Deep in the forest, under a leaden sky that presaged the coming of twilight, the dirt paths between the towering trees were crisscrossed by a caravan of trucks. Mercenaries on foot, armed to the teeth with assault rifles, mingled in the shadows of the trees, wrapped in the skins of beasts as if they were part of the hostile nature that surrounded them. They were outposts of invading forces, looters of industrial and mining plants.
At the rear of the line of vehicles, an armed group rode in one of the trucks. Sitting on benches in two rows, a singular figure stood out among them: a young hooded woman, wrapped in a red cloak, with a sturdy suitcase on the ground at her feet. At her side, as her chief escort and lieutenant of the group, stood an athletic woman, wrapped in a cloak as green as the freshest leaf in the forest, her breastplate glittering with emerald gems that flickered with mysterious energy, intertwined by vein-like lines and circuit-like engravings apparently of a magical nature. Both shared a single feature: a ruby pendant hidden within their clothing.
The green-cloaked woman's face was pale and delicate, like that of a porcelain doll, but her features possessed a hardness that could not be ignored. Her pointed ears, proudly uncovered in short mint green hair, revealed a nature other than human. A patch covered one of her eyes, while the other, a deep purple color, emitted an icy, defiant stare at the capped figure, her arms folded in a gesture of bitterness.
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All the mercenaries watched her with reverential respect, bowing their heads in her presence. To them, this woman in green was more than a leader: she was a deity on earth, an image of worship before which they could not help but surrender. In contrast, the hooded figure was avoided, kept at a distance as if she were an unwanted shadow in that sanctuary of power and respect.
“I think I need to go to the bathroom, Risha?” said the hood in a gruff voice as she tilted her head over her shoulder.
“Your father has asked me to take care of you at all times, princess,” replied the green woman with an icy face. We will soon arrive at the citadel. To go out in the middle of the night into the woods is dangerous, who knows what horror may lurk there. War not only brings death... it also...
“I know! I just need a minute alone, and I prefer to be called Liliana,” the young woman insisted. My father's caravan should not be far away.
“I could accompany you... We are both girls and...”
“And I must take off my gloves, you know exactly my reasons”. He interrupted her by raising his hand. Such a sentence disturbed all the well-armed battle-hardened men, many withheld a groan and leaned back as far away from the princess as possible.
“Waited”. Liliana growled with contempt.
“Good, but be careful....” concluded Risha as she raised her hand to slow them down, and warned part of the group to take a break.
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The coldness of the escort sent a shiver down Liliana's spine. Unable to stand it a second longer, she sped away, without looking back, jumping out of the back of the vehicle. She couldn't face Risha's face any longer, and she felt his gaze glued to her as she lost herself in the tree lines. In her escort's eyes, Liliana discerned a death wish directed at her, a deep hatred that Risha would not, however, dare to carry out, held back by Liliana's status and title.
In the silent vastness of the fields Liliana wandered like a specter without a destination, dragging with her the weight of her loneliness; Her wandering steps led her to the imposing presence of an ancient oak, whose twisted branches seemed to whisper forgotten secrets. With a determined gesture she dropped her suitcase to the ground and lay down on the grass, under the protective shade of the ancient tree.
A sigh escaped her lips, releasing the tension accumulated by the constant scrutiny of the soldiers, whose looks of contempt tormented her. She longed for that moment of serenity to last indefinitely; but, the harsh reality forced her to return. Taking advantage of the few moments of calm, she opened her suitcase and took out a flask, ready to collect the herbs that grew in the surroundings for her medicinal experiments.
That gathering ritual, her favorite pastime, was her only source of solace in the midst of a world that rejected her.
With expert hands, she selected each herb with reverence, as if each one held the secret of her redemption. In those moments of communion with nature, Liliana found refuge in knowledge, in the certainty that, although the world repudiated her, the plants did not judge her dark existence.
Far from that caravan where she could hear the whispers of the bodyguards who followed her according to her parents “to protect their backs”, some of the hurtful comments to which she sadly seemed to be more than accustomed echoed in her mind: “Is she the one they call the monster princess, a defective mutant? “ “Be careful, she could be dangerous if she unleashes her power!”, “How could two such magnanimous beings as our lords, conceive such an aberration?” “Poor creature, she would be better off dead!”.
The young woman's gloved hands trembled, and she ended up slipping the flask with herbs, which she was collecting. A mixture of anger and frustration nestled in her chest.
“I wish they would tear out the tongues of every one of you bastards!” he sputtered, holding back a shriek, as he placed his hands over his anguished heart, as if to contain it in his gut.
Suddenly, a strange sensation took hold of her being, a shudder that ascended her back and made her turn toward the thicket of tall grass. At first, fear gripped her spirit as she felt invaded by an invisible, seductive force that called to her with the same attraction that a lover exerts. It was not words that she perceived, but an inexplicable attraction that plunged her into the darkness of the unknown, promising her an ephemeral pleasure that seemed capable of solving all her problems, both physical and mental. This desire fed her incessant hunger for knowledge, yearning to break free from the chains of a monotonous life, plagued by looks of contempt and confinement.
Despite the internal cries urging her to retreat and flee back towards the caravans, in search of her parents, Liliana found herself moving forward through the tall grass, as if her body were moving of its own volition. She didn't know what could be worse than remaining surrounded by false protectors. Pushing aside the bushes with trembling hands, she entered a damp spot, where she spotted a dark swamp surrounded by rustling reeds and barely illuminated by the dying light of day.
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