Chapter 2 (Part 1) ~ Into the Woods

Her feet pounded against the hard earthen floor, her pulse hammering in her ears. She was not fooled by this beautiful stranger, with her dark hair and pale ivory skin. Branches of low-hanging pines scraped her skin, thorns pierced and tore at her black jumpsuit…the scent of blood only drove the creatures to run faster, to stop and kill her. Blue sparks danced faintly across her skin, healing the tiny, insignificant wounds, but they were almost run out. Soon they would be gone, and she would begin to loose blood.

Suddenly, one of them appeared in front of her, the pretty one. The black iron and smoky-quartz pendant hung around her neck, glimmering in the dull light of the moon, the evil thing that should have been destroyed centuries ago when it was made. The little elf noticed that the girl was quite young, maybe just sixteen. Her face was set, but her dark gray eyes were soft, scared even. For a moment, she felt a tinge of pity for the girl. This was not her crime, something she was forced into doing by that malevolent Charm.

But then she remembered where she was, remembered that she herself was the one in danger, and her breathing increased, sweat beading on her forehead. This girl may have been nearly as scared as she, but she knew that she had to be just as, if not more, deadly than the others. She backed against a tree, if not to escape, but to cover her back. They couldn't possibly sneak up on her now. Though, as it turns out, they didn't need bother.

The shadows around them solidified, gained form. These were horrible; four hags, each with ratty hair, and rags with the stains of what she hoped was not blood. The one closest to her grinned, and closed the short distance between them. She ran a thin, twisted finger down her face. The jagged nail carved a bloody line down her face, and she was instantly paralyzed. The pain was amazing, horrible, intense. She knew that she now had moments to live as the poison spread through her system, and she wanted to screamed, warn the rest of the team to get away, get back underground while they could. But her voice, while it was the only part of her with any function, abandoned her. Ugly 1 giggled, a sound like a million nails on the world's biggest chalkboard. "She's a pretty one, isn't she, Sisters?" Her voice was no more pleasant than her laugh. The elf girl tried to spit at her, but as she couldn't move her head, the goo dribbled down her chin. The four hags cackled hysterically; the little girl stood stock-still. Her eyes, cast in gloom, seemed to plead with her. Like she were the one needing saving.

The relative silence was broken by the hiss of static from her communicator. "Sound off…" Her heart leaped as her team called out their numbers, the slight panic as they discovered her absence. Then, static as they ran towards her still flashing signal.

The Charmed girl looked over her shoulder. "They're coming," She said simply. The girl's voice drew the air from the elf's lungs. It was the wind through the leaves, the crash of the waves on the surf, the ring of a bell, the most beautiful sounds in the world. But there was sorrow behind that voice, a pain that no child should feel. She felt drawn to the girl. But no, she thought, that's just the Charm.

The hags ran off as her vision began to dim, and she collapsed to the forest floor. The thump of her team's feet as they raced toward her signal, and she her stiff body loosened as the last dregs of the poison worked their dark magic. She could move now, as though she had the energy to. It had always been hard to picture her death, though she worked in a profession where nearly every moment could be her last. It was hard to come to terms with the fact that her death was so near. A single tear slipped down her nose, the toxins in the fluid burning her skin on it's way down. Blue sparks danced across her skin, feeble and weak, tried in vain to heal the poison that now coursed through her blood stream.

Five others knelt beside her, checking her wound, calling to her to stay awake, sending harried orders over their communicators. But one red-headed elf, the new girl, leaned down to her mentor's face.

"What happened?" She whispered, tracing a finger over the no-longer-burning abrasion that ran the length of her face, from the corner of her right eye to her chin. Red's eye's grew wide. "They're here, aren't they?" She gasped as the dying elf's head jerked up, then down.

The leader sent the others off to set up a signal. He turned to his partner, his best friend since the Academy, his more than friend, brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. His own eyes began to run, tears dripping down onto her face. The cool, poison-free liquid steamed as made contact with her flesh, but it was amazingly refreshing. "I'm sorry," he muttered, stroking her hair. One hand moved under her head, cradling it. "So…so sorry…"

Mustering every ounce of strength she possessed, she managed to whisper, "Not…your fault." Her every word came out as a garbled choke. "Don't blame…" And then, her warning. "The Charm…Black…pendant…Harp…" She was cut off by a round of lung-rattling coughs and wheezes. Ribs broke, snapping like dry twigs, and he cringed at the awful sound.

"No…No…No.." He managed to say, as her eyes closed for the last time. The pain was gone, and she was floating, flying, soaring, breathing…

Deeper in the forest, the harpies listened with glee to the chaos they had created in their wake. They hadn't had this much fun in centuries. Of course, they hadn't actually planned on the girl they had chased being found before she died, but hearing the stifled cries of the poor, poor leader was well worth the pains of hunger rumbling in their empty bellies. The only one not giggling with happiness was the little grey-eyed half-harpy. She drew her knees up to her chin and hugged them, her body shuddering with silent, dry sobs. The terror in the face of the elf, right before she was attacked, was horrible, but the feeling that she no had it far better than Iris herself was far more dreadful.

(A/N Olright, here it is. Crappy, but here. I realize that this isn't my best work, and so if you feel that you must review simply to tell me that (a.k.a. flame) Don't. Easy as that. I will delete it. If you have an idea on how I can fix it, that would be helpful and appreciated.
Also, thanks to my (very few) dedicated reviewer(s). I do realize that I said I would post this yesterday, but with me, you just have to take for granted that when I say "tomorrow", I mean "two/three or ore days from now". I'm not trying to be mean, that's just the way I am. But, again, thanks!

Review and You can be my new best friend (kidding, but still),

T.E.C.