Ocular to the Dying Sun

Forgive Me; part 5

Approaching Lotois first, Uran hugged him as he patted Keia’s head, she sobbed and stayed hiding. Her clothes were stained, and her elbow and arm are covered in blood. Beside them, Ronata ran to Luri whom she hugged along with her son. Erizoma and Thera stood on either side of the group, their weapons at the ready.

“Don’t worry,” Lotois said as he noticed Uran looking at the blood, “it’s not hers,” he said but looked at the other crew member.

Uran nodded and moved to the crew member before and patted him. “We need to deliver the child back onboard despite. What happened to your Festoon?”

“Ripped half, after landing at least, the damn Dire-Father limbs reached us,” Erizoma said as he looked back to where they came from. “We luckily found where Keia and the two who were with her, but we couldn’t save the other boy who was already injured and bleeding. Ochre is the only one uninjured, surprisingly while Keia can’t walk because she broke her left leg.”

“That’s quite a miracle,” Ugnile said as he checked with Thera after.

“It is,” Lotois hugged his daughter tighter, “I’m thankful she’s alive.” He looked at Uran, conveying that to his son as well, he believe’s Amegra’s alive.

“Ugnile, take Erizoma with us,” Uran looked back to his group. “Ronata, you can go back to the ship, we’ll be left here to look for the other children.”

“Th—the,” a young voice spoke, coming from Luri. It was Ochre who still looked shaken, but his eyes seemed to show determination. “There…were…three others who fell…with us? I think—”

Ronata knelt beside her son who she hugged and whispered, “Ochre, don’t push yourself anymore.”

Pointing at the previous direction they came from, his hand quivered then looked at Uran as if saying they were “over there.”

“Thank you,” Uran approached and knelt beside Ronata at the same time. He patted the boy’s head, “and, I’m sorry.” He whispered the last part, so Ronata and the boy can hear them.

Fiery eyes that glared at him minutes ago had lost their fierceness and the deep, set sadness under relief surfaced as it brimmed above her at current emotions. Because she knew he wouldn’t stop looking for his son in this one-sided battle.

They separated ways, Lotois and Ronata with the children; Luri, the three children, and the crew member, all parting from the Festoon while Uran and Ugnile remained with the rest; Erizoma, Eran, Thera, and the one crew member. Sounds of Dire-Sprouts quickly fill the air, in retaliation to provide leeway to their leaving comrades, Ugnile pointed at Thera and Eran to the trees.

Starting from there, Eran and Thera skillfully climbed the trees. Both climb their own and reach the top without any hitch. Once high enough for Thera, she tied around a rope invisible to the eye from her waist buckle, then started to loosen it and jump.

As if bungee jumping in reverse, she held her rope and whispered a few words that activated a thing from her buckle and lent its magic to her body. When she jumped, swinging from below, she controlled the momentum with her body and the rope freely lengthened longer than it was before. Reaching the height she needed, she flipped her body to face the Dire-Sprout gliding just above the tree top and stabbed it from the bottom of its head, skewering her staff right out its mouth.

The other tree, Eran touched her boots and activated a spell that helped her glide through a form of wind magic that carried her weight, in doing so, she assisted Thera from below by redirecting and using herself as bait. Using her baton-like weapons, she uses the force of her body and her magical boots to hit the Dire-Sprout’s one-two then leaves them confused enough to follow her.

Spryness was her skill, a thing she’s quite perfected with the way she swerved here and there. Another good thing she does is reactively lead the creatures in the direction of Thera and lets herself speedily avoid Thera’s blows with finesse.

Back down to Ugnile and Uran, they’ve reinstated the Agulman so they could ascertain the location of the child, When the thread showed, it wove between the trees in the darkness. Showing them that the passage of their direction goes beyond where Ochre pointed. They started to run in that direction as they let Eran and Thera interrupt the Dire-Sprouts so the creatures would not chase the Festoon that left.

Praying for his comrade’s fortune, knowing full well that they will reach back Sunflora unscathed, he pushed his legs towards the path of the thread until another blast of wind stalled their speed. A burst of magic shuddered the ground and several broken flesh monsters scattered through the skies, raining on them unwanted.

Uran didn’t avoid the splatter of oil and blood, and piece of scalding meat, though Erizoma made sure they didn’t get more than they bargained for as he swiped his sword in a spiral motion to burst any larger pieces coming their way.

A sudden silence filled their ears, none of their footsteps could be heard, even the gust of wind and the rustle of leaves despite their motion movement. Ugnile first stopped, as with the crew member, when they realized something was wrong. Of course, Uran noticed it, but he didn’t desire to lose the thread, rushing his tightening lungs to where it led. Erizoma, who originally followed close behind him, also halted, as if mentally transfixed when he saw the sky suddenly brighten white.

Erizoma looked around to see the source, from the sky floated an ethereal-looking person. They’re unhinged from anything, and from somewhere came spires of white spewed as they hit an incoming medium-sized Dire-eater that came from the direction where Uran was running towards. He felt a sudden urge to panic and quickly returned his focus to chasing after Uran, following the same thread, which now looked a wee bit lighter than before.

Behind him popped Ugnile and the crew member, “F—gods what is this, I’ve never seen such magic powers”

Just then, a body of a Dire-Sprout was chucked towards their direction, it looked limp with a chunk of its body crushed. The trio avoided it, jumping forward. Without stopping, they ran forward just in time to witness Uran’s arm wrestle a creature ten times his size with ease. He may not be able to wrap his lean muscled arms around the Dire-eater, but he can pinch it, as if his arms were his jaws as a monster, biting.

Ugnile, in his mind, always wondered how strong Uran was as he knew him to be strong in a sense, especially with how he was built. Uran did not look big for his height, tall and lean with enough muscle fill. He used to not bother letting himself be intimidated by him because of his build and character, but if he saw this kind of display before, he wouldn’t be feeling this sense of awe and dread. Adding to the large magnitude of magic from the sky using multiple looking rods of light and diminishing all the other Dire-eaters’ around them.

One light land’s just near them, unwittingly, due to the presence of another medium-sized Dire-eater. The impact blasted Uran and the rest of them out of the ground, flying at least a few meters away from where they previously stood.

They stood their ground the best they can. Ugnile was unlucky enough to have himself crushed under a fallen tree, though he could still breathe, he felt his left arm and leg trapped as fortunately other things lessened the crushing strength of the tree. The crew member saw this with the intent of helping but couldn’t since the size of the tree was truly immense. He called for help from Uran who had landed just near the fallen tree, dodging while crouching down on the ground, as if on all fours.

“Captain!” the crew member shouted.

His response was quick as he saw Ugnile’s trapped half. Swiftly reaching through a space he could fit his arm, he pulled the tree with effort, almost looking like he’d pop a vein on his neck. Without telling twice, the crew member quickly pulled Ugnile from under, care was not in his vocabulary momentarily, but it was necessary since the blood from Ugnile’s injuries poured badly.

Coughing, he was pushed up by the crew member in time for Erizoma to arrive, blood-soaked and sweaty. “Captain, the rod of light seems to have eradicated the Dire-eaters,” pointing to the direction of the disappearing thread, “we could still make it, perhaps?”

Ugnile pushed himself up from the hands of the crew member and pulled up his hand that held the Agulman and realized that it was the crushed arm. Noticing this before Ugnile did, Uran put his hand on Ugnile’s arm and shook his head.

Looking back at the now disappearing thread, there was a sting of tears pouring down his eyes, and for once he could not properly think. His legs automatically pushed him up, running to at the sight of the remains of the thread. Perhaps the world was playing games with him, as his thudding feet continued to frantically chase the only trace of his son, a mist slowly wrapped his feet. It rose from the ground and left him feeling soothing and calm. Nothing was calming though because the thread is quickly enveloped by the mist, obscured from his sight.

Uran’s eyes started to redden as he kept himself from blinking in hopes that it would not disappear, but alas. Goods must love him dearly because they seem to say, “Stop this now impossible feat in the land covered with blood and soot.”

His mind was numbing at the sight of the lost thread, like a blow to his gut ten times with a blade, he coughed then started sobbing before he wailed. His shout echoed through the forest. Amidst the continuing diminish of the battle, he could barely hear, his shouts added to the noise of the one-sided rubble of dying life. Another crying voice in the several ones, repeating his son’s name over and over.

How much of an unfair life could be? He’s lost in such a short time two of the most valued people in his life. First was his wife, dying from childbirth, and now his son, of his fault.

As if trying to hide his sorrow from the world, the mist completely turned into a thick fog, where only his sobbing and crying could be heard. Slowly, his mind spiraled in his desire to stay stable and strong. A mix of “no helping now, we must go back,” and “please let me see my son,” repeat endlessly in his head.

“For once,” he sobbed, “for once, can’t I just have this one for me? Please, I beg of you. I don’t want to lose anyone anymore.” He said, more to himself than anything.

⸶ ᴥ ⸷