Runes and Royalty

Prologue

     Walking along the beach in the sunny afternoon, Lan and his wife Rina, walked hand in hand, taking in the salty breeze coming from the sea. They were talking about the night activities and events that would happen later that night. But sadly, to them, they couldn't have a child. This hadn't come true for three years, yet they keep on hoping and trying. 

        Lan looked at Rina. "Dear--"

        "Lan, do you see that?!" Rina cried. 

        She began running to where a bundle seemed to be washed up from the sea. Waves lapped gently against it, and a small box seemed to float in front of it. It was a person, Rina thought. She knelt on the sand and pushed off the cloth in front of the person's face, and gasped. Her husband knelt beside her, slightly out of breath. They both looked at the person, a child. Almost a five year old, who must have been ship-wrecked. 

        "Lan, go get some help from the others!" Rina said, untying the child's wet, heavy cloak and moving it away from her chest so the child could breath. 

        The child's hair was brunette, and her face was red and sore, with a few cuts and bruises. Rina stared at the child's clothing. A satin shirt embedded with diamonds, though torn in some places, with a red vest woven with intricate golden threads. A necklace, heavy with cut red diamonds and pearls adorned her neck, and her cloak had an unknown sigil, and little onyx stones were her earrings. Rina was tempted to steal off those luxuries, but she had a kind heart.

         Lan arrived with two men and they loaded the child on a stretcher. Carrying the child back to the camp was slow, since they had to hide from passing soldiers. They carried her to the healer's hut, where she was given water, and her wounds to be healed. Rina and Lan stood by the healer's side all the time, anxious of the child they found. 

At last the healer moved away, and for the first time, the child opened her eyes. It was blue like the heavens above. She coughed and tried to sit up. 

        "No, please, stay down," Rina said and then gave her water from a small tea pot. The child drank thirstily, and they helped her sit up. 

        "Do you have a name, child?" Lan asked. She nodded.

        "Allycaryn Hollyatria. You can call me Ryn."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

        "Ryn, where are you going?!" Rina called out, stirring a pot over the fire.  Slinging her bow and arrows over my shoulders, I walked out of the tent, with my hair almost sticking out of my black hood. 

        "I'm going out hunting." With that, I slunk into the trees, smiling to myself. 

           The tree's dense foliage made it so thick that little sunlight crept through the leaves. The chirping of crickets and other insects was almost deafening, yet it shielded my foot steps on the forest floor. I came across a small stream with sparkling water and filled my waterskin to the brim with it. I drank thirstily, and waded to the other side. 

        I saw a deer bounding over a log to my way. I froze instantly and strung my bow. The deer bent its neck to the water to drink, but instead it spotted me right away. I let the arrow loose, and struck only it's shoulder. Damn, I thought and splashed to the other side hurriedly, in hot pursuit. Then I stumbled suddenly, landing face first in the dirt. 

        Spluttering out the grit and small twigs and cursing, I looked at what I stumbled on. I gasped. In front of me, sprawled in a weird angle was a body of a girl, all bruised up and bloody with open wounds. I pressed my ear against the girl's chest. It was beating softly, and slowly. I removed my waterskin and wet the girl's lip with a few drops. The girl coughed violently, and her voice was parched and soft. 

         "Hello?!" I asked, and carefully dribbled water onto the girl's lips once more. "Can you hear me?"

The girl opened her eyes, and I stared. It was the color of the grass, the leaves, the sea kelp. It looked like she was looking at a small miniature green sun.

       "K-kill. . .me. . ." she whispered. I stared and shook my head.

       "No. You have to live. Here drink," I lowered my water skin once more, but the girl pressed her lips. 

       "I'd rather d-die. . .than live in h-hell ag-gain. . ." 

       "No! I'll save you! You're not going to die! You'll live!" I said and gathered the girl in my arms. 

        Even though the girl struggled weakly against her, I carried her back across the stream and back to the camp. The campers were shocked at the sight of her and immediately summoned the physician that camped with them. I brought the girl inside the physician's hut and helped in bandaging her wounds. 

~~~~~~~~~~

           After three heart wrenching hours later, the physician and I went out, with the girl holding tightly at her hand. I led her to the side of the fire, and made her sit down. The girl was given clothes and a cloak to keep her warm, all from Rina's own, which were a little too big for her, but the cloak hid her body mostly.

           "Rina, two bowls of soup for us here," I called to Rina, and smiled at the girl. "Anyway, do you have a name?"

           The girl smiled weakly and nodded. "I'm Elvira Asquith. Eli in short. Five years old. . ."

           "I'm Ryn. I'm so glad you survived, Eli. And you're a year younger than me." she smiled at Eli.  

           "No. Thank you, Ryn. Because of you, I survived."