§§Broken Sky§§ --A fantasy story-- *A work in progress* ( Ak

-Broken Sky-

Prologue

I was falling. All I knew was darkness... I couldn't even think. And then I felt the rain,

I heard my name, but it was too late- I shut my eyes and knew no more.

-Chapter One-

"Calyn! Up! Get up, girl!" My mother's voice carried strong throughout our home,
painfully loud in my tired ears. "There's work to be done, we must be in town by noon!" I pushed myself off my mattress, groaning as my sore muscles moved. "You awake?" She called impatiently.
"Yes, yes!" Not wanting trouble, I threw on a tunic and some leggings, ran a sleepy
hand through my long red hair, and stumbled into the kitchen. "I'm up." Yawning loudly, I grabbed myself a hunk of bread. "Why the-" I
yawned again. "Rush?"
"You'll see," My mother snapped, tying a kerchief around her dirty blond hair.
"Go get the eggs now, Calyn. I'll sell them later." I grumbled something and wandered out into our yard, groping my way in the pre-dawn dark to the hen house.
When I returned ten minutes later with two dozen eggs and a bleeding hand, my mother frowned at me. "Is it beyond you to be gentle?!" She demanded, hands on her hips. Then her critical eyes fell on my outfit. "No, no! A skirt, Calyn! A skirt!" She pushed my back into the bedroom. "Oh, Calyn! You're a thirteen year old girl! Is it to much to ask for you to dress properly?" I sighed.
Under her cold stare, I pulled off my leggings, stuffed myself into a skirt, and
tucked in my tunic. She handed my a leather cord, and I grudgingly tied back into a long braid. "Are you satisfied now?"
"You'll do. Go about your chores, Calyn, and see that you're ready to leave." She
bustled off, complaining to the empty air. I pushed my way through the load of chores I had- milking our pitiful cow, weeping the floor, watering the wilted garden, feeding the stupid chickens, and fetching water from the creek. By the time I was finished I was breathing hard, and there was a streak of dirt across my face. "Honestly, girl!" Was my only thanks.
I washed quickly, and stood at the door, waiting for my mother. She spent a good half
hour putting on a dress I had never seen her in before: a crimson monstrosity, with lace trim. Where she gotten, I had no idea. Her hair was in a prim bun, and she actually looked clean. it wasn't much of an improvement.
"Isn't this dress splendid? I was married to Wallace in it!" I only grunted, put off at
the mention of my father. "Let's go, then!"
The walk to Casadona was long and dusty. But, mostly, long. By the time we got there my mother was panting, her bun had come undone , and her hair dangling out in odd angles. I rolled my eyes, not out of breath in the least. As she stopped to fix her hair, I plunked down on a tree stump. Mother promptly dragged me up again, hissing, “Do try and act like a lady, Calyn!” I snorted.
Her hair satisfying again, she proceeded to drag me down the cobblestone road, and into a shabbier inn. Grinning broadly, she sat at a table and I followed in suit, for lack of anything better to do. “Calyn… when was your birthday again?” My mother asked awkwardly.
“Two months ago.” She scratched something down on a tattered piece of paper. “Why?”
“Oh, you’ll see.”
“Wonderful.” The tabletop was a light tan color, and covered in a thin layer of liquid. Bored, I drew pictures in the wetness with my fingertip, halfheartedly eating the stew my mother had gotten me. I traced her profile on the table, exaggerating her nose and chin.
“Calyn!” She’d seen the drawing, then carefully erased it with the back of her hand. “This is the last time I’m going to tell you to-” She was cut off by a small group of people entered the inn, talking and laughing.
“Rodern!” Mother exclaimed cheerfully, jumping up. A hairy, burly man smiled at her.
“Kath. I sees you is on time.” Mother seemed flustered.
“Oh, yes. This… this is my daughter, Calyn.” She pulled me up.
“Hello.” I put in. No one seemed to hear me, as the group plus my mother bustled over to another table, talking hurriedly. I followed. Mother was signing something, then informed Rodern my birthday was two months ago. I was thirteen, she said. Rodern nodded at me.
Suddenly, my mother had grabbed my shoulder again, pushing me into the middle of the group. A young man, maybe seventeen or eighteen, stood in front of me, blushing.
“This is Nate. You’re to be married.”

-Chapter Two-




“What?!” Everyone was grinning, especially Nate, his mouth parted foolishly. “Mother!” I hissed, backing up. Her grip tightened.
“You have no idea how much work this took, Calyn. His father is very wealthy.” I could tell she was straining to keep the smile on her face.
“What does that have to do with it?” I tore myself away from her.
“I was only two years older than you when I married Wallace!” She insisted. “You are to marry Nate, and that’s all there is to say.”
“How about this? No.” I hurtled myself out of the inn, running as hard as I could, down the main street of Casadona, which really wasn’t that large of a town. I looked over my should after I’d run past about six or seven buildings. My mother and the extremely large man were stumbling out of the inn, so I took off again.
The two of them were starting to catch up to me, so I turned down a side road and ducked into a little shop. The girl sweeping the floor looked at me strangely, but I only smiled and nodded as I ducked behind a stack of convenient crates. The girl came over and sat down beside me.
“Sh.” I said quietly.
“Can I help you?” She whispered back, frowning slightly.
“Erm… do you mind if I hide behind your crates for a while?”
“I suppose not.” She went back to her sweeping. After a few minutes, my legs were sore from crouching, and my heartbeat had slowed since the initial shock.
She really expected me to marry him? That man… Nate? Why?
‘His father is very wealthy.’

Oh, right.
Money.
Thirteen.
I was thirteen, and she expected me to marry a man I had never met before, because his father was wealthy. Well, money makes it all better, doesn’t it? A new skirt for mother dearest, another chicken. Me living with Nate. How wonderful.
A few more minutes passed, and I forced myself into a standing position. “Thank you for letting me use your crates.” The girl’s mouth hung open slightly, but she didn’t say anything, so I left. There was no sign of anyone I knew in the street, so I walked painfully slowly down the main street again, away from that inn.
I stopped walking in front of another inn, leaning against the porch railing and listening to the voices inside. If I’d had any money, I could have gotten something to eat, but, then, never had any money.
“It is a shame the girl ran off. A pretty thing.”
“Aye, Nate, aye. Her mother was a might upset, though she said the girl would be home by nightfall.” The voices carried out from the inn.
I swore under my breath, one of the many words I had learned from my now-dead father, and turned down another side road, this one not even covered in stones, only an open path of dirt wide enough for a few people to walk on side by side.
Leaning against a short stone wall, I looked up and down the road in the fading light. It was completely empty, except for a pile of trash at the far end. I stared down at my skirt, torn from running up to my knees. I sighed loudly. Too loudly.
Two men, walking by my road, unnoticed, turned to face me.
“Eh, lookey here.” One said loudly, as they walked, stumbling, towards me.
“A girl, all bys herselfs.” Said the other, obviously drunk. “Whatever will we do?” He leered. By then they were standing at the other side of the road, across from me. I glared, and stood up hurriedly.
“Why don’t you just go away?” My voice wavered.
“Nah. The boss wouldn’t like that. Righ’?” One said.
“Right.” I took a step back as they approached.
“What’s wrong, girly?” The first one asked, reaching out his hand wobbly. I promptly slapped it.
“You.” I hissed, my thoughts whirling. Had to get out of here. Had to get help- there was no way to run, they were blocking my path. It was between them… and the possibility of Nate and his family running out to my rescue.
“Wrong answer, girly.”
They were close now, so close. I tried desperately to scream, but one clamped it’s hand over my mouth, and grabbed my arm tightly, yanking me back. Twisting furiously, I tried to bite my attacker, put he was wearing gloves. I heard something whistling through the air, I tried to duck- but there was a hard pressure on the back of my neck, and everything went black.