Metalark

Chapter 2

         Lark was sitting by the fire cooking rabbit stew in a rather large cauldron when she heard the sound of footsteps outside her door. She brushed the hair in her eyes to the side. She hoped it was a man because she had noticed that her songs started to take less effect on people and it worried her. She continued to hum her song. She decided not to do anything, and she'd let them come to her.
         Raven crouched at the base of the window, Star right behind him. He was trying not to think of the last battle they fought against her. His hand wandered to his coat and pulled out a knife. He wanted to be quick about it, but he knew he only had one shot, and he had to make it worth-while. He slowly started to stand up. Lark came into his sights. She was as beautiful as she was before, not much had changed, except now she had an aged lace vial that was once white. Raven could see she was not wearing anything under it. He could see her soft, pale skin. Her breasts could just be seen around her back. Raven aimed the knife...
         Lark knew it was Raven, and she still loved him. She stopped stirring and brought one hand to her breast, feeling her soft nipple, she took the other hand and slid it down her stomach to her waist. She wanted him, and for real, not for sacrifice. She started to whisper. She heard him move his arm, and she turned around and finished the spell. A bright blue light flashed in front of her and when everything returned to normal, the knife was gone. The two stared at each other...
         He couldn't believe it. His knife missed. He realized that the knife had turned to dust when she made that blue flash. He stood there looking at her, stunned. He looked closer at her, and saw her breasts are bigger than they were. He suddenly had this weird feeling to touch them. His eyes wandered to her pink nipples and he started to have feelings that he didn't like to have.
         Star saw him staring and started to get frustrated. She stood up and pushed him to the side and jumped through the window. She hated Lark with all her heart. She turned that hate to her hands to make them into sharp blades. One after another she struck out at Lady Lark. One after another Lark dodges swiftly from side to side before scratching Star's face with her long nails. Her nails cut  a deep wound and tore the soft skin. Star fell to the ground gripping her face in agony, her cheek stung. She looked up at Lark to see her whisper words under her breath. Her eyelids felt heavier and heavier, and she felt sleepy, as if all the weight on the world was on her shoulders and sleep would make it leave. Her eyes closed completely and she drifted off into a deep sleep.
         “Wha-What did you do to Star?” Raven yelled at Lark. He thought she was dead. He jumped through the window and pushed Lark aside and knelt next to Star. He put one hand under her neck and the other he reached across her breasts and grabbed her arm bringing her chest to his. He hugged her whispering for her to get up. He noticed that she was warm and she had a pulse. He slowly put her down and turned around at the same time he stood up. Lark watched him with interest.
         “I told you.” she sighed, “I love you, she just got in the way.” Lark went to the window. It was beginning to get dark. She watched the bright, orange sun set behind the trees. She did love him, she always have. She brought her hand to her heart, which hurt with a sudden sadness.
         Behind her Raven  stood looking at her intently. He could kill her now and be done with it. He could go collect the rest of the gold. He looked down at his hands. “What am I thinking?” he thought to himself. “Would I stoop so low as to kill someone for money?” his head fell into his hands. “I have before, so why can't I now?” so many “whys” filled his head he thought he was going to go crazy. But then, all of a sudden, he felt soft arms entwine into his and he looked up to see the soft, beautiful face of the Lady Lark. She gently laid his head in her bosom, which was warm and soft like a silk pillow.
         “Shh.” she lulled softly. She could tell Raven was troubled by something, and her love for him made her want to ease his suffering. She quietly started to sing the song of sleep...




         Raven rubbed his eyes with his hands. When he finally looked around, he saw he was laying on the moss under the sacred oak tree where he fought Lark for the first time. He was young and foolish then. He placed his hand on the soft moss. It was fuzzy in his hands and smelled of sweet green life. He ran his fingers through it in a circular motion.
         A rustle came from the bushes, and lark walked out. She had very thin white clothes on, which fell from her and floated to the ground. She laid down in the moss and motioned with her finger for him to come nearer. When he was right over her, he sat in the soft moss. When he blinked, Lark no longer laid in front of him but Star.
         She looked around for a moment dazed at her surroundings. Then she crawled on her hands and knees to Raven an put her face only inches from his, her eyes looking up into his. Her lips parted slightly. What was only seconds seemed like forever. Star blushed and dropped her head. Raven did not  move a muscle as she dropped into his lap and fell asleep. He listened to her calm breathing until he himself felt the weight on his eyelids and fell asleep.




         Lark placed the two sleeping bodies in a bed and closed the door behind her as she left. She walked through the woods listening to the sounds of the night. She walked on and on admiring the forests beauty. She soon came to a fallen tree. She was tired and decided to sit down. The tree was covered in moss and had been there for years. Countless times she has sat on this very same tree and watched the stream trickle in front of her. To her regret, she learned that that would not happen tonight.
         As soon as she rested herself on the tree, she heard a loud rustle and grunt. A rope came down over her head and was jammed into her mouth to prevent her from singing. She screamed and squirmed with all her might as a black hood was then placed over her head and her hands and feet tied together.
         “What a fine body!” exclaimed a hoarse voiced man from above her and she felt a hand start to fondle with her left breast. “We wouldn't want it to go to waste!”. She whimpered, but no longer screamed because it was become hard to breath and she was to tired to scream. She felt the hand jerk away as it got smacked with something metal, which she guessed was a sword.
         “Don't touch the merchandise!” warned another man. Lark heard the scraping of metal on leather.
         “Just a little go at it? No one would notice!”
         “No!” she heard one man walk away, “You don't want to get King Volkan mad do you?” the other man had already left, but Lark thought she heard something like a grunt from where the man's footsteps were.
         Rough hands gripped her waist and hoisted her upon his shoulder. She fell limp, no longer caring what happened to her. Though the man;s shoulder was constantly jabbing her in the stomach as they walked, she managed to get some rest.




         When Raven awoke, he realized that he was in a bed, and with Star. He flt happy to be were he was for the moment. He tilted his head to watch Star's sleeping face. She looked so peaceful, so calm. Raven felt like he could sit here forever and watch the rising and falling of her chest. Then he remembered the dream and Lark. He leaped from the bed, throwing aside the covers and ran outside of the door. Lark was no where to be seen. He walked outside, and Lark was never found. He stood at the doorstep of the cave pondering on where she could have gone to when Star walked past him and turned to him. Her eyes said for them to forget her and head back to the town. Raven sighed and nodded in agreement.
         He stood up and stretched. His sleep had been long and it was now late in the morning. “Lets head back to Greentree.” he looked at her and started to walk, “Maybe someone will know of a place where we might find her.”
         “Were do you think you're going?” a voice asked behind them, and they both turned to see the old man from the dusty room.
         “We're going to find Lark.”
         “Are you now?” the old man took several steps closer and grinned. His sallow teeth could be seen through his beard. “Don't you want the other half of you're payment?”
         “What?” Raven and Star both were confused, “But we haven't killed Lady Lark yet.”
         “Oh I know that,” the old man stated. He passed his hand over himself and his age seemed to melt away. The dirty, filthy hair shortened and neatened to a bright blond color. His beard melted away to a small patch on his chin. He stood up taller and straighter and his twisted wood cane turned into a rather fine sword inlaid with  fine jewels. “Your reward is death.”
         “Wha...who are you?” Raven asked as he stepped back.
         “I'm Tolkar, loyal servant to the Lord of Night.” he replied, “We had hoped for Lark to kill you, then we would use her powers to control the world!”
         “Sorry to ruin your plans, but that won't be happening! Starkiller!” Raven put his hand out to Lady Star and grabbed her as she transformed. “i would like you to meet Starkiller.” he said rather smugly.
         “Ha! And I would like you t meet Reaper!” he shouted at he pulled out his sword and held it two hands, pointing it at his foe's heart. The two stood squarely opposite to the other. Tolkar grinned and his shape shimmered before disappearing totally. Raven lifted an eyebrow in amusement and waited. He turned just in time to block Tolkar's down cut. Metal clashed against metal.
         “You're so predictable,” Raven said in a bored tone, “My turn!” Raven twisted his blade around and smacked Tolkar in the face with the end of the scythe. He then caught Tolkar's sword in the nick in the scythe and flung it across the opening to the trees behind them. Lucky for Tolkar, he managed to just barely dodge Starkiller's blade as it swung back around at him. Tolkar stumbled backwards and tripped on a branch sticking out of the ground. Raven knelt down and put the blade of his weapon on his throat. “I think this is a common situation for us...me holding a sharp object to your throat.”
         “What do you want with me?” Tolkar hissed, “Just kill me already!”
         “I want to know something first, where is Lark?”
         “Why should I tell you!”
         Raven grabbed one of Tolkar's fingers hastily and cut it off on the blade of Starkiller. Blood rushed from the wound and Tolkar screamed in pain.
         “Okay, okay! I'll tell, just please...no more!” Tolkar begged.
         “Where is she then?”
         “Sh...Shes at the town of Greentree...” He snatched his hand away and begun to caress the missing finger. Raven removed the blade from his neck.
         “You're to pathetic to kill.” he said behind him as he ran into the forest.