Queen of Ash

𝓅𝒾𝓃𝑒 𝑔𝓇𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝑒𝓎𝑒𝓈

Ashlyn walked through the forest, an arrow knocked in her bow. The wood groaned as she pulled back the drawstring, the tip of the arrow glinting in the moonlight. She whirled left and right, ignoring the fear pooling in her gut. She knew the Fae male was out here and he'd killed her father. The girl had vowed to kill him for it.

But Ashlyn was covered in snow and shivered with every step she took, the frost biting at her toes. It slowed her down. The girl knew she should have taken more clothes but it would have weighed her down, preventing her from bolting if anything happened.

The pine trees loomed over her as she stopped to pull her hood over her head. Ashlyn knew she couldn't light a fire, for she was too close to the village. People could see her.

So the huntress slowly made her way through the dark forest, following a trail of footsteps.

They were still fresh and alongside them were streaks of blood, where the father had been.

She trudged along until she reached a clearing, where the footprints stopped. In the center of it was a pool of still fresh blood. She hated red for she knew the color stained her past. This was where her father was brutally murdered. Ashlyn stepped closer to the pool of blood, the bow groaning from her tight grip.

Suddenly a twig snapped and a giant wolf appeared behind her. She whirled around and instinctively fired an arrow at his ebony-colored hide. But instead of knocking the beast down, the arrow just bounced off its thick hide.

Ashlyn stepped back, realizing how gigantic this beast really was. His body was the size of a horse, his paws bigger than her whole body. His claws gleamed in the night, most likely sharper than any known blade. Oh and his canines. She took a step back and knocked another arrow. One bite and she would be dead, hanging from his deadly jaws.

But it was not the canines that scared her but rather his green eyes. They were the color of the pine tree's leaves and the ocean's seaweed. They were beautiful yet so full of hatred and rage. The wolf blinked once and took a step forward.

Ashlyn stepped back farther, her boots crunching loudly in the snow. The wolf raised his paw, claws retracted and swiped off her hood. Her golden hair fell down her shoulders, now covered in snow. The wolf blinked again and made eye contact with her, his pine green stare making her hesitate. Her breath hitched, as he took a step forward.

But Ashlyn pulled back the bowstring harder, aiming for his eye, fear eating away at her.

Without a warning he lunged, jaws snapping. She yelled as the fire that cracked in her veins shot out of her hands, blasting the wolf. The blast knocked the huntress down into the snow as the wolf snarled and backed away. He bared his teeth and lunged again, only to meet a wall of fire.

Ashlyn cried out as he swiped at her again with his large paw. She ducked in time, his barely missing her face. A faint hissing sound could be heard as she fell deeper into the snow, slowly melting it. But by the time the wolf lunged a third time, she lay in a puddle of freezing cold water. Ashlyn tried to push herself up but her ankle barked in protest.

She struggled harder, dragging herself away from the charging wolf, away from the beast, away from death. But the young fire wielder knew she wasn't fast enough.

Finally, the beast gained on her and in one leap, pinned her down on the ground, baring his teeth. He snarled into her ears, a whimper escaping her mouth. She gripped her necklace, tightly and muttered a prayer.

She still didn't know who'd given her the golden chain necklace with a flame charm, but she was attached to it as if that someone had been very dear to her. But to her surprise, the beast stopped and got off her.

Ashlyn shut her eyes, preparing for a quick death. She gripped the necklace harder, the cool metal pressing hard against her palm. But instead of ripping her to shreds and devouring her, the wolf stopped and sat by her side.

There was a whooshing sound and a flash of bright light as the wolf shifted into a full-grown Fae warrior. He wore hunting clothes made of leather and an unknown fabric to Ashlyn. His brown curls were covered in ice and snow and when he met her stare, she finally got a full view of his handsome face.

Ashlyn's jaw dropped when she saw his beautiful pine green eyes. They were the same as the wolf's but instead of raging anger, they were soft and comforting. His nose was perfect, his jawline sharper than her hunting knife and his lips, pink from the cold. Her breath hitched, he was so perfect yet so deadly.

She scanned him from top to bottom, stopping at the sight of the two swords strapped to his back. One with a golden hilt with a glimmering blood ruby, the other with a silver hilt and a sapphire shining in the middle.

The fear she'd forgotten as he shifted suddenly returned and she shot up making a break for it. Ashlyn bolted, her injured ankle slowing her down. She pushed through the snowy bushes, melting all the snow in her path. She tripped and tumbled down a hill, snow stuffing itself into her clothes. And yet she still crawled on, tripping and falling, desperate to live.

She knew he wasn't far behind, and when she looked back, she saw him walking along, his hands in his pockets. As if chasing her was just a game. So Ashlyn turned around, summoned all of her human strength and ran. Finally, after everlasting minutes, she reached the edge of the forest, the trees parting away to reveal her village. But before she could reach the road, ice coating her leg, pulling her down to the ground.

She let out a yelp as she face-planted into the ice.

"Where do you think you're going?" a husky voice said from behind her. The Fae male. "There's no point in running, I'll always find you," he said in a voice colder than the Allasian mountains. Ashlyn tugged at her foot, now solid ice.

"What did you do to me? How?" she asked, her voice very quiet.

The male approached, his tall figure looming over her. His hands were still in his pockets, not hovering over the hunting knife at his waist.

"You can control fire my dear, and I can control ice," he responded, the ice suddenly melting. "There's no point in running, I've been ordered to bring you home." He grabbed her arm and hauled her onto her feet. She winced, her ankle is still hurting.

"What are you talking about? This is my home!" Ashlyn retorted, swatting away his arm.

"You know that's a lie." he snarled.

Without a warning, he punched in the gut and pinned her to the ground.