Chapter 12: Interrogations and Escapes.

King Of The Forest

Chapter 12: Interrogations and Escapes.

'I'm still hungry.' After my small meal, I'm warming myself next to the campfire by the river bank. I look at the woman who I moved next to the fire. She seems to be sleeping soundly and the fur on her face has reduced.

I sigh looking at the flames dancing on the campfire. 'I have to do it.' "Ughhh."

I grab the bar and stand, mentally preparing myself for the physical strain. My stomach reminds me tastefully of the reason for doing this.I take off my shirt begrudgingly and go to the end of the bank.

I jump into the moving water and wait to spot another fish. 'This would have been easier with two eyes.'

I walk around in the water. Turning to face the water coming towards me with the bank to my right I try to conjure the dark mana arrow tip. The water actively trying to push me doesn't help with my concentration.

I finally get it then focus in the water to look for the fish again.

…

I'm following another blue fish in the water with my eye. "Fast fucker."

I force down the shivering and get into a stance that took a while to figure out before. Most likely because of my missing dominant arm.

Exhaling, I.. –"Uaargh."

A soft grunt sounds. 'What the..'

I search the water with my eyes to locate the sound but then I hear someone speak.

"Who are you?" I feel my heart rate increase as the voice from my blindside obviously waits for a response.

The water ripples as it hits my rolled up trousers and that's the only sound I hear. Holding on to my focus on the conjured tip on the bar, I turn to the bank of the river and there she is.

I see piercing red eyes on a face turned to face me with golden brown highlights on the skin as the flame flickers. 'Shit uhhhhhhhh…'

The woman looks at me, focusing on the right side of my face before looking at my bare skinny chest. It was not until she looked at my missing right arm that something clicked in my head and I rushed to grab the stub, hiding it in shame.

"Do I know You? Who sent You?" I feel the wind pick up as if in reaction to her soft but stern voice.

"Uhhh ." I quietly mutter. 'Fuck.' I look at her and think, 'it doesn't look like she wants to kill me so that's good.' Still staring back, her poker face is impeccable as it seems like she's waiting for me to say something else.

Clearing my throat I speak, "I'm Tal."

She suddenly moves making me flinch but I soon realise it's to fully face me with her body while seated on the bank.

'Okay relax…be in control.'

*****[Pov change]*****

'I've been moved but I'm still in this strange forest.'

I push down the aching feeling in my gut caused by moving,

"Tal…thank you…"

The crippled human boy in front of me stands in the water unmoving, seemingly weary.

'Am I in the Arrac continent? But why would grinks attack an Arrac village? Still, why did this boy carry me here?'

Still watching the boy carefully, I prepare to disarm him with air magic. "Wher"–

Suddenly the tip of his black spear deforms and turns into a black smog. 'A dark mage.' He throws the shaft I now see to be a black bar on to the bank before approaching with his hand in the air.

Looking back at him climbing onto the bank he flinches but gets closer, heading to the shirt next to the fire. Closer to the fire I can see his bare chest, closed scabbed wounds and scars colour it. His right arm is missing and the dried blood on what's left of it smells. By the look of it, it was recently ripped off. Maybe by the grinks.

Still holding on to the air mana I observe as he puts on the shirt. 'I thought it was closed but it seems like he's also missing an eye. Who is this boy? Did he escape from the village?'

"I'm Karra." I start off by introducing myself. "Can you tell me what happened? Where are we?"

The boy slowly sits opposite me, his movements awkward, like he's not used to it. He sits and looks at me as if focusing on something. Maybe collecting his thoughts.

I wait patiently.

"I found you in the snow….." he says, "you looked injured. Fearing that the beasts would come again I carried you to the river."

"Beasts?" I ask, "what beasts, describe them."

He gulps before answering, "they were like dogs, big dogs but had no eyes, they took my arm when they attacked me." He grabs the torn sleeve of his shirt.

"The grinks." I murmur. 'So he is from the village. But why would he help me?'

"You didn't tell me wher" — whoosh

An object whizzes past the other side of the campfire to my right before suddenly changing direction to hit the boy on his chest causing him to fall back to the ground.

The unnaturally fast movement and familiar feeling. 'Air magic! Who's here?'

Alarms going off in my head, I form the wind dome instinctively. I turn to a stance trying to identify the mage but as soon as I face the forest, 3 more equally fast objects collide with my wind dome.

Still looking for the source, using my peripherals I identify the objects as arrows. Faefolk arrows. 'Archers? Centaurs…why are they attacking me.'

"Cease fire. I'm Queen Karra Storm. Identify yourse.."– I don't even finish my sentence when I see a medium sized spot of light, illuminating multiple figures from behind. The light gets bigger and all of a sudden it's not a source of light. It's a big fireball charging towards me.

Not wasting any time I turn to the river to outrun and dodge the fireball and… 'what!!...'

Surprise and shock is painted on my face. The boy I'm sure was dead by the arrow was currently jumping into the river with a sack in hand.

A splash later and I'm also at the foot of the bank. I dive in to find the boy struggling to move forward in the shallow part of the waters but the water is pushing him towards me.

An orange light gleams through from the surface of the water above me and *boom*...

A loud crash sounds in the water and a large force of current pushs me and the boy together. The moving water makes me close my eyes as I hit the river bed. I feel the temperature rise fast and hear sizzling. Opening my eyes I can see the fireball inside the water causing hot bubbles to appear around it.

I see the boy, knocked out. 'They clearly want to kill me.' I conclude before heading to the boy.

Swimming fast, I grab the boy by his hand and his sack. Focusing I use the air mana to propel myself through the water along its flow.

****

"Dammit." Yelled Marrda as he pants tiredly while looking at the river. Frustration evident on his face, he dispels the fireball and looks at the direction the Queen escaped in.

"Why didn't you attack the Queen first instead of that crippled shit?" He asks angrily at the scout members next to him who all flinch, fear suppressing their exhaustion.

Vivi, who is at the abandoned campsite investigating heard this and turns to look at Maarda and answers," the Queen was on guard, taking out the human was the obvious course of action," ridicule in her voice, she continues "As the leader of the vanguard you would think.."

"That's enough." Orders the Captain from behind the tree line.

"What happened?" He asks, looking at Vivi.

Vivi goes on to narrate what just happened….

"...I think the human might have been from Saso village and he escaped the attack but there's something else," She says holding up a black bar, " this bar is made of craite."

"Craite?" Says the captain, "why would h...Arkshu."

"Yes Captain. The craite is most likely from Arkshu since it's a magic conductive material. I've read it's sometimes used to block magic." Vivi says.

Marrda who has been quiet this whole time walks up to the Captain. "Sir. We need to act quickly. The fact that the queen didn't even put up a fight means she's still weak."

The captain looks at Marrda then shifts his eyes to look at the river behind him. 'I guess I was wrong about the mermaids. Or maybe they haven't acted yet.' He thinks.

Focusing back on Marrda, "Like you said, the Queen is probably too weak to put up a strong fight. We'll rest for a bit then form a plan for capture." The captain says.

Marrda pauses, obviously unsatisfied. He clenches his fist and walks off to meet with his squad not questioning the orders of his Captain.

Watching him walk off, the Captain sighs.

'This is proving harder than it should have been. Sor isn't going to like this.'