The Archaeologist

Chapter 1

The horse gave out a shriek before rising onto its hind legs. Her hands slipped from the horse's reins. A gasp escape her lips, but no other sound managed to escape. Her eyes widened as her body left the saddle. Her shoulders hit the ground. She clamped her eyes shut from the sudden pain that jolted through her body. Her legs whipped to the ground, before her entire body bounced twice. She slid to a stop.

Her muscles were tense, causing her entire form to shake. The girl's bottom lip trembled, and a small whimper sounded from her. Slowly, once the sharp pain subdued to a duller ache, she opened her eyes.

The spooked horse was already galloping away. It looked back fearfully at the Bullbos and Bulblins chasing it. The girl dug her hand into the sand, anger consumed her. Her graceful stead didn't deserve to be put through that sort of fear.

She gripped her arm and stood up, eyeing the Bulblins drawing close to her. Blood ran down her arm and onto her hand, staining the white dress that dawned her body. The bottom of her dress was already ripped, something she did prior to getting on the horse to make it easier to ride. She knew that even if she was wearing more suitable clothes for combat, she didn't stand a chance against these Bulblins, whose arrows were drawn and pointed at her. She had no weapons to defend herself with, all of her supplies were gone with her horse.

The girl was forced down to her knees. She bit her lip to keep her from spitting on her captures. Her eyes shot down to the sand beneath her darkening bare feet. Shackles were cast over her wrists before she was thrown over the back of a Bullbo.

Her eyes darted to her horse just in time for her to witness it being struck down by flaming arrows. She clenched her eyes shut, not able to stop the few tears that ran down her cheeks. Her body went limp, and she allowed herself to be carried away. Her mind only focused on her dead horse, shocking her into a deep sleep.

When she opened her eyes, the green creatures were rambling on in their guttural language. They were blurry at first, but once her eyes focused, she realized they were inside a cage. She tilted her head, rather she was inside a cage. Her hand brushed against the rusting bars and quickly withdrew them. She didn't want to cut herself on this metal out of fear of getting an illness or an infection. Chains rattled as her legs moved up to her chest.

The guttural mutter ceased. The monstrous humanoids turned towards her, their eyes appeared to be glowing red below their protruding brow. The girl gulped and backed away from them. Something hit her back. In an instant, her head tilted upwards. There was a collapsing brick wall, typical of the desert ruins she was exploring.

A silence stilled amongst all. The girl's eyes glanced towards the green hued mob. Her breath got caught in her throat. Footsteps that were lighter than they should have been slowly prowled towards her. Metal shifted ever so slightly. A leather cloak flapped with the wind. The golden crown glimmered under the light of one of the monster's torch. The heavy boots stilled in front of the cage, the possessor of such boots glared down at her.

The girl forced herself to not tremble under the man's piercing gaze. She knew very well who this man was just by one glance, and that fact terrified her to her very core. The legends behind this man shadowed all of the land's history.

"We found her riding out of one of the ruins," one of the monsters grunted towards the towering man whose attention now drifted from her to the speaker. "She could have been a grave robber."

"No, never!" the girl suddenly shouted. Her eyes widened at her outburst. She could feel her heart pounding against her ribcage. When the man turned towards her, she stared up at him and bit her lip once more.

"Then, why were you there?" His voice was deep with a slight rasp, just like what she expected from looking at him.

It took her a second or two before she found her voice. "I was studying there. I'm an archaeologist, and I was studying the lost civilization that was once here, but you probably already know about them."