CH5 - The Guardian

Nica crashes out of her home as tears stream down her face. Her bare feet hit the muddy walkways as she slips across forward. Yelping in pain as her feet are cut against the embedded stones that provide traction. She had never needed shoes before. She was never permitted outside for long without a chaperone.

Tears stream down Nica's face at the terrifying realization of her father's hunger. The knowledge that she needs to get to the Guardian before his hunger turns to her sister. Her need for protection against the harsh words when he drinks, is incomparable to the danger she faces now.

Shivers run down Nica's spine as a slight shift in the wind chills her soul. Her body trembled as her nipples perked and pierced the sheer netting of her nightgown. Nica's eyes quickly scan the village for some direction to go. Pinpricks move across her body as droplets of misty air settle upon her flesh.

Looking into the gray mist, she feels hungry eyes upon her as words echo across the morning's first light. Whispers of desire and wanton need as her unmarked flesh is perfectly groomed to reflect her purity. Her ripeness for the taking as her delicate fruit is freshest for the plucking.

Nica's stomach flips as she gags, feeling the eyes upon her. Her body heaving as she coughs violently, her hand grasping for the wall of a nearby building.

The muffled cries of tormented innocence pierce the remaining solace that only silence brings. Coughing as her wretched body trembles, she cries out for salvation. She cries for the father she once knew as her protector as she crumbles to the floor.

The sounds of footsteps approach her as she trembles in fear. Dipping her head low, she yearns for protection against the cold, the sorrow, and expanding fear. The sound moves closer as she hears the bickering comments about what a specimen she is.

Who should have the privilege to enjoy her first? Nica sobs as her body violently shakes as her nose runs, leaving her blinded by her stinging tears. Crying pitifully, she begs the Gods for salvation, asking for a sign, for anything.

"RUN!" A voice commands in a booming voice that shakes the world beneath Nica's feet.

Springing into action, Nica jumps forward as she feels fingertips pass through her hair at the last moment.

She lunges forward as she follows the voice's commands, turning one way and the next. The shifting wind stung her eyes as she ran on instinct and commanded alone. Tears blur her vision as she runs through a hellos landscape.

She was running through the red mist, highlighted by a shimmering blood moon. Soft ripples of red waves move through the village as every crash of the wave slows her descent into madness and despair.

The commands her still as she turns and feels her body moving across freshly fallen snow. Her shredded feet sink into the snow as Nica struggles to catch her breath. As her feet sink into the snow, she watches the blood puddle beneath her feet.

Nica tries to calm her ragged breathing. She can no longer hear the commanding voice as she has reached the cusp of the bloody mist. As she steps beyond it, the voice stops. The sounds of silence are so loud that Nica collapses under the weight of it.

Dipping her head into the snow, she uses the suddenly white fallen snow. An attempt to clean her fact or sobbing that will only tarnish her first introduction to the man who saved her. Her destined Guardian and protector.

A piercing cry of her sister enters her mind. Begging for it to stop. For Nica to save her as she almost feels the pain her sister feels. The dull movement of her body as she stares up blankly into her mother's eyes, seeing her face as a pale representation of its former beauty.

Nica feels the absence of her bodily sensations in her sister's mind. Just the movement of the bed and the emptiness of her mother's eyes as this was bound to happen. As Nica turns her head, she witnesses the shimmering red as he grunts in his rage and desire.

Closing her eyes tightly, Nica lurches forward and vomits what little remains in her stomach from the previous night. This isn't real, she realizes in her soul. This nightmare engulfs the village in a sea of circling blood and destruction. Crying, she wants the hell to stop, praying that her sister isn't suffering the same dream.

Opening her eyes, Nica sees a single cabin standing in the distance. It remains separated but well within the bounds of the clearing from the first. Is this where her savior lives? The one man who can save her from the darkness of life. She needs to do anything she can to save her sister.

Crawling forward, Nica stands on two trembling legs as she moves forward. Her nightgown and dress are covered in blood from her slips and falls. She feels broken. She wishes she could give a better impression of a savior.

Nica almost straps completely from her nightgown and uses the snow to wash her body to at least appear not as fractured and broken as she truly feels. But she doesn't have the strength. She can't bring herself to present her body, presence, and soul to her savior as he deserves. He deserves to see her in her most valued and delicious way.

Stumbling forward, Nica raises her hand to knock on the door and feels the urge to walk in. Losing all sense of what is expected of her to bring good fortune to her family, Nica stumbles into the cabin uninvited. The entire house is one looming shadow except for a single candle at the edge of the darkness.

A soft gasp escapes Nica's lips as she looks at the beautiful face of a woman staring back at her. Fumbling with her words, Nica feels embarrassed and ashamed at her mistake, "Sorry, I must have lost my way."

"Who or what were you trying to find?" The terrifying woman asks. Nica doesn't know how to describe a face so beautiful yet broken. The cuts and tears on the woman's flesh will never heal, yet she is still stunning. Nica doesn't know what she is but somehow, the reflection of her haunting yellow reptilian eyes.

"I am trying to find my new owner..."

"Owner?"

"Yes, my protector and owner. He sent for me this morning."

"What is the name of your owner?"

"The Guardian."

"I am the Guardian," the hauntingly beautiful woman replies.

"You?" Nica asks, astonished.

"Yes, me," the woman laughs, revealing her reptilian tongue. "Why does this surprise you?"

"I thought you would be a man."

"No, I am not. One thing you should learn to understand, Nica, is that we don't need to be saved. That our salvation lies within each of us."