Tainted Light

EIGHT

     We rode for hours, heading east as the Sun took its rest behind us. Occasionally stopping for breaks when we needed to. We ended up at a small town to rest when the skies turned grey and the air turned cool.

     " Thank you for your hospitality. " I overhear Mason tell the owner of the small two-story rest stop we are currently in. It's small but warm and cozy enough for the five of us. We head upstairs to the room Mason rented for us and sat in the middle of the room, a map laid out in front of us.

     " Celeste is about a day or two away so we're gonna need to stop for supplies as we get closer. " Luna explained, pointing to different parts of the map. We nod, taking in the information.

     " I think we have enough food for a day. " Eren murmured, " So we should probably stop at this town on our way. " He circles a spot on the map, a town called Rosestone.

     " I've been there once with my dad when we visited Celeste for some meeting, " Karson mentions, " Not many people live there, it's mostly used by travelers to rest and gather more supplies. "

    " Okay then, we will ride out to Rosestone tomorrow then head straight to Celeste. " I declare.

     " Well I'm exhausted, can we sleep now? " Eren groaned, retreating away from our circle. I nod, being tired myself. We aren't even at Celeste yet and we ran into trouble, we got lucky against those Shadows earlier today. We need to train and hopefully this Ever guy can help us with that when we meet him.

     " Girls get the bed! " Mason says to Eren who is slowly sneaking to the bed. Eren huffs but doesn't argue heading to the spot on the floor next to Karson who's already dead to the world.

I lay on the bed next to a sleeping Luna and close my eyes, "Goodnight guys."

" Goodnight Aurora. "

" Night Queen. "

     I wake up first to sunlight shining on my face. I get up and tap Luna on the shoulder gently until she begins to stir. " Wake up Luna, it's morning. " She just ignores me and turns the other way. I huff and decide to wake up the boys instead.

" Get up boys, sun is up and we gotta get going. "

     " Five more minutes. " Eren mumbles turning away from me. I ignore him and turn to Karson who's already awake and sitting up. Karson stands up silently and walks to the bathroom, grabbing a vase on the way there.

     " What are you doing? " Mason wonders also getting up and cracking his back. Karson doesn't answer and just lifts up a finger to his lips telling us to be quiet. Me and Mason watch with curious eyes as he empties the vase of surprisingly fake flowers and fills it with water. My hand goes up to my mouth to cover my laugh as Karson turns back to us with a mischievous smile. He tiptoes over to where Eren is sleeping and dumps the water on him. Eren jumps up with a shout, soaked head to toe with an irritated look on his face. Luna wakes up on the noise and looks around confused until her eyes land on Eren and a laugh escapes her lips. Eren turns at her little laugh and his irritated expression is replaced with a small smile. He slowly turns towards the bathroom and heads to it, flipping off Karson on the way. The rest of us laugh at his back until the door closes and we lose sight of him.

      Soon enough everyone is ready to go and we leave the small rest stop, thanking the owner on our way out. As we ride I appreciate the view of the land around us. The bright blue sky after a night of rain, the trees swaying softly with the wind, the grass green and wet, the animals living in their own little world while we ride past.No wonder Shadows would rather live up here than whatever hellhole they come from, too bad they're such terrible and evil beings.

      As the wind hits my face I can't help but be hit with grief. I wish my parents were here to see this, we hadn't had the chance to travel like this in a while since things started getting busier. They would've loved it, especially my mom who felt a natural pull to nature and the world around us. God I miss her. My heart twists and I close my eyes to prevent myself from crying. I tilt my head back a little and open my eyes before turning back to the road in front of me. I'll avenge you Mom. Dad. I'll avenge you all.

I snap out of my thoughts when my horse suddenly comes to a stop and neighs loudly. I pet its mane trying to calm it down.

      " There's a child. " Mason comes up to me, getting off his horse and walking to something in front of us. I squint at what he's walking toward and he's right. A child is in the middle of the road curled into a small ball.

     " What the hell? " I whisper, rushing off my horse and towards the child. Mason holds a hand up to stop me but I ignore him going up to the kid, a little boy.

    " Are you okay? " I whisper coming closer. The little boy's head jolts up at my voice and he gets up from his spot, eyes wide with fear.

      "It's okay! " I exclaim before making my voice softer, " I won't hurt you I promise. " The boy stops but doesn't come towards me. My eyes study him for a second, he's young and small. He looks to be around 5 and his brown hair is messy and unkept. He studies me too, his eyes roaming my face.

      I slowly walk towards him and lean down, " What's your name? " He doesn't answer, his eyes trained on Mason and the others who also got off their horses and made their way near us.

" Can you guys go by the horses for a bit? " I turn my head towards them.

" Sure. " Luna nods, grabbing Eren and Karson's arms and nudging Mason with her shoulder. They follow her quietly back to the horses and I turn back to the little boy.

I give him a soft smile, " Don't worry, they're my friends. " The boy's eyes meet my own, they're a warm hazel color and I can't help but feel anger towards whoever left him here alone and vulnerable.

" I'm Kain. " A voice murmurs. It takes me a second to realize that it's the boy and that he's actually talking to me.

" Hi Kain, my name's Aurora. " I hold out my hand for him to shake but he just stares at it, not moving. I put my hand down slowly feeling a bit embarrassed, what was I thinking.

" Um, may I ask why you're out here alone? " In the middle of nowhere, where is this kids' parents?

" I was with my mommy but she disappeared. " He mutters looking down at the ground. Disappeared ?

     " We were riding on Max but she said she had to use the bathroom and walked in there but she hasn't come back for a longtime. " Kain continues pointing into the woods to the right of us. I'm guessing Max is their horse or something. I let out a soft sigh and stand up,holding my hand out to him. He takes it cautiously and looks up at me.

" How about you wait here with a couple of my friends while I go look for your mommy? " I offer. He gives me a small nod and we walk over to them. I explain the situation to them and they seem to understand. I told Kain to stay with my friends while Karson comes with me, before we turn to leave he grabs my hand and I face him.

" Be careful Rory, there's a monster in there. " He says suddenly. I gulp and smile at him nervously, kids say that type of stuff all the time right?

" If we aren't back in 15 minutes, come get us. " Karson says to the others before we leave. The sun is starting to set and it's beginning to get cold, the forest looking very terrifying right now. A shiver goes down my spine and I turn to face Karson.

" Well, here we go. "