Elixon gasped for air as he sprinted through the dense brush, thorns and trees snagging at his already shabby clothes and ripping pieces from him, exposing tan skin to the cold fall winds. The whistle of an arrow flew past his ear as he narrowly dodged another shot from his pursuers. His side felt numb from the adrenaline, warm blood dripping onto the dirt under his feet. ‘Shit. They’re catching up. I can’t keep running like this.’ Elixon thought to himself as he ducked under the gap of a fallen tree. He was losing too much blood. If he kept going, he’d probably pass out. But the guards wouldn’t let up, hacking through the greenery of the thick forest as they chased him.

This was all Lucians fault. If that bastard of a man hadn’t killed the royal family, his family, and taken over the kingdom, Elixon wouldn’t be on the run from guards that used to be loyal to his father. He wouldn’t be banished, and he wouldn’t be an enemy of every city in Malyriax. Damn that man.

Elixon cursed Lucian in his head, forgetting to watch his footing and tripping, tumbling down into a muddy ditch. He felt the air leave his lungs as he hit the bottom, lying next to a small stream of water. He stumbled to his feet and pressed himself to the side of the ditch. The guards looked over him.

“Where did he go?” One of them asked, but the others shrugged. “Well come on then! Lucian will have our heads if we lose him.” They all nodded and ran off in the other direction.

Elixon slumped to the ground, coughing as he pressed a dirtied hand to the bloody wound on his side. His vision began to blur at the corners. “Shit… no…” Elixon rasped out, before he was left unconscious, laying alone in the middle of the deep woods.