The Dark Blooded Duchess. Ep1

{Ardon's Point of View}

One of the fae folk reported an unconscious stranger deep in the forest, by the sacred onigi tree.

‘The stranger smells of chaos and darkness’ he’d said.

I’m not sure what I expected, but seeing her now, I realize it certainly was not this small human girl with an injured leg and a bleeding head.

There’s something about her, how her muscles are stiff and her face stern as she sleeps, that makes me wonder what she’s been through. Where she came from.

Officer Talo, Heston, and I encircle her but both of them have lowered their weapons as well, having determined that she’s not a threat.

‘Some sort of bag here’ says Heston, shoving the dark leathery object with his boot ‘and a mess of papers and plant things’

Such specific reports as always.

‘And a piece of weird looking, er, branch lodged in the tree over there’ Talo adds

It was bizarre how high up in the tree it was. ‘Perhaps the human was using that to climb up the tree?’ I offer

‘Yeah but the angle is off and the tree is much too far,’ says Heston. Well, at least he’s specific when it comes to proving me wrong.

‘Accurate’ I say, without hesitation.

There’s a silent agreement that there are no further clues in the immediate area and we begin to move toward the human.

Talo motions for us to stop, that she will go look. I nod my approval as her superior and she sets down her gun, withdrawing a small blade from her belt in its place. I don’t think she’ll need it but the protocol must be followed, in front of other soldiers at least - the safety and protection of the guard are integral to the survival of our tiered society.

Though I have my doubts about the system as it is, I approve of her logic, if a human woman wakes in a strange place with an armed man in her face she’s certainly more likely to be defensive or possibly even violent. Whereas a woman waking to a female in her face would likely be slightly more at ease in that situation.

’She looks human,’ reports Talo ‘alive but with visible injuries to her leg, head, and ribs’

Damn. Who did this to her?

‘No signs of any pursuers or attackers, or even footprints for that matter.’ I scratch my head ‘she seems to have just fallen from the heavens’

Heston looks up at the clear blue sky as if it will tell him anything. It doesn’t - I already checked.

‘Should I wake her or do we just take her to the healer?’ asks Talo

‘No.’ says Heston, shrugging back his mane of blonde hair ‘I say we kill her. She’s a stranger and she’s got no business here, none that can be good anyways’

‘Incorrect’ I say with a stony voice ’we must determine the condition of the victim before we can move her.’

Heston rolls his eyes. He’s never cared about anyone other than himself.

‘So?’ Talo interjects from the ground, her dreadlocks curtaining her golden-brown face ‘wake her yes or wake her no?’

‘Yes’ I say, glaring at Heston ‘we don’t murder innocents just so we can get back to our card game’

Talo accepts her order and turns to focus on the pale woman who sleeps with a frown.

Something toils in the pit of my stomach, something feels off about all of this yet all evidence points to the contrary. When I look at the woman, I feel nothing but peace but there’s something, something strange going on here.

‘Careful now’ I say to my fellow officer, always trusting my instincts.

Officer Talo attempts to wake her in varying gentle ways and knowing her extreme sense of heroism, I’m about to tell her to back off and let me handle this (rather I not save someone than her) when Talo sets down her blade and slaps the holy stars out of the poor sleeping woman.

There was not a thing I could do to stop it.

I sense the movement before it comes ‘Talo, get bac-’

But the energy that erupts in bright blue light from the woman is otherworldly, godly even.

As if in some terrible nightmare, I see Talo being thrown back from the force before I myself am blinded and thrown aside by the most impressive invisible force I’ve ever witnessed.

The wind is knocked right out of me as I go down. Adrenaline, my air affinity, and about four decades' worth of training kick in, and I’m forced to my feet, ready to fight.

But the so-called threat is still on the forest floor.

The girl, who is decidedly not human, slowly pushes up to her elbows. Her soft yellow eyes are wide in shock and her face paler than it just was moments ago. Something is off with her eyes but I’m too far from her to tell what it is.

That fear though spread right across her face like bitter-berry jam, it's something you don't see all that often.

‘I’m Donny, I'm a captain in the High Guard. I'm in charge of this area here’ I say holding up my hands ‘we don’t mean you any harm. Can you tell me your name?’

She blinks and gives a small nod ‘Morgen’

‘That’s good,’ I smile ‘that’s just a beautiful name. Now tell me, Morgen, are you okay?’

’Is she?’ the girl pants, cringing into her side (that would be the broken rib talking) ‘the woman is she okay? I- I didn’t mean to-’

‘Well let’s see’ I say and then raise my voice a bit ‘Officer Talo, Officer Heston, are the two of you alright?’

There’s a grunt from Heston but Talo is quiet.

‘I’m just going to check on her, Morgen’ I say to the woman ’Officer Heston will not hurt you either

She doesn’t say anything but I tend to Talo nonetheless.

The force did not make her hit the tree, luckily, and she is clearly breathing. The digital bracelet on her wrist tells me that she is in stable condition.

‘She should be alright’ I say, walking up to Heston who is now ridding his hair of twigs and dirt, and Morgen who is unconscious again.

She never did tell me if she was alright, but in hindsight, that’s probably a pointless question.

Heston looks confused when he realizes this. ‘She was just awake,’ he frowns.

‘She was’ I say ‘Go get some reinforcements and supplies so the healer can tend to these two. I will stay here and monitor them.’

By the looks of him clenching his stupid chiseled jaw, I can tell Heston has just about chewed right through his tongue in order to not tell me off.

I ignore that and say, ’today, officer’

‘Yes, sir’ he spits out the last word like it tastes bitter in his mouth.

On he jogs.

I crouch down next to our mystery arrival and damn it if she ain't ten types of beautiful.

I undo my biometric bracelet and set it to rescue mode.

‘Don’t you worry, Morgen’ I say, fastening the rescue bracelet to her arm ‘you’ll be safe with me’

While there is nothing to do but wait, I take up position next to Talo and run a proper diagnostic on her condition with her bracelet.