Chapter 11

Delina woke up and, as she tried to sit up, her head instantly throbbed with the movement.

"Ouch!" she let go. As soon as she put her hand on the sore spot, in addition to hurting even more, of course, she felt like something was stuck to her skin. Looking at her hand, she understood that it could only be dried blood.

Delina sat down carefully, with her butt on the floor and her arms stretched out behind her for support. She waited a few minutes, until the pain subsided a little. So, she got up carefully. She saw that a huge tree was behind her. She leaned her back there to steady herself. Looking around, finally, she realized something wasn't right. The forest near the flock was not too dense, but not quite. The vegetation that was before her eyes was very different, with more robust trees, not to mention some smaller plants totally unknown to her. The tree she was leaning against was huge, and when she looked right, she realized that it was a gigantic oak tree, with a very wide trunk.

"I must be dreaming. Did I die?" She thought aloud, looking around. She risked a few steps and, seeing that even with her head throbbing, the pain was acceptable, she continued walking. 'This is definitely not Whitlash.'

She walked in the direction she thought she had 'come from' and leaned against the trees around her until she came to a dirt road. After pondering which way she should go, she opted for the right one. It wasn't long before she felt a vibration under her feet and then the sound of horses. Delina was walking slowly, so of course her reflexes weren't quick at all. She tried to get out of the way of the oncoming sound, and narrowly missed being hit. The horse neighed as it was pulled back by its rider. She looked and saw a black carriage, with some silver details and some horses escorting it. The rider closest to her, and the one who nearly ran her over, got off his horse.

"What are you doing halfway there, girl?" The man spoke, his voice muffled by the helmet that covered not only his head but his face, leaving only his eyes exposed. His, though angry, were a different blue, Delina noticed. The man, noticing that the girl didn't respond and, on top of that, kept staring at him, got angry and grabbed her arm, but before he could squeeze it more tightly, a deep voice that emanated incredible power, spoke.

"Let go of her!" The blue-eyed man narrowed his eyes at Delina, but obeyed without arguing. He released her and stepped to the side, revealing another man, tall, slender, pale, dressed in black with a sort of tunic that dragged along the floor. The texture of the clothing resembled velvet. He had black eyes, which stared at Delina. Even though his mouth was set in a light, friendly smile, his eyes didn't match it. He approached slowly, but because of his clothes, it looked more like he was floating. "What's your name, little girl?"

"Delina," she replied. She didn't like to say her name to strangers, especially when some alarm sounded in her head, but she was lost, there, and that person was not common. Besides, if she was dead or if she was dreaming, what difference did it make?

"Delina." The man repeated, as if savoring each letter. "It's a beautiful, different name. Where are you from, child? Your clothes are a little...unusual." He looked her up and down as he said this. Despite that, Delina didn't feel like he was some kind of pervert. He just seemed curious.

"I'm from Whitlash." She answered. The man frowned. "Montana, sir. Close to the border with Canada."

"My dear, I have no idea what you're talking about. What realm is this in? And how did you get here, after all, it's not close to our realm or I'd know it." he asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"Kingdom? You mean 'country', right?"

"Kingdom, nation, as you like. I've never heard the term 'country', but I believe it must be something similar."

"United States of America, sir." Delina couldn't believe anyone didn't know America. It was unimaginable.

"No, I don't know. Well, why don't you tell me more about your country, but after you've had something to eat and rested a bit? Your head looks like it took a good hit." He was looking at her with some concern. Automatically, she brought her hand to the wound. "Come, you are my guest today." He held out his arm for her to go ahead and get into the carriage.

"What is your name, sir?" Delina asked, realizing he never introduced himself. He looked at her with a strange smile.

"Suindara, at your service." He bowed and pointed at the carriage again. She hesitated, but decided to go. What else did she have to lose? If he wanted to hurt her or take her by force, he could. So it was better to follow him while he was being polite and generous.