The Gray Area

It is hard to say when their civilization fell into chaos. Majestic and just, the castles and lands that belonged to what are known as humans were a sight to behold. There was no hunger, thirst, or conflict. Through almost a thousand years of a world war, a warlord whose name was lost to time, crushed his enemies and sat at the throne of the world. It is not with him however that the prosperity started.

It was his son, Belthar, who was the cause of that. His father was a tyrant and a cruel master. Belthar however, was a student of chivalry and honor. His values were simple. Protect the weak and innocent, listen to his people, and learn. Only a king who acknowledged his ignorance of the world could learn and grow with his people. So when the warlord died, and Belthar became king, things were altogether different right from the start.

From what recorded history is left, it was a period of time known as the Age of Transition. Thirty years is what it took to clean up the bloody victory his father had won. Calling forth a council of old royalty from the conquered countries, Belthar redrew borders. He gave back what his father stole in exchange for the vows of the would be kings.

"Protect the weak and innocent, listen to your people, and learn. Learn so we all may grow."

The world flourished under these words. Its people wanted for nothing. Peace fell over the land like a warm blanket, comforting and protecting everything it covered. Things seemed so perfect. Too perfect. The evil in the world was unwelcome in the land of the humans. Pushed away into the very depths of existence it festered and grew. Evil could not regain its hold on the lands with force like it had before in the hearts of men.

So it chose a different route, taking a form so small it could not be seen. This new evil had a name. Plague. No one knows how or when it struck, or how long it took to bring this mighty ring of kingdoms down. But like the tide eating away at a cliff side, there was no stopping it. Cities fell and castles crumbled, and the world was once again plunged into an era of despair.

In a forest a few miles from a small fishing village was a young girl by the name of Krysta. Daughter of a net maker and his wife, she was nothing special. Though she held 14 years under her belt she was small and unfortunately thin. Partially from being malnourished and partially from her mother's genes. Though her skin didn't cling to her bones it was easy to see that she may have missed a few meals.

The frizzled and ragged golden blonde hair adorned her head brushed against her face as she worked, it being tied off in two thick braids for comfort and convenience. Brilliant, emerald green eyes were sharp with concentration as she pushed her back against a large mass of stone, her feet digging into the ground.

"Come on rock, move!" The voice of the young girl rang out through the trees, filled with the grunts and groans of hard labor. "Dumb Rock!"

The rock in question was more of a boulder, large and jagged. It rested against another of it's kind, tilted and leaving a small space between the two. A perfect place to find some mushrooms, which happened to be Krysta's task. She had tried reaching her arm into the space to see if she could find any that way but it was too large, and her arms were too short. There had to be mushrooms in there. And by golly Krysta was going to get them come hell or high water!

She gave it one more strong heave, her lips parting to release a loud and stressed grunt. With a sound of grinding between the two stones it fell, gravity pulling Krysta with it before she realized it. The thud of her landing next to the rock was drowned out by the noise from the rock itself, the sound echoing loudly in the lonely and quiet forest. Brushing herself off with shaky hands Krysta grinned, the anticipation growing with her pulse.

"Alright rock, let's see what you were hiding." Giving the boulder a small pat of praise, Krysta ran around it and gasped. "Mushrooms!" The loud exclamation echoed through the forest as she looked upon the largest group of the fungi she had ever seen!

"Mother will be so excited! I can't wait to sho---" Her self commentary was cut short by the scream of a woman, not too far from where she was. The smile of excitement from her find slowly transformed into a grim frown unbefitting a fourteen year old. Her village was under attack.

Krysta was up in a flash, running through the trees without a look back at her treasure. If the village survived this she could always go back after all, she reminded herself as her feet made swift tracks through the topsoil of the forest. The speed of her legs quickly brought her to the edge of the forest, her muscles crying out in protest. Her expression dropped completely, the only feature upon her face making any sort of movements being the reflection in her deep, emerald eyes.

The scene playing out on her eyes was like that of a horror story. Men and women running from the village only to be caught and slaughtered just beyond the gates. As the reflection continued on its screen began to change. Her eyes could almost be seen darkening with the rage that burned within her, the muscles in her hands clenching them into fists so hard it caused her knuckles to turn white.

"Help! Someone help me!" Furious green eyes turned to the direction of the sound, catching sight of a man being chased down by two others. The two men had looks of glee on their faces as they eventually ran him down.

She watched as each took turns stabbing the villager, making a competition out of how much blood they could get on their blades in one thrust. Krysta's fury doubled and took hold of her, causing her body to move without thinking. Taking hold of a stone in the death like grip her hand held, Krysta went back into the trees so she could get closer without being seen. Once more her legs protested the unwanted exercise, her footfalls making contact with the ground so hard they made noise even on the soft, thick topsoil. A split second after she closed the distance the fury of her eyes latched onto one of the men, her arm reaching back before lobbing her weapon towards his unprotected head.

Her aim proved true and with a howl of pain and a dull thud, it made contact with his temple, blood already able to be seen coming from the wound. A grin formed on her lips as she watched, waiting for him to go down. To her horror, he didn't. Instead the man touched at his head and gave a furious growl, eyes searching for the stone's origin. A grin formed on his lips when he caught sight of her running back into the forest.

"Feisty. I like that." His lips curled up into a cruel smile, dark brown eyes filled with mischief turning towards his partner. "Let's go say hi. It would be awfully rude of us not to introduce ourselves."

Both laughed heartily and waved another of their mates down who happened to be rather nearby having fun of his own. With a quick explanation and a hearty laugh between the three, each fell into line behind the other, following Krysta's footfalls with their own in chase.

Krysta's previous anger was replaced with fear as the realization set in, her face twisting into the new found emotion. These men were going to kill her! Or even worse... She had to get away! She just had to!

Ducking and diving between trees and rocks, Krysta's body was lithe and fluid as the experience of knowing the forest overtook her usually sound thoughts. Her chest rose and fell with quickened breaths as her pace exceeded her normal standards. A fact that was not lost on our would be bandit fighter. The pain in her muscles and chest worked their way into her head, each motion slowing with the ticking seconds.

Her joints were starting to stiffen so much a sound of creaky hinges could almost be heard. Emerald green eyes filled with discomfort warily looked behind her in search of the bandits. They were nowhere to be found!

With a bone grinding halt Krysta's lithe form collapsed onto the forest floor, every fiber of her being screaming for relief. She had not run so hard for so long in her entire life. Though pain was not foreign to her, the physical ache of the sprint was far too new for her, or her body's, liking.

In her small respite, green eyes stared skyward in a half lidded gaze, the threat of sleep making itself known to her senses. That could not be tolerated. With lips parted to release a pained groan from her heaving chest, Krysta sat up just in time for the sound of distant voices to shock her into a state of total awareness. She hadn't lost them at all.

Her next attempt to run failed miserably before it even began. Her arms could push herself up but her legs refused to work to their fullest. With the voices drawing nearer the adrenaline that rushed into her blood stream said otherwise. This time however, instead of running around a tree, she ran to it.

In one huge push of will power and effort Krysta launched herself skyward, one of her sore limbs using the tree trunk as a stepping pad for an extra push. Lithe fingers made their way around a low hanging branch, their strength unwavering from the run. A small praise to the gods left her lips as she began to pull herself up, the effort and concentration needed for this making it impossible for her to spot three armed figures sneaking up behind her.

The scream that left her lips as the rough hand wrapped around her ankle was cut short, the swift drop the the ground seeing to that. The hard surface of a protruding root made contact with the back of her head in an almost sickeningly loud thud as the short fall was proven to be quite dangerous, especially being pulled down with the force that she had been.

Though a fan of the night sky with it's many wonders, the stars that she was forced to look upon now only proved to terrify the poor girl to no end. With her eyesight almost totally gone for these moments, and the pain in her head and back throbbing to no end, she couldn't fully comprehend what the bandits were doing. Unfortunately, her hearing was still working perfectly.

"Mmm, almost got away from us. Can't have that now can we boys?" Chuckle filled agreements filled the air, coming from all directions. Krysta's heart beat could almost be seen against her chest as the fear settled into her in earnest.

Her vision cleared after a moment, bright green eyes filled with pain and terror taking in the three men. Each one had grin bigger than the last, amusement and evil in their expressions. Scrambling up to her hands and knees in one last ditch effort to get away she received a boot to her back before she could get her sore muscles working beyond a few short jerks. Tears of pain formed in her eyes as she was slammed into the ground for the second time, the boot pressing down on her spine enough to almost break it.

When it released it's pressure on her tender spine, two of the men grabbed her and stood her up, pushing her against the tree she tried to hide in. The man who she had hit with the rock sneered at her, wiping a hand along his bleeding wound. Dragging his coarse fingers over the blood he took the time to rub his thumb over his fingers, spreading it around a bit. In one swift motion the muscles in his arm stiffened and released in a way that brought his open palm against her cheek in an ear splitting smack of skin on skin. The pain was so sudden that Krysta couldn't react in time to scream.

"There you go. Much prettier." He jeered at her as a look of utter disgust, shock, and pain adorned her features. "Now then missy, that wasn't very nice of you. But seeing as how that root already did the job for me, I have to think of another way for you to repay me."

All three men chuckled under their breath causing Krysta to shudder. The man who she struck undid his sword belt and dropped it to the forest floor next to him, his eyes gaining a crazed look. The realization hit her brain hard but didn't quite reach her muscles. One could almost see her nervous system burn as the signals moved their way down, the sheer amount of information they were carrying shorting out her systems. As they reached their intended targets her response came out in an explosion of writhing muscles and desperate screams.

"No! No get away! Leave me alone!" Her shrill voice was filled with horror as he continued to undress. "NOO!!!" Though her legs were far from their prime, a last ditch effort of retaliation sent one towards the man's now armor less crotch. Her strike never found it's mark, and instead was caught in the calloused hand of the bandit.

As her emerald eyes moved up towards the man, the last thing she saw were his knuckles speeding toward her. The strike was never felt. Her world darkened, her last conscious thoughts filled with his words before everything went quiet.

"Now spread her legs. Then you can each take a turn."

Krysta's eyes fluttered open, a throbbing headache welcoming her back to the world of the living. For the longest moment, the small girl could do nothing but blink and breath, her brain having not caught up yet. Her thoughts were fogged over, dulling her thinking and causing her to simply stare off into the wilds for was seemed like an eternity.

Still in the forest where her memories put her, Krysta drug a hand a hand through the dirt as if to test if it was real. Though she had a headache, nothing else seemed to hurt. No scrapes from being pulled from the tree or even the back of her head that struck the root. She inspected the back of her head with shaking fingers and found no traces of a bump. Or any evidence of a fall for that matter.

A breeze rolled through the trees and caused her to shiver some, her arms crossed over her chest. Another realization caught her at that moment as goose bumps formed. Her clothes were gone! Even the bands that held her hair in her usual braids were nowhere to be found. Her heartbeat doubled in an instant, sending the fog from her brain causing her thoughts to suddenly crash into each other left and right.

In her small bout of confusion and panic she attempted to stand. Attempted being the key word here as she simply fell back without even the slightest resistance. Her entire body felt so weak, as if gravity had doubled. Her arms felt strained just from lifting one up to rub at the back of her head once more in hopes of finding a bump to explain all of this.

With another push she managed to stand, this time holding herself up with the tree. Another scan of her eyes proved that all of her belongings were gone. Did the bandits take them? Why would they take he---

The memories crashed into her so hard she fell to the ground again, tears falling from her eyes. The look of sheer panic and disbelief was so intense that she could feel the strain it placed on her facial muscles. A trembling hand made it's way down her body, unable to look at what may have happened. Each breath was harsher than the last, every pump of her heart felt through her entire body was as if she were being struck with a sledge hammer. The closer her hand came to it's intended target, the worse it got. That is until nothing met her fingers other than herself. No pain, no blood, not even a sign of what could have happened. She decided right there to inspect every part of herself.

"They...didn't touch me." Her voice whispered to itself in shock after every inch of herself was scrutinized with merciless eyes. In truth, it seemed like she was in perfect condition. Aside from the lack of food and weakness of course. No scrapes, bruises, or pain whatsoever except her headache.

The grin that fell upon her lips couldn't be torn away even by the mightiest of beasts. She was alive, everything was in order, and there were no bandits to be found. Her spirits were as high as the clouds in her, "I am alive", high. Tapping into this energy to get herself standing Krysta's voice rang into the woods in a resounding laugh. Things might just turn out ok.

"Oh gods!!"

With loud cracks of branches being broken behind Krysta as she ran, she turned her head to look back at the monstrosity chasing her. A winged lion with a scorpion tail! The beast had caught her wandering about the forest mere moments before, deciding she would be a rather easy meal.

"This can't be happening. Why is this happening!?" Her voice rang out over and over in a desperate plea to whatever deity might be listening. "I promise once I get home I won't sneak any more of mother's sprouts while she is cooking them! A-and I will even clean up the whole house! Even the yard! Please oh PLEASE just get me out of this!!"

Her prayers seemed to go unanswered as the beast drew ever closer, the distance between them dwindling to almost nothing by then. In desperation Krysta grabbed hold of a fallen tree limb and swung, striking it in the face. The loud howl of pain and anger caught her off guard enough for her not to notice the large clawed paw coming at her in time, striking her side and launching her against a nearby tree. The impact knocked the wind out of her, her pupils pin pricks with the pain. Clutching her already bruising sides Krysta peered up in time to see the scorpion tail come down and make contact with her shoulder. With a sound of flesh and a loud, surprised gasp, the stinger imbedded itself into her.

Time stood still as Krysta's eyes grew wide, a warm liquid invading her blood stream. "P... poison" Her tiniest of whispers were only heard by her and the manticore, the latter of which almost looked like it was smirking. With a wet sound of flesh the singer withdrew, leaving a bleeding wound. It took all of four seconds for Krysta to collapse on her side, her vision growing blurry and her mind numbing.

From the corner a black and white blur could be seen, speaking in a quick voice that she couldn't understand. With a flash of powder and magic the manticore fled from it's attacker, leaving it and Krysta. With great effort she tilted her head up, narrowing her eyes in hopes to see who it was that had frightened the beast off. It slowly approached her, allowing Krysta a small glimpse with the closed distance.

"Black and white...stripes?" Unable to process what was happening with the poison running through her veins, Krysta allowed herself to fall into the blackness once again. Everything seemed to be happening so fast that her body was shutting down, her brain fighting with her emotions on how to comprehend it all.

The black and white striped being in question, named Zecora, watched the strange creature with curiosity and worry. With one glance to the wound the manticore had inflicted she gathered Krysta up and slung the girl onto her back with little to no effort.

"The wound and poison have run so deep. We must get you to my home, or you shall forever sleep." Her signature rhyming voice was filled with worry as she carried this poor creature towards her hut, thoughts on the jar of manticore anti-venom in her cupboard.