Progeny

Mother

I realized that coming here was a mistake. I couldn't find father or Darren. All I found was horror and death. I found a terrifying nightmare playing out right in front of me. I needed to leave- now. I backed away from the murder fest and slinked further into the shadows. I once was confident that I wouldn't be caught. I no longer felt that way. As I continued to back away, my back made contact with a very hard object. It wasn't a wall.

...

Immediately, I thought about a time when my entire family was happy. We were at a big and vibrant green field. Darren and I rolled down the small but slightly steep hills. We were laughing and giggling like a couple of crazy fools. As we ran back up the little hills, I would look back to see mother and father. They were sitting on a blanket we had brought with us. Father occasionally fed mother the pastries that she and I baked. She giggled, and he had a huge smile plastered onto his face. He would say something in her ear, and she would fall back and laugh.

I called out Darren's name, and he turned to look at me. I pointed to our parents, and he smirked. He put his finger to his lips and motioned for me to follow him. We hid behind big boulders near some trees and waited.

"I'm bored", I whined.

"Just wait for them to notice that we're gone."

Eventually, they did notice. Mother stopped giggling and frantically looked around. Father quickly got on his feet and called out our names. Darren and I, again, giggled uncontrollably. I fell back on the green blades of the grass and tried to will myself to stop laughing. Darren managed to stop, but began laughing again once he saw me struggling not to. I would 'shh' him, and he would begin to wheeze. I missed that. I missed us making each other laugh like that.

Suddenly, the sun's light no longer shined on us. A dark shadow casted above our bodies, and we stopped laughing. We turned and there was father, shaking his head. Mother ran up to him, panting hard, and placed her arm on his broad shoulder. We all stayed silent, looking between one another. Then we all fell out laughing. Mother and father grabbed us and tickled us to the point where our stomachs began to hurt. We all settled down and laid on the grass, sighing.

Just like when I sweep in the mornings, there was a silent comfort. I knew that we would never have that again, but it's nice to look back on those happy memories.

...

Tears slipped from my eyes as I realized that I've been caught. I wanted to die with a happy memory in mind. A hand covered my mouth, and I was yanked inside of a shop. My eyes were shut as I was silently sobbing. My sobs slowly stopped when the person hugged me. He rubbed circles on my back and was trying to calm me down. I pulled back and looked up at him.

John.

I hugged him again tightly and laughed a little.

"You scared me!" I whispered-yelled. "I thought that-"

"I'm sorry. You scared me too." He chuckled. We stayed silent when we heard multiple footsteps just outside. Fear swelled in me, and John put a finger to his lips. I nodded, and we listened to the men outside talk.

"We ought to head back to the palace. King Axel greatly appreciates your contribution."

"Of course, it was no trouble at all. I assure you, there are no other children left." I let out a small gasp. John snapped his head towards me, confusion etched on his features. I know that voice, I'm sure of it. My father. My father was talking to one of these bloodthirsty savages.

"Good. We will meet again when the time calls for it."

"I look forward to it." Did he have a part in this? My mind was racing faster than my heartbeat. Blood was rushing to my ears, and I was breathing hard. John rubbed circles on my back again, but to no avail. The footsteps retreated, and he helped me up.