Post by The Blue Collared Philosopher on Apr 12, 2009 16:20:06 GMT -5
(So after writting Child. I decided i wanted to write more about this character. So i wrote a sequal. Hope someone enjoys it.) =)
A slight breeze flew gently over the great plain causing the tall grass to sway side to side. As the grass danced, it made a soft ruffling sound that added to the music of the beautiful day. Birds sang, the grass danced, and the wind moved. The sun was shinning brightly, but wasn’t miserably hot. It was a perfect day.
The great plain was mostly grass, but there were a few rocks and trees scattered about. Today I was sitting on one of these few rocks. I was taking in the beauty of the great plain. Gazing out over it, I tried to find the end of it, but failed. The great plain stretched all the way to the horizon in every direction I looked.
Something rustled beside me and I glanced towards the sound to see the warrior; the same warrior that rescued me in the woods from the black figure. When I was in the woods I didn’t know his name, but after traveling with him for several weeks, we had become good friends.
His name is Immanuel. He is also the King of a great kingdom, which I often wonder about. He told me that he went on a mission to rescue me, but I don’t understand why me. I am only a boy and he is a King. I don’t think I’ll ever understand why he decided to come help me, but I’m very glad he did. My life will be forever indebted to him.
I looked up into his face, a smile held his lips. The zephyr caught his bright blond hair and threw it several directions. He laughed, turned towards the wind, and spread his arms out. The wind rushed towards him, and he just stood there enjoying its coolness.
I laughed and stood up to let the wind refresh me too. For several moments, the wind was strong and wonderful. It brought a smile to my face and seemed to take my worries with it as it blew over me. When it stopped, Immanuel and I were still standing there smiling away. Then in unison, we looked at each other, sighed, and then burst out laughing once more. It was good to be alive!
Now that I was refreshed, I jumped off the rock and landed in the soft grass. Immanuel landed beside me and turned to look at him.
“My Child, now that we have been traveling together, it is time to decide where to go,” said Immanuel.
I nodded in agreement, “Yes, let’s find somewhere to go! Where shall we go together? Shall we go rescue other people? Fight off other black knights? Show people what it is like to be free?”
Immanuel shook his head, “No, not yet My Child. You are not ready for that.”
I looked at Immanuel confused, “What do you mean? Why can’t we go help other people right now?”
“We can help other people on our way, but it will not be our main goal. We most go somewhere else first. We must do other things before you are ready to dedicate your life to helping people.”
“But…why? Where must we go first?”
Immanuel took a breathe, “We must go back to your home, to where you used to live.”
My eyes widened, “We must go back to my home?”
Immanuel nodded, “Yes My Child, back to your home.”
“But why!?” I shouted stepping back. “I don’t want to go home!”
Immanuel took a breath, “My Child, we must go back to your home. We must deal with the problems you have caused there.”
“But why can’t we just move on from that?” I asked desperately. “Can’t we just go on with my life? Do something else? Do anything but that! Please!”
Immanuel shook his head, “No, My Child, you must go back and deal with the problems you have caused. If you don’t, we will never be able to move on and help other people fully.”
I turned away from Immanuel and started to pace while grumbling to myself. Immanuel just watched with patience, loving eyes but said nothing. I turned back towards him and started to say something in protest, but my mouth slammed shut as I saw the firm, yet kind look on his face. I swiveled on my heel and resumed my pacing. Maybe I should stay with him. He had helped me a lot. It couldn’t be too bad to go back home. I didn’t want to, but maybe I could. Maybe. I still wasn’t sure.
An idea popped into my head, I didn’t have to stay with Immanuel. I was on my own before, I could do it again. Just because I was with Immanuel doesn’t mean I had to do what he says.
I stopped for a second and glanced over my shoulder at him. He was still watching me intently. I continued and turned towards him again. Thoughts continually ran through my head. Like darts, ideas shot through my mind. How could I get away from him? I didn’t want to go with him to my home, I could…but I didn’t want to. I was ready to do anything but that. I racked my mind trying to find a way to get away from him without him being able to follow me. I could leave in the middle of the night when Immanuel was asleep and not watching.
I stopped my pacing and turned back to Immanuel, and put on an innocent face. “Ok, I’ll go back to my home with you,” I lied.
Immanuel nodded slowly, “Yes…yes you will.” He said gazing into my eyes. I returned the gaze for a moment, but it felt like he was reading my mind and I had to look away. Fear suddenly gripped me. What if he suspects me? What if he stays up all night? I’ll have to make sure he is asleep before I leave.
I looked back at him. His expression was still kind, but some of his happiness seemed to have dimmed. I wondered why. Then regaining my courage, I assured myself that he didn’t know anything. How could he?
Trying to return to my former state of excitement I asked, “So what are we going to do right now?”
Immanuel took several glances around; then up into the sky, and then back at me, “I think we should find a place to rest. We must make preparations for our journey tomorrow and we need to be fully rested.”
I nodded and scanned the sky also, “Yes, the sun is getting low. Let’s find somewhere to rest.” My heart beat quickly with excitement. I needed to make sure we found a spot that would allow me to creep away easily.
Immanuel’s eyes searched the hills again, then finding something satisfying, motioned to his right, “Let’s go this way. There seem to be plenty of rocks for shelter in that direction.”
He started walking and I followed without a word. Perhaps this would actually work. Immanuel couldn’t be suspecting anything. He knew, of course, that I didn’t want to go back to my home. Yet, perhaps he wouldn’t suspect me to actually run away.
I surveyed the surroundings as Immanuel lead me towards our camping spot. The rocks offered nice shelter and good hiding places. Maybe getting away from Immanuel wouldn’t be that hard after all.
About an hour later, we had our campsite set up inside of huge ring of rocks. The rocks jutted here and there, but created a decent circle to protect us from any wind. The ground was mostly rock, but had a few patches of mossy grass.
In another ten minutes, we had a fire going. There weren’t that many trees for fire wood but we managed to gather enough brush to keep us warm for the night.
The sun had begun to set and the sky burned red. The usually white clouds were now painted purple and pink and the sun’s rays barely peeked over the horizon. The setting sun had created a beautifully unique scene that words can barely describe.
Yet, my eyes weren’t focused on this great picture above me. Instead, I sat on a rock and stared into the fire. My mind was focused on one thing: getting away from Immanuel. I couldn’t think about anything else. I watched as the flames flickered around the small sticks we had gathered. Slowly the fire consumed the wood and I threw another stick into the fire.
I glanced at Immanuel. He was laying on a large and slightly angled rock with his hands behind his head and his feet crossed. His eyes were closed and he was breathing softly.
My gaze moved and started searching for a way to get away. The rocks were easy to walk on without making noise. However, the trick was being able to navigate the terrain in the dark. A full moon would be helpful. I looked up. The moon had already presented itself, but was still dim compared to the sun’s overpowering light. As far as I could tell, it was almost a full moon. Not quite; but almost.
A sigh escaped my lips and my eyelids got heavy. Did I really want to run away from Immanuel? Wouldn’t it be easier to stay with him? My thoughts revolved back to my home. No…I couldn’t stay. I couldn’t. I wasn’t strong enough. Not yet…if ever.
I wanted to stay with Immanuel. I loved Immanuel. He was my best friend, but I couldn’t do what he wanted. I couldn’t. I had no desire to go home. Why did he want me to face them? Why did he want me to explain all my mistakes to them? Why did I have to go back? No, I wouldn’t go back. I shook my head and closed my eyes. I would run. Run. I was good at that. Just keep running. Run from Immanuel. Run from my mistakes. Run from everything. Just keep running and never look back.
A snore interrupted my thoughts. I looked towards Immanuel. His chest rose and fell. He was asleep. This was my chance. The sun had disappeared and the moon finally took her post in the sky.
I grabbed my sword and tiptoed away from Immanuel. I stepped over a patch of grass and made my way between two large rocks. The stones turned to grass, and it crackled under my foot. I paused, paranoid, and glanced over my shoulder at Immanuel. He hadn’t moved.
Sweat dripped down my head even though it was very cool. Anxiety gripped my heart as I carefully traversed through the rocks and grass. Soon our campsite was out of view and the only sign of it was the smoke that continued to rise above the rocks.
Now I was back in the great plain. Pausing, I took a deep breathe. I was away from Immanuel. Sudden realization hit me and my breath stopped, panic struck me. Where was I supposed to go now? I was only focused on getting away from Immanuel. Now that I was away, what did I do?
I felt naked standing there in the great plain by myself. I had to get cover, somewhere, anywhere. I started walking quickly away from the rocks. My walked turned into a jog, and soon I was sprinting wildly through the grass. My thoughts raged. Someone would see me and take me back to Immanuel or someone would attack me and make me a slave like the dark knight had! I had to hide! Anywhere!
My eyes found a lonely tree and rock a hundred yards away. Desperate I surged towards it. I didn’t care that it was horribly exposed and unprotected. It was something to hide under. That’s all I wanted.
In seconds I was sitting on the rock under the tree out of breathe. My eyes were wide, scouring the field. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The grass was still swaying with the wind, the moon still shown brightly, and no one was in sight.
“Hello.”
I turned and shrieked in surprise as I saw young man standing a few yards away. He wore an all black shirt and pants. His black hair was pulled back into a messy pony tail and his eyes were blood red. He just starred at me and waited.
When I didn’t respond he shifted and said, “Hello.”
I looked him over one more time and almost whispered back, “Hi.”
A big white smile crawled up his lips, “That’s better.” He started towards me but I stood up and drew my sword and pointed it at him.
“Don’t move!”
His eyebrow arched and his head cocked to the side, “Child I don’t have any weapons on me.” He lifted his hands and turned his side towards me to show that he had no sword. I searched his figure and saw he was right. He didn’t have any weapons.
Lowering my sword a little, I nodded, “I see. Who are you?”
His smile broadened, “My name is Lucifer.” He took another cautious step.
“What do you want?” I asked.
Lucifer shrugged, “I don’t know. What do you want?”
Caught off guard by the question, I hesitated, “What do you mean?”
Lucifer laughed, “Please Child, you were running across the field in the middle of the night. Why? What is it that you want?”
My face turned red, “I want a lot of things.”
“We all do, but why are you here? I thought you were with Immanuel.”
So he knew about Immanuel, my thoughts started raging again. How did he know about Immanuel? “I’m here because I want to be here.”
Lucifer’s eyes brightened, “Really? Go on, please. Why did you leave Immanuel?”
I looked at Lucifer suspiciously, but his big smile and calm demeanor disarmed my suspicions. “Immanuel wanted me to back home.”
Lucifer’s eyes widened and his jaw opened wide, “Ooooh.”
I nodded, “And I don’t want to do that. I can’t do it.”
“Absolutely right, you can’t go back there,” he replied with enthusiasm.
“And what’s worse. He wants me to fix the problems I caused!” I said dropping my sword and clenching my fists.
Lucifer took a step towards me and said, “Fix the problems! He’s crazy!”
“I know!” I shouted back, “There is no way I can fix that mess!”
Lucifer nodded vigorously in agreement, “He should never have asked you to do such a thing. He has no right to make such a demand!”
I started to pace, “Your right! Immanuel has no right to tell me what to do! He can’t make me go back!”
Lucifer’s face grew serious, “No, he can’t make you go back, but he might try to find you and make you go.”
I turned on him and grabbed his shirt and screamed, “I will not let him take me there! I swear I won’t! He can’t make me do anything!”
Lucifer’s mouth twitched and his eyes beamed mischievously, “No, he can’t, but I can help you. I can make it so you never have to see Immanuel again.”
I let go of his shirt and turned away from him, “How?”
“Follow me,” Lucifer hissed.
I turned back to him. Lucifer’s red eyes glowed and a devilish smile was glued on his face. “Follow me. Immanuel hasn’t done anything for you. He only brings you trouble. Follow me.” I started to open my mouth when I heard a shout behind me.
“My Child!”
I turned and saw Immanuel running through the grass towards me. His eyes were fixed on Lucifer.
Anger filled my heart and a sneer filled my throat, “What do you want?!”
Immanuel slowed as he got close and he held his hands up showing that he meant no harm, “I came to find you. I was afraid something happened to you.”
Lucifer scoffed and came up behind me and whispered in my ear, “He isn’t scared something happened to you. He just needs you because he wants to use you.”
The thought of being used just boiled my anger, “Liar!” I yelled, “Get away from me Immanuel! I don’t need you! Go away! I don’t want your companionship anymore!”
Immanuel stopped, “Please, My Child, I love you. Come with me.”
“No!” I shouted, “I won’t go back! I can’t go back!”
Lucifer’s breath on my neck made me tingle, “You can’t go back. It’s too painful. You can’t handle it.”
“Please, My Child. What have I done to you?”
For a moment the question caught me off guard as I realized I couldn’t think of anything.
“He is trying to make you go back to your pain,” hissed Lucifer behind me.
My rage reignited, “You are making me go back to my pain! I don’t want to go back! I can’t! I can’t fix it!”
A small tear trickled down Immanuel’s cheek, “My Child, we can fix it together. Trust me. We can. We can make it better.”
“No you can’t,” sneered Lucifer in my ear, “All those you hurt. They hate you. You can never fix those broken friendships. They will hate you.”
“No! I can’t! They will hate me! I’ve hurt them too much! I’ve hurt myself too much!” I cried.
Immanuel shook his head and looked over my shoulder at Lucifer, “Lucifer! Be gone! Take your lies somewhere else!”
“Tell him you want me here and I won’t leave unless you tell me to,” whispered Lucifer over my shoulder.
“No, he won’t leave. I want him here.”
Immanuel’s eyes grew heavy, “Please, My Child! I love you! Please, come with me. Stay with me. It will all be ok; your problems are not too big. We can make it all right. There will be scars but we can fix it.”
“No,” shrieked Lucifer, “He’s a liar.”
“NO!” I screamed, “Its all lies! Immanuel you can’t fix it! We can’t! It’s too big!” I turned towards Lucifer, “Let’s go. I’ve had enough.”
Lucifer sneered, “Thank you. So have I.”
I looked over my shoulder at Immanuel, “Farewell Immanuel.” I marched away and didn’t look back. My eyes were focused on the great plain. I just had to keep walking. Away from Immanuel.
I could hear Immanuel sobbing behind me; but I didn’t care. I was away now. I forgot what Immanuel had done for me. I wanted my freedom, and now I had it.
As I walked, Lucifer came up beside me, his breathe was raspy and he cleared his throat, “So Child, where do you want to go now?”
I kept walking straight with no plan and hesitated to answer, “I’m not sure.”
Lucifer leaned closer to me, “Follow me. I have somewhere that we can hide. Away from Immanuel, he’ll never find us.”
The idea sounded good. Hide from Immanuel. Yes, that was a good idea. A very good idea; I didn’t need Immanuel.
Lucifer’s voice hissed in my ear, “Follow me.” I felt his warm breathe circle around my neck and go behind me. I stopped. His voice still whispering all around me, “Follow me.” I shuddered and felt an icy grip seize my heart. “Follow me,” he hissed. “Close your eyes and follow me.” My eyes felt heavy and I felt cold. The only warmth was Lucifer’s breathe on my neck. Then slowly I felt his hands slide over my cheeks and cover my eyes. My first instinct was to move and push his hands away, but I didn’t. I felt paralyzed. Slowly I felt him move closer, his chest pressed up against my back and his voice whispered in my ear.
“Child, I have the truth. Follow me. See the truth and be free,” he whispered in raspy voice.
His hand slide back down my cheeks and his body fell away from me. I slowly opened my eyes to find myself in a cave. A cave with no exit. There were no openings. My eyes widened and spun around to see Lucifer standing there with a huge grin on his face.
“Where am I!?” I shouted.
Lucifer beamed, “You are in your freedom. This is your freedom. This room.” Lucifer walked towards the rock cave wall and patted it, “this is what your freedom looks like without Immanuel.” He turned back to me, “Isn’t it beautiful?”
I turned in circles, “This is not what I wanted! This isn’t freedom!”
Lucifer came up behind me, “This is what freedom looks like on your own. This is what your freedom looks like with me.”
I wield around and gripped Lucifer by the shirt again, “You have taken me prisoner! You are a liar!”
Lucifer gave an eerie laugh and pushed me away, “Fool. I didn’t take you prisoner. You willfully came. You didn’t want to be with Immanuel, so I showed you how to get away from Immanuel.” Lucifer laughed, “Do you really think there is a place where your freedom is completely yours? You are either with me, or with Immanuel. Never completely alone.”
Lucifer shrieked and his form changed until he looked like the black knight. The knight that had beaten me down in the forest. His gray hair fell to his shoulders and his ice blue eyes mocked me. With a laugh he changed back to his normal state of black clothes, red eyes, and black hair.
Lucifer’s laugh echoed throughout the cave. I shuddered and covered my ears. His laugh haunted me. It mocked me and made me realize what a fool I was.
“You idiot,” mocked Lucifer. “Did you really think you escape me?”
I glared at him, silence came to my lips.
Lucifer scoffed, “You fool! I told you in the forest you were my slave. You are an idiot! A idiotic fool! You can’t escape me! You can’t! You are mine!”
I fell to my knees and began to cry, “No!” I screamed, “No!”
“No,” mocked Lucifer, “Fool! No one can help you! Not after what you’ve done! You walked away from Immanuel! You ran from your home to join me! You’re not good enough! You will never be good enough. You are only fit for failure! Only fit to serve me. Slave!”
“No!” I shouted, “No! Immanuel said things could get better!”
Lucifer sneered, “Immanuel doesn’t know anything. Everything he told you is a lie.”
“Immanuel says he loves me! I know he does,” I whimpered.
Lucifer came up to me, “Slave! You are mine! Immanuel can do nothing for you!” He lifted his hand and smacked me.
I cried out in pain and fell to the ground. Quaking I pushed myself up until I was on all fours. Blood dripped from my mouth, “No. Immanuel loves me. We can fix it. He said we could.”
Lucifer laughed again, “You think he can fix it? I doubt it. Your friends won’t be able to forgive you for leaving them. Your mother won’t be able to forgive you. Your dad has given up on you. You are a disgrace to those that know you.”
“No!” I screamed, “No! Immanuel! Please! I’m sorry! Immanuel!”
Lucifer shrieked and leapt towards me and kicked me in the side me again. Screamed and fell onto my side.
“Shut up slave! Immanuel can’t hear you!”
I pushed myself up and stood up. My limps quaked and my side ached with a new pain.
“Immanuel come help me!”
Lucifer’s eyes got big and a fist slammed into my chin. “Shut up!” he roared. I felt my feet leave the ground and I landed hard on my back. The air was forced out of my lungs and I grasped for breathe.
“Immanuel.” I said as loud as I could.
Lucifer growled and kicked me again, “Shut up! I’ll kill you! Kill you! Shut up!”
I groaned and grabbed my side. My breath was quick and labored, I could hardly breathe. Blood rolled down my cheek and my eyelids were growing heavy.
“Please, Immanuel. I’m…sorry. I never should…have…left you,” I gasped.
Lucifer screamed wildly and pounced on me. His fists crashed down on my skull and chest. He pounded relentlessly and my breathe was beaten out of me. His fist smashed into my eye and screamed and tried to stop him. Fist after fist beat my body into the ground. I squirmed and cried. Blood blurred my vision and pain rippled throughout my body.
I heard a snap as he punched my side. Sharp pains pinched the left side of my body. I bawled and screamed but unable to move. I couldn’t move, I was dying. Dying. My vision soon faded and all I knew was pain. Pain. It never stopped. My eyes were swollen shut, my limps failed to move, my ears only heard the raspy breathing of Lucifer and the pounding of his fists on my body, and all I felt was unquenchable pain. My conscious began to go wild and the world around me seemed to disappear. And the last movement I remember was me saying, “I’m sorry Immanuel.” Everything faded.
Moments past and nothing changed, I don’t didn’t know what was going on. My body ached, all was black, and I couldn’t move. My mind began to wander. Was I dead now? No, I couldn’t be dead, I could feel my limbs. Yet, nothing seemed right. I couldn’t hear anything. That wasn’t normal. Then a ringing sound filled my head and I tried to shake it away, but it got louder and louder.
I screamed and breathe filled my lungs and I willed myself to open my swollen eyes. Immanuel’s kind face was smiling above me, “My Child. Wake up.”
I smiled weakly back, tears of joy rolled down my puffy face. I tried to say something, but Immanuel put a finger to his lips, “Shh, don’t say anything my Child. It’s ok. I’m here, I love you. It will be ok.”
A little unsure of what was going on, I let my head roll to the side and I saw that we were still in the cave Lucifer had brought me too. Despair filled my heart and I asked, “Immanuel, are…we still trapped in here? And where is Lucifer?”
Immanuel followed my gaze, then looked back at me questioningly, “We aren’t trapped anywhere and Lucifer is gone.”
I looked around the cave, “But…we are trapped in Lucifer’s cave. We can’t get out.”
Immanuel shook his head, “No, no, we aren’t. There is no cave. We are in the great plain still.”
I looked past Immanuel, the cave ceiling met my eyes, “But…I can see the cave…I—”
Immanuel put his finger on my lips, “Shh, close your eyes.”
I hesitated, but obeyed. Immanuel’s breathe came close to my face. Drops of water dripped onto my swollen eyes, then Immanuel softly laid his hands on my eyes. A pair of lips touched my forehead, then the hands and lips gently disappeared.
I blinked and realized my eyes were no longer swollen. Immanuel’s kind smiled beamed down on me, tears streaked down his face. I looked around, but had to squint. It was bright. I blinked several more times, we were in the great plain.
A slight breeze flew gently over the great plain causing the tall grass to sway side to side. As the grass danced, it made a soft ruffling sound that added to the music of the beautiful day. Birds sang, the grass danced, and the wind moved. The sun was shinning brightly, but wasn’t miserably hot. It was a perfect day.
The great plain was mostly grass, but there were a few rocks and trees scattered about. Today I was sitting on one of these few rocks. I was taking in the beauty of the great plain. Gazing out over it, I tried to find the end of it, but failed. The great plain stretched all the way to the horizon in every direction I looked.
Something rustled beside me and I glanced towards the sound to see the warrior; the same warrior that rescued me in the woods from the black figure. When I was in the woods I didn’t know his name, but after traveling with him for several weeks, we had become good friends.
His name is Immanuel. He is also the King of a great kingdom, which I often wonder about. He told me that he went on a mission to rescue me, but I don’t understand why me. I am only a boy and he is a King. I don’t think I’ll ever understand why he decided to come help me, but I’m very glad he did. My life will be forever indebted to him.
I looked up into his face, a smile held his lips. The zephyr caught his bright blond hair and threw it several directions. He laughed, turned towards the wind, and spread his arms out. The wind rushed towards him, and he just stood there enjoying its coolness.
I laughed and stood up to let the wind refresh me too. For several moments, the wind was strong and wonderful. It brought a smile to my face and seemed to take my worries with it as it blew over me. When it stopped, Immanuel and I were still standing there smiling away. Then in unison, we looked at each other, sighed, and then burst out laughing once more. It was good to be alive!
Now that I was refreshed, I jumped off the rock and landed in the soft grass. Immanuel landed beside me and turned to look at him.
“My Child, now that we have been traveling together, it is time to decide where to go,” said Immanuel.
I nodded in agreement, “Yes, let’s find somewhere to go! Where shall we go together? Shall we go rescue other people? Fight off other black knights? Show people what it is like to be free?”
Immanuel shook his head, “No, not yet My Child. You are not ready for that.”
I looked at Immanuel confused, “What do you mean? Why can’t we go help other people right now?”
“We can help other people on our way, but it will not be our main goal. We most go somewhere else first. We must do other things before you are ready to dedicate your life to helping people.”
“But…why? Where must we go first?”
Immanuel took a breathe, “We must go back to your home, to where you used to live.”
My eyes widened, “We must go back to my home?”
Immanuel nodded, “Yes My Child, back to your home.”
“But why!?” I shouted stepping back. “I don’t want to go home!”
Immanuel took a breath, “My Child, we must go back to your home. We must deal with the problems you have caused there.”
“But why can’t we just move on from that?” I asked desperately. “Can’t we just go on with my life? Do something else? Do anything but that! Please!”
Immanuel shook his head, “No, My Child, you must go back and deal with the problems you have caused. If you don’t, we will never be able to move on and help other people fully.”
I turned away from Immanuel and started to pace while grumbling to myself. Immanuel just watched with patience, loving eyes but said nothing. I turned back towards him and started to say something in protest, but my mouth slammed shut as I saw the firm, yet kind look on his face. I swiveled on my heel and resumed my pacing. Maybe I should stay with him. He had helped me a lot. It couldn’t be too bad to go back home. I didn’t want to, but maybe I could. Maybe. I still wasn’t sure.
An idea popped into my head, I didn’t have to stay with Immanuel. I was on my own before, I could do it again. Just because I was with Immanuel doesn’t mean I had to do what he says.
I stopped for a second and glanced over my shoulder at him. He was still watching me intently. I continued and turned towards him again. Thoughts continually ran through my head. Like darts, ideas shot through my mind. How could I get away from him? I didn’t want to go with him to my home, I could…but I didn’t want to. I was ready to do anything but that. I racked my mind trying to find a way to get away from him without him being able to follow me. I could leave in the middle of the night when Immanuel was asleep and not watching.
I stopped my pacing and turned back to Immanuel, and put on an innocent face. “Ok, I’ll go back to my home with you,” I lied.
Immanuel nodded slowly, “Yes…yes you will.” He said gazing into my eyes. I returned the gaze for a moment, but it felt like he was reading my mind and I had to look away. Fear suddenly gripped me. What if he suspects me? What if he stays up all night? I’ll have to make sure he is asleep before I leave.
I looked back at him. His expression was still kind, but some of his happiness seemed to have dimmed. I wondered why. Then regaining my courage, I assured myself that he didn’t know anything. How could he?
Trying to return to my former state of excitement I asked, “So what are we going to do right now?”
Immanuel took several glances around; then up into the sky, and then back at me, “I think we should find a place to rest. We must make preparations for our journey tomorrow and we need to be fully rested.”
I nodded and scanned the sky also, “Yes, the sun is getting low. Let’s find somewhere to rest.” My heart beat quickly with excitement. I needed to make sure we found a spot that would allow me to creep away easily.
Immanuel’s eyes searched the hills again, then finding something satisfying, motioned to his right, “Let’s go this way. There seem to be plenty of rocks for shelter in that direction.”
He started walking and I followed without a word. Perhaps this would actually work. Immanuel couldn’t be suspecting anything. He knew, of course, that I didn’t want to go back to my home. Yet, perhaps he wouldn’t suspect me to actually run away.
I surveyed the surroundings as Immanuel lead me towards our camping spot. The rocks offered nice shelter and good hiding places. Maybe getting away from Immanuel wouldn’t be that hard after all.
About an hour later, we had our campsite set up inside of huge ring of rocks. The rocks jutted here and there, but created a decent circle to protect us from any wind. The ground was mostly rock, but had a few patches of mossy grass.
In another ten minutes, we had a fire going. There weren’t that many trees for fire wood but we managed to gather enough brush to keep us warm for the night.
The sun had begun to set and the sky burned red. The usually white clouds were now painted purple and pink and the sun’s rays barely peeked over the horizon. The setting sun had created a beautifully unique scene that words can barely describe.
Yet, my eyes weren’t focused on this great picture above me. Instead, I sat on a rock and stared into the fire. My mind was focused on one thing: getting away from Immanuel. I couldn’t think about anything else. I watched as the flames flickered around the small sticks we had gathered. Slowly the fire consumed the wood and I threw another stick into the fire.
I glanced at Immanuel. He was laying on a large and slightly angled rock with his hands behind his head and his feet crossed. His eyes were closed and he was breathing softly.
My gaze moved and started searching for a way to get away. The rocks were easy to walk on without making noise. However, the trick was being able to navigate the terrain in the dark. A full moon would be helpful. I looked up. The moon had already presented itself, but was still dim compared to the sun’s overpowering light. As far as I could tell, it was almost a full moon. Not quite; but almost.
A sigh escaped my lips and my eyelids got heavy. Did I really want to run away from Immanuel? Wouldn’t it be easier to stay with him? My thoughts revolved back to my home. No…I couldn’t stay. I couldn’t. I wasn’t strong enough. Not yet…if ever.
I wanted to stay with Immanuel. I loved Immanuel. He was my best friend, but I couldn’t do what he wanted. I couldn’t. I had no desire to go home. Why did he want me to face them? Why did he want me to explain all my mistakes to them? Why did I have to go back? No, I wouldn’t go back. I shook my head and closed my eyes. I would run. Run. I was good at that. Just keep running. Run from Immanuel. Run from my mistakes. Run from everything. Just keep running and never look back.
A snore interrupted my thoughts. I looked towards Immanuel. His chest rose and fell. He was asleep. This was my chance. The sun had disappeared and the moon finally took her post in the sky.
I grabbed my sword and tiptoed away from Immanuel. I stepped over a patch of grass and made my way between two large rocks. The stones turned to grass, and it crackled under my foot. I paused, paranoid, and glanced over my shoulder at Immanuel. He hadn’t moved.
Sweat dripped down my head even though it was very cool. Anxiety gripped my heart as I carefully traversed through the rocks and grass. Soon our campsite was out of view and the only sign of it was the smoke that continued to rise above the rocks.
Now I was back in the great plain. Pausing, I took a deep breathe. I was away from Immanuel. Sudden realization hit me and my breath stopped, panic struck me. Where was I supposed to go now? I was only focused on getting away from Immanuel. Now that I was away, what did I do?
I felt naked standing there in the great plain by myself. I had to get cover, somewhere, anywhere. I started walking quickly away from the rocks. My walked turned into a jog, and soon I was sprinting wildly through the grass. My thoughts raged. Someone would see me and take me back to Immanuel or someone would attack me and make me a slave like the dark knight had! I had to hide! Anywhere!
My eyes found a lonely tree and rock a hundred yards away. Desperate I surged towards it. I didn’t care that it was horribly exposed and unprotected. It was something to hide under. That’s all I wanted.
In seconds I was sitting on the rock under the tree out of breathe. My eyes were wide, scouring the field. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The grass was still swaying with the wind, the moon still shown brightly, and no one was in sight.
“Hello.”
I turned and shrieked in surprise as I saw young man standing a few yards away. He wore an all black shirt and pants. His black hair was pulled back into a messy pony tail and his eyes were blood red. He just starred at me and waited.
When I didn’t respond he shifted and said, “Hello.”
I looked him over one more time and almost whispered back, “Hi.”
A big white smile crawled up his lips, “That’s better.” He started towards me but I stood up and drew my sword and pointed it at him.
“Don’t move!”
His eyebrow arched and his head cocked to the side, “Child I don’t have any weapons on me.” He lifted his hands and turned his side towards me to show that he had no sword. I searched his figure and saw he was right. He didn’t have any weapons.
Lowering my sword a little, I nodded, “I see. Who are you?”
His smile broadened, “My name is Lucifer.” He took another cautious step.
“What do you want?” I asked.
Lucifer shrugged, “I don’t know. What do you want?”
Caught off guard by the question, I hesitated, “What do you mean?”
Lucifer laughed, “Please Child, you were running across the field in the middle of the night. Why? What is it that you want?”
My face turned red, “I want a lot of things.”
“We all do, but why are you here? I thought you were with Immanuel.”
So he knew about Immanuel, my thoughts started raging again. How did he know about Immanuel? “I’m here because I want to be here.”
Lucifer’s eyes brightened, “Really? Go on, please. Why did you leave Immanuel?”
I looked at Lucifer suspiciously, but his big smile and calm demeanor disarmed my suspicions. “Immanuel wanted me to back home.”
Lucifer’s eyes widened and his jaw opened wide, “Ooooh.”
I nodded, “And I don’t want to do that. I can’t do it.”
“Absolutely right, you can’t go back there,” he replied with enthusiasm.
“And what’s worse. He wants me to fix the problems I caused!” I said dropping my sword and clenching my fists.
Lucifer took a step towards me and said, “Fix the problems! He’s crazy!”
“I know!” I shouted back, “There is no way I can fix that mess!”
Lucifer nodded vigorously in agreement, “He should never have asked you to do such a thing. He has no right to make such a demand!”
I started to pace, “Your right! Immanuel has no right to tell me what to do! He can’t make me go back!”
Lucifer’s face grew serious, “No, he can’t make you go back, but he might try to find you and make you go.”
I turned on him and grabbed his shirt and screamed, “I will not let him take me there! I swear I won’t! He can’t make me do anything!”
Lucifer’s mouth twitched and his eyes beamed mischievously, “No, he can’t, but I can help you. I can make it so you never have to see Immanuel again.”
I let go of his shirt and turned away from him, “How?”
“Follow me,” Lucifer hissed.
I turned back to him. Lucifer’s red eyes glowed and a devilish smile was glued on his face. “Follow me. Immanuel hasn’t done anything for you. He only brings you trouble. Follow me.” I started to open my mouth when I heard a shout behind me.
“My Child!”
I turned and saw Immanuel running through the grass towards me. His eyes were fixed on Lucifer.
Anger filled my heart and a sneer filled my throat, “What do you want?!”
Immanuel slowed as he got close and he held his hands up showing that he meant no harm, “I came to find you. I was afraid something happened to you.”
Lucifer scoffed and came up behind me and whispered in my ear, “He isn’t scared something happened to you. He just needs you because he wants to use you.”
The thought of being used just boiled my anger, “Liar!” I yelled, “Get away from me Immanuel! I don’t need you! Go away! I don’t want your companionship anymore!”
Immanuel stopped, “Please, My Child, I love you. Come with me.”
“No!” I shouted, “I won’t go back! I can’t go back!”
Lucifer’s breath on my neck made me tingle, “You can’t go back. It’s too painful. You can’t handle it.”
“Please, My Child. What have I done to you?”
For a moment the question caught me off guard as I realized I couldn’t think of anything.
“He is trying to make you go back to your pain,” hissed Lucifer behind me.
My rage reignited, “You are making me go back to my pain! I don’t want to go back! I can’t! I can’t fix it!”
A small tear trickled down Immanuel’s cheek, “My Child, we can fix it together. Trust me. We can. We can make it better.”
“No you can’t,” sneered Lucifer in my ear, “All those you hurt. They hate you. You can never fix those broken friendships. They will hate you.”
“No! I can’t! They will hate me! I’ve hurt them too much! I’ve hurt myself too much!” I cried.
Immanuel shook his head and looked over my shoulder at Lucifer, “Lucifer! Be gone! Take your lies somewhere else!”
“Tell him you want me here and I won’t leave unless you tell me to,” whispered Lucifer over my shoulder.
“No, he won’t leave. I want him here.”
Immanuel’s eyes grew heavy, “Please, My Child! I love you! Please, come with me. Stay with me. It will all be ok; your problems are not too big. We can make it all right. There will be scars but we can fix it.”
“No,” shrieked Lucifer, “He’s a liar.”
“NO!” I screamed, “Its all lies! Immanuel you can’t fix it! We can’t! It’s too big!” I turned towards Lucifer, “Let’s go. I’ve had enough.”
Lucifer sneered, “Thank you. So have I.”
I looked over my shoulder at Immanuel, “Farewell Immanuel.” I marched away and didn’t look back. My eyes were focused on the great plain. I just had to keep walking. Away from Immanuel.
I could hear Immanuel sobbing behind me; but I didn’t care. I was away now. I forgot what Immanuel had done for me. I wanted my freedom, and now I had it.
As I walked, Lucifer came up beside me, his breathe was raspy and he cleared his throat, “So Child, where do you want to go now?”
I kept walking straight with no plan and hesitated to answer, “I’m not sure.”
Lucifer leaned closer to me, “Follow me. I have somewhere that we can hide. Away from Immanuel, he’ll never find us.”
The idea sounded good. Hide from Immanuel. Yes, that was a good idea. A very good idea; I didn’t need Immanuel.
Lucifer’s voice hissed in my ear, “Follow me.” I felt his warm breathe circle around my neck and go behind me. I stopped. His voice still whispering all around me, “Follow me.” I shuddered and felt an icy grip seize my heart. “Follow me,” he hissed. “Close your eyes and follow me.” My eyes felt heavy and I felt cold. The only warmth was Lucifer’s breathe on my neck. Then slowly I felt his hands slide over my cheeks and cover my eyes. My first instinct was to move and push his hands away, but I didn’t. I felt paralyzed. Slowly I felt him move closer, his chest pressed up against my back and his voice whispered in my ear.
“Child, I have the truth. Follow me. See the truth and be free,” he whispered in raspy voice.
His hand slide back down my cheeks and his body fell away from me. I slowly opened my eyes to find myself in a cave. A cave with no exit. There were no openings. My eyes widened and spun around to see Lucifer standing there with a huge grin on his face.
“Where am I!?” I shouted.
Lucifer beamed, “You are in your freedom. This is your freedom. This room.” Lucifer walked towards the rock cave wall and patted it, “this is what your freedom looks like without Immanuel.” He turned back to me, “Isn’t it beautiful?”
I turned in circles, “This is not what I wanted! This isn’t freedom!”
Lucifer came up behind me, “This is what freedom looks like on your own. This is what your freedom looks like with me.”
I wield around and gripped Lucifer by the shirt again, “You have taken me prisoner! You are a liar!”
Lucifer gave an eerie laugh and pushed me away, “Fool. I didn’t take you prisoner. You willfully came. You didn’t want to be with Immanuel, so I showed you how to get away from Immanuel.” Lucifer laughed, “Do you really think there is a place where your freedom is completely yours? You are either with me, or with Immanuel. Never completely alone.”
Lucifer shrieked and his form changed until he looked like the black knight. The knight that had beaten me down in the forest. His gray hair fell to his shoulders and his ice blue eyes mocked me. With a laugh he changed back to his normal state of black clothes, red eyes, and black hair.
Lucifer’s laugh echoed throughout the cave. I shuddered and covered my ears. His laugh haunted me. It mocked me and made me realize what a fool I was.
“You idiot,” mocked Lucifer. “Did you really think you escape me?”
I glared at him, silence came to my lips.
Lucifer scoffed, “You fool! I told you in the forest you were my slave. You are an idiot! A idiotic fool! You can’t escape me! You can’t! You are mine!”
I fell to my knees and began to cry, “No!” I screamed, “No!”
“No,” mocked Lucifer, “Fool! No one can help you! Not after what you’ve done! You walked away from Immanuel! You ran from your home to join me! You’re not good enough! You will never be good enough. You are only fit for failure! Only fit to serve me. Slave!”
“No!” I shouted, “No! Immanuel said things could get better!”
Lucifer sneered, “Immanuel doesn’t know anything. Everything he told you is a lie.”
“Immanuel says he loves me! I know he does,” I whimpered.
Lucifer came up to me, “Slave! You are mine! Immanuel can do nothing for you!” He lifted his hand and smacked me.
I cried out in pain and fell to the ground. Quaking I pushed myself up until I was on all fours. Blood dripped from my mouth, “No. Immanuel loves me. We can fix it. He said we could.”
Lucifer laughed again, “You think he can fix it? I doubt it. Your friends won’t be able to forgive you for leaving them. Your mother won’t be able to forgive you. Your dad has given up on you. You are a disgrace to those that know you.”
“No!” I screamed, “No! Immanuel! Please! I’m sorry! Immanuel!”
Lucifer shrieked and leapt towards me and kicked me in the side me again. Screamed and fell onto my side.
“Shut up slave! Immanuel can’t hear you!”
I pushed myself up and stood up. My limps quaked and my side ached with a new pain.
“Immanuel come help me!”
Lucifer’s eyes got big and a fist slammed into my chin. “Shut up!” he roared. I felt my feet leave the ground and I landed hard on my back. The air was forced out of my lungs and I grasped for breathe.
“Immanuel.” I said as loud as I could.
Lucifer growled and kicked me again, “Shut up! I’ll kill you! Kill you! Shut up!”
I groaned and grabbed my side. My breath was quick and labored, I could hardly breathe. Blood rolled down my cheek and my eyelids were growing heavy.
“Please, Immanuel. I’m…sorry. I never should…have…left you,” I gasped.
Lucifer screamed wildly and pounced on me. His fists crashed down on my skull and chest. He pounded relentlessly and my breathe was beaten out of me. His fist smashed into my eye and screamed and tried to stop him. Fist after fist beat my body into the ground. I squirmed and cried. Blood blurred my vision and pain rippled throughout my body.
I heard a snap as he punched my side. Sharp pains pinched the left side of my body. I bawled and screamed but unable to move. I couldn’t move, I was dying. Dying. My vision soon faded and all I knew was pain. Pain. It never stopped. My eyes were swollen shut, my limps failed to move, my ears only heard the raspy breathing of Lucifer and the pounding of his fists on my body, and all I felt was unquenchable pain. My conscious began to go wild and the world around me seemed to disappear. And the last movement I remember was me saying, “I’m sorry Immanuel.” Everything faded.
Moments past and nothing changed, I don’t didn’t know what was going on. My body ached, all was black, and I couldn’t move. My mind began to wander. Was I dead now? No, I couldn’t be dead, I could feel my limbs. Yet, nothing seemed right. I couldn’t hear anything. That wasn’t normal. Then a ringing sound filled my head and I tried to shake it away, but it got louder and louder.
I screamed and breathe filled my lungs and I willed myself to open my swollen eyes. Immanuel’s kind face was smiling above me, “My Child. Wake up.”
I smiled weakly back, tears of joy rolled down my puffy face. I tried to say something, but Immanuel put a finger to his lips, “Shh, don’t say anything my Child. It’s ok. I’m here, I love you. It will be ok.”
A little unsure of what was going on, I let my head roll to the side and I saw that we were still in the cave Lucifer had brought me too. Despair filled my heart and I asked, “Immanuel, are…we still trapped in here? And where is Lucifer?”
Immanuel followed my gaze, then looked back at me questioningly, “We aren’t trapped anywhere and Lucifer is gone.”
I looked around the cave, “But…we are trapped in Lucifer’s cave. We can’t get out.”
Immanuel shook his head, “No, no, we aren’t. There is no cave. We are in the great plain still.”
I looked past Immanuel, the cave ceiling met my eyes, “But…I can see the cave…I—”
Immanuel put his finger on my lips, “Shh, close your eyes.”
I hesitated, but obeyed. Immanuel’s breathe came close to my face. Drops of water dripped onto my swollen eyes, then Immanuel softly laid his hands on my eyes. A pair of lips touched my forehead, then the hands and lips gently disappeared.
I blinked and realized my eyes were no longer swollen. Immanuel’s kind smiled beamed down on me, tears streaked down his face. I looked around, but had to squint. It was bright. I blinked several more times, we were in the great plain.
