Chapter 244: Volume 5 - Prologue
A small girl ran through the woods, her blond hair matched by a pair of large, fennec-like ears and a tail covered in fur except for the tip.
She ran and ran, fearful of every sound. Of every shadow that shifted under the light of Aviye’s moons. But something other than fear drove her towards the place she was running to.
The forbidden place, where nature reigned and a great spirit made its home.
She needed something. More than life itself, she needed it.
And so when she stumbled and rolled into the clearing, with its small lake and the island at its center, she did not cry as she forced herself to stand. Though her knees were bloodied and she hurt all over, she waded into the lake, swimming for the center. For the island that glowed blue-white from the mana of the spirit dwelling there.
As she climbed ashore she felt its presence in the air. A feeling she recognized from the forest, almost as soon as she’d entered it. The feeling of being observed. Watched... Assessed.
It was the same feeling she got from her mother at every dinner.
But she was not here for her mother.
She did not pant, sweat, and bleed through hours of running for the cold woman who made everything a matter of give and take.
She did so for her father. For the man who sat her on his lap and read to her until she took the books from him and read for herself. The one who taught her all about the stars, faraway lands, and magic.
He was dying, and there were no healers in her hometown. They had all been lured away to the south; to richer lands and jobs.