Wisdom

Shane’s tired brown eyes followed the crystal clear water as it cascaded off the edge of the cliff and down over the rocks, glistening in the sunlight and frothing into a white foam where it fell into the pool below. He let out a heavy sigh and leaned back against the nearly bald pine tree, keeping his gaze fixed on the pleasant sight of the waterfall from his perch upon a nearby hilltop. The sticky sap of the tree behind him stuck to his ragged clothes and pulled on his dirty, tangled hair, but Shane paid it no mind; he had other, more pressing pains to contend with. “Must we leave?” he asked, the sound of his voice startling twittering birds into silence.

Macy circled around in front of him, physically blocking his view of the waterfall. “Leave? Shane, you know it is not that simple. That which I had in mind was more akin to running than simply leaving,” she replied, her own voice low and threatening. She settled her hands on her narrow hips and glared down at his lounging form with cool blue eyes.

The bruises on her pale face were much more obvious in daylight when the contrast between her black hair and pale skin was greatest, and the sight pained Shane to no end. Despite all he had done to protect her, the world had its fair share of blows in. He drew his knees to his chest and let his hands drape over them, doing his best to ignore the raw, red lines that circled his wrists. Another sigh slipped past his lips as he met Macy’s gaze. “Look at me. Does it really look like I am in any condition to run?”

Macy narrowed her eyes and shifted her arms so that they crossed beneath her chest. “So you are willing to abandon all hope just because you are tired?”

“What about my appearance leaves room for hope?” Shane replied with a harsh laugh. “I am dying. We are all dying. Macy, this world is killing us and nothing we do will stop it.” He lightly ran his hands over his dirty face, careful of the bruises and fresh cuts that made his once handsome features into something grotesque. Beauty was a thing of the past. His fingers rubbed against the stubble on his cheeks with a raspy scratching sound before his hands slipped down his sides and came to rest on the mossy grass upon which he was sitting. Shane let his eyes fall closed and reveled in the feel of the sunlight against his skin.

Her hand struck his left cheek with a resounding clap and snapped his neck and head to the right. A groan bubbled up from Shane’s throat at the pain the sudden movement tore from his abused muscles. He opened his eyes and glared at Macy, whose face floated just inches from his. “What was that?”

“A wake up, I pray,” she said hotly and dropped to her knees beside him, still focused upon his face. “I know you are suffering, but I do not appreciate you throwing it at me like that. I love you, and watching you die is the last thing I want to do. What is to come of me if you die?”

“What more do you want of me, Macy? I have reached my limit,” Shane cried and stretched his legs out before him, wincing with every move. “This world has destroyed me.”

Tears welled in Macy’s blue eyes. She snatched Shane’s hand in her own and pulled it to her chest. “What do you see? You have always been able to see what is to come; maybe you can see a path away from the inevitable for us. I do not want to die, and I do not want to lose you.”

Shane closed his eyes to escape Macy’s penetrating stare. How was he supposed to tell her he had lost his ability to see the future? It was his limited precognitive ability that had gotten them this far in life, and without it, Shane had little hope they would have much chance to live out the week. He rubbed his brow with his free hand for a moment and then opened his eyes. “I cannot see, Macy. My ability has been taken from me just as surely as my health.”

The tears in Macy’s eyes burst past the dams of her eyelids and rolled down her narrow face, leaving streaks of pale, clean skin in their wake. “Are you sure?”

Shane nodded. “I have not been able to see in that sense for at least a week.”

“What does that mean for us? We cannot just give up; there is still hope; there is still life. The world cannot steal everything from us—I refuse to let it!” Macy yelled and released Shane’s cool hand from her grasp. She jumped to her feet and backed away. “There has to be some answer!”

Shane placed the flat of his hand against the sticky tree trunk and pulled himself to his feet. He wavered for a moment when the pain rose within him, but practice had served him well; he was able to suppress it without too much effort. “We could go to the Wisdom. The last group we traveled with mentioned how he had helped others with their plights. Perhaps he would do the same for us.”

“But we know nothing of his allegiances!”

“What other choice do we have?” Shane cried and took three quick steps forward, bringing him before Macy. He grabbed her arms and pulled her close. “Death awaits us down every other road.”

Macy lifted her chin and looked into his eyes. “I am frightened.”

Shane gently kissed her forehead and rested his rough cheek against the top of her head. “Do you trust me?”

“Of course, Shane. I love you.”

“Then let us do this. It is the only option left to us now that I can no longer see. I have no way to protect you, and I refuse to sit by and watch you suffer for my failings,” he whispered, the stubble on his jaw gently grazing against her thick brown hair as he spoke. He felt her consenting nod and allowed himself a small smile.

---

Shane winced when his bare foot landed on a dry twig and snapped it with a crack that seemed to echo through the abnormally quiet forest. Silence was of the utmost importance at this point; patrols constantly searched the woods, and they could not afford to be caught when they were so close to their goal. From what they could piece together, the Wisdom’s lair should be somewhere nearby, and Shane desperately wanted to find it before his strength gave out; three short days of traveling had already pushed him to his limit. He held his hand out behind him and bent his fingers, “Macy,” he whispered and glanced over his shoulder.

Macy crept out of the copse of brilliant green trees where they had made camp the night before and slipped her hand into his. “How much farther?”

Shane shrugged and drew her nearer. “Keep your eyes open.”

The two of them stepped out and continued across the leaf-strewn forest floor, searching as more leaves floated down from the branches above with every little gust of wind. They passed a rotted overturned cart, with its now dead and decaying horse still secured by the harness. Thankfully, the sight was partially hidden by the bright green foliage of the young trees and shrubs, but the forest did little to mask the almost sweet smell of death. The stench wafted through the trees and engulfed them as they walked by. Shane used the back of his hand to block his nose and watched Macy do the same, retching silently. She drew nearer to him, and he disentangled his hand from hers and draped his arm over her shoulders.

They smell slowly receded as they continued onward, walking through the seemingly endless forest. Hours slipped by before Macy’s eyes landed on something that did not fit, something that did not belong in this or any other forest. “Shane!” she cried softly and tugged his hand, pointing towards what looked like a nearly solid wall of ivy.

Shane turned and narrowed his eyes to better see. It seemed even his natural vision was beginning to desert him; the sooner they got to the Wisdom, the better. Among the densely packed vines, Shane could just barely make out the uneven bricks of a stone wall. “That must be it,” he grabbed Macy’s shoulders and turned her towards him, “You found it!”

Macy bowed her head and leaned against the shoulder of his soiled shirt. “We found it, Shane. You must not forget we are in this together.”

“How could I with you here by my side?” Shane replied and kissed her nose. “Shall we enter?”

Macy lifted her head with a laugh and smiled. “If we can find the opening; the vines seem to be doing a fair job of hiding what they are meant to hide.”

“Start here, and I will work from the other end. We will find it soon enough,” Shane replied and released Macy after giving her another kiss, this time on the lips.

Shane parted a particularly dense cluster of ivy and motioned Macy over as a blackened and warped wooden door came into view. “Are you ready?”

Macy nodded and helped Shane pull open the heavy wooden door that he was incapable of moving on his own. He was panting heavily by the time the door had been opened far enough to allow them passage. Macy helped him sit on the top step that descended into the darkness the door had revealed and dabbed his forehead with the hem of her torn shirt. “Are you well? We can wait to go in until you are better.”

Shane shook his head and pushed her caring hands away. “We need to do this now. The longer we wait, the greater chance there is of our being found and caught,” he said and rose, using Macy’s shoulders to steady himself.

“All right.” Macy rose and hooked her thin arm around Shane’s. She took a deep breath and together they stepped down onto the second step, their bare feet carefully probing the cool, damp stone to avoid any missteps.

The passage narrowed and curved as they descended farther, forcing them to shift into a single-file line which Shane insisted on leading as the darkness moved in around them, but their hands never parted. Shane slipped once on the stone stairs, but with the walls so close, he was able to steady himself before falling. “Be careful,” he whispered back to Macy.

“I will.” She tightened her hold on Shane’s hand. “I love you.”

“And I you,” Shane said, glancing over his shoulder to look at her. He smiled and paused, half turning on the steps in the fading light. He popped up on his toes and planted a kiss on Macy’s shadowed lips.

She lifted a hand and ran her fingers over his cheek. “Shane,” she whispered; nothing more had to be said.

Shane turned back around and started forward once again, drawing Macy along with him.

The bottom of the stairs came suddenly in a darkness so complete that Shane had no way to anticipate their end. He stepped down and then moved to repeat the process, but rather than land on the next step, his foot collided with the cool, slick stone of even ground. A crunch sounded through the darkened passage and Shane tumbled to the floor with a strangled cry, their interlocked hands forcing Macy down with him. Shane let out a wheezed breath as Macy’s slight weight landed directly on top of him, weighing heavily on his already wounded body.

Macy got up quickly and knelt beside him. “What happened?”

“My ankle,” was all Shane could force out of his recovering lungs and body. He doubled over and gingerly felt his ankle with his freshly scraped fingers. The skin was warm and already puffy, and though it did not feel broken, Shane did not know enough to be certain. All he knew was he had done enough damage to make the rest of their journey quite painful. “I think it is sprained.”

“Thank goodness we are almost there,” Macy muttered and hugged him. “I can help you the rest of the way.” She hooked her hands under his shoulders and heaved, pulling him to his feet as she stood. “Lean on me.”

Shane did as she said and relieved the pressure on his ankle. “I cannot believe I did that.”

“It happens to the best of us,” Macy quipped and kissed his cheek. “Come on.” She started forward with shuffling steps to get a feel for the floor on which they walked; there was no sense risking a repeat of the stairs episode.

They walked down the slightly damp, dark passageway, the echo of their bare feet lightly scraping the stone floor and kicking up loose pebbles the only sound in the subterranean hall aside from their ragged breathing. Shane held his hand out before them, testing the way to make sure they did not run in to anything in the inky blackness. They walked for an indeterminable amount of time through the darkness before Shane’s fingers brushed a hard surface. He pulled Macy to a stop and tightened his arm around her waist. This was it; this was what they had come for.

“You ready?” he whispered, his lips mere centimeters from Macy’s ear.

He felt her nod and closed his eyes, hoping that he could get a feel for the future, hoping that his precognitive ability had returned to him so he could see what was to come next, but nothing came. He was truly blinded. Shane opened his eyes into the darkness again and turned Macy to him. “We are free now. The Wisdom will help us as he has helped so many others.”

“I know,” she whispered, but Shane could hear the fear in her voice. He lightly traced her face with his fingertips and leaned forward to kiss her before entwining his fingers in hers once more and facing the door together.

Shane reached out and felt along the face of the rough wooden door, his fingers searching for some way of entry. Splinters jutting out from the coarse wood jabbed the tender skin of his hands, but he did not stop. After a moment, he felt the edge of a metal loop and grasped the cool ring in his hand. As he tightened his hold on Macy’s small hand, he pulled, and the door swung open with surprising ease. The blast of light that followed blinded them both, but Shane did not let that stop them. He stepped into the brightness with Macy, and neither of them flinched when the doors slammed shut behind them for they had found the Wisdom and for first time in years they knew peace…