Chapter 1: Brave

The sun's rays beat ferociously down on me as I cautiously walk towards the village that is nearby. The trees and fauna in the forest looks extra vibrant this afternoon - gleaming colorful hues in the sunlight.

As I near the ending of the forest, I tug at the baseball cap that I am wearing and run my fingertips along the black eye patch that covers my right eye. I do not want to attract attention to myself during this needed trip.

It has been a while since I have bought new clothes, as humans say. The garments that I have, have worn thin over time. From holes to fraying ends - in short, getting new clothing is my mission for today.

As I walk into the village, I am surprised by how almost ghostly it seems. There are only a handful of people who roam about. No one pays any attention to me as I pass by the first sets of house shops.

I slip on my black surgical face mask as I spot the clothing shop. This is the second time that I have come to this town, so I kind of know my way around here.

The first time that I came here was because of a couple who helped me find my way around this part of the world. Our paths crossed, for the first time, at a beautiful meadow. There were different flowers that surrounded us and the woman told me that they are lilacs and daisies. I love learning new things about this world - it is fascinating.

The couple showed kindness towards me with helping me find my way - even though I was just a stranger wearing an eye patch, and a mask that covers half of my face. Not once did they question my weird appearance and I really appreciate that up until today. Because there is no way that I could of explained the reason for what is beneath this eyepatch.

I did, however, tell them that I have a family member who I am visiting. I also made up a story about how I have just come to know about this cousin and that I cannot remember the name of the village. Instead, I said that the village is near the mountains.

The woman smiled at me and told me that she knew the place that I am speaking about because they are on their way to that exact location. She then happily asked me to join them on their journey because she could see that I was lost.

That couple gave me privacy and even went as far as buying me a food parcel to bid me farewell once we made it to this town. After that day, I have never seen them again.

Today might be the last day that I stay in this area. Once I use my powers, I have about half an hour to get as far away as possible, but on foot.

As soon as I use my power, it is as if the black world that the demons see gets a soft smudge of color - me being the color. My fathers troops will be able to locate me instantly, only giving me fifteen minutes for the most to scatter. No matter where I am, they all somehow get notified about my whereabouts and then it is a race. Who can capture me first and drag me back to the fiery pits that I once called home.

I open the door gently that has the sign 'open' hanging on it. It creaks softly as I close it. I casually walk into the small clothing shop, nodding at the cashier who is too busy looking at a device that they call a cellphone. Today might be easier than I expected. I might not have to use my powers after all.

I quickly look around the store and notice that there is only one camera. It is placed at the cashiers desk and is facing the entrance. I make my way to the back of the store and grab a large duffel bag that sits on one of the shelves.

A twinge of guilt knots in my stomach while I try to convince myself that I have to do this in order to survive. Over the four years that I have lived in the human world, I met many people on my journey - mostly kind humans. They told me many stories and taught me different things about this realm. All of them advised me that in order to survive in this world, money is what I need. In order to make money, I have to work.

But there is no way that I can work just to earn money. I need to keep running until I am strong enough to stand firm on my own. Until I can achieve the goal that I set out for myself the day that I ran away.

I move towards the female section while peeking to see if the girl at the front desk is still ignoring my existence. She smiles lustfully at the device she holds and I sigh in relief. I grab a few black clothing and stuff it into the bag as well as a lot of undergarments.

Quickly looking around, I see that there is a pair of black boots and I decide to size it up against my foot as I have no time to fit it on. It sizes up next to my foot perfectly and I stuff it into the duffel bag that is now full. I zip the bag closed and sling it over my shoulder. Stuffing my hands into my pockets, I quickly walk towards the door.

Atleast I will not have to worry about clothes for a while. The amount of clothes that I have now will last me a couple of months - if I am careful to not tear them.

I push the front door open but stop mid-way. The cashiers high pitched voice invades the silence, making me halt in my step.

"Hey!" she shouts. "You have to pay for that!"

I let loose a low chuckle and dash out of the store, slamming the door behind me. That is what you get for not being aware of your surroundings.

She will never be able to catch me, not even the guards of this village can match up to my speed. Escaping is what I know best and I have the right stamina for it.

I run straight into the forest while glancing back a few times to make sure that no one is following me. A smile spreads across my face as I happily walk deeper into the green maze. This is one situation where I did not have to use my powers. Where I actually have a choice on whether I want to run or hide.

Hiding is becoming a talent of mine. But for how long can I hide? Maybe my father has stopped trying to find me. Or maybe I need to continue to stay away from anyone's eye. He has to eventually give up, right?

Birds chirp happily around me as I trudge up the huge mountain. It has been hours since I left the little village so I should be able to stop for the night. But I need to find a place where I can be aware of everything around me.

I do not want to stumble upon any troops of my father's. I have not had the opportunity to practice my powers because of how it ends up giving away my location. One might even say that I may have become weak over the years.

As I near the top of the hill, I search to see if there is any place that I can rest. I sigh in defeat as I realise that I have to keep walking to find a safe place.

Staying close to the trees, I continue roaming while looking around. The sound of water flowing catches my attention and I move towards the noise. Behind a huge bush shrub, I find a small waterfall that falls into a lake.

I decide to scour the area and I finally find a cave that is well hidden behind a few trees. I throw my bag onto the floor of the cave and rush back to the lake while undressing myself.

I cannot remember the feeling of having a proper bath - of actually feeling squeaky clean. Even after washing myself in lakes and rivers, the dirt from the years of running away still makes my skin feel dirty.

I swim around in the water after rubbing at my skin while the sun sets. Pink streaks fill the sky as the day comes to an end. I quickly change into my new clothes and start searching for anything to eat.

My stomach growls furiously at me as I come back to the cave empty-handed.

"I guess we'll have to go a day without food," I sigh to myself while patting my stomach.

Crawling right to the back of the cave, I hold the bag close with my belongings while I let sleep engulf me.

*

The white moon shines brightly in the night sky. Stars twinkle in every corner of the midnight blue sea that is above - not a single cloud in sight.

I turn around to see that I am still in the forest. Just a different location. Well... That is weird. I am not able to teleport so I must have sleepwalked.

I notice behind a few trees that stand before me is a luminous white glow. Wondering what it is, I walk slowly towards it. My nerves stand on end as I take each step.

I can easily use my powers and defeat whatever it is, if it tries to attack me. However, I will have to leave this place instantly to find a new location to hide. My father's troops will smell my scent the moment that I use a tiny bit of the powers that I have managed to suppress over the years.

That would be a bad thing because once my father knows that I am hiding away in the mountains, he will definitely send his demon troops to search every forest that there is.

I swallow hard as I slowly peer past the tree that is closest to the white glow. For a brief second my eyes land on the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. But it is just for a moment before the white light becomes brighter which causes me to squint my eyes.

"Be brave, Ayla," her voice is smooth and velvety.

I try to force my eyes to stay open but fail miserably. The light stings my eyes which makes me huff out in annoyance,"Who are you?"

The light that radiates off this woman feels as if it is burning my eyeballs. I furiously rub at them, hoping that it will make the pain fade but it makes it even worse.

"Ayla," she ignores my question.

A short silence falls between us as I try to ignore the pain that I feel - blinking rapidly to hopefully soothe the burning sensation that pierces my eyes. Maybe if I give her a chance to speak first, I can ask her afterwards to dim down her light.

"It is your time," she simply says.

The light that hides her, begins to lick at my skin - leaving behind painful beatings that throb painfully.

"Please stop!" I yell while falling back behind the shadow of the tree.

The light seeps past the tree and into the shadows. My skin feels as if it is on fire while my eyesight has gone completely blind.

"Please!" I shout while furiously trying to scratch away the burning sensation that dances along my skin.

"Be brave," the lady whispers before I am thrown into complete darkness.

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& that's chapter 1 done. Please let me know if you're enjoying it, and if you are; you can find the rest of the chapters in my bio. ☺