Lost in the Crossroads

Seven - From Another World, Different time (Geneva)

Geneva wanted to think it was normal but it’s really not. No matter how normal they acted. The guy—which they thought as female at first—they rescued is an elf. The gender misunderstanding was one thing but the elven thing…it was difficult to process even the evidence was lying in their camp.

Elves doesn’t exist in their world.

Geneva sort of expected this. With their sudden arrival in a cliff, strange lights, Sea-Monster and Santelmo, other world was the only thing that could describe those strange events.

They were in another world. They lived through a massive earthquake and somehow catapulted to another world. It was hard to believe but here they are.

She had lost count how many times she closed her eyes and hoped this was just a dream, including the earthquake. They’re going to wake up in their barracks and start their daily routines or maybe start their road-trip again. But whenever she opened her eyes, they were still stuck in an unknown forest with strange inhabitants.

Her stomach churned nervously, threatening to force out the fish they have for supper. It was dark and cold, just like the night they have arrive in this strange world.

Only this time, it wasn’t silent. The night was filled with shouting voices mostly were men and barking of dogs. Running feet echoed in the silence of the night, uncoordinated from the direction of the North where the elf came from, the other side of the river.

The bandits.

It was weird how the word came out of Abel’s lips no matter how dismissive it sounded. Bandits are the old word for robbers. Robbers who uses guns and car-napped cars not arrows and rusty swords. Certainly, they don’t use dogs to track what they wanted. They have M.Os, plans etc. Not just men running around shouting curses and waving their pointy swords and torches. And stakes, they have stakes according to Kara. What are they going to do with stakes?

And their shouts were mostly consisted with ‘Witches begone!’ ‘Elven b***h!’ and ‘Mythos cursed you!’.

“I think they thought we’re witches.” Abel concluded her voice low but clear enough for them to hear. She was inconspicuously peering over the rocks they used for cover when they first saw the elf.

“An insult or the real deal?” Kara asked sitting on the ground at Abel’s right plank with her back leaning on a large rock, gun in her hands.

“The real deal I believe.” Geneva answered for her. “If elves exist here, so does witches. They do make it sound real.” So that is what the stakes are for.

“Why would they think of us as witches?” Kara frowned, moving to peer over the rock and to the other side of the river.

The three of them were out of the camp for scouting purposes. Abel had already taken Kara at first, tasked with helping out to build traps while they were tending to the elf. Once their done with supper, the elf stable and their camp’s fire dead, the three of them went out to scouts their potential enemies.

They only arrived at the river when they heard the shouting of bandits and barking of dogs, prompting them to duck and hide behind the large rocks. Apparently, it took the bandits twilight to notice their friends’ disappearance, they must have been busy, and sent a search party for them, only to find their dead bodies hidden beneath the bushes.

After that, they went into frenzy and started screaming out curses and insults like it would force them to come out. Huh.

“Probably the first thing that pop out of their heads.” Abel answered, eyes front and taking in everything that is happening on the other side. “Still those dogs know our scents and they have been led multiple times to the river but they didn’t cross it. Have any of you know of the reason why?”

Geneva can’t think of the reason why they don’t want to cross the river. She noticed the dogs sniffing and barking on the river bank but no bandit tried to cross it. It’s not like something was stopping them. They seemed afraid to set foot in the river which was strange because they played inside the river no matter how childish that sound is.

They could track their scents again if they cross the river, Abel didn’t take measures of masking their scents and run around the forest. They can’t do that with the wounded elf by their side. They have to make a stand in their side of the river. They have guns and they were highly trained Army women. What a bunch of untrained bandits can do against them? Abel could handle them.

“Probably because of your fireball friend?” Kara sneered, her face twisting into disgust. A normal occurrence whenever she talked about someone or something she dislikes. And the Santelmo was most likely one of them considering she almost got killed by it.

Geneva couldn’t see clearly in the dark with moon covered by dark clouds but she was fairly sure that Abel had arched an eyebrow before she hummed thoughtfully. She doesn’t know what that means. Abel has an absolute confidence that the Santelmo wouldn’t attack them again. She doesn’t know why Abel would think that way. It’s not like it talk back at her. Everyone, Geneva could tell have doubts about it. Abel doesn’t.

Kara clicked her tongue, clearly not pleased while her stomach churned nervously again. The wind was blowing, breeze caressing her cheeks coldly and Geneva had that feeling like something was crawling on her skin, making the hair on the back of her neck stand up at attention again. She had this feeling before and she didn’t like it. She scanned the woods for anything but she found nothing suspicious.

“Hey, get down.” Abel murmured. “They’re trying to cross the river.”

Geneva peered inconspicuously over the rocks, the nervousness she was feeling was forcefully shoved back in the recesses of her mind. In the upper stream, there are five men wielding swords were slowly but carefully wading through the waters. Oddly enough, they stopped shouting insults and started whispering and muttering at each other while their heads wildly swerved left and right, more out of nervousness than alertness.

They weren’t wearing full on armor, some have gauntlets while some have breastplates. No one was wearing a helmet, she silently wondered why. Their swords are drawn. Probably old and rusty, just like the sample Abel had taken from one of her victims. Archers have their arrows nock.

Even with only the light of their torches, Geneva could see their teeth chattering and the jerky movements of their shoulders like they were expecting something to leap out of the river. They probably do.

“They’re scared.” She stated, turning to Abel.

Abe grinned mischievously as an answer. She bends down to pick up something on the ground and throw it upwards onto the river.

There was the sound: PLOCK! A pebble hitting the water followed by a shriek and yelp.

“What was that?” One of the bandits said, deep voice cracking.

Kara snorted in amusement while Abel kept her grin.

“It was nothing.” Answered by the one leading the group, his eyes wildly searching their side of the forest as his steps slowed down. “Nothing.” He repeated as if to convince himself.

This time it Kara who threw a pebble upwards into the water, much larger. The bandits scrambled to move back to their side of the river leaving the one leading them alone in the water.

“Come back here, you louts!” He shouted at them, his hand gesturing for them to come back to the water.

“There is something in the water!” Another one holding a torch shouted. His voice sounded terrified making Geneva wondered how could a grown ass man like him be terrified of a pebble hitting the water.

“It was just a fish!”

“No! It’s the curse of the East!” One shouted, catching Abel’s interest. “We should not cross the river!”

“The river must be a border between the East and the North.” Abel murmured.

“Does that mean we’re cursed?” Geneva couldn’t help but ask.

“How can we be cursed?” She asked back, not bothering to glance in her direction.

Geneva doesn’t have anything to say to that. She doesn’t know this world nor the forest they were currently residing. What exactly was the curse of the East?

“We need to find that elf! Twins are extremely rare for Elves!” The guy leading the group shouted, his voice stern as he marched back to their side of the river. “And that witch! We need her too! They sell quite the price!”

“Woah. That elf has a twin?” Kara gasped. Thankfully not loud enough for them to hear.

Geneva ignored her and frowned. “Why would they think there is a witch? What did you do, Abel?”

“Did you do some hocus pocus?” Kara added.

“Hocus pocus, my ass.” Abel snorted before she frowned deeply. “I only killed their friends. Nothing strange. Just your classic brawl. Do you think I’m the witch they were talking about?”

“Well, duh, you’re a woman. Witches are women.” Kara said.

“Did you let anyone escaped?” It was a foolish question but she still asked. Everyone knows how thorough Abel is when in combat. She knows full well that if she let an enemy escaped, reinforcement will come faster than they can regroup.

“The dogs.” Abel drawled, her lips pursing into distaste.

Right, the dogs. One of the many arguments she had with Alexandra.

“Maybe they can talk?” Kara asked, not really helping.

“Or it’s the gunshot.” Abel said, ignoring Kara’s question. “There is a huge possibility that they haven’t invented guns yet. Just look at their weapons. Not to mention their clothes. The echo of a gunshot is not something they have experience before and probably the first thing they thought about it is witchcraft.”

Possible. For a first timer, the sound of gunshot is quite terrifying. At the very least, Geneva knows it came from a gun. The people of this world don’t.

Ugh. Just the thought of them being in another world makes her stomach turn but being in another world in the era with the equivalent of what did Abel said? – ah, right! Medieval times in their world just turned her brain into a goo.

Geneva knows that the others was also feeling the full impact of their predicament. They were sensitive to each other’s feeling that way. It was unbelievable yet here they are again. From another world, different time.

“Crossing the river will lead us to our deaths!”

Their attention went back to the argument on the other side of the river.

“It was said that a Primal Guardian roamed the East!”

“Those things were trampled down by the Mythos a hundred years ago!”

“What? A mentos?” Kara asked, frowning confusedly as she turned her head to them.

“Mythos, I think.” Geneva corrected her, c*****g her head to Abel. “What is it?”

“I don’t know.” Abel shrugged but she could tell the woman was already filing the information in her head for future investigation.

“But still the curse of the East lives! Why do you think no one lives there aside from Ogres?”

“Did he just say Ogres?” Kara asked, her eyes wide with fear.

Geneva’s heart admittedly did a nervous flip. She wanted to laugh. Ogres. They have elves and witches. Of course, this world got Ogres. Wonderful.

“But the elf!” The guys who was leading the group protested but they can tell it was half-hearted, pressured by the fear of his comrades.

“He’s already dead if he ventures the land. If he was taken by the witch, then we shall find them but not now.”

“Indeed. The night is dangerous for us.”

“We need to report this to the Lord. A witch in the East. How ironic, was that?”

The bandits began to retreat in the forest.

“I think we should go now too.” Geneva suggested, feeling that strange sensation once again. She couldn’t tell what it is but she hoped it wasn’t the so-called curse of the East she was feeling.

“What are we going to do if we run into Ogres?” Kara asked, voice clearly laced with fear.

“Run, of course.” Abel answered, perfectly confident Geneva wanted to smack her with it.

They didn’t run into Ogres back to their camp which was a relief. Abel knows the way back by heart even under the dark veil of the forest. And that strange sensation was gone. It dissipated as soon as they arrived into their equally dark camp. Geneva like to think it was just worry but it is not. She couldn’t really tell what it is.

With the bandits retreating to their own camp, fire was finally allowed to lit and warmed them up. They doubted the bandits will come to their side of the river with all the argument they heard from them.

They relayed all the information they gathered. Kara mentioned their ward’s twin which turned the attention to the man’s condition.

Elf-boy’s wounds had been treated and bandaged. Alex noted that some of them were fresh and badly infected but they managed. They have lost count how many gashes they found on his body but the worst wounds are on his wrists, hands and neck. He was starved, dehydrated and delirious with fever. At the moment, his fever was going down. And he had not shown any signs of waking up.

“Once treated, his wounds are healing pretty quick.” Alexandra admitted, looking perplexed as she sat close to their lying patient. “I don’t think they were going to scar with the way they’re scabbing over. Must be an elf-thing.”

“That’s good news.” Geneva commented.

“What are we going to do about his brother?” Drishti asked, draping a damp towel on his forehead.

All eyes turned to Abel who was busy leaning onto the tree’s trunk just above the feet of their patient, as she sat on the above-ground roots.

“He is being held by the bandits at this moment.” She began. “It’s true we can launch a rescue mission but…”

“But what?” Alex asked, c*****g an eyebrow.

“Does it ever occur to you that he’s an elf?” Abel gestured to the lying elf.

Hailey frowned, “Don’t tell me you’re a racist?”

Abel gave her an unimpressed look. Hailey blinked back at her, leaning back.

“Aren’t elves supposed to be awesome?” Kara asked out of the blue as she scrutinized their lying patient. “They’re supposed to be good at archery and fighting stuff, right? How did a bunch of untrained bandits beat this one?”

“Not to mention ravaged their whole village?” Abel drawled.

Geneva gets what she’s trying to say. The bandits must have done something really right to accomplish such thing. Besides, he’s the only one elf they saw who escaped. Where are the others? Did they all got captured? That was close to impossible.

“The elves you were talking about came from movies.” Dein reasoned, “Maybe the elves here are peace and nature loving creatures who can’t raise a weapon to defend themselves.”

“Nah. This one is a fighter.” Abel said, fixing her eyes on their patient. “It’s the reason why he got cuts all over his body. He fought, got captured, released, probably by his brother, fought again and finally run knowing he couldn’t win.” Silence fell on them with Abel’s sharp observations. It is not something they argue with.

Then Abel’s eyes turned to Geneva. “Say, did you see anything besides smoke when we got him?”

“No.” Geneva answered, shaking her head.

Abel sighed, “We need more information to dive into this problem.”

“So, we need him to wake up to tell us the story of his life?” Blake asked. “You wanted to know what happened? So that we will be prepared against them.”

Abel nodded. It does make sense. It’s one of the basics of the art of war. Know your enemy.

“What if we don’t understand him?” Fenella inquired.

“That’s going to be a problem.” Tabitha answered, preparing to cook something for their patient just in case he woke up. She’s improvising with their kettle.

“Language barrier is scary.” Hailey muttered by her side.

“You know, if we helped him maybe he could help us back.” Kara advised, twirling a pen between her fingers. Every eyes turned to her, stunned that she said something sensible and helpful aside from the comment about elves.

“What?” Kara asked, bewildered by their attention. They quickly averted eyes and saved by Abel shrugging in response. “Who knows.”