Daughter of the Sky, Son of the Earth

Chapter Ten

Fire

I could tell Alex was exhausted. Her pace had slowed down, and her legs trembled slightly with every step we took. I tried to help her, and I even offered that we could stop to rest, but she would assure me she was okay and that she could go on.

I knew she didn't want to slow us down, but it'd be worse if she fainted from the strain. I also felt tired, we had been walking for hours. And no matter how much stamina I had; it was useless if my feet were burning just like they were doing right now. To make things harder, I was beginning to think our compass was broken. We had been walking in a straight line for a day and a half and it hasn't changed direction. 

I had never used one of these before, but it made me feel nervous seeing it so still. We had already walked through the forest and had come to an end a couple of hours ago. Now, we were heading south through a thick cornfield where the crops reached over our heads. Truthfully, I would have preferred walking through the forest rather than here. It felt more open somehow.

"I think we should stop," I said to Alex as we reached the end of the cornfield. 

In front of us, the sun was shining, but not too brightly, over the clearing in front of us. Thin grass rose from the ground, making it look like a big green cloud. 

Under different circumstances, this would be the perfect place to have a picnic or a date. 

Date.

As I sat down on a fallen log next to the cornfield, the word echoed in my mind and felt like a thorn prickling at my heart. It made me wonder how a tiny word like date had such a powerful effect on the mind. It made a lot of thoughts collide and I had to push them away to keep from thinking about Andrew.

I missed him. It had been hard going on without him. My mind would sometimes drift to wondering what he was doing or if he had gotten to the girl in time, but I always tried to push the thoughts away. I had to remain alert for both Alex's and my sake. I had to protect us both. 

Still, I wondered if Andrew and I would ever get the chance to have a proper, real date. It seemed kind of stupid, considering all we had been through and all the times I had slept by his side, but we never discussed the possibility of having a date. 

"Sometimes I wished I had trained alongside you rather than just watch you from afar," Alex murmured as she appeared next to me, making me jump out of my thoughts. She took a seat next to me and sighed in both relief and pain.

I chuckled and shook my head. Alex took out her water bottle and chugged it down as if she hadn't drunk anything all day. In the morning, we had been lucky to come across a freshwater stream, but I still tried to reserve the water I had left. Just in case.

"You really don't mean that," I said teasingly as I reached for my backpack and pulled out a can of food. This kind of food grossed me out, but a girl had to eat. 

Following my lead, Alex shrugged and turned to me. "I guess we'll never know. But really, I had never felt my back and legs hurt like this before. I don't think I have ever walked as much as we have these couple of hours."

I didn't respond as I started eating, keeping my eyes fixed on the clearing in front of us. 

"Do you think this person is much further away?" Alex asked after a couple of minutes. She was staring into the compass with an uncertain look on her face. She was probably thinking the same thing I had; that thing was broken. 

"I'm not sure. The compass doesn't reveal that much, but I have a feeling we're almost there," I said slowly, and Alex's eyes instantly turned to me. 

"Explain," she said seriously. 

Shrugging, I told her about my dream and how I had begun to think he, the boy, was my brother until Artemis said he wasn't. "After that dream, I have had this strange feeling, as if something were pulling me in this same direction. It's odd because I haven't actually ever met him, but I feel tied to him somehow. As if we're connected," I explained thoughtfully.

Alex stiffened next to me and quickly turned towards me. "A connection like the one with you and Andrew?" She asked slowly. 

Thinking about it, I tried to compare the two feelings, but they were very different from one another. "No, not like that. There's something different about my connection to the boy in the compass. I can't explain it. With Andrew, I feel love. I feel respect and happiness but with the boy I saw, I feel worried and protective. I know it makes no sense but it's what I feel. I don't know how or why but it's there," I whispered as I looked at the field in front of us. 

Alex nodded her head after a moment, and she pursed her lips together as she tried to think of explanations for what I had just told her. "Well, whatever it is. I think we're closer to finding out," Alex said with an encouraging smile and I snorted but nodded my head.

We finished our meal in silence and stayed put as a gentle breeze swayed by us. It was quiet and calm, and I was glad we hadn't encountered any monsters on our way. I would like to avoid that situation at all costs. After what had happened to Barbara, a doubt had arisen in my mind. What if I couldn't protect Alex either? What if she got hurt or killed while she was with me? I wouldn't be able to bear losing both of them. It would be too much.

"I think we should keep moving. The longer we stay in one place, the more dangerous it is for us," I said as I got to my feet.

Alex winced and groaned but didn't say anything as I helped her up and we placed our backpacks on our backs before continuing. 

As we walked, my legs felt sore, and I had to clench my jaw to keep from wincing with every step I took. It was that bad. 

I didn't know for how much longer I was going to be able to do this. At some point, I would collapse from exhaustion. I just hoped Alex and I would have made it somewhere safe by then. 

Suddenly, I felt something tug at my chest. It wasn't something I had ever felt before nor did it hurt; it was just uncomfortable. 

I stopped walking and placed my hand over my chest as my eyes widened. Alex looked back at me with a confused expression on her face but as soon as she saw me, her worry became clear. "What happened?" She asked slowly.

I opened my mouth to respond when, without a warning, I felt something push down on my chest, making it hard to breathe. I gasped for air as I fell to my knees and placed both hands on the ground to keep from falling. What was wrong with me? Why was I feeling this way?

I closed my eyes and tried to calm my racing heart as Alex rushed to my side and demanded to know what happened. But her yells sounded distant and almost inaudible to my ringing ears. I wanted to tell her to stop shouting, that she'd only attract the attention of monsters, but I couldn't form the words in my mouth. 

I tried breathing through my mouth when I felt myself about to pass out and, in my mind, I saw the faint image of a bull-like creature staring at me. I felt fear and pain along my side and chest, and it was then that I realized it wasn't my pain. It was Andrew's.

Shock reached my mind as I thought about this. I didn't know Andrew and I could do that, reach into each other's minds and thoughts. 

Slowly, my mind returned to the clearing where I was kneeling next to Alex. My friend's pale face and preoccupied look gave me the strength I needed to form a coherent sentence. "It's Andrew. He's hurt," I whispered weakly. My throat felt dry and hoarse as if I hadn't drunk any water in days.

Alex stiffened next to me and placed her hand over her mouth. 

Without another word, I reached for the compass that had fallen to the ground when I fell. I closed my eyes and tried to focus my attention on Andrew. Trying to ask the compass to point me in the right direction. 

When I opened my eyes again, the arrow was still pointing south, and the boy’s green eyes were still staring back at me. With a groan of frustration, I yelled, "tell me where Andrew is!"

But the compass didn't move, and I dropped it to the ground before getting to my feet and starting to make my way back towards the cornfield. He needed me, I was his partner, and he was in danger. There was no time to waste. 

"Aileen! What are you doing?!" Alex asked as she suddenly appeared in front of me, blocking my path.

"I'm going to help Andrew. He needs us," I said tightly, and Alex stared at me with a wide expression on his face.

"What?! No! It's at least a three-day walk in that direction to get to where he is. By then, anything could have happened," Alex said and I stiffened at her words.

I stopped in my tracks as my mind raced, trying to decide what to do. 

What Alex said made sense. But the impulsive, sentimental part of me wanted to rush to Andrew's side and make sure he was okay. 

That's when my last conversation with Andrew replayed in my mind. 

"Don't do anything impulsive."

"I can't promise you that, but I can tell you I will try not to."

This was exactly what he meant. I had to think beyond my feelings. Beyond my fear. I had to think about the mission first. 

If I went searching for him then that meant we had already lost. If I left now, I would not make it in time to be with Mason throughout his transformation. 

As my thoughts fought with one another, Alex walked to my side and placed a small hand on my back before leaning on my shoulder. 

"He will be okay. He will make it through. But it wouldn't do anyone any good if you abandoned the mission now. He would want you to go on," she whispered softly. 

Once my heart had calmed down and the pain had subsided, I could think more clearly now. I looked up to the sky and prayed to the gods to keep Andrew safe. To send help his way. Alex was right, we needed to keep going.

Looking at my best friend, I nodded my head and took a deep breath. She handed me the compass with a small smile and I took it with new determination in mind. 

As soon as we found Mason, we were going to go looking for Andrew.

Alex and I walked forward, following the direction of the compass. We didn't say anything and the pain that had been in my body had now turned to soreness. A tiny voice in the back of my head told me I was doing the right thing. But if it was the right thing, why did it feel so bad?

Shaking my head, I reminded myself that Andrew was probably alright, that I shouldn't jump to conclusions. And as I chanted the words over again, I sent a last thought in Andrew's direction.

Please be okay.