Invasion of the Ortaks. Book 1 the Knight

Chapter 1 Strangers

It was peaceful and silent in Fairwood Forest that day, with the occasional sound of a bird singing and the breeze playing gently at the tips of the branches, as the sun tried its best to shine down between the leaves onto the thick covering of the forest floor. Egny stood still and listened to the sounds of the forest. She was tracking a deer she had spotted earlier that morning. She took a deep breath of the pleasant forest’s air. Her aura was suddenly shattered when she heard the rapid pounding footsteps traveling in her direction. On the forest path below her, she saw a man running by, and close on his heels followed two armed men, one with a sword in his hand, the other carried a double-faced battle-axe. The refugee suddenly bent off the path and down to a nearby creek. He tried to jump over the stream, but lost his balance and struck the ground on the opposite bank. He turned his head and saw the men jumping towards him, he tried to run down the stream, but it was too late.

One of the men struck his sword at him, but he managed to move away from the impact, falling on his back. He saw the other one raising his axe at him. He could not move, yet the blow never came. The man froze, and a tip of a sword stood out of his breast. He looked down to his chest and saw his life’s blood trickling from the tip of a shining steel blade. Then he fell face down to the ground. The refugee tried to stand up, terrified as he saw where the other attacker was, but he was diverted, fighting someone else. The attacker struck his sword against his rescuer, but he defended himself with a swift move. The rescuer then stabbed the attacker in the chest with a knife that he grasped in his left hand, and the attacker fell dead to the ground. The person that came to his aid stood still for a moment and then turned to him.
“Are you wounded?” he was shocked, it was a female’s voice he heard.

“No, I do not think so, only bruises and some cuts,” he muttered as he pulled himself up brushing the pieces of forest floor from his clothing, aching after the fall and weak after the exertion and strain of his flight. He discovered that he was trembling from shock and fear.