Beyond the Void

Chapter 17, I saw no one, only shadows

ANDREW

Five tens since the Mark of the Other One blossomed.

Andrew woke up late and shivering. Everyone was asleep and huddled as close to one another as possible. The fire was out, but you could still feel the faint heat of the ashes.
"Robert. Fire out." Andrew mumbled.
It was freezing this morning, Andrew could see his breath and everyone else's.

Last night had been the best in a long while. The only downside had been butchering the pig. After the hunt, they had hauled whatever meat they could carry back to the camp and then went to look for the river.

As the meat cooked, people took turns going to the river to wash themselves. They had made another fire down at the river source and heated rocks to get some warmth in the water. Kauri even caught a fish. It was not impressively large, but it was another side dish for the evening. Usually Andrew hated fish, but he made an exception this one time.

Clean, well fed and rested for the first time in a month. It was enough for now, enough to keep everyone going a little further. Sten was in such a good mood last night that he was willing to consider staying here for a day.

As Andrew lay in between his furs, a silent patter drew his attention. He rubbed his blurry eyes and tried to concentrate on what was happening. A light wind was touching the treetops, and the leaves were falling.

The leaves had been falling since their arrival, but this was different. They were everywhere, not just one or two tumbling down at a time. As the wind blew, a new flurry fell down from every tree. A gentle storm of colour filled the world. Andrew stared at this for a little while. Then decided it was time to wake up.

"Hey! Wake up!" Andrew finally realised it would be a good idea to rouse the others. Groans and a couple of general insults flew around the campsite.

"Damn! What time is it?" Eric bolted upwards.

"Yeah. It's late in the morning. Didn't anyone stay on watch? The fire is out." Robert yawned and gathered wood into the fire pit.

"We've been exhausted. It's okay to take it easy this once." Jess mumbled from under her blanket.

As everyone made slow preparations for breakfast and leaving, Andrew stretched and walked to the other side of the tower to relieve himself. He looked down the hill and something human caught his eye.

He had to be imagining things. The leaves were falling and distracting him. Creating illusions. It was probably another one of his hallucinations. He looked away from the hill base and nearly shouted in fright.

A shadow quickly jumped from behind one tree to another. He saw nothing anymore, but he knew it was there. Andrew finished his business as calmly as he could and took a few steps away from the hillside. He closed his eyes.

There were three spots of nothingness around this hill, but they did not stay still. They would vanish and reappear swiftly. Andrew got down on his stomach and crawled to the edge of the hill. There it was. Something painted a shadow on the side of the tree and as soon as he saw it, it was gone.

Andrew pushed himself away from the edge of the hill and stood up. What now? What should he make of this? Andrew closed his eyes again and reached out. Three blemishes in the landscape of embers were there, just near him.

He tried to focus on one. He went closer and closer. If he reached out with his hand, he should have been able to touch it. Close enough now to take it in his embrace.