The Lands of Ralosia & Ranuulo- Short Story Collection

~Fight or Flight Chapter 6- Requiem~

~Chapter 6 – Requiem~

The next day, they buried the dead. Considering the dire situation they found themselves in, the casualties weren't as high as they expected. The combined efforts of Edi, Petri, Vos, and Diva had saved many.

Valr watched from a perch in the trees as the bodies of the slain were placed into graves. They would've liked to bury Mills... but there wasn't much of him left. When Valr heard the hopeless cries of his parents, Edi's words rang in his mind.

Someone so weak has no place among us. He'll only hold us back.

A good number of scorpions had been killed amid the attack. The carvers of their clan tried to make the best of their terrible situation, carving up the meat from the scorpions for distribution among the clan. But much of it would likely go to waste. The meat would spoil before they could eat all of it.

The Arachna warriors set up stronger defenses around the perimeter of the forest. Nets were created to slow down and deter invaders. Highly compressed webbing was forced into spheres and placed in shrubbery around the woods. At the slightest touch, it would burst, capturing anything that drew near. If everyone traveled through the trees, they'd be fine.

When the clan tried to find Edi, they couldn't. Ever since the night of the attack, he and several other Arachna had vanished. Maybe, it was fear of what the clan might do to him. Maybe, it was shame. No one knew for sure why he left.

Valr walked through the woods alone, deep in thought. He found the fallen hollowed out tree which he had taken shelter in during the scorpion attack.

Walking a little further, he found the spot where Mills had... saved him. Valr was sure of it, he'd have been dead if his friend had simply stayed high in the trees where it was safe.

"Fly! You have to fly!"

Mills told him exactly how they could've made it out alive. He just needed to fly. But when the time came, he couldn't.

Valr punched a tree, cracking the bark and bruising his knuckles. He struck it again and again until his hand felt numb.

From the sheer adrenaline of his frustration, he began to scale the tree by gripping the sides of it. He used branches to help him climb faster, but it wasn't quick enough. He began punching into the tree as he went, breaking through the bark and creating small footholds for himself.

He reached the peak, where he could see the peaks of all the trees in the forest and the landscape surrounding them.

He looked to the west; that was where the Scorpions' Nest waited. The pale one that was chasing after them that day was most likely there too. Just the thought of it still being out there made him furious.

If he flew, Mills would still be alive.

He gripped an overhead branch firmly and took both of his legs off the tree so they were dangling in the air. He tried to will himself to start flying, but nothing happened. There was a snap, and Valr was horrified to see the branch he held onto broke off.

Fly... just fly, please.

His descent slowed, and he found himself levitating in the air. He reached out for the tree.

Valr took slow, deep breaths, "Just keep flying. Don't lose it!"

He focused on the weightlessness he currently felt while keeping one hand on the tree. He didn't want that feeling to go away. He made subtle movements in the air, trying to embrace the feeling. But it felt faint, as if it could go away at any moment.

But he was still flying. It was the longest he had ever flown continuously. But it could end at any moment. It was why he kept a hand on the tree the entire time.

"I can do this!" Valr muttered to himself.

He eyed another tree near him. One he wouldn't be able to jump to normally. He kicked off the tree he was holding and floated towards that one. Perhaps, he kicked off a little too hard, as he crashed into it.

Valr looked at an empty space through the woods. He kicked off the tree and launched himself through the air into that area. As he floated along, he tried to use his shoulders to adjust his trajectory. It was slow, but it was working. He aimed himself at another tree, which he perched at.

"Keep it up..." Valr muttered.

Valr kicked off the tree, but this time, a little too gently. So gently that he didn't get very far. He slowed to a stop in the middle of the air, with nothing in reach to grab onto. He floated placidly in midair.

Valr asked himself, "What now?"

Valr glanced at the ground he was levitating above. If he fell from this height, it would injure him, but he'd survive. But he didn't even know how to stop floating if he wanted to.

He considered calling for help... but he wanted to figure this out alone. Valr considered releasing a small Focus Burst to propel himself through the air towards something he could grab on to. But that felt like cheating. He wanted to truly fly. Not just push himself through the air as he had been.

Valr took a deep breath and made small adjustments to his posture, until there were small movements. He drifted closer to another tree until he reached it.

Valr spent hours alone testing his own capabilities, never once touching the ground. He left himself stranded in the air many times, forcing himself to learn how to control his flight.

When he felt comfortable with that, he began kicking off trees as hard as he could, launching himself through the forest and doing his best to avoid obstacles as he went. The number of bruises he gained only motivated him more.

When dusk came, he decided he had enough. It was dangerous to stay out at night, even in the woods. He slowly drifted down. He placed his feet on the ground, and gravity returned to him all at once. He fell immediately, and that feeling of weightlessness felt like a dream.

He tried to levitate off the ground again, but he couldn't. It was as if all those hours of practice had been for nothing. Valr almost considered climbing a tree and forcing himself to fly again, but he didn't.

"Tomorrow... I'll fly again tomorrow."