---Rayne's POV---
I woke up the next morning to the sound of leaves crunching near my campsite. I jumped up and scrambled up the tree, grabbing the rope I used to tie two saplings together as shelter. Luckily, they didn't break, so the area didn't look as though anyone had been through, let alone sleeping in it. I moved swiftly and silently up the tree, careful not to snap any branches. The leaf crunching stopped, and I could hear weight shifting. They knew there was someone nearby.
"H-hello?" the voice of a young boy called out nervously. I held my breath. The boy looked around, but didn't think to look up, to my relief.
"Thorn! What are you doing?" A girl joined him.
"I thought I heard something," the boy - Thorn - took another step forward.
"It's probably just a squirrel. Come on, we have training to do. That assassin could be around, too," The girl added quietly. My eyes widened. Thorn nodded and together the two walked away. I swore under my breath. They knew I was here! That guard that caught me wasn't lying...he must have gone straight to the king. I couldn't stay here for long, I had to get out of the Earth Nation.
---Thorn's POV---
~5 mins earlier~
I walked into the forest as silently as possible. All I had was my knife and a sickle I couldn't use very well. I had snuck away from training to get some fresh air and hopefully something to eat. As I was walking, I noticed that there were two saplings shaking slightly, as if someone - or something - had brushed past them. I thought of the mutated wolves and shuddered. I heard a twig snap behind me and I whipped around, seeing Ivy walking towards me.
"Thorn! What are you doing?" She hissed.
"I thought I heard something," I lied. If she knew I had snuck away she wouldn't let me hear the end of it. Sometimes she was more like a mother than a sister to me.
"It's probably just a squirrel. Come on, we have training to do. That assassin could be around, too," Ivy added quietly, as if somebody was listening. I nodded and together we walked back to the training sight. I couldn't get the saplings out of my head. I know it seems ridiculous, but there was something about them that wasn't right. Shoving it out of my mind, I focused on the knife I was about to throw instead. I threw it, getting it to spin and hit the target in the centre of the bulls-eye. I turned to reach for another an saw a flash of gold from the top of the oak tree. It must have been a squirrel, but it spooked me all the same. I hoped that I wasn't the only one who was constantly looking over their shoulder for an assassin only Kai has seen.
---Rayne's POV---
I leaped from the oak tree into a more covered willow tree next to it. My timing was terrible, and I felt my heart skip a beat when I saw Thorn double take. He saw me. I hid behind the leaves and watched as he threw several knives, hitting the centre of the bulls-eye every time. My eyes narrowed. He was a threat. I decided to watch the rest of the training session to note his strengths and weaknesses. I gasped as the king himself emerged from inside one of the temples. I had to leave. Now. I turned and jumped down from the tree, racing off in the opposite direction.
I ran faster and faster until I reached a very unfamiliar part if the forest. I had decided to remain in the parts that I was comfortable with, but now I had no idea where I was. A swamp loomed ahead of me, and the temperature had dropped very quickly. Turning around, I heard the sound of a twig snapping behind a moss covered log about 7 metres away from me. Out of instinct, I scrambled up a willow tree that hung over the swamp. I put up my jacket hood - it was camouflaged - to hide my golden-brown hair. The murky colour of the trees and water hid me well, and mist was gradually increasing as the temperature got lower. I parted the leaves slightly to get a look at who was there. I gasped silently in shock.
"L-Logan?" My brother. He died five years ago.
"Rayne! What are you doing down here?" He called, a little too loudly for my liking. "I mean, up there."
"That doesn't matter, why aren't you dead?" That came out sounding a little harsher than I planned. I jumped down from my hiding place, but kept my hood up incase somebody else came along.
"Dead? Who told you that?" Logan seemed as confused as I was. "I moved to the Earth Nation, remember?"
"No, I don't remember, mum told me you were attacked by sharks in Water Nation!"
"I was, but I didn't die." He said.
*Flashback*
"Mum, when's Logan coming home?" I asked. I was 9.
"Um, Rayne, I need to tell you something." Mum said. She sounded sad.
"What's wrong?" I asked, tilting my head.
"Logan's not coming home. You learned about the other Nations, didn't you, sweetheart?" I nodded in response.
"Well, Logan moved to the Water Nation and," She stopped, "was attacked by sharks."
Attacked by sharks. My brother, my best friend, was gone. He left me, for starters, but now I'm never going to see him again, ever. A million memories flashed in my head. I stood up.
"Honey, are you alright?" Mum's eyes were red from crying.
"He left me, Mum. He left me, and now I'm going to leave him." I took off and ran out of the house. I thought I heard my mother's cries, but I was too busy concentrating on where I was going. When I reached my destination, I paused. A hooded man turned and put his hand on my shoulder.
"I'm ready," I said to him.
*Flashback over*
My brother left me. Because of him I left my family. Because of him I thought all was lost. Because of him, I became an assassin.
