Chapter 10

We travelled the whole night and only stopped to make camp when the sun rose on the horizon. My body ached, and I slumped down on the ground the moment we halted. I could see the others walking to and fro, setting up the camp in the small clearing, but my eyes wouldn’t leave the forest we’d emerged from. Even though the others had been by my side the whole time, I hadn’t been able to stop my head from swivelling this way and that, just waiting for a soldier to charge out from the trees.

I flinched as Selene suddenly appeared and sat down next to me.

“It’s okay, they won’t come. You can relax.”, she said gently.

“I am fine.”

I glanced at the trees, and she sighed.

“Do you want to hear the rest of the legend of the Goddess?”

“Sure…”

I forced myself to turn to her and nodded. She began to tell where she must have left off, but I soon lost track of her words. All I could hear was the wind swaying through the trees and any sudden noise that would herald an attacker. It didn’t take long before she paused and looked at me.

“Rina..?”

A tree rustle, and I startled, but it was only Uruk coming out from the forest.

“She is alright, Selene. Aren’t you?”, he said as he joined us.

He sat down.

“It’s over now. You can relax.”, he continued.

Karim walked over to us.

“He’s right. They won’t come here.”

I tore my gaze from the forest and turned to him.

“How do you know?”

“They don’t have enough soldiers to hunt us down.”

I paused and looked at him. That had been part of their plan, I remembered. I forced myself to turn away from the trees and took a deep breath. Uruk patted my back.

“You did well”, he added.

Karim hesitantly glanced at Selene and then closed his eyes and spoke,

Soft like a feather,

hard like a steel,

shine like a star

in the starry sky.

I dispel the darkness….

They all joined in. I stayed quiet, not knowing the words, but for the first time, their voices soothed me. I let out a sigh and leaned back, stretching my arms over my head. With my mind calming down, I could feel the pain and soreness I hadn’t noticed before slowly leaving me. Even though I was fit after all my gym workouts, walking day after day, tackling Karim and everything else had taken a toll on me. I could do with a bed and a warm shower.

I looked up at the green canopy above me. A warm meal would also be nice. The others finished their reciting, and the camp fell silent. I glanced at them, and I don’t know what made me do it. Maybe I was just tired enough not to have my brain working as it should, but I hesitantly asked,

“So…”

I glanced at them.

“Why did you even want to summon someone here?”

They glanced at me, and after a moment of hesitation, Uruk spoke,

“When Tarnis fell, we needed to give our people hope to keep fighting”

“The Goddess defeated the darkness a long time ago, and she promised to come back if the need arises again”, Karim explained.

Selene sighed.

“It’s an old legend, and even Karim didn’t know what the passage really meant”

I frowned.

“So I messed up your plans by coming here instead of her…”

I looked away.

“Rina… Goddess sent you for a reason”, Karim said softly.

“As long as our people believe you are her, they will keep fighting. It doesn’t matter if it’s true or not”, Selene added, looking at me.

“And if you start to believe, who knows what will happen”, Uruk added.

I glanced at them.

“And what happened in Tarnis?”

Karim sighed.

“It was the biggest defeat we’d suffered in 200 years”

The way he said it made me shiver.

“We have tales from that day I wish we could forget”, Uruk added.

“With its fall, the way to the south is wide open and our alliance is...”

Selene sighed and looked down.

“The sun will rise again”, Karim said, putting his hand on her shoulder as Uruk spoke,

I dispel the darkness

and bring the light.

I don’t regret

walking this path.

“The sun will rise again”, Selene whispered, trying to convince herself that it was true.

The camp fell silent again, and Karim said,

“Thank you for saying yes. With you, we still have a chance.”

He looked at me.

“Do you miss your world?”

I sighed. I didn’t want to talk about it.

“Nope”

“And your family and friends?”, Uruk asked.

I wish they would just stop. I didn’t need their pity. But I was too tired to argue.

“I only miss coffee”

“Coffee?”

Selene looked at me.

“It’s a drink that helps you keep going even when you’re tired.”

She frowned but didn’t say anything.

“Let’s get some rest”, Karim said and got up.

Uruk nodded at Selene. Aki.. I stood up, but Selene looked at me.

“Rest, you must be tired. You’ve gone through a lot.”

“You too”

We stared at each other, and neither of us wanted to turn our gaze away.

“She is tired, Selene, but you need to save your strength for the spells”

Uruk interrupted our silent duel, and we broke the gaze. I knelt next to Aki and thrust my hand at Selene. She held it for a few moments before placing the knife against my skin and cutting into my flesh. My head spun, and I resisted the sudden urge to lie down and instead waited for her to be done. When it was over, she helped me to my blanket and bandaged my arm.

“Thank you. I know it is a lot for you.”

She still kept my hand in hers, even now when she was done. I tried to smile, not knowing what to say.

“I.. I just don’t want anyone else to die…”, she continued, turning her gaze down.

“Selene…” I whispered.

She suddenly looked at me and dropped my hand.

“I am sorry”.

She got up.

“Try to get some rest.”

I watched her walk away, trying to ignore the pang in my heart that wanted to call her back.