notion • john murphy

1 - BANISHMENT

[ BANISHMENT ]

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Their yells and cheers could be heard for miles.

"What do you think is happening?" Sayah asks Lincoln as they quietly and sneakily approach towards the Sky People's camp. The people's cheers grew more clearer as they spied through some of the surrounding bushes.

"Look." He points.

The sky people stood there, cheering what sounded like to be saying, "Float him! Float him!" Over and over again.

"What does that mean?" Sayah questions Lincoln, still keeping her gaze on the cheering crowd. Lincoln didn't answer, his brows furrowed in confusion.

Sayah notices the same brunette from the first day they landed. He looked almost scared. Innocent.

The cheers grew louder and he suddenly ran forward. However, another young boy stuck out his foot, causing the brunette to trip over it. As soon as he hit the ground, the others began to kick and beat him.

The same blonde as the first day, was stuck in the growing crowd around him, trying to grasp onto the others to get to the brunette. She pleaded for them to stop. Her pleas went unheard.

The brunette tried to get up, but someone kicked him back down. Sayah clenches her jaw at the action.

The group continued to beat him until they put a rag of some sort in his mouth. They tied up his hands behind his back and suddenly he was shoved down a small, mud like, hill. They watched him roll down, ignoring his obvious pain.

"Animals," Sayah whispers. Lincoln purses his lips. He opens his mouth to speak but a loud crash and more cheers interrupted him. Sayah looked back to see the brunette hanging by a rope of some sort. Her eyes widen in shock and she looks to the ground, eyes searching around as she tries to think of a plan. She steps forward, ready to intervene and help him.

But Lincoln doesn't let her.

"It's not our fight, Sayah." He tells her as he pulls her away. She doesn't budge at first, trying to get one last look at the horrible scene, but Lincoln turns her around to face the opposite direction. "Come. We must hurry home."

Sayah doesn't object and just purses her lips. She didn't know what happened back there, but she could tell one thing. The boy was innocent for whatever crime he was harshly punished for.

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"A few other scouts told me they're searching the woods." Lincoln informs her, as he sat next to her in front of the small campfire.

"What for?" Sayah questions, eyes not moving away from the fire to give the illusion of her non-interest in what happened to the brunette. He seemed to be her enemy, and yet for some reason she couldn't help but be mildly curious.

"They're searching for a child, it seems. The people are divided though. Some are protecting the child, others are. . ." His words trail off as he shifts uncomfortably.

Sayah turns to look at him. "What is it?"

Lincoln sighs. Sayah's face turns from one of confusion to realisation.

"They're hunting it?" Sayah exclaims. "These Sky People are terrible. It's a child! Why would they hunt a child?"

"I'm going to find out." Lincoln explains as he stands up. "Anya ordered another scout to watch them again. Do you want to join us?"