Chapter 1 -Faster than anyone can catch

Trestyn's footsteps made nasty cracking noises as he made his way through the familiar dark tunnels. He tried not to think of what was under his feet, but instead, of what was at the end of the path. This wasn't his usual route to the village, but he had been clearing out a small collapsed tunnel all morning. After walking some time, it opened up into a great cavern where a few dozen people made their way past him. The ceiling was dimly lit up by a few decorative glowing rocks set in the solid stone above. No one would pay attention to him, a shabbily dressed boy, barely twelve, making his way to a small store.

As he entered, the man behind the counter began to welcome him, before he saw who it was.

"Well boy, what have you brought me today?" The man was tall, with dark skin and dark hair and an arrogant look in his eyes.

Trestyn glanced around. There were many stores that he could come to sell his finds to, most of which would pay him more for them. However, none of the other stores had Jennia. She was the same age as him, with bright eyes and hair lighter than anyone else in the town. She was small for her age, and quicker than anyone could catch. How such an ugly man like Govan had such a pretty daughter was beyond any idea of Trestyn's.

It was no secret why Trestyn visited either, and Goven knew it.

"She's not here boy. I sent her out with the girls to the temple. If you don't have anything for me, get out and don't come back until you got something to buy or sell."

Knowing better than to leave without some kind of exchange, he stepped up to the counter and emptied the contents of his little bag, which Jennia had made for him out of some scrapped black material. A few precious stones fell onto the counter, and Govan began to inspect them.

"What do you want for them, I'll go as much as seven rations."

Trestyn knew immediately he was getting ripped off, however he also knew Jennia would be waiting for him by the temple. Normally, he would haggle to get more food, but Jennia always had some leftover food to give him anyway.

He agreed to the price and left with the stamped tin coins that he could exchange for food. The door to the stone building swung shut behind him as he left. The streets became more crowded now, and a steady stream of people dressed in their nicest clothes headed towards the back of the cavern. Once a week, everyone gathered near the temple to hear Lord Ulward speak.

Lord Ulward lived in the temple, but the temple once housed their Luminti, a person born with the ability to bring light to the towns and villages they lived in, however his light had died out long ago. There was a rumor, that he still remained inside, seated on his pedestal, to remain for all eternity, in the form of stone.

Trestyn maneuvered through the crowd, careful not to look like a pick-pocket. The last thing he wanted was to get thrown out of Jennia's village. She was his best friend and the only one he could remember that ever showed him any kindness. It wasn't long before he caught a glimpse of her, surrounded by her sisters, standing out among them as the only one with bright blonde hair and pale skin. Her sisters were pale as well, but had dark hair like their father, Govan, and their mother, Celtina, who hovered nearby.

Trestyn scooped a pebble off the ground and took careful aim, then threw it as hard as he could. It hit Jennia right in the head and she swung around angrily until she saw him and grinned. A family just then walked past them, getting in the way of his view, and by the time they finished passing by, she had disappeared.

He knew she was coming his way, but she still surprised him with her quickness when he felt a kick to his ankle from behind.

"That one hurt!" She exclaimed.

"So did that!" He gasped, bending down to clutch his ankle.

"Really?" She asked, almost excited.

"Nope." He grinned, letting go of his ankle.

She frowned and kicked him again in his other ankle. He doubted that anything she could do could hurt anyone, ever.

Rolling her eyes, she grabbed his hand and led him through the crowd of people. It was difficult to reach the edge of the crowd, but once they were free of the mob, they turned into a side tunnel, and ran.

It was dangerous to go into the tunnels. The rejects of society haunted it's pathways, along with much more fearsome creatures. Orcs. Goblins. Trolls. Rats. Dwarves. Giants. Things he couldn't even pronounce. But they couldn't be avoided. They were the only way to get from one city to the next. The only way to find lost relics and treasure. And it was also the place where the two of them could explore and have adventures. Ancient cities, lost family homes, and forgotten tombs were scattered everywhere. The further you went away from any village, the more secrets you could find. The more skilled you were, the more you could discover. And the stronger you were, the longer you could survive in the tunnels.

After a few familiar turns in the tunnel, Trestyn stopped her and they stood in a faintly blue glowing corridor. The blue reflected off of Jennia's face and made her eyes seem even darker, the one aspect she did inherit from her parents. The dark eyes.

"How much did my father give you for the stones we found?"

"Not much.."

"How much?"

"Seven rations."

"That's all? That's ridiculous!"

Trestyn didn't reply, but accepted the napkin of food she handed him.

She never ate as much as anyone thought she should, and tended to hide some away to not only get them to leave her alone, but also to bring to him later. At first he felt bad, accepting food from a girl so small, yet she didn't grow, even when her father force fed her, or no matter how much or often she ate. Nor did she get skinnier or weaker by not eating, and she never claimed to be hungry. So, knowing that, he gladly accepted her portions.

He slipped it into his pocket, before turning back to Jennia.

But Jennia was frozen, staring straight ahead down the tunnel.

"Jen?"

Holding still was very unlike Jennia, and he turned to look in the same direction.

And saw nothing.

"Jennia? Are you okay?"

"Something's there." She whispered.

He looked back down the tunnel, still he saw nothing.

"How do you know?" he asked, thinking maybe Jennia was finally losing it. The tunnels have driven many people insane, but usually only after weeks of being lost. They only went exploring a few hours a week.

She didn't answer. He had never seen her look so scared. Not even when her father caught her sneaking out to visit him.

"I don't see anything," he whispered. She still didn't move.

"Do you want to go back?" he asked nicely.

She nodded, quickly, and terrified.

"Okay, we'll go back," he said, trying to be comforting. He took her hand and turned to head back.

At the end of the tunnel though, stepping into the blue light was a creature they've never seen before. It stood seven feet tall, covered in fur with a face like a rat. It wore mis-matching armor that looked like had been pieced together over years. It was a creature the two children had only heard about in old warrior's tales that were told to scare children. They had never even wanted to believe it was real, yet here it was, blocking the quickest way back to the village, and looking directly at them with it's big black eyes..

Immediately, Trestyn pushed Jennia behind his body to protect her, and pulled out his only weapon, a small knife mostly used for cutting up small pieces of food or popping precious stones out of their settings. She gripped the back of his ragged shirt in fear.

Or so he thought.

The beast took a step towards him, and next thing he knew he was being dragged backwards by Jennia. He turned to run properly down the hall, fairly sure that there was another way into the town.

Jennia was running just ahead of him, her light frame making her swift-footed. He followed her past tunnels that were beginning to swarm with rats that were coming out from their hiding places, encouraged by the creature's presence. Jennia tried to round a corner, only to stumble and stop. Trestyn had to slide on the ground to avoid crashing into her. He looked up to see what had stopped her. In the distance, they could see more rat monsters marching down the tunnel. He snatched Jennia by her arm and hid behind the tunnel.

"An invasion," Trestyn said, stealing a glance.

Motioning for her to be quiet, he took her hand and had her follow him into a small hole that led to a nearby tunnel. He recognized where he now was, and he had often used this hole for sleeping when it was unsafe anywhere else. He hadn't intended for Jennia to see his living quarters, but it was their best chance of escape now.

He pushed her through the hole, then followed. It was a decent sized room for any slim fourteen–year-old. Lit up by three dim stones hung from the ceiling. A few blankets lied in one corner, and an extra shirt lay out on a rock. It wasn't much, but it was home.

He led her to the far end of the room where there was a gap they could squeeze through. From there, there was a slightly far drop to a rooftop, safely in the village square.

He went first, slightly jarring his ankle on the impact. Then caught Jennia as she jumped to him. She immediately took off towards the main square, where the entire village was listening to Lord Ulward. Trestyn followed, limping slightly from his ankle. They hurried down the flat stone paved streets, the gathering of people quickly coming closer, until they saw a familiar figure. Govan, Jennia's father. She ran to him, pulling hard on his arm.

"Father! Father! There are monsters in the tunnels!"

"Jennia! Where have you been? We have been looking everywhere!" He immediately grabbed her arm and began dragging her. People were beginning to look at them.

"But dad! There are monsters in the tunnels! They are coming!" She yelled, trying pointlessly to pull away. He turned to look at her pulling her arm hard to look in her eyes.

"Quiet with your games! You know not to joke about such things. Lord Ulward is speaking and you dare not interrupt him!" He hissed.

"But dad! Trestyn and I saw them!" At this, he stopped and glared at Trestyn. However, Govan let go of Jennia's arm. She immediately pulled her arm in close and away from her father and cradled it. As she did however, Govan then hit the tiny girl across the face. Hard. She fell to the ground. Hard.

"What have I told you about being around that boy?!"

A crowd had gathered around them, and everything was now silent. Even Lord Ulward had stopped speaking. He had been interrupted, and he did not like to be interrupted. Trestyn tried to get to Jennia, however she was still too close to Govan, who was giving him a look of absolute hatred.

Govan seemed to notice the crowd for the first time, and looked around nervously. He was a well-known merchant in the city, and it wouldn't be popular with his customers if his daughter was being a public nuisance.

The crowd towards them began to part, and surrounded by his guards, Lord Ulward stepped forward. A very well-dressed man with no beard, and dark hair and light eyes that had in the past made women dote over him. Now he was more aged, having ruled over the small city for many decades, but still looking young for his age. He often came to make speeches and everyone would come to listen. He wouldn't appreciate a couple of children stealing his publicity.

"Forgive me, my lord. My child-"

Lord Ulward held up his hand for silence, which Govan complied to.

Trestyn stepped forward and knelt before the lord.

"My lord, we have seen rat monsters in the corridors coming towards the village!"

The crowd began to murmur, with the sound rising by the second.

However, again Lord Ulward raised his hand for silence, which fell immediately upon the crowd.

"The idea that any monster would dare come to this city, under my protection, without my knowledge, is completely preposterous. You children have gone into the forbidden areas, and been tricked by the terror of the darkness. There is no possibility of-"

Someone screamed.