The Haunting: Destiny (FF)

Chapter 53

Third Person POV:

Rain. 

It's been raining for the past three hours, none of them want to be trapped there, risking a cold that could be the tipping point for Grayson. 

Taking one side each, Mia and Armen have been wandering up North in hopes of finding a cave, a village, anything that won't kill them on sight. Mia's pretty sure that the cave systems would start appearing. Due to the sudden sprouting of mountains after the burst of magic, all races have been trying to make more convenient routes of travel through those barren and threatening peaks. 

Sure, it could be a great adventure for Mia, she'll love to explore it and discover all the new entities that dwell there, but there's no time for that. All three of them need shelter, warmth and a couple minutes of shuteye. Anything but this rain. 

A quiet, small sneeze comes from the left of Grayson, Mia peers over at Armen who's trying to wipe away any signs of him getting ill. His injuries have closed, any blood that remains on him is dry, but still painful. Continuously trying to open his left eye and let it adjust to the world around him a single drop of rain clashes with his skin and he fearfully shuts it without hesitation. 

"We should stop." Mia claims, voice drowning with the rain.

They're leaving the sludgy plains, where they could've been easily caught, to a protective redwood forest. Looking into the distance, above the towering trees, there are mountains which seem to touch the sky. In the redwood forest there's plenty of thick trees which have bushes and brambles wrapping around their roots and trunks.

Armen looks at Mia, giving her a sceptical look.

"I know I know, it's not an ideal place. But nowhere is going to be ideal." She reasons, "We just need to rest."

"If we were to rest, we could easily get caught..." the boy mutters, his voice is quiet, small, thoughtful, "but you're right. I just- I- it would be better if we went a bit further, we should search for better shelter."

Mia nods, shelter is a priority. Without it they'd probably fall to an illness before being found. Then again, shelter is hard to come by, especially when you don't have a map.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

That's how the saying goes, isn't it?

~~~

Still trudging along, the sound of raindrops collide with their skin, filling the void of sound. Their feet sink into the grass, squelching and causing Grayson's legs to drag against the ground. He not been conscious for more than two seconds, he'd either mumble words that make no sense, or his eyes would flicker, only to stay still once again.

The rain's dying down, the relentless droplets have reduced to a light trickle as the group continue to walk through the thick forest filled. The evergreen trees protect berry bushes and small animals like mice and rabbits that feed on the greenery. Armen and Mia gently rest Grayson against a tree, making sure his leg is raised, they both exhale in relief.

Stretching and taking in deep breathes the two of them look around. There's just trees. So many trees. 

"This isn't a great space." Armen comments, cautiously eyeing down the open cracks that weave between the trunks. 

"It's the best we've come across so far." Mia's response makes Armen sigh, "I could go further ahead to check if there's any caves. If there's none, we'll have to stay here."

Armen pauses for a second, "Sure. I'll see if there's anything useful here."

A small, kind, memory come to his mind. Watching from afar, he recalls a child who fell arms first into a nettle bush, he wasn't hurt, but his arms started to burn with deeply ridden pricks of pain. An older brother, who he cannot clearly see, comes over with a dock leaf in hand. Wrapped around his arm, squeezed tightly, the pain doesn't go away, but it dulls, and the crying stops...

Armen gently smiles, these quick glances into a past he had forgotten only make the pain of the presence more apparent. Everything seems to be falling apart, it doesn't seem like it'll get better but he doesn't want to wallow in it, he doesn't have time for it, not when he might loose his brother again. 

Friendly bonking him on the head, Armen snaps back into reality. Mia's looking at him with slight concern.

"Are you in there Mr. Daydream?" she jokes.

Chuckling he nods and she steps back, "I'll be right back, don't go too far!" 

As Mia heads off, Armen starts to look around, most of the berries are either half-devoured or moulding. He doesn't really know what's edible anyway, so he doesn't risk touching the ones that seem fine. Material wise, there's not much either, the animals probably took any spare sticks and leaves for their nests for winter. Realising his search is a failure, and struggling to hold back the pain in his arm, he settles down by a tree opposite the still unconscious Grayson. The wind is slowly whistling above as the rain finally comes to a close. A now clear blue sky is barely visible from the ground as Armen is able to let his thoughts wander with the birds that now swoop between trees. It's a wonderful place. He's always amazed at how nature carries on despite all that's happened. He wonders if they ever realised something's wrong. If they did, he bets they'll have enough instinct to avoid the danger...

Then there's a snap.

Quickly swivelling around, Armen's head starts to spin as he tries to focus on his surroundings. His breathing fastens as he struggles to figure out the sound. He wants to use aura sensing, but after the lack of sleep, constant nightmares and blood loss, he can't think straight, let alone use passive magic. His heart races and his head gets more dizzy as he forgets to take proper breaths. 

In his panicked state he spins around again, as he hears rustling. It's just Grayson, he's shifting around, but not opening his eyes. Armen sighs.

"Geeze, how paranoid am I?" he questions himself as he looks down at his hands, his left hand is still by his side as he struggles to lift it in it's bruised and possibly broken state. 

"A suitable amoun' by my calculations-" a quiet voice perks up. 

Jumping up he immediately tumbles over, falling face first into the soft ground. Rolling over he huffs as he tries to identify the location of the voice. To the right, Mia is walking down the overgrown path, not letting down her guard for a second. 

"What did you say?" He calls out, gaining her attention.

"What?" she half yells, getting closer, "What did you say?" she asks

"What did you say?" 

"That's what I asked-"

"No- I-" He sits up, and glances around, "Never mind."  

Shrugging, Mia points behind her, "I found a cave. It's not that far, and it's small enough to not give us a chill." 

"Thank god-" Armen mutters, "What about wood?" 

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there." There's not a lot of hope in finding dry wood, but they can hope for the best. 

Reaching out a hand, Mia helps Armen up to his feet. He wobbles a bit but gradually gains his balance. On the count of three, the two of them lift Grayson up, making sure to carefully keep his right leg from hitting any roots or brambles. As the two of them carry on down the path, both ignoring that feeling of being watched. 

Honestly, if I were in their shoes, I'd be a lot more worried.