Prologue
Glaved,
The Dark Forest
There was a soft russling of the trees and hurried movements within them. The animals moved back into their holes and caves, as they felt the night approaching, even the trees were searching for a way to be hidden. Every living thing, looked desperately for cover, except one.
The trees and animals watched as she passed them, they watched as she scanned her surroundings as if searching for something and when she did not find it, she simply moved on. The animals whispered among themselves and so did the trees, they all knew why she had come there, why her kind comes there. Some laughed at the stupidity of the woman for journeying into the dark forest, just to end her life while others hoped to enjoy the show she will no doubt give them There had been many before her, many had tried and all had filled and the forest creatures could not help but wonder among themselves if she was the one. They had all grown tired of watching her kind come here and be brutally murdered.
Cora was tired and her entire body ached, her exhaustion was clear on her body. She had been walking for hours and despite the determination that she felt she could not stop the hope that she had set out with from dwindling.Just as she felt the last bit of her hope fading, her hard work was rewarded and she arrived at her destination.
The trees around her stood tall and the sky was much redder than the other parts of the dark forest. The branches of the trees touched each other, each and every one of them aligned in a straight line, even the fallen leaves of the trees did not dare cross the invisible line.
Cora took tentative steps through the path. The feeling of eyes on her caused her to gulp,the truth of her actions finally settling in.
She could not go back now, she could not accept defeat. She would not.
Taking in deep breaths she tried to dispel the fear that had slowly began to creep its way in her, she could feel it running through her veins, she could feel it trying to take over–to control her. Cora could feel the fear fighting her determination, her desperation, and her hope.
With each breath she took, she felt the fear slowly dwindling away. As the fear dwindled, her determination grew. Cora felt the power before she arrived at the clearing. Drawing one last breath to clear her mind of the little doubts that lay dormant in her mind, she walked closer to the the circle that was surrounded by brewing cauldrons.
Pulling out her dagger, Cora raised it high above her head so that it was aligned perfectly to reflect the lights of the moon, stabbing her self with it.With the knife still in her stomach and her hand tightly gripping the handle of the device, she began a chant. As she started the chant her voice remained low, but as it began to rise the atmosphere around her began to shift. The cauldron pot that surrounded her began to bubble more and more and it's contents spilled over flowing towards her.
The once gently wind picked up speed and surrounded her, it picked her up and threw her across the circle in an attempt to get her to stop chanting but with each violent toss her voice grew. Cora rose up from the floor on shaking feet and began to slowly make her way back to the center of the circle. Falling on her knees, she took the knife from her stomach and rove it in again and again, each time deeper than the last. The forest watched and admired her bravery, the wind carried her voice across Glaved, the words she uttered sending chills down the spines of the animals and ruffling the leaves of the trees.
As the chant began to end, the volume of Cora's voice began to fall too. Once she uttered the last words her hand pushed the kinfe deep into her stomach so that the handle did not show. Her hands fell limp by her side and she fell to the ground.
