6 Chapter 5

"We offer this whore to our master, Magnus the Mad! Let her life force give him strength!"

All the people in the square hooted and cheered in response to the executioner's announcement. Nevetharine remained motionless, horrified. She felt it. She felt all of them, like they were a part of her. She felt their fear in her chest, their beating hearts; the confusion in their minds that made it difficult for her to hear her own thoughts. She saw their lives' flashbacks before her eyes. She saw all the torture they had endured and felt every bit of physical pain they experienced all in the span of mere minutes.

But with this one she felt something different from the rest; she felt courage, even bravery. The girl stared blankly at the crowd of people cheering and suddenly she raised her voice above all of them: "The Great Mother will awaken again!"

As if that statement was the final betrayal, the executioner took a dagger and slashed open her abdomen. Her screams of pain could be heard clearly above the crowd's cheering. It chilled Nevetharine's bones. He plunged his hand into her body and ripped out her intestines, then threw them all over the floor. Her face would haunt Nevetharine in her dreams for the rest of her days. Her eyes were wide open and had the look of pure horror, as if she had taken a terrible poison. Next, the executioner sawed off her limbs with the dagger. He slaughtered her like an animal. He drained her blood into a flask and threw it all over the crowd of people, who went after it like wild dogs. They licked it up from the stones and fought over who would get the last drop. During the struggle, two more people died who weren't interested in sharing.

Nevetharine watched in disbelief. Somewhere inside her fury bubbled up, but disgust and fear drowned it away.

"Run!" The voice in her mind startled her. It felt like it was not her own, even though something about it felt familiar. Or was it her own?

"Run!" It was definitely not her own. She was not consciously thinking that. In fact, she was thinking that she needed to stay very still. If she ran, they would notice her. Besides that, it just didn't sound like her.

"Stay still, and quiet," she countered. Whatever it was, she had no intention of trying to find out now, when paying attention was vital to her survival. But that response only aggravated the voice even more and it became frantic. Nevetharine could feel her in her mind, banging at the walls of her skull, like a wild, caged animal.

She dropped the bucket and grabbed the sides of her head while closing her eyes tightly. "Be quiet…," she said softly. All of a sudden she heard a low, rumbling growl in front of her. When she opened her eyes and looked up, the crowd of people were all staring at her with wild, hungry eyes. She treaded backwards slowly…

She was absolutely positive that if she would move any faster, they would jump at her like wild hounds. It was no use speaking to them, because they had lost their ability to communicate with anything other than fearsome noises. She felt a trickle down her arm and abruptly she became aware of her wounds from the fall. She glanced down and saw blood dripping down her arms.

The crowd came closer and she was unable to make herself move. They smelled her blood, while some licked her skin, while making noises of delight. Somewhere, she felt an abrupt shift inside her being. Only for a few seconds, she thought to herself, "This is it - I'm going to die…"

But before she could realise what happened, she felt herself push back two of the creatures with strength she never knew she had. They fell down violently to the stone paving, leaving an opening in the circle. Her body started moving. Her legs started running, faster than she knew she could run. She wasn't in control. Something had taken over her body. But after only a few feet, it started fading away and she began regaining influence. She could feel her legs again. The voice spoke again. "Keep running! Don't look back! Don't stop!"

This time she listened. Her surroundings whirled by. She had no mental energy to take note of them. Every ounce she had went straight into her legs, her aching legs. Every time her feet landed on the ground, it felt like her bones were being crushed on the inside. It felt like her heart was going to explode and her lungs would fall flat. She was too weak to move so much. She didn't look back, but she could hear the crowd behind her. They were all following her and catching up fast. She turned a corner into an alley and stopped abruptly when she saw a little boy standing in front of her.

He was..strange. He was dressed well, clean, and he looked like a normal human being, nothing like the cannibalistic monsters following her. He stared intently into her eyes.

"Follow me." He whispered in a strange, echoing voice.

Then he turned around and ran. His voice frightened Nevetharine, but she ran after him nonetheless. What choice did she have, after all? Something about him drew her in. With the crowd on their heels, she followed him through tiny streets and alleys she never even knew existed in Vudreigh. He sprinted down a flight of stairs, hidden in one of the alleys, and then down another. Nevetharine struggled to keep up with him. Her frail body felt like it was being shaken apart by every step she took. They were now beneath the streets of the city, in the tunnels. The boy took her through a strange path she had never seen before. It was wet and dark.

The boy stopped running. That's when Nevetharine heard that the crowd was no longer behind them. She looked back and shock set in. It all looked different than before. Where there was a tunnel just a few seconds ago, was now a stone wall.

She turned around towards the child, but he was walking away briskly.

"Wait!" she yelled and followed him.

Running was now near impossible. Her legs felt like they were being crushed from the outside in by agonizing cramps. She contemplated giving up and just stopping, but she had to follow him. Where was she going to go if she turned around now? She tagged along as fast as she could manage. The boy was quickly disappearing before her. He turned a left corner, and when she caught up with him, she paused for a moment. There was an arch leading to the outside of the tunnels on top of a flight of stairs. Where had this come from?

She walked up the stairs carefully and when she came to the top, she saw the boy standing a few metres in front of her. He stood on the dead, barren ground, outside the city walls, staring at her with the Hollow Forest behind him. He lifted up his little hand and gestured with his finger for her to follow him.

"Come with me…come with me…," he whispered in an unnatural, echoing voice.

Nevetharine became more aware now that something was seriously off with this child. He was pale and never blinked. His movements were odd, yet graceful. She told herself not to follow him further, but something about him compelled her to. Once more, it felt as if he was pulling her in, like a fish hopelessly attracted to the temptation of the lure.

She looked up at the tall walls of the city. She couldn't go back now. So she did as the boy asked. And he led her into the Hollow Forest.