The Forgotten Kingdom

~Prologue~

The man sniffed the air and growled under his breath. The dense forest surrounded him and blocked out all signs of human life. The trees were the thickest he'd ever seen and seemed to restrict the small hints of moonlight that were trying desperately to sneak through. Any signs of wildlife were hidden and all sounds were hushed as if expecting someone. A heavy fog lay over the clearing making it almost impossible to see. He had been sent to this miserable forest as a punishment for being arrogant in his last mission: He had been cocky, conceited and had lost his master the business opportunity of a lifetime. Now, his master had sent him to deliver this message to a person in town wearing a red scarf. If you ask me, he thought to himself bitterly, this mission is rather pointless and Master only sent me out here to get frostbite. He was arriving in town on the biggest day of the year, the day when the king sacrificed people to his ancestors. Nobody in their right mind showed up to that "ceremony" if they were not planning to lay on the ground all day and pray. He was almost completely certain that the message receiver wouldn't even come.

He suddenly realized that something was horribly wrong. The man knew that something was not quite right. No forest was ever this quiet. The forest had gone silent except for the wind which had started to wail. A faint breeze rattled the branches and the unnerving cracking resonated around the clearing, it sounded like bones. He felt goosebumps scurry up his arms, alarming him to a point beyond belief. No one could sneak up on him- he had the best sense of smell in the kingdom and could hear someone approaching from miles away-yet he heard nothing.

He stopped walking. "What the hell is going on?" He demanded, trying to hide the fear in his voice. The air carried the scent of Bloodbeetles, the worst kind of beetles. They only came out when danger was approaching. He unsheathed his sword and looked around cautiously. He was the most feared warrior in the land and had faced thousands of enemies but somehow this seemed a great deal more dangerous. An assailant he could not see. The air suddenly went dry and he had a creeping sensation that someone was watching him. He gulped and gathered his courage as he saw a figure emerging from the thick fog.

When he saw who appeared his fears disappeared, she was the most beautiful woman in the world. She had long auburn hair and her pale skin shone in the moonlight. She was so enchanting he failed to notice the daggers gleaming at her side, he also missed the long sword on her back. She grinned wickedly at him and started walking closer, soon she was close enough that he could see the whites of her eyes. He leaned in and smelled her rose petal fragrance; it was both entrancing and delightful. A laugh bubbled in his chest as she tilted her head to the side and gave him a grin. But he didn't dare take a step, this woman had an unearthly sense to her. She was like a goddess, beautiful but dangerous.

Suddenly she grabbed a knife and stabbed it into his chest. He gasped as he fell to the ground, blood gushing out of the wound in his heart. His last sight before darkness took over was the woman standing over him, the wicked smile still playing on her lips.