Rain.
How?!.
I mumbled to myself.
It's the rain.
Has it been over an hour since I started running from the estate?
I used to work in a fine place, my employer, a lady of high standing, used to torment us, but even so, the job paid well, and the other workers were really nice.
Just a few hours ago, we were all looking forward to tomorrow, the day of our lady's wedding.
My work involved maintaining the garden, shaping 2 bushes as the couple and collecting beautiful flowers for a bouquet.
When suddenly a downpour started, it was midday with a clear sky, not a cloud showed all day and even now rain poured with no clouds.
Something is wrong.
I thought to myself, no clouds, yet rain came, something of magical prowess.
The truth is, I am actually a witch, a low-born witch without any powers of my own.
Even so, I was raised among them, so I knew a thing or two about unnatural occurrences.
Immediately, I ran towards the estate searching for others however, by the time I reached the manor, a golden-hued spark glowed at the roof, the whole floor collapsed, and the estate fell right in front of my eyes.
A few rubbles hit me, bruising me in several places, none lethal or debilitating.
Looking up to where the flash of light came from, I witnessed a figure of a golden-haired woman, a witch no doubt, floating above, right where the third and top floor was.
She was looking down at the rubble, searching for her target. I averted my eyes, matching hers.
There, a young woman wearing black climbed out from the rubble, bloodied with pieces of flesh missing from her, looking straight at her assailant with shimmering golden eyes filled with fury.
She was the lady I served, Lady Runera, a young 16-year-old woman, she wears primarily black clothes that blend with her dark black hair, has piercing gold eyes, and a gorgeous, gentle face. She used to work us to the bone.
Lady Runera turned her head to look around, assessing the damage done. I'm sure she must be upset about the property damage and physical harm she took, but about the workers, I can't say for certain.
As she swept her eyes around, she looked at me and mouthed a word, 'Run'.
Immediately, I turned back and ran towards the woods, the rain hadn't stopped for a moment, and the sound of battle grew louder and louder.
I never knew Runera was a witch.
That was a surprise. I served her for 5 years, since I was 13, and never knew of that, although it's possible she had a guard who could wield magical powers.
But it looked like no one survived the collapse, and she survived a direct attack from a witch.
Running through the thick forest, the sound of heavy rain started masking every other sound
Breathing heavily, I stopped under a tree to catch my breath. It had been 2 hours, and I reached the heart of the forest.
Soon, I will reach a clearing and an open field, then there will be nowhere to run.
The sounds of battle never stopped, in fact, I believe they are growing closer and closer, I'm certain they are following me.
My only hope is being able to cross the field to the territory of the Witch of Dreams, but the distance I would need to cover is hundreds of kilometers.
In my current state, barely being able to walk, much less run any longer, I would collapse long before I reached there.
There is only one thing I can do, keep running.
***
Pain.
It hurts so much.
Just as I was about to be sold by my parents to a wealthy elite scholar of magical arts, this damned wench came in and blew up my lovely home, killing most of my staff, barely anyone survived.
If only I were stronger.
Tears slowly falling down my eyes, those were my people, my property.
How dare she take them away from me! I will make her pay even if it kills me.
Standing up from the rubble, I look head-on towards my enemy.
'I know her, Camei from Laven, despicable woman'.
We met before, when I was 7 and she was 15.
I vividly remember how foul-mouthed and violent she was.
I never thought she would come after me.
As I look around to assess the damage, I notice Larev, the gardener.
How ironic that she would survive this.
I had met with her parents right before she was signed to work for me.
She is part of the Blooms family, a respected scholar family that produced many magical practitioners with plant-based abilities.
She was put here by her parents for the same reason mine brought me here, to protect us from the outside world.
Noticing Camei is about to fly straight at me, I quickly tell Larev to run.
Just as she turns around, Camei shoots a ray of light to pierce my heart.
Is this how it ends for me?
Never having kissed a boy, never fully awaking my powers as a witch, never taste Harold's great food again, to never tease and torment my maids?! Unthinkable!
*Phuhci*.
A sound of flesh being pierced and a burning smell came for a moment and was washed away by the rain.
But no pain came, I open my eyes and there I see my trusty old butler.
The man I consider my father more than my biological one.
Argiel Ness, my trusty butler and bodyguard, has been with me from the moment I was born, he raised me, fed me and taught me all I know.
"Argie!" I call to him, my voice filled with both anger and relief, I'm so glad he lived this.
"Don't come any closer!" he shouts at me.
"Run east through the forest, run as fast as you can, once you reach an open grass field, you will be safe".
This can't be.
I start running, as fast as I can, bleeding from every place losing blood second after second.
Close behind me, Argie is fighting Camei, that wench keeps target me with her rays forcing Argie to shield me with his body, she will pay for this.
Once I get back, my parents will make her pay.
Argie's power helps him to protect me, he can manipulate his size, doing so he shields me from behind and takes any ray that comes my way.
However, that is a physical-based power, Camei isn't going to get close enough for him to attack her, and even if she did, she would target me, forcing him to come to my side and sustaining even harsher wounds.
As I continue to run, I start losing my footing.
I lost too much blood, my vision starts to get blurry, and I can barely see or move.
Just as I fall over and start to lose consciousness, I feel a warm sensation wrapping around me.
Argie must have caught me.
I don't know how long it had been, by the time I opened my eyes, I was lying in a vast field of grass.
Argie! Looking at him as he lies right next to me, a stream of red flows from his back, his right arm missing, eyes closed with a smile on his face.
His body collapsing, my butler, my bodyguard, my father.
I never liked my parents, barely seeing them more than a dozen times a year, I naturally was very starved for affection.
Argie was everything to me, now even that was taken from me.
Crying as I crawl towards his body, a figure appears behind him.
"What an annoyance"
Camei says as she approaches closer and closer.
Barely being able to see her, just her figure and annoying golden blonde hair.
"If only you had accepted my offer a few years ago, none of them would have died, now it's too late for that".
Offer? What offer?
I haven't seen her for almost 10 years?! What is that wench talking about?
"Any last words?"
She crouches down next to me and puts her hand on my head.
I look her in the eyes and shout at her.
"Go to hell!"
At that moment the world seemed to glow, the grass started to get hotter, the sky became brighter, and the rain that washed everything was now being expelled by the strong sun.
Camei jerks her hand away from my head, panicking, and starts to look around frantically, looking for something.
Her head stops, staring at an approaching figure.
Alarmed by the being that has arrived.
"You!! Runera! Trust me, it won't be the last you will hear of me".
Screaming at me as she turns back and runs away.
With that, all the tension in my body released, and I fell into a deep sleep.
***
Puils, a vast grass field spanning hundreds of kilometers.
There, two figures were walking.
A lovely girl who just turned into an adult, with long, wavy auburn hair, green eyes, and glasses, wearing muddy clothes used for gardening filled with bruises and scratches, she was Larev Blooms.
Walking next to a woman much taller than her, wearing a long dress of a dark purple shade, with raven blue curly hair and blue eyes, she is known widely throughout the world as the witch of dreams.
Carrying the bloodied figure of Runera on her back, she heads towards her cabin.
Not long before Runera reached the grass field, Larev was able to run across her, she begged her to save her lady.
The witch agreed and headed towards where Larev came from.
After a few minutes she came back carrying Runera on her back.
"You wanted to ask something of me, child?".
She turns her head to Larev as they reach her small hut.
"No… I only want to thank you for saving us".
Larev answers as she gives a little bow of gratitude.
"Oh, don't thank me just yet. You two still need to pay me back".
She says in a mischievous tone.
"Nothing among us witches is free, everything has a cost. I agreed to help you because there is something I can get from you, always remember that witches that help others most often do it with ulterior motives".
She adds on as she opens the door to her place and steps inside.
The two figures head in, and the cabin disappears shortly after.