CHAPTER 2
It felt as though he had been walking for hours but when he turned around and looked at the distance he had covered it was merely fifteen paces, he began to doubt his non-existent ability
"Can I really do this?" He asked himself, He rested his eyes and took in a deep breath of fresh air, a silence fell upon the atmosphere as the breeze blew gently against his face, his heart beat calmed and his mind settled, he reopened his eyes and continued, His strides where short and his legs trembled with pain as he moved through the path, Blisters had begun forming on his palm and the sole of his feet as he continued to walk but like every other painful hindrance so far he gritted his teeth and ignored it as he continued moving forward but his neglect did not make the pain subside as the blisters on his hands and legs continued to worsen till they had turned into wounds, blood dripped down his palm as he held onto the stick tightly, he had two choices, let it go and end the risk of further injury to his hand or continue and seriously injure his hand but still have the support it provided him, he let out a breath of exhaustion and made his choice, His whole body felt fatigued, the heat of the sun beating down ruthlessly against his tender skin, it was painful, his skin had turned red and become incredibly sensitive but still he persevered
"Progress is progress, progress is progress, progress is progress" He repeated with every foot he put in front of the other.
The brightness and heat from the afternoon sun slowly decreased to a point where the light no longer affected his eyes, He looked up at the sky and yet again was a color he had never seen, he had to hand it to his mother, she perfectly described it all, the dim orange clouds that covered most of the now pale blue skies, the gentle sounds of birds as they flew in folks threw the sky, he felt a drop of tears trickle down the side of his face and he couldn't help but smile, curious about the progress he had made, he looked behind him and the house was so far away it looked like it could fit in his palm, the smile on his face grew and hope filled him but also a feeling of emptiness and guilt he had never felt before
"I'm sorry mother" he made a quiet apology then he turned around and continued. The path was worsening, becoming more difficult to navigate without stepping on a stone that could impale him, he would even go as far as to describe it as treacherous, covered with mishaped rocks one could easily slip on but he persevered and kept on moving, it would take an act of God or death to stop him at this point and if it listening to his thoughts the bottom of his stick stuck in between two small rocks unknowing to him how fragile the wooden piece truly was he pulled it and it snapped, his heart sank as he heard the harsh sound of his support breaking, the sudden change made him lose balance, falling to the rough floor, he hit his jaw on the hard ground, his body dropped on the stony floor with a violent thud and again he screamed, but he couldn't wallow for long, he looked down at the damage the fall had caused him and tears filled his eyes
"No,No,No,No,No" He begged as he saw his arm facing a direction arms were not meant to face, and the ankle of his right leg twisted, the pain was unbearable
"Fuckkkkk" he let out a frustrated cry as he held his now bleeding and broken hand and tried to raise himself up, the aches he felt through out his body were incredible but they would matter less once he got to the mountains, he looked ahead, the base of the mountain was'nt so far anymore and lucky for him there was an opening that looked to be a cave, he could make it, grunting and taking in quick sharp breathes he stumbled on the one useable leg and began to slowly walk, dragging his injured leg behind him he would make it to the cave that would be able to provide some support for him to rest and regain himself
"Almost…there, almost there, all…most the..ree" he said painfully as he rushed to the cave as fast as he possibly could, as he hurriedly walked to the entrance of the cave he kicked a stone and felt an incredibly sharp pain that made him fall to the ground, he glanced at his foot and the sight was horrific his toes were broken and mangled and blood spilled out from it dying the foot a bloody red, he felt his energy slowly die away and get replaced with an immense surge of pain that forced tears from his eyes
"Fuck,fuck,fuck, fuck" he cursed quietly, he tried to stand to his feet but immediately found out the pain would not permit him, he laid on the hard floor filled with dread of his situation, he thought he was ready, he thought he didn't care about it but now that it was staring so closely at him he realized
"I don't want to die" He whimpered quietly
"I don't"
"Almost....There"
He heard something say, his eyes darted around to see where the voice had come from but he saw nothing
"Just A Bit More.... You're Almost There" He heard the voice say again
"HELPPP!!!!" he screamed out to wherever the voice was coming from but there was no response
"Help.." he tried to say but no words came out, the tears began to overflow in his eyes as the realization hit him, this floor would be his death bed
"I'm sorry mother, I'm so sorry" he said with a quiet sob as the tears trailed from his eyes, he closed his eyes and began to accept his fate when he heard it again
"You're Almost.....There", He remembered, he was almost at the cave, if he could enter he could wait for his mother to come get him, His breathing was in shivers but at the same time he could feel something building up in him, filling him with energy he couldn't understand, he could feel the blood rushing through his veins and the steady beating of his weak heart, he opened his mouth to shout but no sound came out he didn't stop though, he continued trying till he could hear a cracky sound slowly turn into a loud empowering shout
"Not Yet!!!!!Not Here!!!!Not yet!!!"
filled with a new found motivation he used his uninjured hand to hold the ground in front of him and began to drag his weak body to the cave, earning him more scratches and bruises than anyone would be comfortable with, it hurt but it didn't matter to him, pain was a constant to him , he was used to it, He pulled and pulled and pulled and eventually he got to the caved and drew himself in, He sat up and put his back against the walls
"I did it….I did it…I did it….I did it" he said in between short exhausted breaths, a slight smile found away to his lips, the world had tried to fuck him but he didn't let it, He closed his eyes and rested his head as he tried to catch his breath when he heard the very heavy breathing of something else, his eyes shot open as he looked at the source of the mysterious sound, his eyes widened as fear began to overpower him, his mother had told him stories but he had never seen a...DEVIL.