The Scent of Death

by Shelby Skabelund

  At least he had the fire between him and the darkness. To his back and sides were the trunk of the tree and the two large roots that he was sitting between. At least this gave him a little comfort.

  Nick got up enough courage to get up from his spot by the fire when he looked at his firewood. He had not gathered enough firewood to keep the fire going. He realized that the fire would die out soon if he didn’t venture out to find some more wood. He noticed that the further he got from the light of the fire, the better he could see the forest around him. He could also see his fire and the area he was sitting in like it was highlighted by a spotlight. This made him feel uneasy again as he thought whatever else was out in the forest would know exactly where he was and what he was doing.

  After a few minutes searching around, Nick had made a small stack of good-sized branches. He loaded as many as he could into his arms and headed back to the fire. After a few trips, he thought he had enough wood to last through the night.

  The forest was quiet. Very quiet. This made him feel even more alone and worried about staying the night here. The chill went up his back once again, and Nick hurried back to his fire. He quickly added some of the larger pieces of wood he had just gathered. The fire grew larger, reaching its long yellow fingers closer to the sky. The bigger it grew, the better Nick felt about being alone in the woods. He would just have to stay up and keep the fire roaring. He settled back against the tree trunk. It was warm on his back from being exposed to the fire while he collected wood. All was dark except for the fire and the small area that it lit up. The only sound that could be heard was the popping and crackling of the fire.

  Nick held the book in his hands and flipped through its pages. The light of the fire wasn’t enough to let him read it, but it was enough light that he could see detailed diagrams and very elegant writing. As he flipped through the pages it seemed that they went on forever. It seemed odd. The book was only about three inches thick, yet it seemed as though it was much thicker as he flipped through the pages again. The feel of the leather against his hands was smooth and cool. The corners were contoured and soft but not tattered. There was something different about it, he could almost feel a current in it. A current that resembled a pulse of something living like blood pulsing through veins. It was the only thing he could liken it to. Then he noticed the pulse seemed to match his own through his hands. “You’re going crazy.” He thought to himself. He had noticed a pocket on the outside of his robe earlier and decided it would be a good place for the book. He slipped it into the perfectly sized pocket. When he did, he was amazed. He could feel the book with his hand, but he couldn’t feel the book against his body on the inside of the robe. “Now I know I’m going crazy.” He said out loud this time and nestled back into the trunk of the tree.

  The fire felt so good, it was the perfect distance from the tree, and it was warming him to his core. Nick investigated the flames and thought of his warm bed that sat empty tonight. The longer he stared at the red-hot coals, the harder it was to keep his eyes open. He leaned his head back against the tree trunk and let his eyes close half way. He opened them again and they pushed back as though they had weights tied to them. He fought back one more time and then gave in. Sleep tightened around him like a boa constrictor, rendering him helpless.

  Chapter 7

  One Big Party

  Nick was at home on a Saturday morning. He didn’t have to get up, so he just lay there thinking about what he would eat when he got out of his warm bed. He couldn’t remember his bed being more comfortable and inviting. It seemed to cling to him, keeping him from lifting a single part of his body, so that is where he would stay. Oddly enough, his sheets began to get cold, very cold. They were cold enough that he began to shiver. His bed wasn’t comfortable any more. It was hard and started to tip up as though to dump him out on the floor. That is when his eyes flew open.

  He was very confused for a minute or two. Still waiting between consciousness and his dream world, he couldn’t focus on what was happening or where he was. Finally, his eyes focused on the gray and red coals at his feet. Then he woke fully with a jerk as though someone had just slapped him across the face with their hand.

  He knew exactly where he was, and he wished he were back in his dream basking in the comfort of his bed. He lay against the tree beside the red coals of the fire he had made. He was shivering from the cold night air that had snuck in as soon as the fire had died out. His first thought was to reach for more wood, but he heard something that made his heart jump. He had heard someone yelling. He then noticed more than one voice yelling. It sounded like someone was having a really good time.

  Nick sat up from the tree and looked around. To the right of where he sat, he could see light coming from off in the woods. As he leaned to look towards the light, he could make out more voices coming from this area of the forest. He could also see the light flickering as if it were a candle. His heart began to beat a little faster. He was excited to know someone was out here that could take him back home. The lonely feeling that he had quickly was replaced by excitement.

  He quickly stood up and started towards the light and voices. He rubbed his hands over each of his arms as he walked to try and warm himself up again. The orange and yellow light jumped back and forth behind the trees as he walked. As he got closer, he could start making out the voices a little more clearly. They were yelling more than talking. Occasionally, there would be a loud cheer, followed by laughter.

  The fire was much further away than he had first thought. By the sound of the voices he thought it was only a few hundred yards away. As he got closer he realized how loud this group was. The fire was not just a camp fire, it was a huge bonfire. Nick was just on the tree line near the huge fire. He could feel the heat from fifty feet away. Not enough to warm his body, but enough to give him goose bumps. He could see the shadowy figures laughing near the fire with their backs to him. He could also see the faces and clothing of those that were facing him. They were turned so the light lit them up like a spotlight. “They must be part of one of those mid-evil groups” Nick whispered to himself. The ten or fifteen he could see all had their heads shaven. Most of them were shirtless. Their skin covered in black tattoos. Some had grizzly beards that looked like that of a homeless man. Others wore what looked like leather armor covered in metal studs shaped like diamonds. At the shoulder it ended and what looked like chainmail sleeves ran down to mid forearm. He noticed that large swords and axes lie against trees and knees. He realized it wasn’t Hot Chocolate that they were drinking in those mugs either. A few were gathered around a large wooden barrel tipped on its side. One of them staggered back and forth and grabbed on to the others to keep himself up right. The others just laughed.

  “Great,” Nick thought to himself, “all I need is to catch a ride home with a bunch of drunken men who think they are Knights of the Round Table. At least I will fit right in with my wizard’s robe!” he laughed to himself.

  Just then there was a huge commotion at the side of the fire and a lot of yelling. At the same time, something collided with Nick Knocking him off his feet and to the ground. He was hit so hard, it knocked the wind right out of him. He realized that it wasn’t just one person, but two people were on top of him and one of them had a dirty rough scratchy hand covering his mouth. The other had their head by his ear. Then he heard a whisper in a quiet feminine voice “Keep quiet if you want to live!” The voice was so full of emotion that Nick instantly began to be fearful.

  Nicks senses heightened, and he could hear what was going on by the fire. A strange unfeeling voice called out “What is going on here!”

  Master “We found these boys crawling around in the shadows of our fire.”

  “Good, we could use some entertainment. Are there any others?” said the strange raspy voice.

  “We are looking as we speak.” said the other.

  Nick felt chills run through his body at this and suddenly felt an urge to run. He tried to turn his head toward the fi
re, but the hand held his head firmly in place. He strained his eyes to the side and could make out the shadowed figure looking their direction out through the trees. He could also see two boys about his same age. They were wearing tattered old rags for clothing. It looked like they fit right into this mid-evil celebration, but something made his blood go cold. He could see stringy greasy ropes tied way too tight around their hands. He could make out a thin line of what looked like blood running from the place where the ropes were tied. One of the boys had a bloody lip and the others eye looked like it was swollen shut.

  “Master, what shall we do with these?” the other voice interrupted.

  “Let’s have a game of course.” He yelled.

  The entire group around the fire erupted into yells of excitement. “We will let them go and give them a small head start. Then whoever catches them can kill them!”

  Nick felt real fear for the first time in his life. Real solid, keep yourself alive fear. He felt the body on top of him slide to the side and heard the voice to the side of him whisper “Follow us now and keep quite.”

  Nick rolled to his hands and knees and crawled after the dark shapes of these two strangers.

  “Enjoy the last few moments of your lives” cried the raspy voice. “I will give you a count of forty!”

  The hair on Nick’s neck stood up as he ran blindly after the black shapes that he assumed were new friends. At least they had stopped him from walking right up to these men and becoming the “main event”. It didn’t really matter though, because they would soon be running after whatever moved in the forest, and by the sound of it they wouldn’t care what they got a hold of. Just then, Nick tripped over something in the forest. He went crashing through some brush and landed on some rocks. They caught him right across the shins. “Classic Nick” he thought to himself. The strong hand that had been covering his mouth minutes before pulled him from the ground and a gruff voice said “You want to get us all killed? That is just giving them an idea of where we are. Follow me. It isn’t about how fast we go, but how careful we go. We have an advantage here. It is dark, and we have a head start. If we don’t make more noise than they do, we can get out of here alive.” His words were so numbing. He knew that they were in danger, but it just seemed so unreal.

  About ten minutes later, Nick’s lungs were aching. He could taste blood in the back of his throat, and he could feel it starting to sting. Way behind him he could see what looked like five or more torches winding through the trees. “We are almost there.” He heard the female say. Her voice then turned to Nick, “Can you swim?” She asked. “Are you joking?” asked Nick back. “I need to know now” she said impatient. “Nick could feel her eyes narrowing by the sound of her voice. “Yes, I can swim, but can I get warm afterword?” “You will be much colder dead.” She said very matter of fact.

  The next thing he knew, they were pushing him into what looked like a hot air balloon basket. He couldn’t tell in the dark. That is when the moon lit up the water moving by below. Very far below. “Won’t it be obvious where we have gone when they see the rope and this basket at the bottom?” Nick asked. “Shut up and help pull on the rope.” The gruff voice said.

  Nick did as he was told, but was very uneasy with the idea of what they were going to do. As the three of them pulled on the rope, the basket lifted into the air toward the tree branch the rope was thrown over. Once they were in the air, the basket swung out over the cliff directly under where the rope had been wound. The weight was too much to hold and it slid from all their hands. Nicks stomach jumped into his throat and he couldn’t even make a sound. The basket was plummeting towards the water. It didn’t fall as fast as normal, because of the long rope that had been wrapped over the branch twice. They still fell and fell quick.

  They landed with the bottom of the basket upright, the weight of their bodies crushed them to the floor of the basket. The freezing water came rushing over their heads. Nick swam for the surface, panicked. The cold water was already making his hands and legs tingle. He wouldn’t be able to swim far. As he surfaced he looked for the shore. He heard the voice of the woman again “Swim to the far shore. We will meet there.”

  Nick did as he was told again and worked his cramping muscles, forcing them to slowly pull him across the river. He climbed up the rocks on the shore and made his way to the tree line. He looked back up to see how far he had fallen. He couldn’t believe it, it seemed to be about a seventy-foot drop. He couldn’t tell in the dark, but it was high. A torch appeared at the top of the cliff, and a bearded figure peered out over the edge. Nick shrunk back into a bush. Two more torches appeared, and then a cliff side of torches showered light onto the trees at the edge of the cliff. He couldn’t hear what they were saying but saw them all turn and start moving along the cliffs edge for about fifty feet and then the torches disappeared as quickly as they had appeared.

  His two new friends came out of the water much further downstream, and so Nick worked his way their direction when he got to them he noticed why they were so far down stream. They had come to shore with the rope to the basket and had pulled it in as well. “What are you doing?” Nick asked. “We don’t want them to find this. It will just give them somewhere to start looking again. Who knows if it would have caught up somewhere nearby.” said the male. “How did you know it was here?” Nick asked. “We put it there.”

  After they had hidden the basket and very long rope in the trees and bushes, they started off in the same direction they had been going when they got to the cliff. They were no longer running, but they were walking fast. After what seemed like a few hours, they came to the end of the trees. Nick was confused again. Before him under the moonlight, was a barren landscape. It was open flat land with no vegetation what so ever. Off in the distance he could see large clumps of what looked like rock. They seemed to get bigger and bigger the further you looked. This didn’t look familiar at all. Where was he?

  For the first time, it was light enough to roughly see what these two people looked like. The man was about 5 inches taller than Nick, but he was much bigger. His shoulders looked square, like one of the football players that had heckled him at school. The woman was about his height, but very slender. Both wore old clothes that resembled those of the other two boys that had been tied up at the fire. He still couldn’t see their faces because they were wrapped up in some type of scarf. He could only see the glimmer of the moon in their eyes when they turned just right.

  “Rhen, we need to rest!” the woman said. “I know Vi, but not until we get behind the first hill of rock. We need a fire to get dry, and we can’t chance one until we have that hill to hide it. You know they won’t follow us out here.” Rhen said. “Hurry, by the way his teeth are chattering, I think he needs a fire, and then we get our answers.” Nick hadn’t noticed how much he was shivering until Rhen had said this. His teeth really were chattering.

  Nick could see the first hill in the distance. It was a sharp silhouette against the star filled sky. The sound of a warm fire got Nick moving even before the other two had told him which way. As they walked toward the mass of rock in the darkness, Nick realized what Rhen had just said, “then we get our answers.” This hung in Nicks mind with the hint of distaste he could hear in Rhen’s voice. What did they want? What were they looking for? Nick didn’t even know where he was let alone anything about these two.

  It only took a few minutes to reach the rock they were walking towards. It took just as long to walk around it to the back side. The moon light seemed like it was getting brighter as everything became more visible. Nick realized that his eyes were just getting used to the darkness. It had taken a moment, after having the bright light of the fire and the torches all around them. They were in the middle of a sand dune, from what it looked like. The sand was a pale white from what he could tell. The rocks that he had seen sporadically around through the flat landscape towered over them when they got close.

  The rocks, or hill they were behind now was the size of a c
ollege basketball stadium. On the back side of this rock there was an opening that allowed them to walk back into the rocks. There was a large overhang that sheltered them from about 10 feet above them.

  The one he called Vi lit a torch and light sprung to life. Nick looked around and realized that these two had been here before. A swath of black covered the overhang and worked its way down the wall to a fire ring made of rocks. A pile of chopped fire wood was neatly stacked against the rock wall. A large canvas was stuffed full of something with the top cinched shut with some rope.

  Vi quickly set the torch in the fire ring and started to add kindling. Within moments the fire was raising its curling fingers towards the overhang. Before he knew what he had consciously done, he was standing with his hands stretched over the warm fire.

  Chapter 8

  Answers

  Nick was just getting warm when the girl started to unravel her scarf from around her face. As she did, it revealed beautiful tan skin with the most beautiful blonde curls he had ever seen. It seemed that her hair had been spun from the finest silver and gold. It wasn’t natural. Then his gaze was drawn to her eyes. They were the most stunning green with flecks of yellow. He had never seen eyes like these before. His eyes were trapped on her and he couldn’t look away. He suddenly realized she was staring back annoyed.

  “What are you staring at?” she said. “Sorry.” Nick said quietly as he realized what he was doing.