by B. D. Suever
Are they searching for the amulet? the witch thought to herself. Aloud, she said, “Gather the rest of the villagers and head to the capital. If they come back this way and see what happened here, it will not be pretty. And take the girl's parents with you. I believe there is another elder at the capital who may be able to help them.” She turned and headed towards the edge of the village.
“Wait!” the priest called. “I don't even know your name.”
The witch turned around, smiled at the priest, and turned into mist. Winds carried the mist up into the air and it disappeared.
The priest smiled and headed back to the village to gather everyone up. “Come on, everyone, it's all clear. We need to leave and head for the capital. Grab only what you need to survive.” The priest walked over to the small girl, who was staring at her parents. “Worry not, young one. I'm sure we will find help in the capital.”
“I hope so, sir,” Marni sobbed.
A couple villagers helped load her parents into a wagon and the entire village emptied as they started their journey to the capital.
There was a cold chill in the morning air. The forest was quiet this morning; so much so that it was almost eerily calm. Suddenly, an arrow shot out through a tree, startling the birds and causing them to fly away in all directions.
“Sorry!” Ethan yelled.
“I told you before. Slow your breathing, stay calm and focus, focus, focus!” Nera yelled back.
“I was focusing,” Ethan replied.
Nera looked at him, annoyance on her face. “The target is in front of you. If you really focused, then explain how your arrow shot up in a tree.”
Ethan’s face wore a blank stare. He tried to come up with an excuse for his arrow going in a different direction. “The sun was in my eyes and blinded me,” he claimed.
Nera let out a sigh. “Ethan ... look around. The clouds are covering the sky today. No sun. Stop putting blame elsewhere and just focus. If you want to learn to defend yourself, then you need to take this training seriously.”
“Fine,” Ethan answered, “I wasn't focusing. I saw a weird-looking butterfly and lost track of what I was doing. You've had me training with this bow and arrow for two days straight. When is it going to stop?”
“When you learn to focus and hit the target,” Nera said. “This takes practice Ethan, and the more you practice the more you learn from your mistakes and gain the skills needed to use the weapon.”
That's what Dad would always tell me, Ethan thought. Perhaps there’s some truth to that.
Nera glanced over at the quiver Ethan had been using and noticed it was empty. “Looks like you are out of arrows.”
“Aww, man,” Ethan whined.
“Time for more running,” Nera said with a sly grin. “Off you go, Ethan. Retrieve your arrows so you can practice more. This is all part of your training.”
Ethan groaned and ran off into the forest to retrieve the arrows he had let loose. Nera walked over to Naveni, who was sound asleep against a tree. She gave the bear a pat on the head and sat down next to her, waiting for Ethan to return.
Further into the forest, Ethan searched for his arrows. So far, he had found four. He looked around the forest floor and spotted another under a giant log that had fallen over. He got down on his hands and knees and crawled under the log to get the arrow. As he moved closer, he noticed a foul smell in the area. “Eww, gross! What is that smell?”
He grabbed the arrow and crawled out from underneath the log. Ethan stood up and climbed on top of the log to see where the smell was coming from. “That is disgusting,” he said.
The swamp on the other side of the log was enormous. The steaming smell that emanated from it was so bad it brought tears to Ethan's eyes. He held his arm up to his nose and mouth, trying to block the smell. “Seriously?” he said as he looked at a branch above the swamp. One of his arrows was caught high in a tree. “That must be the one I shot in the air.”
He let out a frustrated sigh. If I don't come back with all the arrows, Nera will be upset with me and might stop training me, he thought.
Ethan climbed down the giant log, making sure not to step in the sludge of the swamp. He watched his footing as he hopped onto a stone surrounded by sludge. He stopped for a moment to balance himself. Just then, he glanced down and saw a bubble forming in the sludge. He knelt to get a closer look at it. As the bubble popped, it let out a putrid smell that almost made Ethan vomit. He choked down what was coming up and tried to cover his nose again, so he didn't have to smell it. Ethan hopped to another stone, almost losing his balance. His heart was pumping fast; he was afraid to fall in. He balanced himself again and jumped one final time over to where the tree was, landing on the grassy patch.
“Whew. Glad that's over with for now.”
Ethan looked up at the tree in front of him. “Wow,” he said with his mouth wide open. He had never seen a tree as large as this one. I can do this, he thought.
Ethan climbed the large trunk of the tree. At the start, he was doing well. Finding his footing was easy since the tree was so large. Ethan's confidence grew as he climbed. This is super easy, he thought. Suddenly, a branch he reached for snapped, startling him. Ethan reached for another branch before the one he was holding broke. “That was a close one,” he said.
Ethan continued to climb until he made it to the branch his arrow had pierced. As he got closer, he could hear the branch he was on creak and crack. He stopped for a second, thinking that if he didn't move then perhaps the branch wouldn't break. Ethan could almost reach the arrow from where he was at. He stretched his arm out as far as he could. The tip of his finger was touching the back end of the arrow. Almost there, he thought.
Suddenly, the branch he was holding onto snapped and Ethan fell from the tree, hitting many branches on the way down. He landed hard in the swamp: Splat!
Ethan struggled to get out of the sludge but the more he fought, the more the sludge wrapped around his body. Ethan could feel his body tiring. His arms and legs felt heavy until he could hardly move them. His eyes felt heavy too, and before he knew it everything around him went black.
“Where is that unfocused child?” Nera muttered, frustrated. “I'm betting he's off chasing some colorful bug again. You'd think he never saw a kwagmar beetle before with the way he acts.”
Naveni sat up on her hind legs, let out a long yawn and scratched her belly. She glanced towards the direction Ethan ran off to and gave a low growl.
“What is it? Do you hear him?” Nera asked.
Naveni just stared towards the forest. She let out another growl and walked toward the trees.
Nera could tell Naveni sensed something. She followed behind her, keeping a sharp lookout. Then Nera stopped cold in her tracks. She remembered where they were and what direction Ethan ran off to. “The Living Swamp!” she yelled. Nera picked up speed and ran off into the forest with Naveni behind her trying to catch up.
The sludge pulsed around Ethan's body. A red glow surrounded him as he lay in the sludge, semi-conscious. Ethan had visions of playing Dark Torment. The rush of killing his enemies filled him with joy and satisfaction. His visions were so real he could feel the sword in his hands as he attacked creature after creature. As he lay there in the sludge, his face wore a peaceful look, as if he were in a blissful state. The more Ethan thought of happy times, the more the sludge around him pulsated.
Then Ethan's happy thoughts turned to dark and unhappy thoughts. Thoughts of him yelling at his parents, saying rude and negative things to friends and family filled his head. He didn't like what he was seeing. The sludge seemed to be showing Ethan the darkness hiding within him. Is this how everyone sees me? he thought.
The sludge tightened its grip on Ethan. The red glow got brighter as it fed on his negative thoughts, drawing Ethan into an even deeper state of unconsciousness. Ethan's body became engulfed in the swamp, only his head remaining above the sludge. His visions became more terrifying. He saw villages on fire, people running
in terror as they were being attacked by a dark presence. The face of the goblin that attacked him was staring at him throughout his visions, and he saw the world get ripped apart. What am I seeing? Is this what's deep in my mind? he thought. Just then, he heard a faint voice in the background.
“Et...h...an.”
“Etha...n...ake...p”
“ETHAN! WAKE UP!” Nera's voice broke through his unconscious state.
“ROOOOOOAAARRRRRR!” Naveni let out a growl at Ethan, trying to wake him.
Ethan's eyes fluttered open. He saw the sludge surrounding him and panicked. His head was barely above the swamp and he could feel himself sinking deeper. “HELP! Get me out of here! I'm sinking!” Ethan yelled in terror.
Nera grabbed a strong rope from her pack. She wrapped it around the trunk of a large tree and handed the other end to Naveni. “Pull me out once I have him,” she ordered.
Naveni gave a quick nod.
Nera tied the other end of the rope around her waist and cinched it tight before jumping into the swamp. As she neared Ethan, she could feel the swamp trying to grab hold of her. She reached out and grabbed Ethan. The swamp held on, not releasing the boy. Nera had to think quickly before the swamp took Ethan. She remembered hearing something a long time ago about a traveler who came across this swamp and saw what looked like a large eye peering out of the giant tree in the middle. Nera quickly took aim at the large tree trunk in the middle of the swamp. With a quick motion of her hand, a small dart shot out from her wrist. It pierced directly into the middle of the tree trunk. She watched for a moment as the trunk burned and bubbled.
Rrrraaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!
The scream echoed throughout the forest and Nera saw the eye open on the tree. It was flinching and blinking rapidly. “Good. The poison is seeping in.” Nera could feel the hold on her and Ethan loosening. “Naveni! Now!” she yelled.
Naveni let out a giant roar as she pulled as hard as she could to get them both out of the swamp. Nera looked back and saw the eye still flinching in pain. She tightened her grip on Ethan as more of his body was pulled from the pulsing sludge. Ethan wrapped an arm around Nera's neck to help. “Keep it up, Naveni! Almost there!” Nera yelled.
The poison wore off, and the eye once more focused on Ethan and Nera. It tried to regain its grip on them but just before it could, Naveni gave one final pull and released them both from the swamp. Nera and Ethan fell to the ground, trying to catch their breath. Naveni walked close to Nera and plopped down in front of her, letting out a heavy sigh.
“Good girl,” Nera said with a smile. She patted Naveni on the head and rubbed behind her ears.
Ethan made it to his knees and looked up at the sky. “I thought I was gonna drown in there and now I smell like sweaty, nasty underwear after an hour of gym class.” Ethan gagged a little after smelling his arm.
“You're welcome, Ethan,” Nera said pointedly.
“Huh? Oh yeah. Thank you for saving me. But you know, I wouldn't have fallen in if you hadn’t sent me after the arrows.”
Nera shot him an angry look. She got up and looked back at the swamp. She saw the eye once more as it closed and disappeared into the tree. “Come, Naveni. Let's head to the river so we can wash off.” She turned and walked away from Ethan.
“Hey! Wait for me!” Ethan yelled. “Can't I ride on Naveni? That swamp took a lot out of me.”
Nera turned to look at him. “You can walk. Perhaps some exercise will help you watch that mouth of yours.” Nera and Naveni headed out of the forest.
“Wait! I'm sorry! Give me another chance,” Ethan yelled as he chased after them.
The eye of the swamp opened slightly and watched as Ethan, Nera and Naveni exited the forest. Sludge in the swamp churned and bubbled. The eye was fixed on the spot where Ethan had been lying as sludge bubbled up more and then calmed down. The eye of the swamp closed again and disappeared into the tree.
Splash ... Splash ... Splash
Nera threw water on her face and body, trying to get the sludge of the swamp off her. She glanced over and saw that Ethan had just jumped into the river to get it all off.
Ethan ducked his head under water and scrubbed the sludge out of his hair. “Finally, that nasty smell is coming off,” he said.
“Yes, it is quite a disgusting smell,” Nera agreed.
Ethan walked out of the river soaking wet. As he bent over to pick up his leather armor he fell over in pain.
Nera rushed to his side and saw all the bruises from the branches he hit while falling from the tree, “Are you alright Ethan?”
Ethan grunted and had a few tears coming down his cheek. He didn’t want Nera to think he was a wimp, so he tried not to cry, “I’m ok. It just stings really bad when the wind hits my back.”
Nera looked over the bruising on his back, “Wait here. I’ll be right back.”
Ethan watched as Nera ran off to the forest. Naveni walked over to Ethan and gave him a nudge as if to ask if he was ok, “I’m fine. Thanks, Naveni.”
Nera returned from the forest with a handful of leaves, “These can help with the pain.” She crumpled up the leaves and used a rock in the palm of her hand to mash the leaves up. After that she gathered a little water and mixed it with the leaves, “Now hold still Ethan. This will sting at first, but I promise it will make you feel better.”
Ethan felt the sting Nera mentioned and winced in pain. He took a deep, calming breath and felt the sting slowly go away, “Thanks for helping me Nera. I appreciate it.”
Nera smiled at Ethan, “I’m going to get a fire going. You rest.”
“Thanks,” Ethan said. “I was getting cold.”
Nera placed a pile of wood in the middle of a circle of rocks she had laid out. She sparked a couple rocks together and lit the wood on fire. Ethan moved in closer to the fire to warm up. Naveni walked over to the fire as well and plopped down next to Ethan. She fell asleep and snored.
Nera turned to Ethan. “Now Ethan, I want you to pay attention to what I'm doing. These skills are necessary if you want to be a good hunter. Knowing how to start fires, fishing and gathering herbs and such from the forest are all key to your survival.”
Ethan watched as Nera grabbed a net from her pouch. She walked over to the river and threw the net in. As she sat there for a moment watching the water, Ethan saw her yank the net up and noted that she had four or five fish flopping around in the net. Cool, he thought.
Nera walked back to the fire with the fish and a few twigs in her hand. She shoved the twigs down the mouth of the fish and placed the twigs in the ground, keeping the fish over the fire.
“What are you doing now?” Ethan asked.
“I'm cooking them up, so we can have a meal. After what we went through, I think we need to replenish our energy,” Nera said.
Ethan had a disgusted look on his face. “Eww, gross. I hate fish. It smells nasty. Why can't we have some of that meat we had the other night?”
“We ran out of that meat last night, Ethan. Remember, you complained about it and threw it out,” Nera said.
“Oh yeah,” he said. “Man, I miss burgers and fries. I wish we had some.”
“Burger? Is that some potion?” Nera asked.
Ethan kept forgetting he wasn't in his world anymore. I guess I'm just going to have to eat nasty stuff until I get home, otherwise I will starve, he thought.
“Have you ever eaten fish?” Nera asked.
“No,” Ethan replied.
“Then how do you know you don't like it if you've never tried it?”
“Because it smells gross.”
Nera seasoned the fish with some herbs she had scavenged earlier. She turned the fish to cook the other side. The smell of the fish woke Naveni from her slumber and she sat up, waiting for her meal. “So, me yelling at you to wake up doesn't work but the smell of fish does, huh, Naveni?” Nera said with a smirk.
The smell of the fish made its way to Ethan and his stomach growled. That smells fantastic, he thought. He moved closer
to the fire, making it look like he wanted to get warmer, but what he was doing was trying to get a better glimpse at the fish.
“I knew the smell would get you,” Nera said with a grin as she glanced up at Ethan. She pulled one fish off the stick and tossed it at Naveni. She then grabbed two of the sticks and handed one to Ethan. “Make sure if you feel any bone in your mouth you spit it out. If it gets stuck in your throat, you can choke,” she warned.
“Oh great. Bones. I hate bones in food,” Ethan complained.
Nera looked at him, confused again. “Do animals not have bones in your world?” she asked.
Ethan took a large bite out of the fish. Chomp. “Oh they do,” slurp “but the bones are taken out by the farmers I think.” Gulp. He took another large bite of the fish. “This is great.” Then he turned his head and spat. “Yuck. Chewed on a bone.”
Nera laid her head on Naveni's foreleg and sat looking up at the sky. Only a few days had passed since Ethan's arrival but so much had happened and she could already tell so much more was yet to come. She knew what an honor it was to be considered the Avent's guardian, but she never expected the Avent to be a child. She always envisioned the Avent as a great warrior who could take care of himself. Now, here she was teaching the Avent manners, respect and appreciation for the little things. It seemed ridiculous to her, but she was eager to see where the adventure took them. She had never gone on a long journey away from Jasper. This was her time to see the world and what lay beyond. She looked back up at the sky. “Watch over us, brother, and bring us luck,” she whispered.
BUUUURRRRPPPP
“Wow, that was good food,” Ethan said, patting his stomach.
Nera shot him a disgusted look. “Excuse yourself, child. That was extremely rude and gross.”
