Chapter 1 1

A horrid, foul smell rouses me.

For a long moment, it's like I'm submerged, fighting desperately to reach the surface. And then consciousness knocks me square in the chest, and I'm sitting up, gasping for air.

Violently coughing, I lean over, overwhelmed by the smell shrouding me, by the bitter taste rising up from the back of my throat. My body aches, muscles weak as I finally allow my eyes to crack open, bracing my arm up against the shadowy light.

Looking up, I realise I'm in some kind of shallow hole. Trees surround it, roots creeping down through the dirt and into the hole I'm in, protruding unnaturally from the ground...Wait, are those really roots?

Glancing down around myself, I realise with horror they are bodies. Dead bodies.

Scrambling back, I skate over soft limbs and rotten flesh, the jagged edges of sharp bones jabbing into me as I press back against the base of the hole. With each alarmed breath I drag in, the horrid smell of decaying bodies consumes my senses, my stomach heavy as a result.

Leaning over, I throw up profusely, gagging at the disturbing taste burning in my throat. Everything I've thrown up is thick and black, pooling on the dirt in such a way I have to turn, squeezing my eyes shut.

My mind is swimming, trying to grasp what is going on. I'm in a hole, filled with bodies in all different states of composition. On some of their bodies, the familiar colours of Tai's old guard are visible.

What is going on?

Turning, I scramble through the damp dirt, sprawling out the forest floor. My entire body shudders as I breathe in the earthy scents cutting through the decay. Yet I'm covered in death, fluids and debris clinging to my clothing pressing into my skin.

Resting my cheek against the ground, I close my eyes, my vision swirling with bright colours. I'm fading, I can feel it, my conscious slipping away...ever...so...slowly.

***

Waking up is suddenly much harder.

Pain rolls over me in waves, mainly isolated to my head. First I allow my fingers to twitch, feeling slowly seeping back into my limbs. It's silent around me, aside what might be the crackling of the fire. I've been sweating. I can feel it all over my body, clinging to the surface of my skin.

My eyes flutter open.

I'm staring at a ceiling, painted yellow. Frowning, I lift my arm, running the back of my hand over my eyes. My head feels like a foggy mess. No matter where in my mind I retreat to, I'm met with a thick haze, revealing no evidence of where I am, and where I've been.

A creaking sound echo's beside me, and when I turn my head, I realise it's a door opening, and unfamiliar woman steps in.

"What's going on?" I question, coughing past the scratchiness in my throat.

The woman approaches, pulling a chair from the corner of the room to the bed, sitting on it. I'm sitting up now, pressed back against the wall, staring at her warily. This room, her, this feeling in my body...It's all unfamiliar, and I hate it. I want out of this place, even if I don't know where I should go.

"Oh you're awake...I'm so glad," she exclaims softly, chewing her nail as she looks over me.

I don't feel injured, and yet at the same time I do. Looking down at my arms, I'm bruised all over, my skin littered with scratches. Even under soft sheets, each movement makes me keenly aware that this isn't isolated to just my arms.

"Where am I?" I question, looking around. This is some kind of bedroom, in what I imagine is a cottage. The furniture, the walls and even the ceiling have been hand painted, and there is a hand knitted quilt draped over the bed. The woman even looks like she has made her own clothing, her dress swinging loosely from her body.

"I know you're probably confused," she soothes. Her accent is strange, not from the Jade Province. "We found you, on the verge of death in the Azure Province."

Burying my face in my hands, I rake back through my mind.

My last memory was at home, with my family. Father has been at war, so I've been at home with my mother, studying about the Beast, my Tani...Her smile is the last thing I remember.

So how did I end up at the Azure Province, where I've never been in my life?

"How did I get there?" I question, pressing my fingers between my brows. It seems there are memories missing, like there's something large I should be remembering, and yet I no matter how far I delve back, I can't seem to scramble anything together.

"Well, I was hoping you could tell us," she says, almost sounding nervous. "You were quite battered when we found you. My husband and I immediately brought you back here, to our home."

A gauzy curtain covers the one window in the place, which is a blessing for my sensitive eyes, but a curse for my bearings.

"Where am I now?"

"Emerald Province." The woman offers up the information so kindly, and yet I'm struck back, a sour taste gathering on my tongue. Emerald Province. I've never been to the Emerald Province before, but at least it's not too far from my home, in the Jade Province.

Or maybe I have been to the Emerald Province. Something about it seems familiar, right on the tip of my tongue, that I can't quite grasp...I need to be here, to get to someone who needs me.

My parents.

A hollow pit opens up in my stomach, as I consume that fresh information. My parents don't live in the Jade Province, they live here, in this Province. But why? I don't remember them moving, or me, for that matter. And yet I know they are here. It's the first certain feeling that I've been able to grasp since coming back to consciousness.

"My head is killing me," I mutter, palms pressed against my temples.

"Chew on this, it will take the edge off," the woman offers, grabbing a box sitting atop the dresser. When she opens it, she reveals some kind of green stalk, which I take warily. "My husband is a healer. He's out right now getting supplies, but he will be back soon."

The stalk tastes sweet when I bite into it, a welcome relief from the bitter taste in my throat.

"How long have I been unconscious?" I ask softly, unsure of how I came to be unconscious in the first place...

The woman's gaze turns soft, sad. "About two weeks since we found you..."

My chewing ceases, as I just stare at her blankly. Two weeks? How long was I unconscious before they found me?

I realise, with a chilling coldness, that I'm alone. I've lost my memories, my bearings...everything.

I'm truly alone.