"To Eletha, her family, and for the years of happiness to come- we celebrate her coming of age on this day!"

I smile widely as my fellow elves of the village cheered for me, appreciating their enthusiasm and joy at the celebration of my twenty-eighth birthday. This is a milestone in life for all elves; and a worthy cause for celebration.

The village elder turns around from where she stands and walks towards me. And with a smile; she put her hand on my shoulder.

"It feels like it has only been yesterday since your mother knocked on my door with you in her arms."

I nod gratefully. "Thank you for helping prepare all of this, Elder Itiara- it means a lot to me."

She laughs and tugs on my arm, beckoning me to stand up. "Save your thanks for what I am about to show you- come!"

I gave the elder a questioning look, but she just smiled and kept on beckoning me to follow her. Eventually; I nod my head and follow the elder away from the festivities and into the woods.

The trees are smaller than those we make our homes in- but no less alive and magically radiant. I trail behind the elder- and from the path we are taking; it would seem that we are heading to the nearby clearing.

"Elder, may I ask where are we going?" I ask.

"It's a surprise." She replies, turning her head back at me briefly.

I decide to refrain from asking any more questions and kept on following the elder through the woods. Music from the festivities can still be heard faintly when we finally arrive at the clearing.

The elder stops and turns around facing me.

"We are here." She says with a smile.

A short moment passed and my expectation for something to happen faded. I open my mouth to ask a question, but then I sense a presence nearby. I turn around to the direction of the sensation and saw nothing but tree trunks.

"Up here young one." A very familiar voice comes from above.

I look up- and see a green-haired person who is squatting on a tree branch; he has blue eyes, and his face resembles...

"Father?" I ask after recognizing the person.

With a laugh that I haven't heard in more than a year- he jumps down from the branch and lands on his feet. Getting up, he spread open his arms- which I run into and wrap my arms around him. He laughs and pats my gold and green hair.

"Hello daughter dear, I missed you." He says in a soft voice.

I withdraw my embrace and look at him. "I missed you too father. But aren't you supposed to be at Pydasos?"

He nods. "Yes- But I made arrangements to see you dear- I wouldn't miss this day for the world."

Feeling happy on how much my father values me, I embrace him again- catching him by surprise this time.

"Oh! You seem to grow have grown stronger already!" He says after a small huff.

"You are the best gift ever!" I say to him in joy.

He laughs. "Really? Well what about this one?"

I hear the sound of someone walking on leaves to my left. I look up from father's embrace and see a beautiful elf with golden hair and golden eyes. She is holding a bow in her left hand, and smiling.

"You're here, mother? Then who is taking care of the celebration?" I ask.

Still smiling, she shake her head. "They can do a few minutes without me dear- your father and I wanted to surprise you."

My eyes lower down to the bow in her hand, then back to her. Mother approches and then extends the bow to me.

"This is for you, Eletha." Mother smiles as she speak.

I am stunned for a moment. I've always wanted something more than my short bow; something real and not made for practice. Slowly reaching for the grip, I soon touch the cold elven steel that it is composed of- as my hand firmly grips the piece I feel a surge of energy from it- making me gasp in surprise.

"It's enchanted- I won't spoil the surprise for you, so why don't you give it a shot?" Father says.

I pick up the bow from my mother's hand, and brought it closer so I can inspect it. The grip is made out of elven steel, and a thinner plate covers a sixth of the limbs. Aside from the initial surge of magical energy- elven steel itself is cool and relaxing to touch. The limbs are made from the branches of an Atriviea tree, coated with a thin layer of translucent gel that covers the brown limb with its green color.

I look up from my inspection of the bow, then back to my parents- and give them both a wide, grateful smile.

"Thank you mother, father."

They smile back and father hold out his hand to point at a circular target some distance away. Mother gives me my quiver, and with it, a half-dozens of arrows that I've fletched myself for my short bow. I take the quiver and sling it over my head- the pouch now dangling on my hip for easy reach. I take one of the arrows and nock it; then aimed as I draw the twisted silk string it back all the way to the front of my face. After a short pause- I loose my hold on the arrow and string and the limbs redacted- the string pushing the arrow out of the it's rest and into the air. There was also a brief shimmer of light around the shaft as it exited- it's the enchantment taking effect.

The arrow flies through the air in a much faster speed than what I think a bow of this size could make it fly on it's own. And since I was aiming to compensate like I did with my old short bow- the arrow flew over the target, and embbed itself into the ground far away behind it.

"Amazing!" I say out loud, conveying my feelings.

I turn around and embrace my parents, us three were laughing when the village elder clears her throat to gain our attention.

"Let's head back to my home so we can see Eletha's potential shall we?"

My parents and I nod our heads in agreement- this is why this celebration is important. At this age an elf would unlock their full magical potential. And it is important to know the extent of it.

We walk back to the village. The villagers greet us when we pass them, and some cheer when we went past the celebration at home. Father's friends were surprised that he's back from his assignment- to which he responded that his leave was only temporary.

We finally arrive at the center of the village. The largest tree at the center is the Elder's lodge- usually a village would have two or more Elders, but Elder Itiara lost her husband to the Devastation war fifty years ago.

We enter her home. My parents staying outside of the tree in order not to let their auras interfere with mine. The elder's wall was lined with thick tomes and many books, I even spied some ancient scrolls on the shelves- probably used by her predecessors more than a thousand years ago during or shortly after the founding of the village. The elder sits on a rug behind the elevated center of the tree which has items on it- it is used as a table, the middle part having a shineleaf sprout to give off light.

I sit on the rug across the table. We use chairs and benches for day-to-day use, but the rugs that we use now is one of the many that have been used in these rituals even before the start of the then Elven Confederation some five thousand years ago. It was imbued with ancient and lost magic- inscrutable to our brightest scholars, and is an important part of elven history and tradition. The rugs were used to highlight someone's magical potential- determining one's likely future role in society.

The elder poured hot tea into two cups,- then gave one of them to me. We both drink the mix of hot water and leaves to relax ourselves- mainly me, before the actual ritual starts. After finishing it, I put down the empty cup of tea. And waited a moment for it to help soothe and calm myself.

"Give me your hand." The elder says, briefly after the drink.

I extend my hand to her- to which the elder took hold and held it in hers. I could feel the magical energy as I touched her hand, and it slowly grew as she probed my aura- trying to discern extent of my potential.

I stare at the elder and our hands, slightly nervous of the outcome. Though in my mind I was sure to have a potential that is considerably above a normal one. Still, there was a tiny piece of me that was scared of the outcome.

Taking a shallow breath, I push the thoughts out of my head to calm myself. The elder has her eyes closed and she had been probing my aura for a while now. I wonder if this was usually how long it took? I never really paid much attention.

Eventually the elder opened her eyes. I look at her, silently asking what the result is.

"Please tell your parents to come in, I have to speak to them, in private." She says in a serious tone.

My heart starts to beat faster- because if a discussion with my parents is needed, it must be something serious.

I try not to show any nervousness as I nod, getting up, turning turning around, and heading out of the door. I spot my parents sitting on a bench nearby, and they see me too and get up to greet me- but their expressions changed to worry when they see my nervous face.

"Eletha dear, what's wrong?" Father asks.

"The elder wishes to speak with you." I say quietly.

They both look at each other, puzzled. Then smiled at me with obvious worry- before heading inside.

The time waiting after was filled with anxiety; what could the elder possibly want to speak about with mother and father? Some of the attendees for my celebration who were returning home passed by and greet me- some even asked about my concerning expression to which I replied that it was nothing to be concerned about.

I am sitting on the bench where my father and mother sat. And when then they finally came out of the elder's home, I went up on my feet and approached them- then noticed that their expression are gloomy. It added more to the anxiety building up in me. And now, I start to dread it.

"Mother, Father?" I ask.

My father opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out as he closes it again to look at mother, who nodded at him.

"Eletha- do know that we love you, and that we are most happy to have you..." Mother starts.

The dread is overwhelming, something really bad was seen by the elder and that is what they had to discuss.

"... so please don't be alarmed by what we have found today."

Father clears his throat, I direct my attention to him- he is obviously distressed.

"Eletha dear, we... the elder detected that your aura grew weaker."

"What?" I ask in despair and disbelief, the anxiety and dread slowly making my voice crack.

"Don't worry, you might just be having some sort of new problem. We just have to-"My mother tried to reassure but I my emotions were already overwhelming me and I ran. My mind despairing and not caring on which direction I took- I just want to get away.

"Eletha!" Mother shouts after me.

I feel so ashamed, I have failed my parents, I can't even do any magic than that of a child! This is disgraceful. What about my dreams? What about following father's footsteps? The rangers of the forest would not even consider me because of this inability!

I needed somewhere to gather my thoughts, see what I can do with my situation- I needed to relax myself.

I pass by the house, and stopped. The celebration was mostly over, a few guests were still there but mostly to help in tidying up the place- but that's not what made me stop.

I see the beautiful bow my parents gifted me, leaning on the doorway. If there's anything that can help me gather my thoughts, there's probably no better option.

I grab the bow and run indoors for a dozen arrows. I go outside again and head for the clearing.

It is silent now when I arrive- no more music from celebrations can be heard- and I can shoot my arrows, clear my head, and decide on what to do- in peace.

I set the quiver on my hips, then draw an arrow and nock it. My entire mind was focused on nothing else but hitting the target, although there were moments where the voices break though the focus but were quickly silenced.

I release the arrow- which flies through the air and hit the target-dead center.

I didn't come here to appreciate my accuracy- so I immediately nock another arrow, aimed, then let it loose. I repeat the whole process, again, again, and again.

When I let loose the fifth arrow, they were already clumping at the middle of the target. My head is clearer, I can finally think about this all- or so I thought.

Instead of thinking clearly, I was just reminded of the revelations earlier.

The energy in me just seemed to dissipate. My legs started to grow weak and I just let myself fall down on the ground- letting the voices in my head mock or run rampant on speculations. It all feels too heavy for me; so I just put my face in my palms, tears threatening to come out.

And they probably would have- had I not sense a presence nearby.

A lone person was trying to sneak up on me- I didn't let it show that I have noticed whoever this was. But I ready myself to quickly jump up, knock an arrow, and see who this person is.

I let the person get closer until they were a little more than ten paces away. I then jump up with my bow in my left hand, and my right picking up an arrow- or was supposed to pick up an arrow, but instead I got ahold of two. I didn't let my blunder hinder me, and I knocked both arrows into my bow and aimed it at the direction of the person.

What I see is a human frozen in place- his torso and arms covered in hardened leather armor, a dirty tunic underneath. In his hand he holds a knife, and a piece of cloth on the other.

Despite everything pointing that this person is a danger- I try to tell the human to back off. And I was about to do so when he started to sprint towards me.

In a moment of panic, I let loose the arrows which flew through the air. The human stepped aside to dodge, but the spread caused by the uneven distribution of force between two arrows caused one of them to fly sideways- lodging itself in the human's neck during the his attempt to dodge.

The effect was instantaneous- the human held his bleeding throat, eyes wide in shock, as he fell down drowning in his own blood.

I quickly realize what I just did and is horrified. As the human tried to gasp for air, I am frozen in shock that I just did this to someone else. Everything seemed to grow quiet as the only sound that I could hear was the man choking in his own blood.

It was then I hear someone scream.

It came from the village so I immediately shift my eyes to it- what I saw sight made my heart stop and my breath to shorten.

People that I've known for years as neighbors and were getting slaughtered, I see the kind blacksmith put up a fight with his sword against a man with an axe- before someone else comes up behind him and spears him through his back.

The lonely gardener is on her knees and begging for her home to be left alone as it was set alight- the fires touching her crops and burning their way to the nearby shed which where she keeps her valued animals.

I see doors of homes getting bashed down, the screams of the inhabitants inside following shortly after. Then the intruders dragged them out- dead or alive.

I break out of my daze- my hand held my bow tightly as I see the scene.

I have to do something!

So I run towards the village, my bow drawn and an arrow at the ready. Stories about human cruelty and sadism reverberated in my mind- stories shared by my parents, the elder, and anyone the ones who had lived or fought during the Devastation War. They narrate different accounts, but all tell the same tale- humans are a horror.

I finally reach the village- it would seem that not many bandits have made it to this part, but there were indeed bandits here roaming alone or in groups of two or three.

I then realize that this is where my dear friend Verhimia lives. I immediately make my way to her home- anxiously crossing open paths of the village or going between narrow gaps between houses till I finally made it to Verhimia's home. My heart sank as I see the door has already been broken in.

"Help! Please no!" I recognize Verhimia's scream. My legs immediately take action and I rush inside.

When I arrive inside, I see a human is pressing her up a wall and is doing things to her that he shouldn't be doing. My friend kept her eyes closed as the man did so with her.

My friend's tearful face was soon splattered with blood- my arrow piercing the man's skull and popping out his eye.

His grip loosened and I rush in- pushing his corpse off Verhimia, who I then took hold of.

"Are you ok? Verhimia, talk to me." I say.

She is shaking- terrified of what just happened. But she managed to get some words out.

"He... he did th-things to me."

Then, I noticed that her shirt is unbuttoned, and that her neck is bruised.

"Ok, ok, you're safe now. Where's your father?" I ask while buttoning her up.

"We... we were having lunch when we heard bashing on the door and father... father..." She sobs out the last parts of her answer, then points at another side of the house.

My eyes follow the direction she was pointing at. Then a saw a bloody, and headless corpse.

I feel my stomach churn and would've thrown up, had I not remembered something.

My parents are still out there- and while father and mother can hold their own in a fight, they didn't have their weapons with them.

Extreme worry settled over me- I turn to my shaking friend and instruct her on what to do.

"Verhimia I have to go find my parents, you go up to your room and hide in there ok? I'll be back to get you." I say as I lift her up and escort her past her father's corpse and to the foot of the stairs.

I made sure that she is heading upward before I left. I rush directly through the village and to the center- several humans saw me and gave chase, but I was faster and knew the lay of the village better. I was able to reach the center of the village without anybody on my tail.

I run from between two shops and into the center of the village- and what greeted my sight will forever haunt me.

The center is full of blood and corpses; it would seem that those that could defend the village gathered here for defense. But were eventually overwhelmed by sheer numbers and were slaughtered one by one.

Mounted on a pole was a body, it has a large gash on the shoulders and chest... and has green hair and dead blue eyes.

"FATHER!" I cry out as I recognize the body, uncaring of the attention that I've just drawn.

The humans turned their attention to me, then they broke out into a chorus of mocks while some closed in with nothing but their bare hands.

I didn't care for anything then- and I made a resolve.

"If I am going to die here today, I will die in fighting for everyone alive and lost."

Knocking an arrow made the humans stop- but only for a moment. They then hasten their move towards me to a sprint. I let loose the arrow and it pierce one of them in the chest. I hastened to draw another, but a human tackled me to the ground. I spat, bit, scratched, and did everything that I could in anger against this human- but all I did it seems was annoy him because he brought his fist down on my face.

Everything turned into a blur when the human's fist connected. Then I could feel my neck being gripped and the ground's absence- I am being hoisted like a trophy, I dizzly realize. I didn't care as they put me back down and dragged me to the center of the village- blood is coming out of my nose, and my body is bruised; I know that this is the end of the line for me- and I resigned to it.

They lift my head and force me to look up, the bench where I sat earlier was lined with corpses of defiled women and even girls. They gave me a good moment to look at my fate before pushing me on the bench. I had wanted a quick death but alas, fate is not so merciful.

My head is facing the left when they pushed me on the bench, so I see that almost all of the victims here had a cut on their neck, only some are alive. I see that the farthermost victim is someone with golden hair, and has and golden eyes that has lost its lively shine.

"Mother..." I sob weakly.

At least I'll be able to meet them again- in another cycle of life perhaps. I say to myself as tears began to fall.

There were two voices behind me, probably arguing who gets me first like I'm some sort of commodity. The voices escalated before a brief silence, then there was a short exchange and I could hear that one of them has walked away.

My soon to be killer said something to me, laughed, and then placed his hand on my tunic.

It was then that blood splattered all over the place.