Chereads / The Holy Trinkets / Chapter 10 - Chapter 9

Chapter 10 - Chapter 9

After hours of digging through rubble, the trio found some thick coats and blankets. Ethan even found some material to build a tent. When they finished, Ethan led the way toward the mountain pass.

As they ventured deeper into the mountains and the ground got more and more steep, the air grew colder, and the sky seemed to become darker and darker.

"Is it nightfall already? It seems too early..." Ramielle observed. Ethan shook his head, providing her a little support so that she would not slip on the rock that she stepped on, "No. We are near the vampires' lair. See, they can't handle the sun, so they live here in the mountains and the demon lords provided them with a darker sky."

Ramielle recalled her first encounter with a vampire. It had attacked her in broad daylight. As if he had read her mind, Daniel explained, "If a vampire is a new born - in other words they had just become a vampire - they can walk around in the sun for a bit. But as they grow older and more powerful they're travelling around in daylight gets more and more limited until they die instantly if they step into sunlight."

Ethan was impressed, "Wow, I didn't know that your knowledge about vampires was so vast." Daniel smirked, "Of course it is. I've been fighting them for over ten years and I read Danica Swiss's book."

Ethan raised his eyebrows, "How old are you then?"

"22."

There was a silence that followed as Ethan and Ramielle thought it through. Daniel had been fighting monsters since he was only 12 years old.

"I was 16 years old when I lost my parents and started fighting. But I was lucky to have some guidance. It must have been hard for you to grow up in that lifestyle and fight alone," Ethan sympathised. Daniel's features turned solemn, but he still managed a rare smile, "Yeah, well, shit happens."

"I am sure you were not as alone as you thought, Daniel," Ramielle said. Daniel glanced at her. Ethan looked down, his visible eye showing a hidden sadness that the other two did not notice.

"What makes you think that?" Daniel asked with honest curiosity. Ramielle's tiny round face lit up with a bright grin that was characteristic to her, "I do not know how, but I just know."

"Hey, look out!" Ethan shouted. Daniel halted just in time at the edge of a cliff which looked like it was caused by the mountain that had been split by an immense force.

Ramielle's boots did not root themselves into the ground in time, and she slipped with a scream.

"No!" Ethan shouted, while Daniel cursed, both diving to the ground and reaching to catch her hand.

Since Daniel was the nearest, he managed to grab hold of Ramielle's hand just in time. "Hang in there, Rami! Don't you dare slip," Daniel exclaimed, struggling not to slip in the ice. Ethan quickly grabbed Daniel's ankles, and dug his boots deep into the ground.

The snow that was melting on Ramielle and Daniel's gloves was making it hard not to slip.

Ramielle screamed again when she slipped a bit and Daniel grabbed onto her wrist. "Don't look down, Ramielle! Focus on your grip!" Ethan shouted, his voice showing his struggle.

It was too late though, because Ramielle had already took a peak to see how far above ground she was.

Then she realized something. This was a familiar feeling. Ramielle had been through this before. When? How?

"Rami! Up here! Focus on me! Look into my eyes!" Daniel shouted, struggling to pull her up. Ethan's feet was slipping in the ice, but he grounded himself again.

Ramielle's fearful eyes found their way to Daniel's. His eyes were so beautiful, she thought despite her situation and they caused a familiar feeling to form within her heart. A feeling that she must have felt in her forgotten past.

Ethan's feet slipped again and he fell backwards with a loud grunt, losing his grip on Daniel's ankles. Ramielle screamed for a third time, as Daniel slided forward as gravity pulled Ramielle further down and him along with her. With a cry of sheer effort, Daniel grabbed hold of a protruding piece of mountain rock at the very edge of the cliff.

Through everything, Daniel kept Ramielle's gaze. Tears started forming in both pairs of eyes. Daniel's heaved, "Don't you dare let go of this hand, do you understand me? I will not let you fall." Ramielle cried and realized that Daniel was slipping.

"You have got to let go, Ramielle. If you continue to hold on to him, you will both plummet to your deaths. Trust what I am saying and let go," the familiar voice in Ramielle's head told her in a confident manner.

With a deep breath and a final long gaze into Daniel's burning sapphire eyes, Ramielle pulled her hand from his grasp.

"NO!!" Daniel cried reaching toward Ramielle, tears spilling from his blue flaming eyes.

Ramielle fell, her hair lashing out at the air above her. She had felt this before. The feeling of the wind slicing her body... the feeling of falling endlessly...

Images started flashing through her mind. Golden clouds fading into darkness. The face of a man with golden hair and tear filled golden eyes reaching out toward her. Sapphire eyes. It was all for the sapphire ey---

Water spilled from the necklace around Daniel's neck. It took the form of an enormous hand, reaching into the dark void in which Ramielle had fallen. It caught her in it's palm, changing its form as it swirled around her and brought her up, gently placing her in Daniel's arms and then it returned from where it came. Ethan stood up, staring dumbfounded at the scene playing out before him. Daniel was breathing rapidly, his expression portraying determination.

Ramielle was soaking wet in Daniel's arms, and her lashes kissed her colourless cheeks. Her lips were blue, and she shivered against him.

Daniel's burning eyes shot to Ethan, "Start a fire! Start a fire now!" Ethan got the message and immediately took off the giant sack from his back, tossed it to the ground and dashed around to collect as many sticks as he could.

Daniel ran to the sack and knelt down, one arm was around Ramielle and the other taking out blankets from Ethan's sack.

Ethan returned in seconds and started a fire. His movements was as frantic as Daniel's, "We should take off her clothes first, she'll freeze to death in those."

"B-but--"

"Hurry, damnit! Do you want her to die just because of your shyness?!"

Daniel took a deep breath and glanced down at the tiny, fragile girl in his arms. Her shivering had turned more violent and her hair, eyebrows and lashes had frost on them.

Everything else started to blur out. Ethan's concerned shouts. The sound of the blistering wind. The freezing ice beneath him. Ramielle was all Daniel could see. She was all he needed.

He started to undo the buttons on her coat.