Chapter 36: Tempest...

Drip... Drip... Splash!

Mia flinched and looked up just in time for another volley of hard raindrops to splatter against her face. What had begun moments ago as a drizzle was quickly turning into a downpour.

“Ow, stupid rain. Can you fall any harder?” she grumbled sarcastically.

The rain apparently heard her, because it proceeded to hammer them even more, turning the downpour into a full-on tempest, complete with thick clouds and howling winds. The deluge was so heavy it obscured their vision, making it feel like they were constantly walking through a thick curtain of water.

“Sweet moons, it’s really coming down... And the wind is picking up...”

She wiped off her face with her hands futilely before looking around with a wry smile.

Well, I came to practice swimming, so I was prepared to get wet, but I sure didn’t expect to spend my time on land soaked through as well.

Her waterlogged clothes had taken on an unfamiliar weight, and they stuck to her as she walked. It was a strange sensation, as if she were taking a shower while fully dressed. She imagined herself doing so, pretending she was engaging in some sort of bizarre cleansing ritual. The thought amused her, and she started to find the experience fun.

“Everyone, keep close to me. Whatever you do, don’t get separated. Abel, can you keep your eyes behind us?”

“Leave it to me. I’ll be our rear guard.”

That simple exchange was all the two princes needed to figure out their roles. With Keithwood scouting out the path ahead, Sion walked at the front of the group. Behind him were, in order, Mia, Anne, Esmeralda, and Nina, with Abel bringing up the rear. They stayed in a straight line, proceeding quickly but cautiously toward the camp.

Mia kept her attention on her feet, treading with care to avoid slipping on mud.

Squish... Squish... Squish...

Every step in her soggy shoes was accompanied by an unpleasant sound, made worse by the difficulty of traversing mucky ground. Time and again, she stumbled, catching herself only at the last second to avoid a nasty fall.

They heard their camp before seeing it. The wild fluttering of fabric was making an awful ruckus, and the tents shook so violently it looked like they were about to be carried off whole.

“Sweet moons! The tents!” exclaimed Esmeralda. “They’ll be blown away! Quickly! We need to get our belongings out!”

Flustered, she started yelling at Nina to rescue their luggage. Sion put a hand out and stopped her.

“Bad idea. It’s too dangerous.”

“I agree,” said Abel, walking up beside them. “Trying to move all our stuff in this wind is unrealistic. Finding shelter should come first.”

“We need a place that’s safe from the wind.” Sion turned to Keithwood. “Can you find us one?”

“I’ll have to, one way or another. Let’s head for the island’s center. Ladies, keep close.”

With Keithwood leading the way, the group made their way further inland. After some time, they came upon a dense forest, its trees tall and their canopy thick. They walked in. The wind eased a little, but the pounding of raindrops on the leaves grew louder and more rapid.

Patter... Pitter patter pitter patter— Thump thump thump thump thump...

The drumming of rain, together with the furious rustling of leaves, drowned out the voices of her friends. For a brief moment, Mia was gripped by a sense of loneliness, as though the world had retreated, leaving only the deafening cacophony of the storm. She looked up. The dark blanket of foliage overhead stirred her memories.

After all this time, walking into a forest still reminds me of then...

When Mia was on the run, abandoned by her maid, she’d stumbled aimlessly through the forest by herself, desperately trying to evade capture by the revolutionary army.

That’s right... We went into that forest, and almost immediately, I tripped and hurt my leg. She took one look at me, told me I was deadweight, and ran off by herself...

Beads of rain rolled down her leg. The sensation was familiar, reminding her of the blood that had streamed down her scraped knee. The sharp stinging of the abrasion, the viscous warmth of her blood, it all came back to her, as vividly unpleasant as it had been that day. It was, perhaps, too vivid, commanding so much of her attention that she failed to keep her eyes on the ground ahead.

“Ah—”

Her foot slipped, and her body lurched forward. As she fell, she cursed her own carelessness.

Oh no... It’s happening again... I’m going to hurt myself, and they’ll think I’m deadweight...

“Look out!!”

The cry was followed by a burst of motion behind her. A split second later, someone caught her in their arms.

“M-Milady, are you all right?”

It took her a moment to gather herself. As she did, she realized she’d been pulled into a gentle embrace. Turning, she found herself face-to-face with a very worried Anne.

“Uh... Y-Yes. I’m quite fine.”

She smiled. She felt odd doing so, considering their troubling circumstances, but it came too naturally to resist. There was a poignancy to her averted stumble. It juxtaposed her past self with her present, reminding her of what she’d been missing then...and what she had now. It surprised her to find how much the thought invigorated her.

“My, I need to pay more attention, don’t I? The same goes for you too, Anne. Do watch your step,” she said, turning around to catch up.

Just then, they heard Keithwood’s voice through the curtain of rain.

“There’s a cave up ahead. I suggest waiting out the storm there.”

Apparently he’d gone off to scout the area.

“Good work!” said Sion as he turned toward the group. “All right, we’re going to follow Keithwood. Stay close. Make sure we don’t leave anyone behind.”

Encouraged by this news, they steadily made their way deeper into the forest. After prying apart a dense thicket and forcing themselves through, they discovered a large rock face covered in thick moss. At one spot where it met the ground was an opening that, amidst the smooth and unbroken surface, seemed a little out of place. The hole was just barely large enough to crawl through.

“It gets bigger inside. Come on now. Quickly.”

She promptly followed Keithwood into the cavern.

It’s almost like we’re crawling into the belly of some enormous beast... Something about this place gives me the creeps...

Mia’s gut feeling, which admittedly had a somewhat spotty track record, was in this case spot-on. Unbeknownst to them, they’d set foot in a place that had been lost to time...