Only Skin and Bones

Vanilla #17 - Stranded

            Wind was both seven and fourteen. In terms of time spent on this world he was eight but in terms of how his body was portraying that time in Zona was very different. He was a child of the night, one that walked amongst the darkness, one that guards and protects others from things they would not care to imagine. And it was because of this duty that he was aging twice as fast. The Forest of the Dead did that to you; it make your body age faster until you reached about nineteen or twenty. Then it slowed to half speed. At least it did if you spent all of your time in the forest which he did not. He knew that he had grown too fast from the way the people of Frenio looked at him but he forced himself not to care when Elizabella explained it. "You will age twice as fast to get you out of the vulnerable years," she said before patting his head, "then you will slow down to half speed so you can stretch the best years, physically out of your body. That is how the forest works." So Wind was a seven year old with the body of a fourteen year old.

            Mayonaka was his best friend there was no denying that yet she did not join him that night on patrol. She told him she was busy with something else that she could share and raced off into the night. So he was alone for the first time since he could not even remember. It had been so long since he had been apart from his friend that he almost felt like something within him was missing. Pushing it from his mind he decided that it was not worth thinking about because he had work to do. It was his turn to be watching the boarders for mortal who were coming thrill seeking. Tonight seemed different though. Usually he had to push things away and fight off annoying undead yet nothing came for him tonight. He was not marked to be a Dark Knight, not yet, but She promised that it would be soon. Now he was still in training but everything was going well. He knew it had to be since he was asked to do this alone. Yet the back of anything trying to attack him made him nervous in a way nothing in the forest ever did.

            There was a growl and before anything could happen he had his sword out and was looking around. Nothing in the forest made that sound, he was sure of it, nothing ever growled like that. Coming through the trees was the creature Elizabella described, the Yuunack, a chimera like creature with a large body, long talons for nails, and a mouth full of razor sharp teeth. And Wind found himself staring one down completely alone. It took a step toward him and despite everything he knew about fighting and being brave he took a step. Much to his surprise he heard a laugh emerge from the creatures throat. "I was sent to find a little boy but I find a young man. The forest is aging you yet even if you have that older body you are still a boy underneath. A scared little boy."

            Wind wanted to defend himself, to lie and say that he was not scared, but the creature gave him no time. It was swiped at him with a giant paw and all he could do was barely block the move before the Yuunack came at him again. It laughed as it landed a deep cut on his chest, then his cheek, and knocking the blade from his hand. Stumbling back a few steps the Yuunack laughed again as it walked toward him.

            “Poor little boy is going to die.” It said as it walked toward him. Wind stumbled over a root and fell to the ground scrambling back a hit. He could feel blood falling from his cheek and the pain was making it hard to see straight. The Yuunack was leaning over him now and it placed one of its paws on his leg and he felt the bone snap under the weight of the creature. Despite how hard he tried not he screamed and it seemed to make the creature happy. Using strength he did not know he had Wind stretched his arm and grabbed his sword and stab the creature in the shoulder. He reeled back and ran off into the woods cursing. Wind fell back holding his leg trying not to cry. I’m stranded, I’m stuck here and the sun is going to go down soon. I can’t move myself with this leg. I’m going to die. The pain was too much and he felt himself falling into darkness. He did not fight it; he knew he would rather be unconscious when the undead tore him apart.

            When Wind woke up he knew instantly that someone was holding him. Blinking back a few times he barely made out the image of a woman. Her hair was long and blond with curls falling to her mid back. It was her eyes that he noticed; they were black, like the iris had taken over the lense completely. The mark of a vampire.

            “Is he awake?” He heard someone asking and he could see that he was surrounded by vampires and he knew one of them immediately. The short blond hair, the defiant attitude, it could only be Tanek the leader of one of the vampire clans, “Did you mark him, Kaia?”

            “I didn’t touch him he woke up on his own,” he felt a cool hand on his cheek before fingers moving through his hair, “too pretty to die so young. I want him all for myself.”

            “You are a fool, Kaia,” another woman’s voice said which was considerably darker than Kaia and Wind knew who that was: Urianna the oldest creature in the forest, “If you mark him She will have your head.”

            “Why aren’t I dead?” Wind managed to ask and he felt multiple black eyes on him.

            “So he can talk. Well done.” Tanek said before turning to two men that Wind could not make out, “Nicanor, Itzach, go make a perimeter. I don’t want any of those stupid walking dead to get anywhere near us while we do this.”

            “Yes sir,” they both said and vanished into the night. Wind felt his stomach tighten and a lump form in his throat.

            “What are you going to do?” He asked and Kaia looked down at him.

            “Poor little thing. You must have some will to live if you’re awake with those wounds. You won’t be alive much longer no matter what your determination if we don’t get you to Elizabella soon,” her voice was soft and sweet before she leaned in and whispered into his ear, “I want to keep you Wind, but you’re too young. Soon though, soon you’ll be old enough and I want to keep you always.”

            “Save it Kaia, we need to move before half the forest is drawn to his blood. They’ve been distracted by eating the Yuunack since it was much bigger but it’s only a matter of time before they come and find us as well.” Tanek said and he felt himself getting picked up and handed off to the make vampire, “Girls, follow from behind. I don’t want any vistors.” With that Kaia blew him a kiss and vanished into the night. Tanek started to run and the forest was flowing by so fast he could hardly make it out.

            “I feel light headed...” Wind heard himself say and the vampire glanced down at him.

            “Hang on, we’re almost there,” he thought he heard Tanek say as he fell into darkness again, barely feeling a warmth flow over him.

            When Wind woke up again this time he found himself in a bed and Elizabella sitting over him. She gave him a warm smile and reached over to touch his cheek. The cabin was small and well lit by a fire and over it he could see Mayonaka asleep on the floor, a blanket over her. “What happened?”

            “You were attacked by a Yuunack in the forest. Tanek and his clan found you and brought you back to me. You’ve been asleep for two days,” the old woman explained before putting a hand on his own, “May has hardly left your side since you came in. She was in mere minutes after you got here saying she had been looking for you, that she knew something wad wrong the minute it happened. She also said that you were going to be fine and here you are.”

            “Why didn’t the vampires kill me?” He asked and the old sorceress gave him a somewhat sad look.

            “They may be of the undead but they are not completely heartless. They know how much you mean to the Mistress and they are not foolish enough to touch you without her consent. Nevertheless I told Mayonaka that Alcander should take the two of you to get marked later.” Elizabella said before standing, “Your wounds are deep and will take time to heal. I did all I could for the scars but I am afraid that they are going to be quite severe. Your leg will also take some time to heal since the bone was completely broken.” Wind gave her a small smile as he felt himself falling back asleep.

            “It’s only skin and bone; it will heal.”