• “No, No, NO!” she screamed as she rapped on the door. Only a couple hours ago had she been a free woman. Her past was starting to haunt her mind as it replayed. Her throat was starting to constrict her airway as she tried to pull herself together.

    She screamed and pounded on the door, hoping that someone would hear her. That a savior would come to her rescue, but in her heart she secretly knew that she was doomed. She tried throwing her body against the door except there was no success in that.

    “Ugh” she let her head go limp on the wooden door.

    Her breathing was heavy and slow, as she listened to her own heart pounding. Her mind drifted to him and of the look he had bestowed upon her, before she was thrown into this dismal jail. She remembered the tongue of the beggar as it urgently told her of the devious plans that were now set in motion.

    A sudden noise made a ripple against air. The shuffling of feet scraped against the cold stone of the jail. She jumped in her skin and turned her back to the door, trying to peer into the darkness before her.

    “Who’s there?” her voice was shaking as a whisper.

    She could not see anything through the dark. There was no light, not even a sliver from the outside. She moved a step away from the door dragging her hand slowly away. Suddenly a hand grabbed her wrist, but then it released. Panic began to take root in her mind. Although she could not see where she was going she darted to the north of the prison’s door.

    As she ran she felt her chest being pushed in and her feet being lifted from the floor. She fell down on her side and there was a loud crack as if lightening had struck a tree. She screamed out in pain and could feel her blood beginning to boil. ‘No’ she thought softly.

    A swift kick to her side set her organs jumping back in pain. Blood began to rush to her mind filling her eyes with a cold crimson glare. An incredible amount of pressure took over the essence of her thought, but the sane part quickly blew it out.

    “STOOOOOOOOOP!” she gripped her arm with her right hand. She was trying to find the one place that could relax her body and release a wave of calm.

    She felt a hand gripped onto the collar of her jacket and lift her up. Her feet were dangling, dead as a winter’s night. She could hear the deep breathing of a man, who sounded distressed.

    “Ay Delatuoi , Arrign, ay.” She whispered with a sharp breath, touching his wrist.

    The man held her out with his grip desperately tightening. The last thing she felt was her body being thrown against the cold bricks of the jail cell and the faint outline of a man. Then the lights truly went out.

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    Broken Butterfly: (Chapter 1: Smash Hit)
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    “Aye, you hear about that fellow, who got caught in the bog last week?” A heavy gentleman said as he sloppily drank down the last of his beer. He smashed it down on the countertop and grabbed a handful of peanuts.

    “Heard it was some foreign monster who, chopped off his head and took the rest of his body to be scalped.” There was a group of men sitting on barstools surrounding the tender. Most of them were heavy with tattoos or well, skinny with tattoos.

    “What will it be today?” said a young blonde haired woman.

    The person who she was talking to sat in the corner closest to the door with their head buried in a newspaper. The newspaper slowly went down revealing a woman’s smile.

    “I will have what they are having, Merissa.”

    “Alright be right back.” She winked at the girl and headed back behind the tender’s counter to put in the order.

    The woman raised the paper once more and continued to listen to the conversation.

    “No, it was neither monster nor man I will tell you what it was...”

    Every bald head, tattooed arm, and every scarred face bent in closer to listen. The woman taking cover behind the paper also strained her ears for a good hear.

    “It was…. That manslayer...”

    The woman’s eyes slightly light up, for fear or maybe for interest.

    “ .. ‘s ghost.” Everyone’s expression turned sour for a moment, and the tender even stopped the tap from pouring out it spirits. The girl behind the inked words relaxed the tension that had built up in her shoulder.

    “Eh, that is an old tale from the Wars. Every soul around here knows that it is made up. And those crazy coots, who talk about it, are just insane from all o’ medication and such.

    The man who had said it, just grumbled and returned to his cold beer. He raised it to his lips drinking every slosh filled with bubbles.

    “Here, never took you for a drinker, Aidalin, since you never order anything, besides water.” Merissa put the beer onto the oak table and switched the serving platter to her left hand.

    “Thank you.” Aidalin spoke softly and put down the newspaper. She did not take the beer, but instead pushed it away. “On second thought can I have just water?”

    Merissa gladly picked up the beer, brought it to the cork pit, where she dumped all of its contents in. Never had she met someone like Aidalin. As calm as she was, she never spoke much of herself, but asked questions about other people. Also that creature that always lay next to her feet, almost acted human. She thought of this as she went to the kitchen to grab more beer mugs.

    ‘You should not waste things.’ A voice had popped into Aidalin’s head.

    She looked at the creature lying beside her with his its eyes closed. He was a wolf. His paws were bigger than Aidalin’s hands and if you dared to mess with him, he could take your life in a split second. The coat was a magnificent white, with gray being his points. Besides his coat and paws he always scared even the tallest man, but was gentle enough with the smallest child.

    ‘Sorry, but I couldn’t bring myself to drink it, Nuki.’ Aidalin smiled down at the tranquil wolf. ‘Besides, I am not that thirsty anyway.’ She blew at a piece of lint that fell onto her newspaper.

    The wolf kept his eyes closed and just mumbled something to himself, without letting her hear. He shifted his paws into a more comfortable position.

    Suddenly there was a shatter of glass and a scream of a girl. “Ahh, let me go!” she hollered.

    Aidalin looked up towards the tender’s keep to see on heavyset man grabbing Merissa by the arm and trying to give her a kiss.

    “Hey come on gorgeous, just a little peck on the lips is all it takes.” His breath must have been bad for she saw Merissa cringe her face and hold up her arm to guard herself from his pursuits. In a split second Aidalin jumped up from her chair, pulled a knife from her boot, and held it to the man’s neck.

    “I would let go of her if I were you.” she tried to make her voice as dry as possible.

    The man must have been stunned for he just stared at her trying to gain back his composure. He looked down at the knife and could not help but notice how blunt it was. He began to laugh with his saliva collecting in the corners of his mouth.

    “Girl that thing couldn’t even cut through butter and you expect it to cut my skin?!” He drew Merissa closer to him and pursed his lips.

    “You’re right.” She said as she lowered the knife. “But this might!” she punched him square in the jaw and he toppled over his chair, landing on his backside. He lay there with blood seeping out of his mouth and a minor cut. ‘God forgive me.’ Merissa ran behind Aidalin and kept cover.

    “You b***h!” the other men had already stood up and were now pissed off beyond belief. The guy lying on the floor however, had no complaints seeing as how he was unconscious.

    “You wanna fight girly?” the men stood with their fists ready, one even had his beer mug in hand. It was one against ten. The odds were not good.