Feyth groaned and rolled
over, cursing the pale sunlight streaming into her bedroom. She had never been a
morning person. She could already hear the bustle of people leaving their homes
outside. She groaned again, then leapt out of bed throwing the covers back in
the process. She rapidly undressed and redressed into her white shirt and long
grey pants. Today was the test.
Feyth
ran out of her room, shoving her way through the door and entering the main
room. She could smell breakfast, the scent wafting towards her. It smelled
delicious, but she didn’t have time to eat much. She leaned down to the table,
grasped a bread roll in one hand and an apple in the other. Her father just
stood there, watching. He knew the reason for the rush and was undisturbed by
the disrespect of her actions. Without saying goodbye, she dashed to the front
door, snatching her bow and quiver from the hook on her way. She slung both
across her shoulder as she was walking. She closed the door behind her and
walked onto the road.
Feyth
got caught in the rush and was swept away by the crowd. To her left she spotted
a narrow alleyway, and weaved her way past the people to get to it. She dashed
through it and emerged on the other side where there were less people. Living
on the main road did have its disadvantages, but now that she had left the
crowd, she could get to her mentor’s home quicker.
She
navigated her way past people, careful not to bump or knock anybody over. One
person shouted at her and glared at her from behind, but Feyth simply ignored
the person. Most people gave her hateful glances, it was a part of who she was.
All due to the evil her mother had committed. Feyth wasn’t the same person as
her mother. She had done many deeds intended to redeem her and raise her self
esteem, but her efforts were to no prevail. Feyth was just one of those people.
She
smiled at an onlooker, which only earned her yet another spiteful look. Feyth
frowned to herself, quite disturbed. While some utterly abhorred her due to
close relations with those whom her mother had harmed during the incident, some
plainly showed distaste towards her. Feyth knew that those who merely disliked
her had no reason to other than rumors that had been spread about her. She was
thankful she still had friends like Reyah and her mentor who were either
oblivious to the crimes of her mother or were loyal and unsuspicious of her.
All
these thoughts clouded her mind, and she failed to see somebody walking out
from an alleyway to her left. In a matter of seconds she collided with the
person who let out a shout in surprise and anger. They both fell, crashing to
the ground with oddly loud thuds. Dust coated both Feyth and the person she
crashed into. Feyth hurt all over, her eyes burned from the dust and she was
awfully confused. After shaking her head a little too clear it and getting a
bearing of her surroundings, she gasped with realization.
“Are you alright? I am so, so
sorry!” she said frantically, looking at the person who she had crashed into.
It was a young man, only a few years older than her. She was coughing and
looked quite startled. Though he was in shock, he did not seem injured, or at
least dangerously injured. He was probably bruised and hurting like her. He
groaned and lifted his head and also shook it. She stood up and brushed the
dust from her legs. She reached out her hand towards him, to help him up. He
looked up at her and recoiled instantly.
“Y-you!” he stuttered,
obviously recognizing her as the horrendous Feyth! She rolled her eyes in
frustration and pulled her hand back to herself. “You can help yourself up,” she snapped, then turned and stalked
off. She got the same reaction from most people, it infuriated her. She picked
up her pace until she was jogging. She lifted her hood over her face, and made
sure that nobody would be able to recognize her. That was plenty of hate for
one day.
When
Feyth had finally found her way to her mentor’s house, she rapped on the door,
sending shudders through it. She made a mental note to make sure she was gentle
next time so she wouldn’t wear down the door to the point where it would break.
It opened up to reveal her mentor, dressed in his own hunting clothes. He
looked down upon her, his blue eyes gleaming, but he was not smiling like he
usually did, but wore a serious expression. Today was a serious day, no
mistakes could be made.
Feyth
pushed away all thoughts of the hateful residents of Solare, of Korin and of
her sick father and focused all her concentration on the task ahead.
“Are
you ready to go?” She nodded eagerly, fully prepared for her test. The task was
to bring back a deer, a raven and a mouse. To prove yourself worthy to be
considered one of the town’s hunters. For each creature, you had to use
different tracking and hunting techniques. To prove yourself you had to catch
all three, or you would fail.
Feyth
had hoped to bring back the deer for Korin, but if she were to hide his secret,
she could not. Carrying a deer out of town would be suspicious, especially in
Feyth’s case. Her mentor would be
following her, unseen but watching to see if she was ready or not, he would
notice every mistake but she was determined to make no mistakes.
“Remember,
I will be judging you on your skills, dexterity and whether or not you complete
the task. If you blunder through the forest and only just manage to bring back
every creature, you will not pass. I do not doubt you one bit, but make sure
you’re aware of your surroundings, and remember that I will be watching you.
Always.” She nodded, affirming her understanding, she already knew of what was
required, and she was fully prepared. She had no need to be reinstructed of the
expectations. “If you fail, the consequences will be dire,” he finished
quietly, hoping that nothing would prevent her success. If she failed, her life
would be miserable, she would be distraught.
“When
do we begin?” she said confidently. He began walking, in the direction of the
forest. He beckoned for her to follow, made sure she did, then focused on
getting through the crowd. As they walked, avoiding the many people, the smell
of fresh bread wafted through the air and found its way to Feyth. It made her
feel hungry, but she ignored the feeling and continued along. Her breakfast had
been unfulfilling, the bread was stale and the apple bruised.
The
smell continued to tempt her until she could no longer smell it, but then she
spotted a large cake resting on a window sill. It looked delicious, but then
the person who cooked it lifted it down from the window sill, to where Feyth
could no longer see it. Either they were purposely torturing her with the
tempting food or it was simply coincidence. Though it was most probably a
coincidence, Feyth could not help but feel depressed, realizing that she really
shouldn’t have skipped a promising breakfast. She felt her belly rumble in
discontent, but tried her best to ignore it.
Soon
they had left the village behind them, and were in the forest. The forest had
changed, or so Feyth thought, since her last visit. It wasn’t as inviting as
before, but rather the opposite. The trees creaked and groaned, as the swayed
against the wind that was pushing against them. They threatened to topple, but
their roots delved deep into the ground and kept them standing strong. The
leaves were not so lucky, and were torn off the branches and sent swirling in
the direction of Feyth and her mentor. She could hear the crackle of the fallen
leaves underfoot, whilst they were still being blown past her. It sent involuntary shivers down her spine.
It only got worse.
As
they were walking, suddenly, without any warning, the forest calmed and the
wind stopped. It didn’t simply weaken, losing its original violence. It
disappeared altogether, leaving the air to sit calmly, unmoving. Feyth didn’t
notice the eeriness the forest had gained, but rather was pleased that she no
longer found difficulty walking silently. Their pace became brisk as they
headed closer to the forest’s centre.
Though
Feyth was oblivious, her mentor’s discontent was rising. He had distinguished
the change as a threat and was prepared. Something was wrong, the danger had
become too obvious. He wasn’t usually so edgy, but he was tempted to turn and
leave. Something was to begin and he would have preferred to be much further
away. Instead, he stuck by Feyth’s side, he would see her through her test. He
owed her that much. So, on they walked, fearful and oblivious, but both
prepared, though for different events.
Feyth
put her hand on her bow, then slipped it off her shoulder and knelt down. She
brushed away a layer of freshly fallen leaves to reveal footprints. She was
beginning her tracking, though without consent from her mentor. He was not
upset by her actions, but he was still on high alert, until he realized that he
could no longer be within her line of sight. He would have to watch her from
afar.
He
backed away from her, tiptoeing lightly and avoiding the leaves. He managed to
back into the bushes while making little sound. He was still aware of his own
surroundings, but he focused all his attention on his trainee. She had finished
observing the tracks, and began following them. They were mouse tracks, exactly
what she needed, she couldn’t believe her luck.
Feyth
trekked through the forest silently. Stepping lightly but still walking
quickly. She checked the tracks every few moments to make sure she hadn’t lost
them. After a while the tracks led into a small hole, and no tracks led back
out again. She crouched down and set her ear against the ground, just outside
the hole. She could hear slight shuffling within the hole and could feel
warmth, though a small amount of it, emanating from the hole. She guessed that
the hole was only half a meter or so deep.
Feyth
slipped on one of her black leather gloves, a gift from her mentor, and shoved
her hand down the hole with her fingers outstretched. She grasped the tiny
squirming body with great ease and pulled it out. Once it had left the hole,
the mouse began to squeak and wriggle fiercely. She felt a smidge of pity for
it, but she needed it to complete her test. She rested her hand on the hilt of
her dagger for a few seconds, before ripping it out from its sheath and slicing
the mouse’s throat. The mouse’s movement seized and it’s eyes glazed over.
Killing
creatures like this was so simple, the concept had always brought Feyth great
distressed. She detested killing innocent creatures that could do nothing to
stop her. She placed the mouse in her quiver, for safe keeping. She wanted to
take it back, not waste its life. She hoped her mentor saw her killing it, so
she would not have to show him the lifeless critter.
The
next creatures were not so easy to hunt. Feyth decided after much
contemplation, to track or search for a deer. They usually stuck with their
herds, which weren’t often too difficult to find when time was taken to search
for the herd. She had little hope of finding a raven in the current situation.
Birds were difficult to find, hidden amongst the trees behind leaves. Usually
she could distinguish the sound of ravens compared to other birdsong, but not a
single bird let out a peep. Silence in the forest, not a good sign, but she was
only concerned about not managing to find a raven.
Feyth began her journey through the forest again,
searching for signs of deer. She looked high and low, but mostly low, because
she was searching for deer, not a raven. She was, of course, still on the
lookout for ravens. If only some great miracle would grant her a raven flying
overhead in sight. After around an hour, when the sun was close to its highest
point, she noticed a trail of crushed bushes and broken branches. She sauntered
up to it, careful not to make any loud noises. She wasn’t sure if the deer were
near or not. She knelt beside one particular bush and brushed some leaves
aside.
There
were obvious tracks, deer hooves imprinted on the sandy ground. Mixed in with
the multitudes of hoof prints were the prints of another creature that Feyth
was uninterested in. The hoof prints were a lot larger than the other tracks,
and from the size the prints were placed apart, the creature seemed to be
running. Feyth suspected that the deer were being chased by a predator, causing
them to run quickly without their usual agility. She began to study the broken
bushes and shrubbery, and soon determined the direction the deer were headed
and how fresh the tracks were.
Many of the
branches and bushes were bent and leaning in a similar direction. The broken
stems were still moist and seemed to have been broken not many hours earlier.
Feyth knew the forest well and reckoned that the deer had gone to a nearby
field, a clearing deer often went to graze. Within the forest there were many
intervals, where parts of the forest were separated by a field. One such area
was a large field, filled with tall grass that grew to the height of her knees.
During this time of the year, it flourished with green blades of grass that
sparkled with dew in the morning and glimmered beneath the light of the moon at
night. Blue and violet flowers bloomed, usually occupied by bees and insects
that buzzed lazily around. There were no bees in the forest, where she stood.
Feyth followed
the tracks, the trail of trampled bushes and twigs until she had reached the
field she had assumed they were in. Along the way, she noticed were the larger
prints had stopped and lead off into another direction, proving that the
predator gave up the case. The deer probably stopped running soon after the
predator had stopped to catch their breaths, and probably to graze.
Grazing
in the field were eleven deer, three of them were bucks, two of them were
fawns, the other ones were does. The bucks and does were keeping their
distances, the fawns sticking to their mother’s like a bee to honey. The
younger of the two fawns had clear, visible white patches on its rump, while
the other’s was fading and two stubby antlers showed through its head.
Feyth smiled
to herself, adored by the two fawns that were frolicking in the grass, unaware
of the danger she posed. The adult deer were all gazing across the field and
into the thick of the trees. The other part of the forest was dark, but Feyth
was baffled as to why the deer were so captivated. It wasn’t long before the
two fawns noticed the apparent crisis, and shied away from their mothers,
crouching into the grass and probably whimpering.
Feyth
could not sense the danger the way the deer could, but she was now certain that
true peril was approaching. Maybe the danger was the reason why all the other
creatures were silent and hiding. The birds were up in the trees, not singing
in bliss the way they usually did. Though hiding in holes was typical mouse behavior,
it was rare that no mouse could be found outside its hole, and no sounds were
heard of small creatures.
Feyth was completely certain that
she was risking her life, waiting there. Either she hunted for one of the deer
and ignored the cause of their fear, or she signaled her mentor and asked him
what she should do. If she did, she would fail, but she did not wish to hunt
the deer when they were so exposed and unaware of her. It would feel too cruel.
One of the bucks fled, racing across the field with great bounds. It passed
into the forest and continued until it was out of sight. The rest of the deer
followed close behind, though the fawns had difficulty in keeping up.
Feyth
watched the closest deer to pass her. In its black eyes she could somehow see
fear and dread. All the deer were soon beyond her senses, and Feyth turned her
attention to the opposite line of trees. It took her a while, but after
observing she noticed an eerie golden glow that wavered and shook between
different trees. The glow danced back and forth, growing brighter with every
minute. Feyth looked up to the sky, a premonition clouding over her. Smoke
billowed high above the trees, a dark haze that hung above the trees, rising
further up and spreading towards her. Now she was sure, sure of the danger that
the animals had sensed. This made them superior, whether they were intelligent
or not.
A
forest fire had begun and it now raged through the forest, burning down the
trees and plants. It blazed with ferocity unlike natural fires, but Feyth
couldn’t possibly tell the difference. She only knew that it was fatal, and she
was in its path.
“We
must leave, now!” her mentor shouted at her. He had risen from his hiding place
when she had realized the danger. He had not been as vigilant as her, and had
not noticed the fire until after she had. When he noticed her reaction, he too realized
he had stayed too long. Only then had he understood her odd behavior. He
clutched her arm and pulled her backwards forcefully. She stumbled into him
before turning and full on sprinting.
Feyth ran as quick as she could through
the forest, her fear pushing her harder. Her mentor followed, though did not
have legs like her, long and built for running considerable distances quickly.
When she could no longer hear the thud of his footsteps, she spun around and
watched for him. He caught up with her, but he was already affected by the
fire. He was coughing uncontrollably and his eyes were watering.
“Quicker,”
he gasped, in a raspy voice. He began running again and she matched her pace
with his. By now, the roar of the fire was clear and menacing. Heat was
building up behind them and Feyth knew that the blaze was gaining. She did not
want to leave her mentor to die, but she did not want to die either. And what
about Solare, what if the fire reached the village? It would be scorched and
destroyed.
Feyth
could not hold the tears back, but they evaporated quickly. She glanced behind
her and gulped at the sight. Smoke made her vision blurry, but she could see
flames flickering through the trees, and the light of the fire. It stretched
wide across the forest, but curved around the edges. Trees were lit up and burned into the sky, the ground was scorched
and black and Feyth hoped desperately that she would survive. She turned her
head back to look out in front of her but a moment after looking at the
inferno. Ahead she could already see flames gathering around the edges of the
forest, caving in around her. She had not known a fire could engulf in such a
way. Her mentor thought the same, knowing already that the fire had not merely
been caused by the sun lighting a piece of grass, or a hut’s fire going out of
control. He knew full and well the cause.
Far
ahead of them the fire spread, surrounding them with its deadly fury. Feyth
groaned in exasperation, it was all over. They could not possibly escape now,
whether it was a natural fire or somebody being spiteful, unless they grew
wings they were trapped and powerless.
Feyth knew that the fire would reach
the village, and probably burn it down, but she not only felt grief, but also
remorse. If only she could have realized the danger of the fire sooner, and
gone back to warn everybody sooner, she might have been able to save them. They
ran until they could no longer bear the burn of the smoke in their lungs and
the scorching heat against their legs.
Feyth
collapsed onto her knees with a grunt. Her vision was so blurry she could no
longer tell her mentor from a tree, other than movement. Her head pounded and
her body ached, and she almost went unconscious, but the heat was so intense it
kept her from slipping into an endless slumber. Her mentor had also collapsed,
but he had lain down onto his back and rested his hands on his chest. He was
quite tranquil, for a man about to die. He did not wish to go down writhing in
agony.
“Feyth!” She smiled to herself, knowing
instantly who the voice belonged to, and what it meant.
“Find us, please come…” Even her thoughts
were weak and her feeble attempt to call for help only made her feel worse. The
fire around her was enclosing around them, quickly depleting the amount of
oxygen there was to breathe, and intensifying the heat. The golden light
engulfed the trees, and finally Feyth closed her eyes, unable to hold them open
any longer.
“No! Are you alright? Say something!” Feyth coughed and choked, her
strength faltering. She had nothing to say, it hurt so much. Then she felt
something warm and soft wrap around her waist, and lift her from the ground.
She was flipped over and placed onto something equally soft. She heard a hoarse
grunt and her mentor was laid next to her. He had gone fell into an involuntary
sleep, caused by his lack of holding onto consciousness. She couldn’t blame him
when she had come so close to doing the same. She opened her eyes again, and
tried to ignore the sting of the smoke in her eyes.
Within an instant Feyth realized
that not only were they flying, but also the expanse of the fire. Her vision
was even blurrier than before, due to being amongst the rising smoke, but she
could still she the burning fire, a bright light glowing below. Almost the
entirety of the forest had been consumed by its destruction. In some areas,
towards the edge of the forest, the fire had died down, leaving black marks,
singed growths and burnt trees. The destruction was devastating.
Feyth
turned to look to her village and instantly wished she hadn’t. The buildings
were ablaze, with no sign of stopping. Even from so far away she could hear the
terrified screams of those in fear, and those who were burning. It was a
massacre, many were dying and nobody could prevent it. A few tears pricked at
Feyth’s eyes, but she held them back. She would not let this, this incident
destroy her! I’m so sorry, Solare.
Korin! Where was he? She had heard his voice, and new that he would come
for her, but what about now? Her hands travelled upwards, she ran her fingers
through the soft fur that she was lying in. Though it took her a while, she realized
that Korin had saved her and her mentor. He had come and flown them out of the
fire.
Feyth smiled with satisfaction, it
must have been fate, that led her to saving him. Now he had returned the favor.
She was a little surprised that he could not only fly despite being injured,
but also carry two people on his back when doing so. It was actually very
tranquil, up flying. Feyth attempted to tune out the screams and wails and
tried to forget the ordeal. Sadly, it wasn’t as easy as she had hoped, and she
could not forget. It plagued her every thought, so she simply accepted it.
“Thank
you,” she whispered, patting the shoulder opposite to his injured side.
“I couldn’t leave you, could I? And I owe,
well owed, you one,” he sounded rather pleased with himself. She nodded in
agreement, but she wasn’t pleased the way he was. Sure, she was exceedingly
happy and relieved that she was alive, but she had lost everything else, except
her mentor.
“I just don’t know what to do…” she
whimpered, no longer holding the tears back and allowing them to spill down her
face.
"Hey, don’t cry, it’s going to be alright,”
he said, though he knew that she had plenty of reason to cry.
“I guess that now my father is dead… I guess
I don’t have anybody that I know of left in my family.” Then they started
their descent, slowly floating towards the ground a fair way from the still
blazing inferno. Her father did little more than take care of her, but he was
still her father. He may have been in deep melancholy ever since her mother and
brother died, but she still loved him. When they were hovering above the
ground, Korin beat his wings hard and landed softly, careful to not knock Feyth
or her mentor from his back.
“Feyth!” a voice screamed with a
mixture of glad and horrified emotions. Reyah ran to her, her small arms outstretched.
Feyth was taken aback, she did not expect anybody else to have survived. Now
that she thought about it, it made perfect sense. Reyah had been caring for him
when they sensed the fire, and they had fled together. Korin went to save Feyth
and now here they were. If Reyah had survived, then surely that meant…
“You
look terrible,” the frail voice spoke from behind Feyth. Feyth couldn’t help
but turn and hug the old woman.
“I
can’t believe you two survived!” Feyth beamed at Reyah and Shazkai. “We were in the barn when we saw the
fire, we got away just in the nick of time,” Shazkai murmured, her voice laced
with angry. The woman was probably angry true to the fact that she had lost her
hut, filled with her herbs and potions.
“You got me out in the nick of time.” Feyth simply sighed.
~~~
Welp
I just finished editing the entire story, from start to finish and turned it in to my English teachers.
So now I will begin to upload it, for nobody to read. Nevertheless, I'm still pretty proud of writing so much in November. Sorry for any editing mistakes!