Gorro Atome's Arc

Chapter 4 of 6

Gorro ran. His boots tore through the brush as Eborsiks crashed behind him. His mother's face flashed in his mind. Then his father's. Their smiles, frozen the way a child remembers. His foot caught a tangle of dry twigs and he went down hard. He rolled and looked up. Eborsiks stood over him, claw raised. Gorro closed his eyes and waited for the end. A roar of cold wind hit instead. A swirling dark aura slammed into the dragon's claw and shoved him back into the dirt. From the shadow stepped a knight in black armor, wide black wings spread wide. He did not look at Gorro. He turned and ran deeper into the trees. Eborsiks pushed up, snarled, and gave chase. The ground shook and went still. Gorro lay there, breathing. He pulled a small folded book from his belt, the one that held every backup he had ever written. His original plan was dead. His face was known. He had to start over. He pushed up and ran the other way, lungs burning, until the trees opened. Below him sat a small town of thatched roofs and stone paths. He knew the cottage near the edge. He had lived there with his grandparents after the night his parents died. Gorro wiped blood from his lip. He started down the hill. He would not hide. He would prepare again, here, where it all began.