Contest entry for Steemit virus contest #6

The following story is an entry for the contest found here.
The image in this post is provided by @steemit-virus

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The sound of footsteps grew louder as he exited a tunnel in the row of many and vaulted over a small ledge, red hair haphazardly flying around. He didn’t miss a step making a sharp left turn even as his hands shaked. His breathing was labored but that didn’t stop him either, his eyes tirelessly scanning his surroundings in search of a good hiding spot. When he spotted a small ledge, covered by black, tired roots, nearly invisible in the cavern system only lit by small crystals, he heaved himself up using his remaining strength. And then he waited.

It wasn’t even half a minute after he calmed his breathing that a small group of something akin to armoured guards came by and passed his hiding spot, completely ignorant to him. He was sure they weren’t used to doing any actual guarding work anyway.

A few minutes passed before he dared to even think about moving, then he stretched his still shaking hands and ruffled his hair. A quiet snicker left his mouth while he climbed from the ledge and found his way out of that particular cavern. Knowing that the guards went in the opposite direction his steps lightened – a bit of worry even disappeared because he knew there weren’t a lot of people in the habit of walking through this system, let alone people who had the knowledge to pass through them unharmed.

The levels of adrenaline were letting up when he made it from the caves to a thick oak forest. His feet took him through a path longer since overgrown with moss; he only knew of it because of a disused map he swiped from his boss. The forest was tranquil and it lulled him into deep thoughts, making him miss a person hiding behind a wide trunk. His breath hitched and his eyes went wild when he caught the sound of someone taking a step beside him. He turned his head, completely ready to attack but he was rudely interrupted.
“ You stubborn brat, don’t tell me you touched it?”
After the quick shock of seeing one of his older friends instead of what he thought was surely an enemy, his lips stretched wide in a wicked grin.
“ After a challenge like that, who wouldn’t?” he even gave a cheeky wink to his companion who refused to smile back.
“ Show me your hands” worry seeped into his voice.
Slowly the readhead upturned his hands, still trembling, as they will continue doing after his mischief. They showed skin blackened as if dirty, but in reality affected by something else.

The companion gripped his shoulders and shook him for what he was worth
“You fool, you are playing with things beyond you. I told you before this was an ancient power our bodies can’t hold.”

The redhead removed the hands touching him and shrugged
“You can’t know if you don’t try. We don’t even know if what you are saying is true, after all, there are no records of anyone ever going near that thing and it didn’t even hurt me, not really.” He lifted his hands up as if to prove what he was saying.
The companion looked uneasy as he sighed.
“We shall se.”