Chapter 2 - The First Encounter

Before the sun even reached her bed, Alessia was already up and about. She has already bought bread for the trip and is currently getting her stallion ready when the young Knight neared her. 

"Top of the morning to you, Lady Alessia," he smiled and readied the saddle of his own stallion who was leashed to a nearby fence. She spared him a side-glance and nothing more, with no reason to give the jubilant man hope since he seems really adamant with this. The others also mounted their stallion and moments later, they were already back on course. 

Because of her frequenting the towns of Caelum, they easily found their way around and left the Kingdom. What's beyond the borders is where the real danger lies. Right outside of the border are the ruins of the neighboring Kingdom recently destroyed by Kingdom Caelum during King Estefan's reign, Kingdom Vyria. It's now a complete wasteland which made their travel a ton times easier. Although the air was stuffy and the land barren, they still managed to make it past there all fine. Alessia had the entirety of the continent map memorized, so every terrain, every landmark, was familiar to her. Her journeys outside of Caelum have been exciting and adventurous, and she couldn't have thought of a better thing to spend her time on. She may be on a voyage to kill different outlaws but she still can appreciate the scenery while on her travel. 

"Would you look at that mountain range! What a sight to behold!" Exclaimed Sir Parsley from behind her as he pointed to the beautiful array of mountains in the distance. They were falling off a few meters behind and were chatting casually, which Alessia had no plans on joining, when they passed the mountains. She unconsciously looked to the right as well and caught a glance of the magnificent Raiana Mountains. Located at the heart of the largest continent of the world, the Raiana Mountains is the largest and tallest mountain range on Earth. 

Oddly enough, the most famous mountain range is also the least explored. She shrugged and pulled on the reins, urging her steed to go faster. Although the mountain range is magnificent to look at, it is also nearing nightfall, and they're nowhere near civilization. These men probably won't be able to sleep without a comfortable bed. Alessia inwardly scoffed. 

She suddenly halted at the entrance of a dark rainforest. Discreetly looking around, Alessia frowned at the aura of the woods. But before the others could notice her hesitance, she already moved forward. 

Dusk approached fast and the neighs of her black stallion frequented but they were still nowhere near the end of the rainforest. They couldn't see the end of it and the fog was making it worse. Was it a right decision to enter such a gloomy forest at night? It wasn't. 

She knew they were to cross a river to make it to the nearest village, but she never remembered a forest being in the way of their voyage. Are they perhaps lost? Is she leading them to a land they're not supposed to go to? 

"Ah!" She flinched when her steed reared up. He stood up on his hind legs and fearfully neighed. "What is it, boy?"

He must've sensed a threatening presence around here. Alessie turned to see all the other men's horses panicking just like hers. 

"Keep your guards up," she spoke to them while roaming her eyes around the dim forest. Something or someone is here. The horses quieted and the forest fell to a blanket of eerie silence. It made her even more anxious than relieved.

"Lady Alessia! Watch out!" 

And the same time as Alessia unsheathed her sword, a dark figure dashed past her with a single gleam. She reacted quickly and grabbed the figure as fast as she could, despite the unlikely position she got herself in atop her steed. Luckily, she caught the figure by the back as she immediately pointed the blade dangerously near his neck. She was leaning from her horse who was aggressively rearing up and down, but she couldn't budge or else the figure that turned out to be a man will escape. 

"Who are you?" She hissed, her dark gaze piercing through his emerald ones. "Answer me or your blood will be on my hands without a second thought." 

He scoffed under his breath and as he looked down, the moonlight made his eyes glint. One like the glint on his hand as he tried to run past them. She couldn't find the thing that could be gleaming from his hand. He must've already hid them. . .was he stealing? Did that mean a village is nearby and he was fleeing? 

"You were the ones trespassing our territory yet you have the audacity to point a sword at me?" His tone sounded condescending and his voice unnerving. One human can only have a hubris too big. 

"A forest is a territory of the spirits and nobody else. Especially not a human." Their eyes met once again. She doesn't read eyes very well but with the amount of fear on the men's eyes she's seen, she's fairly certain his eyes held no fear. 

"Do you mean harm to the forest? Because you sure look like you do." 

"No." She gritted her teeth. Did they look like illegal rangers to him? "Are you a thief on the loose? Because you sure look like you do." She mimicked him.

His eyes squinted and looked around, only to be greeted by all the other men in horseback circling him - them, because he was leeching off by the side of her stallion - with swords unsheathed and pointed to him. 

"Hmmm. I see I'm being judged by twenty-four men right this moment." He looked back at her. "And a woman." 

"And to answer your greatly offending question: no, I am not a thief. Nor will I ever be one." He plastered an obviously fake smile and got out of her death grip like it was nothing. He looked strong with that buff figure, but with his strength displayed on her, it felt like she was stepped on. The least she wants right now is to be underestimated. 

And that was why he flinched when a dagger grazed his left ear and reached the bark of a nearby tree. But her plan backfired. It wasn't him that was shocked, it was her. Because the liquid that dripped from his wound was nothing like the liquid she sees for a living—it was gold, the color of the wealthy. He must be wealthy then? But she's yet to see a man of wealth bleed in a liquid so golden like his riches. Good Lord, is he not a mortal? 

He froze and slowly raised a hand to his ear before twisting his soles and turning back around. 

Despite the color of his blood rendering her—everyone—speechless,  she feigned a stoic expression as he walked back to her. 

"A monster," Sir Parsley breathed behind her, equally stunned.

"You just revealed a secret of mine to every single soul present here tonight," he whispered to her, his voice low and threatening. It was far from the relaxed, condescending man that he displayed earlier. 

"What are you?" She frowned at him. 

He dryly laughed. "Maybe I am a fucking spirit." 

He really was a fast runner. He appeared as a dark figure and also disappeared as one. Alessia could only watch the path he went to, stuck in wonder and confusion. Is he a mortal or is he not? Is he a spirit? But he sounded sarcastic then. 

And last, why is she so invested in that stranger? Was she swooned by that undefinable creature? 

Impossible. 

"Let's go. We will leave this forest and look for shelter. If not, we will camp." 

"Yes, Lady Alessia." 

"Address me as Alessia. I am no Lady." She inwardly winced. 

After minutes of dreading the exit, they finally caught sight of the end of the forest. Hope started to fill the men's eyes, until the last step. A dark figure dashed in front of her again, but she failed to catch him this time. Did he return? 

One dark figure dashed past her, then another, and another behind them. She was sure they weren't the same person. Did he bring friends?

"Close in!" They neared each other and got off of their horses, going to each other's backs. Her eyes followed each figure and got lost. There were too many. Until she had enough and yelled in contempt. "Do not be cowards and face us without hiding in your dark cloaks!" 

She had thought her provocation didn't do a dime but was proven otherwise when one of the dark figures halted to a stop in front of her. It was a she. 

The woman was dressed in a fine curve-hugging bloody red dress, with lips probably kissed with raspberry and hair as dark as ebony dancing along her shoulders. She surveyed the only woman on the circle, Alessia, from head to toe and smirked. 

"Too bad you're dying today. I could've put you to good use," she remarked as her fellows appeared behind her. She was the only other female. For some reason, all of them had glowing skin and glimmering eyes.  

Alessia frowned. Her? Dying? "What nonsense are you going on about?" 

"Forgive me, sweetheart. I was given an order." 

"Ah—" Alessia's nonchalant eyes were painted in shock for the very first time today when a sharp weapon pierced her abdomen.