The Fates

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

October was coming to its end and the smell of decomposing leaves filled the air around Celia as she stumbled through the forest, leaving a trail of blood behind her on the yellowing leaves.

Celia could hear her own erratic heartbeat whooshing in her ears, one beat for every shaky step that she took.

The sight of her dead mother torn to pieces, was still present before her eyes, making it hard to see where she was going and she stumbled again and again as sobs racked her body.

The sound of the terrifying beasts were coming closer and she knew that the same horrific fate awaited her, there was nowhere to hide, no where to run.

Celia’s mother had with her last breath pleaded for her to run and so she tried.
The leaves were wet under her feet making her slip again. Celia did not even register the mud that covered her as she forced herself up on her feet yet again, willing her legs to run faster.

Unable to see through her tears Celia ran into something solid and she fell backwards.
Celia moved her hand behind her to catch herself but her hand slipped on the leaves too.

A searing pain shoot up through her back as she landed clumsily on the wet ground.
The sound of the beast's heavy footsteps grew closer still and with panic rising within her Celia tried to stand up again but her body was done, there was no fight left inside of her.

This was it, she knew it. She was going to die. Celia closed her eyes hard, accepting her fate as quiet tears fell down her already tear stained cheeks.

Cilia awoke with a start, her heartbeat still beating wildly from her dream.
No, not a dream, it had been real.
She really had seen her mother being torn to pieces by those monsters, she could hear her mother screams in her head.
Celia's mother had yelled for her to run and she had. Celia had not been fast enough and she really had expected to die, to join her mother in the afterlife.

But she had not died.

Celia looked around the room, slowly coming to her senses.
There was only one dusty window, so dusty it hardly let any light in at all.
Only a few candles were lit, making it a bit hard to see.

Celia strained to remember where she was, her memories still a bit hazy.
She forced herself to sit up and the small cot made sounds of protest as she did, her back protesting too, reminding her that she had hurt herself when she had fallen. Memories hit her like a stone wall and she put her head in her hands as she thought back to what had happened after she fell.

* * *

The solid thing that Celia had run into and that had made her fall backwards had turned out to be a blessing sent by The Fates.

As Celia had been laying there, trying to brace herself for her own death she had heard the monster's bone chilling snarly growls echo around her.

Celia had also heard the soft whisper of steel being drawn, although she had not known what it ment at the time and she had kept her eyes firmly closed.

The impact that she was awaiting never came and it had grown quiet around her.
She had lied there for a while, listening to the silence around her. Celia had expected to hear the beasts again and when she hadn't she slowly opened her eyes.

Celia found herself staring at a man, although he had looked more frightening as the beasts he had slayed, he had for some reason saved her.

But where was he now?