The Forsaken

1

   Where the silvery grey sea touches the land, and the towering mountains scrape against the always dark and humid sky lies Ambrosius, the only place that keeps the Living alive. Aged stone walls built by the ancestors shelter Ambrosius, keeping out the dreaded Forsaken.

The Forsaken have the same appearance just like the Living, yet their blood is black and freezing, like their unforgiving minds. The Forsaken are walking corpses with their souls sucked out, eyes ruthless and longing for feasting upon the energy of the Living.

For hundreds of years, humankind has tried to get rid of them, only to become unsuccessful, is or ending up joining them. Then after giving up, they went into hiding. At least that's what the instructors endlessly have told their apprentices. And they clung onto their every word like sick little puppy-dogs. Except for me.

The wind tangled my wet strands of hair that have previously been soaked in the cold rain as I rushed through the rusty gates. A few years back, we had guards that would warn that they would report me to my instructor Orion if I wandered out one more time, but I couldn't have cared less. Then, one day they simply disappeared, later to be found hanged on the fence and animal scratches on their faces, yet the DNA from the scratches was human.

The colorful leaves danced on the soaked grass, not as bright as it was in the summer, yet tugging upwards at the corners of my mouth. I grinned in silence, taking in the smell of the salty water, glancing up at the tips of the mountains edging through with their abounding snow caps.

I wandered further, not even noticing as my path had become steeper. Lost in though, I sat at the edge of the cliff, feet hanging off, fingers playing with my hair that seemed lighter from the little sunlight. As the sun hid behind the airy clouds, something rustled behind my ear so I jumped up, cautious and alert.

"It's only you." I calm down, staring at the baby deer that I nicknamed Bucky a few months ago. The fawn had large eyes with a stunning shade of gold. He still had pale dots all over his light brown coat. Yet, the rustling still continued. Bucky turned around and ran for the hills, looking at me, as if to follow him. And the idiot I was, I didn't listen to him and made a wild dash towards the rustling.

Fighting my way through the thick pine branches, I find myself staring at a girl about my age, her face crimpled in an unspeakable pain. Her sobbing continued as she screamed for help as she lay next to a very intimidating black pool of blood. She gasped as she saw my presence and froze. She started shaking uncontrollably and then she stopped, eyes wide open.

I fought back a sob as I fell on my knees next to her, searching her if she had anything that could help her. With no luck, I continued searching through her dirt-filled handbag. Finding it surprisingly light, my fingers fumbled to open the opening, hidden by the broken down and frayed edges of the bag. My palm grabbed at nothingness for what seemed like forever, instead digging more dirt under my filthy fingernails. There was only a single ebony glove with a weird design. The lines seemed to slither on the smooth fabric, dancing to their own harmony of a song. Trying to shrug it off, I forcefully took my gaze from the darned thing. Just typical, right?

Bending down to her level, I frantically pressed my eardrum against her chest. There was no heartbeat or breathing in her. Only my worried heart beated its own drum, counting down its beats. Pressing my sodden back against the rough outer core of the old pine, I finally took what seemed like a first breath in minutes. Blood flushed to my cheeks as I bit my tongue to stop myself from screaming. A scream of terror, exhaustion and sadness seemed to bubble in my chest as tears streaked down my cheeks. If sitting next to a corpse isn't enough to ruin anyone's day, then I'm sure that a camp-full of the Forsaken is.

"Those are not tears. I, Ragneda Dar, will get it together..."

Even the forest seemed gloomier at this hour. The tops of the proud evergreens seemed menacing, not the usual welcoming home it was for me. The gloomy heavens above smirked evilly down, striking a boost of flashing lightning. A sudden fire was set to the top of a tall tree, its countless tongues endulging the tawny bark at a great speed.

Suddenly, I stopped. Staring into the worried gaze of Bucky, my sleeve wiped off the wet spots of my face.

"We will continue this little therapy session later. Let's get out of here." The small dawn took off for the thick family of throned bushes before I could finish my sentence. "Or do that." I sigh as droplets of rain emmerse from the dreary regengeful azure.

I shoved the bag into my worn-out pocket. As I ran towards Ambrosius, my mind began to wonder about the Forsaken, not believing that what Orion said is the truth, as the bone-chilling drops of water rained everywhere, even somehow getting under my snug clothes.