Freya

Prologue

The cold winter air tore at her lungs as she struggled to keep her pace.

Her breath came out in gasps and her legs were shaking, but she knew she couldn't stop. She had to keep going, she had to keep fighting. She wasn't ready to give up just yet. She kept running, squinting in the dark, trying to ignore the pain that shot up her body with each move she made.

She had to get out of the forest, she had to get to safety. She looked down at the bundle in her arms, feeling a sudden surge of determination. For in her arms lay a beautiful child, with hair as black as the night itself, and skin as bright as the moon. 

Her last hope. Her baby.

"It's going to be okay," She crooned. "You'll be safe, my sweet." And at that moment, she believed it.

That was before she heard a loud cracking sound, and then rasping noises, which could only mean one thing – They had found her. Fear gripped her heart, and she felt a chill run down her spine, which had nothing to do with the cold air that she felt around her. She looked for a way out, but the cloaked figures had surrounded her. There was no escape, there were far too many of them.

There was only one thing she could do now. She didn't know if it would work; Magic like that required great amounts of power. But she had to try.

Taking a deep breath in, she called on every ounce of her strength. She could feel every part of her body buzzing and fizzing with energy. She could feel herself starting to glow, the magic flowing in her veins and pumping around her blood. Then she opened her eyes and it was all over in within a second.

"Incendia!" She screamed.

There was a deafening explosion, followed by a brilliant flash of light, and then the gasps of the Cold Ones before they got engulfed by the raging flames.

But she didn't waste any time admiring her handiwork, she knew it wasn't over yet. She marched on forward, desperate to get the baby away from danger, away from this war, away to safety. Her muscles screamed in protest, and she felt herself on the verge of collapsing, right there in the middle of the woods – The spell had drained her dry.

She didn't know how long she had been running, it felt like hours had passed, but it could have been just a couple of minutes. But she didn't ponder for long; all her thoughts were now focused on the child in her arms.
She came to a halt as the ground gave way and her foot hit water. The river! She had crossed half of the forest!

She started making her way across it, but then stopped as a thought struck her mind. There was a river, flowing merrily right in front of her. She didn't know where it went, just that it was a place far, far away from here.

She knew what she had to do. She had to save the baby, whatever the cost may be. She knew she wouldn't last much longer, but her baby still had hope.

Bending down, she placed the baby in basket into the river, before pressing a kiss on the still sleeping child's forehead. "Etiam dapibus, mi dulcis," she whispered before disappearing into the cold, dark night.