One dark summer night, the smoky air choked the peaceful village of Baybeer. The bloody ground defiled a once-rich agricultural region in a country called Rebten. Most of the village's inhabitants had died or were dying, and a tall, armored swordsman named Hadigama slaughtered the handful that remained. 

Without flinching, Hadigama and his followers violently maimed the villagers and caused them terrible misery before finally ending their earthly lives. A few others ran around and set various huts and tents on fire in an attempt to obliterate the tiny town from the face of the earth. 

"For the glory of Anjaflic and the prosperity of Logolia!" Hadigama gave a mighty cry and plunged his blood-drenched sword into yet another victim's quivering body. 

"Amen!" Hadigama's executive officer Govlo shot off an arrow into a dying corpse several yards away. 

As Hadigama pulled his sword out of the corpse, he looked around the burning village for more victims. Satisfied that all were dead, he sheathed his sword and turned to one of his nearby men. "Have you finished your search of the village?" 

The man nodded vigorously. "Yes sir. That house over there is the last one still standing." 

Hadigama's eyes slowly scanned over to the house the man identified. It was a plain blue house with a large front yard and a horse stable on the side. No light shone through the windows. The swordsman's eyes squinted as he waved Govlo and a few men over and trudged toward his target. 

Half a minute later, Hadigama and his men stepped over a crushed section of the gate surrounding the front lawn before slowing their pace and glancing around carefully. 

Hadigama spun to his left. "Timethe, Hendell, and Jahn, go ahead and make sure there aren't any unwanted surprises waiting for us. Especially make sure nothing's hiding behind those bushes." 

Hadigama, Govlo and the remaining men hung back while the three men investigated. Only a minute later, they all came running back. Hadigama looked expectantly at Timethe. "Well?" 

Timethe nodded vigorously. "Yes sir. There are no—" he ended abruptly with a loud, pained grunt as a sharp arrow buried itself in his shoulder. 

Hadigama's head snapped over in the direction the arrow had come from. His eyes landed on a petite brunette woman standing to her full height in a small shrub the men had overlooked. She held a bow in her hand and carried a quiver of arrows on her back. Hadigama growled bitterly as she fitted another arrow to her bowstring. He immediately waved his hand forward and five of his men rushed forward at their attacker. 

A few arrows flew at the woman, but she ducked and rolled evasively. She then riveted an arrow squarely in the middle of one man's chest. One of the other men stood dumbfounded for one long second before he dropped his weapon and ran away like a coward, screaming loudly the whole while. 

His comrades continued the attack with determination, their fear of Hadigama's wrath even greater than their fear of this deadly new adversary before them. One swordsman rushed forward with his weapon outstretched, but when yet another arrow pierced his belly, he screamed out in agony. He fell to the ground doubled over in pain a moment later. 

Hadigama muttered several foreign profanities before calling Govlo closer to himself. Once his executive officer was at his side, the two slowly approached the skilled archer, stopping a few yards away to be safe. 

"Hello little lady," Hadigama spoke condescendingly in a deep, booming. "I suppose you want to be the hero of Baybeer. But to be honest, there's not much of Baybeer left to save." 

The archer stared back at Hadigama without the slightest trace of fear in her dark brown eyes. Even as the rest of his men closed in a half-circle around her, she showed no sign of backing down. Finally, she opened her mouth. "I'm not trying to save Baybeer, sir. I'm protecting my family!" With that said, she fitted an arrow to her bowstring and fired at a joint in Hadigama's armor. 

Hadigama reached out and caught the arrow with a gauntlet-covered hand, snapped it in half, and scoffed at the archer's attempt to kill him. "Pathetic. Three dozen men surround you at this very moment, and you refuse to back down?" 

The archer nodded. "That's right, sir." 

Hadigama motioned for his men to fire at the archer, and soon arrows whizzed at her from all directions. Astonishingly, she managed to dodge every one, whether by side-stepping, rolling, or occasionally taking cover behind a nearby bush. And as if that wasn't enough, every arrow she fired back hit exactly where she intended, whether on a broad chest or a man's nose. By the time she had depleted her quiver, only Hadigama, Govlo, and two weary swordsmen remained. Without flinching, she yanked some of her arrows back out of her opponents' dead bodies and stared challengingly at Hadigama. 

Hadigama saluted the young woman mockingly. "We'll be going, little lady. I know a worthy opponent when I see one." 

"So that means you'll leave me and my family alone?" 

Hadigama shook his head. "I wasn't referring to you. I was referring to them." He pointed to a party of swordsmen galloping over a hill not too far away. "Farewell, and good luck rebuilding Baybeer." he taunted as he and his few remaining men rushed off into the shadows. 

Immediately after Hadigama and his men were out of sight, a middle-aged man and woman busted out of the house behind the victorious archer. 

"Kahiri!" exclaimed the man in a tone both loving and scolding at the same time. "I told you to lay low and stay inside with us, did I not?" 

Kahiri lowered her eyes sheepishly. "Yes, Dad." 

"Well you'd better thank the Lord he didn't punish you for such disobedience. You could've died in a heartbeat. How'd you do that anyway?" 

Kahiri shook her head, at a loss for words. "I ... I have no clue. I was so scared, and I was so close to panicking ... but for some reason I didn't. It was almost like I was acting on instinct, with barely any thought put in on my part." She paused in thought. "But like you said, thank God I made it through all that." 

Her father nodded gravely, but he said nothing more. 

Kahiri's mother threw her arms around her daughter a moment later, her voice trembling too much to speak coherently. Once her mother released her, Kahiri ran to catch up with her father as he inspected the fallen bodies. 

Kahiri's father growled. "Damn Yugdabs." he muttered angrily as he rubbed a red symbol crudely painted on one fallen man's helmet. 

Kahiri frowned. "What are Yugdabs, Dad?" 

Her father shook his head. "Ah, forget it. You're too young. I won't worry you with such things." 

Kahiri waved her hands passionately as she spoke. "Dad, I'm twenty years old, and besides, these people destroyed our entire village. I think I deserve to know!" 

"Well, you see—" 

"Excuse me folks, but what happened here?" abruptly began a voice accompanied by the sound of several sets of hooves hitting the ground. 

Kahiri and her dad looked up at the man speaking and gasped at the sight of several Kaborian knights with drawn swords and shields in their hands and leather armor strapped around their bodies. The man in the front sported dark blond hair that was the same length as his well-trimmed beard. 

"I ... I believe it was a Yugdab attack, sir." Kahiri's father stuttered several seconds later. 

The lead knight nodded slowly as he dismounted his horse and sheathed his sword. "It sure looks like it." Then with a warm, charming smile, he held out his hand. "I'm Erok Fyervor, a knight of the Kaborian Republic. And by the way, I saw your archery skills from way back, and I was very impressed. You're the best I've seen in a long while." 

Kahiri smiled sheepishly up at Erok as she shook his big, meaty hand. "Thank you, sir." 

Erok simply nodded in response as he stepped away to take a closer look at the fallen bodies nearby. After a moment of examination, he turned to Kahiri's father. "So, from what you could see, what were they after?" 

"I have no clue, sir. They ran off the moment they saw you approaching." 

Erok nodded again. "Typical Yugdabs." 

"Wait a minute," Kahiri began, "who are the Yugdabs though? That's what I'd like to know." 

Erok sighed and sat down on a crushed helmet. "Well, to tell the truth, nobody really knows. They're warriors, and very good ones at that. They show up at a village, kill everybody in it, and leave. As for their motives, I have no clue what they are. All I know is they need to be stopped before all of Rebten is ruined!" 

Kahiri heartily nodded. "Indeed! Imagine the devastation if this keeps happening!" 

"I know. Unfortunately, their attacks are becoming more and more common. Baybeer isn't the first village this has happened to, but this is the worst I've ever seen. Usually they just kill a bunch of people and move on, but here they've even taken the effort to burn things down too." 

"Well, can't the army be sent out to crush them once and for all?" 

"If only it were that simple. Unfortunately, it's a bit difficult to send out a legion of soldiers when you have no idea who exactly your enemies are. That's where the Tereslars come in." 

Kahiri frowned. "What's up with all these unfamiliar terms? Who are the Tereslars?" 

Erok smirked. "Well, it's a long story. This one strange old man showed up at the Kaborian Senate's meeting last week, claiming that his village had been raided by the Yugdabs. Despite his wounds, he'd followed them all the way to their hideout in Haspodia. Though skeptical, the Senate established us Tereslars to follow him, verify his report, and protect the people. I am one of their members, as well as their recruiting officer." 

Kahiri nodded, but she said nothing more. 

"That being so," Erok began after a moment's silence, "I'd like to request your help, young lady. I believe your archery skills could be very valuable to the team." 

Kahiri shook her head. "I couldn't be of any use to you. I'm just a simple farmer girl with absolutely no military experience. I don't even remember the names of half the ranks!" 

Erok smirked. "Neither did I when I started. Besides, I think a non-military perspective could be a great asset for the team." 

"Now wait a minute," Kahiri's father interjected, "you have the nerve to think you can just steal my daughter right from my hands without my approval? I don't think so!" 

Erok calmly shook his head. "No sir, it's not like that. This is only a humble request from one of Kabor's honorable knights. If your daughter is an adult, neither you or I can legally interfere with her decision." 

After a moment of thought, Kahiri spoke. "You know, this offer sounds interesting. I think I might actually take it up." 

Kahiri's father looked at her with pleading eyes. "Is this really what you want, Kahiri? This is no better than the military." 

"When am I ever gonna do anything with my life? Am I gonna spend my whole life on your farm, waiting along for some man to take me away to work on his? I'm 20 years old. I'm ready to do something I wanna do for once." 

He opened his mouth to say something, but then he closed it as if he'd lost the argument. "Very well then. When do you set off, Sir Fyervor?" 

"Daybreak." Erok paused for a moment and scratched his beard. With a look as if he'd just realized something, he added, "Of course, I never did get a definite answer to my question." 

"I am going." Kahiri put her hands on her hips and glanced challengingly at her father. 

Erok nodded. "Very well then. Sleep well tonight. It may be your last good night for many moons. Be ready by the time the sun crests the hilltops in the morning." 

"And what about us?" Kahiri's mother asked, her voice dripping with worry. 

"I'll keep my knights stationed here for your safety until help starts arriving from Conbarr. I'll escort your daughter to the capitol to join the rest of the team." 

Kahiri's father nodded. "Well, it's time we all got some shut-eye. Do you or your men need anything before we go down?" 

Erok shook his head. "No thank you. We've got everything we need. Have a restful night." 

"I'm not sure how restful it'll be to sleep in the midst of a nightmare, but thanks." the stubborn farmer grunted before shutting the house door behind himself. 

With an amused smirk on his face, Erok turned around to join his fellow knights in their tent. 

********************

In the morning, Kahiri packed a large bag before eating a quick breakfast with her parents. When she saw the sun peeking over the hilltops out the window, she knew it was time to leave. 

Kahiri nodded to her parents. "Well, I guess it's time for me to get going." 

Her mother stood up first. "Goodbye, Sweetheart." she said tearfully as she hugged her daughter. "I love you so much." 

"You too, Mom." Kahiri squeezed her mother's body with all her might. "I promise to visit as often as I can." 

After Kahiri let go of her mother, she threw her arms around her father. "Farewell, Darling." he said with great emotion. "I pray God protects you from harm." 

Kahiri smiled sweetly at her father. "Thanks, Dad. I love you." 

"You, too." 

With that, Kahiri touched the handle of the front door before looking back once more on the dear, familiar house she'd always called home. If or when she'd return to it, she had no clue. After taking a deep breath, she stepped outside and shut the door gently behind herself. 

A few minutes later, Kahiri found Erok, stood at attention in front of him, and gave him a nod. "Good morning, sir." She smiled respectfully as their eyes locked. 

Erok gave her a charming grin in return. "Good morning. Now you didn't give me your name last night. Would you mind—" 

"Kahiri." she interrupted, offering her hand. "Sorry about that. Must've been my nerves or something." 

Erok nodded understandingly. "That's to be expected." With long strides, he headed for the barn. 

Kahiri nodded and fell in step behind the blond knight. 

As they entered the stable a few moments later, Erok turned his head back. "You do have your own horse, right?" 

Kahiri nodded and smiled proudly as she put her hand on a shaggy gray horse in the first stall. "Yep, Dusty's the sweetest horse that could ever be." 

Erok smiled pleasantly as his eyes spotted his own horse two stalls down. "Now that's debatable." he quipped as he unlatched the stall gate. Then he gave his steed a quick pat on the head before leaping onto his back and riding him outside. After Kahiri saddled Dusty and packed some supplies for him, they joined Erok, and the two horses trotted down the stone path side by side. 

******************** 

Alright, so there you have chapter one! Even I get chills whenever I read the first part of the chapter, so I'm assuming that means I did something right in writing it. XD

Anyway, if you enjoyed this chapter, please vote, comment, and consider giving me a follow. I'd really appreciate it. :D

I don't have a solid update plan for this book (mostly because I only have about 7 chapters pre-written), but I think I might try doing Friday updates. Again, updates will probably end up being rather sporadic, but I hope you enjoy the story enough to bear with it.

Comment on this line if you want me to put you on a list to PM whenever there's a new chapter.

Finally, I have a couple questions! First, who's your favorite character so far, and why? (Don't worry, I won't hold you to it if things change.)

Also, totally unrelated, but I'd like to get to know my readers more. What's your favorite color?

Have a great day, night, evening, or whatever! I hope to see you in the next update. :)