Chapter 3

  The orphans of the church were playing and running about near the small gardens behind the building. Children blew on dandelions and chased each other, laughing, shouting, and screaming with joy. On the stone steps of the backdoor to the church, was a child excluding himself from the rest. He has bushy black hair, and frosted tips with a couple faint freckles on his cheeks. His eyes were ocean blue, with a hint of teal. He sat there reading a book on creatures. He had a thing for learning about other species. He’d much rather read the books than talk to the other kids with a different species to him. He was an antisocial kid.

  His gaze shifted to the sound of a horse galloping towards the church. He recognised the person on the horse's back. It was Sonas, the only friend he’s ever had. He smiled and closed his book, jogging towards her with excitement.

  “Sonas! Sonas!” He shouted, trying to get Sonas’ attention. He wrapped his arms around her.

  Sonas turned around and spotted him, smiling, as Sonas gave him a big hug.

  “Hey there, Koji! How’s it going, little man?”

  “It’s alright. I’m reading a new book on species”

  “You’re drilled into that stuff, aren’t you? You’re just like me, huh?”

  “Yeah! It’s an interesting subject!”

  “I agree, it’s also very useful, because other species adapt differently to different environments. Speaking of which, there are so many kids who are different species to us over there. Why don’t you go learn from them?”

  “Peopleling is not my thing, especially around other species. Us humans are becoming weak, and wiped out by Rogues or cruel creatures.”

  “They’re just kids, orphans at that. Have you tried talking to any of them?”

  “You know why I don’t”

  Sonas sighed, pulling away from the hug, and placed a hand on his shoulder. Her expression turned serious.

  Koji was a poor traumatised child. When he was 5, his family were taken by Rogues in a desert village. He’s been through quite a lot

  She wanted Koji to listen carefully to her words. It might be a bit hard for him to understand.

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  “Koji, I don’t want you to cry, or get upset, but I’m going away for a while.”

  “Oh…” He frowned. His happy expression dropped. It was hard for him to accept that, and he didn’t want to be left alone.

  “When will you come back?” He asked

  “That’s the thing, I don’t know. I might not ever return.” Sonas sighed. She didn’t want him to get sad.

  “But why? Can I go with you? Please?” He begged. A couple tears trickled down his cheeks.

  “I’m sorry, but it’ll be very dangerous. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “Aw…please?”

  “No, Koji, please. You must understand. You could die.”

  “Can you send me a letter every week?”

  “Of course. As long as you do the same.”

  Koji then hugged her tightly again, like a goodbye squeeze. He starts to sob. He didn’t want to feel alone again. It made him anxious and afraid.

  “I will”, he said, letting out a sniffle as he sobbed. Koji was going to miss her terribly, but at least they could still keep in touch. Sonas shed a few tears as well. Koji then pulled away after a couple of minutes, wiping the tears from his eyes. He calms himself down and holds his book tightly in his hands.

  ??

  After at least 30 minutes, Sonas entered the cottage, on the bed inside, Otis was deceased. The sight of it hurt Sonas’ eyes. The man who helped raise her into becoming the young woman she is today, is now dead right in front of her eyes. She could help but shed a tear at the sight. She knew that this would happen, but it still broke her heart. She laid Otis down flat on his back, and grabbed the edge of the bed sheet, placing it over his motionless corpse. On the bedside table, was her favourite flower, the Indian Lotus. She loved the Indian Lotus because of its shape and colour. It looked so smooth and big with its beautiful large petals, which were a shade of white and either pink, magenta or purple. It related to her, in a way, because of what the flower symbolises. Otis told her when she was young that the Indian Lotus symbolises her through beauty and prosperity. She used to draw the Indian Lotus in her small journal, and she loved the colour and its shape. She placed it onto the sheet, right where Otis’ chest is. She prayed that he would rest peacefully in the afterlife.

  “You’ve done enough. Rest well…” She mumbled, in a sad and reassuring tone, before exiting the cottage.

  ??

  Matteo waited on the side of the large first path through the middle of the village, waiting for Sonas to return. He was bored, leaning back against the cart that Apollo was carrying. Matteo looked up at the tall pine trees that surrounded the small village. The entire village had rays of sunshine beam down upon them, while the pine forest around them had little access to sunlight, with shadows darkening the path that cut straight through the forest.

  After letting out an impatient sigh, Matteo heard the sound of Domino galloping towards him and Apollo. Domino came to a halt right in front of Matteo, with Sonas on his back.

  “Good, you’re finally here.” Matteo spoke with an attitude.

  “Yeah. What? Jealous that someone cares about me?” She mocks.

  “Shut up.” Matteo snarled. He seemed to be grumpy and upset over what Sonas said. Sonas didn’t say a word after that. She felt bad. Matteo sighed and got onto the saddle that was strapped onto Apollo’s back

  “Let’s just get moving. We’ve got a long journey ahead of us.” He spoke with a stern voice.

  Matteo encouraged Apollo to move forward, with Sonas doing the same. She had decided to stay in the back, with Matteo in front, because of his experience with this track to Orilon.