It was gone.
To where? Lucian couldn't be bothered about it.
He rolled.
Back onto the earth as he stared up to the sky. His clothes, dirtied from water and dirt, made slouches of brown against his dark grey attire. His chest heaved up and down, body still in flight mode. Jolting in an unsteady rhythm. Hair splayed out, scattered.
He was alive, he didn't feel it.
Sweat pooled his body, drenched as he calmed down but he still didn't get up. Tired, exhausted from things he couldn't explain. Light soon burned his eyes, the sun had risen.
But he still didn't get up. At this point he wished the sun could burn him away.
While still fighting for his will. A shadow
appeared above him, obstructing his view, shielding him from the sun.
His distant eyes tracked up to look at the figure. Nirro staring down at, brows slightly upward and together, eyes searching, conveying the words 'Are you okay?'. Lucian understood what Nirro was asking even though he didn't say it.
But how could he answer when he didn't know if he was okay or was ever going to be. Tears threatened to break through but his expression hardened. The only answer he gave was a tilt of his head to the side, not meeting Nirro's eyes.
It seemed to come out as a snub. but Lucian couldn't explain. He didn't know where to start. Even though Lucian ignored him, Nirro still stretched forth his hand. Wiggled it a few times until he grabbed Lucian's attention back. Closing and opening his palm he signalled,
'Come. take my hand', Lucian stared at the hand before eventually clasping his hand onto Nirro's and was pulled up.
Now standing, Nirro brought his hands up to arrange Lucian's hair.
Lucian let him.
Dusting him here and there. the one he couldn't remove he left it. When he was done, he looked at Lucian wholly. Though he still looks a bit haggard, it was better than how he had initially met him.
Lucian didn't even look, he just allowed him to do whatever.
Two taps on his shoulder.
Nirro then turned Lucain around and pulled him along as they walked to the next place they were going to train.
Upon reaching the place where they take climbing activities. Ryven was already setting the others in two's when he saw them coming over.
"And where are you coming from?" Eyes staring down at them. Voice deep as a boulder. Nirro only responded with eyes downward and Lucain uttered nothing. It was unsure if Ryven's presence had even been registered by him because he didn't look at him.
Ryven shifted his gaze from Nirro to Lucian, one eyebrow lifting up in question as he spotted Lucian's uniform, stained brown from legs down to his collar. like Lucian took the time to roll in dirt.
Ryven scanned the other children available and saw they had small to barely dirt on them then looked at Lucian.
"Where are you coming from?" he asked, no answer, then he looked back at Nirro, who hadn't even looked up at all since he arrived. With no response at all, Ryven decided to let them go but watched them closely.
As they approached the other children Kealor spotted them, waiving his hands signaling them to come over and they did.
As soon as they were close by, he noticed Lucian clothing and had to ask
"Luc are you…" wanting to ask if he was okay but his eyes met Nirro's, who shook his head,
'don't'
Kealor's words hung, unfinished. Lucian then passed him, moving forward to be placed into twos, he wanted to finish quickly and be over with it.
Kealor watched him go, worry etched into his brows
"What's going on with Lucian?" Kealor asked as Nirro came forward.
To which Nirro shook his head, 'I don't Know" while looking at Lucian.
He really didn't know.
He had just poured water into the drum and begun his descent. when he spotted Lucian's figure running through the trees. path different from the one taking.
Nirro's head tilted in question, had something happened?. He looked back down, others that had gone down were already coming up. They weren't running.
With a turn, Nirro began walking back up but in the path Lucain had run through.
Light steps on the ground, he scanned his surroundings as he searched for Lucain.
After some time, he finally found him on the ground. He stepped forward to check on him.
A sigh escaped Kealor's lips.
"I didn't see anything either, by the time I was coming, all I heard were them cursing someone, that when I found out it was Lucain. They said he pushed and ran away. I had rushed up. but didn't see any of you" Kealor said,
"I hope he is okay. he is clearly not but even though I ask him. he won't respond"
"Next!" Ryven barked, jolting them from their conversation,
"Let's finish and cheek up Sapphire. I wonder if he is awake by now". Kealor said, Nirro responded with a slight nod before moving forward to be paired up
Jagged rocks stood tall with sharp edges ready to strike those who were brave enough to climb it.
Lucian had been paired up with another boy other than crybaby Jex. He wasn't quite ecstatic as this one seemed to be looking at him with hate.
Lucian matched his stare equally with a 'Do you have a problem?' look
The boy was one of the people he had pushed down.
The ropes were thrown down by the group that had reached the top.
Lucian took hold of one the ropes, tugged it a couple of times before tying it around his waist then began climbing. wedging his legs firmly onto the rock, pushing himself upward, hands stretching to grab the next rock.
The boy followed after.
Half way through. Lucian began hearing muffled voices. talking above each other, lines dragging that he couldn't understand a thing. He looked to the sides to see if there were others climbing alongside him but no one.
He then looked down at the boy a few paces behind, sensing this, the boy looked up. Seeing his confused look, he knew it wasn't him and kept climbing.
But the voices grew increasingly persistent. Lucian tried to ignore it and as he did that, a sharp wail cut through reaching him at a point where it shouldn't.
His ears rung, causing him to wince in pain. one of his hands rose to close the right side of his ear, then pressed his left ear against his arm. Forgetting where he was.
The rock broke under his hand causing him to lose grip. His body tilted backwards, hanging, hand flaying in the air as his legs still clinging to the rock.
Lucian dared not move too much.
The boy following him to climb saw the state he was in.
He looked down to see if anybody was watching, When saw no one was looking even Ryven. did he look back at Lucian struggling.
"Wait, I am coming!" The boy said as he climbed up to where Lucain was hanging from. Assisting him up, until he grabbed the rock, stable.
Lucian offered his thanks. "Sure, no worries" Lucian nodded before proceeding to continue climbing but he did, he barely noticed the slight hand movement at his waist loosening the rope.
Now Lucian was climbing a wall that one fall would be his death. The boy wore a smug look and kept climbing up after him.
A few more to climb to the top. He stretched his to grab another edge, when he heard the muffled voices again. His ears twitched, all making one distinct line.
'Not there' he thought his head was playing tricks with him and still stretched to grab the protruding rock. The muffled came in sharper, heavier and uglier.
'NOT THERE!' coming out as a scream. His ear rang. He then looked for another prodruding rock to latch onto.
Scaling the remaking part of the wall, avoiding the rocks the muffled voices told him not to touch. The boy saw what he was doing and thought he was crazy.
One last stone, but it was very high up. Lucian stretched to reach, fingers grazed it. Sweat flowed down his face as he adjusted his weight on the tip of his toes.
Just as he was almost grabbing it, his leg slipped causing him to drop.
Before he could fall, something grabbed onto his wrist. Lucian looked up to see a grey hand that seemed to appear out of the wall.
No body.
Lucian's heart jumped as fear gripped him. But this was the only thing keeping from falling to his death. The boy was shocked to see Lucian hanging. It wasn't possible.
the hand bent, pulling him up. Lucian took the opportunity to grab the last stone above, the hand supporting his leg as he climbed on top.
Lucian, on fours, breathed heavily, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
It. They helped him.
But why?
When he wanted to untie the rope from his waist and dropped it down, he felt nothing, he looked nothing.
gulped. Since when? And the boy climbing with him hadn't said anything. Lucian felt suffocated.
An eerie wail hit his ears again. Lucian looked around, thinking they were near looking at the others already on top. they all looked back at him mummuring to themselves. The wails sounded again. This time, it was coming from one direction.
Lucian turned his head, and saw a boy standing a little far from the other children below, few steps behind Instructor Ryven.
Grey skin.
The boy offered a slight smile before pointing to the other boy, his team mate.
Lucian also looked down.
His teammate had a scowl on his face as he was ascending unbeknownst to him, his end was here.
The boy grabbed onto a rock. the very one Lucian had been told not to touch. As the boy tried to pull himself up. The rock gave under.
He dropped. He screamed, scraping his hands and knees against sharp rock. His only saving grace was the rope.
The only thing stopping his fall now he was hanging, he tried to grab the stone as he swung but his bloody hand made it impossible for him to grab onto the edge.
"Help!" he called out in distress.
The children from on top came closer to the edge to see him dangling. Others below looked up to see the same thing.
"Drag me up!" he said, seeing Lucian looking at him.
"With which rope?" Immediately Lucian said it, a rustic sound came from above the boy. He looked up to see the rope had begun to wane, cutting stand by stand.
"No!...no!, please help me!" he screamed.
he stretched out his hand trying to grab onto the wall. his nails clawing the wall in desperation.
"Help!"
Snap!
The rope gave out and the boy went on a rapid descent. His wind-torn scream tore through levels as he grabbed the air. rope tangling his body.
Squash!
The site, gruesome.
That it caused some of them to vomit.
The rope had caught around the boy's neck, tightly bound. Had latched itself onto the sharp edge of the wall as he fell.
The boy's legs were dented by the fall, broken in different areas, bone piercing through flesh like rugged spikes while twisting in an unnatural angle.
Head had been forcefully but partially torn from his body. Leaving his neck flesh open in ridges different from one done by a sword.
Lucian eyes couldn't leave the site of the body but when it finally did. He couldn't see the grey skinned boy again.