[Pov. Ikari]
I fell to the ground, the weight of the soldier crushing me against the dirt. The impact knocked the air from my lungs, and for a second, my vision blurred.
"Ikari!"
"HAH!" I opened my mouth, sucking in air over and over until my vision returned to normal. Mom was by my side, struggling to lift the soldier's body off me. "Mom—" My voice broke when I felt something warm and sticky running down my neck, the metallic scent filling my nose. 'What...'
"Argh!" With a grunt of effort, Mom rolled the soldier's body aside, freeing me from the weight. "My son, are you alright?" She pulled me against her chest, wrapping her arms tightly around me.
The warmth of her embrace was comforting, safe, but the tears came uncontrollably. Fear, anger, everything overflowed as I listened to her heartbeat echoing in my ear. "Mom..."
"Shh, it's alright, my love," she whispered in my ear. "You're alright, we're alright." Her words calmed me, but then my eyes slid to the side—and I regretted it instantly.
The soldier lay face down, his head turned toward us. His eyes were bulging out of their sockets, as if pushed from the inside out. Further down, his neck was torn and exposed, blood freely pouring onto the ground.
'Did I... do this?' I lowered my gaze to my hand, neck, and chest—all stained red. His blood was on me, staining my mother's dress as well. 'What did I do—'
"Ikari." Two hands held my face, forcing me to look up. "Don't look at him, just at me, ok? Keep your eyes on my face," Mom said slowly, looking into my eyes.
I nodded weakly. I wanted to speak, move, do something, but my body felt trapped and numb on the ground. My mind was a blur, the shock of what I'd seen paralyzing me.
Mom slid an arm under my legs and lifted me into her lap, as if she already knew I wouldn't be able to stand. "Let's get out of here, my love," she murmured softly into my ear. "We're alright, ok? We'll be alright." She started walking, carrying me carefully toward the end of the alley.
The village pulsed with the presence of soldiers — loud laughter, orders, moans, the clinking of cups, and the crackling of fires. Mama crouched down, hiding behind a wooden barrel. "Stay quiet, Ikari," she whispered, adjusting my weight in her arms. "They won't find us. I promise."
She peeked at the main street, where the shadows of soldiers danced under the torchlight. Her eyes tracked every movement before she slid into the shadow behind a stack of crates. "You were so brave, my love," Mama kept whispering into my ear. "You protected me, understand? You did nothing wrong."
We moved silently, following the shadows as we approached the edge of the village. Each time a soldier appeared, Mama stopped, using the darkness as a shield.
"And Grandpa?" I asked softly, finally managing to move my mouth.
"We'll come back to find him later," Mama replied, slipping into another alley between houses. Cries of pain echoed from one of the windows, making me wonder what was happening inside.
Mama covered my ear with her hand and quickened her pace. At the end of the alley, a low fence marked the edge of the village, and beyond it, the forest rose, dark and dense. She leapt over the fence with ease, glanced back for a moment, and then ran into the woods.
***
"Would someone care to explain what happened here?" The commander's voice sliced through the air like a blade, cold and dangerous, as he stared at the grotesquely mutilated body of the soldier at his feet. The torchlight gleamed in his narrowed eyes, reflecting off the blood-soaked earth.
"W-we don't know, sir," stammered one of the soldiers, his face pale beneath the helmet. "No one... no one's ever seen anything like this." He swallowed hard, his eyes darting away from the torn neck and bulging eyes of the corpse.
"Tsk." The commander crouched down, the leather of his armor creaking. He examined the body with a clinical gaze, his fingers hovering over the jagged wound on the neck. "Tracks?"
"Yes, sir," answered another soldier. "We've already sent three men to follow the footprints. They went into the forest."
"Good. But we can't stay here any longer. This place is no longer safe." The commander stood, wiping his hand on the uniform of the corpse. "Gather the men. We leave at dawn."
***
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, images or songs featured in this fic. Additionally, I do not claim ownership of any products or properties mentioned in this novel. This work is entirely fanfic.