Chapter 6

Stumbling tiredly, Francis carries a semi-conscious Ross out of the forest. The sun has just sunk below the horizon, and deep hues of pink, purple, and navy fade into black painting the sky.

Several torches had been lit at the edge of the village, and Francis trudged towards them. When he rolled his ankle from exhaustion and almost fell over, Hailey supported him.

Blood trickled from Ross's shoulder, staining Francis's shirt a dark red. Concern kept him moving way past his limits.

Brad followed close behind, his eyes wide from adrenaline and fear for his friend.

"Look! It's the kids!" Francis hears an adult yell. He's not sure which one, because his mind is focused on one goal. He has to get Ross to Miss Riena. She can save him. She has to.

Another shout, "ROSS?!"

Suddenly, an adult man is in front of Francis grabbing his shoulder. "What happened to Ross?!" His genuine fright and concern with his voice cracked toward the end. Francis falters a moment as he realizes that it is Ross's father.

He doesn't say anything and pushes past Ross's father.

A tense silence falls upon the group of adults as they take in the sight of Ross slumped on Francis' back, and bleeding.

They watch in silence as Francis moves in the direction of the healer's house.

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The silence doesn't last long as the adult focuses on the other two children noticing their torn and dirty clothes.

"Brad, Hailey!" 

"What happened?" 

"How did Ross get hurt? He's super strong! He shouldn't get hurt!"

 "What did that to him?"

Several adults begin asking questions at the same time.

Hailey speaks up, trying to get the adults to quiet down and listen to her. "There was a wild animal. Ross protected us."

Brad added quickly, knowing that normally a wild animal would never be able to hurt Ross, "It caught him off guard. He fought it off."

A murmur of disbelief flowed through the group of adults. One of them pushes forward and gives Hailey and Brad a thorough examination before speaking. "You're not telling us everything." He says accusingly. "What kind of wild animal could do that to Ross? He's killed a bear with one hit before!"

Another murmur passes among the adults, their concern and fear spilling out.

"If something can hurt Ross like that, none of us are safe," one of them says.

Others are saying similar things, uncertainty filling the air.

Brad takes a deep breath and then does something out of character. He yells. "ROSS GOT INJURED PROTECTING US! WE'RE SAFE! HE KILLED THE WILD ANIMAL!"

After catching his breath from yelling, he says, "Perhaps you're depending too much on Ross's strength. He's only four years old!" He glares at the adults, daring them to say something back.

Hailey adds to his statement, "Ross isn't immortal. But he didn't run. None of us did."

The adults, including Ross's father can't look at the kids, shame and embarrassment written clearly on their faces.

A woman steps forward, and silently takes both Brad and Hailey by the hands. She glares at the other present, and leads the children away from the crowd.

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Reina moves around her house, lighting several candles. She can hear a commotion at the edge of the village, and suspects that someone is hurt.

As she opens her door to check what is going on, she spots a black haired boy walking toward her. He is carrying a red haired kid. Francis and Ross, she thinks to herself.

She notices almost immediately that Ross is injured. When Francis stumbles, she rushes over and bends over to take Ross from him.

Francis looks at her, his exhaustion making it hard for him to focus on her. "You're not asking questions?"

Reina smiles at him as she carries Ross into her house. "No," she says. "Pretty certain that the idiots of this village are already asking your friend plenty of questions." 

She pauses for a moment as she sets Ross down on a bed. "Besides, I'm a healer, not a detective. Treating him comes first."

She hears a sigh of relief from Francis, as he relaxes into a chair by the door.

She pulls the bloodied fabric away from Ross's shoulder and frowns. Deep lacerations, most likely from the claws of a large beast.

But Ross killed a bear. What could cut him like this? She halts her thoughts in place, whispering under her breath, "Focus, Reina. Treat his injury first, then try to figure out what happened. Don't become a liar."

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A group of knights trudge through the forest, paying close attention to the tracks of a dangerous demon. They've been tailing it for several days, hoping to find it before anyone was killed.

"CAPTIAN!" One knight shouts. "It's the demon!"

The captain looks up from the damaged bark on a tree he had been examining. "Why are you yelling? Don't alert it."

"But, Sir," Another knight speaks up. "It's already dead."

"WHAT?!" Now this comes as a shock to the captain. As far as he knows, there's nothing in this area of the kingdom that could kill a demon. "Investigate the area! Figure out what happened!"

"Yes, Sir!" The ten knights under his command immediately spread across the clearing, and a few into the tree line around it.

The captain walks over to the demon's corpse with steady measured steps. He bends over, closely examining the corpse. Its head was twisted at an odd angle, suggesting the killing blow was to its neck. It also looked like it had been hit a few times else, and it was hit hard.

A scrap of torn fabric stuck in its claws caught his attention. He bent down, tugging it free, noticing that it was sticky. He also noted that the fur around the demon's eyes was matted. He touched it, discovering it was also sticky.

"Captain! There are footprints of several children throughout the clearing. Four, or maybe five!"

"Also picnic supplies are scattered all around!" Another knight chimed in.

The captain slowly turned around, examining the entire clearing. "Seems the children used everything at their disposal to kill this thing, they broke its neck," he says. "Look at the blood, one of them was carried out of here injured."

"Sir, wouldn't that mean one of the kids has the kind of power that we've been looking for? The kind that would allow him to stand at the future hero's side?" The newest knight in the unit questions.

The captain sighs, getting a migraine. "It could be that, or it could be a dangerous power we can't ignore."

He bends over again, examining the demon's corpse one more time. When he straightens he turns to face the direction of the nearby village.

He gives an order to the fastest knight under his command. "Simon, send word to the capital. The children of this village are not normal. Even if one of them does have some kind of power, all of the kids participated in killing this monstrosity."