INSIGNIAS: THE ABECEDARIANS

Black pants. Black shirt. Black backpack. He was confused at first but realized that whatever hit him might had cause the reaction. For a moment, he thought that it was poisoned. But after finding out that his clothes became black, the pain subsided until it disappeared without a trace. His red-haired enemy didn’t say or do anything but just watch him, amused by Nate’s suffering. Nate quickly stood up and started coughing. Red-hair tilted his head as if he’s listening to something. When Nate was able to return his composure, his opponent’s attention returned to him.

But the enemy seemed to not care. He was just watching him curiously.

“Are you giving up?” Nate murmured. His opponent chuckled.

“No. I’m just waiting,” he answered smugly. Nate’s brow furrowed.

“For what?”

Then suddenly, a spine-crawling shriek was heard. Nate quickly turned towards the sound. He couldn’t see anything but darkness and shadows. The only light was coming from the descending moon. It can’t be... Someone was running. No, not just one. The sound was getting nearer and nearer. Nate turned to the red-haired Mortemian and glared at him.

“That is what I’m waiting for,” he explained with a disgusting grin on his face. In a swift movement, Nate grabbed an arrow, pointed at him, then released it. It took the enemy by surprise but he was able to lift his flail. The long metal arrow hit the chain, producing a loud sound and explosion. Sand and earth flying around. Before the surrounding cleared up, Nate decided to escape.

He was about to run to find his friends when he suddenly stilled. What made him stop was a familiar energy radiating from the direction of the loud footsteps. They are being followed.

Damn it.

He grabbed an arrow then positioned it so it is pointing at that direction. He was going to wait for Hanne, Storm, and Aria to surface before shooting whatever is behind them. Sweat rolled down his forehead as he continued to wait. He steadied his breathing while concentrating on the movement of the dark energy.

The leaves rustled. Three heads popped out of the thick bushes. Three figures running towards him.

“Nate!” Hanne shouted. Now. He released the arrow then released four more. They wooshed when they zipped through the air. He could hear his heartbeat quickened when a strong gust of wind and rustling of trees and leaves made him cover his face with his arm.

He heard Hanne shriek and Storm shouting something. When Nate opened his eyes, he was enveloped in a tight hug. Hanne’s body was shaking. He quickly hugged her back. Storm was huffing with his sword pierced into the ground, supporting his tired body. Aria was leaning against a tree and looking at the ground. But that’s not all, something changed.

“What happened to your clothes?” Storm and Aria glanced at him but didn’t say anything.

“We don’t know,” Hanne replied in her muffled voice. Did it happen to them too?

Then he remembered their enemies. He looked around, surveying their surroundings. Except for the animals’ sounds, there was nothing out of ordinary. They just vanished.

“I think they were just trying to scare us,” Storm said as if he read Nate’s mind. He had regain his strength. He also hid his sword.

“It doesn’t make sense. I thought they wanted to stop us.” They were two hours away from the border of Westward. Nate hoped that they will be able to meet the people they need to find.

“Jokes, that’s who we are to them,” Aria concluded. Her lips were in a thin line. Her eyes seemed darker but maybe it’s because it was still dark.

“What about these black paint on our clothes?” No one had an answer.

Nate caressed Hanne’s back then urged her to sit down. Storm and Aria followed. It was only when they sat down that Nate felt the undeniable weakness of his legs. We are safe. For now at least. Silence enveloped them as everyone tried to regain their strength. Storm was the first to cut the silence and told Nate what happened earlier. Shadows appeared and ran after them and they were shot on their backs. It stung real hard but Storm was able to fight the shadows before running out of energy. He led the girls towards Nate when he felt him.

After what felt like an hour, they had to stand up and continue their journey. Nate was sure that they are being watched but they needed to arrive in their destination.

“What awaits us there?” Hanne asked. They continued North. She didn’t say a word until now. Nate couldn’t do anything to comfort her. But she’s a strong girl...

Aria was on lead while Hanne walked between Nate and Storm. Nate was really thankful to Storm for protecting her.

“Protection maybe,” Nate answered.

“Probably another quest,” Storm added. This made her frown.

“An answer,” Aria added without turning to look at them. Another silence. Yes, she’s right. We need and want answers.

The answers, they realized, won’t be easy to find. Several minutes from the river while the sky was turning reddish orange, the Mortemians surrounded them again.

“Fuck!” Storm exclaimed.

“What game are they playing?” Aria shouted before running. Storm followed and Nate grabbed Hanne. No one stopped to catch their breath. He let go of Hanne’s hand and slowed his pace so he would be behind her. They continued running until they saw the last row of trees.

“We’re going downhill!” Storm reminded them. As they neared the last row of trees, the smell of fish and rotten moss entered Nate’s nose. They reached the edge. He would have rejoiced when he saw the river but it wasn’t the time to celebrate. They ran downhill towards the clear rushing waters.

But they slowed down before they can reach it. Three people standing on the other side of the river had their weapons out. They looked their age. But they were gripping their weapons like they were ready to fight.

“Another one,” Nate murmured. He drew his weapon. The rest of the team followed.

“Are they on our side?” Hanne asked.

“Let’s find out,” Aria replied.

“I’ll handle the guy.” This came from Storm.

“The brown haired is mine.” Hanne...

“Ok,” Aria agreed.

“She also has a bow.” Nate was eyeing the black-haired girl.

Nate stood beside Hanne who was next to Storm. Aria stood beside him. Were they the ones behind the shadows earlier? The answer surfaced when the dark energies coming from the three young adults radiated fiercely. They were not the usual Mortemians - rogue and arrogant - they encountered.

But Nate reminded himself that he shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. It might be full of surprises.