The Last (Book One Of The Mystic Empress Trilogy)

Not Yours To Take

The great firs rustled as the wind swarmed around them, hitting them with an ice cold wave. It was a silent night, no voices to be heard, not even the little cheep of tiring birds. As the night fully took hold, the air began to vibrate, a tearing sound breaking the silence. A ball of darkness began to swirl into form at the edge of the forest, a cracking sound hitting the air as it pulsed. A faint glow appeared in the middle as the strange object reached the height of the average man. The glow grew, filling the darkness with purples and blues, star like specks of white swirling in the mass of colour. The air seemed to vibrate even more powerfully, everything within the area seeming to shudder and groan under the pressure of power emanating from it. A figure suddenly appeared, stepping through the the colours like stepping through a wall of water. She was dressed in a gown of red and white, a long red hooded cloak hiding her features from sight. A faint glow swirled calmly around her, a ghostlike essence of pure white. The woman turned to face the portal, lifting her hand to it, palm outstretched. The colours pulsed brightly for a moment, and then it was gone, vanished from sight, the only proof it had been there the white ribbon of essence that weaved it's way into her hand. She lowered her hand to her side, and turned, looking around the area. She pulled back her hood slightly to give her a better field of vision, revealing swirling eyes that resembled the portal, like little universes caught in her eyes. Her skin was pale, almost ghostly in the light of the moon. She began to walk into the forest, her movements so graceful and silent that she almost seemed to float. She weaved her way through the trees, running her hands over the firs as she passed them. The forest seemed to whisper around her, and the faintest of smiles touched her rose coloured lips. The treeline grew thinner, and her pace slowed, her eyes glowing and swirling as she came to a stop, staring silently into the forest ahead. She frowned and her eyes calmed once more. Whatever she had seen, had obviously displeased her in some way. She began to walk again, more slowly and carefully, like a hunter nearing it's prey.

Crumbling stone pillars came into view, rising behind them an eerie stone castle. She stopped behind a tree, watching carefully. For awhile it was silent, but still she did not move. A creak echoed through the area, and she tensed. A figure clad in dull black armour appeared, and she watched him closely, silently running behind a pillar as he walked in the opposite direction. She continued to do this, following after him, until he came to a halt at an iron door. It was the only thing about the castle that looked well kept, maybe even new. He said something quietly, too quietly even for her well trained ears, and the door creaked open. He headed inside, and she followed after him, quickly slipping through the door before it closed.

A long narrow stair case greeted her. She paused, holding her breath, so not give away that she was there. Once he reached the bottom and stepped through a doorway she quickly and silently ran down the stairs, using the walls to keep her balance at such a speed. She hid to the side of the doorway, and peeked around, watching him cross a long room. Torches lined the walls, their flames burning an eerie red. "Magic..." She whispered to herself, cursing. This may not be as simple as she had previously thought. Although, she could not sense the source of the magic here. And few things escaped her highly trained senses when it came to magic. Whoever the magical being was, they were here no longer.
When he had crossed the room she ran after him once again, her feet silent on the cold stone floor. Voices reached her ears, one especially deep and gruff male voice catching her attention. She remembered the voice well. As she neared the black clad man, she lifted her hand, the white glow travelling up into her palm, swirling. She thrust her hand towards the man, hitting him as he pushed open that final door, the one she had been waiting for. He crashed through it, ripping the door from its hinges, landing on a wooden round table, his face frozen in a scream that would never leave his lips. Three men stood in the room, each clad in thick armour. But it was the one in the centre that caught her attention, donning a black armour engraved with intricate dragon designs, at his hip a sword glinted. Her eyes glanced at it, then back at him as he growled. "Guardian bitch... Get her!" His voice turning into a yell. The two standing beside him quickly jumped into action, ripping their swords from their sides, holding them in front of them. She gazed from one to the other, her universe like eyes beginning to swirl faster. She turned her gaze to the man behind the table. His glowering gaze faltered slightly, seeing the calmness in her face. She lifted both of her hands, her aura seeping out of the palms. One of the men poised to attack began to panic. He at least was aware of what was to come. In her heart, she would like to have spared him. Alas, he did not lower his sword. She threw her arms outwards, towards the men, her hands touching the blades. They cut into her skin, but as quickly as the cuts appeared, they healed. She tilted her head to the side, still watching the man opposite her, as her aura wrapped around the swords, travelling down them and onto the opponents arms. With a quick flick of her wrists the two men found their swords facing each other. The one who had shown panic before began to beg, but a slicing sound cut him off. Both men fell to the floor, their comrades sword buried deep in their throat. Her gaze never left the man bearing the dragon insignia. She saw his eyes quickly glance at the bodies of his allies as they hit the ground. She saw the nervous twitch on his brow. And she saw as he prepared to jump at her, wrenching the sword from it's sheath. She quickly dived to the left, spinning on her heel and throwing out a ribbon of her aura. It flew from her palm, wrapping around his heel before he had fully hit the ground. She pulled on it, and he crashed face first into the unforgiving stone floor. He groaned, taking a minute to gather himself, before pushing himself to his feet. He turned to face her, his nose smashed, blood pouring down his face. He spat, a few teeth flying from his mouth amongst the bloody spittle. A low growl rumbled from his chest, but she stared up at him, no sign of emotion on her pale face. This seemed to anger him, and he charged at her again. She slid to the right, this time throwing the aura out so it wrapped around his neck. She turned to face him as he struggled to escape the ghostlike rope. She lifted her hand slowly, and as she did he too lifted from the ground. He choked, struggling at the rope, swinging the sword at it, unsuccessful each time. His face turned bright red, his cheeks bulging. "Stop, stop.." He croaked, the shade of red filling his face starting to show hints of purple. She stood silent for a moment, watching him struggle, before clasping hold of the sword in his hand. He barely even put up a fight, and dropped it into her grasp. She held it in her hands, stroking over the shimmering silver. She flicked her wrist and the rope of aura released him, slithering back into her like a ghostly snake. He gasped in the air, his body heaving. She turned away from him, still having never spoken a single word since arriving. As she began to walk away, his voice spoke up, still a little croaky, but full of ferocious anger. "You will pay for this bitch. Just as all the others did. You will suffer." He grabbed for her ankle, but was too late. For the first time anger showed in her face. Her eyes flashed purple as she turned, and buried the sword in his back. He roared out as she twisted the blade beneath his ribs. She withdrew the sword, wiping it over his trousers to clean off the blood. Once again she turned away and walked to the door. She looked back, pausing as he took his last breath of air into his collapsing lungs. Her soft voice filled the room, emanating with a power of it's own.
"This was not yours to take.."