“Shin! Shin!”

Roughly shaken awake by the creature known as Vinn, I yelp in pain as I notice his long fingernails are digging deep into the flesh of my right shoulder.

“ArrgGrrr Get yOur BLOODY FiNgerS oFf of Me!” I yell while jerking my small body back away from the fiend. That fucking hurts! Ughhh how long have I been out again? These uncontrollable fucking blackouts are going to be-

“How exciting!” hollers the annoying smelly jackass. I’m starting to run out of names to describe this wild beast. “My beautiful fingers the ‘bloody fangs’ have garnered such infamy that you’d recognize them right away...Wait, did you see me fight in the arena before? What do people say about me?” asks Vinn with his finger ‘fangs’ flexing in anticipation. There is a dangerous glint in his crazy bloodshot eyes.

Hold up...he got his imposing nickname from the long fingernails and not the actual blood dripping canine FANGS sticking out of his mouth?!

“WhAt happEned To me?” I ask.

“...I’m not quite certain what happened but we were speaking to each other for a bit last night and the next thing I know you just blanked out and fell over, like a sack of my mama’s noodles...” Vinn replied and I really hope he just described one of his mother’s food produces.

“You would not respond no matter how much I tried to slap...ehh stirr you gently awake and you only showed signs of movements just a few minutes ago” continued Vinn. “...You were crying and flailing in your sleep…”

Images flashed before my eyes but I immediately shut them out. That shit will have to be processed at later time. I need to get as much information as I can in the present before I lose it.

--------------------------------------------------------------

“How many are still out there chasing me?” Clara thought out loud as she brushed aside her bloodied strands of silver hair while speeding past the last remaining treelines of the Twilight Forest.

Tsk. A shallow cut just above her right ear resulted from a moment of carelessness in combat. She had no one to blame but herself for being distracted when long range specialists are present.

Three days on the run with little to no food or sleep had severely weakened her stamina. Clara had almost depleted her arsenal of throwing weapons and very soon she might have to engage her hunters in close melee fightings. The thought sent a chill of excitement in her body. Clara couldn’t wait to see the fear in their eyes as she reaped away their lives for underestimating her as easy prey. That being said, there were just too many of them for her to handle effectively without proper backups.

What would her Master say if she was in this situation?

Complicated strategies were always Clara’s weakness. Master had scolded her for focusing too much on being a martial warrior and neglecting to expand her minds. “There are other ways to defeat your enemies without using your own physical prowess,” her Master has lectured. “You need to be more tactful in battle and not lose yourself to its bloodlust.” Clara made a note to seek further lessons and read all the dreadful books that are available when arriving back at the safety of her home.

Tasked with accompanying her grandmama into the heart of the forest to escort an important guest home, this was supposed to be her first solo mission away from protective eyes. She had questioned about the lack of additional warriors but grandmama had said that this was supposed to be a family matter and secrecy is of the utmost importance.

The wild beasts and monsters that prowl in the deep Twilight Forest were of no match for her and were easily dealt with. Grandmama even gave her martial pointers and demonstrated some of the more difficult personal techniques for Clara to meditate over.

Their journey to find the ancient temple of the lost civilization deep within the enchanting forest had been filled with absolute joy. Grandmama was a delight companion to travel with as she showered Clara with many enthralling stories of battle and history, love and sacrifices, brave heroes and vanquished villains.

She loved listening to tales about the generations of past and current Paladins. Supreme warriors and protectors of Zan who have cemented their immortality status and influence worldwide through immeasurable personal achievements.There are currently six of these legendary Paladins in existence and each is uniquely named after their famed combat masteries.

Clara was aiming toward that very same pinnacle of power herself. Apprenticed under one of the current Paladin members the Dragon Slayer Aviel, Clara considers herself untalented and constantly strives to make her master proud.

The reminder of her inadequacies ignited a shimmering anger in her chest. The mission that was entrusted to her has turned out to be a total disaster. Grandmama and Clara had decided to split up to throw their trackers off-trail and rendezvous back at their last checkpoint.

The person that Clara was supposed to escort safely home aside from Grandmama has turned out to be a boy her age. Mysteriously appearing in a massive echoing ball of light she was baffled at the unexplained phenomenon, no doubt connected to the ancient powers of the nearby crystallized devices.

The curious ‘guest’ was a strange person all together. Malnourished in body and appearing naked from head to toe, the only redeeming quality of the stranger is his somewhat strikingly handsome face. Upon realizing that he had awoken into an unknown place, the skittish boy emitted a terrifying aura rivaled those belonging to expert level warriors. The changes in his voice signified the frightening transformation going from a gentle farmboy into intimidating warrior. It took Clara all of her willpower to withstand the pressure and not collapsing in fear amidst the face of its overwhelming restraints.

Then the forest exploded with violence.

Hundreds of unknown human assassins ambushed their location. Clara desperately tried to recover her bearings upon the initial confusion of battle to no avail. Grandmama whistled the signal for retreat and Clara failed to locate her charge. He had unknowingly disappeared in the thick of the fightings. She cursed at her lack of awareness and were on the run since then.

Ruffled movements just a few meters ahead stopped Clara in her track. The assassins closed in on her from all sides. Removing two short daggers from her belt with both her hands, Clara grinned in satisfaction. It looks like she was going to have her taste of more melee actions after all…