Chapter 7

Raven POV

Dark clouds covered the sky. The morning sun hidden from sight. The rain fell in buckets. The river banks were swollen and overflowing. Strobes of lightning flashed across the sky. The booming thunder sounds made me jump. Pulling the thick blanket around me, I covered my naked body. Amon, in his trousers alone, walked into the cave, his body wet from the rains. He sat next to me, pulling me into his arms. I was shivering and it wasn't from the cold. It was from the fear of being attacked and not being able to defend myself.

"Little Raven. It's okay. I'm here." Amon said in a calm tone, stroking my back.

I didn't answer him. I was still in shock. Amon lifted me, making sure the blanket was securely wrapped around me and place me on his lap. He wrapped his arms around me. I buried my head in the crook of his neck. Closing my eyes, I tried to forget what happened.

Four hours ago

It was the day after I told Amon what I saw and he explained to me what it was. The sun had just risen and I was dressed in a teal blue dress. It had short sleeves and was resting on my knees. The dress was tight around my breast and flared out by the waist. Amon had given it to me yesterday right before he left. He told me to meet him by the river after sunrise. He was bringing a special breakfast for us. Something new he said. Running the comb through my long hair as quickly as I could. I was eager to see him. I'm always eager to meet him. I didn't care that I saw him yesterday.

Running out my hut, I ran to the river, the wind blowing my hair behind my body and also in different directions. So much for combing it out to keep it neat. My dark hair was reaching me by my knees. It was longer, but Amon had literally sliced it off a few weeks ago. It had gotten caught on some branches and wasn't coming free. He had cut it in order for me to get free. I wanted to get to the river before Amon arrived.

A smile broke out on my face when I spotted the river. Its crystal waters sparking like gems in the morning sun. Doubling my efforts, I ran faster to the meeting area. I was suddenly yanked back when my hair got caught on something. Looking back, I saw three men from the village. One of them had a fistful of my hair in his hand.

I tried to pull free but he only yanked on my hair, causing me to fall. Before I could make an attempt to stand, the other two men started kicking and punching me. I did my best to block their attacks until they pinned my arms and legs to the ground. The man holding my hair, released it only to drag a clammy hand down my face.

"The village freak sure grew up." He sneered the words, his breath smelling like the bitter alcohol he had consumed.

His friends laughed, a creepy look coming to their eyes. I'm scared. I've never been afraid of them before but now I am. Trying to kick my legs free only earned me a punch to my eye. I felt my eye start to swell and throb. Biting my lip, I held back the cry of pain that wanted to escape. My entire body was beginning to hurt.

My fear was amplified when one of the men ripped the sleeves of my dress and brought the front of the dress down, revealing my breast. I tried to pull my hands away to cover myself. Amon told me that no man should see my body naked. With the way they were looking at me, I didn't like it. I mean, they actually licked their lips, while their eyes raked my body.

The tremor ran through my body. I was happy to feel it but the pain it brought caused me to freeze up. The men took advantage of that. I watched in terror as one of the men undid his breaches while the other two ripped the dress completely off my body. My breasts were roughly grabbed. From the corner of my eye, I noticed the man stroking his member, hardening it. Bile rose in my throat. His friends spread my legs and I felt their fingers traveling up my legs to my core. Their fingers were shoved roughly into me.

"Amon!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. I didn't care anymore. I wanted them away from me.

I was punched in the mouth, my lips splitting with the impact. I think the men were in shock that I could actually spoke. But the shock expressions on their faces didn't last long. I struggled to get free only to be stomped in the gut. The half naked man knelt between my legs. Grabbing a hold of my thighs, he dragged me down, my back scraping on the ground. He leered at me.

Before he could do anything, a red clawed hand shot out from the shadow of the trees and slammed down on him. His entrails flying everywhere and his blood splattered across my body. His friends screamed and tried to run. Amon was quicker. He grabbed them, flinging them across the river. A loud smack was heard. The water started to turn red.

Moving to a sitting position, I dragged my body away from the bloodied mess by my legs. By the river, I noticed the men had hit the rocks, smashing their heads on impact. Seconds later, Amon rushed out of the trees in his human form. I had brought my knees up to my chin, my body shaking. He removed his jacket and draped it over my body before picking me up.

Cradling me to his chest, he walked away from the dead bodies. The sky darkened, black clouds hiding the sun. The rains came, slow at first, then it steadily picked up, becoming a downpour. Amon hunched his shoulders and held me closer, protecting me from the rain.

We entered a cave. Amon set me down. I gripped his shirt when he tried to release me from his arms. I shook my head and buried my face in his clothes. He wrapped his arms around me, almost squeezing me. After a long while, Amon released me again. This time I let him go. He left the cave.

While he was gone, I took in my surroundings. The cave I was in was huge. From what I could see, the cave had two entrances; the one we came through and another to the east. That one was linked to a river. The part of the cave I was in had steps leading to the river. The cave was cold and dark and damp. I'm guessing it's all thanks to the river.

I was so focused on watching the river, that when the tremor ran through my body, I cried out in pain. The next thing I knew, Amon was in front of me, his hands cupping my face. "Little Raven. What's wrong?! What happened?!" His voiced sounded panicked. I've never heard him sound like that before. I didn't answer him. I couldn't. The pain I felt wasn't allowing me to. Amon didn't push me for an answer. Nor did he wait for one. He lifted me again, taking me to the river. He walked down the steps, straight into the water. The water was surprisingly deep. Once the pain left and I was able to move, I cleaned my body. My injuries had started to heal already. I cleaned the blood and dirt off. It felt like my entire face was swollen. My core felt sore. I'm glad I didn't bleed. Amon explained to me about virginity and those things pertaining to sex. I'm glad I was still a virgin. I stood up from the water on shaky legs. Amon once again lifted me, taking me back up the steps. We went further into the cave, away from the entrance and the river. Setting me down, Amon handed me a thick blanket, before he got a fire going. Even in the depths of the cave, the loud boom of the skies could still be heard. I watched as Amon removed his shirt and sat next to me. Leaning against his side, I tried to relax. Reality set in. I was almost raped. Those men weren't just going to hurt me, they were going to rape me. If Ami didn't arrive when he did, I would have..... I shook my head trying to clear it. Ami had moved from next to me. He wasn't far. I just knew he wouldn't leave me. "Ami." I whispered. My voice sounding hoarse. He reentered the cave, the rain water dripping off his half naked body. A shiver ran through me and I pulled the blanket tighter around me. Sitting next to me, Ami lifted me onto his lap and wrapped his arms around me tightly. I buried my face in the crook of his neck. Ami leaned down and kissed my temple. "I'm here Raven. I won't let anything happen to you." He whispered against my hair. Nodding, I stifled a yawn. It wasn't that late, yet here I was tired. It didn't help when Ami started to gently rock me and his body heat was adding to my sleepiness. Giving in, I closed my eyes and drifted. ********** I woke up in the blanket, on an extremely thick blanket. The blanket I was sleeping on was placed close to the fire to keep me warm. Sitting up, I looked around the cave for Ami. I found him sitting by the entrance, looking out at the still pouring rain. "Ami..." From the moment I called his name, he stood up and came over to me. He touched my face, brushing the hair from my eyes. Leaning forward, he touched his forehead to mine. After a few seconds, he pulled back. "I brought you something to eat. It's nightfall already and you haven't eaten anything since last night." He said bringing forward a tray of food for me. On the tray was bread, cheese, jam and assorted fruits. We ate in silence, my head resting on his shoulder, his head resting on mine. "Ami, thank you." I said after our meal. Looking down at me, he smiled. "I will always save you little Raven. I'm just glad I made it in time." Amon kept his hand on my face. His thumb moving to trace my lip. I watched as he licked his lips, his eyes looking down at my lips. Unconsciously, I raised my hands, placing them on his shoulders, bringing myself closer to him. His free hand moved to my hips. The blanket dropped from around me. Even though I was naked, Ami's gaze never left my lips. He never looked at my naked body. Without a second thought, Amon leaned closer, his lips touching mine. Third person POV Back in the village, a man was running towards the village chef house. He kept looking back over his shoulder like he was expecting someone or something to come after him. He was drenched due to the rain that refused to let up. It was close to midnight but he knew the chef would still be awake. He didn't bother knocking, he pushed open the doors until he entered the master chambers. There he found the village chef having sex with one of the women. Halphas was aware of the man standing behind him, but he didn't stop. He continued to pound in and out of the woman, her cries of pleasure filling the room. The man just watched the scene before him, growing hard in his breeches. After he had reached his climax, Halphas turned to the man. "Ipos. Talk to me. Is it done?" "Well I did as you told me. I followed the girl." Ipos began. "She was heading in the direction of the river. The other three men that you told to follow her did. They were going to rape her like you told them to, but then the beast came. He killed them. Then a man came and took the freak away. I did not follow them. I was too afraid that the beast would kill me as well. I believe the girl is no longer alive sir." Halphas listened intently to what Ipos said. So the freak was dead. He was glad. At least he wouldn't have to look at her in his village again. Looking out the window, he saw a shadow run past his house. Getting up, he peered out. He saw Raven running towards her hut. Her black hair blowing behind her as she tried to run from the rains. Halphas marched up to Ipos and slapped the man across his face. "You believe she's dead?! Then why is she still in my village?!" Halphas proceeded to push the man onto the ground and kick him mercilessly. All Ipos could do was protect his face from the lashes. Leraje entered the room. "I think that's enough Halphas." He said stopping the chef. He helped Ipos up, handing the man a cloth to wipe the blood from his mouth. "So what will you do now chef? Your plan didn't work." Halphas glared at him. "I don't know. All I could do now is wait. If the freak is alive, then she may have whored herself to the beast." "Then we proceed as planned. We sacrifice her to the beast when it's time." Leraje said grinning. "Fine. You win. But I will have her before then." Halphas said, smirking. Leraje sighed, shaking his head. His only thoughts were that the chef would never change.