Her Journey
Prologue
Once upon a time there lived a king. A fair and just king of men who cared for all creatures, big or small. He lived in a beautiful castle, surrounded by servants who loved him dearly. All was not well in the kingdom, though. This handsome king had a beautiful wife, who was ill, very ill. She was also pregnant with what was predicted to be an adorable baby girl, with brown hair like her mother, and grey eyes like her father. The queen was not thought to survive the pregnancy, but she did. When their darling little girl was born, all noise left the room.
This little girl could not have been the one prophesied by the soothsayer, for this girl had pitch black, raven hair the color of a starless night. Her eyes were what struck them though. They weren't grey like her fathers, or even blue like her mothers. In fact, they weren't one color at all. One was bright purple, while the other was green. Her mother, however, smiled at the child she had conceived, and held her just long enough, until the sickness had finally gotten to her heart, and she died soon after holding her child for the first time. The king was heart-broken, but loved his child more than anything else.
The soothsayer that had predicted what she looked like, however, had proclaimed that the girl was a child of darkness, born of deception and lies, said that she should be cast out into the wilderness where she would never harm any of their people. The king, thinking that it was absurd, dismissed her fears and worries, too blinded by his utter adoration for Raven, the name he had finally decided upon for his little girl. The soothsayer grew angry and demanded that this "bastard" of a child should be banished to the uncharted plains. This made the king furious, so he instead banished her to the forests just outside of the kingdom.
The soothsayer swore her revenge, promising that they would all be sorry. The warning was paid no heed by the king or his counsel, though some were wary. It was not until 3 days after that the princess disappeared. The king sent out search party after search party, convinced that he would find her. And, 12 days later there was news. The body of the soothsayer had been found. It was made apparent that she had taken the child, as she was found clutching Raven's sleeping cover. The soothsayer had died of fright, some say, no other traces of death could be found. The king kept searching for his daughter, day after day he searched until he was old and frail, his once blond hair turned gray.
He died peacefully in his sleep, exactly 42 years to the day that Raven had been taken. The kingdom was said to have fallen into ruin after his death. That was my father, king Angil. I am Raven, and this is my journey.