Kai watched Northshore fade into the distance. It had happened so suddenly; he wasn't sure how to feel about departing from the city. Was he truly leaving? Could it really be? Northshore was his home. It was where he had grown up, matured, and learned all that he knew. It was the place where he had spent his childhood. A terrible childhood, but his childhood nevertheless. Northshore was also the place where Kai had experienced pain so terrible and guilt so miserable that he tried not to think of it.
As he watched the city disappear under the rising sun, Kai remembered faces. Faces of those he had killed, faces of those he had befriended, and faces of those he hated. Was he truly free of the killing, of the blood and the pain? He could only hope so. But then, he would never see Saif again. The one true friend that he had found throughout the years. The elf was a killer, but not like the others. Kai sighed, pushing away his thoughts.
He set sail for a place that he had never been—a new world, one of opportunity and, most importantly, change. He had not prepared nearly enough for his journey, but that didn't matter to him now. All that mattered was that he was leaving.
The captain of the ship—which bore thirty or so passengers, along with the boat's crew—had told Kai that they would arrive at the continent of Ath in a little over two weeks. Specifically, they were headed to a port city that was mainly used for travel and transporting goods: Sleetshire, which Kai had read up on, thanks to an atlas aboard the boat. What he would do upon reaching Sleetshire, he was unsure. He had enough money for a few weeks of shelter and food, but after that...perhaps he would learn to work leather or pot flowers. He had seen many shops in Northshore, always intrigued by the way people's hands moved as if they were born for their crafts. Some had been, he supposed. He could do it. He could learn something new; work his muscles for reasons other than honing himself into a weapon of death. Kai smiled, watching the hateful world he had always known dissolve into nothing under the salty breeze. A new life stretched before him.
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After weeks of tasteless bread, tough meat, and too-thin gruel, Kai was more than happy to see Sleetshire sparkling in the night before him. They would be moored within the hour, the captain had said. From the looks of it, the town was similar to Northshore; a dock harbored hundreds of ships of various sizes, with houses packed past the docks, gradually growing larger the farther away they were from the cold, shimmering water.
Like Northshore, a section of small, rundown houses could already be seen standing near the docks: the slums. Kai could nearly feel the suffocatingly thick air and smoke forcing perspiration to slide down his forehead, could nearly smell the reek of unwashed bodies and human waste. On the long journey to Sleetshire, he had bought a map off of one of the ship's crew, no doubt paying more than it was worth. After studying it for hours, Kai had begun to gather an idea of what his next move would be.
If the map was accurate, a small town lay a few days' trek past Sleetshire, with other towns spread past it. The next large city, Aria, would take a couple of weeks to reach, requiring more supplies than the single horse Kai planned to buy could carry. Kai decided that he would stay in Sleetshire for a day or two before journeying toward the town that lay past it.
Already, he knew that he could not stay in Sleetshire. The city spread out before him, only a few hundred meters from the glistening sea, reminded him too much of what he had finally left behind. To a smaller town he would go.
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Kai sighed as he pulled off his heavy boots, casting them to the side of his bed as he threw himself onto its soft blankets, staring up at the plain white ceiling that greeted him.
His ship had docked less than an hour ago and Kai had wasted no time buying a new map, clean clothes, and finding a nearby inn. He had already wolfed down a tasteless but warm meal before drifting to his room, a lightness in his steps that he had not felt in many years. He had little baggage to carry and would leave tomorrow at sundown, after buying a few days worth of food, in case something went wrong on the trek tomorrow.
Kai had always been unsure of his future. During his days in Northshore, he had always worried over what the next day might hold, had wondered who he might be forced to fight or kill come dawn. This was different. He was unprepared and had cast himself into a new world, but it was different. There was something wonderful about living this way, and though he had only been in Ath for an hour, he couldn't help feeling excited as he considered the possibilities spread out before him.
Kai closed his eyes, a small smile splayed across his lips as his eyelids closed.
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Kai journeyed toward the southern edge of the city, where he bought himself a rather thin looking horse for two silvers before leaving the city. He mounted the creature, pushing outside the city boundaries.
Kai took a deep breath, fingering one of the knives on his belt. He always had to move his hands when he was nervous, and the smooth, cold steel in his hands was strangely comforting. He let himself relax, taking in the landscape that stretched for miles in each and every direction.
It was...beautiful. There was little other way to describe it. Kai had left Northshore a few times before, but only on short visits, and only to equally industrial cities. Here, however, the gifts of nature spread before him like an untamed beast. Fields of tall grass, clear, slow-moving rivers, and luscious green trees filled his gaze.
This. He had been looking for this. Although he had left his previous home in search of a safe place in which to settle down, he had not realized what he had been missing until it was right before him. Had not realized that grass and bushes and flowing water could be so wonderful, so much more lively than a bustling city. A smile tugging on his lips, Kai took a swig from his skin of water and pushed his mare along, admiring how her solid black coat contrasted with the singular white, crescent shaped spot on her forehead. Green grasses brushed against her legs, wind rustling her magnificent black mane. Although he had learned how to ride long ago, he rarely got the chance and preferred going on foot when possible during his jobs. If not on foot, Kai would travel by carriage, still unable to truly appreciate the great beasts, feel their heart beating and muscles shift.
Patting the mare's thick neck, Kai pushed her into a gallop, smile widening at the breeze that followed. Not a soul traveled the worn stone path, which was strange, especially since the city was mere meters behind him and was well populated. Was something wrong? Perhaps bandits were especially common along this road? Kai shook his head, brushing aside the part of himself that said to turn back and instead continued along the path, content to bask in the morning sunlight and listen to the cool breeze until the end of his days.
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After feasting on bread, fruit and cheese, Kai continued on his way. A forest lay a few dozen meters away from him, thick with trees, bushes and ferns. Even the main path that led through the woods seemed to be nearly overgrown, and the sunlight was shielded by leaves and branches, leaving only darkness within. He had been riding through plains all morning, and although the tall, spaced trees came as no surprise to him, he felt a sort of silence emanating from them, even from the hundred or so feet between him and the woodlands. He swallowed, noting and disregarding the tenseness of his mare's muscles, as if she too felt that something about the path before them was not quite right. He was an assassin; he had killed more times than he cared to count. A forest would not stop him from reaching his goal. Besides, he was probably just being paranoid.
Kai took a deep breath before pushing his horse onward. And then he heard it. A thumping sound—perhaps a woodpecker? No, it was growing louder. Kai strained his ears, but there was no need. Seconds later the sound's origin became obvious. The thumping grew louder, mixing with a high pitched scream that pierced his heart. And then a horse was barreling through the trees, two riders perched upon the gray and brown colored beast. Kai vaguely remembered to pull his horse to the side of the path to avoid colliding with the riders, fingering his knives in anticipation of a potential fight.
All thoughts of harming the riders in front of him vanished as he beheld the terror on their faces. A girl rode in front, no older than Kai, a man who might have been her father holding tightly behind her. Both had olive skin and black hair, although the latters was streaked with gray. And both seemed to be too frightened to scream; their pale faces, wide eyes and blood splattered clothes stealing Kai from his thoughts. He pulled his horse around, preparing to gallop away from whatever surely chased them, when he saw it. Or rather, didn't see it.
The older man screamed as shadows that came from nowhere and everywhere pulled him from his horse, ripping at his stirrups before yanking him from the stallion entirely. The girl sobbed through clenched teeth but continued onward, gaze never leaving the path before her as the man was carried back to the silence of the forest on invisible arms.