Setting
Other than the fact of displeasing the spirits, Aya, the Goddess of Chaos, has taken over our world. She's crowned herself queen with the Gods' absence. The temples of each cities are the only safe haven from Aya. Each temple is protected by their rightful guardian spirit which gives her no power over. To Aya, we are nothing but puppets and she's the puppeteer.
The silence was broken with a piercing gasp. Bursting through the stone doors of the Chamber of Faith. Alexandros jumped to his feet and ran at the door.
"RINOA!!" he shouted in fear. Her faith was bounded to the those before her. He fell to his knees and tears ran down his cheeks. The stone doors rumbled as they pulled away from one another. Rinoa was laid down on the floor. Her father ran to her and took her in his arms. At first, he clenched her hard, but then he felt her breath sweep his neck. She groaned in weakness.
"Did I do it...." her eyes struggled to stay open. A smile lightened up her father's face as he held his daughter closer.
"You've done it. A summoner is here once more." she smiled at him shakily and passed out from her tiresome quest.
****
It was night time. The sky was clear and the night was still.
"Father, I must go to Serserus. My duty is to find the orbs." Rinoa looked to the ground. It broke her heart to leave her father, but she was chosen to do this task and she can't just let it go.
Her father didn't say a word. He sat on the floor, quietly meditating. A few moments passed and he stood up. Approaching his daughter, he picked up his sword.
"This is the Windbreaker. He's always done his job and he was your mother's. I know they both will take care of you." he handed her the sword. A small smile and a soft tear fell down Rinoa's cheek.
**
The next morning, she was set off. Her whole village watched and wished her the best.
"Wait!" her father exclaimed. "You are now Lady Rinoa. Don't ever forget that. The spirits chose you of all people. Don't let anyone abuse you for your power." he held her once more. Rinoa nodded and climbed up her black stallion. Kicking her heel to the side of the horse, the horse jolted off into the Terra Forest.
She paused in her walk and closed her eyes, listening to the sound of the nature around her. As soon as she heard the snap of a twig in the distance, her bow was off of the resting spot on her back, strung with a beautiful steel tipped arrow and poised in the direction. She smiled softly at the creaking sound the sting and the black wood of the bow made as they tugged and pulled at each other. It was a beautiful sound for her. She brought the string to her cheek, aimed, and shot. She sighed at the squeal of the doe she heard fall. She never missed her mark.
The silver haired woman began to make her way over, frowning at the deer who's blood was staining the pure snow. Right in the killzone. She leaned over it, pulled the arrow out and got to work on skinning and cutting the deer. She never much enjoyed this part, but it had to be done. Once she was finished, she used her reserves of salt on the meat to keep it fresh and packed it in her bag. She took the skin to sell to the market before she finally left, but left the entrails, bones and extra meat of the deer there. It was almost like her thanks to the predators of the forest that she had hunted in so long. A final gift to them.
She blew out a low whistle and soon, trading through the snow, came a beautiful black mare. On her was a saddle and a few bags filled with Elentiya's things. Elentiya smiled at the big beast and patted her nose. "Looks like its time to go Shadow," she hummed to the horse thoughtfully. The horse blew out a breath from her nose, making the air steam. Elentiya nodded and mounted the horse, jerking the reins, and off they went. As they left the forrest, her home, and her birth town behind, she couldn't help but think she would never see it again. So as they left, she slowly whispered, "Thank you."
He directed his horse to a nearby river bank and slid off, his armor clinking against one another. He pulled out his helmet, wiping away all the sweat that had gathered there. He pulled a canteen off of his side and took a slow sip. He had to ration. He watched his horse drink from the flowing water slowly and let out a soft breath. He would have to break here.
He led his horse to a shady tree and tied her up gently, stroking the soft brown nose. He looked down the Horizon, seeing more foliage and signs of civilization not far from his temporary camp. He leaned back. He would rest here for the evening, reach the village by afternoon.
Aldous steeled his jaw as he thought of the memories that gave him this goal of purging all of the evil spirits from the town. He took in a long breath of the air around him. His parents, slain. His two baby sisters, tortured endlessly before they were finally killed. He could have protected them. He shook his head slowly. It would not be good to get himself worked up. He needed to keep a clear head if he wanted to have any chance of fighting against the spirits.
He stood and gathered enough wood to make a small fire, making sure to get it far enough away from his horse to keep her calm. He used his flint and hurriedly got one going, settling down into the grass. He closed his eyes and let out a breath. It wouldnt be long until he would have no peace at all and the bloodshed would resume.
The wind through the air bristled against his skin, making the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. he exhaled and his breath took forms of large white puffs, dissipating only seconds after it left his lungs. He pulled his coat on and then pulled his hood over his head. It was going to be a long ride Serserus. He mounted his horse and almost as if on cue, the towns people crowded the sides of the streets and flocked to their windows. The ones on the street put nonperishable food in his pack and one even stopped to give him a few extra coats and even a blanket. He waved good-bye to everyone and then flicked the reigns and Majesty galloped along. This was it, headed to Serserus.
The Terra Forest was quiet. Day was quickly turning to night. It would be a good idea to start setting up a camp site before it gets too dark outside to gather some resources. Pulling back the ropes of her horse, she was able to stop Char from his gallops. She tied his bridle to a tall oak tree and removed the tarp from his back. Gathering some sticks, she was able to make shift a small tent for the night. All she needed was a log and some dry grass for fire and she would be all set.
After a while, she was able to gather up a log, some sticks and dry grass. Now comes the relentless task. Starting the fire. She knew it took patience and the right technique. So, she sat down with her back to the oak and began to rub the stick on the log, hoping for the best.
Her father was never the survivalist, considering he was a priest ,adventures was never his thing. Starting a fire was something Rinoa had only read about in her books, but have never actually attempted until now.
“Miss…” The young male called out, approaching a bit. “… the preparation are ready. Every guard is at their position to look out for any creatures that might come in.” He watched the Queen, the latter had her gaze outside. She squinted her eyes, seeming to try to look over the walls that protected her; that protected them. She then looked down at her people. Ever to working to make this place lovely.
“Tristan?” She called out.
“Yes, my majesty?” The butler asked.
“Do you fear that we might get killed?” She asked. The butler thought for a moment.
“Without missing respect, I wouldn’t say so. You know very well that our people are capable to defend themselves. Besides, your powers are, if I can permit the word, god-like.” That answer made her smirk, turning around at him to give a quick gaze.
“I’m happy that you think so. Pass the word around; once the barrier down, I’ll be leaving, but not for long. I just want to see closer what we are dealing with.” Tristan opened his mouth to say something, but only shut it afterward. He nodded.
“Understood.” He only said as he turned on his heels and walked away, slowly closing the door behind her. “She might have the powers, but I truly fear for her life sometimes.” He would mutter under his breath as he walked forward once again. By this time, Alivera was looked back at the bacony again.
“It is time.” She said to herself. She rose her umbrella before a beam was send towards the invisible wall. It didn’t destroy it, but more absorbed the border itself. Soon, it was as if the air fizzled, creating few holes. While on the inside it was simple as that, on the other side it was not. The outside would experience a bright flash of light through the sky, as if millions of fireflies rose into the sky. When the parts of the border disappeared, some of the city rose through the illusions. The impressive walls shows up, but also the improved trees within the city.
Once the process was done, there the city of Almadarin laid. This still impressive city which magic seemed to be ever so present. The air around the occupied seemed to rose up, bring peace in the souls of people around. Alivera smirked. Behind her, space seemed to rip itself up. It showed a dark place were eyes watched upon the outside. She let herself fall through the gap, it closing after her leaving.
She reappeared outside of the original border, sitting down in the middle of the air as another of those rips formed under her. With her umbrella opened behind her, she looked down onto the known land. “It has changed.” She said to herself, the rip moving around with her, transporting her body to look down at the potential damage.
She did use the light to gain her a bit of quicker travel, by mounting her horse and riding while the light still lasted. Once it faded though, she was left a bit hungry. She found a small clearing and easily made up a campfire. Kindling first, then stronger sticks and stronger logs. Then she strikes her flint and steel, caught embers and blew on the kindling to raise the flames. Simple as that. Survival skills were second nature to her. She had been taught such simple things when she was still in training years ago.
The white haired woman took her raw meat from a satchel, stick a long poker through it and used it to roast the meat over the fire. Hot food was much better for you and gave better nutrients. When you were a huntress, you needed to know these things, especially when off on a long hunting trip. She happily bit into the meat once it was finished cooking, letting Shadow graze as she did.
With a huff, she laid back in the grass and looked at the sky. The moon was beautiful here, but up North, in Orrina, it was stunning. Back home the moon had been the very focal point of the sky, the stars seemingly exploding outwards from it. Here though, more southern, there was less stars than she thought there would be.
Elentiya watched for a while longer before backing up, snuffing out her fire and moving on. Serserus was still a days journey away if only she made good time and no stops. She was surprised it had taken her such little time considering how far away the town was. Looks like when she had a mission, she stuck to it.
"Come, Ember. It's time to move.." He murmured to his faithful mare. He stroked her nose slowly before gathering his supplies and saddling up.
He mounted the strong beast easily and gently nudged her side, encouraging her to move. She let out a soft whinny before he felt the strong muscles beneath him move. He stroked her mane softly as they began the rest of their journey towards the village.
Aldous let out a soft breath. It was still a ways away. He prayed for a peaceful venture before snorting. That was merely a fantasy. He sighed and let the rhythmic footfalls of Ember soothe him. He needed to be ready at the drop of a hat.
Aldous briefly contemplated the meaning of the light still illuminating the sky. Was it their distress call? Was it simply a trick of the eye? A thing from nature? He shook his head. No matter. It was more motivation. He needed to arrive as quickly as possible.
Majesty's hooves clomped against the ground and then they were airborne yet again. His strides were so large but that was normal for a horse of his size. He patted his horse's neck. "Alright boy. Just a little farther then we can stop." He whispered to the horse, it neighing in understanding. The always seemed to have a connection even from when Majesty was a foal and he had chosen Kiyoshi. He shook off the thought and went back to watching ahead on him. He saw a figure in the distance. He pulled on Majesty's reigns slowing him down to a stop about 10 feet away from the figure that turned out to be a horse.
He dismounted his horse slowly, careful not to startle the beautiful mare. He tossed the rest of the apple he was holding to Majesty and approached the horse with his hand out. "Shh... ch... I'm not here to hurt you. Were you abandoned?" He asked, seeing no human in sight. No sign of a fire either. He looked on the horse's side seeing a small bag. Well, it had to belong to someone....
The man approached, and Elentiya could see the silver hair he had in the moon. That was a trait from Orrina... She frowned, but kept her bow poised just incase. Her horse was down there, and she would shoot if she needed to. Surprisingly though, the man calmly walked to Shadow, her horse, and whispered softly to it. Though she could hear, of course, she didn't care much for the mans kindness. She didn't like people encroaching up on her territory.
She aimed carefully and then let the string go. She smirked as it landed at its target, right between his feet. "Get away from her." She called out to him. She put her bow back and pulled out her two knives. She didn't have much trust of people now a days.
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