Chapter 1 Part 2
The air was quickly filled with the sound of shouting men and the sound of boots in mud.
"You should not have done that you know"
The middle man crawled backwords mummering to himself. He reaches to his waist pulling out a dagger and holding it up with both hands, point facing his assailant.
"now to end this befo-"
Ears perk up hearing the wizz of an oncoming arrow and drops down avoiding getting impaled. Quickly stands back up repaying the favor by shooting an arrow at the new threats.
"There he is!! Save him!"
The middle man looks to his side seeing his fellow humans rallying to his call of help. Seeing his assassin destracked he goes in to a clumsy lunge from the ground, expecting this she steps back avoiding his lung. She then kicks the dagger out of his hand and snatches it from the ground sliding it in her belt..
"If I cant kill you, I want a pri-"
Avoids another arrow and decides to back up into the shadows of her home.
"Till next time" She says with a grin.
As she flees into the forest The middle man stands up shaking with fear as the men of the camp gather around him asking what happined. He brushes them aside seeking only the solitude of his tent to sleep. As he walks on he sees the man she shot, an arrow perfectly in between his eyes. He shudders again and stalks off giving a few last orders.
"I want a man with a message sent to the BloodMoon Pact, tell them that they are hired Tell him to take the fasted horse, that black stallion will do..."
He stops right outside his tent flaps..
"And double the guard around my tent."
He stalks inside and tears off his cloths and dumps them on the floor complaining for they are all ruined and covered in mud. He sits at his desk peering at all the maps and papers of contracts and pills out the one for the mercenaries. He gives it a look over and pulls out his ink and dips his quill. He begins writing the details of the target. Location, Enthar Forest. Race, Unknown. Talents, Unknown. Race, Unknown. Weapon, bow. At the end of the paper he sees the asking price and sighs. Right below it he signs his name, Era Stough...
She is delighted running through the forest with the wind going through her hair and the rush of the recent fight. She slows down to a slow trot pulling out her new prize giving it a proper inspection. The daggers hilt is steel trimmed in gold and along the blade is an etched lion in a pounce and on the other side of the blade a lion on its back legs ready for an attack. All engraved in silver. Turning the blade back and forth the light is reflected off of its surface is tantalizing making a soft ohh escape from her lips.
Its almost an hour later when she comes up to a huge oak tree that reaches up further then all the surrounding trees. She tucks her prize back in her belt and makes sure her bow is secure and procedes to climb with ease. Half way up she gets the scent of her brother Earin. As she climbs up the last bit of trunk she emerges on a platform built up high into the branches. The floor is made out of naturally growing vines that criss cross thick enough to form a floor with a layer of giant leaves and threaded grass. The walls are composed of long dead straight pieces of branches woven together with vines. As for the roof is open to the trees canopy to naturally deflect the rain and block the wind but let efficient amounts of light in. The furniture is old hand made things made long ago by her parents. There where two beds, two tables, a chest banded in old worn iron, a weapon rack built into the wall, and a single shelf. And in the middle of it all, her brother Earin standing there staring at her with his blue eyes full of concern and and anger.
"Why where you late! Your never late! and why do I smell them on you! Why are you getting close to them when you can easily pick them off from the tree tops.... Oh! I know it! You let your curiosity get the better of you! didn't you?"
His eyes look over her and catches sight of the dagger.
"So this is what the smell is coming from... You know I worry about you Gelean."
His eyes then lose there anger as he waits for a responce.
Gelean pulls out the dagger for him to see and begins her tale.
"It was another attempt to clear out the forest, this time north. I was finishing with the last of the outer guards when I saw a group of three of them walk out form the camp. Two of them where wearing all steel..."
"Did you just say steel? FULL steel!?"
"yea.."
"They where knights then..."
"Knights... Well thees two knights where talking with another man in very finely made cloths, and he was yelling at them witch made me to believe he was of importance, I over heard him talking to them about their other attempts to invade our forest. He also talked about how he is going to get "help" to kill us I assume. I killed the two..knights... easily enough, but when I went to try and finish off that impotent man, he yelled and got me distracted. I lost my advantage of stealth so I had to retreat...But I did get this!"
She holds out the dagger for her brother to see but all he does is push it aside and embrace his sister.
"Don't you ever take a risk like that again, I don't know what I would do if I lost you..."
They part as Gelean un-slings her bow and places it on the table next to her bed, She then takes off her shrouds and places them on the shelf. She then sits on her bed looking over the dagger again as the night comes to life with the noises of wild life. She lifts up her eyes to look across the platform at her brother standing in the opening of the wall facing the north. His mednight silver fur catching the light and his tail waving side to side with the occasional breeze that would find its way into their home. He has one paw on the side of the opening and his hand is taunt with muscle. "He still hasn't gotten over it". She stands up and walks up behind him putting a paw on his shoulder feeling how tense it is. Knowing his sister he turns to face her.
"I'm sorry... Its just that I don't want to lose you. We are the only ones of our kind, and if they killed you.. or captured you... I couldn't live with myself."
He pauses taking a breath and continues.
"I think its time you know what happined to mother and father. It was about 18 years ago and you where 2. We all where out hunting and mother was watching over you as father taught me how to hunt. It was then that he caught the scent of the hunters, they where not looking for game like we where, they where hunting us. father told me to run back to you guys that he would draw they away from us and come back before sun down... He never did..."
Tears start welling up in his eyes as he stares at the same eyes of his sisters. She takes his hand and they both sit on her bed to continue the story.
"When I found you two and told mother of the hunters she grabbed you up and we went into hiding under this very tree. But the hunters found us... Mom... She distracted them and we where able to run for it, she says our blood has very special power, and that our race's bloodline must continue... that there are not that much of us out there... She gave her life so that we may have ours.. You must understand that, and don't take it for granite."
He stood up wiping the threatening tears out of his eyes starring down at his little sister. He grabs the dagger and puts it on the next to her bed.
"Sleep now, no more talk till tomorrow... Please"
He walks across the platform to his bed and buries himself under the sheets.
Gelean does the same but doesn't go to sleep. She lays there lessening to the few birds still awake, the crickits chirping for each other, the winds blowing through the leaves, to her heart aching...
