A Day of Sorrow, The Tales of Old

A Day of Sorrow, Chapter 1

Alithium Anaco

Eliti'all

Outside Anaco Tribe

Undated

"Holy fuck. Oh shit, oh shit," Alithium cried, ducking under a branch and pushing herself off a tree, nearly smashing into it.

The growling, the scraping of claws against bark, and the stench of blood which soaked her body kept her moving. The exhaustion was nothing to the fear she had for the creature chasing her. No matter how many spears or arrows struck it, nothing pierced its fur.

Her mother's screams echoed in her head, all of her tribe victim to the unknown beast. Its fur was so black that it blended with darkness and its muscle was thicker than most trees, but even so, it was terribly fast. On four legs, it was at least ten feet in height. The dense forest doing nothing to slow it as it kept its dangerous red eyes transfixed to her back.

Alithium's body altered as she fled, white fur extending from her pale skin as her limbs shifted and she fell onto all four legs, running much faster than before. Horns protruded from the back of her head, lifting upward and pointing backward. Her muscles expanded and her mass grew to three or four times of what it was. Her eyes and hair were the only thing to remain the same as before, white.

She sprinted through the forest, snow crunching beneath her and wetting her paws. Even now, she was half the creature's size and no threat to it. All of her tribe with the exception of the ithrin had abilities similar to hers, and all thirty-nine of them were killed by the creature. The fact that it was still chasing her was enough for her to realize that it wasn't after them for food, but rather the thrill of the hunt.

Claws scraped and roared through the forest as she ducked, bark splintering off the tree behind her and decorating the snow. Heavy breaths escaped her lips as her heart accelerated and sweat formed. She was only five thousand six hundred and forty seven days old. She wasn't ready to die. She was too young.

"Panfro, protect me," Alithium cried, praying to the I'gra of war.

As they emerged into an open field, ice wings ripped along her back and formed at her will. Her muscles struggled to summon the energy needed to lift herself. The trees were beautiful, flourished by her ithrin. The creature hunting her responsible for ending his life. The bark was white and the leaves were a light ice blue, soft and comfortable by touch.

The moon light which never ceased shone down on her as she became airborne, hope igniting within her chest as her feet left the ground. If she hadn't shared her tribe's confidence in the beginning, she would've flown away long ago.

A gasp escaped Alithium's lips as she was torn from the air, smashing against snow and ice. She turned, the frightful beast of death standing over her, baring its sharp teeth as if smiling, preparing for its last kill of the hunt.

It snapped its jaw forward, barely missing her as she rolled aside, her body shifting back to what it was before and becoming a smaller target. Slender and toned, pale by skin, with white eyes and hair, and sharp teeth and nails meant to bite and dig into hardened meat or vegetation.

She hissed at the creature, rolling back and jolting to her feet. She glared at the beast, baring her teeth. Her voice was shaking and fear ached through every bone. As if it could sense her fear, it circled her, unafraid by her show of confidence. If anything, it was toying with her, enjoying every moment of the chase.

It pounced toward her again, its tail whipping across the snow as its claws extended. She struck her hands forward, snow hardening and forming into ice as a spike protruded outward. The beast missed her as she leapt back, the ice spike working as a deterrent, shattering against its body. No injury was left behind, the same as every other attack that had been attempted onto it.