The Arrival
Sorry if my English is not up to standard, but please just enjoy the content. I know I'm not good at this.
Disclaimer: So I don't own ROChapter 1: A New Beginning (The Typical First Chapter)
My name is Rena. I used to live in the Town of Prontera. Well, in the Orphanage of Prontera to be exact… I don't have parents. All Sister Mari knew was that she found me on the roadside as a dying baby. Wrapped in ragged cloth, I was carried back to the Orphanage. On my clothing there was a note, "The baby's father was killed just after he married the baby's mother, and the mother was killed while the baby was still in her womb. The baby is fated to live, please take care of her, whoever the finder. Thank you. PS: Her name is Rena." Nothing was mentioned about my surname, so I didn't have one. How my parents died, no one knew. It was a miracle that I survived, Sister Mari said, although she didn't know what exactly happened. Sister Mari always told me not to think too much about them, but I couldn't help thinking who would be so cruel to kill a pregnant woman…
Sister Mari was a kind person. She's really old, but she's also pretty energetic and was often seen running about in the Orphanage doing chores. She's very close to me and often talked to me when I'm feeling down. She's not the only one in charge though. There was Father Thomas and Sister Teal. I didn't really like them, and they didn't really like me. They were always asking me to scrub the toilet and stuff, but I guess I have to live with it. The other kids here often bullied me too, but Sister Mari was always there to help. I didn't know how I could even live here without her. I would have run away a long time ago.
One fine summer morning, when I was 15, I went out for shopping (Orders from Father Thomas). When I came back with the groceries, Sister Mari was suddenly announced to be dead. At first, I couldn't believe it, for it was too sudden, so I went to check, hoping that it was a joke. Sister Mari's room was dark and shadowy that day. There on her bed, laid a corpse. It was Sister Mari's face, pale and white with fear. She was said to have died of old age, as expected by many. However, looking at her face closely, it did not at all look like a natural death. I had always considered myself to be very smart and observant, and so I noticed something very strange. Although there was no sign of struggle, Sister Mari had changed clothes since this morning, that's unusual… Also, before she died of old age, she would probably have to stay in bed for a long time, and she was still bouncing around the Orphanage just yesterday. She must have being… killed?
I felt a lump of heaviness on my heart, but I did not dare to think more about her death. In fact, Sister Mari had once talked to me about this.
"If I am ever to die one day, promise me you will be strong and live on okay?"
"Sister… please don't talk about such things…"
"Oh, I'm sorry, but just remember that, okay?"
Sister Mari's funeral was scheduled for the following Thursday. It was a rainy evening. As I passed by her grave, a lump of soil in the garden, tears rolled out of my eyes. Memories of her came flashing back in my mind…
"Rena, no matter what, I will protect you okay?"
"Rena, here's your birthday present… you never had one, did you?"
"Rena, want to go out and play?"
It was sad thinking about Sister Mari, but I turned up for the funeral, trying not to cry. Father Thomas and Sister Teal were not there. I did not stay for long during the funeral and ran back to the Orphanage as soon as it ended.
I sprinted into the first toilet I see and closed the door. There I sat on the floor, crying out really loud this time. It took quite a while to stop, when my eyes were tired and dry. I heard two voices talking to each other the moment I fell silent. It sounded like it came from a floor above. It was clearly Father Thomas and Sister Teal's voices.
"So they buried her without checking for wounds? How naive."
"Yes indeed, nobody will ever find out that we killed Mari. Now we can finally get rid of the annoying little kids here! Starting from that disobedient child Rena! We can turn the Orphanage into a Brothel!"
"No, I got a better idea Teal! We will keep some of them here, and rent the rest to the Slave Market. When they grow up, they might be able to work for our Brothel!"
"Free labor, eh? You nasty thing… snicker, that's why I like you…"
"Let's go somewhere to celebrate the success…"
The two people upstairs moved away from the room above, and the voices wandered off into the distance. I was scared, of course, working for these two people who killed one so close to me. And so I decided to leave the orphanage and run away into the big world outside. I read about it in books, the green fields, the tall mountains, the vast seas, and the cute little creatures that roam freely in these lands. I just had to see this wonderland one day.
That night, when Thomas and Teal went out for some business of theirs', I made the preparations to leave. I don't have much, just a summer dress, a skirt, a fitting T-shirt, a summer hat, and some undergarments. It wasn't enough though so I stole quite a sum of zeny, a butter knife, a tinderbox and other necessities from the storeroom.
The Orphanage is never guarded or anything so it's pretty easy to escape, not like anyone would want to. But once in a while, someone like me would want to get out of that hell. It was very late when I left the old building. The road had little travelers and the night was cold, but the prospect of leaving the Orphanage kept me in high spirits. I wanted to travel so far away that nobody in the Orphanage would ever be able to find me, and only after that will I really plan on my adventure. West was where I decided to travel.
After passing by many of the brick houses in Prontera, I reached the west gate. It was a gigantic arch made of stone with a metal gate that can be lowered and raised on the inside of the arch. It was the first time I've seen these majestic gates.
The moment I left Prontera, I felt a very heavy burden leave my heart. A new me was born. I was now an adventurer; free to do anything my heart pleases. I ran around the dark green fields for a while, breathing in the cool night air, enjoying the freedom that I never felt before.
Prontera field was a mildly dense forest, with a few cute Porings, Fabres and Lunatics around. It was safe, for these monsters were harmless. I started camp under a tree after traveling for a few miles in the fields. A few sticks and the tinderbox I brought did the trick. I did not eat that night; those creatures were just too cute to eat. And so, I snuggled into the grass-bed. Although it was not as soft as the Orphanage beds, it was a thousand times more comfortable!
Writer's Comments: Sorry for lack of RO content, hope you don't mind.