Twenty-Two - Alden

We followed the river for as long as we could, clinging to its sense of safety, but in reality we both knew it would not bring us any closer to Tristram. When we could not put off that feeling any longer we broke off, and Tarka tried to use her tracking skills to try to find some sign of life.

It had taken me by surprise by how quickly she seemed to heal, it clotted much faster than any wound I had ever received; I still had to be careful with the scratches a few thorns gave me.

Tarka stopped at a nearby tree, bent her legs, and launched herself to a branch, but as she grabbed hold a gasp escaped from her mouth and one of her arms dropped. The wound keeps her from being able to climb, I realized. Tarka wasn't use to surprises, so her grip loosened, and I braced myself beneath her, catching her as she fell, which knocked the both of us to the ground.

"Agh!" I cried, the wind being knocked out of me again. Tarka landed on top of me, no further harm to her aside from the look of shame she held in her eyes. "Are you okay?" I asked.

Tarka looked at me indignantly. "Whatever." She said, rushing to get up. With a quick brush off, she took down the trail, her hand pressed against her already closed wound, as if hoping to stop her emotions from escaping.

I jumped up and quickly followed behind her. "Tarka..." I tried, but to no avail, which I suppose was fine, since I didn't know what I was supposed to say anyway. Glancing around I realized the trees were starting to thin, bushes now taking their places. Looking up I saw clouds, a nice sight since I felt I had not seen them in a while.

Tarka started to slow in front of me, her emotions starting to drain instead of fuel her. I thought to reach out and touch her, but before I had the chance a rumble emanated from the nearby bushes. A brown furry creature appeared, standing on four legs, and with a long face on a head that reached up to my shoulders.

It made a loud bleating sound and I jumped back, as if I could hide behind Tarka.

A small smile spread on Tarka's lips. "It's just a baby." She said, although I wasn't sure whether she was talking to me or the creature. She reached out and rubbed it's the brown fuzzy head, and the creature let out another rumbling bleat.

"Yeah, right, of course. Just a baby." I stated, reaching out to pet the thing along with Tarka, when I saw two eyes peering at me through the shrubbery. The two eyes then grew much, much taller than the baby, probably triple the size, and slobber rained down as the new beast roared at the two of us.

The baby let out another bleat, and Tarka's movements froze.

"Not a baby." I stated.

"No, that would be the mother." She said as more slobber rained down.

"So we run?"

"I would advise it."

The two of us took off down the path towards the more hilly terrain. We ran as fast as we could, but the mother seemed quite angry at our touching of her baby, and her strides were much larger than ours.

"This doesn't look so good!" I exclaimed.

"Don't worry!" Tarka turned off the path, and I followed as quickly as I could, hoping to not be thrown into another river. She slid down one of the steeper hills, and I clumsily followed behind her. Once down the hill, Tarka grabbed hold of my arm and pulled me back into a kind of muddy hole that could fit the two of us if we stayed close together. The ground rumbled as the mother beast galloped over the fields, and flew right over the hill we hid in.

I looked over at Tarka, who had a kind of goofy smile on her muddy face. "You're pretty smart." I said, feeling kind of amazed. "And that means a lot coming from a Palkin like myself." I explained, hoping she would never know I was likely the dumbest one from my people according to their standards. I smiled at Tarka, forgetting for a moment all the hard and terrible things going on in the outside world.

Twenty-One Tristam

Leafs rustled and twigs cracked as I sprinted through the forest. I could hear shouts behind me. A spear whistled by my left ear. A moment later something wet and familiar started trickling down my ear. Just another scar to add, hoping I get away alive that is. Get away alive...  I have to think. I dodged left and missed another spear. The Sun was setting on my left, so I pivoted left and start running into it. I was instantly blinded by the sun, ran into a branch at waist height, and was knocked to the ground. I got up just as two soldiers caught up to me. They had their swords drawn, having already thrown their spears. The first one lunged at me, but I side stepped, grabbed his right wrist, and twisted it behind his back. The second one had started his attack and I shoved the first into him, taking the sword out of his loose grip. They toppled over just as five more arrived, including the general. There seemed to be no more behind them and I hadn't noticed anything above me, which meant three had gone after Alden and Tarka.

Judging from the skills of the first two, I would be able to take on a group of five, but I didn't know how much of a swordsmen the general was. Run or fight, run or fight. I hesitated too long and the choice was made. The five started to circle me as one from the ground swiped at my legs. The choice was to run. I wouldn't be able to take them now that they were ready for me. I ran northeast this time. I wasn't sure how far north I was but, if I remember right, we were close to the tricorner, the only place where all three kingdoms met. Both the Palkins and Viridi would have palaces nearby, thus explaining the royal Viridi zoo which got me in this mess.

Two spears just to my left, another grazed my head. Two spears left. I might make it. The fourth missed as well. One left. Up ahead the forest started to clear. I would soon be reaching the corner and open land. I could outrun them on the plains. I chanced a glance back and saw the soldiers slowing. The general was hefting a spear. Even better, I thought, they won't enter the plains! The spear nailed my right shoulder. I tumbled to the ground. I could hear the Viridi coming now, all senses enhanced by the fear of death. Unfortunately that also meant my eyesight for at that moment, a bright flash erupted. I saw a man standing over me, sword drawn and staff illuminated.

I then proceeded to pass out 

Twenty - Tarka

A sharp pain in my shoulder woke me from my stupor. My eyes fluttered open, and Alden was kneeling above me dabbing a wound I had received in my shoulder. His own eyes flickered to mine with a brief sense of fear but was immediately replaced by relief.

His eyes. "They look so much like Damian's," I thought to myself. I shook my head violently to get rid of the picture cementing in my brain. "Augh! Why am I even thinking about him like that? Tarka, you disgust me."

Alden dipped his shirt back in the creek and dabbed my shoulder again. I had to stifle back a cry of pain; the wound was deeper than I thought. Tears flooded to my eyes quicker than I wanted them to. Luckily, Alden was looking over on the other side of the river and didn't notice. I composed myself before he turned back to me.

"Hey, you're alive, at least! How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine. I mean as fine as I can be with a shoulder wound," I said, my voice cracking. I tried to smile just to get rid of the pale, horror-stricken look on his face.

"Yeah. I'm glad you're okay." He sighed and looked over across the river again. "I wonder where they took Tristram? Who were those guys anyway?"

I had to fight back more tears, as I sat up. Angry tears. "They were Viridian soldiers. Good for nothing Viridian soldiers. All they do is attack innocent people and charge them for crimes they did not commit."

"Soldiers wouldn't do things like that without a good reason," Alden reasoned.

I glared at him. "They'll do ANYTHING they want! Don't you get it? The higher up you are in the world, the more you are able to get away with." Memories of the soldiers that night only a few months ago came to me very vividly again. I clutched my knees with my hands and looked out over the rushing water, hoping the beautiful scene in front of me would replace the horrible rememberance.

Alden caught me staring. "I can tell you've gone through a lot. I wish I knew more about you." I turned to him, calming down some. "I want to know why you're bitter, why you won't open up."

"Don't you have secrets? The more people know about you, the more they can use against you. I learned that lesson very well long ago. I made that mistake too many times to make it again!" I realized I was practically yelling. I felt my face cool down as I stood up. "I'm sorry," I said softly, my voice cracking again. I tried to clear my throat but the feeling wouldn't go away. "I need some water."

Alden wrapped his shirt around my shoulder to control the bleeding. He cupped his hands in the river and let me have a drink. After a few minutes, he said tenderly but firmly, "Maybe someday, you can learn to trust me. Maybe you'll learn that not everyone is like that."

I scoffed. "What about your family? Why are you out here anyway and not back home? Don't tell me not everyone is like that! Why is Tristram always on the run? Huh?"

"I don't have a good answer for that right now."

"I didn't think so."

"However, I don't think it's a mere coincidence that the three of us found each other. So far, we've all gone our way to protect each other," he said. "Or at least we've tried to . . ." He started towards the jungle.

I followed after him. "So, where are we going? What's the plan?"

"Well, first we've got to find Tristram before someone else finds us."

I kept following him deeper into the jungle, shaking my head and thinking to myself, "What on earth am I getting into?"

Nineteen - Alden

I looked to Tarka, who wore her typical guarded expression, and I exclaimed, "We have to do something!"

Tarka eyes shifted back and forth for a moment, as if uncertain of whether she would actually want to risk her life for another's.

"Tarka!" I cried, upset at her hesitation. Tristram had fed us and been a loyal friend, and she just sat there contemplating life? I shook my head and tried to say something else when a look of fear crossed Tarka's face, a look I had never seen on her before. Turning back I realized my shouting had caused some commotion with a few of the soldiers, and that they were quickly heading our way.

My hand immediately reached for my scimitar, but froze mid-withdraw when a light hand touched my arm. Tarka shook her head at me, pulling me gently, and yet urgently, through the bushes, the opposite way Tristram had gone.

We ran as fast I could, since I knew Tarka could move much faster. We cut through several different bushes and close-nit trees, my arms and face continually being greeted by the wrath of the Viridian thorns that flourished from the humid climate. I glanced back once, and was relieved to see no one behind us, when I noticed the shake of the trees, and my stomach began to twist.

I regretted looking back, but not as much as I regretted looking forward. Not far ahead of us was nothing. Nothing. The ground ended into a steep drop, where a gushing river could be heard over the sway of trees.

"Tarka, what are we doing?" I exclaimed.

"I don't know!" She cried.

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"Trust me." She whispered, grabbing my hand and tossing me over the edge.

I thought this was it. The wet spray of water touched my face and started to saturate my clothes. I barely had a second to react when I landed on a soft muddy protrusion barely sticking out from the ledge, and I gasped as the air was knocked out of me. After a moment, I glanced up, estimating I had fallen maybe twenty feet. I tried to stand, to see where Tarka was, but instantly lost foothold and slipped, half my body clinging to the side of the ledge, while the other side felt the river's watery hand tugging ever so gently. I pressed my fingers into the mud, and brought my other hand over, allowing that hand to also dig into the soft dirt. Above me I heard sounds of movement, but no voices. As I slowly pulled myself back onto the ledge, keeping my belly against the earth this time, a high pitch noise rang through the air as a Viridian soldier landed into the rushing river.

I had no idea how many there were, or what they could be doing to Tarka, or her to them. I then heard another sound, but it was not like the other. It sounded like Tarka's voice. My hands clenched and I glanced down at my scimitar, knowing what I had to do.

I slowly reached one hand to my scimitar, and then, with more speed and skill than I thought I possessed, I jumped up, running part way up the muddy slope, and plunged my scimitar into the soft terrain, allowing my momentum to push off the sword, giving me just enough height to grab the ledge and leap up onto my feet. I was pretty impressed that that had worked, but had no time to enjoy it as I saw two more Viridian soldiers holding onto Tarka, and another pulling his knife out of Tarka's shoulder.

The three looked at me in utter shock as the muddy boy stood before them. I gritted my teeth and ran at the armed soldier, knocking him right into a nearby tree. He hissed at me, but with one good punch I knocked him out. Scrimmaging for the knife, I took note of the other two tossing Tarka to the side. I launched at them knife aimed to kill, but they easily unarmed me. One of them grabbed my arms and twisted them behind my back, and used his tail to wrap around my throat.

The other Viridian grabbed hold of Tarka's clothing and dragged her to the edge.

"No!" I cried, trying to kick the Viridian, but to no avail.

The one that held me hissed in my ear. "Don't worry you'll be joining the little traitor."

They then threw us both into the river's gushing water, and I tried my best to keep my head above water, but being from a desert made swimming a fairly rare experience, and the river was so strong any attempt caused me to be instantly knocked back under. Luckily I came upon a rock, which gave me a second to breathe and locate Tarka. I then shot off from the rock, making sure to get a good hold on Tarka. Her shoulder was bleeding quite a bit when the water wasn't pulling us under, and I couldn't be certain if she was conscious or not, but I managed to find another bolder, and with the last bit of strength I could muster, I took Tarka in one arm, and used the other to fling the both of us onto the nearest bank.

Pulling Tarka away from the bank, I took my shirt off, and, after dunking it into the river a few times, began to dab at the wound on Tarka's shoulder. She looked at me, which let me know she was at least alive. Looking back across the river, I of course had no idea where we were or how we would get back to Tristram. All I knew was the sun was setting, I had lost my scimitar, and Tarka was wounded. I looked back at Tarka, and never felt such a heaviness within me.

Eighteen - Tristram

A streak of purple interrupted the vibrant green of the forest before it disappeared amongst the leaves on my right. I readied my knife. The tell-tale rustle of leaves could be heard on my left and I spun around, jabbing the knife in the air at where the Juke should be. I caught is belly in mid-leap, like I had to so many of his species. I was getting tired of the simple fight, the predictable tactics: be seen on one side, pounce on the opposite. I hadn't had a proper enemy to fight in months. I had been training Alden, and though he improved quickly, he was no warrior. A warrior takes years of training, I'd only been training Alden for a month now.

I knelt down to skin and clean the Juke, first removing some sort of bone it got stuck in its ear. Had it really been a month now? A month since I found my nearly dead redemption? He had grown a lot since then, Tarka too. She was still distant to us, never spoke about herself, but she would walk with us now and camp with us, rather than silently follow in the trees. We had grown on her. An odd group we made. I smiled at the thought of the fish monger in the last village we visited: mouth gaped at as as the fish he was about to butcher started to flop away. While our people weren't strangers, we certainly never interacted, and the Viridi least of all.

I flipped the Juke over and remover another piece of bone stuck in the other ear... Something nagged at the back of my brain but I couldn't quite place it: the fish monger still at the front of my mind. After watching that, Alden had decided we should have fish for dinner. What he meant was he wanted to show off his fishing skills to Tarka. He fell in the nearby river three different times before Tarka took the spear and caught some for us. Those two...

A rustle to my left. I twirled around expecting another Juke, but there was nothing. Looking around, I picked up the carcass and slowly headed for camp, but something was following me. I had spent enough time with Tarka to recognize when something is moving in the trees. That said, nothing attacked or showed itself. I reached the camp only to see another surprise: nine Viridi soldiers in light flexible leather armor, each holding a spear with a short sword attached to their belt. The tenth jumped out of the trees behind be, he had been following me. I glanced around for Alden and Tarka. They stood next to the campfire, opposite the party. I stood just halfway between them, knife still in hand, but trying to show no other signs of aggression.
The one that followed me marched up to the leader, distinguished by two green streaks across the shoulders of his armor, and whispered something. The leader spoke, then, with a deep gravelly voice, that of a general. "You are hereby charged with poaching the kings personnel pets, signified by engraved bones attached to the ears. The mark on your hand distinguishes you and an outcast, thus the punishment is death."

I did the only sensible thing I could. I ran.