Twisted Destiny

Part 10 - Rehabilitation

Lantana was stunned and didn't know what to do. She knew that she had to keep moving, had to regroup with her companions, escape from the fairies, assess any injuries she may have received, but at the moment, it was of no use. She felt stunned from head to toe. The impact had completely shaken her, and she was still trying to process the events of the last few minutes. The annoying voice in her head told her she had to keep moving. Lantana allowed herself two minutes. She took the time to try to calm down her body. Breathe in the first air. Try to place the scents. Listen for anything dangerous around her. Slowly, her body started to calm from the last events, but she still didn't feel like getting up.  Her back hurt, she was lost with no supplies, and had no idea what her next step had to be. Grudgingly though, she picked herself up from the first floor. Once on her feet, she had to lean against a tree for support. Her back felt like it was on fire, and she ground her teeth together and squeezed her eyes shut to avoid making any unnecessary noises.

"Broken. Definitely broken. Unless it's really badly bruised," she thought to herself.

Still leaning against the tree, she tested her abilities and took a shaky step. Once she placed her foot on the ground again, it felt like a rock had pounded every part of her body, and the pain went to her head, making it hurt so bad she thought it was about to split open. She drew in a couple of shaky breaths, and once she had regained herself and the pain was only the searing sensation in her back, she took another tiny step forward. Once again, pain rocketed her body, and black spots danced across her vision. With this, she began a slow, grueling process. Take a tiny step. Regain senses. Make sure there is something in reach for support. Lantana didn't know how long she did this for, but when she woke up, she was on the forest floor. It was no surprise to her that she had blacked out. She opened her eyes to the blinding sunlight.

"What time was it when we entered the fairy forest?" She groggily thought to herself.

She laid on the floor for quite a while trying to remember when they had entered the wretched fairy forest. After quite some time though, she was able to remember that they had left at the crack of dawn hoping to get through the fairy territory quickly and have the rest of the day for travel. Unfortunately, that had not gone to plan for her. She wondered if Violet and Gabriel were worried about her.

"Violet, yes. Gabriel, no," she thought to herself "But what if he cared?" She then wondered.

With those thoughts, she fell asleep again, but this time when she woke, it was moonlight that greeted her. When she tried to sit up, she realized that the pain had ebbed even though it was still quite unbearable. She knew that she mustn't waste much time trying to get out of the woods, or find either civilization and water. She tried to get on her feet again, and just like her previous attempts, her whole body racked with pain. It was more bearable now though, and with the help of a tree for support, she was slowly able to inch up to her feet. Once she had risen to her whole height. She gave herself a minute to balance herself out. Her back still hurt, but the pain was not transferring to her head or elsewhere, so she took that as a sign to keep moving. Still clutching onto trees, boulders, or anything that would give her support, she slowly started making her way through the woods. It was excruciating for her to take a few steps, but she knew her situation could have been worse. What if she had broken her neck instead of her back? What if she had flipped over the front of her horse instead and it trampled her to death? What if the fairies still followed her in hot pursuit, slowly tearing away at her skin while she could do nothing but lay there and will for her pain to stop. In those senses, she was almost lucky with the situation she had landed in, but even then, she wished for things to get better. The pain would not go away, but Lantana was no longer blacking out, so by daybreak, she had made it about a mile from where her horse had fatefully thrown her off. Lantana was exhausted as if she hadn't gotten a wink of sleep, she was hungry, and most importantly, she was lost. She had no idea where she was, and had no idea which direction she had to go. Her only hope would be to find a river which would hopefully lead to civilization. After hours of slowly trudging through the forest, she collapsed again. She was exhausted. The burdens of the last few hours had finally caught up to her, and she believed it was the end.