The Feral Sentence - Part One Read Free Page B

interjected.
    Fisher joined in on the conversation, shaking a clenched fist
in the air. “I’ll be the first to rip off Rainer’s fucking head!”
Her muscles bulged out from underneath her tanned skin, and I could
tell she’d been born to fight.
    “ Rainer?” I asked.
    Trim
stopped walking. She slowly turned around, as if insulted by the
very name.
    “ Their leader,” she said scornfully.
    “ Whatever you do,” Rocket warned, “don’t mention that name in
front of Murk.”
    “ And Murk is your leader?” I asked.
    Trim was
suddenly standing in front of me, her cold blade pressed against
the base of my throat.
    “ Yours too,” she said, glaring. “Or would you rather go find
the Northers?”
    I
swallowed hard.
    “ That’s not what Brone meant—” Rocket said.
    “ Shut up,” Trim ordered. I felt the sharp edge of her knife
press harder into my skin. “Well?” she asked.
    “ No,” I said. “No. I just meant… I was just trying to
understand the hierarchy. I don’t know how things are run here… I’m
sorry if I…”
    She
suddenly pulled away and stored her weapon.
    “ Good,” she said. “Just making sure.”
    I noticed a satisfied smile curve at the corners of her lips,
but I failed to see the humor in her reaction. My heart was racing,
and my mouth was completely dry. Why was I being treated like the
enemy? I wasn’t here to harm anyone.
    “ Don’t take it personally,” Flander said, tapping me hard on
the back. “She wouldn’t be a good leader if she didn’t instill fear
every once in a while.”
    I resentfully accepted this advice and decided it was best to
continue following, despite my anger toward Trim. We continued
through the jungle for a while, Fisher and Eagle alternating turns
pulling the boar.
    My legs
were about to give out when I finally noticed light being cast
through the trees. As we moved closer, the light expanded, and I
realized we were exiting the forest—or at least, nearing an
opening. Had we crossed the island? My feet were throbbing and my
muscles burned. I wanted to collapse. As we moved closer to the
light, I realized that the brightness was not being cast by the
sun, but rather, by its reflection over a beautiful bed of green
water. The water was surrounded by some of the tallest trees I’d
ever seen—walls built of greenery that formed a natural
enclosure.
    A cool
mist floated in the air. I parted my lips, allowing several
droplets to land on the tip of my tongue. I swallowed hard, my
throat sticking, and I wanted nothing more than to dive into the
water and drink until my stomach blew. I’d never felt so thirsty in
my life.
    A
consistent static echoed in the distance—the sound of water
crashing against water. I knew we’d reached a waterfall. We stepped
out into the opening; it was encircled by tall trees and a rocky
surface, and I immediately realized we weren’t alone.
    Surrounding the large circular shaped body of emerald green
water were women with similar attributes to those who’d found me.
They were wild looking with their tangled hair, their tattooed
arms, and their suntanned skin. The ages varied—from adolescents to
elderly who required assistance with their bodily
movements.
    There were women skinning animals and removing their bloody
body parts for meat and other materials; women working with some
type of contraption in the sand, which appeared to be a handmade
water filtration system; women sewing leather to construct clothing
and shelter; women chopping away at logs of wood; and women working
the earth, cultivating and planting a multitude of fruits and
vegetables—a society working together to ensure all basic needs
were obtainable.
    We moved in closer, and I felt several eyes turn my way. These
women stood tall, their chests heaved and their shoulders drew back
as if preparing to face a potential threat. I didn’t blame
them—they didn’t know me, after all. I could have easily been a
Norther or even one of the outcasts, as