Posted by Leif G.S. in Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Short Short Story, The World of Niris (Manuscript World) | 0 Comments
Dark Fantasy Flash Fiction: The Cure
This piece of dark and dismal fantasy flash fiction was written for Fantasy-Faction.com and their December Flash Fiction Contest. It failed, not even voted for. That’s all right, I have learned more, but at least I can take the moment to share this little slice of my manuscript world with you, even though it has its flaws. Thanks for reading and enjoy!
The two figures raced through the darkness, avoiding the low hanging pine branches as they kicked up snow and dirt from their footfalls. Each figure had steam pouring from their mouths and sweat dripping from their brows. As they came to a small clearing in the woods, they stopped. The woman bent over and grabbed her knee with her right hand as she cradled a cloth bundle in her left. The man frantically twisted his body as he looked through the abyssal night to see which direction they needed to go next. After a moment of searching, he walked over to the woman and placed a hand on her back. “Come on, we need to keep going. We can’t let the people in our village down.”
The woman looked up at him and shook her head, ready to fall to her knees in exhaustion. “I can’t go on, Richt. I am so tired. We have run for far too long, and I don’t think I can make it.”
“You don’t have a choice, Angi. The Baron’s soldiers are coming for us. If they catch us before we can cross the river, we are done for.”
Angi shook her head as she looked at Richt with her pale blue eyes. Strands of her short blonde hair dangled in front of them, making her appear mad with pain and grief. “Don’t remind me about the village. They are doomed without this cure; I know they are counting on us to come home. I don’t believe the baron’s soldiers can find us in this darkness. We should take to the trees and find a place to rest.”
Richt grabbed Angi by the arm and forced her to stand straight. He turned the direction he thought they needed to go as his voice was a harsh, frustrated whisper. “You don’t understand how the baron’s soldiers work, do you? They know where we are, it will be easy for them to find us in the trees. They never rest; they are always searching. After everything we have been though, we can’t let them take this away from us. We will be safe if we can make it to the river first.”
Angi squirmed in Richt’s grasp as she struggled to pull away from him. “Let me go; you are hurting me.”
“It is far better I hurt you than the Baron or his soldiers. Come on, we need to go.”
Angi offered a resigned nod and took a step toward the woods. A moment later, the clearing was flooded with a bright light from above them. Richt cursed and pushed Agi toward the tree line as he pulled his chipped great sword form its massive sheath. Angi covered her eyes and looked toward the heavens where the light came from, but she couldn’t see what created the light. Richt glanced over his shoulder and hissed at her as he spun the great sword in his right hand. “Get out of here.”
“No, I can’t go on without you!”
“I am going to hold them off as long as I can. If you make it to the village, tell them what happened. Let them know what we discovered about the Baron and his men. If the cure can save one life, I will gladly exchange mine. Go!”
Angi fought back tears as she turned and raced through the clearing and into the trees. She could hear the sound of metal clashing on metal as the light disappeared around her. Her eyes struggled to adjust to the darkness as she missed large branches dangling in front of her. The small nettles cut into her cheeks. She yelped as she felt the blood welling from the wounds, but she ignored the stinging pain and kept running as hard as she could.
She weaved through the trees as her eyes started to see large blobs that stood out in the darkness. She stopped by a tree and caught her breath as she looked behind her. She saw a shaft of light shoot out from the heavens. She held her breath and pressed her body against the pine tree. Her heart pounded in her chest. The light swept across the forest before it flew away from her. She released her breath and wiped her brow. She pressed the package against her body to reassure herself she was doing the correct thing.
She continued to run through the forest. Her eyes saw the outline of a fallen tree. She thanks the gods that she could see something and hopped over the dead tree. As she landed on the other side, she didn’t notice the small natural trench behind it. She fell into the hole and screamed as she twisted her ankle. She still kept the swaddled bundle close to her as she felt her wounded leg with her right hand. The swelling forced her ankle to grow to the size of her fist. She started to weep in frustration as she tried to stand on her damaged leg. She moved the cloth away and checked the condition of the prize in her hands.
She hobbled as fast as she could through the forest, the twinges of pain rippling through her and battering her core. Every step on the damaged leg caused her to hiss and take in a sharp breath of chilled air. She stopped near a tree and placed her right hand against the trunk as she heaved. She looked at her dirty furs and swore at her luck. She pushed away from the tree and continued to move with her swollen leg. After the third heaving, she started to drag the leg along behind her. She could see the tree line thinning and heard the sluggish flow of the nearly frozen river in the distance.
She pushed herself harder, chewing her lip deep enough to cause blood to well in her mouth. She spat the gore out as she pushed the pain out of her mind and continued to move. She made it past the last tree and noticed the small wooden bridge over the river. She kept moving, dragging the leg behind her. Her body was numb and her leg seemed as though it was dead, but she kept the village in mind as she continued to push harder.
She made it to the bridge and hopped up the small steps with her good leg. The wood groaned under her jostling and she felt her foot start to slide due to the thin layer of ice on the surface. When she made it to the top, she landed on a thick patch of ice and her leg gave way, causing her to crumble to the bridge in a heap. She broke out into sobs as she dragged her body along with her good arm. She felt the cold wood under her body and started to shiver from the exposure as the water bled through the furs. The frozen wood yielded splinters as she dug her fingers in the cracks, but she stayed focused on the village across the way. She could see the outline in the star clad sky and used it to motivate her to keep moving.
Her eyes started to water, and her body shook from exposure. She turned her head around to see the lights in the heavens moving along the treetops, shining a bright shaft of light through the canopy. She smiled, turned her head and continued to drag herself along the bridge. She reached the steps down and stopped, letting her hand dangle from the edge. She lifted her head and noticed the village glowing. She brought her right arm to her eyes and wiped away the freezing liquid from her face. She blinked as the details started to come into focus.
The village was burning.
She could hear the wood crackling and smell the smoke wafting in the air. She saw the black cloud hanging over the village and heard some people screaming in terror in the distance. She lifted her right hand and reached out as if she could cradle the village in her hands and smother the fire. Her breath became short as her lungs rattled with liquid. Her body twitched before she fell still. A small spout of steam escaped her blue lips, and her eyes started to flutter.
The last thing she heard was metallic footsteps crossing the bridge behind her. She heard some clicking and whirring before she felt hands grabbing her. She was lifted from the bridge and felt the bundled cloth removed from her arm. Her body fell to the bridge once more, and she heard someone speaking as though they had a metal cup over their mouths. “RETRIEVAL OF MISSING E21 VIRUS STRAIN IS SECURED. VILLAGE WAS QUARANTINED AND ELIMINATED TO PREVENT FURTHER CONTAMINATION. THIEVES ARE SUBDUED AND TERMINATED. BRING EXPUNGING SQUAD TO BURY REMAINS.”
She heard a tiny explosion from behind her. The last thing she felt was a sharp pain in the back of her head.
