Lost Soul

Chapter 1

Once, many years ago, in a group called the  Soulseekers a prophecy was given. It claimed that there would be a child born into the world. This child was destined to be lost, never found until it was the time for their destiny to be fulfilled. No one knew what their destiny would be or which child it would be. That information was for the Soulseekers high priests and a very select few others.  But no matter. 

Many long years past and the prophecy was forgotten by most. Very few still remembered the prophecy and even less still believed it. One of these few was a beautiful woman whose name was Jocylin. Jocylin had a happy life but she knew that the happiness she now knew couldn't last forever. But she would have to worry about that later since she was due to have her first child very soon, and she had other things to worry about since she a had been very sick and the doctor claimed she might not make it through the delivery. 

Jocylin birthed a beautiful baby girl, but her condition worsened and she knew she wouldn't live to see her child grow up. The child's father had gone missing a few months ago and had been declared dead, so Jocylin didn't know where her little girl would go. But she didn't worry about all the problems and struggles that her daughter would have. She held her baby close and stroked her soft hair. Then she brought her child close and whispered to her saying, "Erah. Your name is Erah." And that was all she managed to say before she broke into a violent bout of coughing. The doctors took Erah away from Jocylin and told her to get some rest. However, the next day, Jocylin didn't get up and she never would again.

Erah ended up growing up on the streets. She had to live off of people's pity for her. So her meager meals consisted of bread crusts and moldy cheese. She knew she didn't belong with the Soulseekers, and she didn't want to. So, one day when she was almost four years old, she left the village. She told herself that somewhere out there something grand was waiting for her, and she swore to herself that she would find it, no matter how far she would have to go. 

But before she could seek her grand destiny, she would have to find her way out of the dense woods that surrounded the Soulseekers village. Besides that, she would have to find a way to survive all of the wild animals that lived in the forest. Now, remember, Erah was a little girl not quite four and was still small for her age. She had no education, so she didn't know how to even find the other villages. All she knew was what she had heard listening to people walking past her, and that wasn't much at all. But she had a fierce determination, and she promised herself she would get out of those woods.

However, Erah had heard one useful thing. It was something people were always saying. According to all the myths and rumors, there was one safe place where the monsters couldn't go. The Path. The Path was protected by a magical field that monsters couldn't pass. Animals like cougars and wolves could still go on the path, but the worst threats were unable to even put a toe on to the Path. So, Erah stuck to the path. She didn't know what she would do if she was confronted with a bear, but she didn't care. She had to get to the city. That was all she cared about. Eventually, Erah got tired, and not knowing any better, she lay right in the middle of the path and went to sleep. As the girl slept, a pack of wolves noticed the girl and approached her cautiously. Then, Erah yawned and got up. Then she opened her eyes and saw the wolves all around her. But, Erah was only four and had never seen a wolf before, so she thought they were dogs.

"Puppy!" Erah exclaimed. She ran up to the alpha and stroked its fur. Oddly enough, the wolf didn't attack her. It just sat and let the girl stroke it's back. Then, it gently nudged her onto it's back and started walking towards the city. "Yay! Puppy ride!" the little girl cried. The other wolves followed behind and around, nudging the little girl softly. Erah began to establish a great connection with the wolves, nudging and patting their heads. And, quite surprisingly, the wolves grew even fonder of this little girl, claiming her as one of their pack. Erah truly loved her time as a member of the pack, but eventually, they reached the city. Erah hopped off the wolf, patted its head, and ran off to start a new life.