Tale of the Barbarian

Down The Rabbit Hole We Go

The sun was beginning to set as Juniper watched from the roof of the bar; with a bottle of ale in one hand, and a knife playing between her fingers in the other, she felt content. Juniper stared off to the west as the sun had completely left and the moon had risen from its sleep. The red light blinked five times in the distance, it was time for her to go.

She threw the now empty bottle to the ground, standing from her sitting position and began her journey to 'The Cavern'. The Cavern was the ugliest part of the town where all the criminals came out at night to plot and scheme, at least that's what the villagers of the upper East side said.

Tonight, Juniper would put her plan into motion.

She jumped from roof to roof, silently praying her foot wouldn't slip and cause her to fall from the roofs. Her feet zigzagged all the way to the west side of Almington. Her feet came to a halt as she now stood in the darkness of The Cavern, but then they began to move again, and towards a familiar house.

The small, black home sat on the end of the street. Juniper knew in order to complete her plan, she would need a little help from Amelia.

Soon, she was at the door of the little black house. Juniper knocked in a rhythmic pattern, letting Amelia know it was her. The frame of a short woman with red hair appeared at the door. Amelia smiled at the raven-haired girl with dark eyes. No words needed to be exchanged as Amelia handed Juniper a blueprint of a large mansion. With a smirk, Juniper left Amelia.

She moved swiftly through the dark, unafraid of what lurked in the shadows. This was where she had grown up, everyone who lived in the city of Almington knew of the girl with sticky fingers. Juniper had never known her family, neither had most of the people who lived in The Cavern. She grew up on the street, learning the ways of a criminal. Everyone knew to steer clear of her, as well as Amelia.

Amelia was a story told to the rich children who lived in the east part of Almington, telling that she was a witch who dealt in black magic.

Juniper sat perched on a tree branch, looking over the blueprints of Parker Manor, the family who ran Almington. It was a dream for Juniper, to steal their prized jewels right from under their noses. Her eyes ran over the blueprints again, committing them to memory. With a breath in, she jumped off the branch and put her plan into motion.

Run! Juniper commanded her legs. Run! She cried as the many footsteps behind her got closer. Don't turn around, she commanded herself.

Juniper ran with all her might, a ruby necklace in one hand and her lucky dagger in the other. She could hear the yells of the guards telling her to stop, but she would never listen to them. With another push of her legs, they were now in her territory, a territory the guards were too scared to enter; The Cavern.

She was safe. She was home.

Juniper moves her tired legs towards the familiar black house. A lazy smile came across her face as she moved closer to the home. As Juniper raised her arm to knock, she noticed the door had already been open. She pushed the door as she heard something break. Slipping the small dagger from her boot, Juniper crept silently towards the noise.

In the kitchen stood Amelia and two large men. Amelia's red hair seemed more vibrant as Juniper watched her eyes twitch. Before Juniper could lunge at one of the men, she made eye contact with Amelia. The slight gasp that left the red-haired woman brought all the attention to the raven-haired female.

Both men scutinized Juniper's appearance, then moved to ambush her. With an unknown word flying out of Amelia's mouth, the two were now in her bedroom. Juniper's eyes widened in astonishment as she took in Amelia and her fiery hair, that now seemed to glow. Perhaps the rumors were true, Juniper thought.

Juniper was shaken from her thoughts as Amelia wrapped a gold chain around Juniper's neck, "Find Azreal, tell him the prophecy has begun," she rushes Juniper left of the room, "no one can take the necklace off you, only your hands can undo it." Amelia rushes around the room, ripping open a drawer, "I'm sorry, I thought we'd have more time". Amelia places an iron dapper into Juniper's hand, "the necklace keeps you alive, don't take it off until you reach Azreal. He will know what to do". With one last look to the girl with the dark eyes, Amelia began to chant, and pushed Juniper into a mirror.

 

The two men arrive to see the red-haired woman staring into the mirror. "The prophecy has begun. You should have tried to kill me sooner," Amelia flashed a grin to the two men before disappearing into thin air.

Edited Jan. 29, 2023