She was a dreamer, a poet lost in the space of her own mind. Easily submersed in the transient shift of her future – dependent on no one, as grounded as an autumn leaf. She swayed and twisted, and gravitated to the nearest star in that headspace galaxy. It was time to speak life into those verses, of the whispers and stories no one else could grasp in that vacuum. The heroine, the conqueror and champion would take arms to prove her worth. To become ’something’; a thought that, strangely, held its own unique and painful weight – an enigma that the girl couldn’t quite explain – or understand. Could only feel in the hollow drums of her heart.

That is why the heroine approached the thick forest, despite the close proximity of trees. In essence she was without her wings – foolish to abandon the sky, to be without it. And yet necessary to prove herself capable, in the worst circumstances possible. But it wasn’t just the trees, gnarled and cut, that should have warned her of its dangers. It was the upturned soil, and the jealous roots. The sharp pinpricks of tree needles, and dead stumps haphazardly jutting from their resting place; of the inhabitants, perusing the tragic vacuum of the forest floor. Taking their pickings of the virgin adventurer, unaccustomed to the pit – how far or how deep they ran.

Ru felt as if the forest was consuming her the further she went. Taken whole, as her vision strained against the dark. The moon may have been out, but its small slivers imparted no amount of confidence in the girl. She could recognize the impending crest of her fear for the things unknown, in the sea of shadows ahead, about to bear down and suffocate her bolstered confidence. How little she was, how hollow and weak…

The cry shattered her nerves, and the crest fell heavy upon her. Stopping Ru in her tracks, wings pressing hard into their sides. She could feel her skin prickle in goose bumps, hairs standing at their roots. And then she realized the nature of the dark and husky tones, its purpose behind the bone-rattling course. Picking up her breath, and fighting off the shakes, she swerved between the trees – having to quickly dodge one or two when in sight – before finally setting eyes on him.

She stopped just at the edges of his platform amongst the trees. Holding her head high, pretending to be that thing she really wanted to be – some day, perhaps… Light pastel eyes blazing out from their windows, fear and anxiety at this point were undistinguishable. They sloshed together within her upturned gaze; it would be hard to tell their debut apart from sheer stupid determination. At that point she failed to see the dragons – otherwise, she would have marveled at their presence. Tunnel vision clouded her gaze, her heart pumped wildly while she tamed her breath.

This is it.

This is where it begins.

He was the shadow, the void; a skull mask with piercing red eyes. The perfect villain to play his part in that childish fantasy of hers; forgetting she would have to ‘hurt’ him too. But it was far too late to worry about that now.

Ru answered with a cry of her own, not nearly as deep or baritone – she forced it out, and it rattled like desperation. And then she was off, charging to cross swords with the hulking giant. As she neared she could make out the finer details of his white limbs, just barely, but near enough to distinguish them in the dark – two beacons in the refuse.

With her breath held, she attempted to meet head to head at full speed – as much as a few strides could afford. Eyes narrowed for impact. The girl struck out with her right fore limb just as her hindquarters dug into the bramble for traction. Aiming for that large chest. Through the fog of her head, she anticipated some sort of movement from the stallion. Although she wasn’t at all certain what it might be. Taking an uncalculated chance, Ru picked up her feet to deflect away from his body – kicking out at his form from behind. Unthinking, randomly in the hopes it might hit as she pulled her body away.

He was large after all. It wasn’t as if the wind was going to knock him down. Sucking in the air she turned to face. The sides of her wings rubbed against one of the trees to her right. And for the moment, she thought it might be a good idea to use it as a half shield – if that counted for anything.

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