Prologue

Third Person's POV

April wanted it all to end.

She wanted the running to end.

She wanted the worry to end.

But most of all, she wanted her amnesia to end.

The only thing she remembered was her name and her companion's name, and that wasn't exactly helpful in the world she lived in.

Ace howled as he sprinted ahead of her. His inky black coat blended in with the dark charcoal colored forest. Within a few moments, he had completely disappeared. April was bone tired, maybe if she could stop for a second…

The beast roared behind her and every thought she had of resting flew out the window. April spun around and backpedaled. She peered into the eerie darkness behind her, trying to catch at least an outline of what was pursuing her.

No such luck.

She whipped out her bow and arrows and quickly knocked one. She had no idea where she was aiming, and she hated the idea of wasting an arrow, but she had no choice. April let it loose.

The arrow cut through the air and disappeared into the blackness. It kept flying for one, two, three seconds before April heard the distinctive roar of a wounded animal (if the monster could be qualified as an animal). The thundering footsteps stopped for a few moments as the monster wailed in pain.

She took this as an opportunity to try and catch up with Ace. April cursed under her breath. The moon wasn't even out tonight, which was a major bust. For some reason that she couldn't remember, she did better in moonlight. And she could've used a little moonlight to guide her way.

Truth was, April had no idea where she was going. She was only following her senses, and she hoped they were leading her in the right direction.

The earth shook as the monster continued its chase. April licked her dry lips and ran faster.

Water, her throat screamed. I need water.

She broke out of the dense forest and ran straight ahead. Her senses tingled slightly harder, telling her she was getting closer to her destination. April gripped her bow and haphazardly slung it over her shoulder, nearly decapitating herself in the process.

The monster finally caught up to her. April felt herself being slammed into a tree. A crack sounded in her sides and her eyesight blurred. Pain shot up her chest and blood pooled on her tongue. She cursed under her breath.

She had to get to water. She had to find a water source. April didn't know why, but she knew she had to get to water.

She tried to get up, but her knees were weak. As soon as she sat up black dots obscured her already dim vision. The beast was taking its sweet time getting to her.

It walked slowly, but deliberately. The thing reached out and grabbed her neck.

April grabbed at its meaty fists as she felt the air being crushed out of her throat. Her head pounded in her ears. The clearing seemed to be holding its breath. All the while the beast chuckled maliciously.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, she thought. April knew that her plan would most likely fail, but she dropped her hands to her sides and felt around her waist for a familiar feel of metal and leather. Her fingertips brushed along on something cold and she almost smiled.

April slowly unsheathed one of her daggers and stabbed the monsters hand. At the same time Ace wrapped his razor sharp teeth around its ankle.

The monster roared in pain and outrage as it kicked Ace into a tree and dropped April to the ground. A dull pain flared in her ankle, and she gasped for air. Ace whimpered and April desperately scrambled to her friend's aid.

His hind leg was bloody and hanging at an awkward angle. Tears stung April's eyes as she stroked his head. Ace's chest heaved. His azure blue eyes were filled with pain as he turned to look at her.

April was filled with fury as adrenaline pumped through her veins, turning her pain to outrage, dimming the throbs to barely noticeable itches.

She shakily stood and turned to face the monster. She knocked 3 arrows at once. The beast grinned a yellow toothed grin and started for her. April had no idea what it was, even though she had a feeling she should. The thing looked around to be 10 feet tall. All she saw was a single eye at the top of its head. A red eye.

She imagined that its face was a target, and its eye was the bulls eye. She let the arrows fly, and sure enough, they it their mark. The monster cried out and bent over, trying to rip out the pointy tipped sticks out of its eye without hurting itself.

Good luck with that, Felicia.

April stooped to pick up her friend and dashed to the north where her senses told her to go.

The monster made no attempt to follow her this time, thankfully.

April's adrenaline rush ended just as quickly as it started and she stumbled. Ace whimpered again and she pulled herself up, even though it was much harder.

Her ribs ached and throbbed from where she had been slammed into a tree and her ankle burst with new flames of pain every time her foot hit the ground. She set Ace down for a few seconds, it was too much.

Ace struggled to get up, but he couldn't. April caught her breath and blinked hard, trying to get the black spots out of her eyes. Ace licked her face as she limped north.

xxxXXXxxxXXXxxx

By the time April found what she was looking for, it was probably the middle of the night. But without the moon, it was hard for her to tell. She reached the base of a hill.

April looked up and saw a tall statue of a woman standing sentry next to a massive pine tree. The woman looked vaguely familiar, as if she was someone April should know; and dislike. Her arm was outstretched and an even smaller woman was standing in her palm.

A coil was wrapped around the pine, and every once in a while a puff of smoke would exit one of the ends.

April's senses were going crazy now, and she almost smiled if not for her pain. She took one step, and dropped Ace. The wolf cried out in pain and she cursed out loud.

Ace tumbled and fell against soft ground. April stooped and picked him up again. As soon as she straightened, her head swam and her ribs flared higher.

She did her best to ignore her pain. Ace whimpered and he breathed heavy and hard. April clutched him tighter to her chest. She slowly clambered up the hill.

When she finally reached the summit April was ready to pass out. Her head thumped in her ears ad her breaths were shallow. She fell to her knees and Ace whimpered once again. Her ribs throbbed harder.

There was a rustle in the pine leaves. A boy dropped down from the branches. April coughed up blood.

"Help," she croaked.

The boy knelt next to her. He had bright blue eyes and dark hair. A horn was tied to a string ad was hanging from his shoulder. He placed a hand on her forehead and gasped.

The last thing April remembered was the horn being sounded, and the ruckus of people as they rushed towards the scene. There was a man wearing a frayed jacket conversing with a tall blonde girl. They seemed worried and they would occasionally cast concerned glances at her.

But that all didn't matter to April much, as her eyes slid closed and the world faded into nothing.