Prologue
The door to the space under the stairs creaked as I slowly opened it, and I could see grey light beginning to fill the house as the dawn began. I was cautious as I poked my head through the doorway, looking around me. The screams and other horrific sounds had ceased, replaced with a deathly silence and the lingering smell of blood, which caused my small body to shake in fear.
Are they still here?
The only sound I could hear was something dripping on the wooden floor. The silence was eerie, and the room around me was in complete disarray. Furniture was overturned and broken, and deep gouges were visible in the walls and floors, made by the large claws of our attackers.
I slowly stepped out, my hand on my chest. I could feel the thumping of my frightened heart, and hear it in my ears along with my trembling breaths.
Even though I was so scared, I knew I needed to get out of there. If I stayed and they found me, then they'd kill me. It didn't matter that I was a five-year-old child. From the sounds I'd heard and the blood I smelled, they wanted us all dead.
The only chance I had was to run away to one of the neighboring villages once I'd gotten far enough. Only then might I be safe.
I hurried across the room as quietly as I could, almost slipping on a wet puddle as I reached the doorway. I caught myself with my hand and then foolishly brought it close to my face. I put my other hand over my mouth to keep myself from crying out as I realized what this puddle was.
Blood!
I scrambled under the dining room table, listening intently for any sounds as the tears rolled down my cheeks. A howl sounded in the distance outside, making my blood run cold.
Oh no! They're still here!
I sat still for a few minutes, debating on what to do. I could go back to my hiding place and stay there until someone came, but who knew how long that may be? More than that, the Lycans may sniff me out if they came back here. I’d only been lucky before that my mother had the forethought to put me in that hiding place with incense to throw off their sense of smell.
In the end, I knew that I didn’t have a choice. If I wanted to live, then I needed to escape.
It took all of my strength to force myself out from under that table, and I hurried to the nearby door. I grasped the knob with my small hand, waiting and listening before slowly turning it.
The little village I’d always known was eerily quiet as I stepped outside. The houses stood dark and foreboding in the dim light, all of their doors pried open. Bodies littered the road and around those houses, with blood splattered and pooling everywhere I looked.
I stood very still as I took in this horror, my young mind trying its best to comprehend it.
Everyone I knew was dead. They had all been torn apart by the Lycans.
While all who lived in the Northern Lands knew the threat of the Lycan pack that roamed the areas, we had never expected to become one of their targets. We Sun Fae were peaceful. We had never done anything to deserve their wrath. Yet they had come in late the night before and taken us out like we were nothing more than mere prey.
I slowly began walking down the main road that led out of town, my eyes unblinking as I stared forward. The shock had set in, and all I could think about was getting as far away from here as possible. Yet my feet and legs felt like lead, and my mind was in a fog.
Everyone’s dead, I kept thinking. They killed everyone. They’re all dead.
I couldn’t recall reaching the main road outside of the village. The next thing I knew, I was on it with the fields surrounding me. The sky had lightened even more, and I could see the sun beginning to peek above the distant mountains. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I stopped and stared at it.
I was out now! I might make it!
I stopped and stiffened, inhaling a sharp breath as I suddenly heard something large approaching behind me, followed by a low growl. I couldn’t move for the fear that washed over me, yet I knew what it was. I could smell the must wafting off of its damp fur along with the blood.
A terrible pain suddenly raked through my back, and I fell forward with a loud cry. My survival instincts kicked in as I did and I somehow managed to turn onto my side, yet the pain was so terrible that I could barely move. My eyes were only able to look up at the creature towering over me.
I had never seen a Lycan before this. I’d only heard the stories of them from my parents, and this one was even more frightening than I could've ever imagined. He was a tall and muscular creature, with a body and face not unlike a man. But his ears were large and wide like a wolf’s, and he had cold dark eyes and gleaming sharp teeth. The large claws that made up his fingertips were bloodstained, the droplets falling from them. They were droplets of my blood, which I could now feel covering my aching back.
The Lycan stood over me, raising his hand to strike me, and I closed my eyes, throwing my arms over my head.
Yet the blow never came. Instead, all I heard was the sound of something large hitting the ground. I slowly lowered my arms to look at the Lycan, but he was no longer in front of me. Instead, there was a figure that was a vision in white. His hair, his ears, his tail; they all reminded me of the pale full moon.
As I slowly sat up, it dawned on me that the Lycan’s lifeless body was lying on the dirt path. Blood seeped from the deep wounds in his chest and throat, pooling under him. It also dripped from the white claws of the one who had killed him.
I couldn’t find my voice as I looked at this scene. My back hurt worse than anything I'd ever felt before, and for the first time, I realized that pieces of my golden wings were lying near me. The Lycan had shredded them when he'd attacked me.
My savior finally turned and knelt in front of me. I gasped and closed my eyes when he reached for me, but his touch was gentle as he brushed my golden hair out of my face.
“It's all right, little one. You are safe with me," he gently told me. "Do you know if anyone else is alive?"
I shook my head as I opened my eyes, taking in his golden ones. They were so kind, so full of concern. So different than the one that had just tried to kill me.
“I know you are frightened, but I would never harm you,” he promised. He then looked to his side. “Emelio.”
A figure appeared as soon as he said that name; an odd-looking male with fiery red hair and eyes that appeared to reflect colors like a hologram.
“Yes, sire?” he responded politely.
“Retrieve a blanket for me so that I may wrap this little one’s back. We will take her back to the palace and tend to her wounds, then figure out what more we can do for her,” the male ordered.
Emelio agreed, disappearing then reappearing quickly with a dark-colored blanket. The other took it from him, gently wrapping it around me before picking me up. By this time, my mind was beginning to work again, and a realization was slowly dawning on me. This odd man and the pale white appearance of my savior matched what I'd been told about ever since I could remember.
"I'm afraid I do not sense any more survivors, my lord," Emelio informed him.
"I see." The male gently hugged me as I leaned against him. "I am sorry. I arrived too late, and your family's blood is on my hands for it."
By then, it was dawning on me who he must've been.
“You are… Lord Jekia?” I whispered.
“I am,” he confirmed. “Be not afraid. I will ensure that you are safe and sound now. They'll never hurt you again."
I felt a sense of relief wash over me as I heard him say this. I was safe with him. He was one of the most powerful creatures in our world. None could come after me as long as I was with him, not even this awful Lycans.
Yet even as this sunk in, so did the reality of everything that had come to pass. My entire Faerie Sect was now gone, wiped out by the Lycans. What would become of me as the only survivor?
Only time would tell.
