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  That night was cold, dark and stormy. The wind was howling from outside the tainted windows of the building. Wind was crashing onto the wooden roof. The village in the forest, known as Deersheild, was being struck by a horrific storm in the middle of the night. The village people struggled to sleep, from all the noise and sounds. Their only source of light were the dim lanterns and the crackling fireplace. Their ears filled with the sound of wind whistling, rain crashing down, thunder rumbling, pine tree limbs cracking and falling, leaves rustling and small animals making sounds.

  The people of Deersheild met with the sounds of horse’s hooves galloping closer and closer to the village. It sounded like two, three even. This caught the village’s attention. Why would these people be riding out in terrible weather like this? They must have a good reason to do something like this. It could be a message from the capital, Orilon.

  The horse’s hooves stopped galloping and slowed down to a trot, then a slow walking pace, before stopping at the cabin next to the river. The village folk looked out of their bedroom windows with curiosity. They all saw three men in hoods to protect themselves from the storm. The first one held a lantern to light the way to the cabin door. The second man held something in his hands, carrying something and trying to keep it warm and dry. What was this thing he was holding? The way he was holding the object made it look like…a baby?

  Finally, the third man stood in front of the other two, raising his hand slightly to knock on the door. A few moments afterwards, the door finally opened. A young man emerged, with slight facial hair and short brown hair, and looked to be in his 20’s. He had a tired face, and his eyelids were half-shut. As soon as he looked at the men at his front door, his expression changed and became cold and serious. It seems the man knows these guys. He stood up straight and nodded, before the second guy handed over the object in his hands. The villagers could hear the faint sounds of the men talking to each other.

  “Are you sure you want to do this, Otis? This will be a very difficult task.” The second man said, a little concerned.

  Otis nodded and seemed dedicated to this task. It looks like he already knew what the challenges were to accomplish this task.

  “I assure you, there is no need to worry. This child is under my protection. If I fail this task, then I have failed his royal highness. From the letter, this is what Queen Maida would’ve wanted. It was a tragedy that struck her.” He responds reassuringly. The people of the village still could make out what they were discussing, as the loud storm drowned their ears. All they could hear besides that were the sounds of faint mumbling of the men. The villagers looked at the three men and saw them nod slightly, before walking back to their horses and riding off.

  Otis shut the door behind him and walked up to the fireplace, taking a seat in front of it. He placed the object down close to the warm flames to keep it warm. He unwrapped it from its nearly damp blanket, and the face of an infant was a clear image. It had gorgeous lavender eyes and very short light grey rose hair. Otis could clearly tell that this was a female. The baby girl stuck up her bottom lip, scared and cold. She began to cry, with tears streaming down her cheeks. Otis panicked and picked her up close to his chest. As soon as she felt the warm embrace, she slowly died down, and made little groans. He sighed in relief with a ‘phew’ and slightly smiled. The baby was calm now, her soft groans slightly vibrating against his chest. Otis slowly rocked the baby girl side to side, until she fell asleep. He sighed.

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  “I will always look out for you, dear Sonas. You are Orilon’s only hope…but you must stay here until you’re ready. Your mother, the Queen, was aware of this…I am doing this for your own safety…I’m glad no one knows who you are.” He spoke. His voice is calm, but stern.

  He stood up and held the little girl still close to his chest. He sat down on his couch and yawned. He became a little snoozy. His eyelids felt heavy, and soon they shut, falling asleep. The child in his arms was still asleep.

  The heavy sounds of rain continued, thunder rumbling loud and lightning flashing through the curtains, and the wind howling. The two were heavy sleepers, so the storm did not bother them during their slumber.

  As the years went by, the baby girl, named “Sonas”, was raised by Otis in the small cottage by the river. By the time she reached 5, she was a smart girl, and Otis taught her how to fish. The food was short, and only had they received little produce for themselves. Some people of the village were struggling to face the harshness of poverty and tried to save their kids from starving to death, or even freezing during the cold nights. The rooms with the fireplaces would become the children’s rooms. Every day, all night and all day, the hunters would go hunting, while the fishers go fishing, while others would sit around and wait for their produce to arrive.

  Otis promised the three men that he would never tell Sonas who she really was, to keep her safe from those who want to inflict harm on others. According to what Otis knew, Sonas was named before anyone, except the royal family’s most trusted servants could hear. As was told earlier before, Sonas’ mother died trying to save her from those bad people. A life for a life. That’s how it worked in this world. Sonas’ identity was to remain a secret, until she was old enough.

  “Daddy, what’s for dinner tonight?” Sonas asked Otis. Otis always lied to Sonas for her safety. As much as he hated it, it had to be done. Otis sighed and spoke up.

  “It’s a couple apples, tonight, dear. You need your strength.” He replied. He grabbed two apples from the fruit basket and passed it to her, kneeling at her level. “Here. You must be starving, dear. Eat up”

  Sonas hungrily grabbed the apple and took a big bite of it. Otis gently held her hands, gripping the apple. Sonas looked at Otis, confused. “Don’t rush. I know you’re hungry, but if you eat too quickly you could get indigestion. We don’t want that, do we?”

  Sonas shook her head. “No, daddy.”

  Otis smiled, ruffling her hair. “Good girl.” He spoke with a small smile.

  Otis was also hungry; he hadn’t eaten much in a couple days. Everything that he found became Sonas’. This was for her future. Everyone in Deersheild had to provide for their children before themselves.