Chapter 6

The Hopeful Reply

Kalivia studied the cover of the book. It was ugly, plain and simple, ugly. The book of Katorika, yes, the cursed book. It's cover was made of demon flesh, bluish-black in color, slightly course like that of a toad. The front cover of the book held the risen flesh of a picture, the picture of a fallen city. She imagined that it was once beautiful, but in this rendition, it was nothing but piles of dead bodies, knocked down towers in heaps of stone, fire, black fire, and demons, like the one that now covers this book, feasted on the decomposing flesh of the dead.

She sighed heavily and dropped the book into her trunk. She locked it, cast the fire trap on the chest, strung the key around her neck and tucked it into her shirt for safe keeping, patting in lightly.
She had packed everything into two trunks that were of any importance to her. She hadn't had much of importance, so she traveled lightly. It had been years since she had had a home, a stable, comfortable house to call her home. She jumped around, from one town to the next, to one city and the next, just moving where the dusty roads would take her.
When her parents disappeared, she lived with her Aunt, but when her Aunt disappeared, that is when she figured out that there was something going on. Her one clue was this book. But, what she did not know what that after reading this book...she was cursed. Cursed until she passed thru the seven gates of Katorika. She was being followed, stalked like a rabbit. As time passed, the encounters increased. With every encounter, the demon became more powerful. Her only help was the one thing that had cursed her, the book.
It had been 6 months since she had sent a letter to the Lady Ray Mylon, a little clue dropped accidentally by one of the demons. Yesterday she finally received her reply.

Kalivia,
It has been nothing short of a miracle that I have received this letter from you. I ask that you come to me in the Falistinian Islands with the acceptance of this letter. The boat will wait for three days, if you do not show, it will indicate that you did not want to travel here. I must insist that you do come. This matter is urgent. There is much we need to discuss and much that we have to do. There will be a small party that will arrive shortly after you that will enlighten us even more on the situation that is Katorika. I await your arrival anxiously.

Yours in waiting,
Lady Ray Malon

Kalivia didn't need much more prompting, she was running out of places to hide and in the deep south would be a good place run. It was going to take her three months to reach these islands. No matter, it would be worth it.

She dragged the chest to the door where the other one waited for its pick up. She took one final look around the room, home for the past week. It was bare. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror.

Not a typical woman are you Kalivia, she asked herself.

She was short, only five foot and three inches. Her hair was black and wavy, long, very long. She had a white complexion, due to the lack of sun in the northern mountains, she wasn't always this pale. She wore her most comfortable outfit today. Black wool trousers that hung snugly at her hips, a dark blue cotton shirt that fit snuggly across her breast, defining her femininity. A slim black belt that held her money pouch and black leather boots that reached her mid calf, concealing two long daggers. Her two most outstanding physical features were her size, not her height, but her muscle, she was very muscular, the other were her eyes. One blue, one green. She was well known in this area as of late. The short girl with the blue and green eyes who was arm wrestling men in the bars for money, funny thing was, she won, even funnier was that they didn't mind being beaten by a woman. It paid and she had a good stash of gold and silver to show for it.
There was a knock at the door.
"Who is it?" She called.
"It is Pevil, Miss, here to pick up your chests for the ship?" A young mans voice answered from behind the door.
"Come in, Pevil."

The door opened, revealing a young, well muscled man.
He eyed the chests uncertainly, "Is this all there is Miss?"
"Yes." She replied, feeling that she had no reason to explain her lack of typical female luggage.
"The coach is waiting, you go 'head down and I'll bring these down."

She put on a fur lined black leather jacket that almost reached her knees, pulled the hood up and, above all else, she picked up her sword, slung it across her back and headed towards the door.

Pevil froze, "That's a mighty big sword you've got."

She stopped and looked at him. It was big, as big as she was, it was preposterously large, it was her fathers, now it was hers.
"Yes, it is."

She walked past him, down the stairs, threw the quite tavern out the doors into the cold windy air, filled with snow. There sat the coach, a large wooden sleigh with padded red seats. She climbed in, settling on the cushioned seats. She closed her eyes, thinking. Three months aboard a ship, heading due south, to the Falistinian islands. She imagined clear blue warm waters full of vibrantly colored fish, dark skinned inhabitants and sandy shores, exotic birds. She imagined a room with a vast ceiling, open windows with sheer white curtains blowing in the sea breeze, marble pillars and floors the color of gold. There was a glass table in this room, filled with juicy, colorful fruit, she could almost taste them. Only three months away. Three months of a rocking boat, cramped quarters, nasty, smelly, dirty sailors. Terribly salty, dry sea food...ugh!

The sleigh jerked suddenly, in an instant, before her brain even had time to actually process what was happening, she had her hand on her right boot knife and ready to draw...but no, she realized that she had dozed off and that Pevil was pushing the 4 horses forward.

She relaxed a little, pulling her hood a little closer to her. She sighed, this was going to be a long trip and no sooner would she arrive at the islands and she would embark on her quest.

The quest, ah yes, the quest. That was the one thing that will plague her every night of the trip south. Who were her companions going to be? What assets were they going to bring to this deadly venture? She had three months to ponder that situation.