Dark Trail

Deafening silence

When Ember found her way back to the group, she found multiple sets of eyes glaring at her.

"Where were you?" Alena prodded. "We thought something bad happened to you."

"I, uh, thought I saw something," Ember made up. When Alena started walking toward her, she thought that the dark haired girl was going to hit her. Instead, she became embraced in a hug.

"I thought- I thought that you were dead! I thought something ate you!" Alena pulled away. Ember blinked. She wasn't that lucky.

Oliver offered to take second watch. Alena was asleep, and Salem and Ember were whispering to each other just out of hearing range of Oliver.

"Where were you?" Salem asked her. Ember pushed her blonde hair from her face.

"There was this... Blue ghost looking thing? I don't know what happened. I had to follow it. It led me to this woman. She was the same as Eira. She told me that I had magic from being a direct descendent of Hecate and that I could stay in the woods with Eira and other people who worship my grandmother or something. Anyways, more people showed up and told me to stay in the woods with them... Including Eira," she told Salem, who was staring at her intently. Ember rubbed her arms to try and warm herself. "I told them all to buzz off," she reassured.

"Good," Salem breathed easy. "Now we just have to figure out how to get these two out alive."

"We will."

"Guys!" Oliver yelped. Salem and Ember were with him in a matter of seconds. Alena jumped off the ground, wide eyed.

"What is it?" Alena asked. Oliver raised his hand and pointed to the sky. It took Ember's eyes a couple seconds to adjust to what Oliver was really pointing at. there was an outline of what looked like a vulture with a human face.

"Oh," Salem gasped when his eyes focused.

"Kids they are," a scratchy voice said from the trees behind them.

"Like last time," another said.

"Leta like kids."

"Yes, yes, Tia, too. Good for Tia."

"Slowly back away," Ember whispered.

The sound of wings behind them made the four stop. "If Brexa didn't know better, she would think you were skipping dinner," the voice behind them said. Ember cringed and shut her eyes.

She whipped around to face the one that called herself Brexa. "You can't eat my friends," she stated. Brexa c****d her ugly head.

"Of course Brexa can," her screechy voice answered. "All Brexa has to do is press her claw to friends jugular." Ember's eyes grew wide. She didn't know if they could smell fear, but with how hard her heart was beating, Ember wouldn't be surprised if they could hear it.

"No, Brexa, you can't. I am a direct descendent of Hecate and I order that you may not eat my friends or I," Ember pressed on, glancing warily at her friends. Alena and Oliver looked so confused that if they weren't in this situation, Ember might have laughed.

"We cannot eat you, granddaughter of Hecate. But we can eat them, yep yep," Brexa shot back.

Ember stepped forward. "No," she pointed at Salem. "He is descended from the God of the sun and music, Apollo." She moved her pointed finger to Alena. "She's a descendent of the Goddess of beauty, Aphrodite." And again to Oliver. "He is a descendent of the Goddess of wisdom, Athena. Now. You will not mess with us."

Brexa snickered. "Harpies are not so stupid, girl." Ember's heart fell.

"Yes, yes! Not stupid, girl," Tia echoed.

"I know that you and the dark haired boy are in fact, descendants of the Gods, but you lie about the other two." She looked at Oliver. "He is none too wise. She is not beautiful enough," she stated and Ember cringed once again. So close.

Ember flinched when the harpies started to hop closer to them. Ember pushed Alena behind her while Salem did the same to Oliver.

The harpies took to the air and started circling them. Alena grabbed Ember's hand and squeezed it tight. That was when the harpies started diving. They grabbed onto Ember's hair and flung her backwards. Another raked her face. Ember's hand was wretched from Alena's when Alena was shoved to the side. She looked up and was horrified to see the biggest harpy, Brexa, had gotten ahold of Oliver's throat and was starting to fly off. As fast as she could, Ember scrambled up and tore after the harpy.

Oliver's face was contorted and terrified as he struggled to breathe. His fingers clawed at the talons that were digging into his neck. Ember grabbed ahold of his ankle before Brexa could get too high. Brexa's ugly head turned around to her and let out a horrible sound. It took all Ember had to keep from letting go of Oliver to cover her own ears.

After seconds of struggling, Oliver's body went slack as he ran out of oxygen. "No, no, no! Oliver!" Ember's teeth bared as she pulled with all her strength. She kicked back at the harpy that had begun to peck at her legs. "Get off, you bird brained freak!" Ember kicked at her again.

This time, another harpy grabbed at her hair and yanked and the same time that Brexa pulled at Oliver. Everything seemed to be drowned out as Ember felt herself being shot backward and Oliver being pulled away by the throat, Brexa's claws finally breaking the skin on his neck and digging in, allowing blood to spill and fall back to the earth.

Ember laid there on the ground, her own blood dousing her fingers, holding her hands over her ears because the deafening silence was too loud.