It was midday and the sky was cloudy.
A little girl of 8 years old was seen crying out her eyes deep in a forest when suddenly she heard a noise and that prompted her to stop crying and look behind her from where the noise came out from. She gasps when she saw a little boy with white haired dreadlocks that was packed in a ponytail, he wasn't that white skin like hers nor dark skin like her personal servant, he was in between and it suited him, oh by the gods, he looked like one of gods that descended to meet her. He looked around her age and he was smiling down at her. He stood where he was and didn't make a move to come any closer.
"Who are you?" The little girl asked, looking around her once again. She could defend herself when it comes down to anything.
"My name is Tharros and you are?" he asked softly, his voice sounded heavenly and she wanted to hear it again.
"Nyxoria." she replied almost quickly and that earned a big smile that lit up the face of the little boy.
"Sorry, I heard your cry and decided to check who is crying."
The little girl smiled a little, cleaning off the tears from her eyes. "I hope you don't mind me saying this, but you are very handsome." There, she said it. It was as if he was created on a very special day.
Tharros grinned. "I disagree with you, you are the one that is so pretty, so beautiful. Your scent is the most alluring thing I have ever scented, and I followed it and found my pretty crying baby."
"Don't call me that." Nyxoria cheeks were the color of red tomatoes.
"I will, and when I grow up I am going to marry you so that I will be staring at my beautiful most prized possession, you."
Nyxoria was smiling huge and didn't fail to show her creamy white teeth.
"See, you look even more beautiful with your smile. I'm glad I made you laugh, those tears don't suit you Nyxoria," Tharros said, going closer to her now. "So why are you here, crying?"
Nyxoria's face changed into a big frown. "I broke my father's favorite sword by mistake and now he is angry at me and shouted at me for the first time in my life."
"I'm sorry he shouted at you," Tharros said. "If not that he is your father I would have paid him a visit and warned him not to shout at you again, your pretty face doesn't need that."
"Thank you Tharros but why are you here? I mean what are you doing inside this forest?"
"I came to meet my friends, then I heard you crying. Do you want to meet them?" He asked his question eagerly and Nyxoria nodded her head. "Should I call you Ria for short?"
"Yes, as long as I can call you Arros."
"It's a deal," Tharros said, leading the way to his friends and Nyxoria followed suit. "So what's your parents name?" He asked, trying to make small talk.
"My father's name is Laka and my mother Lynn's."
Tharros looked at her once again with his eyes narrowed. "Please don't tell me you are the daughter of the High King, Princess Nyxoria?"
"It isn't my fault my name doesn't ring a bell to you, but to your question, yes. The only princess of the Elyria Kingdom." Nyxoria smiled watching the surprise look on the handsome young boy's face and she loved it.
"No way, where are your guards?" They reached a big old tree and Tharros removed some branches and a path was seen that the tree was blocking so right at the middle of the tree was an entrance made that Tharros had hidden with the branches. They both entered and crawled to the back of the tree, dusted their knees and continued walking.
"I didn't come with them and yes, I can defend myself. My mother said when I was coming out to this world the first thing I could grab was a sword, my father's sword, and that was the one I had accidentally broken. He is fond of that sword." Nyxoria was sad for a bit and then smiled once again. "So who are you?"
Tharros opened his mouth to answer her but they had arrived at a small village. "We are here."
Nyxoria stopped moving as she stared at the small huts made out of weathered woods, but that wasn't what stopped her, instead it was the people emerging out of huts to meet them. She knew them, her father had often described them, but they are very, very rare to find, a myth and seeing that they are living deeper in the forest she normally comes to, baffle her. They are the top five most dangerous creatures to exist.
"Get behind me Tharros, these evil creatures are here."
Furrowing his eyebrows as he stared at Nyxoria in confusion.
"What evil creature are you talking about?"
"The NIGHTWEAVERS." Right now she wished she had a sword.
"Them? They are my friends and they don't hurt anyone that doesn't hurt them. They are one of my people, in fact my mothers origin started with them."
"They won't hurt me?" Nyxoria asked in surprise.
"They won't hurt you, they are good, the kindest."
"Really? But they are one of the rare creatures, I even thought my father was making them up. I wonder why you showed them to me."
"You are the only one that knows of their existence and where they live now, which means you are special to me Ria."
Nyxoria looked at the Nightweavers that had surrounded them, the sky was the darkest here and why won't it be when the Nightweavers made it so.
The Nightweavers are always shrouded in a faint, rippling veil of darkness, as if the shadows themselves cling to them. Their eyes glow faintly, often in hues of crimson, like dim embers in the dark. Their bodies bear marks of their dark power—veins that seem to pulse with shadow, claw-like fingers, or hair that moves as if stirred by an invisible wind. They wear robes or cloaks that appear to be woven from strands of night itself, shifting and blending into the darkness around them. And now it seems Tharros is telling her how good they are and luckily for her wolf genes she could clearly see them in the darkness that surrounds them.
"Hello." Nyxoria waved at them but none of them made any move to wave back, all their attention was on Tharros.
"They are not pleased with me bringing you here but I have assured them that you meant no harm. I am marrying you when we grow older, I have told them that and I mean it, Ria."
"Thank you Arros," Nyxoria said and looked up at the sky. "I would really love to go now before my father searches for me."
"Okay, let me take you back to the place where I saw you," Tharros said and stretched one of his hands towards her. "Give me your hands."
Nyxoria did without a delay and as she turned and told the Nightweaver's bye, before she suddenly saw she was at the place Tharros had met her crying.
"How did you do that, Arros? Who are you?" And why didn't he do that when he was taking her to meet his friends? She thought to herself.
Tharros shrugged a bit. "I will tell you who I am tomorrow, everything you need to know about me, that is if you will come to this place tomorrow."
Nyxoria nodded her head. "I will come here tomorrow then."
"Promise?"
"I promise Arros."
Arros smiled. "See you tomorrow, my future bride."
And right before Nyxoria eyes, he began transforming into a Nightweaver and then was gone.
Nyxoria blinked multiple times before running back home. The sun was down but Nyxoria wasn't scared as she ran home.
★★★★★★
Elyria Kingdom:
Nyxoria Chamber:
"Where were you sweetheart?" KIng Laka demanded as he barged inside his daughter inner chamber, followed closely by his wife Lynn.
"I went to the forest." Nyxoria answered, she was seated on her bed, watching the stars from her window. The oil lamps and candles in her room showed the rich stone walls, the scent of beeswax and lavender lingers. A large arched window opens to a view of the castle gardens.
"I have told you not to go out alone whenever we have our little fight."
"I broke your favorite sword father and you shouted at me."
"I know but It was your favorite too and this is my second favorite sword," Laka said, showing off the sword with him and his wife hitting him on his head. "And I am sorry for shouting at you, I should have remembered mistakes happened and you are eight." He added, staring at Lynn as she smiles at him.
"I'm sorry father, I will be more careful next time."
Laka nodded his head. "Go to sleep my beautiful one, I have to meet the young emperor tomorrow to give him reports the other kingdoms had given me. May the moon always guide you my dear child, sleep well." King Laka leaned down to kiss Nyxoria and Lynn did the same too.
"I met a new friend in the forest." Nyxoria told them as they turned to leave her chamber.
"Who is your friend?" Laka asked in curiosity as he turned to face his daughter once again.
"He is handsome and like my age too."
"Oh, so you met a man?" Laka asked.
"He is not as tall as you, father, he is like my height, you heard when I said he was my age, right?"
King Laka chuckled. One thing he has taught his daughter was to never be scared of anything and to always speak her mind.
"I heard you the first time, child, who is he? Is he a werewolf like us?"
"I don't know yet father, but he promised to tell me who he is tomorrow and he showed me the Nightweavers."
"The night what?"
"The stories you told me most times, the ones you told are myths, that one, they are very real, father."
Lynn placed a hand to her mouth as it opened in shock and Laka wasn't far from expressing his wife's expression.
"And I am going to meet them tomorrow."
That seems to have snapped King Laka from his shock state.
"You are not going anywhere Nyxoria, those evil creatures are just evil, they are going to feed your soul and torment you with their darkness. They are worse than the devil."
"I was told that they are good, my new friend told me that."
"He lied, he lied hard." King Laka said.
"But father, I saw them and they did not harm me and you are seeing me right? I'm not a ghost."
"They are deceiving you, that friend of yours wants to kill you. He will trap you first with his lies."
"Whatever you say father, that won't stop me from seeing him."
"That's my order as your King and as your father."
"I am my own person, you don't have to order me." Nyxoria said getting down from her bed and facing her father.
There was one thing Laka and his daughter had in common and that's their anger.
"From now henceforth you will not leave your chamber."
"Father I just met him, if you see him, you will like him. It's like we made a connection."
"Yes, that connection you are failing to see is death and I won't have my only daughter and child, the heir apparent to my throne to joke with her life because of a silly crush. You won't step out of the chamber."
"It's okay, sun, let's discuss this tomorrow. " Lynn tried to chirp in but both father and daughter ignored her as they both glared at each other.
"I promise him and I won't go back on my words, you always told me to keep to my promise and now that I want to keep to my words you are angry?"
King Laka raise up his hand and slapped Nyxoria and that was when everything became blank and black to her and when she finally opened her eyes seconds…minutes… or hours later, she saw blood on the floor and glancing to where it coming from she gave a primal screamed that nearly shook the very foundation of the castle because staring at her were the headless bodies and heads of her parents and her father's second favourite sword was in her hands.
She had killed her parents and the worst part, the worst part of it all, she doesn't remember what they were arguing about.