Prologue

A short introduction to 3 characters of the story. It is very mysterious so you are encouraged to read on and find out what happens to the baby, who the mysterious man is and of course the woman.

The aftershock of the thunder outside resonated through the house, books were strewn across the wooden flooring, hot candle wax dripped down across the edge of the bedroom table.  The baby cried loudly. The lantern swayed from side to side, as the essence of lilies lingered in the air. Dust trailed down from the ceiling. The chaos was coming from the room next door. Suddenly the bedroom door swung wide open as a woman no more in her thirties came streaking across the bedroom, eyes wide open she knelt down, bruises and cuts were recovering her entire body. Blood trickled down her white blouse as she moaned, exhaling deeply.

“Get...up!” she said, coughing up blood. She covered her mouth with her hand as the blood ran down her neck, her long silver hair shifted down, covering her face.

“This is no time to rest,” she thought.

The baby wept, wiggling on the bed, searching for the embrace of her mother.

“Aradel!”

She crawled across the room. The wooden floor creaked from the other room as someone was approaching.  The woman took a hold of the bed sheet on the bed, pulling it towards her as she staggered. The baby was now in arms reach. Tears began to swell from her eyes as she smiled, exhaling with inconsistency. She looked at her son with swelled up, tired eyes, for she knew this was the last time she would ever see him again.

“Oh Aradel. I love you. This is not how I wanted it to be...” Trailing her hand softly across the baby’s cheek, the child was no longer crying but instead giggling.

“How I wish I had just a little bit, more time. There is so much that I need to tell you, to teach you. I hope someday you will understand what I had to do.  She spurted out a weak laugh.

“You’ll…probably think I am the worst mother ever, to leave her son like that, out in this changing world. There will be a time when you will realise how important you are to me, to not only this world but also a world beyond your understanding, and when the time comes that you do, you will have to make a choice.”

A interlude swept the room, her eyes locked in with the innocent gaze of her child; she wiped her tears with her bloodied palm.

“…and, I hope you make the right choice. Goodbye Aradel. I will always love you no matter where you are.”

She placed her hands together, chanting a very ancient and complex incantation.

“Bind both the soul and the body as one. Break the reality of time and cast yourself away.”

Her hands lit up bright yellow, illuminating the room. Chains swirled into existence; they wrapped themselves around the baby, engraving into the skin itself, before shortly disappearing completely. The baby warped out of existence, leaving a trail of black dust.  The woman coughed up blood again, falling down onto the hard wooden flooring below. Pressing herself against the edge of the bed she shifted her gaze towards the room from whence she came from, a shadowy figure approached.

“Ah, your Highness. There you are. You know better than to run from me.”

The man exclaimed. His voice was smooth, deep yet with a touch of brass at the end. The room was so dark that you could barely make out his figurine. His short cut hair was as dark as the room, slickly tucked back. He had deep cheekbones and a scruff that elevated his looks. He wore silver encased armour that wasn’t made of steel or any other metal known to man. Crescent ends engulfed his elbows pointing outward, like an eagle with extended wings. The cuirass had a painting of a silver star in the centre of it, outlined with real gold. Beautiful glyphs engraved everything. Gryphons on his shoulder pads, wings on his gauntlets, painted with expert artistry. Gold outlined each piece of the armour. Red silk linens hanged from both sides his cuirass.  The man took one-step after another, each step slower than the last until he was standing right next to her. He observed the room carefully, looking into every crook and corner before he shifted his attention back to her again, rubbing his fingers together.

“Where is the boy?”

The woman barely had shifted her gaze up, not being able to move a muscle, like a zebra at the mercy of a vicious lion, yet she smirked, barely letting out a laugh, spitting blood across her white dress.

“You’re...too late. He’s long gone.”

The man kneeled down as the both of their gazes meet one another. Closing his eyes for a brief moment the man replied with a raised tone,

“Hm!, it appears so. No matter. We will find him, and kill him!” as he shifted up from his crouching position.

The woman barely made out the few words out of her dying breath.

“You always had the most pride in our own kind, but never for anyone else’s. Such ignorance would never bring unity to-“

The woman gasped as the cold grip of the man’s hand took a hold of her neck, swinging her almost lifeless body into the air. Thump, the wooden floor creaked as her body landed. A faint frown appeared on the man’s face, he shifted his gaze away for a moment.

“That’s enough out of you. Look at you, cowering in fear and yet to think you were once the great Goddess of Birth. Pathetic.”

The man looked over through the window, staring into the distance, before shortly pointing his left hand at her and swiftly turning around. Suddenly, the woman’s body lifted up, her hands and legs hanging down as blood trickled down her arms, yet her skin was not mangled, but rather crusted away, like hardened sand, lights sifted through every corner of the cracks. The man shifted his way out of the door, the body soon trailing after him, into the darkness of the night.

Reviews

[Maxine]

This is truly lovely! I am so captivated, and I'm just yearning for more :) I like so very much the suspense you've created, and this plot is interesting. I'm so excited to see what you shall do with it.
I was a little confused at first, thinking there was an earthquake or something before you introduced the magic of the world, and my only advice would be to maybe make that a little clearer when you go back and edit it. Perhaps just add a few more details to make it seem magical.
But other than that it's very exciting, and well put together!
Can't wait for the next chapter!

[blabla blablabla]

Thank you! I was planning on expanding this prologue a bit actually. Every time I read over my stuff I think I can add more and more to it. I am glad you found it suspenseful. I already have two chapters written but I am rewriting them from first to third person. :)

[Jamal]

s**t, that was sick..... maxine's first sentences accurately conveys my sentiments toward this story.... keep it up...

ooh and could you check out my work. thanks it's my first piece of writing and i'm desperate for reviews