Chapter 18: Kelto Island

An hour had gone by. Sky slowly faded into a gray and ugly color as rain clouds were moving in. The forest was filled with dense fog, so thick that I couldn't see more than a few feet in front of me. The guards still had a firm hold on my shoulders. I couldn't move freely nor could I flap my wings freely. I was like a rat, being caught by several great cats; the difference was that the rat could at least be granted immediate death. I was granted with life long torture should the guards had their way. I half-stumbled, half-dragged through the dense pines and soggy earth. The smell of the murky fungi floated into my nose. I blinked the hanging water droplet away from my eyes as I gazed the scene with my green eyes.

It was strange to recall all the events that had happened to me. After all, it wasn't common to see a young boy who had grown a pair of wings to wander around the globe. Several years back, I was an ordinary kid, living my life aimlessly, doing things without a specific determination and target. My friends, even though not close, would hang around me sometimes. If on a good day, we would go and watch a movie or something. But when these wings appeared into my innocuous life, a monotonous life, things had gone down hill for the worst. Being surrounded by pesky reporters, I had no privacy. Even in my room, I could feel their predatory eyes scanning me, eating up my sanity every second passing by. I escaped in the end all right, after from the help of John. For some odd reasons though, things that I could not possibly comprehend, they could always find me. It was as if they had planted a tracking bug in my body. I ran and hid in the abundant woodland hoping in search of freedom away from all these horrendous incidents and problems. The first few weeks were fine. I had all the time in the world to do things without any restrictions. I enjoyed living in the wild, relishing the way that nature embraced me with its tender touches through the breeze, the sun, and the water... Again, I was driven away from my only place of sanctuary. Captured at last, I was placed in a terrifying laboratory test cell. I was observed and treated like an entity, which, I was not. Sometimes I amazed even with myself, the way in which I always managed to find solutions to the problems that were presented before me. I got out of the scientific atelier tower after a few days of imprisonment and flew through the city. What happened after that was somewhat blurry to me. I couldn't remember everything after being beaten nearly to death. I met Rohene... and I could still recollect the way how she looked, the way how she smiled...

A hand that pushed me back had brought me back to reality. I had zoned out while navigating through the trees and hard-to-spot routes. The guards were staring at me. I looked around and saw nothing but bare land with rocks protruding from the soil. On one side, a great sea was roaring with power below the cliffs. On the other side, the forest stood its ground, watching me with those menace-looking shadows. One person drew out his knife. The slightly rusted blade glittered beneath the thundering clouds that loomed overhead. A storm was coming. Around us, drizzles came down gently. It would get worse soon, but not as bad as the punishment that I was going to be given.

Silence rolled across the wet and muddy land as we stared at each other. I, alone, stood on one end; my back against the forest. The Seven Guards stood on the other end, near the edge of the precipice. A strong burst of wind exploded from the west, sweeping through the sky and slamming against us. I lurched a little. My right talon planted into the mud. I could feel the soil squeezing through the opening between my claws, which were supposed to be my toes.

"Tobieaz, it's time," one of them said with a low voice. Others just stood there passively, as if this whole ordeal was not their problem at all. How long must I continued to endure such treatment? How much more could I take? My life was just so damned screwed!

"You guys can't do this to me. You don't have the right to do so," I answered with a trembling voice. My eyes darted between the raptor gaze of the men and the knife that loomed ever so larger than before. "Even though I disapprove of joining you people, but that doesn't mean you can take my life away."

One guard scoffed and glared. "We do have the right. The moment when you started to live with us, you should have understood that you will obey our laws. For decades, this is the right punishment for a mistake as big as this. Who are you to say that we don't have the right to sever your leg tendons? Must we let you walk freely and haunt us for the rest of our lives?"

"You are a monster, Tobieaz. It is with great restrain that we allow you to stay among us. Yet, you do not know how to be grateful. You have leached off from us and you dared to say that it is our responsibility to do as you wish?" another guard added bitterly.

My heart nearly sank when I heard the word "monster". So that was how they had felt while around me. I had thought that they had accepted me, even though that I felt I was still a stranger while living with them. I gritted my teeth. Rage, frustration, and confusion swelled up inside me. I didn't know what to say. I didn't know what to think. I suddenly felt tired. Extremely tired. It was as if I had been suffering for years, which, I literally had. I opened up my wings and stretched them subconsciously. A single tear fell from my eyes. I had not been crying over the last three years. I was too old for that. Yet with such pain in my mind, my tears just flowed out from my eyes.

"Crying now would do you no good, Tobieaz. It is best to let us do what we have come here to do and get it over with. After that, we'll bring you food, shelter, and any other necessary items that will allow you to survive through the first year. The years after that though, you're on your own." With a nod, the man holding the knife came forward.

Apprehension, fear, and anger surfaced one after another. I looked around nervously, as I tried not to think of the exceptional agony that would soon appear on my legs. The blade came closer as I gulped. Sweat rolled off my face even though the weather was cold and windy. A sudden flash and a deep rumble thundered across the heaven. Inky black clouds smothered the sky. The ground danced with tremor from the sound. Trees swayed back and forth dangerously as hurricane-like wind created giant gusts that crashed through obstacles. My hair was flying in the wind with no absolute direction. My feathers were shaking wildly. It was chaotic. I tried to force myself to run, to run away from all this. I tried to wake myself up from the fantasy that had somehow gripped my consciousness, my sanity, and turned it upside-down. It was just a dream. It was just an illusion, right? I had gone crazy somewhere back in my house. Perhaps I had taken some unknown drugs or something. Or maybe... or maybe I had just lost my sense of reality with all those stress and animosity. One thing was for sure - I didn't want to face the truth.

The dagger glittered beneath the lightening, underneath the towering trees. With each white, searing light flashing across the sky, it came closer and closer. Finally, it whistled through the air, curved down, and headed toward my ankles. Instinctively, I jumped up while screaming with fear. The slash missed. The guards shouted with rage as they all came rushing at me. I tried to flap my wings, to get away in time, but one of them leaped through the air and landed on top of me, pushing me back down onto the earth and mashing my face into the mud. I tried to cough the dirt away from my mouth, as I struggled in vain. I felt a hand grabbing onto one my legs. I attempted to jerk it away viciously. At last, I heard a painful cry coming from one of them, when my talons sliced his wrist deeply.

"You are a devil! A devil, Tobieaz! Stop moving around! You are a devil and we are here to prevent you hurting others!" A man's face appeared in front of mine as he bellowed with craziness. I could see veins popping out of his blood-enriched reddish face. His long, black hair was slick with rain.

Arms were pinning me down as the person who was holding the knife was trying to cut me. My wings were torturously crushed between all the heavy bodies. I cried out when I felt the wings were bending in an unnatural way. All eight of us were struggling, rolling and sliding across the damp rocky land. They were surprised to see the amount of strength that I had. It wasn't as if I was powerful or something. The thought of hoping to live had given me strength to fulfill that hope.

Without warning, I felt a tearing cut on my upper leg. Shrieking with intense ache, I pulled one of my arms from the ground and slammed it into one of the Seven Guards' noses. Blood stuck onto my knuckles as he reeled back, holding onto his face, moaning. The floor was stained with crimson color as my sweat was mixed with the pool of dark red liquid running out of the gash on my flesh. I felt an arm clutching my neck while a knee was settling onto my back. They forced my wings out of the way cruelly while finding the spots to sever my tendons. I felt the tip of the blade touching my right ankle. I yelled and wiggled, but I couldn't stop the piercing feeling from growing more intense. I felt the sharp metal sliding into my skin. With tears flowing out of my eyes, I screamed violently. I tried to push the people on top of me off my back with my elbows, but the guards just turned around with a menacing grin and held them down. It was the end for me, at last. I knew it. Perhaps it was for the best anyway. Not being able to walk... Maybe that way, no one could find me and make me stomach more distress. At least I could still fly, if they would allow me to keep my wings. If only...

I sub-consciously heard a muffled thud when a giant thunder detonated within the bulky clouds. I breathed in deeply, waiting for the incision, waiting for my demise. Then, another thud sounded above me. My eyes were closed. What were they doing? Were they trying to savor the moment, before they finished off my future and sealed off my life? A heavy groan appeared when a figure dropped onto the ground beside me. Slowly, I opened an eye. I was surprised to see all seven guards were knocked unconscious. Rain started to fall. It bounced off me, as it grew heavier. Standing not far away, a person was standing within a curtain of water. A giant, wooden club was in one hand. I tried to focus my eyes, but for some odd reasons, I started to see double. I gradually drifted off into a slumber, never knowing what had happened to me.

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A refreshing smell surrounded me. It wasn't those food smells, no, nothing like that. It was like... the smell of pine needles, with a soft fragrance of dried herbs. I tried to open my eyes, but I felt weak. I couldn't summon the strength to move my fingers even. Panic surged through me. It felt just like the time when I was being beaten into a senseless pulp. I impelled myself to open my eyes, to see the world once again. I didn't want to swim around in darkness. I didn't want to feel alone. I didn't want to be trapped in a sea of infinite void, where light could not guide me.

An image of a cavern swirled into my retinas. I felt sick and dizzy. My throat felt dry and I longed for a cup of cool water. My right leg was throbbing like hell. I didn't dare to move much, for I feared the scorching pain that would left an imprint deep in my nerves. I noticed that a hand was on my forehead. The hand, so small, so slender, so gentle. I ached for that feeling to stay there just a bit longer. I whimpered a little when it left. I squinted my eyes as things began to get blurry once again. No, I wanted to see more. I wanted to see my surrounding environment. I couldn't...

God knew how long I was out before I dragged myself back to consciousness once again. This time, my head was clearer. I was sitting on a yellowish straw mat with my shoulder leaning against a rough cave wall. It wasn't comfortable, but at least this way, my wings wouldn't be crushed. Protruding pieces of straws were stabbing into my legs. I was still light-headed, but I could see that my wound was covered with a strong and smelly medicine. Dried bloodstains were still visible. I felt unwell watching that. A giant leave was covering the harsh injury. With my senses being sharper now, I noticed that my legs were naked. Wait a minute... naked?. I glanced down and my face was filled with disturbance. She stood not far away, her back toward me, grinding something in a clay bowl on a flat piece of stone. Realization hurled against me. With my mind racing, I tried to find something to cover myself up. I yelped in throe when I accidentally shifted my position. She turned around immediately.

"You're awake? What are you doing? Stop moving around like that," scolding, she hurriedly toward me, trying to settle me down. Her green eyes were on my face, observing me. Her long, black hair whipped around her shoulders softly, like those cotton clouds hovering within a temperate, sunny day.

I whispered: "Where am I?" I tried to hide the place where I didn't want her to see with my hands, though with great care of course. My claws were razor sharp.

She leaned toward me and replied: "We are in a cave that has cut into the side of a crag at the punishment sector. I have used a strong vine as a rope and lowered you onto the outcropping platform that you can see out there. Only I know the place, so you are fairly safe here."

Seeing her so close to me now, my embarrassment tightened around my mind. I tried to put my back to her, but I couldn't. I grunted as I sucked in a deep breath to prevent crying out loud. I could feel blood dripping out of the cut once again. She gasped and jumped in to stop the bleeding. Before I could utter a complaint, she hushed me with a finger to my mouth.

"What are you thinking? It's hard to heal the wound once it has split open again! Just calm down all right? No one's going to hurt you!" When she saw my reddish face, a look of comprehension was in her eyes. Looking away, she mumbled: "Well, it's not as if I haven't saw it before. Don't worry, it's not affecting me or anything like that. I had to get your ragged jeans out of the way to tend the cut."

With that said, she quickly got up and walked away to retrieve some more leaves and ointments. A series stack of rocks was laid near the cave opening. I could see nothing but hazy blue sky outside, with a taint of yellow-orange dye taunting the sun at the edge of the horizon. The storm had passed long time ago; I wondered how long I was out. An amiable breeze came through the apertures. I felt easeful as I relished the wind. It cooled down the burning sensation in my body. Then I looked at Druni. She was busy trying to mix the right amount of herbs to the bowl. I stared at her for a while before I gathered up my courage.

"Why did you help me?" I asked curiously. "You know what will happen to you when the clan finds out, right? What you have done is beyond punishment."

She stopped and sighed. She was in a profound thought. She didn't move for a long time while gazing out into nothing. I waited for her reply. Finally, she turned and faced me. Smiling sadly, Druni said: "Because I believe that you have gone through things that no normal people have. I believe that you need... companionship. Although your past is not well known, and I don't know much about you, but I can see the torment in your eyes. It pains me to see you suffer, from all those people around you. Even though you are vastly different than us, but I feel a sense of kindness, gentleness, from you whenever I'm around you. It isn't just about your outside appearances, but your inner self is just as important as well.

"It is a disappointment to see that everyone is being so stereotyped. It's because everyone's nearly the same or acting the same, people start to think that people with different physiques are monsters, freaks, or aliens. I don't believe that. Tobieaz, I see you just the same way as I see other people. You are not different than me and I am no different than you. Don't lower your self-esteem for the sake of those morons out there."

I was struck speechless after she had finished telling me her reasoning. I seek for the correct words to say, but they just came out so slowly, like being towed through a thick pool of sugar. Licking my lips, I said: "Wow... Druni. I never knew that this is how you have felt toward me. I always have thought that everyone is rejecting me just because of the way I look and... and..." my voice trailed off there as I stared at the ground.

She strolled toward me and sat in front of me. Cupping my face in her hands, she brought my head up. Without further comments, she embraced me and kissed me on the lips. I released all the chained emotions inside of me as I held onto her with my arms. My claws tenderly rested on her smooth skin. Her fingers pressed against my bare back as she carefully avoid hitting my legs. A long moment had passed, and we both parted. Breathing rapidly, I gazed into her eyes, eyes that had colors that were like verdant gem. She grinned sheepishly at me. I responded her smile with one of my own.

"So how do you feel now?" Druni asked as she traced her first finger along my chest.

I laughed airily. "This is one of the best moments in my life."

~End Chapter 18~