Valtava: Dragon Sword

Chapter 18

Katerlina walked through the forest with no destination, only wishing to be surrounded with the quiet trees and bushes. It was deep in the night, and she had to rely on the faint moonlight seeping through the leaves to make her way. She stopped when she reached a small pond, which reflected the moonlight and provided a beautiful landscape to calm her emotions.

The silence was interrupted by the sound of footsteps behind her, and at first she thought Tony had followed her. But upon listening more carefully, she realized it was the footsteps of multiple people. She looked around and saw vague figures approaching from within the trees, and she placed her hand on the handle of the sword she was carrying.

"Who's there?" she called as the figures came closer. When they became illuminated by the moonlight, her heart leapt as she saw the black hooded robes the men were wearing. Although she had never seen them personally, her master had taught her from a young age that these hooded men were the Hollow Men — the people she had been trained to kill.

"A young girl alone in the forest in the middle of the night, what a pleasant surprise," one of the men spoke in a deep raspy voice.

"She looks to be new here. Why don't we have some fun tonight?" another chimed in.

"You devils, don't you dare come any closer!" she said, tightening her grasp on her sword. The Hollow Men began slowly walking towards her, and she turned and ran in the opposite direction. The Hollow Men jumped into the air and landed in front of her, and she was soon surrounded on all sides.

"You can't escape now, little girl!"

Katerlina unsheathed her sword and lunged towards the men blocking her way. They ducked and all drew the weapons they were holding, clashing against her blade as she swung. Her heart pounded as she tried to dodge all their moves, but she soon realized she was no match for all of them. She missed one of the swords aiming at her feet and felt a sharp pain as a sword cut across her ankle.

"Ah!" she screamed as she fell to the ground. The Hollow Men pointed their swords at her, laughing in unison.

As they were about to make their next move, a shadow moved across the air above them, and a sword suddenly cut across the Hollow Men's faces one by one. The move was so fast that they could not react as they were consecutively slashed in the eyes. They screamed in pain as they dropped their weapons, their eyes dripping with blood.

"Miss, let's go!" the voice of a young man shouted next to her ear. Katerlina looked around to see who it was, but she was grabbed by her arm and lifted into the air. They landed onto the grass several feet away, and the man pulled her through the forest until they reached the entrance to a rock cave. There, they slowed to a walk and the man helped her inside and sat her down.

"We should be safe here. Did they injure you at all, miss?"

Katerlina then had the chance to look at the man carefully. He seemed to be in his mid-twenties, dressed in a gray robe and wearing a cap that was tied at the chin. His face was long and thin, and his eyes were filled with concern as he waited for a response.

Katerlina reached her hand to feel the cut on her ankle. "I got cut here, but it's not a big deal."

"You won't be able to walk with that. Here, I'll help you treat it." He lifted her skirt up and rolled down the top of her sock to expose the skin. He grabbed a small glass bottle from the pocket of his robe and dabbed some powder onto the cut, which quickly stopped the bleeding. Katerlina peeked up at his face as he wrapped her ankle with a bandage, feeling her cheeks flush.

"There you go," he said, pulling her sock back in place. "You have to be careful around here, miss, there are Hollow Men all over Mount Hau now. Where's your home? I'll send you back."