Chapter 49 : On the Other Side of the Waterfalls

When Theo and Rakiza emerged from a tunnel after pulling themselves from the water on the other side of the waterfalls, an arrow struck a tree. The arrow came from a ten-year-old boy who appeared to be practicing with the bow and arrow. They also heard the scream of a wounded warrior as they ascended a cliff. "What does that scream mean?" Rakiza took her hand away from Theo's. They're all saturated, and Rakiza was taken aback when she observed a large open plain with injured troops strewn about. There were agonizing faces everywhere, as well as bleeding broken armor, half-swords, and helmets. Cadavers lined up along one side of the plain mountain, resembling mashed-up human-sized dolls.
"What is this place, my goodness?" Rakiza's cheeks flushed as she moved down the corridor, checking to see whether what she saw was real or just a snippet of a dream. The agony and pain on the faces of the injured werewolf armies was palpable, while on the other side stood a group of busy older males and females, one of whom was the old man who accompanied and led them. They were attending to those who were still alive and administering treatment. Children with melancholy cheeks waited for something with weeping eyes beneath the thick leaves of the trees.
The most heartbreaking scene was when she saw a wailing five-year-old child sitting next to a dead body. Even though the man's body was disfigured and his face was beyond recognition, the youngster recognized him as his father. Rakiza's heart was broken with anguish, and she really wanted to console the youngster, but Theo drew her away from the terrible and heartbreaking depiction of a combat scene. She wasn't even aware that she was crying, but Theo was.
"What caused you to cry?" Theo was still clutching Rakiza's hand as they walked to one of the camp's tents.
"You didn’t answer me. Why are they crying? And what happened to them? Where did they come from? " Rakiza’s voice was broken and angry.
"Relax, we have to change into dry clothes before you get cold." Theo led Rakiza into an empty tent. Rakiza, who had not enough sleep, coveted the single tent and the bed.
"Wait for your dry clothes here; don't worry, all your questions will be answered after we dry ourselves off." Theo then exited the tent, leaving Rakiza, who was still shaken by what she had witnessed. She was on the other side of the stunning waterfalls, and she had not expected to see such a tragic scene on this side. She was so upset that tears streamed down her cheeks. And she was curious about Theo.
And what life did Theo have to leave behind for such a long time? And why was he guarding her? And she was perplexed as to why Theo had suddenly appeared in her life and claimed to be her guardian.
There must be a reason why it happened and why he revealed the heinous deaths.
The scene she had witnessed outside the tents remained etched in her mind and kept flashing back. And the blood and wounds are dreadful. After a few moments, a woman entered and handed Rakiza a complete set of dry clothes to put on. The woman was so depressed that she didn't even look Rakiza in the eyes. "Is there anything you need that I missed to think about, Miss?" she asked, looking down at the lady who inquired politely.
"You've gone above and beyond, and bringing me something to wear is more than enough." Rakiza said, "But I have a question that you might be able to answer."
I'd like to ask you a few questions. "
"I'm sorry, but we are not permitted to speak with you or answer your question," the woman apologized. "It's a violation of the law and only the Alpha can answer your questions or decide who can entertain a visitor's inquiry."
"What is alpha?" Rakiza asked. "What exactly do you mean?" While Rakiza was looking for the girl, another woman came in with a tray of food. The first woman then asked for permission to leave. "Please excuse me, Miss, and have a nice meal," the two women said, leaving Rakiza perplexed. She was still perplexed by what was going on in her surroundings. Where have you gone, Theo? She pondered. She was curious as to what that place was all about.
But all she could do was change her clothes, eat, and wait for Theo to return. She sat on the bed, wrapped in a warm bed sheet. She dozed off and dreamed.
Rakiza had returned to the field where she had strolled a while before, and she was standing on the top of the hills, looking down the plain with so many deaths. And uniformed armies in full armor gear, each with a flowing red cape, spread across the spreading cadaver. They also have spears in their right hands. They're all primed to kill again. And she could see herself in full body war armor in silver.
Her heart was racing, as if she was eager and excited to kill those cretins on the other side. And when a gong struck once, the once-perfect line of the capped warriors across the plain was broken, and they were hungry and screaming to attack again, to kill the helpless unarmed people by their side, and the fighting began. Rakiza felt the rage and emotional pain of loss, so she drew her sword, screamed angrily, and ran towards the thousand capped men. And she kept slashing, kicking, and slamming the opponents. And one of her opponents grabbed her arms and swung her around, slamming her to the ground.
The enemy then aimed the sliver sword at her heart, but the motion became slower and she could see the enemy's blazing eyes and the long canine that were dripping with blood from his mouth. He trashed his sword into Rakiza's heart in slow motion, and she let out a long cry of death that echoed in her ears. And then she trembled like a car accelerator being slammed down hard to the highest speed level into her death, but she drew her last breath, and she heard a voice screaming, but another voice beating at her, "Wake up, Rakiza!" Rakiza was then awakened.
The first thing she noticed with his hands on her shoulder was Theo's worried expression. "What did you see in your dream?" He inquired.
Rakiza was gasping for air, still recalling the scene from her dream. Her heart was still filled with rage, and the desire to kill was still coursing through her veins, and she was trembling. However, Theo's presence and fresh breath jolted her back to reality. She sat back down and looked at Theo. "What exactly is this location?"
Theo stepped back, releasing Rakiza's shoulder, and took a step in front of her, still staring at her with a deep, serious gaze. "You are now in my world, the Niera," he gritted, continuing, "and what you've seen are my people defending the borders from vampire invasions." They were determined to shed their blood just to save the majority of us from slavery and death, as well as our children from slavery and death. But yesterday's battle favored the enemy, the vampires, and resulted in the deaths of some of our dedicated fighters, because our kind has some weaknesses that are easily bewitched by the vampires, and they become traitors to their own kind. "
The tent's exit door opened, and Ajella entered with vigour. "They caught him," she said as she walked away without looking at Rakiza.
"If you want to learn more about us, you must accompany me," Theo said, as he waited for Rakiza to rise to her feet and led her through some tents.
Rakiza's knee was still wobbly and her stomach was churning as they approached a larger tent and heard the cries of a tortured man. She came to a halt and expressed a desire to return to her tent. She could sense a gruesome scene inside the tent, but Theo gripped her elbow so tightly that she couldn't take a step back. Theo drew her slowly into the tent, and she was correct. It's a place of torment.
A wounded man was being tied to a large pole and was bathed in his own blood, and standing next to him was a large man holding a whip. He stood like an axe-man, a "Verdugo."
Theo commanded the large man, "Did you crack out something from him?"
The big man answered, "He told them about the secret passage going here from the west."
"Leave us alone, please," Theo dismissed the man and walked towards the beaten man.
"Why did you betray your own kind?" Theo asked him in a deep, bitter tone.
"I'm sorry," the man stammered, and he pleaded, "Please forgive me." I was just tired of running like a rat being chased by a dog. "I want to live a free life."
"We will never be free if someone like you puts our enemy ahead of us, your family." You're a disgrace to your pack. And you should be expelled from the realm. "
"Oh no, don't do it. They'd kill me if they found out I'd been kicked out. It will give them the impression that I blew my cover and was caught. "
Theo drew an iron chain from the corner and wrapped it around the man's body, as if to ensure that he would never be able to escape. Rakiza couldn't bear looking at the tethered man gasping for air, and he was sorry for what he had done.
Rakiza was trying to stop Theo from doing whatever he was about to do to the man. But he was adamant about carrying out his plan with him. "Show her what you truly are," he said as he tied the chain around his waist.
Rakiza frowned when she heard Theo's command to the man. "What are you trying to do, Theo?" she asked, sensing something was not quite right.
As Theo removed his shirt and challenged the tethered man, he was threatening him with a fight!
"Show her who we truly are!" Theo yelled as he slammed the chain's loose end in the man's face and screamed, "Show her what you've got, in your traitorous black soul!" And he smacked the man again. "Show Rakiza how despicable you are!" And another blow, "Demonstrate your treachery!" He smacked him again, hard.
"Stop it, Theo!" screamed Rakiza. "He's no match for you!" She cried, "He's imprisoned, but you're not!"
But Theo didn't hear Rakiza scream. He continued to beat the tied-man harder and harder until the man trembled in a rage. "I'm aware of the ruse you're employing! You sold us to our adversary! You sided with the vampires instead of your own kind, your own pack!” He punched the man in the face, causing him to growl angrily.
Rakiza screamed and smacked Theo hard to stop him from beating the tied-man. "Stop it, your heartless madman! Don't kill him in that chain! There's no honor in that! " She kept beating Theo's chest, but he didn't stop. The tethered man growled angrily, as if he were a wild animal. And he tried to shake the chain that was wrapped around his neck and down to his waist. He growled once more, and Rakiza turned to face the man who was transforming into something gruesome. His face was slowly stretching. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets, as he began to deform into an animal, a werewolf.
Rakiza froze as she watched Theo begin to transform into a werewolf.
Theo began to feel uneasy. "Rakiza, it's time to get out of the tent."
Rakiza looked at Theo, terrified of witnessing the same transformation as the tied-man. She took a step back, as if she already knew what was going to happen. She had a feeling this was nothing new to her, but she couldn't place it.
Both Theo and the tied-man were transforming, which was gruesome to witness and so terrifying that Rakiza froze, unable to comprehend what was about to happen. "Get out, Rakiza!" screamed Theo angrily, in a growling voice. Rakiza was startled when she heard Theo's scream and realized he was a werewolf.
As the two monsters began to scream, someone grabbed her arms and dragged her out of the tent.
Rakiza wanted to watch more but couldn't get Ajella's grip off her arms. And everyone outside the tent was drawn to the tent. And Rakiza was once again unsure what happened to the two monsters inside the tent. She only heard growling and crashing inside the tents and felt the ground vibrate as a result of their brawling. And then the tent collapsed, leaving everyone wondering what would happen next. Then one of the werewolves ran into the woods bleeding, pursued by the other werewolf, and slashed one side of the collapsed tent. Rakiza couldn't figure out who Theo was among the two werewolves who vanished into the woods.
Rakiza was terrified after learning that Theo was a werewolf.