Chapter 28: Overbearing

"Let the word go forth from this time and place to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans, born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world. Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty." —John F. Kennedy

"There once was a mouse who lived in a tavern. One night the mouse found a leaky barrel of beer, and he drank all he could hold. When the mouse had finished, he sat up, twirled his whiskers, and looked around arrogantly. "Now then," he said, "where's that damned cat?" —Ernest Shackleton, Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage

***

Faced against two terrifying wild bears, Xenia, Arlan, and Thaniel spontaneously ran in the opposite direction where they were supposed to head towards. On their way, other horrified townspeople were getting away from the area, hoping that they would outrun the two wild bears in the woods where the path was uneven and some were steep and damped.

"We are going further away from my house! The three of us need to turn around and go back!"

"But how are we going to lose those two bears?!"

"They both looked like they were targeting us!"

Others, upon realizing that the two bears were after the three kids, began to go the opposite way they were taking to exclude themselves from danger. However, upon doing so, the swift and harrowing reach of the bears reached them, thus immediately meeting their demise as echoes of their screams clocked in other people's ears.

In front of them was an overgrown hay bush with vines and spikes covering it. Xenia, seeing the closed path, decided to take a U-turn, swerving and facing the approaching pair of wild bears.

Both of the wild animals were getting closer and closer as seconds passed by.

Thaniel and Arlan, who were unaware of Xenia's plan, did the same thing. When Xenia crouched and just picked up a handful of dirt in his hands, so did they.

"At the count of three, throw them at those bears! Got it?"

"Yeah!" The collective response from the siblings assured Xenia that they knew what to do after.

So... When both of the bears reached the 5 meters gap and Xenia just finished counting up to three, all three of them hurled that dirt mixed with small pebbles and whatever the fuck was in it.

While the three of them pivoted and prepared to go full throttle what the bears did shock, Xenia. Their response was to cover their eyes by placing their arm right above their eyes, whose furry arm protected them from the dirt and the delay Xenia thought of.

But still, the three of them tried to move further to the side before they began to sprint with Thaniel and Arlan on the right side while Xenia was on the left side.

"Just keep running!"

They might have failed but that did not stop them from going back to where they came from. With all their strength and energy left, they poured everything on both of their legs and let luck salvage them from utter death.

Xenia saw the light at the end of the tunnel, which gave him hope. He kept running and running without looking back or checking on his friend and his older brother. He was holding his breath until he could not hold it in anymore and a stingy sensation ran a course on his right leg. Therefore, he lost his footing which caused him to fall down on the earthy path with pebbles and damped dirt.

Trying to glance at the cause of his fall, Xenia noticed that the bear's sharp claw managed to graze his leg. It was bleeding but the wound was shallow. Subsequently, Xenia gathered himself immediately and limped forward clueless of the threat behind him.

"I must go! My mom and three little sisters... are waiting for me."

He has thought of going against the bear with his obsidian knife, but he just could not execute the idea of fighting a heavyweight wild animal that can instantly tear him to shreds. He would rather fight a grown-ass man bearing his weapon against them than try to take down a grizzly bear, which would be impossible for anyone.

Up front was a silhouette of a man clawing up in the air while bearing a wild look on his face. Xenia has never seen him before and something about this guy tells Xenia that his problem would end if he deals with the guy.

So, to put all of his training into action, Xenia brought out his obsidian knife, which he held onto its tip. Then, in a throwing motion, Xenia poured what was left of his energy and then aimed at the guy, even though he could be wrong about it.

"Go after that guy, both of you!"

As his words ended, the obsidian knife he had flown away from his hand, swiftly rotating in the air as it kept going forward.

Xenia was within reach of the bear with its hand put out and claws gradually finding their mark on his body. He bet it all on his throw. If what he did caused nothing, then he will die. But if he was right, then he could at least survive with just a scratch on his leg.

To further close the gap, the bear leaps forward but Xenia's obsidian knife was fast enough to land a direct hit on the guy, who was apparently controlling both of the bears.

"Uwah! M-My shoulder! I'm bleeding!"

Stuck on his right shoulder was the obsidian knife Xenia hurled at him. On the other hand, when the bear was about to grab Xenia, both of the animals went limp, thus losing consciousness.

And the kid eventually lost what little strength he had after succeeding in temporarily putting a stop to their pursuers.

Roughly, he was catching his breath, huffing and heaving with his chest as he dryly coughed for air.

"T-This is ridiculous! Had it already happened?!"

While talking to himself, Xenia remembered that they had to keep the guy from losing his focus in order to prohibit him from controlling both of the grizzly bears. However, those wild animals might wake up on their own, so he had to instruct Arlan and Thaniel.

"Arlan, Thaniel, approached that guy. Don't let him do what he was doing earlier or the bears might start attacking us again!"

Diligently, the two of them hurried and Thaniel began to punch the guy in the face. He did not care whether the guy controlling the animals was screaming in pain or being so loud. Thaniel almost lost it, but thankfully Arlan was there to cease his madness.

"Thaniel, stop! You're gonna kill him! He is bleeding a lot and he's already passed out!"

Seeing the guy had lost consciousness, Thaniel sat down, heavily breathing to regain the strength he just lost in an instant. He could feel his dry throat getting hoarse as he continued inhaling through his mouth.

"H-How the hell is he connected to those bears?! And how did you know that this guy has something to do with the attack, Xenia?!"

"It doesn't matter! Pull out the knife and cut both of his wrists, so he can't control them anymore!"

Baffled by Xenia's orders, Thaniel and Arlan were both hesitant because they knew what that meant.

"B-But won't he die if we do that? I— We can't possibly cut both of his wrists. He'll bleed to death!"

"Just do it! He's already done for anyway! His carotid artery has been damaged and cut. It's just a matter of time before he bleeds to death. So, if he dies, it will be because of me! And don't forget the fact that he had those bears kill innocent people! Hell, we almost died too!"

Both of them bit their lips in frustration, having been tasked to hasten a man's death. And being the older of the two, Thaniel reached for the knife and took the burden. Before obeying Xenia's orders, he glanced at his brother and proceeded to finish the job.

Blood was all over his hands. Xenia saw it.

"He must have been in so much shock. He didn't wake up from the pain," Xenia stood up, forcing himself to maintain a balanced pose. "I want to also kill those bears, but let's just discard the thought. They might wake up if we try to take their lives. It's better not to gamble. Let's go back home while the two of you tell me what happened to my family."

It was when both Arlan and Thaniel noticed that the Xenia they knew was not there anymore. In their eyes, he was like a whole new person, like an adult man in the body of a child.

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