his.

Finn's breathing was beginning to quicken as he panicked. Aden crouched by his legs, he tied each leg tightly with a rope. He placed his swords on the knees and avoided looking at Finn's face, he didn't want to see the look of pain in his eyes.

Aden exhaled strongly, sweat dripping down his face, before sawing Finn's leg at the joint. Finn's muffled screams echoed throughout the forest and Gregor's hand was bleeding because of the nails digging into it, the same thing was happening to Alan.

Aden sawed passed the blood vessels and nerves, trying his hardest to be careful, but the blood that was gushing out was making him dizzy. By the time Aden cut the leg, Finn had passed out.

Aden looked up at the sky and breathed for a few seconds before moving to the next leg. He repeated the process, using all his physical and mental strength to slit the leg. Once both legs were separated, he sighed in relief, falling back on the ground and looking at the sky.

Alan and Gregor pulled Finn away from the Dethien, leaving his legs behind, still trapped in the teeth.

"We need to clean it before it gets infected," Alan muttered, taking out his water flask and cleaning the bleeding wound. Gregor took out the last drops of turquoise water and poured them down Finn's throat.

They wrapped the stumps with a cloth after cleaning it and laid him down on a pouch. They both laid down and closed their eyes, exhaustion making them doze off.

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Why is everything so sad???! :( 

I'm sorry if this is making you cry, but on the bright side, they almost reached their destination!

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