Arcanum

Chapter 20: Aiyana

"What are you doing!?" I hissed at a black haired boy, who was sneaking into the human village. He looked back at me, and gave me a large grin, before he darting into the village.

"Kohana!" I hissed at the boy, and pulled a black hood over my head. I sprinted after the boy, and noticed him turning a corner ahead of me. A growl escaped my lips as I turned the same corner, but I knocked over a few barrels.

"Sorry!" I apologized to a human woman, hoping she didn't recognize my voice. At the end of the street, I noticed Kohana walked around a market,

"Idiot!" I shrieked, and took off after him. The black haired guy grinned at me, and reached for something in the market. A man screamed at him, but he just stuck out his tongue and took off past the markets.

"Seriously..." I sighed, and raced after the boy, who stopped at the edge of the city, "you know the knights are after us now, right?" Kohana smiled, and grabbed my hand,

"We'll just outrun them then!" He laughed, and the two of us sprinted through the woods, with Kohana still holding my hand. We finally stopped to catch our breath in a large clearing, and Kohana stood up tall,

"See, I told you we'd get away." He said with pride, and i chuckled,

"You are way too arrogant sometimes. We just barely missed getting caught." Kohana looked at me, our eyes locking,

"I got you something." He said, and placed something in my hands. I examined the jewelry and noticed it was a beautiful ring with many different patterns in it.

"Its beautiful. You are such a jerk, but sometimes you can be so sweet." I wrapped the boy up in a hug, and he smirked,

"I know, I'm the best." I punched him playfully in the stomach, and then pulled him close to me, our lips inches from each-other.

"Ahem, love birds." A voice chuckled, and I looked to see a man from our village shaking his head,

"Oh." I blushed heavily and let go of Kohana. The two of us instantly avoided eye contact, and pretended to be interested in the forest. I heard the man laugh, and he waved before heading back through the forest.

"That was..."

"Awkward." We said in unison, and chuckled softly.

"We should head back then." Kohana laughed, and grabbed my hand, causing me to blush slightly. When we got back, the village was in complete chaos. Kohana looked at the attacking humans with a rage id never seen before, and he fought, killing many of them.

"Kohana, stop!" I grabbed his shirt just before he could kill the last knight in our village,

"Don't you think this is enough." I said, and he growled,

"Aiyana, they have killed so many of our kind! How can you still have sympathy!" He shouted, and I sighed,

"Because everyone has hope. I bet half of these knights were forced to go into battle. Who knows, maybe they don't even want to kill us! Please, Kohana." I clutched his hand, and Kohana growled,

"Fine, if youre going to be this way, I'm leaving. Humans were the cause of so many deaths. They think they are better but they are not." Kohana spun around, and pushed me away from him,

"Kohana, please!" I cried out, and grabbed his wrist,

"My name isnt Kohana anymore. Its Grim." He spat, and took off into the forest. I watched him leave, and collapsed to the ground, feeling tears burn my cheeks.

"Please. I need you." I whispered.

---

I sat on my favourite tree, my hair blowing in the wind. Kohana was just a memory now. Tears forced their way down my face, but I didn't bother wiping them away. I wish Grim would become who he used to be, so many years ago. I knew it would never happen though. It wasn't only Kohana I was thinking of though. It was also the General.

"Life is never going to be easy, huh." I chuckled softly, and leaned against the tree.

"Hi. Im sorry to bother you, princess." Belle sat on the tree next to me,

"Hey, don't worry about it." I smiled, and Belle took a deep breath,

"The Catori rebels are attacking the humans, I think they are retreating, but we can never be sure." She explained, and I looked toward the castle,

"Send out a troop to protect them." Belle looked shocked,

"But you're highness-"

"There are woman and children there. I cant simply let them die." I explained, and climbed down from the tree,

"Yes, princess." The brown haired girl nodded, and I smiled at her,

"I must go help." I said, and took off into the forest. I could hear Belle crying out to me that it wasn't safe, but I just ignored her. I knew if we showed the humans compassion, maybe, they would show compassion for our race. It was unlikely, but I had to give it a try. I darted to the human city, and saw a Catori woman about to attack a human child. At the last second, I leaped in front of the woman, and deflected her attack with my machetes. Then, I leaped forward and sliced my machetes against her throat. She was dead in an instant, and i turned to look at the child, who was looking at me with shock. The little boy said nothing, and got to his feet, taking off down the street. I let out a sigh, and then went to attack other rebels. As I was fighting, I noticed someone who was staring at me in complete shock. It was Lucas.