The Beginning of the End

The forest, a dark mass, loomed ahead. Gabriella Tuiren, better known as Darksaint of the Abyss Legion, sworn enemy to the Order of Halo and all who are good, sat atop her horse of black and challenged the shadows in their haven of darkness. This was the very same forest that she had heard so many tales about; this was the "Forest of the Damned" as so many had eloquently called it. This was where she had to pass but she felt no fear. Actually, her soul longed for the forest and it's many mysteries.

She gracefully jumped off her horse and gave it a hard slap on the rear. The horse threw its head vengefully into the air and galloped madly out of sight. Gabriella grinned at the baneful forest before her. The filtered light from the cloudy sky above shone dully on her sinister body. Her hair, darker than the shadows themselves, flowed mid-way down her back. Her dark eyes seemed to absorb all light and replace it with darkness. Her perfectly shaped face gave her the look of an angel, or a saint, but her wicked smile told of what truly lay there.

Her black laced up boots made soft imprints into the delicate grass. Her form fitting black trousers and matching bodice and blouse silhouetted her against the bright greenery of the rolling hills. Her cloak of midnight black billowed around her as the wind teased with it. She looked at the trail of smoke in satisfaction. The smoke was what was left of a village that had been loyal to the Order of Halo. It is the first of many that will fall. Gabriella had been given orders by the high council for its destruction as well as the destruction of many others. The priests of her old home, Toma, had called her the devil's child. They might not have been far off the mark. Her sole purpose was destruction and darkness and she would accomplish it, at any cost.

Someone had challenged her, and it was that someone that had led her to the edge of this demented forest. He was a nameless man clad in dusty robes and he posed a threat to the Abyss Legion. He had tried to stop her and he had almost succeeded, except for the fact that she knew the dark arts, and nothing, not even the most powerful light, could stop the dark arts. She was now hunting that man. He was the only one that could possibly stop the Abyss Legion. She could not stand for that; no one would stop her. So now she was going to track him down and then kill him. With his death, darkness shall prevail without intervention.

And so, with those reassuring thoughts, Gabriella stepped forward, across the barrier between light and darkness. The cool dankness of the forest enveloped her instantly in greeting. The forest felt as an old friend and an ally. She knew the forest would be of good help, but she also knew that it harbored vagabonds who were foolish enough to cross her. She only hoped, for their sake, that they would be smart enough to run.

She bent down to one knee and studied the ground. She could barely see the footprint pressed into the damp, moss eaten ground, but still, it was there. The man had been here, and by the looks of it, he had headed towards the heart of the forest. She rubbed the soft mud between her narrow fingers slowly. It was not long ago that he had passed here, maybe an hour or so. She stood to her feet and peered closely at the trees. They were dark, almost equal to the shadows; the roots were gnarled and overlapping one another as if in a struggle for superiority. Those were odd patterns for trees; but then again, this wasn't an ordinary forest.

She looked around in curiosity and sniffed at the air. The scent of the man lingered in the air like distant decay. He was somewhere upwind. With narrowed eyes, she headed off in that direction. She was determined to catch him. Her footsteps were steadily taking her further and further into the forest, and as the light began to quickly fade due to the dense vegetation and the presence of evil, she welcomed it with open arms to accompany her on her journey.

A sudden presence neared her. She could not tell what it was but she knew that it was not of the forest. A twig snapped dryly behind her and with quick heels she spun around with her hand on the polished silver hilt of her sword.

"What's a fair maiden such as yourself doen' in a dangerous place such as this?" A man said with the look about him of a rough pirate ridiculously out of place. A red bandana was tied over his head with a shock of red hair flowing down from it. His garments were an assortment of things, which included a red sash, tattered gray pants, and a patched, off-white shirt that was opened in the front. Yellowed teeth laughed under pale blue eyes and a gold, tarnished hoop jingled from his left ear.

"Move and let me pass, and I might let you live." Gabriella said in a low voice. She was in no mood to be delayed any further.

"Move out of the way, she says. No respect for anyone. Let's teach her some, shall we." The pirate said to himself as if he was offended by her words.

With any further thought, the pirate lunged at her, gritty hands outstretched, but he was quickly rewarded with a sharp punch to his jaw.

"That was my jaw you little raven's eye wench! You'll pay for that one!" He said enraged. A bruise was already appearing where Gabriella had struck him.

She deftly unsheathed her sword and pointed it at the man's throat. He backed away clumsily against a tree.

"I didn't mean you no 'arm, honest." He pleaded, with a fake look of sincerity plastered onto his face.

She pressed her sword against his throat drawing a ruby of blood.

"Please missus. There be monsters in these woods. I know the way 'round, let me live and I'll be yer guide."

She stared coldly into his eyes. Her gaze could have frozen fire. The pirate exhaled deeply in relief as Gabriella sheathed her sword and turned away from him.

"Thank ye—"

With the grace of a gypsy, she spun around and sliced his throat in mid sentence with a small, jeweled dagger. His eyes stared lifelessly up at her as he fell.

"I didn't want to dirty up a good sword on a scalawag like you."

She neatly cleaned her dagger off on the front of his shirt and put it away beneath her cloak. She stared menacingly at him without feeling. With a click of her heels she turned around and continued on her way without another thought of the pirate.

She walked into a small clearing of about ten paces wide and twelve paces long. It wasn't much but it would suffice as a resting-place. The evil that surrounded the place was as thick as pea soup there but she couldn't help but like it. It was the same evil that rested in her soul. The priests had said they feared her for her darkness, and that is why she had killed them. The weak would be the first to die, and fear was a weakness. She felt no pity for them. Darkness would reign and she would be at the head of it.

The wind whispered through the lifeless trees like the whispers of an old man. The sound was familiar and yet foreign at the same time. It was the sound of death, yet the tune was different. Lights began to shimmer in the boughs of the trees. The lights began to congeal until they were forms. The forms floated down from their lofty perches and towards her. Their shape was undeniably a human one, and yet their density wasn't. They were glowing, translucent forms, with stormy eyes and outstretched arms. They had circled around her on all sides leaving her trapped. With a quick count, Gabriella concluded that there had to be over a dozen of them.

"What do you want of me?" She commanded in a strong voice.

"You have trespassed into these woods. Your life shall pay the forfeit!" They moaned in unison.

"That's where you are mistaken, my friends. You, and everything else that crawls in these woods shall bow down to me. The Abyss Legion shall rule all, and I shall be at the head of it. You are nothing more than beetles beneath my feet."

She revealed her sword slowly from its hiding place and began whispering a chant that had been long banned from the world as being "Dark Magic."

Her sword became lit with an unearthly blue flame. A power surged through her that was strong enough to fling five men to the ground but she held her footing. Her eyes widened and with all her might she threw the blade of the burning sword into the ground all the way to the hilt. The ground began to quake and rumbled as the ghosts sank to their knees, moaning in fear. A sharp wind blew up from the very ground, lifting her hair up into a dark halo above her head. Her silver raven's pendent glowed and its ruby eyes enlarged to small glowing spheres. Her chants became louder until she was screaming it. She was now on her knees with her hands flung towards the sky. A burst of light exploded from her pendant and all became quiet. She panted softly and got to her feet while pulling the sword out of the ground. It gleamed solemnly and not a speck of dirt lingered on it. She sheathed it skillfully and pushed her hair out of her face.

"You are the prophesied one. One of the dark ones that was foretold to come and reign darkness on all." The leader of the troupe of ghosts said in reverence.

"Aye, I am she." She said with a sinister grin. She had known this ever since the day she had been born. Seventeen years ago a dark man on a horse had stolen her from her family and taken her to a monastery and left her with the raven's pendant. It was then when she found out what her destiny would be.

All of the phantoms bowed at her feet.

Her eyes radiated with a dark light. "Good, now, an enemy of mine passed through these woods recently. Where is he?"

To be continued...