Vaniel: Traverse Worlds

Chapter 1

It was late at night and the wind rushes through the mountains and the trees in a tiny village secluded by themselves filled with the Elven species. The rain droplets drizzle down to comfort the village for their loss this night. Just a couple of hours ago an evil force invaded their village and swept in quickly through the shadows and broke into the head family's house. The head family were decent from royalty back in the dark ages. Now the head family is just head of the village, but still have that blood flowing through them. On this night though, the Master and the Mistress were killed during a stealth attack. Luckily the royal blood does not end there for they had a child a couple months back. The child will be taken in from the orphanage to grow up to be the next head of the village, but while she is growing up, another family will take charge for now.

Seventeen years later, the sun shines down upon the village as the white puff balls called clouds pass over the mountains and give shade to parts of their homes. Vaniel steps out from the kitchen and looks around the living room. A fire place giving off a miniscule amount of light only enough to brighten up the surrounding area dimly. The walls are redwood cut and shaved perfectly for this building by the best craftsman in our village. The marble floor glistens and you can even see your own reflection off of it. A slight breeze swoops in from the open door to the outside. I go to close the door and begin to sweep the floor for all the dirt in the creases between the walls and the floor itself.

After many years of spending her time in this orphanage constantly cleaning it up and cooking for the other kids, tomorrow I will be free from it all as she will turn the age of eighteen. Freedom will run through my hands like water and I will have plenty of it. No one will be able to tell me what to do. I will be able to look for the ones who killed my family in peace. My fingers clench around the broom handle just thinking about the fact that I never was able to grow up with a family of my own. This world seems so unfair to some but it doesn't matter. I will make the most of it. There has been some friends who have supported me along the way of growing up. My best friend though is Zabbas. He is a very intelligent yet funny being who always seems to make me laugh. Before I knew it, Zabbas was standing outside waiting for me to have some free time so we can go to the mystical waterfall.

After I put the broom up, I dash outside into the warm atmosphere to greet Zabbas and head off into the forest for our hang-out spot. Our trek through the forest was beautiful. Ginormous pine trees loom over and beautiful pink and white flowers bloom on the ground giving off an amazing aroma that made you smile with glee. The sun seems to be getting closer to the ground now as we finally make it to the waterfall. There an old druid circle was built a long time ago when the humans actually believed in magic. It's too bad that they don't anymore because we would have been great allies. Now they are monsters that create wars between themselves and destroy many habitats for not only creatures but mythical beings also. The humans have always been about themselves using others to their advantage. The people that killed my family were basically human but live much longer than they do. It was a vampire.

After hours of playing in the water and dancing around the druid circle, we decided to head home before people start to worry where we are. Before we could leave the area though, I could sense a foul aura close by. My eyes divert back to the druid stones and there is sitting a humanoid surrounded in darkness floating around him. It's like a thick blanket of blackness engulfing him. His eyes peers into my soul as a grin begins to form on his face, "It's nice to see such a familiar face after all these years. Sorry Miss Vaniel but I do not have long to answer any questions of yours. Of course once we meet again I will answer all the questions to your heart's desire, but for now I have a mission." I cannot believe my eyes. He must be the one that killed my father and mother. The blood begins to boil within me and the small pebbles laying on the ground around me begin to slightly float off the floor of the forest. The vampire notices my power gaining in strength and chuckles, "Oh miss, you have a long time before you gain the strength to fight me more or less kill me. Now, be a good girl and fight the real threat at the moment." I look at him quizzically, "Real threat?"

The vampire vanishes and reappears in front of Zabbas and stares into his eyes as they begin to glow red. It wasn't long before Zabbas became powerless to the creatures hypnosis. Zabbas turns to me and raises his hands as if he is ready to fight me. I look at him, "What are you doing." Zabbas replies, "I don't know, but I get this urge in my gut that you are my sworn enemy." "Snap out of it Zabbas! I need you right now. Please do not listen to that creature. He is only using his magic to sway you to his needs."

Zabbas whips his arm and a crackle of fire spits out towards me and I deflect it. He sends spell after spell towards me, but I just deflect them. Zabbas yells out in fury, "Oblitero!" A giant ball of white light comes sprinting at me. Without thinking I mumble, "Deflecturo." I ward the spell Zabbas sent at me and send it flying off towards one of the druid stones. As it impacts the stone, the huge rock blows up into many pieces. I thought to myself, "If he is going to use spells like that then I must stop him now." I lash my hands out and yell out, "Petriarbus!" A grey spark hits Zabbas and he becomes stone-like himself where he cannot move at all for at least a little bit. The vampire comes walking up to Zabbas from behind as he slowly claps, "Nice show! But I do have to say it grew tiresome as I have to be going now. Before I go though, I have one last goodbye present." He holds out a jeweled dagger. "The gift is a dead friend of course!" I sprint into his direction screaming at the top of my lungs begging him to stop. The vampire jabs the dagger into Zabbas's back and Zabbas falls to the ground coughing up blood. I shoot spells at the vampire but he evaporates into smoke and floats off into the sky covered by the night.

I kneel beside Zabbas softly speaking to him, "Zabbas! You're going to be okay. I'm going to be here with you and you're going to be fine." Zabbas speaks through gurgles of his own blood flooding his mouth slowly, "Vaniel, you must forget about me. There is no way I will make it back to the village alive. You must live your life as the head of our village and show them the path to a greater future." I nod my head through his speech reconfirming him that I will do what he told me to do. On his final breath and reaches up to the tears falling from my eyes and wipes them away as he says, "Do not worry. I lived a happy life because I met you. Now I can die peacefully knowing that I died in your hands. Goodbye..." And with that his eyes became soulless. I pushed his eyelids down to cover his eyes up. I see from the corner of my eye the dagger that creature used laying on the ground. I pick it up and my tears fall onto the dagger, "I will take this pain and become stronger."

A scream fills the night as Zabbas's mother comes running to her son's lifeless body. The other people of the village enter the view and the current head of the village comes walking to the mother's side, "Girl, how could you have done this to Zabbas. I thought you two were friends, but maybe that was all a fraud." I yell in response, "I would have never done this!" "Oh really, well who else could have done it?" I reply, "It was a vampire." His eyes stare down upon me, "I do not sense any other magic but both yours and Zabbas's. You are also clearly holding the dagger that fits the hole cut into his back. There is more evidence pointing towards you then there are to a vampire. We cannot sentence you to a death penalty because I need everyone's permission and of course that would mean keeping you in our village until I have everyone's approval. Instead I will remove you from our ranks and you must atone for your sins living with the dreadful humans!" No... how can this be? I have done nothing and I'm the one being blamed for it?! Headmaster raises his hand above me and motions it into a circle above my head, "Imperium." I am zapped to a dark, damp location in an alleyway in the middle of a human city. The lights flicker in the distance as the building are massive to the size. The tallest building I have ever seen comes into view off in the night with bright lights shining upon it's walls for some odd reason. "What is this place?" I say to myself.

I sit in the alleyway next to a dumpster and cry softly to myself as I hum an old elvish lullaby to myself for me to go to sleep. The time hits midnight, "Happy birthday Vaniel..." I say as my eyes close and I drift off into a land filled with nightmares.