Forest of Ashes

Chapter Four

Bree was forthcoming with answers, which was lucky for Owen. He was in a land he knew nothing about, the threat of death looming over him, and the man called Ivan had decided to tie his hands together. It was well within his rights to ask questions.

She had said the restraints were a precaution, in case he ran off. Owen had asked why that was such a bad thing; he got no response. His sister would have kicked and screamed if they had tied her hands together. He obliged with little effort.

A small part of his mind was telling him that there was no point in resisting. It was him against a dozen people, but he knew his time would come. Someone had to slip up eventually. Then, he would escape, running off into the forest.

The Infaer stone had transported him to a different land, yet he knew he would find a way back. It was the only way he was going to survive this.

Owen did do one thing his sister would've advised. He had told Ivan and Bree his name was Will Shore: a childhood friend who went missing in the night, his name among an endless list in Sanus. A list Owen had most likely been added to.

Marie had done the same thing when she had been in the local jail for a day. By giving the officers a fake name, she had managed to buy herself some time. It wasn't long before she escaped, a harlot and pickpocket her new best friends.

Bree hadn't noticed that Owen was shivering slightly, his feet dragging on the ground as he pulled on the restraints. Owen knew the symptoms of a fever as his Grandmother had let him stay when she was healing patients; it was a matter of hours before his body gave up on him. But he didn't need much time; all he wanted was information and a way out of here. Judging by the distracted nature of Bree, he knew she was bound to make a mistake soon.

Every rustle of leaves or chirp of a bird made her jump, hand tight on her blade. She wasn't the only one; everyone else was on edge. Tension hung over the group, stifling the air.

So far, he had learned that he was in Alius. He had never heard of the place before. But then again, he had never been outside of Sanus before. The girl had described the land as a dense coverage of forest, though she didn't tell him where it was specifically. He had kept quiet about the Infaer stones, the object which had transported his body to another land. He wasn't quite sure where that piece of knowledge would sit with her. And if he told Bree, then the information was going to be passed on to Ivan.

"Was it gold on your shirt?" The question seemed to surprise the girl. Before she was focused on the trail ahead, eyes darting from left to right as she clutched Owen's restraints with one hand and the dagger with the other. Now, she turned to him and frowned.

"The stitching on your shirt, when you met me at the bakery. Was it gold?"

Bree raised an eyebrow. "Are you always this observant?"

"I notice things that I shouldn't." For the first time, Owen didn't mumble. He was quiet, but his words were clear enough. It was just a front. He was just trying to appear tough, like his sister; if he pretended to be like her, he might have a chance of making it out of this.

Taking a sip from her canteen, Bree gave him a sly smile. "You may have some uses after all".

He tried to reply, but a shot of hot pain seared through his body. Collapsing to the floor, he trembled uncontrollably, sweat beading on his skin.

It was all too quick. The symptoms of a fever never emerged so quickly.

Reaching out, he grabbed Bree's tanned hand and motioned for the canteen. She held up his head, pouring the water down his dry throat, but it didn't ease the pain. A fire was building inside of him, one which he couldn't escape.

Mind foggy, he heard segments of what Bree was trying to tell him: "Focus on the fire." Owen let the heat consume him. "Close your eyes." He saw stars in the darkness. "Choose a light."

If he wasn't in so much pain, Owen would have scorned the girl. But he had never seen these symptoms come so quickly before. It felt like wildfire.

Clenching his eyes shut, he looked at the stars in his vision. There were infinite, millions begging to be unleashed on the world, but he focused on the brightest. Slowly, it grew bigger and bigger, tendrils of light latching onto the darkness and devouring it. Before long, Owen was struggling to focus on the star, the heat scorching his skin.

He tried to hold on.

Just a few more seconds.

He grabbed onto the bark of a tree.

Just hold on.

Bree was chanting beside him.

Let the pain end.

Opening his eyes, the heat shot out of his body, leaving Owen cold and wet from sweat. He gasped for breath, pressing his forehead against the damp leaves of the forest floor. His throat was dry, his eyes blurry, and he was deeply exhausted.

Waiting for his vision to clear, he looked back up at Bree, "What did you do?" His voice came out as more of a rasp, but it was still audible.

She just stared at him, eyes wide.

"What did you do?" He was shouting now, "What did you do to me?"

"I thought we had time. I didn't know it would happen so quickly," Her voice was strong, certain, something which Owen envied. He sounded like a lost child.

"What happened?"

Bree stood up, brushing her cool fingers across his forehead. Owen shivered. Gently, she took his chin and turned his head to look over his shoulder.

There stood a tree, burnt to cinders, only the stump remaining. In all the confusion, Owen hadn't realised the air was heavy with smoke, and ashes coated the forest floor. Looking down, he noticed that his restraints had disappeared.

At first, he believed it was a sign of the gods. But everyone was staring at him, the same look of fear in their eyes from before.

That was when Owen realized this was his doing.

He felt the fire rise up inside him, but Bree's cool hands kept the embers at bay. She was chanting something, muttering under her breath. He clutched her hands, anchoring himself to her.

A tear slipped down his cheek, but the heat of his body made it sizzle and evaporate into the air. What have I become? He thought of his sister, of what she would think of this. Would she hate me? Marie felt no sympathy for their grandmother; his sister said she had what was coming to her and that no human should try and replicate the power of the gods.

Grasping onto his necklace, he prayed that his sister would forgive him. He knew his father would disown him, but maybe Marie would stick by him.

The whole group were watching him, ash blanketing their clothes. Coming forward, Ivan wiped the cinders of his shirt and put a comforting hand on Bree's shoulder. Looking at Owen, he gave him a confirming nod. "The forest has gifted you with this power. You are destined to end the war."