Worlds Apart: Fables of Edea

The Servant

*************************

"Statecraft is a harsh beast. It is often not made through negotiations and diplomacy but through iron and blood. Only then will progress be made."

A remark from Bismarck Scholz, the chancellor of the Kingdom of Athesh. He was instrumental during the Wars of Unification that turned the kingdom into an empire, where the continent was mostly unified under the imperial family's rule. For a long time, Athesh was a collection of fragmented states exploited by larger states before finally unifying in the eighteenth century.

*************************

"NOOO! GET AWAY FROM ME!!"

The little girl ran away from her pursuers. In the distance, several shadowy creatures chased after her. Her tiny legs were tired from running but she needed to keep going, not allowing herself to get caught. Far too much has been sacrificed to keep her alive. Everything was taken from her. Her family, her friends, her servants, her home: gone, all gone. She wouldn't let herself get killed and allow her pursuers to get the better of her.

She ran as fast as she could, not stopping to look back. She smacked the giant leaves out of the way as she ran deeper and deeper into the forest. She could hear growling noises behind her creeping closer and closer to her. They were catching up. She pushed herself harder and harder, forcing her body to move despite constantly whining about exhaustion. Her lungs were out of oxygen, the contents of her stomach were almost ready to spill over, and her legs were nearly sore.

I have to go! I have to go! I have to go! I can't let them take me!

Suddenly, a wolf came out from nowhere, jumping over. She cried out in horror. The wolf nearly missed her by an inch. Any closer and she would have been eaten up for dinner. She jumped over the wolf's body as it stopped to recover from landing on a nearby tree. As she ran, she nearly tripped over a small rock. She was able to catch herself but it cost her time. The growls and screeching behind her were coming closer and closer to her.

She kept running and running, trying to evade her captors as much as possible. Whenever a creature got too close, she either dodged its attack or attacked it to get it away. However, she arrived at the edge of a big cliff. She stopped immediately, realizing the horrible dilemma she was in. Her heart was beating rapidly as she looked down at the rapid-flowing river below.

"Finally. You have nowhere to go, little girl."

She turned around and saw a shadowy figure in front of her. Nearby, shadowy creatures accompanied it, slowly circling her.

"You're surrounded. You have nowhere to go. Come to us and we'll make sure to give you a painless death. Don't make it harder for yourself than it already is."

The girl only looked back and forth, debating what to do. The wolves sneaked closer and closer to her, ready to attack her in a moment's silence. The figure was impatiently waiting for a response. He waited for a moment or two before finally giving up.

"No response, huh? Fine, then. It doesn't matter either way for me. Kill her."

On command, the wolves bent down, preparing to jump to the little girl. She was crying but she forced herself to make a decision. Before the wolves could land a blow, the little girl turned around and jumped over the cliff, hoping that the river would carry her. She turned around and saw the shadowy figure looking back at her before she fell into the river. There was a moment of rapid falling before her body finally crashed into the water. The girl only cried out in pain as the impact destroyed a lot of her body. As her body slowly fell into the dark black water, she slowly raised her hand toward the surface, hoping that someone would save her. As her vision slowly blackened, the girl lost consciousness as her body sank further and further into the river before it floated back up to the surface.