Cross blooded Elf

The Coth raced through the trees and leapt across the river into the thicket of evergreen leaves, hiding herself from the enemy.
She had been hiding from them forever, but now they chased her with an undying hatred when they caught scent of her blood. Her long blonde hair was neatly pulled back into a ponytail at the base of her neck, and her snake colored eyes glistened in the rising moonlight.
Slowly, she saw the enemy approaching, they all arrived on their stallions. They were of elven species, all in immortality and perfection. The leader she knew well to be Avruelisane, the prince of Gymasinhav. And his hunters, all quick and direct with their shots of pain and suffering.
Each elf had a quiver of gold or silver, but Avruelisane had one of pure ivory, and long shafted arrows that shot far and true, always always hitting their mark. A shiver suddenly shot down her spine, thinking about the painful death she would experience if the prince ever got a hold of her.
But that won’t be happening anytime soon, she thought, smirking beneath the leaves, I am took witty, to graceful for him to catch me.
She had been running, forever running from the elves. Something happened long ago that her parents had told her before they were murdered. The Coths, although unique and strange, were of elven decent and the blood ran through their veins.
She laughed at her foolish family, who so long ago suffered for their ignorance. Her mother, so sharp and quick, died slowly under the mercy of the very prince who wanted her for a trophy.
That will never happen to me, she vowed on that fateful night, I will not die like my family did. I am too smart for that. I can do better. I can show them all, make them see who I really am.
And that’s how it has been, since the day she could remember, they had been running, always afraid of the elves who were so skillful and ready to strike. But Coths were feared by elves also, for Coths had fangs of the vampire, and the agility of a cat.
Now, the elves moved on, the wind being just right, and they had not caught the scent of her. She once again grinned, and her eyes glowed in the excitement of the chase. So many people that had seen her thought only of taking away her maidenhood. but she had morphed before them, showing and giving them what they deserved.
She had been a loner, she wasn’t willing to take the chance of giving up her independence with a man of egocentric thoughts, when she was the one with all the power.
“I am a Coth,” she hissed one night to a man whom wanted her for a pet, “I am not some toy. I am here for one reason, and that is to kill.” She had stood before him as her skin turned from a tan, to a deadly white before him and her teeth grew into fangs. Her ancestors had passed on the ability to shape-shift, and become people who they were not. But no Coth could ever truly hide who they really were. Elves could sense when one was nearby, but she had learned how to bend the rules a bit.
“But I can play,” she whispered, running her lips over his neck, and feeling the blood rush through his veins. “If you really want to.” she was tempted to nip him, but thought twice about it. She did not want to be caught in the act.
He stood trembling, and he did not move while she circled him, and whispered threatening words into his ear. He died that night, after he was licked clean of the blood that kept him alive, after he was dragged into the thicket behind the house. When the towns people found him in the morning, they found two holes in his neck. Just where she pricked him for his precious blood.
She knew the danger of her position, she had threatened people before. But never like this, now her hatred was overflowing, and killing the elves was now her burning passion.
She now had to wait, the elves slowly trotted out of the clearing and deeper into the woods. As long as the wind stayed blowing to the East, then she was safe. But if the wind changed...

%%%%%%%

“Where did that wretched Coth go?” Yusenlie groaned, rearing his horse to face the prince and the other accompanists. “We almost had her.” he looked at the young prince, and felt worse.
“I don’t know,” Prince Avruelisane replied, gritting his teeth in anguish. “But we have been chasing her for too long. We need to get her before she gets to anyone else.”
He recalled when the Coth had murdered one of his man servants. She had snuck up on him when he went to the back of the building to empty the garbage. Immediately she pounced on him, biting him as soon as she had in in her grasp. The prince scratch marks on his servant’s arms, signifying her cat-like claws gripping his upper arms and forcing him down onto the dirt pathway. He had pricks in his neck.
Avruelisane shivered, imagining the way the Coth must have bit him, her ice cold fangs piercing his smooth neck. He could just see her untamed eyes frenzied with a burning pine.
The prince watched his other accompanists. They all had a tenacious look upon their faces, they all wanted this Coth, they had an animosity for her.
Yusenlie had long reddish colored hair, it was held back by a half pony with a strip of leather. He had bright yellow eyes, with small flecks of blue in them. He wore a spiral around his head. His wife, Agemoi, was his father’s principle advisor, she had made many noble decisions for Gymasinhav.
Agemoi was good friends with the nobles, but not being one herself, was unable to succeed in any real government ideas. But she was one her way to becoming a mother, she was pregnant with her first child, Yusenlie was the father.
The other two elves, Tposen and Rexon, were of the King’s soldiers. They both had blonde hair that lay at their shoulders and they wore armor of thick leather, that bound around their chests and strapped at the back.
“We should probably be heading back soon,” Yusenlie said, “We’ve been chasing this Coth for days, we are not going to catch her, we are all fatigued and hungry.”
Avruelisane grimaced, he did not want to go home empty handed. His father expected great things from him, and he wanted the King to be delighted with his work.
“You are right,” the words got caught in his throat, he knew that this Coth was nearby, but he wasn’t sure where.
The leaves in the trees swayed in the trees, the direction of the wind had changed. Maybe they would be able to smell the Coth. The prince put a finger up, signaling silence.
But all he could hear was his own heart thumping rapidly in his chest. He was afraid it would show on his face.
All the men kept their eyes locked on an object, and the prince scanned the forest around him, his keen eyes trying to pick out distinct objects. A piece of her unique clothing, her bright blonde hair, her glowing blue-green eyes.
Crack! “Damn!” Avruelisane heard in a roar erupt from the woods immediately from the trees after the snap of the branch was heard by everyone.
The prince’s horse became suddenly spooked and reared in fear. The prince’s head snapped to the right, and the soldiers raised their bows to the area where the sound came from. All the horses were troubled and pawing the grassy ground, but the men kept their heads still and focused.
Abruptly they saw a crash of branches and shrubs shake as the Coth sprinted through the woods in the opposite direction.
“She’s getting away!” Yulesine screamed and the soldiers leapt off their steeds and entered the woods after the girl without hesitation. “Hurry!”
“Come on!” the prince yelled to his partner who remained by his side, and he led the horses into a sprint away and made a circle around the confiscated area.
Avruelisane pulled his horse and waited, “If I’m right, she’ll be coming out of these trees. But listen for her, she is quiet.” he told his accompanist.
It took several minutes for the Coth to pounce out from her cover.
She surged out of the trees in a feline-like position her fangs were tightly clenched and she hissed at the two men.
Avruelisane aimed his bow at her, “Say good night Coth.” he returned to her hiss. He released his arrow and it seemed to take only a moment to reach her.
He thought he had hit her, but she leapt out of the way to the side with a large bound and a curve of her flexible body. She landed on her hands and feet like a cat, and she laughed.
“How--” he asked and was cut off as Yulesine sent an arrow at her, and she dodged that with grace and agility.
She then spoke to them, standing on her feet, “What do you call the two men you sent after me? Were they your soldiers?” she sneered.
“What became of them? What did you do to them?” Avruelisane questioned, his eyes turned from hard to curious and his chest tightened with the thought of what she probably did.
“Do you know who you’re talking to?” she grinned, she threw her head to the side, sweeping her blonde ponytail across her shoulder. “Of course I killed them. I haven’t tasted blood of a noble for at least a couple of months now.” her eyes melted into a crimson red and the prince suddenly noticed the blood dripping from her long fingernails and the blood stains streaked across her sleeves.
“I wouldn’t of counted on them for a minute. It was so easy to overpower them.” she chuckled softly to herself and she shook her head lightly from side to side.
Avruelisane realized that his senses were screaming at him, and he raised his bow to face her, “Good thing we didn’t have any real threat that we couldn’t handle by ourselves.” he saw out of the corner of his eye that Yulesine had too taken up his bow.
“Oh my prince,” she sighed, licking her scarlet lips, “I am a real threat. It’s been a long time since I have tasted a real royal’s blood.” she laughed savagely and threw her head back.
His chance was before him, and the prince released his arrow. But before it could reach her, she snapped her head to look at him and snatched the arrow out of the air with inhuman speed.
“What’s this? Does the prince want to fight with someone stronger that he?” she questioned to herself aloud. “Well if it’s a fight he wants. Then it’s a fight he’ll get.” her eyes blazed a sultry red and then fell into a stone cold onyx black. She whipped the arrow she had grabbed out of midair into the grass. She hissed with a untamed voice, and crouched low to the ground.