Unity

Chapter 1 - The Hunter

Everything's gone... there's nothing left apart from a few villages here and there, the rest of the world however has succumbed to a dark power, permanently bringing darkness to all the lands.

Beasts of darkness also roam the vast plains, attacking all in their path. The once clear skies haven't shined in years, clogged with the smoke of increasingly violent wildfires. I can't remember the last time I saw blue above my head. The population has been devastated by years of plague, women, children and elderly lay dead on the street sides, rashes coving their exposed flesh.

Only those with the ability to produce light at will can combat the darkness and return the land to what it once was. Rid the towns of evil and restore hope. But there was nobody here with that ability, they made sure of that. We needed help, quickly, before there was nothing left to save. Then they appeared.

Degrante's POV

The trees loomed before me, appearing from the darkness like poltergeists. Jagged rocks burst form the earth, slowing my progress. They were catching up, and quickly. I forced another breath of air into my lungs and pushed out another burst of speed. The beast's poison-tipped fangs snapped at my heels and its foul breath permeated through the air.

No matter how far or how fast I ran the creatures are always right behind me. Waiting for an error, a slip of the foot. A bright light emerged from the thick forest ahead of me, breaking through the misty gloom and terror. I sprinted towards the exit, one step, two steps. I was so close to being free. A tree root was my downfall, I tripped up on the raised object. As the monster's foul jaws clamped down on my ankle I felt pain spread through my body, my sight started to dim, and... I woke up.

***

My skin was coated with a cold sweat and my entire body was shaking. The first rays of sunlight were streaming through my tattered curtains. It was just a dream.

It was the same nightmare almost every night and every time I ended the same way. I'd visited a psychic to try and work out what the dreams meant, but nothing had helped.

Breathing a heavy sigh I climbed out of bed and pulled a shirt on over my wild blue hair. I attempted to tame the tendrils using my warped reflection on the doorknob. A bell sounded off in the distance, signalling the start of a new day. I sighed and stumbled through the small house into the kitchen and blindly made a bowl of oats.

Today was going to be the same as any other, wake up, hunt, come home, sleep. The monotonous routine never ending, or so I thought that's how it would go today.

***

The day started like any normal morning, sure. That was until I collected my weapons (a falchion and my father's hunting bow) and took to the woods. There had been reports about fearsome beasts recently inhabiting the nearby forests, but nothing I should be afraid of. I encounter the odd bear or the occasional wildcat while hunting, but they're easy to dispatch.

The monsters they described sounded like creatures from children's storybooks. Evil images coined to stop any misbehaving. There was nothing in that forest that I couldn't take on, or so I thought.

***

I had always enjoyed the forests, the quiet birdcalls and gently flowing streams. Occasionally encountering a small animal to make a meal out of, but mostly just enjoying the serenity. My moments in the forest gave me time to think, relax, to just be myself.

It was during one of these moments that the day became strange. I already had plenty of food stashed away in a burrow, safe from passing predators, but something urged me to travel further into the trees, almost like a voice calling my name.

A sane person would have remembered the warnings floating around the village. Been slightly cautious about their surroundings, but let's face it, I lost my sanity long ago. So I continued into the cool, dark centre of the forest.

The snapping of twigs brought me out of my reverie. A shadow darted across the path in front of me and a low growling could be heard filling the air around me. I slowly turned around, searching for the source of the growls. They were very animalistic... but at the same time not entirely.

I located the cause of the noise, a very large, very aggressive creature stared directly at me from the top of a tree. The monster closely resembled the one from my dreams, with evil eyes and dripping jaws. It leapt towards me and I was sure I was done for, my life was going to end before it even truly began.

I squeezed my eyes closed and stood stock-still. There is no way I am spending the last moments of my life cowering before a beast.

A flash of bright light cut through my eyelids and a shrill whine pierced my ears.

A breeze brushed past my face, carrying with it the acrid stench of smoke. I opened my eyes to see a delicate cloud of ash slowly drifting to the ground where the monster had stood. In its place stood a dark-haired boy... In a dress? He was holding a box of cereal in one hand and a ceramic jug of milk in the other. He barely even looked twelve winters! His hair was dark black and he looked kind of feminine.

He also looked pissed, "I swear to Setting-Sun if I can't eat this damned cereal for once in my life I'm gonna..." he looked my direction and noticed me for the first time. "Oh, hi there!"

What in the name of the five divines is going on?!