Shattering of a World: Thorns and Roses (Book #1)

Chapter 1

She set foot out of the safe zone, and she was now a target for anyone, but Katrina was willing to take the risk. The dark brunette was crouched very low, and every step she took in the fluffy snow was as silent as the wind. The teen did not make a single sound, even as she slowly breathed through her nose. Her green eyes narrowed in concentration, never once blinking, and there was no one in sight other than the trees almost packed together and their branches intertwining with some other components like they were holding hands. The sky was clear, but there was no sun in sight shining its magnificent rays out in the open, but it was a gorgeous view for one to witness whenever it did.

Nine people were down on her side while only seven were down on the other side, and it could go either way. However, Tarion and Eugene were counting on her, and she couldn't fail them. She had to get that damn flag.

Katrina had been light on her feet the whole time like a feather, and the more she stayed like that, the more she felt her feet slowly cramp. It was her way of sneaking around, though, and if the dark brunette even tried to walk 'normally' in the snow, she'd only make the snow crunch, and the crunch would bring out too much noise. It took Katrina a long time to find the right way to sneak through snow, but now the green-eyed female had the agility like a cat. When sneaking around, the key she used was trying to use a path with less snow. If she never found a way with less snow, she usually used her foot to move away some of the snow and use less land and more trees.

What benefited Katrina at that moment was that she was wearing all white as the blanket of snow around her, so she was able to camouflage in her surroundings very well. In addition, she was wearing the hood of her cloak over her head so no one could see her face, and her chocolate brown hair was in a messy side braid. So if anyone tried to spot her, they would only see a white view in front of them and not an outline of a female figure. She was almost like a mound of snow.

As Katrina was about to take another step, she stopped midway when she caught a glimpse of something in the snow. The teen looked closer, and her green eyes saw rope binding together, and it appeared that whoever tried to set this up wanted to cover it in the snow but failed to conceal it enough. Katrina didn't need to guess what it was as she brought her foot back, and her green eyes trailed the rope of that net to one of the pine trees. The brunette would've considered this trap clever, but she would've only been lying to herself as she's seen this many times before whenever it comes to this situation. Without a second thought, she unsheathed her dagger from her leather boot, and she started to cut down the net. It wasn't long until the sturdy rope dropped to the light-felt snow and the trap no longer had a purpose.

Making sure no one saw her, Katrina pressed her back against one of the pine trees and scanned her surroundings. Not a single figure in their all-black outfits was insight, and the dark brunette quietly breathed in relief as cold air escaped from her mouth. Good. It meant she might've been this close to finding the flag. The area she was in, though, was about as big as the area Tarion and Eugene were still at, so there was no knowing where the others dressed in all black were, but either way, Katrina couldn't be too careful at this moment, and if she wanted to get that flag she had to keep her wits up.

A faint gust of wind blew in the dark brunette's direction, and as it did, she slowly licked her dry lips, and with enough courage, she went back to sneaking through the woods. With a few minutes passing by, Katrina still had no luck finding that flag. Where could they have hidden it? Surely they wouldn't have tried to hide it under a rock.

Then, a snap sounded in the distance. When Katrina heard it, she quickly held her breath and hoped she was blended in enough with the snow, only to hear someone curse up ahead. "You dumbbell, stop making noises." A masculine voice barked.

The brunette slowly started to advance, and as she did, she heard another masculine voice speak just as she hid behind another pine tree. "I wasn't trying to."

Carefully, Katrina poked her head out from behind the tree, and as she did, she saw two guys around her age in all black standing near one particular tree. Then, when she looked up, she saw something flowing with the wind, tied to one of the sturdy branches. Its color was as black as obsidian. What she saw was what she'd been looking for the whole time.

The guy Katrina heard talking the first time grumbled, annoyed, as he shook his head. "Whatever, but if we lose that flag, I'm blaming you for this. I'm taking a leak, don't let anyone from the white team get that flag."

With that, the first guy then walked away, and as he did, the second guy stood guard over the flag. Katrina realized she had a good chance of getting that flag now. She just needed to lure the second guy away and think fast. As the dark brunette tried to figure out a plan, her green eyes suddenly fell onto a rock half-buried in the snow. The teen couldn't help but smile as she thanked the seven gods and goddesses in her head. Then, as quickly as she could, Katrina went over to the rock, and when she managed to get to it, she picked it up and threw it in a direction. She heard the rock ram against something, which alerted the second guy.

"What was that?" The second guy asked himself, and he checked out where that sound came from, never noticing Katrina.

As soon as the second guy was far enough from where the flag was, Katrina took the opportunity and dashed towards the tree. She sprinted as fast as a snow fox, and as she neared the tree, she jumped very high like a caribou, and in one swipe, the dark brunette efficiently managed to grab hold of the black flag. The green-eyed teen then sprinted back to the safe zone, and out in the distance, someone cursed out loud. Katrina realized that someone saw the flag was missing, but she didn't dare look back to see if someone saw her.

"The flag! Someone from the white team must've grabbed it! You idiot!"

As Katrina sprinted, she couldn't help but laugh silently to herself. Even though she was a nice person, the dark brunette loved it when she heard someone get furious when they didn't catch her, especially in capture the flag. Oh, how she wished she would have seen a glimpse of their faces. It was just too good. As she ran, it was almost like she was skating across ice, and nothing could stop her at that moment as she was keeping her breathing and heartbeats steady. It wouldn't be long even until she got to the safe zone.