"Where are we going now?" I asked after we had walked through the woods for more than an hour.
Though I was used to moving about at night, courtesy of my relationship with Jacob, tonight the atmosphere seemed eerie, and more than anything, I wanted to leave this vicinity.
"We are going to find the artifact." Mascot replied. I never told you this journey was going to be easy."
"So, what you trying to say is that you don't really have a plan for how we are meant to survive till we find this artifact?" I replied, concerned that this mission I agreed to embark on recklessly would be my undoing.
"Did I say anything like that?"
"But that's-"
"Shhh! Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" I asked, annoyed that he tried to change the subject without addressing the matter at hand.
"Maybe if you speak less and listen more, you might have noticed the cries."
Deciding not to argue, I paid a little more attention. Sure enough. I could hear the voices and screams of people some distance away.
"We should go and help them." I suggested. His brow shot up.
"Why should we?"
"Are you for real?" I asked in astonishment.
"I thought we began this journey to save people."
"No. We began this journey to get the artifact to help us stop the growing evil that threatens our society."
"What difference does it make?"
"Easy. You want us to play hero at this moment, but that could get us in trouble or, worse case scenario, killed."
"I didn't know you were such a coward."
"Ho ho! Don't even go there. You don't even know me."
"Maybe. But I know something about you now."
"You know what? I don't care what you think of me, but all I am saying is that going to save those people isn't part of our plan to find our artifact."
"So we should turn our backs on those helpless people?" I asked, exasperated.
"Put it in whatever way you like, but this journey comes before everything else, and as such, when we see trouble, we need to move in the opposite direction."
"You know, if we could help these people, they could offer us a place for the night and some supplies. Since we have none." I pointed it out.
"That's the word if. We don't know anything about the enemy out there, and charging in recklessly for the hope of some reward is just suicidal."
"Coward!" I spat before turning in the direction of the noise and heading there.
"Hey! What the hell is wrong with you? Didn't you hear anything I just said?"
I didn't pause to answer him, as I just kept sprinting towards my destination. "Is this how you want to do this?" He yelled,
"Alright, fine. I am not coming with you." He said it, sounding annoyed.
"Like I care?" I retorted before entering a small clearing; from there, I watched as a group of men dressed in black terrorized the people obviously living in the area.
One of the men who seemed to be the leader caught a woman by her throat, lifting her up as he tried to break her neck.
Without thinking, I rushed forward and held the man's hand.
"Let her go."
For a moment, all eyes were on me as a gasp of surprise escaped the lips of the villagers. The man whose hand I held scrutinized me before giving me a look of disdain. Then a creepy smile appeared on his face.
"Fine" Before I could react, he dropped the other woman and grabbed me instead. "Who are you? And what gave you the right to interfere in my business?" he asked. Struggling to speak, his grip on my throat tightened, nearly bringing tears to my eyes. I could barely breathe.
"You don't want to talk, right?" I hit and scratched at his hand so he could release me, but all to no avail. Instead, he lifted me in the air as if I weighed nothing. Gradually, I grew faint. Just when I thought this was where I would die, his grip loosened almost immediately.
Falling to my knees, I frantically gasped for air as the man screamed in anger and horror. Looking up, I discovered his hand was missing as blood poured out of the new wound. Looking on the ground, I saw it lying beside me. Repulsed, I quickly moved back.
"Hey Tasha, get up already; let's get out of here already." Mascot said from behind me.
Almost immediately, his hand grabbed my shoulder and lifted me up. "C'mon, we don't have time." He said while dragging me back into the woods. "After them," I heard the man yell.
"How did you...?"
"There is no time for your questions. Let's just get out of here first."
"I thought you were not coming for me." I remarked.
"Don't get cocky on me. A dead mate will be useless to me compared to a living one." He stated.
Not long after, I could hear yapping and howling from behind. No matter how fast we ran, they kept closing in on us.
All of a sudden, my foot caught in the root of a tree, making me fall.
Just as Mascot turned to help me up, the men, now wolves, surrounded us. "Oh no. What have I done?" The men-turned-wolves circled us with an air of menace.
Mascot and I exchanged worried glances, realizing the gravity of our predicament. "We need to think fast," Mascot whispered.
"Any brilliant ideas?" I replied, my eyes darting between the snarling wolves. "Just one," he stated.