A Demon's Kiss ✔️

TEN

Word Count: 1883

~Aspen

"Kastriv!"

I'm at his side in an instant, shaking his limbs. He's alive, but barely. It was as if something overcame him, turning him into a monster.

He's completely limp as I shake him incessantly, trying to bring some life back into him. His breathing remains faint, while he is entirely unresponsive.

And I'm out here, somewhere in Territory Ten, alone.

"Please wake up...Please," I beg, groaning with frustration. He's my way out of here, with his magical abilities...And once it gets dark, who knows what creatures will come out of the forest to tear me apart.

Eventually, I gather resources to light a fire, which is almost impossible, considering how damp the material is, but by the time night has officially fallen, I've created a spark that grows into a healthy fire.

Kastriv remains unconscious. The best I can do for him is sit close, and keep an eye on the fire.

Soon enough, my eyes become tired and my body grows wary.

I need sleep. But can I really sleep out here? In the distance, I can hear creatures stalking around, their calls to each other haunting.

It's even more frightening when I have no idea what they are, and what they are capable of...

As my hands are warming over the fire, Kastriv suddenly startles, sitting up in one rushed movement.

"Woah, you're awake."

He blinks, resting his palm against his forehead. "What happened?"

"You collapsed. Your eyes turned red," I explain. He looks a little out of it, but other than that, and the dried blood on his chin, which he promptly rubs away at, there is no evidence that any harm came to him.

"That spirit touched me," he exclaims, brushing his fingertips over his shoulder, where the contact must have been made.

I shift uncomfortably. "The one who looks like me?"

He nods grimly. "She's trying to tell me something."

"We need to find a way to talk to her." Now more than ever, we need to make contact, to determine her intentions. This spirit is in distress, and by the looks of it, Kastriv is the only way to help it.

Kastriv nods, getting to his feet. He shudders warily, before looking down at me. His obsidian gaze has returned, which is a relief.

The red was...Horrifying. I get the sense that it will haunt me tonight.

"We will. But first, we need to find this site." He looks up, frowning when he realises night has fallen, most of what is beyond the trunks in our small area completely blanketed in darkness.

"I don't think we can tonight. But I'm frightened of staying in this place." Even with Kastriv awake, I would rather get out of here...

Kastriv looks around, seeming to remember that this is a foreign Territory, and I haven't been to a more civilised one, let alone here, where the bush is barely traversable.

He offers his hand. "Let me take you to a local inn at the edge of this Territory for the night."

Kicking wet dirt over the fire to ensure it is no longer smouldering, I take his hand, and the world around us falls away. This time I embrace it, more than grateful to be getting out of here.

We appear out front of a small inn, which we duck inside immediately, the rain out here pouring down incessantly.

Lucky we left, because I get the feeling this onslaught of rain would have chased us down in the forest...