Ashes to Ashes

Chapter Three - Valley

There had been only a few beasts to fight as Kiell and his three companions made their way through the Forest of Urak. He had been surprised at the small number they had come across, but didn't have time to examine it closely. They had been mostly docile, the beasts, but still time consuming as they fought them, and made their way deeper into the woods. He moved as fast as he could, not wanting to waste a second as they went. He had to get to the girl. Talah was adamant about her being in danger.

The girl. He hated what she was. Valkyries were responsible for The Taking. For his mother's death. There could be no forgiving what they had done. And over what? Land? But he wasn't sure if he hated her. He didn't even know her, except for what he had dreamed, but he knew her still. It was a feeling he had, something that was driving him to move just a little bit faster, fight a little harder, to get to her. To make sure she was safe. He told himself that once she was safe, he could hate her then, but even that thought felt like a lie.

Urak was a dense forest, with leafy rooftops that blocked most of the daylight, casting heavy shadows along the forest floor. There wasn't much over growth, but the forest was also heavily populated by wild animals and beasts. Or, at least, it usually was. The forest was never a place that people wandered into for a casual walk. The untamed animals and sand traps made Urak a dangerous place, and the only people one would find in it were hunters, and those traveling to and from the veil.

Kiell looked up at Moro, who ,was a full head shorter than Kiell and had a gift for speed when fighting, had stopped behind a tree and was peering around it, towards the veil, which was a small pond, with an almost yellow glow to it. Everyone else stopped as well, their eyes on Moro, waiting for his signal. Kiell listened carefully. Taking a deep breath and drawing the air closer to him, he could hear a Null Bird in the distance singing its soft tune, and small animal behind him digging in the ground, and something else in front of him, closer to Moro. Something large was shuffling up ahead, where the pond was, but he couldn't see anything through the trees and bush.

Moro walked towards him a minute later, his right hand resting on a very small dagger on his hip. "A Leech is guarding the pond" Moro said, nodding his head towards the direction he had come from. "Should be easy enough to subdue." Everyone nodded in response. Kiell was the first to move, a relaxed stance as he approached the creature. It was not the first one he had fought, nor would it be his last, and they did not pose much of a threat. They liked to wait by the veil for unsuspecting travelers who were crossing through.

Keill weaved through the trees silently, his gift keeping his feet a mere breath off the ground, and he stopped behind the same tree Moro had stopped behind. Peering around it, he could see the Leech slithering near the pond. Its body was long like a snake, with large legs it crawled on, black oily skin that looked rough and leathery, and a stretched face with what looked like a suction cup on the end, and white beady eyes that jittered back and forwards.

Kiell lifted his left arm towards the creature, and the air began to ripple around it. It jerked quickly, startled, and turned, instantly finding Kiell and trying to move towards him, but it was too late for the Leech. Kiell forced a little more energy out through his hand, the air around the creature became heavy, forcing it to the ground suddenly and stopping it from moving. In the next second, Moro appeared on the other side of the Leach, grabbing his dagger and slicing it in a movement so quick that Kiell didn't notice it until the thing was dead. He dropped his hand, and the other two companions joined him at this side.

Kiell gave a slight wave to his hand, and a large gust of wind sent the creature through the air, landing several yards away from the pond. The group moved up to the water's edge, and without hesitation, stepped onto the water, and fell though in one swift motion. In the next moment, the four of them were standing back on solid ground, dry, and moving quickly through their new surroundings. This forest was different. Where Urak's trees were thick, with branches that came halfway down the trunk, these trees were tall and skinny, with light green leaves only on the top of the trees that let through lots of light.