Elemental Thief Part I : Child of Calamity

Reclaimed

Treasa didn't always feel the invisible watchers around her as she worked, but there were a lot of times during her work trips that she knew there was someone in the dark, impenetrable forests watching. Not that she had a lot of time, as she struggled through the first several days of digging, planting, walking a few steps and repeating. She assumed it was across from the parcel of land that she was working on, seeing as how she was planting trees to help return the land to a healthy balance.

If it were Feysha, she knew she would never see them, but still she felt safe with that idea of them. The Feysha could be as much a protection as a danger and as long as she followed the rules and didn't try to hurt something they cared about, she shouldn't be a target. They didn't have sub motives for violence or cruelty.

Part of her ached for her childhood. As being in Rulin so close to the Wild brought back the memories she had thought disappeared when her mother died. The trees and lack of civilization, the feeling of peace around her, made her ache for what could have been. It had been so long ago, and she had avoided running into the Wild for so long, that now that she was on the edge of seeing it, it gave her pause.

Not to mention that there was always a Rulin guard not far away, making sure they all behaved themselves and came back to the group at the end of the day. She had noticed how quickly they noted someone missing, as well. She had been watching them and their procedures, looking for a chink in their armour and professionalism.

It had happened already. The first couple of days on assignment, a prisoner would think that they were inattentive and run for it. There was no call for alarm, nothing overt, but suddenly two guards that she hadn't really noticed missing would come back out of the forest with the missing prisoner. Sometimes the man wouldn't look hard done by, just tired. Other times, he had to be returned to camp for medical treatment. The Rulin didn't seem to hurt people for the sake of hurting them or proving they were in charge, but Treasa assumed those injuries were caused by someone trying to fight back.

Despite the flawless system the guards had, Treasa continued to picture herself leaving, continued to prepare herself for it. She could lose herself in the Wild, if she didn't have that reminder of someone always watching, always keeping track of her. And if she lost herself out there, she wasn't sure if she'd ever be found; wasn't sure if she wouldn't just wander until she was well and thoroughly lost to the point where she was dead.

There was a thrill of fear out there, knowing there were things beyond the reach of the Feysha that hunted delicate humans like her. She weighed those risks at night in the safety of her camp bed, trying to decide which monsters she was willing to face: the men she feared were still after her or the monsters whose large skulls adorned the markers the guards used to indicate areas where the Cassaei had a penchant for hunting in. It was the point that they weren't supposed to go past because of the danger of those creatures. It was there that Treasa knew she had to run into, to get to the Wild beyond it, where the Feysha lived.

Not that she thought it would be a simple task.

It hadn't taken her long to figure out that though some of the older Rulin guards had wounds caused by blades, the younger ones only carried scars that appeared to come from battle against the elusive shadow monsters. Some of the more experienced prisoners told stories of the darkness moving silently and dragging an unwary prisoner off screaming, about seeing leaves and plants sprayed with blood but finding nothing else.

When she had asked one of the Rulin guards about the truth behind the stories, the older man had chuckled and merely stated. "There aren't nearly as many as there were back before Queen Veranandein moved mountains."

Whatever that meant.

Treasa had heard stories about the Queen in Clairval too, though they were tinged with cynicism or a tone of a dream, like she was listening to a child's fable that no one really believed. Treasa also knew the facts. The Queen had forged peace between the Feysha and Clairval, and was instrumental in stopping whatever war there was between Rulin and Vayana, which then opened up more trade for Clairval. She had saved the King's life and prevented an invasion of Clairval by raiders at some point as well. Perhaps she had encouraged Provinces like Morningside and Watersbreak to change their systems of government to help people.