The Cavern and the Mountaintop

1

The Forest- Part One

Jana hit the unforgiving forest floor with a grunt. Her already broken arm landed roughly, causing her to wince. The bronze sword she was wielding crashed to the ground, as well as the small dagger she held in her injured arm. A slightly glowing spike was embedded in her neck, causing her to tremble uncontrollably while her entire body screeched to a halt.

Jana, using all of her strength, tried to stand while holding the sword on the ground, managing to make it halfway up. She raised the blade slowly, as if it was twice her bodyweight, and swung, silently screaming with rage. Her opponent merely stared at her, eyes swiveling up and down before barely twitching. The rage in her eyes quickly turned to horror. A long, gleaming white blade was protruding from her back, her unnaturally dark red- almost black- blood pooling around the handle. She gasped for air.

And then a lilac-gloved hand yanked it painfully from her chest, leaving the blood to freely flow from the wound.

Heavy footsteps faded away, leaving her fading world to fend for itself. Jana was dying, and not far from the cold, outstretched hands of death itself. Her breaths grew shallow, the cedar forest around her living on as though a dying Otylaria was not lying in the midst of the trees, sorely wounded. The river rushed through its carved out path, the sharp smelling trees shouted at one another, and the leaves on the bushes continued to rustle in the gentle yet chilling autumn breeze.

Jana, gasping for air and in pain, grabbed a long black chain fastened around her throat. She pulled on it, yanking it off of her and into her blood-soaked hand. Hanging from it was a deep blue crystal, which she shakily brought to her lips as black started to enclose her vision. Her pain was numb, and she could feel life leaving her body. She pressed the cold crystal to her lips and smiled, knowing a remnant of her memory would live on.

Jana closed her eyes, willing unconsciousness into her body before the pain that was threatening to overtake her yet again could succeed.

The crystal turned blood red before it stopped glowing, openly sitting in the limp palm of am already dead girl.