Skyrius Ventus: The Wandering Knight

[Skyrius Ventus]

Running through the woods, I fear for my life as my feet splash through the puddles from a recent rainfall. I can feel their eyes, peering through my body. I can hear their deep breaths and panting.

Like the wind; I danced through the thick forest with nothing but the moon to light my way.
My armor; in tatters.
My sword; dull and weak from fighting.
My will to live; unbroken.

I turned to face the creatures once I reached a nearby grove only to see a pack of wolves staring me down. Struggling to summon forth my fire magic, I could only
muster enough for a spark.
"Damn...this is it I guess.." was all that ran through my head. My hair was tied up from growing so long and sweat ran down my dirty and unshaven face.
I reached for my sword; Gessander, and unsheathed the cracked blade. If I was about to fall to these things, I'd take at least one or two with me.

I started seeing double.... one wolf became two and two became four. Exhaustion had set in.
I hadn't really gotten a good nights sleep since I left the Thuliaga clan and my friends behind. Holdfast was starting to look a lot like home at this point. Just before I fell to my knees, I heard a bow whip the air and heard a wolf squeal in pain.
Heh, looks like this Knight isn't dead just yet.

[Skyrius Ventus]

I woke up from what seemed to be a nightmare.

Stripped of my armor and laying in a warm bed with just the scent of birch burning nearby. The light of the comforting fireplace flickered off the nearby walls lined with portraits of a normal family. I sat up and felt every muscle in my body tense and pull. Never in a million years would I have thought I'd take so much damage and be so worn down.

"I see you're awake.." A woman whispered from a chair in the corner. Her eyes never left the leather-bound book in her hands. She sipped tea from a chipped cup.

"Where am I? Who are you?" I asked. My throat was sore and I struggled to speak even the simplest of sentences.
"The name is Sara. You're safe here with my family and I. We tend to stay hidden away from the affairs of the Empire and such. Judging by your armor; as old as it is, you're a knight I assume. And a high ranking one at that. The number 2 on your shoulder means you must have been one of the Grand 8 division," she smiled and looked over at me. Her green eyes reflected the flame from the fireplace. She set her book down and walked towards me. She had a long katana strapped to her hip and wore her black hair in a bun.

"If you keep your nose out of the Empire, why save me?" I asked. She grinned and tilted her head to the side before sitting at the edge of the bed. "I'm of no use to you...I'm of no use to anyone these days.." I looked down at my two hands. Cracked and dried out I tried to make a fist.

"We can't just let you die on our land... you'll come back to haunt us and we all have enough demons in our lives, right?" She giggled and slapped my leg. I couldn't help but squint in pain.

"SARA!" A woman shouted from the other room. The wooden door was flung open and an elderly woman entered.
"Mother? What's the issue? Our guest has awakened!" Sara spoke before jumping to her feet.

"It's the witch... the witch is back! We need to hide!" The woman shouted as she shut the door and locked it tight.
"Witch? What's going on?" I asked. I forced myself to my feet and looked for my sword.

"You rest," Sara turned to me and pushed me back down, "I got this, Empire boy," her face went from fun to serious in an instant. She drew her Katana and placed the blade in her hand.

"What are you doing?!" I shouted as she sliced her palm. Blood seeped down her arm and onto the floor. Her eyes rolled back into her head. She grabbed both myself and her mother. The moment she touched my arm I felt as if my soul was torn from my body and pulled into another dimension; yet we were still in the same house. Everything looked black and white and silence fell over us.

"She's a psychic..." I thought to myself as I stared wide-eyed at the focused girl. Her mother covered her mouth. The locks on the door began opening themselves one by one. Sara's entire body was vibrating and I could see her struggling to keep us suspended in the Astral Plane. The door slowly opened and I swallowed heavily. A dark mist drifted over the floor and a woman wearing a black brides dress floated over the floor. Her face was pale and eyes were hollow. This must be the witch. The witch looked around the room and the fire suddenly stood still.

"You're doing great Sara," I whispered as I tightened my grip on the girls quivering, bloody hand. The witches head turned around on her shoulders and drifted towards where we would be in the real world. She floated through Saras mother and looked around. She couldn't see us...

The witch let out a loud shriek and blasted through the roof of the house and flew away. After seconds, Sara let go of us and we were fired back into the real world. Sara; exhausted, dropped to her knees and collapsed.

"The witch...took her father tonight..." her mother said as she started to cry and bent down to tend to her daughters wounds.

I owe this family. I decided.
I'll save them all.