Virginia stretched out her leg as best she could. "I can barely bend it."
"Here, let me see."
Charles sat up and rested her swollen leg on his knee. His shirt was still wrapped tightly around the bullet wound, now consumed with dark, sticky blood.
"You will need to get this looked at further," he said. "Tomorrow, we will head west to the tribe of the Naumi. They will know how to treat your wound properly."
Charles walked over to his backpack. Grabbing it, he brought it over to where Virginia was sitting.
"For now, this will have to do," he said.
He pulled a long strand of cloth out of his bag. He unraveled the shirt around Virginia's leg and tossed it into the fire. He reached into his bag and pulled out a gourd canteen. Emptying some of its water on her leg, he wiped her wound clean with his cloak. Then, taking the fresh cloth, he dressed a new bandage around her leg.
"Is that your tribe?" she asked. "The Naumi?"
"No. That's not my tribe, but they are really close to my people. We both look out for each other. We have a strong covenant with them."
Charles finished dressing the wound. "For now, you must get some rest. We have a long walk ahead of us tomorrow."
He pointed to a hammock suspended from two trees in the distance across from the fire. "I will be sleeping in the hammock over there. I made you a bed right there, next to the fire. You looked like you were getting cold, so I thought you would want to sleep by the fire."
Virginia looked to her right and saw two wool blankets lying on a bed of white flowers and lush fern leaves. "Thank you."
Charles stood up and reached out his hand. Virginia took it, and with a gentle lift, Charles escorted her to her pallet. Carefully, he helped her sit down on the bed of flowers and leaves.
"Here you go," he said, handing her backpack to her. "I always like to use a backpack as a pillow when hiking through the woods. While it is not exactly the cloud-like pillows that we are all used to back home, it does help keep your head off the ground."
Virginia smiled as she took her backpack. "Thank you."
"Okay, well, I'm going to get some shut-eye. We need to get an early move on it tomorrow."
Charles walked over to his hammock.
"Charles," said Virginia.
Charles turned around. "Yes?"
"Can I ask two more questions?"
"Sure."
"Who are the people trying to kill me?"
Charles looked into Virginia's eyes apologetically. "I wish I could answer all your questions, Virginia, but the truth is that I honestly do not think it is my place to tell you everything. All your questions will be answered in The City of Gaal."
Virginia lowered her head. Her question remained unanswered.
"I told you of the tribal warrior Burning Eagle," continued Charles.
Virginia raised her head, a hopeful expression on her face.
"Back many generations ago, even before the Great Division, the tribes of the woods fought against each other. Some desired peace and lived in peace with other tribes; however, other tribes wanted the power to reign and rule in all the woods, which were known simply as the Woods of Earth Stars back then. There was no 'Northern' or 'Southern' added to its name originally. One chief of a tribe from the center of the Woods of Earth Stars had two sons: one came to be known as Burning Eagle, and the other came to be known as Blood Star. Both were strong in physique and greatly talented in the art of combat. The chief prized Burning Eagle as his favorite son, and once Oralmuti blessed him with his power and spirit, the chief elevated Burning Eagle far greater than any of his children. This taunted Blood Star because he desired his father to praise him more than Burning Eagle. He was older than his brother, and therefore, he would become the next chief of the tribe. However, when the time came for him to receive the blessing as the next chief, his father blessed his younger brother. Burning Eagle became the next chief. Outraged, Blood Star rose in defiance and attacked the tribe. Many men, women, and children—all innocent—were slain by Blood Star. It was not until Burning Eagle himself stood up to his own brother that Blood Star was stopped."
"So, he killed him?"
"No. As the story goes, Blood Star was lying on the ground, helpless and without his weapon, while Burning Eagle towered over him, wielding the metal of Oralmuti. Out of sorrow and pity for his only brother, Burning Eagle let him live, but as punishment for his treasonous act, Blood Star was banished from the tribe—he and his family. They journeyed out of the Woods of Earth Stars to Skal Galmudaretz. Soon, his own family left him and returned to the Woods of Earth Stars, leaving Blood Star to continue his journey into the darkness of Skal Galmudaretz alone. One day, while alone in an abandoned wilderness, he encountered a woman. She addressed herself as the Queen of the Eastern Bounds. She inquired how a warrior of the Woods of Earth Stars would come to be this far out of his homeland. After telling the queen of his dishonor of not being the leader of his tribe, the queen promised him that if he were to give her an offspring of both his blood and hers, she would grant him three things: an unnaturally long life, a tribe that would reign throughout the entire Woods of Earth Stars of which he would be chief, and a power far greater than that of his brother."
"What happened?"
"Blinded by the queen's offer, he produced a child for her. Her offspring have reigned throughout the different branches of her kingdom to this day. The tribes of the Woods of Earth Stars have always called them the Witches of the Eastern Bounds."
"'Are we…near to them—these…these witches? Like, are we near their kingdom? Are there many of them?"
Charles looked into her eyes. "Well, you met one of them today—a cruel young woman who rules with bitterness, spite, and venom. She's a descendant of these witches. She is known as Princess Aniatha. She was the female police officer back at Mason High."
Virginia reflected on the woman officer and thought of how the woman had fixed her eyes upon her—that cruel, cold smile that had crossed her face when she stared at her.
A cold chill ran down Virginia's spine. "Is she the one that wants me dead?"
"Yes. She and many others, and that's all I am granted to speak concerning that matter."
Virginia wrapped her arms tightly around herself. "What about Blood Star? What happened to him?"
"Through her sorcery and witchcraft, the queen cast a spell upon Blood Star, and a strong, dark spirit fell upon the warrior. He became very powerful, but something happened that even he did not see coming. His power was not in his strength. While it made him stronger, there was a side effect. He was able to turn into a dark, hideous creature. His power was only at its fullness when he was in this form. Using this as his weapon, he returned to the Woods of Earth Stars and back to his old tribe with new darkness leading him. Once again, he attacked the tribe. None of the warriors knew what was attacking them or how to fight it. It was unlike anything that they had ever seen before. It attacked them like a ghost, slaughtering every warrior it confronted. Warriors would stand guard all night around the tribe. They would never see it, but they always heard its howling cry in the night, echoing from the darkness of the woods around them. One by one, warriors were slain, their bodies mangled and torn to shreds. Bite marks were on their necks, and claw-like gashes ran down their bodies. One morning in broad daylight, the creature walked into the camp on all fours. The tribe was horrified, but the beast did not attack anyone. A dark cloud, like a mist of black sulfur, surrounded him, and Blood Star in the flesh arose out of the mist. He boasted that he had single-handedly slain more than fifty of the tribe's warriors in less than a fortnight. He said he would grant the same power to anyone who would follow him. Amazed by his new power and strength and not knowing how to counter such a force, many warriors dropped the metal of Oralmuti and followed Blood Star. He went from tribe to tribe, performing the same actions and offering the same invitation. Many tribes lost some of their strongest warriors to the dark, alluring attractions of Skal Galmudaretz. Soon, Blood Star had his own tribe with his own warriors, who became cursed with the same power and strength bestowed upon him. Like a pack of phantom wolves, they stalked the Woods of Earth Stars. They are known throughout Alaythia as 'the Forest Phantoms,' the demon wolves of the Witch Queen of Skal Galmudaretz. They vow not to stop until they have seized control of all the Northern and Southern Woods of Earth Stars."
Virginia was terrified. "They stalk these woods that we are in right now?"
"Fear not," said Charles, smiling. "Oralmuti has blessed and gifted the tribes who remain loyal to him with his spirit and tactics to fight against them. While many tribes are divided amongst each other, they all share one common goal: fight off the darkness and resist the tribe of the Forest Phantoms."
"So, we are safe, right?" asked Virginia worriedly.
"Yes, we are," said Charles.
"Oh, good," said Virginia, relieved. "How far away is the nearest tribe, then?"
"The Tribe of Naumi is about a few miles that way," said Charles, pointing to the west.
"A few miles away?! Charles, a lot can happen in 'a few miles away'!"
"Do not worry."
"How can you say, 'Do not worry'? Look around! We are in the middle of a forest at night, haunted by those…those things! Who is near that will protect us?"
Charles walked over, knelt beside Virginia, and took her hand. "Virginia, I am one of the warriors who belongs to a tribe of these woods that will not submit to the darkness. My people and I are strong warriors, and Oralmuti has blessed us to fight off the darkness. I am here to protect you. And I promise you I am not going to leave you. You have my word."
The campfire's light blazed against this strong warrior's side as he spoke to her.
"What tribe are you from?" she asked.
Charles smiled. "That is for a different time. For now, you must rest."
What? But… "Okay…"
"Rest well, and sweet dreams."
With that, he walked over to his hammock.
Virginia watched as he removed the massive sword from around his back and leaned it against one of the trees to which his hammock was strapped. In addition, he took off the dagger and tomahawk around his waist and placed them at the base of the same tree. He plopped into his hammock like a boy who had endured a long day of adventure and fun.
She smiled. "Rest well, Charles."