Aridia - The Early Years - Chapter 1
Chapter One
Aridia's travel took her away from her place of birth and she looked to be a beautiful yet grimy young woman to those who caught a glimpse of her in the night. She found a cave far from her home or what to her was far as she had never been further than a half days walk from her home in the past. She was only two days walk from her home or a half days hard ride by horseback. She had found a cave just above a small town she had not now had existed. Her coal black hair was tangled and matted as it flowed down her back like a dark curtain. Her gold eyes burned with a hunger she had never known before though hunger for food had been a constant. She woke as the sun slipped below the horizon and would begin her hunt to satiate the driving hunger she felt and never seemed to find release from. Her face burned with intensity as she searched the faces of those about in the night looking for a glimpse of a flame haired green eyed woman.
She spent her nights teaching herself to hunt and feed. She ripped the throats from her victims with a burning need as she had not yet learned that she need not kill to feed. She did learn how to fight and use a dagger and a sword. She took the first dagger and sword she was to ever own from a Centurion she killed after he tried to protect himself from her.
It was her first true experience in fighting against someone. She found that she had a strength that she had not had before and that if she kept to shadows she was not seen until her prey could not run.
When she had come upon the Centurion she had been standing outside a building that seemed to be frequented by men and very few women. She had found that much to her distaste that if she picked a victim after they had gone in that their blood had a sour taste to it brought by the alcohol consumed. She watched her prey carefully as he had approached down the street almost furtively. The blood red of his uniform marked him easily in the night to her eyes even if he did keep to shadows. She had waited until he had moved just past her before lashing out with her hand like a claw for his throat. The Centurion had proved to be more agile and wary than she had thought or expected. Her depravations had not gone unnoticed in the city so more were becoming wary of being out unless they had to be or some other need drove them out.
The Centurion had turned in her grasp and pulled out his dagger with a speed she had not found in other victims that tried to fight. Hid dagger had found her arm and sliced it open to the bone. Her anger grew and at the scent of the blood in her own body oozing from the cut and the blood of the Centurion from the scratches her nails had inflicted excited her senses even more. She reached with her hand to grab his dagger by the blade and wrenched it from his hand. The dagger cut deeply into her hand but her eyes remained locked on the man as he tried to kick and stop on her bare feet. She grimaced and her gaze broke from his as she twisted and tried to ram him with her shoulder. The man grabbed her around the waist and with a push of his feet rammed her into the wall as his dagger clattered to the ground. She twisted and clawed at his eyes which forced him back enough for her to drop to the ground and roll away from him.
The Centurion moved to kick her in the face as she rolled and managed to only catch her shoulder though a sharp crack was heard. She cried out then finally breaking her silence as her shoulder broke. She landed on the dagger and felt the hilt under her ribs as she lay dazed for a moment on the dirt of the street. As the Centurion leaned down to grab her by her throat she moved to get up and grabbed the dagger in her hand bringing it up without thought of what she was doing. What she did not know was that the times she did watch she had been remembering the fights and killings she had seen and was not a part of. She slammed the dagger toward his gut as the man came forward and managed to slip it between the plates of his laurica and up into his heart.
to be continued
Aridia's travel took her away from her place of birth and she looked to be a beautiful yet grimy young woman to those who caught a glimpse of her in the night. She found a cave far from her home or what to her was far as she had never been further than a half days walk from her home in the past. She was only two days walk from her home or a half days hard ride by horseback. She had found a cave just above a small town she had not now had existed. Her coal black hair was tangled and matted as it flowed down her back like a dark curtain. Her gold eyes burned with a hunger she had never known before though hunger for food had been a constant. She woke as the sun slipped below the horizon and would begin her hunt to satiate the driving hunger she felt and never seemed to find release from. Her face burned with intensity as she searched the faces of those about in the night looking for a glimpse of a flame haired green eyed woman.
She spent her nights teaching herself to hunt and feed. She ripped the throats from her victims with a burning need as she had not yet learned that she need not kill to feed. She did learn how to fight and use a dagger and a sword. She took the first dagger and sword she was to ever own from a Centurion she killed after he tried to protect himself from her.
It was her first true experience in fighting against someone. She found that she had a strength that she had not had before and that if she kept to shadows she was not seen until her prey could not run.
When she had come upon the Centurion she had been standing outside a building that seemed to be frequented by men and very few women. She had found that much to her distaste that if she picked a victim after they had gone in that their blood had a sour taste to it brought by the alcohol consumed. She watched her prey carefully as he had approached down the street almost furtively. The blood red of his uniform marked him easily in the night to her eyes even if he did keep to shadows. She had waited until he had moved just past her before lashing out with her hand like a claw for his throat. The Centurion had proved to be more agile and wary than she had thought or expected. Her depravations had not gone unnoticed in the city so more were becoming wary of being out unless they had to be or some other need drove them out.
The Centurion had turned in her grasp and pulled out his dagger with a speed she had not found in other victims that tried to fight. Hid dagger had found her arm and sliced it open to the bone. Her anger grew and at the scent of the blood in her own body oozing from the cut and the blood of the Centurion from the scratches her nails had inflicted excited her senses even more. She reached with her hand to grab his dagger by the blade and wrenched it from his hand. The dagger cut deeply into her hand but her eyes remained locked on the man as he tried to kick and stop on her bare feet. She grimaced and her gaze broke from his as she twisted and tried to ram him with her shoulder. The man grabbed her around the waist and with a push of his feet rammed her into the wall as his dagger clattered to the ground. She twisted and clawed at his eyes which forced him back enough for her to drop to the ground and roll away from him.
The Centurion moved to kick her in the face as she rolled and managed to only catch her shoulder though a sharp crack was heard. She cried out then finally breaking her silence as her shoulder broke. She landed on the dagger and felt the hilt under her ribs as she lay dazed for a moment on the dirt of the street. As the Centurion leaned down to grab her by her throat she moved to get up and grabbed the dagger in her hand bringing it up without thought of what she was doing. What she did not know was that the times she did watch she had been remembering the fights and killings she had seen and was not a part of. She slammed the dagger toward his gut as the man came forward and managed to slip it between the plates of his laurica and up into his heart.
to be continued