Witch's Gambit

Careful & Connected

Left in the darkness by herself and knowing full well that staying in the hidden passage wasn't an option, Ailana began to walk, although she couldn't see where she was going. It may have been a good idea to light a match or something of the like, but she was scared. What if the light could be seen from somewhere and she was compromised? The terrible possibilities took over Ailana's mind, making the idea of even lighting a match seem like a death sentence.

And so, she walked through the passage, ignoring any sense of claustrophobia and the smell of dry, dusty earth. The only sounds that accompanied her were the sounds of her own footsteps, and even those were terribly muffled by the ground below her. The dust she brought up with every step caused Ailana to cough and wheeze, blurring her already insufficient vision.

Eventually, although it felt like it had been days rather than perhaps an hour or two of walking, the passage began to light up with natural light, sunlight. Meaning that it was coming to an end, even though her journey had barely even begun and she barely had any idea of where she was supposed to go.

The source of the light was at the mouth of what looked to be the remnants of a lake or pond, a crater with dry earth, and nothing else within in. There had never been a body of water near Cecilio as they wouldn't buy jars of water from merchants if there was, which meant she had truly gone a long way. With such a thought, she began to break down again and crumpled to the ground, dust flying up as her body made impact and tears fell from her face. There weren't many for her to cry, as she was terribly dehydrated.

Although reality had hit her long ago, this was the first chance Ailana had to truly let everything set in. She had to flee from the only home she'd ever known, leaving her father behind to deal with her mess, to die because of her, and now she was in the middle of God knows where with only two bags of supplies and herself. She was hungry, thirsty, and just wanted to go home.

Even if there wasn't a home waiting for her.

"Be brave. Be Brave. Dad said to be brave, so be brave." Ailana took a deep breath and started whispering it to herself persistently. "Be brave. Go through the bag. Eat, have a drink, and think. Eat, have a drink, think."

Ailana whispered this to herself and had it on replay in her mind and she shakily went through the motions. She went through the bag that she had watched her father hastily pack, finding a jar of water and some dried fruits, jerky, and bread. She decided to save the fruits and jerky since they would last much longer and began to eat the bread and occasionally took small sips of the water. When she finished, Ailana diligently checked to make sure the jar was sealed tight to ensure no leakage would occur before putting it away and checking out the other bag, the one that had already been filled.

The bag was green in color, a lush green that reminded Ailana of the little plant she had made. Untying it and peeking inside, she found it a lot fuller than it originally appeared. There was a leather-covered book, a rarity, a folded up piece of paper, various bottles with colored liquids within them, and...

Ailana reached into the bag and cautiously pulled out the item. It was a dagger, a surprisingly sharp one for a fact. It looked brand new, the metal of the blade having an unnatural sheen to it, the handle engraved with strange symbols she had never seen before. Yet she felt strangely drawn to them, tracing each one with her finger. Each symbol traced brought a warmth to her hand that slowly spread throughout her body, creeping from her fingers to her palm, up her arm, and into her chest, poking at something she couldn't explain.

It eventually wrapped around that unexplainable part of her, rooting itself deep within in her, although Ailana wouldn't know this until it came to be of use to her.

Leaving the dagger out, Ailana pulled out the folded piece of paper and unfolded it, careful not to tear what likely to be the map that her father mentioned. It was a map just as she had assumed. Although the color on it had faded, the lines somehow smeared away and blurred, Ailana could tell where she was. Apparently, this crater was indeed once a lake, a lake known as Narian Lake. To get to where she was supposed to go, or at least that's what her gut was saying, she'd have to go north from Narian Lake for 3 days. That was if she didn't rest at all.

Ailana let out a deep sigh and decided to rest for now. She'd need all the energy she could get.

[ Dances in foreshadowing ]