Olivia rolled over, shivering as she brought her arms around herself. It took her a moment to fully grasp that it was summer, and shouldn't be as cold as it was. She sat up quickly, a gasp flying from her mouth at her surroundings. She was surrounded by all manner of trees, shrubbery, and flora. The tree line broke above her, and sunlight cast down onto the ground she had been sleeping on, which was covered in snow.
Not again..she thought to herself, though was quite relieved to find she retained all of her memories. She brought herself to her feet, another shiver running through her. She looked up at the sky, holding her hand above her eyes to get a proper look. Squinting, Olivia came to realize she could barely even see the tops of the trees. She was definitely very deep in this wood, and very lost. She gulped, and took in a few deep breaths. Don't panic, someone has to be looking for me.
Olivia wrapped her arms back around herself, glanced around one last time, and decided the best idea would be to move in as straight of a line as she could. After an hour of walking, she quickly changed her mind. Her fingers were beginning to redden and burn, and a breeze had decided to settle in. She huffed, blowing out a plume of air.
Olivia stopped for a moment, staring ahead of herself, and then around. There wasn't a break as far as the eye could see. An unpleasant feeling of panicked butterflies fluttering in her stomach broke loose, and she decided then that it was probably going to be a good idea to find shelter. Wherever that may be.
Sooner or later, the sun was setting, and owls were hooting around her. She'd found no shelter at all, and none seemed to be in sight. Her nerves were jittering in her throat, ears pricking at the sound of twigs snapping and leaves crunching. She wrote it off as being animals scurrying across the forest floor. She wasn't the only one who would be walking the woods at night anyways.
Another thirty minutes later, snow began to fall around her, and each exhale of breath brought along that plume of smoky air. Her legs were shaking and struggling to take steps forward, and the pain from her toes and fingers almost made her wish she could rip them off. Still, she brought each shivering leg forward against the battering wind. She kept this pace for probably another five minutes, when the sound of snow crunching behind her rung heavily in her ears. She jumped out of her skin, and whipped around. There was no one. Olivia gulped.
"Little dove.." An eerily familiar voice whispered against the wind. Olivia screamed, turned back around and ran as fast as she could away from whatever was calling to her. For a minute, the voice was following her, growing louder and louder. Thudding footsteps gaining on her. Then suddenly, it all stopped. The snow, the wind, and her follower. Even the dust in the air halted it's slow descent. The air felt stiff, wherever she was, and just behind her she could still see the wind and snow continuing it's attack against the forest. A pair of eyes stared at her from behind the trees, unblinking, before they disappeared into the shadows. Olivia let out a breath. She was safe, for now at least.
Olivia turned back round and kept moving in the same direction. Not long ago, Olivia felt as if she'd have a panic attack if another noise fell onto her ears, now she wished it wasn't so quiet. It felt like a void, she couldn't hear her feet against the ground, or even her own breathing. It was as if it was outside of time itself.
The trees ahead of her were starting to disperse, and as she got closer she could see a short bridge and a tall wall. It had no gate, and was made of stone and wood. It didn't take long for Olivia to pass over the bridge, and under the wall. Beyond the wall was a city, or what remained of one. The houses were crumbling in on themselves, most of what was standing being only the wooden frame. Ahead of her, sat on a hill in the middle of the city, was a longhall. It wasn't as broken down as the other houses, but was covered in moss and flowers.
Olivia walked around the building until she'd ended up on the other side. A small gasp left her at the site before her. A white oak, half the size of a mountain, grew from the earth in front of her. Instead of the familiar hand print along the tree, swirling streaks of black climbed up to the branches. Near the bottom, there was something else that caught her eye, a woman. A bright light emitted from her, and she stood with her hand against the tree. She was chanting, and from where her hand was placed, the dark swirls were beginning to dissipate.
She didn't seem to be aware of Olivia's presence, her voice growing louder the further her light climbed the tree. Suddenly, wind began to blow around the tree and the girl, her hair picking up in the wind. The wind grew, passing over Olivia and across the entire city. Olivia was lifted into the air, her scream lost against the storm. A bright light shot out from the tree, blinding Olivia for the briefest of seconds, before it was gone. The woman stood with her hand still against the tree, her light gone, but the dark swirls still remaining.
"No..it can't..." She said weakly, dropping her hand and crumbling to the ground. Olivia followed suit, landing with a loud thud and a soft groan. "Olivia?"
Olivia glanced up at the woman, who stared at her in shock. Olivia blinked, and she was gone, along with the city, the forest, and everything around her. There was nothing but darkness. A familiar voice broke into the black,
"My lady? Please wake up..." Olivia opened her eyes, and was greeted by the tired eyes of Elena, an old man in a wizard hat dotted with stars, and the knight she'd met the night before.