Lady of Nyv

They entered the sparse forest near the edge of the border between the North and the Middle Lands, cautiously watching their every step. With the temperatures climbing gradually, the layers of ice and snow that had made up the floor of the North for years have become weak and untrustworthy.

They walked in a long line as opposed to a large mass, being sure to step in one-another’s footprints. Ser led the line, Ona in the middle, and Qua at the back, being sure no one was left behind.

When it came time to cross the river with the depth of a thousand years, they took turns jumping over the width of the river. Thankfully, everyone was successful in making it over, and no Members were lost so early.

They walked through the trees, which were becoming increasingly dense as they moved south. Suddenly, the men in front of her stopped moving; the rest of the line reached a screeching halt and Ona struggled to keep herself balanced as their chests pushed into her back.

The line fanned out, everyone wanted to get a look at what had stopped them. There, in front of the long line of men, was what remained of a body. The corpse had been torn apart, its clothing ripped, and body parts littered everywhere. Ona and Dom both saw it at the same time- the remnants of a scarf tied around what remained of the man’s ankles. Ona suppressed a smile and Dom had to bite his tongue to stop from laughing.

Ona watched as the men in the line bowed their heads and crossed themselves, mumbling prayers to whichever entity they believed in.

“Let us hope that whatever attacked this man will not find us.” Ser stated before continuing through the forested area.

Ona smiled to herself, she was flattered that she had struck fear into their hearts, even though the men had no idea she was responsible, she was still proud of herself.

As they walked through the forest, which was becoming denser with every step, Ona kept her eyes on the ground, watching to see where the weak spots lay. She did not want to fall through the snow- who knew how far down the drop would be?

Ona looked up at the sky, which had been turned orange by the rising sun. Just over the trees in the distance, she spotted the peaks of the mountain range that separated the North and the South. She looked forward to climbing a mountain. Being relatively short, she had never had the privilege of being able to see great distances.

Whilst she followed the men in front of her, she allowed her mind to wander. She imaged what the South must be like and how her palace would look. She thought of all of the new territory to explore and of the people she would meet. Part of her wondered if her mother and siblings had been brought to the South, although she quickly dismissed that thought. She had to accept their demise and be thankful that at least she had Dom and Raf.
When they reached the “official” border between the North and the Middle Lands, which was marked by two skulls atop broken tree trunks which had been filed into spikes, Ona took a deep breath. This was where the journey would begin to get more and more difficult.

As they continued their walk, Ona noticed the snow beneath their feet began to thicken and the trunks on the massive trees grew in width. As Ona was surveying the new scenery, she was startled by a large crashing sound. It sounded as though an entire castle had collapsed on itself and she was sure the people of the North could have heard it well up into the mining cities.

Ona watched as a large tree fell down in front of them, hitting the ground with a loud thud. She ran to the front of the line to be sure no one had been caught under its massive trunk. Ser caught her by the waist as she ran past him.

“Has anyone been hurt?” Ona demanded.

“Everyone is fine, Ona.” Ser assured her.

Ser released his grip on Ona and she returned to her place in the line.

The trunk was easily taller than Ona, and mayhaps all of the men which had accompanied she and the Members. The line dispersed once again, and formed a large mass around Ser, who was studying the size of the tree.

“Allow me.” Ona said.

The men all looked to her; some snickered, but only those who had not been part of the Members for very long. Ona’s gaze burned deep into Ser’s eyes; pleading with him to let her find away over this tree. After a few moments, Ser nodded, and motioned for her to move toward the fallen tree.

“Be careful.” Ser warned.

Ona paid him no mind. She would be fine.

Ona walked toward the tree in long strides. When she reached the massive trunk, she reached up and began to climb. She could hear the men murmuring behind her, but she didn’t dare turn to look at their reactions. She moved her hands cautiously, digging her small fingers into the grooves within the bark. She was glad that the tree was partially frozen; it made the bark a lot tougher. When she reached the top, she raised her leg and swung it over the gentle curve of the tree, then pulled herself upright. She looked up and the men burst into a round of applause.

“Who’s first?” Ona asked, extending a hand to show she intended to pull them up.

The men all exchanged glances, unsure of whether or not they should burden such a small and important lady with their weight. Carefully, Kol stepped out of the crowd and walked toward the tree.

“What are you doing?” Dom growled. “That’s my sister you’re going to break in half!”

Kol spun, “If none of us makes a move, we’ll be here forever.”

Dom said nothing, and Kol continued his walk to the tree. When he was a few paces away, he broke into a run, launching himself at the last second, and pulling himself up effortlessly. Once he had settled himself atop the curve of the trunk, he turned to Ona and winked playfully. She smiled back and turned toward the crowd of men who were still standing below them in a crowd, all equally stupefied.

“Well?” Ona called down, “Are you all going to stand there open-mouthed forever, or are we going to finally make some progress?”

In a rush, the men snapped out of their daze and made their way over to the foot of the trunk. Ona and Kol each extended a hand and pulled up each of the men in turn. After they had pulled up just five of the several men, the trunk became very crowded.

Before anyone could say a thing, Lug, followed by a few others, slid off the opposite side of the trunk, landing safely in the snow at the bottom.

The next few men that Ona and Kol pulled up slipped easily off of the trunk almost as soon as they regained their balance. This arrangement made Kol and Ona’s task much simpler and alleviated the strain from the trunk, so it would hopefully hold strong and not cave in around them.

Once the last man- Ser- had been pulled up, Ona and Kol slid off of the trunk and stood among the crowd of men once again. Ser descended tentatively after them and directed the men to move south. They were wasting sunlight standing amidst the forest, barely out of the North, no less. The men placed themselves in a line once again and marched forward.

There was scattered chatter amongst the men whilst they walked, but no solid conversations. There wasn’t much to talk about aside from confidential information about the tasks in which they would partake and the possibility of death, so, it was a relief to keep the talking to a minimum, at least to Ona.

Despite the seriousness of their mission, the men were surprisingly relaxed, some even giddy. While Ona paid less and less attention to the men as their travels continued, she could still sense their emotions.

The scenery around her was magical. Ona had never seen trees so tall, nor woods more inhabited yet ghostly. She had very few memories of her childhood and her time spent in the wilderness, however part of her definitely remembered the scents and sights that the Middle Lands had to offer. Faint memories of mountain lions and beasts unknown to many danced through her idle brain, allowing her to feel a sense of calm and nostalgia.

Ona could feel the men becoming more and more interested in their surroundings. Many surveyed the sights, astonished with what they saw.

The sun was rising slowly, turning the snowy ground a light pink, then an orange, and finally, an almost blinding white. Ona had hoped that the large trees would have intercepted the light from the sun, however, without their leaves, the trees were nearly useless.

The terrain in the Middle Lands varied greatly. Oftentimes one would be walking down steep slopes and back up even steeper hills. The valleys in between were filled with waist-deep snow at best, and sometimes with large ice beds under which chaotic waters rushed, threatening to sweep everyone away should the ice break.

There were many tracks from animal and human alike; however Ona was surprised to find that she could see no sign of life. No movement between the towering trees; nor cries from the animals. Not even the chirping of birds could be heard, making the Middle Lands equally peaceful and unnerving.

When the sun was high in the sky, the clouds began to roll in. It wasn’t unusual for it to be cloudy in the North, in fact, it was more common than sunny days. These clouds appeared odd to Ona- unnatural. She studied them from the ground, attempting to detect what it was that allowed them to seem so strange.

“What is it you are looking at, M’Lady?” Ona was shocked to hear Kol’s voice close to her ear.

“Do the clouds appear odd to you?” She asked him, gesturing to the sky.

Kol turned his head to the sky, studying the clouds whilst she studied him. She watched the way his flame-like eyes scanned the sky, focusing in on specific details for a second, then moving onto the next. She could see the concentration in the way his brow furrowed and his lips pursed.

“They’re an odd colour, M’Lady.” He said confidently. “More of a purple than a gray.”

Ona nodded, feeling confident that the colour had been what had caught her attention. She could still feel Kol’s overwhelming presence even after they had stopped talking. Her ears seemed to pick up every crunch his feet made in the snow and every breath he exhaled. There was something about him that was so intoxicating it left her mind foggy. He was like a disease- once he entered her mind, he was impossible to remove.

Ona shook her head lightly and concentrated further on the clouds. She tried to find similarities between their shape and that of animals. She managed to find one that appeared similar to a rabbit and another that had the tail of a fish and the head of a cat.

She could hear some of the men complaining of hunger and thirst while she studied the clouds, but only vaguely.

“We will stop to eat for a moment.” Ser’s voice pierced the fog which had encompassed her brain.

Ona managed to remove her eyes from the clouds long enough to nod to Ser and seat herself on the remnants of a tree trunk, rotted over time. As she sat, she heard the sound of wood being broken and dragged through snow. She pushed the strands of hair from her eyes and looked up to see many of the men had formed a semicircle around her, with Kol to her right and Dom to her left. She looked at them each in turn, raising her eyebrows. Most of the men blushed and kept their heads down, whereas some met her gaze and gave her a look of determination.

Ona removed her gaze from the men around her and focused on a man standing alone a few metres from the rest of the men. He looked very sad and was twirling something in his fingers. Ona focused her gaze and realized the man was twirling a wedding ring- his wedding ring. When he looked up, probably sensing her gaze, she could see that the man was in fact, Lug.

She allowed her gaze to burn into his eyes until he returned his gaze to his wedding ring. Ona stared at him for a few more minutes, allowing herself to think of possible solutions to his unhappiness. Mayhaps it had been the wrong decision to bring a man like Lug to the South- after all, he may not survive this journey. Ona tried to feel some sort of remourse for bringing this poor man into such a grave situation, however; all she felt was cold, dark, emptiness.

The lunch break had lasted a bit longer than Ser had planned, but the men seemed too finally be at ease as they set off again. They had used their time appropriately; eating and bonding with one another. Ona could see the happiness in Ser’s eyes as he watched the men who were mostly strangers only a few hours ago.

However, Ona had different thoughts. She did not agree with the men bonding, it would only hurt them more if one was to die. Emotions can be a great disadvantage; she and Dom had learned that the hard way.

Ona decided she needed to be away from these men. They were enjoying themselves far too much, and she needed a break. Without a word, she slipped slightly to the left of the group and began climbing a tree. Since all of the trees were intertwined with one another; branches often overlapping, she decided it would be interesting to climb from tree to tree, suspended over the group of men.

She was surprised when none of the men noticed her immediate disappearance. She pulled herself swiftly onto the strong branches of the first tree, and allowed herself to swing from tree to tree. She was silent, not allowing even the trees to make a sound. She observed the men from above, taking into account their height and numbers.

She was becoming restless, as the men were moving much slower than she was sure they needed to. She began to gain speed, moving through the trees faster than the men could pass even one. When she was a dozen trees ahead of the men, she stopped. She pulled herself to the very tip of a branch, and lay down on her stomach.

It was then that Ona saw movement in the trees. She focused her gaze and realized t’was a man. Not a Member- but a lone man; one of the thieves that lived in the Middle Lands. Ona glanced to the North, and realized that none of the men were paying any attention. Quickly, Ona made her move.

She swung across the narrow path that the men walked down, placing herself above the thief. She removed her dagger from the waist of her pants, and placed it in between her teeth. Slowly, she lowered herself from her branch, so she was hanging underneath it, trusting her upper strength to support her weight. When the man moved to obstruct the path of the Members, she dropped. She landed neatly behind the man, and lowered herself into a crouch, surprised he hadn’t heard her drop.

She removed the dagger from her mouth and pressed it against the thief’s neck, while pulling his arms backward. She pressed her lips to his ear.

“What is it you think you’re doing?” She asked in a low growl.

The man swallowed loudly, clearly nervous.

“I was, er- nothing.”

Ona pressed the dagger deeper into his neck, allowing a small amount of blood to escape. The man winced.

“Give me one good reason why I should not slit your throat.” Ona said.

“Please.” The man begged, “I have children to support.”

“Not good enough.” Ona stated.

She drew the dagger quickly across the flesh of his neck and dropped his body into the deep snow.

She quickly removed the blood from her dagger and walked out onto the path. Ona could see the startled look in Ser’s eyes, as well as the other men’s, as she came into view.

Ser motioned for Ona to come closer, and she obeyed. She had a feeling she was going to be in trouble for this.

“Ona, what the hell were you thinking?” Ser asked, clearly angry with her.

“He was going to attack you. I saved your lives!” Ona replied, amazed at his ignorance.

“He was an innocent human being!”

“Now he’s a dead human being. Let’s move out before the wolves come.”

Ser attempted to argue further, but to no avail. The men obeyed Ona more than they obeyed him. Mayhaps because they were afraid, or mayhaps because in their minds, they knew she was more of a leader than he could ever be.

Ser had ordered Ona to go back to her place in the center of the line of men, and she seemed to obey. However; Ona had different plans.

Just as before, Ona waited for the men to become talkative once again. This took awhile longer, because they all insisted on stopping and saying a prayer for the man Ona had killed, instead of moving at a reasonable pace. Ona knew that if they did not move fast enough away from the body, the wolves would find their encampment and they would all be dead within hours.

Finally, after the prayers had been said and the body had been buried beneath the snow, the men moved forward.

The conversation grew as they walked; now incorporating more than just a few close men. Their voices were loud, which was most likely how the thief had noticed them in the first place. However; their volume was an asset to Ona, as she was able to slip off into the trees again.

Ona found a tall tree and climbed to the very top. From there, she practiced jumping from treetop to treetop, and did not fall once.

Whilst she jumped from tree to tree, she had a spectacular view of the Middle Lands. She could see as far South as the mountain range, and as far West as the edge of the ocean. The clouds had vanished once again, leaving only the crisp blue sky in their place.

Ona had almost forgotten to watch the Members when she heard someone call her name. As she looked toward the ground, her hand caught on one of the branches, the rough bark digging into her hand. She attempted to find her grip on this trunk, but the branches were too feeble and the trunk was icy.

As Ona held on for her life, she attempted to wrap her legs around the width of the tree, to alleviate the weight and pressure from her hand, which was now bleeding heavily.

Confident that she was now unable to slip further down the trunk, she focused on her hand. She could still hear the men calling her name from below, but there was nothing she could do to respond. They would just have to wait.

She removed her right hand from the tree, as she would need it to detach her left hand from the trunk. The tree swayed in the icy wind as she worked. Ona was confused as to how her hand had become stuck to the tree, when she realized that someone had shot an arrow through the trunk, and the tip of it had pierced through her hand. She cursed under her breath.

She inhaled deeply, biting her tongue to muffle her impending screams, and pulled her left hand from the arrow.

Ona could feel a surge of pain, like fire, emanating from the center of her palm, and making its way up her arm toward her chest. Carefully, she clutched her bloody, mangled hand to her chest and began to slide down the trunk.

When she reached the thicker branches, she climbed down using her right hand, which was more difficult than she had imagined. She worked fast, determined not to suffer from blood loss. When she was a few feet from the bottom of the trunk, she let herself fall, landing roughly in the snow at the bottom. She heard footsteps racing toward her, and recognized her brother’s voice.

“Ona!” He called to her, “Are you alright?”

She managed a weak nod, and attempted to stand. In an instant, she felt arms around her and felt herself being lifted- a feeling she despised, but she had no energy at the moment.

Ona was carried toward the other men and laid carefully on the ground.

“What happened?” Ser asked, voice full of concern.

“You distracted me! That’s what happened!” Ona yelled back, enraged.

Ser said nothing, biting his tongue. A move which probably saved his life.

“Get me a needle, thread, and some rags.” Ona demanded.

“Do you want any help?” Ser asked.

“No.”

One of the men disappeared, and returned with what she had asked for. He passed the objects to her without a word. Ona removed her dagger from her belt and cut the glove from her hand. She winced as she pulled the blood-soaked fabric from her swollen flesh.

Ona threaded the needle and placed it in between her teeth. Using her knees to push the skin of her palm together, she took the needle from her mouth and began to sew the wound closed. Many men could not stand to watch this be done, and Ona could hear them retching in the woods near the crowd.

When she was finished sewing, she cut the end of the thread, tied it, and wrapped the rags around her hand. A sheen of sweat remained on her brow, and her mouth tasted of blood from biting her tongue, but she was alright.

Dom helped his sister stand, and Ona shot a look of hatred toward Ser. He would get what was coming to him, Ona was sure of it.

Dom allowed Ona to lean her weight onto him as they walked, and the men kept their talking to a minimum. No one dared to say that what had happened had been her fault; they were all scared of the possible consequences.

Ona looked at the trees as they walked, wishing she could still be up there.

“What were you doing in the trees, Ona?” Dom asked her.

“I was surveying the area; looking for water or a place to sleep.”

“Did you find anything?”

“I may have, had I not been distracted.”

Ona had not meant to have been so harsh, especially not to Dom, but she was angry. She could not believe that Ser had been so irresponsible. He was supposed to be the leader and keep them safe, but it had been his fault she had pierced her palm with an arrow and his fault that they were now far behind schedule.

The sun descended fast in the Middle Lands, making it seem later than Ona was sure it was. The trees added to the dark, eeriness of the night, and the men became weary. Ser suggested that they stop for the evening, and find a place to sleep. The men were overjoyed. After all, it had been a very, very long day.

They walked for another hour or so before finding a nice clearing where they would lay to rest. The men had been gathering firewood, and a few of them began to construct a fire in the center of the clearing.

“We will need three people to stay up for as long as they can to watch the forest.” Ser stated.

“I will.” Ona volunteered.

Ser looked at her apprehensively, “I think you should rest, Ona.” He said.

“I will stay up with her and be sure she gets some sleep.” Kol stated.

Ser nodded in approval. “Anyone else?” He asked.

No one responded.

“We will be fine on our own.” Kol assured Ser.

With the night watch picked out, the men were free to move into a group around the fire and go to sleep. Ona knew the change between an actual bed and the cold, snowy floor of the Middle Lands was going to be hard for the men to get used to. She suspected they wouldn’t get much sleep tonight.

Ona and Kol began by walking the perimeter of the clearing in opposite directions, being sure to watch for movement. Once they were sure most of the men, including Ser, were asleep, they sat in a tree near the edge of the clearing.

“How is your hand?” Kol asked, concern filled his fiery eyes.

“It’s alright.” Ona stated, not meeting his eyes.

“Really?” Kol asked, hinting that he had not believed her.

“No.” Ona said. “It hurts like hell.” She admitted.

Kol reached for her hand, and she pulled back instinctively.

“Can I look?” Kol asked her.

Carefully, Ona moved her hand closer to him, and he picked it up, being sure not to apply any pressure. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it gently. When he returned her hand to her lap, she met his eyes.

“You should sleep now, Ona.” Kol said.

In response, Ona yawned.

Kol escorted her back to the fire and helped her get settled next to her brother. She moved close to Dom so she would not freeze and watched as Kol walked back to the edge of the clearing. She closed her eyes and fell into a dreamless sleep.