~~~
Somewhere far away from Rhen's house, from Clearwater, from the West Isle...
Ahriman is sitting on the throne, filled with hanger and hatred. He wore a dark leather cloak, the hood hid his demonic face.
"AGAS! WHERE ARE YOU?!" he roared.
"I'm here, sire. What can I help you, sir?" Agas ran across the hallway and kneeled down on his knee in respect to his master.
"I wanted to ask you...Where is the priestess daeva?"
"She's dead, Sire"
"You lie! I see her in my dreams."
"But sire, I st-struck her down!"
"FOOL!" the roar echoed throughout the castle and it made the general overwhelmed with fear and goosebumps.
"But perhaps it's for the best. I've changed my mind. I would prefer her to live." His voice subsided to a low rumble like a hungry beast.
"I don't...understand, sire." Agas stammered.
"Death is but a swift escape. I want the priestess to suffer. A slave suffers a lifetime." Ahriman let out a wide wicked smile.
"So you shall have her enslaved, sire? But how?" Agas looked at him curiously.
"I have a new servant who wishes to become a daeva, he knows the land where the priestess had fled to."
"He wishes to be one of us, Sire? He must be dark, indeed."
"What a dumb fool you are..." thought Ahriman while looking at him. After a while, he roared in a commanding voice.
"Dameon, show yourself!"
At the same moment, a man walked out. He wore a beautiful, snow-white robe with a sun engraved on its back. The man bowed to his master and turned his face to Agas.
"It's a sun priest!" Agas hissed.
"Better. Sun druid. A sun guardian." Said Ahriman proudly.
"Better? How can this be better? Aren't you afraid that he will destroy us?" Agas argued.
"The sun god has betrayed me, I work for him now." Dameon bowed to Ahriman again. "I know a slave trader who will find the priestess a harsh master. My mother will get what she deserves!" he continued.
Agas grunted and growled under his breath. Ahriman laughed.
~~~~~
It's the spring festival in Clearwater. After she got out of bed, Rhen dressed and prepared herself to start this festive day. When she was on the way to the front porch of the house, she noticed the priestess was standing in the living room, as if waiting for her.
"Hello ma'am. How are you feeling today?" Rhen smiled brightly.
"Good morning, Chosen One."
"Er, whatever." Rhen rolled her eyes. "This woman is obviously a nutter." she thought.
"So, daddy says he knows you." Rhen tried to be friendly to her as much as possible.
"Your father...Yes, we know each other from a long time ago."
The priestess asked for her hand: "Child, I have something for you. Take this, it will offer you protection." And she gave Rhen her priestess ring. Rhen received the ring unwillingly.
"Please child, keep the ring on at all times. This is very important." The priestess pleaded her. So, Rhen followed her "request" and put the ring on.
"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.