Echo

by H Waters

Splash! Lucy jumped into the pool and popped back out with a big, wriggling blue fish.

  “Well I guess that makes fishing easier,” Scarlet said with a laugh. It was odd seeing her laugh; it was like she was warming up to the idea of having Lucy and me around.

  “Here we go,” Scarlet said, pulling a tarp off of a small pile of firewood that was shoved into a nook in the cave wall. She began to stack it in a stone chimney that at first glance just looked like part of the wall.

  Lucy jumped in and out of the water, sometimes coming out with a fish. Occasionally one of her catches would tumble back into the water, swimming away dazed and confused. “One step forward, two steps back,” I laughed.

  Scarlet pulled a piece of flint out of her bag and began to strike it over the wood and dry plants she had piled up. Eventually, with much effort, the fire crawled to life. She triumphantly set the flint back in her bag, trading it for a thin curved blade about six inches long.

  “What’s that for?” I asked.

  “To prepare dinner,” she replied, taking a seat on the ground near where Lucy had been piling fish. She grabbed the big blue one from earlier by the tail, smacking it on the ground incredibly hard. She then proceeded to cut it open and toss the organs back into the pool.

  “That is gross,” I told her.

  “The other fish will eat it,” she said, as she killed the next fish.

  We cooked up some of the fish Lucy had so happily caught for us and had dinner.

  After we had eaten, we threw the remaining scraps and bones into the water for the fish to eat. “You should get some rest,” Scarlet told me. “You can have the bed in the corner.”

  “What will you do?” I asked.

  “I still have to plan tomorrow’s route.”

  I lay down. The mattress was thin and hard, but better than sleeping on rock, I guess.

  VI

  The night went by surprisingly quickly. I woke up only a few times to the sound of Scarlet shifting through old supplies in the cave or fish jumping out of the water. Scarlet had everything packed and ready by the door.

  “It’s morning, time to head out,” she said.

  “Jeez, do you ever sleep?” I replied, forcing myself out of bed and into my boots.

  “Sleep wastes time and right now time is very important,” she said as she pulled on some sort of large rope device littered with gears, to open the rock door. “Come along, we have to get moving.” She made her way out of the cave.

  I quickly followed along, grabbing my bag and sword on the way out. The door slowly sealed itself behind us, ending with a large mechanical clank.

  “Where did you get that sword?” Scarlet asked as she pushed her way through some brush, looking for the path.

  “Oh, some guy who calls himself the Prophet gave it to me back in Kata,” I replied. “Why do you ask?”

  “Was just curious. It’s a very interesting weapon.”

  Confused, I asked, “What makes it so interesting?”

  “Well, the coloring of the steel on the blade is black, not to mention all that strange writing engraved into it,” Scarlet replied. “Seems odd to give something like that away to a stranger. Did he mention anything else about it?”

  “No, no, he —”

  “There’s the trail!” she said excitedly.

  I didn’t see a difference from any of the other dozen dirt paths we had crossed, but apparently this one was the one. “So these Saint guys, they killed the Black Bloods?” I asked Scarlet after a few more minutes, breaking the silence.

  “They tried,” she said, in a slightly sadder tone.

  “Did they all get killed?”

  “Not all of them,” she quickly replied. I stopped pressing her, as I noticed her uneasiness growing with each question I asked.

  We continued down Scarlet’s path for hours, exchanging the odd bit of small talk, every tree looking the same, no noise but that of our footsteps and Lucy darting after the odd rabbit.

  “We are getting pretty close,” Scarlet said. “We should be there by nightfall.”

  “You said it would take much longer than this,” I said. “How did we turn a several-day trip into two days?”

  She replied, her voice sounding unsure. “I guess my mind is elsewhere, but hey, you should be happy, less walking.” She playfully slapped me on the shoulder.

  “Why are you so hell-bent on going to this old cathedral in the middle of a forest?” I asked.

  “I have to meet an old friend there,” she replied. “I am sick, and I think he can help.” s

  “Like a doctor?” I asked, intrigued.

  “Something like that,” she assured me.

  The path began to grow narrower the further we continued to walk, the forest canopy growing thicker and more diverse. Leaves began to green, the plants seeming to flourish. Concerned, I asked Scarlet, “Was it not fall just a few hours ago?”

  “There are no seasons here. No winter, spring, summer or fall. Only this humid and damp climate,” she replied, sounding upset about it.

  “W-why are there no seasons?” I asked.

  “I can’t remember,” she replied in a shaky voice. “Something about being so close to this side of the mountains, all this part of the forest gets is rain and heat, nothing else.”

  “Are you okay?” I asked. “You’ve been sounding nervous the closer we get to this cathedral place.”

  “I am fine,” she barked, in a strange tone. It almost didn’t sound like her voice at all. Lucy quivered and began walking behind me.

  The humidity was making it hard to keep up pace, and my light-gray tank top was dark with sweat. “Hold up,” I hollered to Scarlet. She stopped and walked back to me.

  Collapsing onto a nearby log, I slung my bag off my shoulders and took a drink of water. “Are we close? I don’t know how much more of this weather I can take.”

  Watching Lucy drink from a puddle, Scarlet replied, “We should arrive soon.”

  WAAACK! Scarlet smashed her staff into the puddle right in front of Lucy’s face, soaking her fur.

  “HEY!” I screamed. “That was way too close to her head. Are you trying to kill her?”

  Scarlet lifted the staff from the puddle, revealing a twitching frog stuck on the end of the claw or bone atop the staff. “You … you almost killed my dog to catch a frog?” I screamed in complete shock.

  Scarlet sighed like I was stupid. “Calm down and listen. Look at the color of this frog. See how bright red and blue it is?”

  I looked closer at the frog to see what she was talking about. The head and feet of the frog were a bright, vibrant red while everywhere else was bright blue, almost as if it was illuminating itself. The edges of it looked fuzzy and soft. “Why is everything so unnatural looking?” I asked.

  “I’m not sure, but the things here are not friendly,” Scarlet replied. “This ‘doctor’ I’m looking for has been here for a long while, too long.”

  “What does that have to do with anything?” I asked, very confused.

  “His magic, or whatever you want to call it, leaks into these creatures and this environment.”

  “Of course, it does,” I sarcastically remarked. Disappointed in myself for jumping to conclusions, I quickly added, “Oh. Well, thank you, I’m sorry —”

  Cutting me off, Scarlet said, “It’s fine, but we have to keep moving, we are so close.” I thought I heard desperation in her voice.

  “Yes, so close to the magic doctor in the middle of nowhere,” I said out loud, hoping it would sound less crazy than in my head.

  After Lucy finished shaking water off her fur, we continued down the path. The forest seemed to become stranger with every step. Vibrant blue vines covered the plants and trees, making the dark tropical forest glow with life. Strange bright creatures were constantly scurrying across the forest floor and tumbling through the canopy, as if they were trying to get a look at the new guests in their forest.

  “We’re here,” Scarlet said with an eager voice.


  I had not noticed until she mentioned it, but standing in front of us was a grand cathedral. Its massive marble pillars stood taller than the forest. The evening sun reflected off the large stained-glass windows sprawled across the cathedral depicting violent scenes involving the Saints.

  “Wait for me!” I called to Scarlet as she ran up the steps towards the giant wooden doors.

  Scarlet was banging on the doors with both fists, yelling “I need your help, let me in!” She smashed on and screamed at the doors until her fists bled and her voice was raw.

  “Hey! It’s okay, I’m sure it takes more than a couple minutes for the magic doctor guy to get these large doors open,” I told Scarlet, trying to calm her down. “How about we take a breath and rest for a little while — I mean he definitely knows we’re here after that show.”

  Collapsing to her knees sobbing, she held her face in her hands and whispered, “I know I do not deserve this, but please help me.”

  “What don’t you deserve? Maybe I can help, if you just talk to me?” I asked.

  Scarlet continued to cry and mutter unrecognizable words to herself. Rain began to fall soaking the steps and my clothes. I grabbed the broken shell of the Scarlet I thought I knew and dragged her under the overhanging concrete of the left tower. Confused about how the tough, emotionless Scarlet suddenly became so vulnerable, I held her as she sobbed until she passed out. What could make a person explode like this? As hours passed, the sun began to sink and the jungle grew ever more intimidating. I hoped she was right about these churches warding off those creatures. I unsheathed my sword and set it beside me, so if the time came I could quickly grab it. Leaning my head back against the warm stone, I shut my eyes.

  My eyes fluttered open to the welcoming morning sunlight. I must have fallen asleep. Lucy and Scarlet were curled up and sleeping just outside the overhang on the stone steps, the sun drying out their soaked clothes and fur. The collar of Scarlet’s shirt was hanging low in the back and I could make out a large burn just under her neck, going across her spine. I stood up and made my way to the large doors, beginning to bang on them and curse whoever was inside. A laughing voice that seemed to come from all around belted out, “Well, I’ll be damned!”

  Looking to Scarlet and Lucy who were still fast asleep, and trying to sound like I was confident and tough, I yelled back to the speaker, “Who are you! Show yourself!”

  “No, shhhhhh, don’t speak with your voice!” the old crackling voice responded, with much concern. Lucy, now with her eyes open, likely from my yelling, did not even acknowledge the strange voice.

  “How come my dog cannot hear you?” I asked out loud.

  “I am speaking to your mind and your mind alone. Now please quiet down, just think what you are going to say. Do not wake her.”

  I must be going mad, I thought to myself. How are you in my head?

  “Not important. Why are you here and why did you bring that creature?” the voice replied very rudely back.

  Do not call my dog a creature! I yelled back.

  “No, not the mutt, you fool, I thought blondes were the dumb ones. Why did you bring that thing, that demon here?” the voice said.

  You mean Scarlet? I asked.

  The clearly upset man grumbled and mumbled behind the door for a while. “Why aren’t you dead?” the voice finally spoke. “You should be dead.”

  Why should I be dead? I angrily replied.

  “Have you not seen it? How blind are you, girl? Look at the burn,” the man grumbled.

  I reached over and gently pulled the back of Scarlet’s shirt down a little more to reveal a large black burn identical to the ones on the Seekers. I covered my mouth and stopped myself from screaming.

  “Stupid, stupid child. Quickly, through the door,” said the man, this time out loud.

  Strange noises began to come from behind the doors, the sounds of steel grinding together and gears locking in and out of place. Slowly the right side of the large wooden door creaked open, and I stood up and curiously peered into the darkness. A small wrinkled hand came out of the darkness, motioning for me to move forward, and I cautiously slipped into the cathedral. The door slowly creaked shut behind me.

  I began to panic to myself. Stupid Echo! What if this is a trap? What if you are being lured to your death, what if you get eaten by cannibals!

  “I’m not going to eat you,” said a voice from behind me.

  I turned around to examine more of the room I had entered. The only curious-looking object was a large copper staircase in the corner. I slowly made my way further into the room, the smells of old wood and stone filling the air. The room was surprisingly small and dark considering how grand the outside was. The walls seemed to be just wood and stone. The sound of small feet pitter-pattering down the metal stairs filled the room. Into the very dim light came a little old man. He appeared to be bent and broken, using some sort of wooden staff to hold himself up. He had a long ratty-looking gray beard, matched with a balding head. He was easily seventy years old.

  “You sound much more intimidating when it’s just your voice,” I laughed.

  WHACK! He swung his staff into the back of my knee, knocking me to the ground. The little bent man looked at me with hate in his eyes. “Why did you come!” he screamed at me.

  “I … I don’t know, Scarlet told me she needed to see you. She needs your help.” I tried to get back to my feet, covering my head to avoid another hit from his staff.

  WHACK! His staff slammed into my back and pain went throbbing through every inch of my body. I hit the ground again.

  He lifted my head with his staff. “Stop crying you fool, look at my face. Your friend out there did this to me years ago,” he said. The old man parted his long, scraggly gray hair to reveal a scar running from his chin, across his neck and down his right arm, stopping at his palm. “That creature is a Black Blood, one of the oldest that I know of. She may have been a young woman named Scarlet once upon a time, but now she is a monster,” he said with anger in his voice.

  “Maybe that’s why she needs you, maybe she wants to be human again,” I muttered through the pain.

  “Now that is an intriguing idea,” the old man said as he sat down on an old wooden bench.

  “What exactly are we dealing with, then?” I asked, taking a seat beside him on the wooden bench.

  “An old evil, far older than even Nikolai the Saint. Black Bloods are monstrosities that exist only to kill and consume, but the catch is they need a consensual host to be at their full potential,” the old man answered.

  “Consensual? Why not just take a host by force?”

  “Yeah, I could never figure that one out either,” he shrugged. He held out his hand. “My name is Dante, I … I’m something of a shaman.”

  “I am Ec—” I began to say as I shook his hand.

  “Yes I know, Echo the redhead from Kata heading west to find her son. My friends have been following you for quite some time now.”

  “Friends?” I asked, confused, as I finally got back to my feet.

  The old man nodded and hobbled excitedly over to a large electrical box, dark gray with a few small rust spots here and there. On it were several switches and buttons. In the middle sat one large switch. Using all his weight, he forced the large switch down.

  Eerie machine sounds began to come from the walls and ceiling, echoing all around us as if the whole place was going to collapse. Huge lights began to flicker on, revealing large patched-up red curtains that, in the dark, had looked like they were just walls. The curtains began to retract into the walls, revealing bright green trees and plants just like the outside forest. The smell of old musky wood and stone gave way, being replaced by the intoxicatingly wonderful smell of fresh soil and vegetation. The cathedral erupted with the sounds of birds chirping. Vibrantly colored birds began to excitedly fly around and play, jumping from tree to tree, fighting over nuts, berries, and other sorts of things. The cathedral had to be at least ten times bigger than the church in
Kata. The colorful light pouring in from the large stained-glass windows helped add to the brightness of the birds and plants. Large white stone pillars stretched from the ground to the incredibly tall ceiling, and the middle of the ceiling faded into a large dome that had some sort of old painting wrapped around it, but I could not make it out.

  “Do you like my friends?” Dante said smiling, looking half insane.

  “It’s amazing, but why keep them inside? Why have these elaborate curtain systems?” I replied, unable to comprehend what I was currently seeing.

  “They are my eyes and ears,” Dante replied. “With their help I never have to leave this cathedral and I always know what’s going on all around. As for my ingenious curtains, they shut the birds up when unwanted guests such as yourselves are nearby, kind of like putting a blanket on a skunk’s cage to avoid being sprayed.”

  “This is all very nice, but there is a much more pressing matter than watching your birds play. Can you help Scarlet or not?” I asked, my stomach turning as I tried to get used to the idea that I had been unknowingly walking around with one of the monsters.

  “I could, but why would I?” he replied smugly. “She deserves what is coming for her. The world is far safer without her kind, trust me.”

  I drew my sword as fast as I could and pressed the tip to his throat. “Help or die,” I demanded, knowing full well I could not kill a frog let alone an old man. But still, the feeling of having another human’s life in your hands — you decide if they live or die — it does make one feel very powerful.

  “That blade,” he gasped. “Where on earth did you acquire such a weapon?” Dante pushed the blade away from his neck so he could see the sword from a better angle.

  “Why should I tell you anything, when I can’t even trust you to help my friend?” I said accusingly, adjusting my footing so the sword was at his throat again.

  “The Prophet? You sure aren’t good at making friends,” he replied.

  “Stay the hell out of my head, old man!” I screamed, pressing the sword tighter to his throat as little beads of blood began to drip down the shiny black edge of the blade.