Prologue- A Murder

"Mommy! Mommy!"

A child of about six ran through the pinewoods, searching frantically for her mother. Her hair was long, and white, with black bangs framing her face. She wore a kendogi, and a short sword was tucked into her left side. Her purple eyes scanned the pine trees again, and she opened her mouth to call again.

"Mommy! Where are you?"

Suddenly, the girl stopped. She could smell blood. Feeling the fear rise up and try to choke her, she ran on until she reached a little clearing. There, on the ground, was her beloved mother, her sword out and stained with blood. She moved her head a little, to look at her daughter whom she had loved so much.

"Mommy!" the girl screamed, running towards her mother. Heedless of the blood, she tried to lift her mother. "Mommy! Mommy, you're hurt! Mommy-" The woman had put a finger on the girl's lips.

"Shhh. It's alright. Don't cry, honey. There's nothing you can do."

"But Mommy…" Tears were splashing down the girl's face.

"Don't worry. There are people who will take care of you until you are old enough to care for yourself. It's going to be fine. I won't die with any bitterness. The one who killed me was little older than you, I cannot hate him for that. That poor child has been through so much pain and will go through so much more. Silrini, I don't want to you to-" She broke off, coughing blood. Amethyst eyes slowly dimming, she spoke her last words.

"Hate…him…"

Her eyes went out, frozen in the blank stare of death.

"Mommy? Mommy?" Silrini asked, hoping against hope that her mother would respond.

However, her mother gave no such response. And Silrini, who was no stranger to death, knew then that her mother had passed on.

Slowly lowering her mother, Silrini stared in grief at her mothers' beautiful face, her tears unstoppable. Then she sobbed and wailed.

For a long time she was unable to comfort herself, but finally her tears ran dry and her screams were silenced.

"Mommy…" she said once again, hidden behind her hands. She lifted her head noticed something odd. Her mother's beautiful sheath was on the right side.

"But…you're not left-handed…Why is your sheath…?" She stared in confusion at the elegant sheath. Finally, she removed the sheath from her mother's body. Taking the sword too, she wiped it clean carefully on a cloth she always carried with her for that purpose. Sheathing the sword, she looked again at her mother. She noticed again that her mother's hand held something clenched tight. Sitting down, she pried at her mothers' hand until she could grab the round object inside.

It was a necklace, with red cord fluttering broken from it. On the necklace was the most beautiful jewel Silrini had ever seen. It was clear, but for some reason it sparkled with a bluish light. It wasn't her mothers'.

"Whose is it?" Silrini wondered. It was possible that it belonged to the murderer. She was not at all perturbed that a male attacker might have had a necklace. Stranger things had happened to the little girl.

She was suddenly filled with a desire for revenge. Losing something precious like this would mean the attacker would most certainly come back to find it. She would just hide in the trees until he came by. It sounded like a good plan to her in her heartbroken grief, not even considering that someone who killed her mother would and could kill her without a second thought.

And she was right. Only half an hour had passed before she felt someone approaching. She readied her short sword.

Soon she saw a boy, only about eight. She couldn't believe it. He couldn't have killed her mother…could he? She herself was only six, and could take out a high C class demon.

"Dammit! Where is it? I must have dropped it somewhere…" the boy was looking all around, until he noticed something.

"Wait. Where's her sword?…Dammit! Someone must have come by and taken it!" The boy acted very tough, but something in his bright eyes told Silrini he was close to tears.

"Dammit!" he swore, punching the ground. Silrini felt bad for him, and her desire for revenge evaporated.

After about 10 more minutes fruitlessly searching, the boy left. Silrini slowly came out of the trees. Now all that was left was sadness, and pity. She held the jewel up, examining it again in the sunlight before closing her hand around it again.

Silrini left for home.

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