Death Comes With Open Arms

Chapter 8: The Grace Of Destruction

Fire dances on the roofs of the buildings around us. It swarms every building in the village and smoke clouds every window and door. The only thing visible is the clear sounds of the pained and fearful villagers. I quickly jump off of the couch and Ryker stirs. "Ryker, outside!" I yell. "What?" Ryker asks as he jumps up quickly and looks outside, "How the hell did they find us? Thyra, outside. We need to hide." I don't question anything, I only do as he asks. He leads us outside into the active fury where we're concealed by the smoke. I see multiple people that stand out from the villagers. They look similar to the people I saw the night I made those flowers. These men and women wear thick, black armor with accents of red and carry heavy, black swords in their hands. A few have lit torches or crossbows in hand, waving or pointing them at the villagers. They load the several villagers into large cages and close them. I notice one of the villagers touches the bar and shrieks in pain. I think the bars burn the creatures. "Thyra!" Ryker yells at me before grabbing my hand and dragging me further away from the people, "I told you to stay with me! They're going to kill us if they find us!" I ran with him quickly, trying to find some cover. I can feel my heart pounding in my ears and my hands shaking. I've never been as terrified as I am right now. Ryker drags me into the woods and to a cave. He hides me inside of it, drags some brush, and buries the entrance so little light peeks through. "Stay here, I'm going to make sure no one saw us," he says. He was already gone before I had time to even argue. He just left me here, on my own. A small meow sounds from nearby me and I see it's Beanie. He must have followed us here or heard the people and got spooked. Now that I think about it, this cave kind of looks similar to the one we stayed in with Henry. It's probably just a coincidence though. I just hope Ryker is okay. I lie down on the cold, hard floor and stare at the brush-covered entrance. It felt like hours had passed before my eyelids began to feel heavy and my body forced me to sleep. When I opened my eyes again, the world around us was quiet. There were no sounds of screaming, no footsteps, just me, Beanie, and the smell of smoke. No one here to bother us... Ryker. Ryker wasn't here with us. I jolted up in a panic and ran to the entrance. I rip the brush away from the entrance and feel the sunbeams hit my skin. Beanie follows me as I quickly run towards the village. Once we reached it, I saw the damage the people left. The village is burnt to a crisp with no life there at all except for the skeleton-like, what I think are birds that circle above. Beanie and I explore the destroyed village which, somehow, looks worse than it did when we first got here. "Beanie... The cottage is still up, the creepy, old, forbidden one," I say, pointing to the cottage Ryker told me not to enter. As I say this, I feel two big, strong hands grab my shoulders from behind. I scream and flail before hitting the figure with a hard, right hook to the jaw. "Damn, you hit hard, Thee," Ryker says, massaging his jaw. "Ryker!" I yell as I hug him. Everything registers, I move back, then smack him across the face. "You made me think they killed you! You left me there with Bean alone!" I yell, feeling tears sting my eyes. "Well, I'm okay. It'll be okay. Plus, I have a plan to get everyone back," Ryker says. "What happened? Where did they take them? Who are those people?" I ask. "All will be explained on the road," Ryker says. "No, all will be explained here. I'm not some toy you get to drag around on a leash. I deserve to know what happened!" I yell. Ryker sighs and says, "Fine. They're back at our village. They're... Hunters. They're hunting you, which is probably why you ended up here in the first place." "Why are they at the village?" I ask. Ryker sighs and says, "The hunters hunt those who are different from them and are possible threats... In their opinions." "Well, what does that have to do with me? I'm not dangerous. I don't want to hurt anyone," I say as I feel tears burn my eyes. "They don't know that. They're driven by fear and a false righteousness," Ryker says. "That's wrong though," I say. "Thyra, the world is messed up. Nothing is right here. Why would they risk leaving threats to roam if they don't know what they're capable of? Why not attack and capture them before they gain an army of superpowered beings and attack first?" Ryker asks me as we walk. I don't know how to respond. All of this is wrong. The people are scary but they meant no harm. Well, not people. I'm not really sure what they are. "If they're a threat, why are we helping them?" I ask. Ryker stops in his tracks and I swear I hear him growl. "They aren't a threat, Thee. It's no different if you were caught. Now stop talking until we get there," he says with venom before walking again.

SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG TO UPDATE. BEEN BUSY OR OUT OF TOWN. I'LL TRY TO UPDATE MORE BUT SCHOOL IS STARTING SOON SO I'M NOT SURE HOW OFTEN. THIS CHAPTER WAS SHORT BUT I PROMISE THE NEXT WON'T DISAPPOINT. LOVE U ALL!! <3