Hey dere! So, this is the first story I've written ( or attempted to write as it is ). It's written in first person POV and will be switching who's view it is. All the places and names are made up by yours truly, so sorry if they are ... different. haha ^.^ So read it, and vote and comment and all that good shtuff. thanks :D so here it is: EXILE chapter uno! enjoy!
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Chapter 1:
The stars shined with a ferocity I never knew they had. Everything seemed sharper, clearer. A band of stars glinted across the clear sky. Everything was quiet. A little too quiet for my liking.
I glanced around at my surroundings. The fortress stood out like black death against the midnight sky. Gotare looked skeptically at me. What was I thinking? Coming here, of all places, and at night? I knew he thought I was insane, but this was my only chance to prove my parents were still alive. I just had to get inside.
Focusing back at the task at hand, I stared at the smooth stone wall of the ginormous fortress. I hadn't planned on the inky walls being this smooth. The place looked like it was made of a single piece of rock. Then I noticed small crevasses along the wall between each perfectly placed stone. Excellent.
I took my slender bow off of my back, knocked an arrow and took aim. The feathers flew past my ear without a sound. TING! The arrow landed neatly between two stones. I knocked another arrow and fired. This time it landed above the other one, an arms length away. Again I fired an arrow, again it was above the other one. I continued to do this and soon the top of the wall could be reached. I looked at Gotare and he nodded slowly.
Putting my hand carved bow on my back, I crawled towards the growing wall. Grass and weeds tickled my chin as I pulled myself across the ground. I kept my eyes and ears open for the slightest movements and sounds. The wall grew closer, blocking out all light, making it difficult to see. I finally reached the fortress wall. Shelithor Fortress.. such an ominous name. Hesitantly I stood up, my back pressed against the cold stones. An icy chill crept up my spine. I slowly reached up to the first arrow that was shot into the wall. I grabbed it and felt the smooth wood underneath my hands. I took a sharp breath in, and swung my body up on top of the arrow. It trembled under my weight, but it held fast. Without hesitation, I jumped to the next arrow and swung my body up. Not missing a beat, the next arrow was under me.
The silent wind pushed past my face and swirled my chestnut hair. I breathed in the crisp air and jumped to the next arrow, the clean air fueling my energy and motivation. I let my body hang from the arrow as I let what I was doing settle into my mind. I had no idea if I what I was planning to do was even going to work.
I glanced down at Gotare and motioned him to come up. I couldn't see his face, but I saw him nod his head sharply. I was glad he was here, I couldn't do this without him. I watched him swing from arrow to arrow, never stumbling. His muscular body helped him break the arrows below him so our path could not be followed. Breaking the arrows seemed to be no hindrance to him, so I tore my gaze from him and lept to the following arrow. Just another five to go. I continued on my way and waited for Gotare on the last arrow.
Now this was where it got tricky. Being unseen in a place were all was seen. Everything that went on here was planned and timed and played out perfectly. All was seen, nothing missed, all recorded.
I peeked above the wall to find a guard standing not two feet away from my head. I pulled my slender dagger from my hip and swung onto the wall. I slipped behind him and jabbed my knife through his torso. I clamped my hand over his mouth so his cries would not be heard. He took his final breath and then I gently placed him in a heap on the floor. I hopped back onto the wall and onto my arrow. One down, two thousand to go.
Gotare pulled himself onto the wall, then bounded down beside the fallen man. He slipped the armor off of the man and pulled them onto himself. He picked up the sword and sliced it through the wind. SHING! Into the sheath it went. I dashed over and helped him pick up the man and we brought him over to the edge of the wall.
"Rest well, my foe." I whispered as I pushed him over the edge. The limp body fell silently and landed without as much as a thud. "Let's go." I said cocking my head.
Gotare took a breath and brought out his sword and put it to my back. I dropped my head as though in defeat. Gotare marched me over towards the watch tower.
"Hey! You! Guard!" a clear voice rang out in the silence. "What is it that you are doing? Go back to your post!"
We glanced up and saw the watchman peeking over the wall, towering over us.
Gotare raised his voice, letting arrogance slip into it. "This, thing, was trying to climb over the wall but I caught it. What should I do with it?"
The watchman growled. Then he disappeared behind the wall. I snuck a look at Gotare but he kept looking straight ahead, ignoring me completely. Suddenly a door opened out of nowhere and the watchman stuck his head out. His body soon followed, or should I say her body followed. It was a girl! A girl watchman! This was just too easy.
Gotare brought me over to her and without a sound I grabbed my dagger from my hip and jammed it under her arm. I felt the six-inch dagger rip through the soft flesh of her heart. I threw my hand over her mouth to muffle her cries, but they did not come forth for she was already dead. The girl fell to the ground in a silent bundle and I stripped her of her armor. Together, Gotare and I rolled the girl over the edge of the wall. I pushed the girl down into the waiting darkness below. Then I slipped on the armor and found it fit perfectly to the curves of my body.
Now, we were ready. I turned around towards the open door in the tower. Swaying in the gentle breeze, the door creaked slightly as it moved. Each creak cut through the silence and burned unto our ears as though it was alarm warning the inhabitants of our presence. We glanced around to find not a single being near.
Yet the presence of someone was close. I was getting nervous. I let my gaze stray upwards and I nearly jumped as I saw an eye peering at me from behind the door. I held my ground as the eye blinked slowly.
The eye was a curious thing. It floated above the ground, attached to nothingness. It glowed like a red fire yet it was dim. It was sharp like ice yet it was warm like a candle. But above all it's gaze cut through the darkness like the sun. It would not let it's compelling stare be taken off of us. It felt like it was searching our souls and looking through our minds. Finally the eye blinked once more and then loomed over us and disappeared into the waiting darkness behind us.
Gotare and I exchanged looks. What was that? Carefully we proceed forward towards the door, not knowing what to expect. We stepped into the tower behind the door and closed the door silently behind us. Suddenly, lines across the room started to glow. Lighting up the tower were tubes of light. They were everywhere! They spiraled up to the top of the tower, following the stairs. And they went down underneath the ground, lighting the ground up like fire. It seemed like the light was a reflection inside the tubes, yet the light came from no source. It was just there. It was amazing to see.
Steep stairs curved downwards toward the base of the tower. I nodded at Gotare and we slowly descended the stairs. At the bottom we found ourselves at the entrance of a hallway, leading to a dead end. We went through the hallway, our foot steps softly echoing down the long corridor. When we reached the distant end, I looked around trying to spot another way out. To my right and to my left were solid walls. In front of me was just another wall. I walked forward my arms out in front of me. When I reached the wall in front of me, I leaned forward to touch it.
Abruptly, my hand went in the wall. I yelped in surprise. I pulled my hand back quickly, only to find no damage had been done. Sighing in relief, I inspected the wall once more. I had no idea what just happened but I decided that I probably found the exit. I stuck my hand through again and then let my body follow. I found myself in a brightly colored hall with those light tubes everywhere.
I turned back and seized Gotare, pulling him through the wall with me. His jaw dropped when we entered the hall. There were commoners and guards and nobles bustling around, all in a hurry to get somewhere. Cautiously, we walked forward into the hall, eyeing each person with curiosity. We crept into the swarm of people. Bodies bustled around us. No one looked at us twice. We were lost in the confusion.
"Trefitha!!" a friendly voice called. "Trefitha! Behind you!"
I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and found myself face to face with one of the nobles.
He was dressed with tight fitting robes that were decorated with jewels and beads. The robes looked to be a silky material. Elaborate patterns and designs completely enveloped the robe. He was shorter, and seemed to have a layer of fat covering the whole of his body. His face was light up witha bright smle, and his eyes danced with humour.
"Hello! I though you were on duty today? Standing watch over the south-eastern wall? I guess you finished your shift early, huh?" the noble asked me, looking straight into my eyes. He was all smiles but suddenly his face turned dark as though he realized I wasn't Trefitha. "Are you okay? You look a bit fogged over. You feeling alright?"
"Oh! She was sitting on the wall of the tower and slipped." Gotare said, quickly taking control of the issue. "She got knocked out, and now she doesn't remember much. She barely recognized me. I thought it would be best if I took her to her quarters to rest."
"Oh! How horrible!" the noble exclaimed, sadness enveloping his features, "Come along! We shall bring her to the Spellweavers. They'll fix her up! Come come!" the noble swiftly walked away, motioning at us to follow.
I leaned on Gotare as though I was dizzy, and we followed the noble through the crowded hallway.
"I'm sorry, but i don't think we've met before. I'm Kendo, Trefitha's cousin. your name is..?" Kendo the noble huffed, leading us away from the crowds and into a quiet hallway.
"Oh um.. I'm.. um, Nico. Trefitha's guard partner on the south-eastern side. It's nice to meet you." Gotare replied.
"Nico? The Queen's war chief is named that. A very powerful name indeed. Well, here we are," Kendo gestured to the room entrance, "Bring her into here. They will take care of her for now."
Gotare brought me into the darkened room and laid me on a nearby bed. He then slipped off my helmet, and gently placed my head on the cushion. He made sure the carefully placed bandage around my head still covered the pointed tips of my elf ears.
"Come. We must leave. The Spellweavers enjoy their privacy when dealing with such matters..." Kendo instructed, heading towards the door. Gotare reached over and squeezed my hand. He caught my eye trying to tell me something. I smiled weakly, not knowing what he was trying to say. I turned my head towards him and the parting noble. They slipped through the door, leaving me alone inside the room. I adverted my eyes from the door and stared at the roof. Eventually I closed my eyes. Man I was tired.
Soon I found myself dozing and dreaming about my parents. They were here. They had to be here. I had to find them and get them out. But how? How?!
Suddenly my eyes snapped open at the sound of music. Where was I? I sat up and looked around. I was surrounded by grassy hills and valleys. A gentle, warm breeze floated over the land. Slowly I swung my legs off the bed and stood up, being cautious with each movement.
The music soared high over the hills. it's sweet but simple sound swept
through the blades of grass. It was hypnotizing, drawing me to it's effervescent tune. I soon found myself stumbling around following the jovial sound. The notes flowed through my mind and throughout my body. My step was light as I chased the melody. It's rhythm swirled around my soul, urging me forward. I had no idea where I was headed. All I knew was that I had to track down the source of the music. Every step I took, I could hear the sound of singing get clearer and louder.
SPLASH! Glancing down, I realized I had walked right into a creek which sprawled down from east, its orgins unknown. Off to my left, towards the west, the creek branched off into a clump of trees. Following the stream, I started to recognize the words being sung. It was an old elf lullaby!
"Fly on the wings of the dragon,
And you'll see the rising dawn.
Sweep over the days of strife,
On this path of life!
Let the light show the way
And you'll never fall astray.
Keep the word; keep the heart
Never shall they part.
Soul and mind together come
On this path of life!"
The words flowed out of my mouth and joy swept over me. I remembered the tune, the words, from when I was but a young elf. My elven parents must have sung it to me!
Another voice started singing the words as well. It gently floated over the music. Switching back and forth between my tongue and what I assumed was the elven tongue, the voice never went out of tone. The voice was enchanting and drew my closer to the sound. The song seemed to follow the path of the creek. Or maybe the creek was following the song. Quickly I found myself standing in front of a cave, where the creek was leading into. Surprisingly though, the cave was brightly lit with every spectrum colour. I cautiously entered it, unsure of what to expect.
Once inside, I saw a beautiful elf with silky auburn hair that flowed down her slim back. She had her back to me but when I entered, she turned to face me. Placed gingerly in her hair were flowers and ribbons. Light glowed around her, making her shine. She had a smooth, flawless face with high cheek bones and a slender neck. Her eyes angled upwards at a perfect angle. They were deep pools of ocean green. Her voice never quavered and never went out of pitch as she sung the lullaby. She looked like royalty. Finishing the last line of the lullaby, she smiled at me.
"Hello Zina." She said in the most amazing voice. It smoothed my nerves, relaxing me to the point of ease and comfort. "Oh, how much i have missed you! I am so sorry for leaving you."
"Who are you?" I questioned. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I've ever met you before."
A sweet laugh escaped her lips. "Oh, but you have my daughter! But you were so young, I really don't expect you to remember much. You know, that night we left you."
"What..? Mo.. mother? Mother!" I ran into her arms. "Mother! I knew they weren't my real parents! But where did you go? And where are we?"
"Hahaha! Oh, I've missed you very much my daughter. We are the at the gateway. But no! You should not of come for them! No! You must leave before they find out! It might already be too late! Go! Leave!" She said pushing me away. Panic spread across my mother's face, darkening the room.
"But mother! What gateway? Mother, explain! Please!"
"I cannot! It's too late! They know! Goodbye my daughter." She turned and retreated deeper into the cave, towards the music and colour.
Instinctively I followed her. I didn't want to lose her again. I followed her right into the main chamber. What I saw made me gasp.
In the center of the room was an archway with swirling colours in the inside. All the light, colours, and music was radiating from this archway. The arch itself was embedded with gold and gems. Old elf language was scrawled across the arch. Moss and vines were crawling up the sides reaching for the top point. It was beautiful.
My mother stepped towards it and stood right in front of it. She turned around and mouthed "I love you." Turning back to the archway, she pursed her lips.
She said something in the old elf language, stuff which I didn't understand. Suddenly a blast of light spread across the room temporarily blinding me. I looked away, then suddenly all the music and colour disappeared. I looked over towards the archway and my mother was gone once again. I chocked back tears. I had seen her, had been in her arms. Now.. now she was gone again. Sullenly, I fell to my knees and everything went black.