PoV: Sonic

"Sonic!" I was called out from the forest where I was picking more herbs for the sick men who were slowly recovering, "It's Ana! She's returned!"

"She what?" I ran back as quickly as possible Ana was back and barely standing, "Ana!"

  I grabbed her. She was stripped of her clothing, blood stained the fur of her legs...

"Sonic... you have to get the girls away... please... they want all the girls..." she cried, "Get them all out of here."

"Ana, I will. I promise," she collapsed and died in my arms...

"What happened?"

"They rejected her too?"

"How many girls are we going to have to send?"

"Everyone!" I shouted, "We have to get all the women out of the village! Before the high priest comes for them! We need to get them to a safe location!"

"Sonic, relax," the grand priest arrived, "They clearly didn't want a girl filthy with sins, so we will offer them a girl who is pure and untouched by man. With that, they are sure to be satisfied."

"This isn't working, you can't send every girl into the shrine. They'll kill all our women. It's inhuman!" I argued.

"You do not even pray! How does a sinner like you know what's best for the village!" He shouted.

"I know what's best for the people," I growled.

"How many women are we going to have to sacrifice?" The girls started panicking.

"Hopefully only this one," the grand priest said as the bell rang again.

  The second girl went in quietly, tears pouring from her eyes. The sky cleared, and the villages whispered that their prayers had been answered, but the next day... we were all proven wrong.

  The second girl was found, naked and bleeding. I heard her begging for me to get the girls to safety like Ana did before she passed away...

  The grand priest ignored me, each day he would force another screaming and crying girl into the shrine, only for her to die the next day.

---

"Take this and follow the trail of clovers through the forest. The other girls will be there," I backed food, seeds, water, meat, and herbs into a crate and handed it to the three girls in my hut.

"Thank you!" They hugged me, "Can't you come with us Sonic?"

"If I leave they'll know I'm helping you escape," I hugged the girls, "Now go.  Before the sun rises."

  It had been days since the girls had started being sacrificed. I had been helping them escape and run away since. They were starting another village south of here beyond the forest, they would be safe there. The sun rose and I went back to gathering food and water for the girls who were escaping tonight.

  The sacrifice bells rang again at the sun's peak...

"Today! We offer two girls!" The grand priest shouted.

  The loud crash of thunder distracted us all. A large black flame rose in the center of the village. We raced there to see what had caught fire and who needed help. We found the ground scorched but no homes were destroyed. Floating about it all was a black ring... a small crown...

"What is that?"

"Haven't they tormented us enough?"

"What are they planning to do now?"

"Sonic," Sally walked up to me, "Do you know what this is?"

"I don't. I've never seen a black crown before..."

  The grand priest walked up to it and it moved away, "It's cursed!"

  It didn't matter what was thrown at the crown or who reached for it. Nothing could touch it. It eventually floated over Sally and me.

"There's something engraved inside," Sally said, "If this crown selects what we desire, we shall stop the bad omens within your village. So long as you obey the decision."

"That can't possibly be what the blasted thing said," the high priest reached for it and it flew away.

"I'm afraid so sire," Sally said, "This crown is going to select what it wants, and we'll have to sacrifice it..."

"We have no choice..." the high priest said, "If it'll save the village, we have to do as it says."

The crown floated around over the villagers, hovering over the terrified girls for moments before moving on. Then it floated over me and Sally, but this time... it wasn't moving on, it was only coming closer.

"No!" I moved in front of Sally and the high priest grabbed me.

"Sonic enough! We must respect its decision!" He snapped.

"But I can't let it take anyone here!" I snapped.

"Sonic!" Sally was holding the crown, but it looked as though she was pulling it to her rather than pushing it away, "It isn't after me! I think... it wants.. you..." she was struggling.

"That's impossible!" The high priest pulled me away, "It must desire me."

The crown moved away from him and out of Sally's hands. It kept coming closer to me.

"No way..." I backed away and it only moved faster.

"No!" Other villagers grabbed the crown, "Anyone but him!"

"He's the only one who can heal anyone."

"Sonic run!"

  I started to run and tripped, my legs were completely tangled in black vines. I couldn't move, I was trapped...

"You fools! You must let the crown decide!" The high priest shouted, "Sonic is a sacrifice now. He will free our village."

"You should be the sacrifice!"

"Ah!" The crown pulled them all closer to me.

  I was too tangled to move, the vines were crawling further up my legs... it flew towards me, freeing itself from all the several hands holding it. I kept moving my head to keep it away and I was forced to hold still with an arm around my throat.

"THIS IS WHAT THE DEMONS WANT!"  The high priest shouted, holding me in a choke hold with one arm, and shakily holding the crown in the other, "SO WE WILL GIVE IT TO THEM! IT IS FOR OUR FREEDOM AS A VILLAGE! Your sacrifice will not be forgotten Sonic, my dear."

  He brought the crown down closer to me. I shut my eyes and struggled before the burning metal wrapped itself around my head.

"AAHHHH!!!" It burned! I felt like it was burning my entire body.

"Sonic!" Sally grabbed me as the vines released my legs, "I'm getting this off you," She pulled at the crown but it wouldn't budge, "Come on..."

"Sally..." I held her hands, "It's okay..."

"No, it's not okay. No one knows herbs like you. No one can listen to a breath and tell an illness like you. You're amazing. I can't lose you."

"You'll still have me. I have scrolls of everything I know in my hut. Use them, Sally. Study them. Then teach the children for me..."

"Sonic you can't die!" One of the children I often babysat hugged me.

"I won't, I promise, I'll be okay," I was taken away and forced to wear a traditional white kimono as a sacrifice... I stood outside the shrine... the moment I removed my gate to step into the shrine I felt my heart sink. The door was locked behind me, no amount of screaming and crying out would free me. As the sun began to set...

... I was at the mercy of darkness and chaos...

~~~