Ander - Part 1: Subchapter 34
34
First, there came the thud and crack of the bolt piercing flesh, then the warmth of blood on her face. But there was no pain.
Kiana opened her eyes.
She could see the tip of the bolt, red and dripping, less than an inch from her forehead. It was shaking.
It was shaking because it had pierced Ander's palm clean through. It was his blood on her face. She had a sudden flashback to her time in that cage, to when Banno had almost struck him with a rock drenched in her blood. And now, here they were again. Only this time, she was the one staring at Death covered with the blood of the one she cared about. There was something horrifically prophetic about that, something she didn't even want to think about.
She craned her neck to look up at him, and he looked down at her. From this angle his face was upside-down, making his tired smile seem sad. "Hey," he said.
"Hey." She didn't know what else there was to say.
He gripped the haft of the bolt with his free hand and -
*
- ripped it out, the metal squealing against his bones. Kiana gasped, probably because of the starburst in his hand now bleeding from both ends, but to be honest, Ander could barely feel a thing anymore. It was just a dull tingle, more annoying than painful. He raised the strange arrow to his eyes, but he was having trouble figuring out what exactly he was looking at. The shaft was short and black, surprisingly heavy, but had no fletching, and the tip was a solid spike with a groove running along the side. He dropped it to the ground, not sure if he had meant to do that or not. He was just... so... tired...
The one in the cowl who had fired on them was just standing there. Judging from his build, he was probably another Fox, but... was he saying something? Ander wasn't sure. Kiana was definitely talking, but her voice kept fading in and out. One moment a whisper, the next a shout. Things were getting a bit blurry around the edges, especially the hole in his hand. But that didn't even make sense. He tried to take a look, but he couldn't lift his hand. It just hung there, completely numb. And itchy. He didn't... know...
why...
It felt like he was standing perfectly still, but for some reason the horizon was flipping itself onto its side. The golden glow to the East just kept going and going, angling itself straight up, until it was almost vertic -
Ander suddenly felt the earth thud into his shoulder. On some level, he knew he must have fallen down, but that knowledge seemed secondary compared to the cold spreading throughout his body. He knew early morning was always the coldest time of day, but he's never felt anything close to this, not even in the dead of winter. He could feel himself shaking uncontrollably, but why was his hand getting so hot? Did the sun come up yet? Was that where the warmth was coming from? It felt like fire...
"Ander!? What --- you? Can ---"
Kiana was taking up his entire field of vision again. She kept slapping at his cheek, but he could barely feel it. He could see her lips move, but half the words weren't coming through.
The other one was coming closer. Ander could see that contraption hanging by his side, so much like a bow, but different somehow. He would have loved to get a closer look at it, but he couldn't move his head anymore.
"Kiana! What were you thinking!? What --- this thing? We've been --- you here with --- and now ---"
"Bastard!" Kiana shoved the Fox away, hard enough to land him on his rear. The look of astonishment on his face would have been rather funny under other circumstances, but Ander was beginning to suspect there was something seriously wrong. It was getting difficult to breath, and the strange heat was starting to travel up his arm.
"You --- !! You poisoned --- didn't you!?"
Poison?
"I always poison my bolts, Kiana," the Fox said. What did she call him? Mateo? And what did he call her? Fiancée? No, that couldn't be right... "You should --- away. That thing --- dangerous."
It was getting dark, but that didn't make any sense. The sun was rising. It should be getting lighter, not darker...
"No, you idiot! He --- --- ---"
Ander couldn't hear her voice anymore. It was just a jumble of muted sounds that didn't make any sense, like something heard underwater. In fact, that's exactly how he felt. Like he was sinking into an ice-cold river. Maybe he'd see Banno at the bottom... maybe he could tell him he's sorry...
Through the darkening haze, he could see Kiana lift his hand to her lips, but he couldn't feel it. It was like it wasn't even attached to his body. What was she doing? Was she... kissing... it?
Ander tried to make sense of the blurred images swirling before him, but he was so tired. The blackness kept flowing over his vision, and there was nothing he could do to clear it. He was just... so... tired.
Ander closed his eyes. Maybe, if he could rest for a little while...
Just... rest...
Ander let the darkness wash over him, just as the river had washed over his brother, until there was nothing left.
Nothing but the black...
This is the end of Chapter 1! Woohoo!
This has been the 34th subchapter in my serial novel, "Ander". If you enjoyed it, please help keep my face un-mauled by irritable ostriches by dropping me a donation. Thank you! ^_^
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