Chapter Text
ALEIA POV:
I didn't know how long I had been walking, days, weeks, months. The aching in my feet had become a constant, my body exhausted from the tireless trekking. But despite my aching feet, the thirst, the hunger, the dirt, I couldn’t bring myself to care. I couldn’t bring myself to rest. Whenever I close my eyes all I hear are their screams tearing through the air.
Men, women, children, they haunt me in my sleep. Perhaps this is the price I have to pay.
I didn’t know where I was walking to, nor could I really bring myself to care. I took rests of course, but I kept on going, North I think.
Why North, you might ask, I’m not sure actually, its where my feet took me. Its a ridiculous answer I know, but it didn’t matter, all I was trying to do was not drown I the numbness of my mind.
I was aware I had to stop at some point, after all, you can’t walk north forever, I would reach the ocean at some point.
I didn't really have much to live for anymore. A part of me, perhaps a larger part than I would like to admit, hoped that I would not make it that far. That some creature would come looking for a snack, or that my body would just give up.
Cause what do you do when you stop? You’re forced to confront who you are, what is happening and what you’re gonna do, and I don’t know how to answer those questions without breaking apart. So I walked, even though I must admit, it was pretty miserable.
Food was scarce, to say the least, and I didn’t have it in me to go hunting. So I opted for berries, roots and the likes I found. I had come across a few villages but intentionally steered away from them, I knew people would ask questions.
For the first time in many days, I looked up and took in my surroundings. The ground I stood on was uneven and filled with rocks, there were tall spruce trees scattered around, and in the distance tall mountains protruded from the earth. It was not a very beautiful sight, but it fit my mood just fine.
Winter was beginning to make its appearance, or maybe it was just because I had come so far north.
The wind was stronger here, it blasted right through my clothes, the icy coldness seeping into my bones. I hadn't exactly packed for this weather, so I was ill-equiped to say the least.
It had begun to silently snow a couple days ago, and now a thin layer of white covered the forrest ground.
I had reached a declining slope and was slowly making my way down. My booted feet suddenly slipped on some loose rocks hidden beneath the snow.
I should’ve known it was a stupid idea walk here given the state of, well, me, and I cursed myself as I came tumbling down, the jagged surface merciless on my fragile body.
Each roll sent lightening pain through me, the stones digging into my skin. The thin layer of snow did nothing to soften my fall as I landed with a thump. Auch, that was gonna leave a bruise.
For a moment, I just laid there. Staring at the ground. To be real, it was probably longer than just a moment, time seemed to flow away from me as I rested my aching body on the ground.
When I decided it was time to probably move on, I regretted it immediately. My limps felt like lead, I had surely broken a rib or two, if the pang in my chest was anything to go by, my arms and legs (most likely my face too) was covered with cuts and scrapes, my clothes torn.
As I made to stand, a burning pain in my stomach brought me to the ground again, I looked and saw a sharp rock protruding from my midsection. A fucking rock. Mother Nature must surely hate me.
Should I pull it out? I remember reading somewhere that if someone had been stabbed it was best to leave the object be, until prober attention could be given, and I could most definitely not heal this wound if I were to pull it out. I might be fae, but the malnourishment had weakened my body considerably. But the rock would most likely be covered in dirt and filth (we had that in common), and would infect the wound, yes, it needed to come out.
I grabbed the rock with both hands, at which I let out a soft whimper, I better do it quickly, like a band-aid, cauldron who I am kidding, it’s gonna hurt like a bitch no matter what.
I ripped the rock from my stomach, the pain nearly making me black out. One hand clutched the wound, which i noticed bled an unsafe amount, and the other dug into the earth, the soil getting stuck under my fingernails.
A part of me was yelling to just admit defeat, let the nature claim me, but something else pushed me to keep going, to walk on. And so I did.
Slowly I stood up from my crouched position, my hand still putting pressure on the bleeding wound. I put one foot in front of the other, with heavy steps, making my way through this forrest wasteland.
I looked up, my eyes squinting at the sun, it would only be a couple hours before sundown.
I knew I would not make it through the night, every step was heavier than the last, my breathing more unsteady by the minute, but I wasn’t scarred, I welcomed it.
There was nothing left for me here anymore.
Some time went by and I allowed myself to stop. I sunk down leaning against a tree trunk, the movement doing nothing good for the still open gash in my side.
A light fall of snow was still falling, the tiny snowflakes landing silently on the ground. The sun laid low on the horizon, it colors had shifted to oranges, pinks and reds, lighting the sky with its last warmth.
It was beautiful. Not a bad place to go.
The stinging hurt brought me back, I huffed an unamused laugh, killed by a rock. Pretty pathetic when you think about it, but then again, I did not deserve a warriors death.
I was about to drift off to sleep, exhaustion finally catching up with me, when two loud thumps shook the earth in front of me.
Perhaps some creature had caught the scent of my blood and opted for an easy meal. But when I looked up, nothing could have prepared me for what I saw.
In front of me stood the most beautiful male I had ever seen. Well two males to be exact, they were both handsome, but the one closest to me stole my breath away.
He had a light tan skin, dark black hair that looked impossibly soft, I found myself wanting to run my fingers through it. It was the first time I had wanted to do something in a while, his eyes had me pause for a moment, they were a deep blue, like the depth of the ocean, and it scared me how easily I found myself getting lost in them.
I hadn’t even noticed the huge bat-like wings that sat on their back, the last rays of the sun shining on them, making it possible to see the web of veins in the membranes.
My eyes didn’t fail to notice the many weapons strapped to their bodies, swords, knives, daggers, perhaps a rock would not be my final opponent afterall.