Story of a Loner

[Katrina Loures]

The young one pushes with all her might at the mighty trap door above her, struggling to free herself from the hidden sanctity of the small, dimly lit room. With a grunt, she finally managed to push it open, the large wooden door slamming hard against the floor beside it.

She slowly peeked her head out from beyond the opening, to reveal the horrors above her. Her home, was shambles. Tables were smashed or turned over, furniture was in shambles, the soft fabric thrown about in a wild fashion. Anything of value, silver candlesticks, golden placards, everything was ransacked. As her tiny mind looked around in awe, her tiny fingers, resting on the edges of the opening, began to become stained with crimson. She looked to the side, and screamed, as she saw the dead remains of her parents, their eyes wide open in horror, staring back at her in an icy death. She shrieked once more, climbing out of the opening quickly and getting as far away as she could from the dead remains. She tripped and fell across the remains of another, a dagger in his hand, a bandanna across his neck. Shrieking, she fell onto her behind, gazing at the horrors around her.

She couldn't possibly understand... how could she? She was only 5 at the time. Only yesterday was she playing with her friends, helping her mother cook their daily meals, and laughing with her parents. Now they were all dead, their carcasses left to rot. Her mind fell back upon one memory she had with her father, a month or so before this disaster...

[Flashback]
"Katrina, my dear... You have grown so much...you're much more mature then some of the other kids... I'm glad we raised such a fine daughter..."
"Thank you papa. I love you! Promise me you'll never leave me!"
"Katrina... I promise. However, if anything should ever happen, you need to promise me something... you need to promise to be strong. Can you promise me that?"
"Of course, papa! I promise!"
[End Flashback]

With a heavy heart, she turned to the dead carcass of the rogue, reaching down slowly with trembling fingers, and removed the dagger sheath from his form. She then took his dagger, and placed it within the sheath, slinging one part of the belt over her shoulder. With that, she slowly stepped out of the house, looking towards the path over to the next town. She sighed, heading towards the path to the edge of town. Upon her arrival, she looked back, tears forming in her eyes at the devastation before her. Shaking her head violently, she reached up, putting her hair back in a ponytail, and pressed onwards into the unknown.

To Be Continued....

[Katrina Loures]

[continued]

After about a half day's worth of travel, and climbing upon a small hill, she came across the site of a small merchant town called Poltera. Large, grassy hills filled its horizons, signifying that it was a trading post for the other towns and villages. Smiling at the thought and possibility of food and shelter, she trudged on, growing more and more weary from her travels. Even as she neared the outskirts of the town, her whole form ached, her legs threatening to fall out from underneath her tired form. She kept pushing forward until, just upon reaching the outskirts of town, she fell. Exhausted, and unable to move, she passed out.

As she awoke, she found herself lying on a small bed, in a small room, adorned with wooden furniture. Around her were toys, presumably from a young child, perhaps as young as herself. The smell of a warm meal filled her senses, and her eyes glanced about for the source, eventually finding a small platter of food lying on a table near her. With a vigored movement, she almost leapt out of bed towards the table, quickly reaching down to devour the food in hungered passion, not noticing the creeping shadow coming ever closer to her. Just as a figure lay a strong hand on her shoulder, she whirled around, shrieking loudly and accidentally spraying the figure with what she had been drinking. The figure simply laughed, and the flickering candles around her brought his face into full view. The old man looked upon her with a caring gesture as he wiped the droplets off his face, and chuckled again. "My my, I'm sorry to have startled ye, young one. Go on, you may continue to fill yourself to your hearts content. I will wait for you to finish." With that, he simply walked away, her eyes following him until his form disappeared behind the archway of the door, and she went back to eating.

When she was finished, she noticed the old man sitting on the bed watching her, a warm smile gracing his bearded face. "Well, it seems ye have finished your meal. I pray it was to your liking..." She simply looked at him, swallowing gently before, her voice cracking slightly, she spoke, "It...was fine, sir. Thank ye for your kindness..." "Ah, it's good to know so. And It's also good to know ye are of good health.. I feared when I found ye that ye were ill. Looked like ye were traveling long, ye did," he stated, reaching around his back to the sheath, yanking it off gently and showing it to her. "This be a rogue's blade, it is... I feared the worst when I found ye. 'Don't take her in, Jeremiahs', they said to me, but I hadn't the heart to leave ye laying there for dead." She was simply listening at this point, slowly inching closer to him in an almost feral curiosity. "Ah, come, ye can sit by me. I won't hurt ye, nor do I intend to." For the first time since the incident, she gave a light smile, and accompanied him on the bed, almost nuzzling against him gently. "Oh my, affectionate little one aren't ye? Might I ask for your name? It would make things much easier..." She stammered slowly, almost as if she was trying desperately to remember herself, and spoke softly after a moments pass, "My...name.... is Katrina..."

[To be Continued]