"April it seems you know this area, you know to make us move by this time? " she ignores and reads the map. I hate it when she ignores me but then who am I to explain or complain?
After a few minutes of driving fast at minimum speed, she responds, wow perfect timing I say. Just perfect. "Stop here and get down, don't forget to put on your awareness cap ".
I get down after her slowly watching around the environment, she just walks fast into the forest while I follow behind her. She draws out her guns and seeks defence behind a fat tree, I call it fat cause it's so boring and thick.
I say nothing and stay behind her, she looks at me "this forest is haunted with you know what, just so you know" I just went through two-plus days of mystery and running and now a haunted forest. She sure has an odd taste for a sweet adventure, "so what's the plan exactly? " I ask in preparation for the worse.
"don't talk to anything, don't answer anything, don't call anything and don't look at anything that's not the back of my head".
Okay enough with the don't stuff you know. "what's this place anyway? " walking into this I need to know my ground. "It's a trance forest, it can hypnotize you till you die and then you become a haunter yourself.
Never play with these bushes they may be wolves but look like bushes. "
I can't believe my eyes as I see shadows with hooks for hands and shoulders slant like blades. The trees moving and swirling slowly making calm noises, suddenly I hear a scream. Not just any scream but a dark scream, it's getting close and closer until something hard hits me down. April told me not to look but I disobeyed and looked anyway.
The silence I hear afterwards tells me nothing but grief and I see no one around, not even April. Is this the trance she spoke about? I can't decide which is true, the trance or me dying slowly in myself.
I hear April's voice screaming my name but I can't answer at all, I'm just numb. I try to scream out but I can't, my lungs are frozen and my lips are heavy. Believe me, I don't know why but it's just happening.
I feel like I wanna end myself.
APRIL'S POV
Jake's in a trance and I know it but how do I bring him out of this, can he hear me at all? I warned him to not look but he'd never listen at all. As much as he's so stubborn he got me thinking about this love thing.
Can it happen? Can I have him and him with me? I just have this fast heartbeat whenever he's with me and I shiver but he doesn't notice a single thing, his abs are so defining and his eyes are just the perfect shade of grey that I like. How come he's still single at his age?
I still can't find a fault in him yet, his flaws and anger or his smile and charm. They all get me.
Finally, his eyes are open, I thought I lost him to my brother. I just look at his perfectly drawn jawline and his black hair, I feel like he's Canadian but maybe with a touch of Italy.
Can I escape this feeling I'm getting? The mission is my number one priority but with Jake in between, I don't want to make it worse for us, he's innocent and shouldn't go through this. It's not his fault.
It's my brother's.
He's in for a big surprise and I know it.
I'm with him and against him, the parliament doesn't know much about him.
I pray they don't find out about anything. I don't want him dead.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Are you okay? Can you hear me? Jake? Jake? Jake can you hear me?" maybe I went into the trance but in April's trance I felt had this aura over me. I never wanted it to leave me.
Can I love and miss, when others hit and miss? Will I get April's love in return for I'm just a mere human, all the thoughts pass through me as I try to save myself from the keeper and well the underworld as a whole.
"I'm okay, I'm okay" I manage to mumble even with dizzy eyes and weak arms. I still succeed in breathing out the toxic smoke I never knew I had.
It was nothing like I've seen before, it had a black swirl moving and without a smell, it still had this awful motive.
April might understand what it means but I didn't.
"That was the acid Jake, it's out of you now " I knew she would. "so I'm not immortal anymore? " I ask, she looks at me like I'm insane for asking a reasonable question. "Jake you never had immortality in you, it's just the deal you made with the keeper. It makes you stronger cause now you're his minion, that's all.
You can have immortality by drinking an elixir, it's called the quarter. It's a small quantity in the bottle but it's enough for any human".
"where can I get it? " with the road ahead I didn't have a good reason to be alive but with the task beside me, I've got to get some backup.
"it's with me" she just gave me one of the best replies in a long time. She pulls out a small bottle and opens it up, she pours it into my mouth and I swallow all there is.
I've got no reason to withstand her but I know she's all but games at times. "it'll give you strength and immortality Jake, use it wisely. You'll only get this once. "
I can't ask for anything better, "hold up but what does she mean by once. It's immortality, it's supposed to be for a lifetime. "no it isn't, once you get stabbed through your heart that's it. You're gone. "
This implies nothing but all roads lead to the keeper. Sad isn't it?
I sit up from her thighs and we get up, we make a turn when we see a little child holding a teddy bear with an ink-filled eye.
"That's a hunter, don't look" I turn away and focus my thoughts on the orb. I've got to do this or else. We reach a boat and we enter.
She paddles at the front and I paddle at the back. We sailed through black water, it had an evil smell and worms were in it. "It's the river of Raven". The last time I heard or saw a word like Raven, I swore I'd never mingle with it again. No surprises though.
Let's be serious now, fear is an understatement compared to what I feel right now. The trees give way for us and we reach a bigger darker tree. It had two holes in the middle. April stops paddling and says "where are the pearls from the seashell? We'll need them here".
This purely looked like an end road but April had more experience in this, so I gave her the pearls. She steps out with them making me follow behind again.
She takes the first and puts it in the first hole, she takes the second and puts it in the second hole. During the placing process, nothing happens but soon after the tree makes a noise like it's groaning.
It opens into two creating a path for us. We get into the boats and we paddle straight through.
We stop at a house in the woods. Again a house in the woods ain't funny, she steps out and opens the door of the house. What a bold disaster.
It's exactly 4:56 am and I'm trying to withstand the tummy movement I feel, I had no food last night and till now. I can't eat anything from around here, it's not safe.
I bet myself, I'd never make it past today without eating a complete meal or snack, I'm a foodie might I mention.
April hearing my thoughts is nothing but amused by me "Jake you're a big baby, anyone ever told you that? " I just shake off the response I had in mind for her.
The house looks like a regular but I repeat nothing good comes from the woods. We hear a cabin shake and we stare at each other for a while cautious of everything.
She hates surprises, she's got no idea how much I hate them more. We draw out our guns to shoot, we creep closer to the cabin together. My heartbeat increases by the second, and I can't run, speak or even breathe.
This is not good and I know it. I hate this so much.
I'm not ready to die yet and I know it. Especially for some Olive keeper guy.
The ghost is here.
I hate this... I hate it. Lord help me.