13
1700 Words
THE LEAVES are wet because of the dew and the sky is so dark, with no stars or even the moon. Thunder ignited strong and bright lightning, a sign that heavy rain was looming.
"Take me down, you need to rest," Ara said while Zandro was still carrying her in the back.
"It's about to rain, we need to get out of this forest-" Zandro replied.
"We were walking in the middle of this forest for almost three hours, I think we were lost-" she added. "So you should put me down and let's find shelter before the heavy rainfall."
"I can only see tall trees, no caves, and anything we can take shelter in. If we stop walking, we will die in the cold."
Ara came down slowly because her wound was still hurting. "It is better to die of cold than to die of exhaustion- If you want us to keep walking, I will just walk with my feet," Ara said, then began to walk in the vast forest with the man. Would she not know if he was an opponent or would be an ally?
It was about to rain so they walked even faster. "I think there is a cave-" Ara murmured, then walked even faster towards the small cave at the same time as the heavy rain poured down.
They were soaked in the rain before they could enter the cave. Ara slowly sat on the big rock and so did Zandro.
Ara hugged herself and shivered in the cold. Zandro immediately took off his jacket when he saw Sandra getting cold. "You need it more than I do," Zandro said, then stood up and looked for dry wood and leaves to light a fire.
Ara didn't say a word and just watched the first Archon, "How can I kill you if you are like this... Will you be able to kill an innocent person?" she thought. Her wound worsened, she didn't want to complain of pain in front of the first archon, but the truth was that she would faint at any moment.
Ara slowly leaned against the cold rock and closed her eyes to rest "I'm so tired-" she murmured.
While Zandro was rubbing wood to light a fire, he couldn't help but glance at Ara. He knows that she doesn't feel good. That's why he is so angry with himself because he did nothing to help Ara fight those bastards. "This f*cking illness is torture", he thought. He could not imagine how his Sandra had defeated a dozen triads alone. Even though he was amazed at her, he was also feeling anxious. What if Ara becomes a monster of anger and no one can stop her... He was a bit afraid of her.
How he sees Ara when anger swallows her- the dangerous stare of her eyes every time she fights ... even the devil will be afraid of her.
When the branches and leaves caught fire, he took off his t-shirt and hung it on a rock to dry. Afterward, he sat down next to Ara, who was now sound asleep. "Your face is angelic when sleeping but you're scary sometimes, especially when you get angry." He sighed and slowly removed the hair that was blocking Ara's face. "Who are you really? Ara... The anger I see in your eyes scares me. I feel like you will betray me someday. Enlighten me, please. I don't want to let you go."
As Zandro stared at Ara he was once again captivated by her gentle face. He couldn't help but gulp as he watched Ara's wet neck while the water grains slowly dripped into her chest. He only came back to his senses when Ara was suddenly groaning and sobbing. "A-ara!!!, You're having a nightmare again!!." He shouted as he tried to wake Sandra. Ara has a fever and is pale, probably because of the wounds she received from the fight. "I will no longer leave you alone and fight to the death with those monsters" he uttered.
Though hesitant, he still took off Ara's wet clothes and then put on his dried clothes. He did not sleep until Ara's fever went down. "I hope that they are looking for us. I don't want anything bad to happen to you. "
The rain had not stopped, Ara was still unconscious as he was getting cold because he put his jacket and clothes on his Sandra. "Dang it!!, I don't think the order came from Bienca." He exclaimed. Bienca is the very founder and protects the entire organization.
Ara slowly opened her eyes. The first archon immediately approached and touched her forehead with his palm. "Your fever has also gone down, you scared me a little... mga bente porsiyento"
Ara just stared at him and slowly sat down. Ara averted her eyes to see that the first archon had no clothes. "Why don't you dress up" she was stunned and couldn't continue what she was going to say when she realized that she was wearing different clothes. Her eyes widened and turned to the first Archon. "What did you do to me!!" she shouted.
"Relax, I can explain-"
"What did you do!!! Where are my clothes!?"
Zandro quickly pointed to Ara's clothes that were hanging. "There," he said, then grinned, "Okay fine, I'm sorry. You had a fever earlier. I had to change your clothes because they were wet, so I did that- Don't worry, I didn't see anything because I closed my eyes ... but I touched something-"
"You punk!!!" Ara shouted in annoyance, then picked up a small rock and threw it at the first Archon. Fortunately, Zandro quickly avoided it.
"What the!!-" Zandro exclaimed "I'm sorry, okay?!. I'm sorry-" Zandro repeatedly said, then immediately took Ara's dried clothes, then handed them to his Sandra.
"Turn around!" Ara ordered the first Archon, so Zandro immediately obeyed.
After Ara changed her clothes, she immediately returned the jacket and t-shirt to the first Archon. "Here".
"Thanks" Zandro replied, then put on the shirt. "It's a little cold, you know. You should wear my jacket."
Ara didn't accept the jacket, so Zandro himself wore the jacket to his Sandra. They were slightly silent before Zandro opened the conversation again. "Earlier, you were having a nightmare again... You repeatedly mention your parents-" Zandro was surprised and stunned again when Ara's dagger suddenly flew. "Sorry?? What did you say again?"
"You startled me!!" Zandro complained.
Ara pointed at the dagger. "There is a snake!"
"A-ah... You should have told me anyway."
"You shouldn't be asking again things that have to do with my parents. You make me so sick- I can't say anything about my parents ... That topic is killing me inside, slowly." Ara said honestly.
Zandro was slightly silent before speaking again: "My mother became a victim of a syndicate. Abused and raped repeatedly."
Ara immediately turned to Zandro, who was stunned while talking.
"We just found her lifeless... My father could not bear the pain of bereavement. Until the time came when my father could no longer control himself. He is like a wild animal who wanted to kill the bastards who abused my mother. Because of not being able to control himself, my father violated the most important rule of Agercia. He used his power for revenge... to mercilessly kill those monsters. He was expelled from being the Archon of the Agercia and suddenly disappeared and was never seen again. At a young age, I became an Archon, because I am the heir of the rank... I can't accept what happened, so every time someone asks my parents, I always say that they died in an accident..."
Ara saw the sadness in the eyes of the first Archon. She also feels the pain that Zandro feels with every word he utters.
"I was also afraid of being a monster like my father. I didn't want to be like him, so I didn't consider this position a power. I just want to be a normal person, but as long as the surname Miller sticks to my name, I can't leave this horrible life." Zandro took a deep breath and looked into Ara's eyes" We both have a dark past, and just like you, I have a hard time telling my story to others."
"T-then why are you telling me that?"
"Because I want you to trust me," Zandro said.
"Everyone thinks that I'm a heartless monster... How many times have I almost died every time I trusted someone... Hindi ko na nga mabilang. So even if I force myself... I can't... I can't trust anyone" Ara said while holding back her emotions.
"You're not a monster, Ara. Believe me-"
Ara couldn't hold back anymore. "No matter what you say, It will never change everything!!. I killed my own friend to save myself!!- now tell me?!!... Am I not a monster yet?!" Ara shouted, then couldn't stop herself from crying. She knew she shouldn't have said that but she could no longer control herself. "I'm such an idiot..." Ara said bitterly, "I know that what you see in me is a broken toy!!!... Don't feel sorry for someone like me ... I'm not like other softhearted women that you knew."
"Don't allow yourself to be enslaved by your anger... Think about it, Ara," he uttered. "Whatever you say won't change my mind. I know you are drowning in sadness and pain... You need someone to hold on to. So, no matter what you say, no matter how bad you feel about yourself, I will not let you go. Not because you are my Sandra, but because you are already part of my family."
Ara shook her head and laughed sadly "You were the first person to look at me like that. What a shame, I used to be a scary person that frightens people... Why do you keep changing that?"
The first archon was slightly silent as he just stared at Ara. "When we get out of this forest, see my doctor- that's an order as a first Archon.
"I'm not sick-"
"We're not sure about that. Just have some conversation with my doctor, please."
- Writer
