Thalia led him straight to Charlotte and Leo and then whispered something in Leo’s ear. Then he stood up and they took Bart and Charlotte back to the tent as Bart heard the King announce that the festival was over.
“What’s going on?” Charlotte asked as soon as Thalia left.
“Mafortian has tracked us and he will be here within the hour,” Leo said. Charlotte’s face drained of any color that was present. Bart was a little confused as well. He thought Angelo was the one after him. Then he realized that Angelo was probably working with Mafortian. Charlotte sat on the bed and took some deep breaths. She had felt safe here the entire time. Now Mafortian and his hordes of men were bearing down on the village and that safety was jeopardized. Before either of them spoke again, Leo walked out the tent with his bow and arrows and a small sword on his hip.
“Where is he going?” Charlotte asked, but Bart barely even noticed.
“Bart can I talk to you for a second,” Benita asked politely. Charlotte glared at her but she ignored Charlotte. She just continued to look at Bart.
“Sure,” Bart said.
“I just want to say that it was great meeting you. You’re a great person and I think you’ll make a wonderful king.” Bart just continued to look at her. There was something about how she was speaking that made him feel like they might never meet again, but he didn’t want to believe that. “I’ll always treasure our time together,” she added. Before Bart could even open his mouth to speak, she left the tent. He was about to run after her when Leo walked back in.
“Do you have everything?” Leo asked. Bart looked at Charlotte who was giving him an evil look.
“Yes I’m ready,” she said as she grabbed the already packed bag. Bart wondered why it was already packed but he didn’t have time to question it.
“Then we must go now.” Leo turned and exited the tent and Charlotte followed him quickly with the bag in hand. Bart stood there still pondering what Benita meant by everything she had said. Yeah it seemed pretty straightforward, but Bart felt like there was a hidden meaning in her words. He stayed there for about five seconds before following them out of the tent. There was mass panic, exactly what the King had wanted to avoid. People were rushing to get inside; parents were rushing to gather their children. It was pandemonium. “Don’t worry about this, we have to leave,” Leo said and then he and Charlotte sprinted off. Bart followed closely still looking around wishing there was something he could do. The next image he saw was a child who had tripped over a stick when the far edge of the village erupted in flames.
“THEY’RE HERE!” Bart heard someone scream. He wanted to turn and fight, these people deserved help, but he knew he wouldn’t be that much help. He watched more flames erupt around the village and then, with a little hesitation, he dashed through the trees and followed Leo and Charlotte.
They didn’t stop running for at least half an hour and Leo always changed directions every ten minutes.
“Won’t we be lost if we keep going in different directions?” asked Charlotte when they finally took a break. “I mean how can you even tell where we are right now with the moon being virtually invisible?” Leo just smirked as he checked the surrounding area carefully.
“My sister and I used to play in these woods after dark all the time,” he said finally. “We would sneak out and play for hours upon hours. Hide and go seek, tag, you name it. We had a blast out here when we were young.”
“Were you not allowed out here or something?” asked Charlotte.
“No but I assume my father knew anyway,” he said. “He is actually a very wise man contrary to popular belief. It’s how we have stayed so secluded and safe all these years.”
“Until we came in the picture,” Charlotte said, showing how angry and ashamed she was that she and Bart had ruined the safety of Leo’s peaceful village.
“Don’t blame yourself for this,” Leo said placing a hand on her shoulder. “It was bound to happen at some point.” Charlotte flashed a smile, but Bart could tell she didn’t believe Leo. Watching them two made Bart feel sick so he got up and walked around the clearing looking for anything to keep him busy. “This is a good place to take a break and rest,” Leo said after a few more minutes.
“Isn’t that what we’ve been doing?” Bart asked with in a smart tone.
“I mean rest for the night. We shouldn’t run in the night in these woods. Trust me, no matter how well you know the woods, running a long distance is never good. My sister and I always stayed near the village. It would be a mistake to go too far.”
“If we stay here won’t they find us?” Bart asked suddenly not so trusting of a guy who said he knows the woods but was afraid to navigate them.
“Not with the false trail I have set them on,” Leo responded coolly. “They don’t know the woods well enough to figure out that I have tricked them until we’re long gone.” Bart just turned away feeling defeated. He wanted to prove that this guy was a fraud somehow but the more and more he challenged him, the more and more he proved to be legit. “I’ll take the first watch,” he said and he headed over and started wielding some branches into piles of wood for fire. Bart just sat down across from Charlotte as Leo started the fire relatively easily and then they sat in silence for what felt like an eternity. Eventually Charlotte went to sleep while Bart pretended to. “Can’t sleep, huh?” Leo finally asked after awhile. Bart rolled over and saw that Charlotte was still fast asleep, and Leo was making the fire bigger.
“How is a fire not going to attract Mafortian and his men?” Bart asked. He knew Leo probably had a good reason or answer but he asked anyway.
“Well I’d guess that they are still stuck on the false trail. Besides, my father would’ve put up a good fight before retreating so they might be regrouping.” Bart didn’t show any acknowledgement of listening to Leo, but he sat up and faced the fire.
“So how old are you anyway?” Bart asked. Leo smirked.
“I’m seventeen,” he said proudly. “And you?” he asked. Bart was a little shocked that he cared, but he tried not to let it show.
“I’m fifteen,” he said casually. “Just turned fifteen last month actually.” Leo nodded looking actually interested.
“You are very protective of her,” Leo said completely changing the subject and looking up to see how Bart reacted.
“Well, I mean, she’s my only real friend, so yeah I guess I am.” Bart tried to avoid eye contact.
“Yes, she is very protective of you as well.” Bart knew his face had betrayed his surprise when he heard the statement. He knew Charlotte looked at Bart like a best friend, but he never knew she was protective. He didn’t even see a need for her to be protective. “When you were still sleeping, she kept begging my father to force you awake. But the herbs on the vines have to wear off before you awake or you could go insane.” Bart looked up ready to ask a question but his face must have told Leo how concerned and curious he was because Leo just smiled and continued before he could ask anything. “Don’t ask, I don’t know how it works.” The two of them sat silently for a while before Bart spoke again.
“So do you like Charlotte or something?” he asked awkwardly. Leo smiled again but didn’t look up at Bart when he answered.
“Your friend is very beautiful and has a warrior’s spirit. She would make a fine wife.”
“I’ll take that as a yes then,” Bart said, looking away suddenly becoming more fascinated with the fire crackling than what Leo had to say.
“It matters not,” Leo said. “I told her before that we could never be together because she is not one of the people of the wood. My father’s laws are strict, and I would not want to be the first one to break them. She would have to go through the trials of the woods to become one of us and that can take years. By then I will surely be married.” Bart was surprised at all of this. He hadn’t even known Charlotte talked about all this. However, now that he thought about it, it all made sense. The reason she wanted to stay was because she was actually thinking about becoming one of these people. All for this guy? Bart couldn’t believe it. Charlotte was never one to make rash decisions like that.
“Well, I guess that sucks then,” Bart said half happy and half angry. Would Charlotte have really let Bart go on this mission alone and stayed to become one of the people of the wood? The thought alone made Bart furious. He wanted to change the subject and fast. “So why would you be married so young?”
“Well men in our villages have to marry by the age of twenty because we need to continue to help our families grow and our civilization as well. So we arrange marriages between the villages.” Bart couldn’t imagine marrying someone so young. He always believed you needed time to fall in love and grow together before you could just go out and get hitched.
“How many villages do you have in the woods anyway?” Bart asked.
“Well there are three in Crestcon wood and five spread out throughout the woods of Zathya. Each one has its own ruler, but all the rulers answer to my father. His family was the first family to rule.” Bart nodded as he imagined tons of people in green and brown following a giant fat man with a massive beard. It was kind of funny to think about.
“That’s crazy that all of you guys stay so connected.”
“Yes it-” but Leo stopped talking quickly and his head shot up as he listened intently.
“What?” Bart said, suddenly becoming uneasy.
“Wake her up,” Leo whispered softly. “Now.” Bart was confused but he turned and tip toed over to Charlotte and woke her up. She looked confused and was about to yell at Bart but Bart clasped his hand over her mouth.
“Shush,” he whispered. Her eyes showed her concern but she listened and stood up. Bart looked back to Leo who was still crouched. Leo slowly stood up and backed up next to Bart and Charlotte.
“Listen carefully,” he said, his voice shaking just a little bit. “We are surrounded, and I don’t know how many there are. When I say, I want to you run as fast as you can towards that tree behind you.” Bart looked nervous, but he wasn’t about to let his nervousness get in the way of their survival.
“What about you?” Charlotte asked desperately.
“I will be right behind you,” he whispered. Then his bow began to levitate slowly over to him. “On my mark,” he said. He looked at the flames and they fire started to act crazy. Before Bart’s very eyes, an arrow made of complete fire jumped out of the flames and Leo grabbed and shot it at the tree line causing an explosion. “That’s the mark!” he screamed and Bart and Charlotte took off. As they ran for the tree, Bart could see people coming out of the woods from his sides and in front of him. How they were going to get out of this situation, he had no idea. Then another flaming arrow shot between his head and Charlottes, blasting all that were in front of them clear out of the way. “Keep running,” Leo yelled. They ran into the darkness and kept running as screams and explosions continued all around them. Bart tried to turn and see what was happening but he chose the wrong time to look. A large rock narrowly missed his head as he turned and another followed quickly. Leo smacked it away with his bow and then sprinted in front of them. “Follow me,” he belted over the roars of their pursuers. Bart and Charlotte listened, and they hid behind a giant tree.
“What’s going on?” Charlotte asked. Bart shrugged, and Leo ignored the question.
“Okay I’m going to run that way and distract them enough for you to get away. I don’t have time to draw you a map, so listen carefully. You are going to head north from this point until you see the clearing with the water hole where we found you before. Once there continue east and you will come to another clearing where there will be a giant rock in the middle. Go north from the rock and you will eventually hit a small town. Once there, you can find your way to the castle.”
“We can’t leave you,” Charlotte said.
“You don’t have a choice. I can lead them away, or at least most of them.” Bart didn’t want to admit it but Charlotte was right. He didn’t like the idea of leaving anyone behind, not anymore. He had done it too many times, and it was never a good idea.
“Why can’t we just lose them in the woods?” Bart asked.
“Yeah, you know these woods better than anybody,” Charlotte added.
“We don’t have that luxury this time, just trust me,” Leo said. “If everything works out, your queen will invite us for dinner and we will see each other again.” Bart wasn’t sure, but it sounded like Leo didn’t really believe they would see each other again. Charlotte was about to speak but Leo leaned over and kissed her on the cheek, catching both Bart and Charlotte of guard. Before anyone could say anything he sprinted off into the woods with tons of enemies following and Bart had to drag Charlotte the other way. They ran for a few minutes but they were still being chased. They came to the watering hole not that long after and then turned east and not too long after that they turned north at the rock. Had it taken any longer to get out of the woods they would’ve been caught, but they made it out and just ahead of them was a small town. Bart looked up and in the background behind the town was an enormous castle.
“We made it,” Charlotte screamed but then the two friends stopped dead in their tracks. Right in front of them was one of Mafortian’s brothers. The one with the long dreadlocks and tattoos covering his body was standing completely still, about fifty feet in front of them.
“Not good,” Bart said as he stood there, frozen with fear.
“What do we do?” Charlotte whispered but Bart had no idea what to do. For some reason, he felt like this man was much stronger than the muscular brother or Mafortian. When they had their last encounter, he nearly killed Bart and Charlotte. Then, about forty men came slowly out of the woods all laughing and smiling.
“We have to turn and run,” Bart said.
“We won’t get that far,” said Charlotte.
“No choice,” Bart added.
“I’m tired of not having a choice,” she said. With that, they turned and took off sprinting towards the direction they came. Bart called upon the wind and tried to attack the men in front of him but before he could do anything, he and Charlotte both fell flat on their faces. It took a second but Bart realized they were being dragged back towards the silent killer and there was nothing they could do to stop it. Then, Bart suddenly stopped moving. He got up slowly and looked to his right but there was no Charlotte. He turned around and to his surprise Victoria was standing in front of him, facing the enemy. At first Bart was extremely happy to see Victoria but then his happiness was sucked out of him and replaced by fear and anxiousness when he saw the tattooed brother with his arm around Charlotte’s neck glaring at Victoria. Bart tried to rush forward but was stopped by Victoria.
“Bart no,” she said, struggling to hold him back.
“Let her go!” Bart screamed trying to summon the wind to attack him but couldn’t find the strength.
“Bart relax!” Victoria said but Bart ignored her. His eyes stayed glued on Charlotte, who couldn’t speak but whose eyes said everything. She was scared. “There is nothing you can do, Bart. Let me handle this,” Victoria said, again trying to calm Bart down. Bart stopped struggling for a little bit, but his eyes, filled with anger, remained fixed on Charlotte’s eyes. “Let her go, Talion,” Victoria said. Bart didn’t know that she knew his name, and it caught him by surprise, but it really didn’t matter now, as he remained focused on Charlotte. “She will do you no good, and you cannot have Bart.” Talion looked at Victoria and then smiled. “Don’t do this,” Victoria said pleadingly. Talion continued to smile, looked at Bart and then vanished, taking Charlotte with him.
“NO!” Bart screamed as he rushed forward. The other attackers rushed to attack him, but Victoria must’ve done something because they all went flying backwards. She grabbed Bart and tried to restrain him, but he wouldn’t stop fighting. “Charlotte!” he screamed but she didn’t respond and she didn’t reappear. “We have to go after them!” he yelled, but Victoria just held on tight, trying to calm him down.
“Bart, we can’t help her now,” she pleaded but to no avail. Bart continued to struggle to get loose. “Bart there will be time for this later, but we have to go.” Bart was still fighting when Jonah ran up.
“We have to leave now, they’re closing in,” he said. Victoria gave him a look. The men from before were circling the three of them, but they were moving slowly. They knew Victoria was no easy target. “What’s going on?”
“They took Charlotte,” she said, still fighting with Bart.
“There is no time,” he said and he grabbed Bart. “Sorry pal,” he said. The last thing Bart remembered was Jonah’s fist connecting with his face and then darkness.
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