Good, Evil, and the Gray Area (FIRST DRAFT)

Chapter 18: Where am I?

thank u lieslovelife, PoeticCupcake,  skullheart656, livy13, and isabella726 for the awesome covers! i chose PoeticCupcake's, and i think its awesome! tell me what u think of it!

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I thrashed and fought, trying to escape the ropes that were wrapped around me. All my thrashing was making it worse though, so I soon stopped. I stayed as still as I could, catching my breath. Then, I heard hurried footsteps coming toward me.

Crap, I thought. This meant that the trap had been previously set, and someone had known I was coming. That probably meant that it wasn't Ava that had made the trail, and if it was she was either captured or dead. It would probably be better if it hadn't been her at all.

I looked scanned the path beside me, painfully turning my head. I must have jarred my neck when I fell.

"Who are you?" a voice asked suspiciously. The speaker had an accent, and the english sounded strange coming from their mouth. I turned again to see the speaker, who was probably my captor. My neck creaked painfully once again.

The boy standing beside me was just that, a boy. He couldn't have been any older then me. He had dark skin, almost black, and short dark hair cut close to his skull. He was lanky, and fairly tall, probably my height. I was tall for a girl, standing at five feet six inches, and still growing. The boy was wearing a leather loin cloth and nothing on top. Sweat was running down the side of his head, and he had a concerned look on his face.

For a second I wondered how he could be wearing only shorts, and sweating. Then, I noticed how much the foliage had changed. It looked more like a jungle then a familiar Maine forest now. Plus, it had been cool. Now it was hot and humid. I was sweating. I must have not noticed this change because I had been so worked up over finding Ava. Maybe I had passed out though, after running into the trap, and that's when the climate had changed.

Whatever had happened, it took me off guard, and I began to feel the twangs of nervousness deep in my chest.

"I'm Lee." I said. There couldn't be any harm in telling him my name, could there?

The boy looked at me curiously

"Hello Lee. I'm Zahir of the Sengele tribe." said the boy, Zahir.

"Where are we?" I asked, confused.

"We are in Congo! By the Congo river. This forest and the river is how all the tribes in this area survive. You are white. There are no white people here exept to trade. You come from Africa?" asked Zahir. He seemed as confused as I was.

"Wait- we're in Africa?" I asked.

"Yes!" said Zahir cheerfully, "you're lucky the tribe that set this trap didn't get to you before I did. They probably would've killed you! And, you're lucky that I speak english. I am one of the only ones of the Sengele that does. I will rescue you, but you have to promise not to hurt me."

"I won't." I said, asking myself why I didn't just use my fire to get out of the ropes. But I let Zahir cut me free anyway. It would be good to have a friend here. I was so confused. How had I gone from Canada to Africa? And how had I not noticed the change? There were so many questions, and so little answers.

"There. You're all free." said Zahir. He started to walk away.

"Wait! Zahir! I don't know where I am, and I don't know how to get home. Will you help me?" I said quickly. I didn't have a home to get to really, but I did have Ava. Then, I gasped. Maybe Ava was here! Maybe she had stumbled into Africa just as I had!

"I will bring you to my tribe, but you must promise not to threaten anyone. You smell of fire. I don't know why, but you seem dangerous, even though you are just a white girl. You will burn in the sun, your skin is so pale. It's a good thing we are in the forest." replied Zahir. He spoke english so fluently, I was surprised it was a second language for him. If he hadn't had a strong accent, and hadn't looked like he was in an African tribe, I wouldn't have known that he wasn't American.

Zahir pulled a blowgun out of the belt slung across his shoulder, and a dart. Then, he started running.

"You coming?" he asked over his shoulder.

With that I followed Zahir deeper into the forest.