Amara took a deep breath as she pulled the bowstring back. "I'm sorry..." she said sadly as she released the arrow and watched it impale her target-- A small deer. She winced as she watched the blood drip out of the wound while the poor creature fall over. Why did the elders have to put her on hunting duty for the day? They knew she hated killing living creatures. In fact, she wouldn’t even touch animal meat during meals! Yet somehow, here she was in the overly green forest known as Inifer.
Sighing, she stepped forward to claim her prize…
And tripped over a vine. Oh no…
Green tendrils shot out and quickly began to wrap around her leg. Another appeared and began to move towards the pendant hanging around Amara’s neck. Oh no you don’t! Amara frantically reached for the silver knife attached to her leather belt. Once in her grasp she quickly sliced through monstrous vine and leapt to her feet. She didn’t dare to look back as she ran along the path the led to her village.
Precariously dodging other vines, she eventually reached the Lorvale village clearing. Amara stopped running and bent over to catch her breath. Guess there won’t be food for anyone tonight. She sighed and looked up to see her little sister running towards her.
“Any luck, sis?”
Amara shook her head miserably. “I killed a deer, but I was attacked by a vine monster and had to leave it behind. Sorry, Luci.”
The sparkle in Luci’s eyes faded as smiled slightly. “It’s alright. I don’t even care for deer meat that much.”
But the sad truth was that the village needed food. There had been a shortage ever since Lorvale was attacked by one of the desert villages a few months ago. Since then, the villagers were required to go hunting almost every day. The game in the forest was scarce though, due to the roaming monsters.
After a long pause, Luci said, “Oh! By the way… The Elders want to see you in their hut.”
Amara raised an eyebrow. “What do they want to see me for?’
The younger sister shrugged as she began to skip away. “Not sure! Guess you should go find out.”
Sighing, Amara combed through her long raven hair with her fingers and brushed the dirt off of her dress as she walked through the village. She nodded and smiled at some of the villagers, but didn’t pay much attention to their replies. It was strange. The elders never called upon anyone unless they were in trouble or being sent on a journey. Surely Amara couldn’t--
She halted in front of the large wooden and grass hut that belonged to the Lorvale Elder Council. Taking a deep breath, she moved the plank of wood that acted as a doorway and stepped inside.
There were four elders. Two women, and two men. Each of them had white hair spotted with black. They had wrinkled skin and wore earth-colored robes with golden trim which signified their authority.
Curtsying to the small group of people in front of her, Amara gathered up her courage and asked, “You summoned me?”
One of the men elders nodded and smiled through squinty eyes. “Indeed we have.”
An awkward pause.
“Um… What for?”
One of the women sighed. “Oh don’t mind him. He thinks adding suspense is entertaining.” She stood up and faced Amara. “The council has chosen you to go on a trading expedition to Veyon.”
“But… That’s in the Devaneir Mountains! We’re at war. I can’t just go walking into enemy territory!” Amara exclaimed.
The other man stood. “We are well aware of this. That is why you will be disguised. You can use magic, correct?”
Amara frowned. “Yes, but…”
“You leave in the morning.”
---
lmao It doesn't look like I wrote a whole lot even though this was almost 2 pages on WP. xD;
