The Curse of the Versati

Chapter 16

Walking on the side of the wall his eyes had become accustomed to the moonlight but, still, it would be difficult to notice any openings in the wall. Exept if someone made it abundantly clear.

A torch was placed over a shallow ditch like it was inviting people to use it. It was so obvious but still, there were no other options he could think of. He dropped down and crawled through it until he reached outside.

"This is ridiculous" he mourmoured and started running. He didnt know where he was going but as long as he was far enouph from the camp, he would figure something out.

"There are a few every year" Talin sighed as he watched the boy increasing the distance. The soldiers had to repair the wall every time the little vandals damaged it to get away so, after a while, they just left behind a couple of holes for the kids to go through. If a few unremarkables were lost in the wilds and eaten by beasts, it would be a good example for the rest. Although it was a bit rare to escape in the first day. He was about to turn back when he felt a second presence following the boy. "Damn it, Twentyone is one of the valuable ones" he cursed and went after Mika.

*

"Why are you following me?" Thirteen halted his steps and turned towards the girl.

"I thought Talin would have stopped you by now. Since he didn't, he is letting you die" Mika answered calmly.

"And why do you care?"

"If I hadn't told you about the oppening I probably wouldn't. But now that I am involved, I'll at least see it through" Mika said and approached him.

"Just go back, I'm going home"

"You do you and I'll do me. I'm getting punished anyway so a few more hours wont make a difference, probably" she suddenly froze, turned around and drew her knife.

"What are you...?" a low growl interrupted Thirteen.

A large four legged animal with red fur jumped out of the bushes and charged at the girl. Before she could react, the heavy wolf forced her to the ground and her head slammed on the ground. Her eyes rolled back as she lost consciousness from the sudden blow and the knife flew through the air landing close to the boy. Without thinking, Thirteen grabbed it and turned towards the animal who after noticing the sudden movement turned its attention to him. Thirteen tightened his grip but couldn't move under the cold glare.

For as long as he could remember, he was always told to avoid any kind of conflict. Even if someone treated him or somone close to him unfairly, even if the other person used violence, even if he was threatened, he should never use violence. This was engraved in him and even when his mind screamed at his body to move, he remained frozen. His hands were trembling and the cold blade in his hands started shaking. The red furred animal noticed his weakness and didn't perceive him as a threat. It turned its attention to the girl.

"No" he muttered. Even though he was holding a weapon, the animal didn't seem to care about him. He felt the same weight on his chest as before, but this time it wasn't as devastating as before. This time the chains weren't strangling him,they were just restraining his movements. Thirteen didnt want to think anymore. He had caused this situation. Hadn't he already broken the rules when he had done the same for Aston? Rules are rules and life is life. Screw the rules, screw the fear, screw the damn teachings. He had to act.

He moved his right foot forward, looked at the animal's eyes and it returned his gaze. The tip of the blade stopped moving around and remained perfectly still as his body stopped trembling. The cold metal didn't feel strange in his hand anymore. A strange comfortable sensation overcame him.

Holding the blade suddenly felt natural to him. Deep down he knew that he was not much of a threat for the animal, he knew that he was closer to death than ever before but he didn't seem to notice. His eyes couldn't leave the animal's and the beast seemed to respond to that as it took a step to the side away from Mika. Thirteen unconsciously moved at the same pace, circling around each other looking for an opening to attack. They both seemed to have forgotten about the girl. The beast and boy stared at each other, one ready to fight for its survival, one fighting to prove his existence.

The beast's claws dug into the ground as it prepared to charge. The boy lowered his body and held the knife to the side ready to pierce the animal's neck, despite the harm he would have to endure from the collision, when a large hand grabbed his shoulder.

"That's enough" Talin who appeared out of nowhere pushed him aside. "You! Fuck off" he said turning towards the scary red furred animal that looked at him terrified and immediately run off with its tail between its legs. Talin walked over and took the unconscious Mika on his arms.

Thirteen stared at Talin with the blade still in his hands.

"You can run if you want boy, you won't get far but you can try. Or follow my orders for three years and I' ll escort you back home myself. Make your choice" Talin turned around and left. She was never in real danger since he was close enough to react, but he wanted to see if the boy would escape or not. He didn't expect for the tiny kid to actually make the beast feel threatened and for both of them to care more about destroying each other than actually prioritising their own safety. With the corner of his eye he watched the boy's decision , unwillingly building up some expectations for his future.

Thirteen stood there for a moment and then followed him. The corner of Talin's mouth turned slightly upwards in an unnoticeable smile.