~ 59: The Night of Blessings and Curses - Part 4 ~

The paths between trees were so narrow that by squeezing between them, we would scratch ourselves. But that was less scary than being stuck in the pit and drowning in it.

We weren't monkeys, of course, so we could never get far ahead. I could only transfer myself from one branch to another after much encouragement from Lucas to not fear while crossing the Fiery Rivers.

The first time I saw them going around the trenches, my legs turned to jelly as I couldn't make myself walk. Lucas caught me before I could hit the ground as I stumbled backwards.

"What is it?" he asked but then went silent after he saw what threat lay over the edge.

Who would have known in the midst of these sturdy trees lay valleys of lava flowing through it, never stopping for even a minute? Just the sight and heat of it was enough for us to know that this was more than challenging compared to the previous one.

We had to go on the hanging vines together instead of separately. After every ten oscillations of the overhanging vine, the rope would just fall and burn in the pit, spewing more bursts of fire bubbles. The new one would only appear after a whole minute.

The first time we thought we had to go separately, Lucas got onto the rope the second it appeared. I felt something push me forcefully but I held my ground. Then the force got so violent that I was thrown off the ledge.

I shouted in terror and would have plummeted to my death if Lucas hadn't caught my forearm. After that, I was too frightened to cross the other side. I screamed a second time when Lucas loosened the grip, letting me slip down for the second time until he was clutching my hand.

The distance between me and the pit was only a few metres. The heat was beastly as it felt like I was being roasted alive.

"On the count of three," Lucas said in a determined voice.

"I can't, Lucas," I said.

"One."

"It's too dangerous."

"Two."

"You want me to die in this raging lava?!"

"Three! Jump!"

I had barely readied myself when he let go of my hand. He swung me hard enough so that I was holding onto the branches at the edge of the trench instead of landing on the solid ground.

I quivered as I held onto my weight. I quickly shifted my hands to the next root or branch, I couldn't tell which, before it broke off and sent me to the raging hell below. One of the branches I was holding onto broke off, leaving me to hang onto one branch.

My arm was burning and it wouldn't be long before it would be detached from its socket. I couldn't reach the last branch that was quite far ahead of me as there was no rock or root to support my leg onto. I didn't have any rope with a hook or loop to hold onto the next sturdy branch and climb out of the place.

A huge shadow flew over me as the beast jumped off the rope right before the rope fell into the hot fiery river. In a moment, a second before my arm gave up on carrying my weight, a rope fell beside me.

I quickly shifted onto it and climbed it with ease, supporting myself on the wall and placing my feet on the very small steps created by the roots of trees. Then a hand hoisted me up, and I fell flat on my front, landing right next to him.

"Thank you," I muttered with effort. "I'm forever grateful for that."

"If this one terrorised you, how are you going to fare in the next ones?" he asked as he tried to crawl and drag me away at the same time from the immense heat.

"I only fear falling from heights," I responded with a gulp. "Forget about being burnt in a fire. This would turn me into a beautiful stone statue that could be kept in museums."

We didn't rest for too long as the invisible magical hands would start pushing us again and may even throw us over the perilously slippery edge.

We took turns in hoisting up the other at alternate points to save the energy for the next task. Fortunately, Lucas could always grab onto the higher ones with more ease, and initially, I would have to cling to him for my life to not slip away from my body.

My turn came along after two jumps with him hoisting himself first. The huge responsibility of his life depending on me was like a weight set on my head and shoulders. I was afraid that I might get it wrong again.

"Can we tie ourselves, or can't you just so it and let me cling onto you?" I asked as I peeked over the ledge. "Jumping over them together is scary."

"You need to learn how to deal with these situations which I haven't yet trained you for. Some things just need to be done for survival."

I sulked at the proposal and the statements coming from him as my teacher. I knew I had to train, but I was still at the beginning of trying to learn about my body before I could use it to my advantage.

As soon as the next rope fell, I took my stance and jumped high to be as far from the lava as possible. My long jump helped me to get to the rope quicker and attach myself to it.

As soon as the first oscillation came to an end, Lucas took his leap and clung to my waist. His athletic skills helped him greater than my amateur or beginner ones.

Before the rope could completely reach the other side, he jumped off and landed on the earth silently like a cat. I could only look at him in wonder as the vine continued to sway to and fro like the pendulum of a clock.

I was afraid that my weak arms or the vine rope would give away before I could reach the other side. But my terror of free-falling made me cling onto the rope more than jump to safety and save my dear life.

"Only look on this side," Lucas shouted at the top of his lungs as the bubbling fire grew stronger. "Don't look down and see the obstacles. Look at what you must accomplish and feel the need to resolve. The clock is ticking."

I was nearing the last swing, after which the rope would surely fall and burn along with me. Yet my courage hadn't returned. It was only when Lucas did his countdown before the fall that the need to jump hit up my adrenaline rush.

I jumped with all my might, letting go of the rope just as it fell beneath me. I rolled on the forest floor as I landed safely on the correct side.

The jump was thrilling, but the danger lurking below wasn't. I felt a small amount of self-satisfaction sink in as I realised how well I had handled the situation than the former episode.

"You did well," Lucas complimented.

And that was all I needed to hear to get myself moving.