All that week my thoughts kept returning to the stranger I had met and I found myself on occasion keeping an eye out for him. I had grown quite comfortable with the Demon Hunters, and after my old mentor��s mysterious disappearance, the leader of my legion had become my mentor. Our leader was a very busy young man, and unable to spend much time training me. My legion mates however, had introduced me to even farther away lands, and I had successfully traveled to Dark Marsh and Gobi Desert. In fact, the first time I was killed by a fighter since my arrival, was in Gobi Desert. I was still naive then, not knowing that there were warriors and mages who did not just hunt for monsters, but for fellow fighters. They would sometimes lure them out there, in the middle of nowhere, and then swiftly dispatch them with their powerful weapons and pets. During this time I also discovered that death here is not eternal. One can and will return, and I am forever thankful for that, because otherwise, I would not be here to tell you this story.
Being somewhat uncomfortable and weary of the killers lurking in Gobi and Dark Marsh, I decided to investigate a place I had heard of in the market. Icy Land was supposed to be an inhospitable frozen wilderness, populated by the fiercest monsters I had encountered so far. I did not heed my inner warning, and set out to find new adventures.
It was unimaginably cold. I was frozen to the bones within seconds. To avoid turning into a solid block of ice, there was only one thing I could do, run. And run I did, dodging great beasts along the way, guiding my demons through the masses of monster, I ran as fast as my feet would let me. Once I got used to the temperature however, I began to see the true beauty of this place. White and sparkling, it was a stark contrast to Dark Marsh and even the dusty Gobi Desert. I rather enjoyed being here. I enjoyed it more than the island or volcano. From this day on, Icy became my favorite hunting ground. Being here made me happy, the crisp air was invigorating and the monsters here were a real challenge.
On one of my frequent hunting trips here, I found a new area, especially frequented by daring adventurers. And it was here that I met him again. Busy killing demons and collecting gold, I had not watched where my steps had taken me. Suddenly I found myself in the middle of a mages windbead attack and I froze. A young female ran by me, picking up gold, trying to avoid being seen by the great Orcs surrounding us. And then he appeared, riding his great blue beast, just like I remembered him, in his dark robes, white hair raining down his back. He stopped briefly to invite me into his team for the hunt. For the rest of this glorious afternoon, he killed hundreds of monsters and we ran and picked up the loot, sharing what we had found. I hesitated to say too much. After all, he had a woman with him, and from their conversation they seemed quite familiar with each other. So I kept my distance answered questions and just enjoyed the hunt. When he announced it was time for him to leave, I regretted to see him go and I stayed behind, but Icy had lost its sparkle, and shortly after, I left as well.
That evening I went to Elven City to buy supplies and here he was again, sitting there quietly, like so many times before. But this day was different; I could not be quiet any longer. I walked closer, whispered a greeting and commented on the way he looked right in front of a little forest demon. We talked for a while that night and when I left, I was strangely happy. Our conversations became longer over the next few weeks, and we started spending more and more time together.
He sang to me, no-one ever sang to me before. He would sing to me while I was hunting in Icy, and his words would warm my heart and my blood. He showered me with flowers; oh I never knew there were so many flowers in the world! He was a man of few words, a quiet man, yet funny and kind, so patient and agreeable. All my days were filled with him now, whatever I did, he was always there, keeping me company, cheering me on, or just quietly listening when I needed him to. He would run to my side when I had gotten myself into trouble on more than one occasion, and saved me from certain disaster. He never admonished me for not being careful or not heeding his advice. He was just there in time of need.
Then came a glorious autumn day, when he was impatient for me to return from my hunt. He had never been impatient before and his unusual urgency unsettled me and I decided to return earlier than I had intended. When I finally stood before him that day, he knelt before me and asked me to be his wife. So unexpected, so strange but so exciting and so absolutely wonderful. I felt like fainting, crying, laughing, throwing myself into his arms all at the same time. And so we were married in Elven City, high up in the tree, under the leaves, with birds singing all around, rose petals raining down from the heavens and I will never forget this day of all days.
To be continued... |
