Aveyond: Rhen's Quest

Chapter 3: Kidnapped

"This strange woman's request is silly but compelling." Rhen thought. "Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm a priestess from a land far away. I have come to protect you."

"But I don't need protection. I'm not a four-year-old child." Rhen complained.

The priestess decided to tell her the truth but her instinct told her not until the time has come.

"We shall talk more tomorrow. Remember, keep the ring close." And she went into her bedroom and rest. Rhen left the house as nothing had happened before and headed for the festival.

~~~~~

"Good morning! Are you enjoying the festival?" Pa saw Rhen when she was buying cotton-candy.

"Yes dad. I enjoy the festival very much!" Rhen said with a mouth full of cotton-candy.

They walked around as the mayor called out them.

"Hey Tailor! Oh hi Rhen!" he wore a tuxedo with a grey bow-tie.

"Good morning Mr. Mayor." Rhen and her dad greeted in unison.

"So Tailor, where is that strange woman you'd brought into town? We're all eager to know more about her!"

"Err, she's just a friend of mine from..." And they carried on the conversation and Rhen stood there looking around the village. She noticed a red-haired guy waving at her. She slipped away from the crowd and walked to the entrance of a nearby cave. She noticed the guy standing beside it. It was Peter, one of her classmate.

"Psst! Rhen!" Peter whispered.

"Peter, what are you doing?"

"Me and Nina are going to chase Billy Harper's sheep! Wanna come?"

"Of course!" Since she was kind of bored with the festival, Rhen nodded.

"Great! Meet us outside the village by the old sheep pen at the half mark. Bye!"

Rhen was about to say "Okay!" to him but he vanished into the cave.

"Oh well." She shrugged.

~~~~~

 Rhen was walking in the cave and she noticed a big guy looking around.

"I think he's lost." She thought. She stopped in front of him and try to be nice.

"G'morning sir, are you looking for the village?"

"Yes, is it far from here?" The stranger looked at her suspiciously.

"Not far at all, just up that way." She pointed towards the cave entrance. The ring the priestess gave her sparkled eerily in the darkness.

"Oh my, that's a lovely ring you are wearing there." He exclaimed. Rhen put her hand back to her pocket.

"Well, thanks for the nice compliment." Rhen forced herself to smile warmly at him.

"Say, for being such a kind dear, I would like to give you a gift."

"Wow! A gift? Are you sure?" Rhen was wondering why she was so lucky today.

 "For one more look at that beautiful ring, you can have anything."

"If it means that much to you..." And Rhen showed the stranger the priestess ring again.

"Yes, that's a beauty. Would not want to lose that." He sounded deeply. "Looks like I've found her, Lord Ahriman." He thought.

The stranger grabbed Rhen puts a slave bracelet on her wrist. Rhen struggled to get free, but the man got a strong iron grip on her.

"Ouch! Let me go! What's the meaning of this?!" She yelled in shock.

"Don't play games with me priestess, I know who you are. My master sends his regards." The stranger snatched the priestess ring out of her finger.

"Priestess?! I'm not a priestess! Who are you?" She's frightened.

"Ts'k, Ts'k! I'm a slave trader, and you can't fool me. I recognise your ring."

"It's not my ring!" She protested.

"Right, you're going to tell me you borrowed it? A priestess would never take off her guardian ring. Even a fool will know that."

"Well, er, taker off this slave bracelet or I'll...I'll...Blast you with holy power! Yeah!"

"Ha! How is that bracelet fitting, my dear? Snug I hope? My master assured me with that on, your powers would be useless!" He sneered at her.

"Time for you to face your new destiny as a slave! Ha Ha Ha."

"Noooooo!" Rhen yelled with all her might but her voice was lost in the noise of the festival's going on.

The slave trader threw Rhen in the rap-sack on his back and ran deeper into the cave, into the unknown.