005: Flipped on its head V

"Hey, Yuhven, pass me that rod."

My mom ordered me.

"Which one?"

"What do you mean which one?"

"Well, there's three rods, a long one, a short one, and a medium sized one. Which one do you want?"

"How should I know?"

She scanned the instructions for any indicator as to which rod to use.

She didn't find anything.

She threw the manual on the ground out of pure rage.

I could feel her rage festering as every moment passed by.

I ought to leave her alone for now.

Still, I have to say…

This view is incredible.

The spot that we are camping on is located at a cliff's edge.

The cliff is maybe three hundred feet above the forest that spreads out from its base.

It was truly a sight to behold.

"You know, we're pretty high up."

Zephyros said to me.

"Yeah, it's kind of making me nervous."

I replied.

"Oh yeah, I forgot that you have a bad history with almost falling from devastating heights."

"Yeah, I guess I do have a bad history with that, but now that I'm thinking about it, if anyone was ever mocking me about said bad history, then I could simply push them off the cliff and have them feel what it's like to have a bad history with heights."

"That's some big talk…"

"Maybe there's a frozen pond you can land in somewhere."

"ALRIGHT THAT'S IT, WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!?"

He screamed at me as he grabbed my neck in a chokehold.

"What are you gonna do now?"

He asked.

*CRACK*

A small noise rang through our heads.

Although this wasn't just any small noise…

No…

Because this small noise was the beginning of a loud, angry symphony.

"WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU TWO THINK YOU'RE DOING!?"

My mom screamed from behind us.

Her face was warped into what could only be described as a monster.

Our hearts beat out of our chests with fear.

Because once my mom lets everything loose, she doesn't stop for a very long time.

She must have been yelling at us for at least an hour, and by the time she finished, it was already dark out, and we hadn't finished setting up camp yet.

Our minds and bodies began to work in overdrive.

We were able to finish setting up camp within the next twenty minutes, and we now set our focus on dinner.

My parent's wanted to really get an authentic camping experience, so we were going to be cooking over a fire that we would make and light.

She sent me off to get some materials for the fire, and while I was looking for some large sticks, I heard a rustle in a nearby bush.

Expecting that it was just a small animal, I chose to ignore it, but that was the biggest mistake I have ever made in my life.

I returned to the campsite with fire materials, and we soon got to cooking.

We were messing around with one another and just having loads of fun.

Yet during our authentic camping experience, there was one thing amiss.

The creature in the bushes.

It watched us and waited.

It waited for the ideal moment.

When all of our guards were down.

That's when he would strike.

"Hey, Yuhven,"

My mom addressed me.

"Can you go get the s'more materials, I left them over by the tent."

"Sure."

I replied.

I walked over to the tent, and at that moment, nothing felt off.

Medusa, Dad, and Mom were all sitting around the fire, meanwhile Zephyros was sitting at the cliff's edge.

I ventured into the tent to grab the s'more materials, but immediately got the feeling that something was wrong.

It was like a giant bell rang through my head to signal danger.

Sure enough, when I turned around there was a masked man running at Zephyros with a dull blade.

The rest of my family had also just noticed what was going on, but they were too far away to do anything.

I was the closest to Zephyros, who was still oblivious to the murderer heading his way.

I won't make it in time.

I'm not fast enough to get there.

If only I had Zephyros's speed, then maybe I could make it.

No.

Even that wouldn't be enough.

I would need to move even faster than my brother.

It was a race against the clock, and the clock was winning.

Yet just as it seemed like all hope of reaching him was lost, my feet dug into the ground and propelled me forwards with an unnatural burst of speed that was so fast the human eye couldn't even track it.

*SLAM*

*SHUNK*

*DRIP* *DRIP* *DRIP*

The cliff edge became stained with blood.

My blood.

Using the burst of speed, I made it to Zephyros just in time to push him out of the way.

My entire family was in shock, and they were too stunned to move.

On the other hand, I was calm and collected, yet the blood loss and pain I was feeling almost made me pass out.

"I don't get it."

The masked man began.

"I watched you two fight earlier, so why would you save him?"

"A murderer has no right to judge my ethics, nor do I need any reason to sacrifice myself to save a life."

"Yet to offer your left arm in exchange for your brother's life, do you truly think you are some kind of hero?"

"And what if I do?"

"Then you're nothing but a fool."

While I spoke to the man, Dad made his move.

Out of every family member I have, he was the last one I would have expected to take the initiative at such a pivotal moment, yet here we are.

All I have to do is distract him for a few more moments, and Dad can sneak attack him.

"I too had a family once."

The masked man began.

"They're all dead now."

Almost there.

Just a few more moments.

"I can't really sympathize, I've always had my family with me."

Just a little bit more.

"And that is why you are weak. Don't move."

He said as he whipped out a pistol in his right hand and pointed it at my dad.

He stopped our attack without even having my dad in his line of vision.

"Now you have two options, either you come with me and survive, or you all die here, it's up to you."

Two options.

The classic scenario.

Go with him and live…

Or resist and die.

If we go with him, there is no telling what he would do to us, but to many that idea is much better than simply dying.

No one else was ready to make a decision, so I took matters into my own hands.

Little did this man know that there was a third option.

An option where four people escape alive, and those four do not include the man and me.

But am I ready to do such a thing?

Am I ready to sacrifice my life for somebody else?

I've always had that drive to save and protect others, so maybe I should finally show just how much of a hero I can be.

Okori, you always try to be a hero, but you've never been out in a moment like this.

My blood is pumping.

My heart is beating faster and faster.

Here's when I show it…

My drive to save others.

I grabbed his right arm tightly and lifted it into the sky.

Feeling the disturbance in his plan, he fired a shot, but he missed all of his targets.

Holding his right hand, I embraced him into my body…

And jumped off the nearby cliff edge.

That's it.

My story of being a hero.

That's all it is.

I'm a hero now, even though it's cost me my life.

Oh well, all the best heroes eventually sacrifice themselves anyway.

Yet it doesn't make sense to me.

As I plummeted to my inevitable demise, I began to pass out from the blood loss from my left arm.

With all the adrenaline pumping through my veins, my mind completely ignored the pain I was feeling.

As I fell, I could hear my family scream my name, but as I fell further down, the sound faded away.

I could hear the man cursing at me.

Something along the lines of:

YOU *****! I'M GONNA ***** ********* *****! YOU'RE DEAD YOU ******!

As my consciousness slowly faded, only one thought sat in my mind:

How could the events of one day cause my entire life to flip on its head.