Nightcrawler
Prologue
"Move faster!" a low, female voice hissed, hands pushing her into the black void of the courtyard. In the dark, the small girl could not make out anything. Only faint swirls of fog dusted around her as if to whisk her away. How desperately she wished it to be so. Suddenly, long, slim fingers carved into her shoulders like daggers.
"Daft girl, move it I said!" The girl felt a hand grabbing her arm. The sheer force of the pull almost made her stumble. "I want my mother", she began to sob, still disoriented after being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night. In the dark, the woman's sneer was not visible but the child did not have to see her face to feel her scorn.
"Idiot girl, she is long gone .", the voice taunted, making her feel sick to her stomach.
She could feel he hard cobblestone piercing through her slippered feet. Cold, wet rain drenched her light nightshift, making it cling to her body like a seconds skin. Yet she did not feel any of it. The feeling of panic expanded in her chest, making her choke. "No, I've seen her. She was well, she, she was sleeping."
The woman did not pause, just hurried on in an unnatural pace.
"She died this afternoon. No more questions."
The small girl cried, raindrops mixing with her hot tears. In her panicked state, she tried to get away from the woman's iron grip. She wanted to see her mother, to check if she was still sleeping. How dare that woman tell her otherwise.
"Please, no. I want to see Naneth. Let me go, I want to see her, I-"
The sound of a slap disrupted the nightly silence. Her head lolled around, the sheer force of the assault pushing out any air left in her lungs. She could not cry, nor could she scream - panic crawled its way back into her throat.
"You insolent runt! I hope they'll teach you some manners. Were you my child, you would not see the light of another day!"
A faint squeak escaped the girl's mouth, too shocked to cry she let herself be dragged by the woman.
Shortly, they arrived at the iron gate which was about to be pulled upwards. A man's sombre voice sounded in her ear. "Is that the girl?"
"Yes, you are to ride to Pelargrir. There is a ship leaving for Minas Tirith. Do not delay."
A low grunt sounded, indicating that the man had understood his orders. "How long until they'll follow?"
The woman carelessly picked up the shivering girl as if she was nothing more than a sack of grain and pushed her onto a horse.
"You don't have much time. Make haste."
And with that, the rider mounted his steed and steered him towards the open gate. The child tried to climb down but the man held her in an iron grip.
The sounds of piercing thunder drowned her screams.
"NANETH!"