章 11: Eenie Meenie Miney
Aisha rotated her neck counterclockwise. The ride was probably two hours already! She would have a stiff neck if she would not be out of the trunk ASAP.
"Maybe I could peek just a bit," Aisha suggested to herself as she peeped at the hole that she made in the trunk.
It was already early dawn. The sun was starting to rise in the distance, slowly unraveling the beauty of the land.
A green meadow stretched as far as her eyes could see. On the right were different animals lounging, excited about the sun rays penetrating their skins.
She knew most of them, like the elephants and giraffes. But the others were unfamiliar with her. They were huge and brownish-gray in color. Some have horns on their heads. And some have long necks as high as the largest trees.
Aisha couldn't help but throw the trunk open. She has always been an admirer of nature's beauty.
"This is just so beautiful," she uttered in admiration as her wide eyes roamed around her.
Aisha has just escaped from the Castle walls and is now going with the Guards to the Southern Lands secretly.
She was not really planning to go to the Southern Lands. She wants to go back to the world where she came from and look for her family, especially Julia, her sister.
They may have done things that hurt her. But they're the only family that she has.
She didn't know where or how she could get back. The last memory that she has was the beach being engulfed in the waters. The next thing she knew she was already in this land, the Land of Gaea as they called it.
"It seemed to be truly a magical place," she blurted as she looked up and saw flying creatures in the sky. They don't look like birds. Some of them have wings and some don't.
But all of them treated the sky as if it was their huge playground, freely flying to wherever they wanted.
Aisha's lips curled up as she watched them soar high.
"I have a new favorite place, The Land of Gaea," she breathed out as she inhaled Gaea's air into her lungs.
She untied her hair and allowed the breeze to caress her black tresses while she watched the sun slowly unfold the paradise in front of her.
Aisha loves everything beautiful and being part of it, from picturesque locations to fun outdoor activities. They were her sweet escape from the ugliness of her own life.
As she watched these free creatures roam around, excitement flowed through her veins. An urge to be like them rose in her heart.
She recalled how they got to the Castle while riding a Dracus, as King Leandro called them. Maybe she could also use one, so she could easily find her way out.
Aisha put her palm over her forehead, so she could see the creatures clearly. To her joy, there were also Dracuses flying around. There were large and small ones.
Aisha peeked at the two guards who were driving the cart. They were busy chatting around.
She leaned her right ear forward, trying to eavesdrop on what they were talking about.
"I know Lord Lycano is merciless and brutal. What would we do if he caught us sneaking behind his back?" One of them said,
Aisha's forehead is knitted together. "Who is Lord Lycano? So are these men spies, then? I thought they were just businessmen."
Her fingers flew to her lips as her eyes darted to the other trunks that were on the cart.
"We must be discreet then. And if it happens, we must not mention the name of the King even in the name of death," he answered her, making Aisha's jaw drop.
"Oh my gosh, what did I get myself involved with?" she bit her fingernails as she thought of what to do.
If she were caught in this, her head would be in the guillotine in no time.
"Maybe this is where we part ways. Thanks for your service," Aisha made a fake vow with her head and a wave of her hand.
Slowly as not to arouse suspicion from the guards, she climbed out of the trunk and into the side of the cart, crouching down like a stray cat.
She peeked at the side of the road, thinking if she could jump from the height of where she was.
To her surprise, the cartwheels were not on the ground. It looked as if it was floating, using magnetic energy coming from the earth.
"That's cool. We could travel the whole day if it was just like an ordinary cart on earth," she uttered.
Also, to her delight, it wasn't as high as she thought it was. But now was not the right time.
They were in the fields and a speckle of human flesh in the midst of it could arouse wariness to the nearby villagers, or whatever they call them.
She waited until the cart turned to an area where she could easily hide. As if luck was on her side, the cart went inside the woods.
There were a lot of gigantic trees where she could quickly take cover. She didn't waste any more time.
"1, 2, 3…" She gulped as she felt nervous. But she was excited at the same time. "Go!" She ordered herself.
She closed her eyes as she leaped and tumbled out of the cart. As she fell on the ground, she allowed herself to roll down the steep soil.
Pieces of wooden sticks, small rocks, and leaves bonded to her clothes and skin. But she didn't mind.
She spiraled down the slope until she finally fell on flat ground.
Aisha opened her eyes. It looked like an ordinary forest for her. She would get by.
"Piece of cake," she grinned as she dusted herself with her hands. "Now what?" she breathed out.
There were tons of trees as far as her eyes could see on every side of the forest.
She covered her eyes with her palm.
"Eenie meenie miney..." she mumbled as she pointed her forefinger to every area of the forest encircling her.
She was giddy to remove her palm and open her eyes to see what direction she would go.
However, to her horror, her finger didn't point her towards her life. But to her death.
"Mo," her lips uttered the last chant as her finger dropped. She had just pointed at the most vicious pair of wolves that she has seen in her entire life.
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Life is a matter of choice.
Every choice you make, makes you.
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