Beyond the Void

Chapter 15, Mini hippo pigs

ANDREW

Five tens since the Mark of the Other One blossomed.

Andrew was descending the hill with Sten, Lenna and Eric. Lenna and Eric were the first to volunteer, but Sten kept glancing at Andrew as he always did. While Andrew had no plans to take part in the hunt, eventually Sten insisted that Andrew should come along.

They all had bows, arrows and a short sword. Eric, Lenna and Sten had practised, but the lack of arrows was a problem. They could not risk losing or breaking any. They had taken from the gateway village two small pouches with twenty arrowheads, some feathers, some string and a piece of something that looked like wax. However, where would they get the shafts?

And what about their swords? Those swords were heavy for their small size. Andrew had doubts about his usefulness for catching and killing an animal. He knew the reason Sten had brought him, though.

He stared at the man walking in front of him with mixed feelings. It scared Andrew a little when Sten stopped, turned around and gave him a nod.

"What...?" Lenna began.

"He needs a moment." Andrew heard Sten say. He had already closed his eyes.

"So he is like Becca?"

"Becca is a frightened little girl with extraordinary ability. An ability that's too much for her young mind. Andrew says she might exceed him in ability, but right now he has better control over it."

"You're distracting me, Sten. I'm not going anywhere, I am still here and I can hear you." Andrew opened his eyes and staggered a little. Sten placed a hand on Andrew's shoulder. "Sorry." Andrew smiled crookedly and closed his eyes again.

For a moment he lingered around the tower. The empty spot was nowhere to be found this time. Perhaps this was a blind spot in nature? But he did not concern himself with the thought for long.

Instead, Eric had drawn Andrew's attention. It had to be because of the gateway, but what exactly was happening with his presence? There was a second Eric growing inside that dwarfed the real one.

Andrew tore his attention elsewhere to find the other embers. The larger ones were moving. Far away. Focusing on the surrounding landscape, he suddenly realised there were countless smaller sparks underneath their feet.

Too much, there were too much of them, their numbers endless. He staggered around and felt Sten grab him with two hands to keep him upright.

He realised he ought to concentrate on the larger ones. The ones that were smouldering, the ones you did not have to look for. There were three groups nearby and one other coming in their general direction. Those would have to do.

"Right, I think I know where we should go. But help me sit down. I need a moment before I open my eyes."

"Better control, huh?" Lenna said as Eric and Sten helped Andrew.

"Better, as in I will not hurl even though I am about to feel like it." Andrew tried to joke.

"What did you even do?" Eric sounded curious.

"Tried to find anything living nearby, no matter how small. I think." Andrew opened his eyes. The ground underneath him was crawling and moving. No matter what he told himself, he and everyone else should not have been standing still.

...