Chapter one
Amaya awoke on a soft bed pad for the first time in weeks. It felt wonderful, but she had no time to waste. She had spent all of the previous day receiving instructions from Leander, preparing herself physically and mentally, and researching maps and history. Today she needed to set off on her mission. She dressed in dark functional clothes; a navy blue long sleeved shirt and midnight black cargo pants, her hair pulled into a ponytail. She grabbed her bag and cape then headed out into the courtyard. As she walked along she noticed that all of the trained recruits there were older than her. This bothered her a bit, but not much as it had when she first came. She'd grown up here in Leander's care. He'd taken her in at just 10 years of age and trained her for the special jobs that he needed taken care of. She didn't mind though, before that she hadn't been good at anything, just a hopeless child in a group of others like her. She nodded to Zander; he was the only other recruit that was allowed to do special jobs like Amaya. They weren't close but they shared a common relation to Leander and therefore were acquaintances. She checked on a few last minute things, grabbed food for the journey and set out into the forest.
The grass, still wet with the morning dew felt glorious against Amaya's feet as she walked across a field at the beginning of her journey. She would need to pick up the pace soon but it was nearing breakfast time and the field was a perfect place to eat. She sat against a tree at the edge of the field and pulled a piece of bread and an apple from her bag. In addition to that she pulled out a map. As she ate she found where she was and was surprised to find she was only a day's walk from the mountain. As she continued studying the map she found that there was a forest surrounding the mountain that was forbidden. This might be a little more difficult than she had planned.
When she finished her meal, she took a few minutes to stretch and touch up on her staff skills with the collapsible one she kept in her pack. She nearly forgot she had to travel on that day. The martial arts were her passion. They had been since the first day she began to learn them. She excelled at them like nothing she had ever learned before and found that she picked up new skills at an accelerated rate.
The day dragged on as she continued her journey. Most of this forest looked nearly identical. As sunset began to fall, she came upon the edge of the forest and the beginning of a much darker more sinister one. The trees looked dead and blackened, their roots drilled down into dry, cracked soil. She knew instantly that this was the forbidden forest that the map spoke of. This would be the end of her journey today. There was no way she was going to attempt to travel through that forest tonight. She took a look past the trees of this forest to the dark skeletal ones in the next and realized truly how uncomfortable she was. She took a few paces backwards into the thick forest where things didn't look so dark and deserted. She laid out a blanket, pulled her cape more tightly around her and fell into a deep, dreamless slumber almost immediately.
The next morning she awoke to something she never would've expected; there was a white tiger staring down at her. She jumped just as anyone would after being wakened by a tiger. Then she avoided eye contact. She knew better than to try to assume dominance over this creature. She edged away and stood a few feet away from the tiger. She looked at it and could swear it was giving her an annoyed look. That couldn't be good. It motioned to her to follow it with a bob of its furry head. She knew it was unwise to refuse but she still felt uneasy. As she walked she was unaware of a jet black crow that was following her and watching her every move.