~ a lily among thorns~

"dead or alive"

Back through Silla, Nari ran, anger boiling through her veins. Nothing could quench the shock and vengefulness she was experiencing in that very moment. Although surrounded by dozens of people, she felt alone. Although the atmosphere joyful, she felt wronged. Although the lights bright, she felt darkness looming within her.

Nari pushed past the hordes of people on their way home, still unsure of her destination. She just wanted to get as far away as possible from the run-down inn that harboured her mother's murderer. "We're not stopping until we find her!" a sudden shout sounded not far behind her on the street. Nari spun around, craning her neck to see what the commotion was.

A crowd of guards were splitting off into small groups, scouting down different paths. Nari looked to the center of the division where the Command stood. She narrowed her eyes as she heard him yelling orders. "Find the girl and report to me immediately!" he demanded, sparking instant action among his inferiors. "They still haven't given up on me?!" Nari grumbled, beginning to inspect the different sets of soldiers carefully, analyzing their intended directions and noting places to stay away from. When she looked back at the Command, he was staring right back at her.

She jumped in shock, before realising her demise. "Hey?" she breathed humorously, flashing him a sheepish smile and wave. Without hesitation, the tall frightening soldier quickly unsheathed his sword and started marching her way. "Oh dear," Nari squeaked as she watched him call for an army of support.

The girl took a few steps backwards, before turning around and sprinting. She could hear the shouts and heavy footsteps of her pursuers close behind. The town was still in a buzz from yesterday's festival, so it was harder to navigate smoothly through the streets. This left Nari at an advantage, however, as she wasn't laden with heavy armor and was small enough to sneak through tiny gaps and cramped spaces.

She couldn't run without zero obstacles though, and she soon realised that upon barging into a woman loaded with baskets of vegetables. Her victim tumbled to the ground, her produce spilling everywhere. Nari could only spare a quick glance and a genuine "sorry!" as she continued to try lose her chasers. "Get back here!" an angry onlooker called after her, but Nari did not stop.

Ahead, she could see the markets were beginning to morph into houses. This was good news. More houses meant more dark alleyways where Nari could hide until the coast was clear. Upon reaching them, she ducked off into the most shadowy one she could find, slinking into the darkness and hoping she wouldn't be detected. She watched as the Queen's soldiers rushed past, swords and fire torches in hand. She'd have to wait a while to go back out, unless she found a way through the backstreets to a place she could stay the night.

As Nari leant against the wall, she felt paper under her fingers. She turned her head to see what she was resting on. Her mouth dropped as she saw her own face sketched intricately on a poster, the words "Wanted Criminal" labelling the image. Nari had always seen these notices when she was younger. She had never imagined she'd ever be on one of them.

The girl ripped the page from the wall, inspecting it more closely. A fine price was stated on the bottom for her arrest. "The Queen must really hate me," she mumbled, crumpling up the poster and letting it tumble to the ground. She kicked it down the alleyway and followed its trail to a set of three feet that were creeping up towards her. Quickly, Nari's eyes shot up as she saw a trio of palace guards readying to capture her. There was no way she could take them all on. But she also had nowhere to run. She'd have to take the risk. Completely unarmed, Nari raced up to them, prepared to give up a good fight.

"Argh!" she yelled, tackling her first unsuspecting opponent. Both parties fell to the ground in a skirmish as Nari fought to gain the upper hand and steal his sword. The man struggled in defense, trying to free himself from her grip. However, Nari was quick to react, grabbing and twisting his wrist until he could no longer hold on to his weapon. As soon as he let it go, Nari whisked it into her hand, quickly raising it above her head to deflect the blades of the two other soldiers raining down on her.

The force of the two swords was hard to fight off, especially with the human knot she was stuck in with her first rival. When Nari finally managed to battle away the first strikes, she took the opportunity to roll a few meters to the left, releasing herself from the first guard's bondage and gaining enough distance to stand up.

As soon as she got to her feet, she fought off another volley of cuts that swung her way. It was two against one now. "I'd like to let you know this isn't the first sword fight I've had tonight, and the last one made me a little angry," Nari said rather satirically, as she stepped back to catch her breath. She then raced back into the fight, advancing on her two opponents. She reeled her sword, deflecting the weapon of one of them and driving her blade into his armor. The steel sliced straight into his side, and he cried out with pain as he fell to the ground. Now there was one – an even fight. Nari continued to advance on her last rival.

And all did seem to be going in Nari's favour before an unseen grip wrapped around her neck, pulling her backwards helplessly. The weaponless guard whom she'd tackled at the start had regained his composure and now had the girl in an inescapable headlock.

Nari fought to release his grip, but it only provoked him to squeeze tighter around her neck. Her feet were now flinging through the air, desperately in search for solid ground. "Gotcha," the other guard taunted, snickering evilly. Nari gasped for air, pulling at her captor's arms in a desperate attempt to peel them off. It was no use.

"The whole city is looking for you," the armed soldier continued with a snare. "One thousand gold pieces for the traitor-". The guard placed the tip of his blade on Nari's stomach. "Dead or alive." Nari's attempt to escape became more frantic as she felt the presence of the sword beginning to feel sharp against her skin. "I choose...dead!" the guard cried, preparing to lunge the blade into her. But suddenly, he became very still. Nari watched with confusion as his eyes began to roll back into his head. His body turned limp and slowly plummeted to the floor – a knife firmly stuck in his back. The guard strangling her released his grip for just moment, shocked at what he'd witnessed.

Taking his surprise as an opportunity, Nari drove her elbow into his face, sending him to the ground also. He grappled with her legs, trying to drag him down with her, back Nari grabbed her sword, driving the pommel straight into his head. He was knocked out cold, and Nari fell beside him exhausted. She clutched her throat, breathing heavily. A small noise sounded nearby, and Nari looked up to see a figure in a black coat exiting the scene. "Hey, wait!" Nari yelled, but they'd disappeared.

Nari drove herself to stand up again, still resting both hands on her knees in weariness. She thought about what to do next. She noticed the crumpled-up piece of paper in front of her. Those posters must have been planted everywhere in Silla. Surely, it wasn't safe to stay there now. There was only one other place Nari could think of to take refuge.