Chapter 2: Sythenra's Story
She was a young elf when she first noticed him, only fifty-five. Sythenra had been training in the use of the dark spirits, as instructed by her parents. Most of her childhood had been spent learning the arts of shamanism, and scouting from her father. As is customary with most dark elven youths, she was tested at the age of fifty to command the spirits of darkness, and her first test failed. Five years later, she had prepared to take the test again, after feeling she had gained enough confidence. Kiran crossed her path for the first time here; he was charismatic, charming, and seductive.
* * *
The young dark elven girl was waiting in the forest, just aside from the traditional place of summoning that was favored by the dark elves for the test. Sythenra's father, Ketri, was to oversee the test, and many members of her family and other dark elves had gathered to witness the test. Kiran was one of them. While Sythenra made her final preparations just off the side of the rocky outcrop she would perform the summoning on top of, Kiran just happened to be standing nearby. Nervously, she cast him a smile, recognizing his good looks and the charisma he seemed to exude. She didn't expect him to smile back, but he offered her his most charming grin of encouragement and stepped toward her.
"Don't worry, Sythenra, I'm sure you'll do fine this time," he said, laying a hand on her narrow shoulder.
Sythenra's coppery cheeks glowed with a faint blush. "How... how do you know my name?" she asked.
Kiran shrugged. "Overheard the others talking, that's all," he replied simply. "I'm Kiran, my friend Derim is a friend of your family's, and I'm just tagging along with him. I hope you don't mind if I'm a witness."
"No, no, of course not," Sythenra replied, lowering her gaze and meekly tucking a lock of her white hair behind her long ear.
"Be strong. You must have a forceful command over the spirits," he advised her.
"I know," she replied, giving a slight nod.
It's not like I haven't been through this before... she thought. Lifting her head, she offered Kiran a broader, more confident smile.
"Good," he replied, returning a smile and patting her shoulder. With that, the handsome dark elf stepped back into the crowd, and Sythenra stepped up upon the boulder to successfully perform her summoning. Perhaps it was the five years of training, but she liked to think that it was Kiran's encouragement that helped her succeed this time.
* * *
Ketri had noticed her attraction to Kiran then. He knew a bit of the man, and none of what he knew, he liked. Kiran had a reputation as a womanizer, and that was the last person Ketri wanted around his daughter. Then, he had encouraged her to focus on her training as a ranger so she could be recognized by the leader of the rangers, Myrela. Sythenra, reluctantly, had agreed that her training was more important, but the more Ketri discouraged her from pursuing Kiran, the more desirable he became. Sythenra made sure to keep an eye on Derim's home to watch for Kiran's comings and goings so she could get close to him. From time to time, they'd cross paths, and he was always so friendly. At times, she wondered if he was just being nice, or if perhaps he really did think she was attractive. Sometimes, she'd catch glimpses of him with other women and her heart would sink, but it seemed no relationship he got into lasted. Sythenra always wondered if one day, maybe she could be that woman to finally settle him down...
It wasn't until she was eighty, twenty-five years later, and after becoming a full-fledged ranger, that Sythenra made her move.
* * *
Kiran had come to visit Derim, and brought with him a bottle of fine dark elven hot wine. Sythenra crossed his path, yet again on the way to Derim's house and saw him carrying the bottle. As she walked toward him, she offered him the same sweet smile she normally did, and he grinned back. He paused in his tracks, expecting their usual exchange, and Sythenra met him.
"Hello Sythenra," he greeted her warmly.
"Hello Kiran," she replied. A grin grew on her own lips. "I was accepted as a full ranger by Myrela a few days ago," Sythenra proudly announced.
"Well, congratulations," Kiran said. He paused for a moment, then glanced down at the bottle he held by the neck. "Perhaps we should celebrate?" His eyebrow cocked up as he lifted the bottle to show her.
Sythenra blushed at his offer, he needed little encouragement. Though, perhaps it was still innocent... She was none too familiar with alcohol, aside from an occasional glass of wine with supper, but she knew well enough of its affects on those who imbibed too much. Perhaps that could be useful to her with him.
No, that's awful! she chided herself. "Thank you," she replied. Again, as she always did when overwhelmed by his attention, dropped her eyes to the ground and pulled her hair back behind her ear nervously. "I would... like that."
"Then come on up to Derim's, we'll toast to your success!" Kiran crowed, raising the bottle in the air. He then casually draped his arm around her shoulders, turned her about, and marched her straight to Derim's home.
Once inside her neighbor's small treehouse home, there was some small talk between Kiran and Derim, and Sythenra partook in drinking the strong hot wine. It was much more powerful than the normal wine she was used to drinking, and she didn't quite anticipate the burn that made her cough after drinking her first shot as Kiran instructed. She was ashamed of her naïveté, but Kiran was patient with her. Derim, however, seemed to fade into the background. Maybe he knew what was blossoming between the two, and didn't care to interfere.
After several drinks, Sythenra found herself leaning against Kiran's chest, his arm around her shoulders, as they sat around a lantern. The alcohol seemed to give her the confidence she needed, and looking up at Kiran, she finally spoke what was on her mind for so many years. "Kiran... I love you," she whispered.
Kiran's eyebrow cocked up again and a grin turned up the corner of his lips. On the other side of the lantern, Derim coughed slightly and rose to his feet. "I'll uh... give you two some time alone," he murmured, then headed back to his room, shutting the door behind him. Sythenra barely noticed him as the man she admired and desired so deeply stared down at her with that perpetually confident grin he always seemed to have.
His hand moved up to stroke her cheek with his thumb, and speaking through that smirk, he replied; "That's quite a confession."
Sythenra glanced away as her heart pounded in her chest. "It's just what I feel," she explained as simply as possible. Kiran's fingers moved under her chin and tipped her face back up. Before she could speak again, his lips pressed against hers and she melted in his arms.
It didn't take much for Kiran to convince her to come back to his home, a small treehouse on the outskirts of the village. At first, he wanted to go her home, but as she still lived with her parents, he decided that his place would be better. Leading her by the hand up to his door, Kiran pulled Sythenra inside. From the moment the door shut, their lips locked. From there, it was straight to Kiran's bed.
In a flood of passion, clothes were tossed carelessly aside. Sythenra did not protest, and Kiran moved hastily until he tore through her maidenhood, not expecting the barrier. When the young dark elf gave a yelp of pain, Kiran paused. "You... You're a virgin?" he asked as he leaned above her on his hands and knees, her legs locked around his hips, clinging to him in pain.
"Well... I was," Sythenra looked up at him, an expression of pain and embarrassment on her face. She bit her lip, trying to distract herself from the pain.
"You should have told me," Kiran said softly, stroking back hair from her face tenderly. "But you must bear through it." He spoke with a tone of experience, and she, naïve and unsure of herself, listened. Kiran continued, no change in his pace, and eventually, the pain did subside a bit. Sythenra was not given a chance to further complain, but she indeed did bear through it, until he finally came and collapsed beside her on the bed.
Sythenra pulled herself against his chest, wanting to embrace her first love, but after a few moments, Kiran complained that he was tired, and could not sleep like that. Despite her desires to be close, he simply turned his back to her and drifted to sleep. It wasn't the romantic ending she always envisioned.
The next morning when she woke, Kiran moved atop her, covering her with kisses and plying for more sex. Sythenra, however, had been left sore and disenchanted by the night before.
* * *
The dark elven man leaned over her, arms planted on either side of her, his long flaxen blonde hair brushing her shoulder as he kissed across the opposite shoulder. Sythenra groaned as she drew into consciousness. "Kiran... stop. I don't want to," she spoke, her voice deep and raspy from sleep.
"Are you sure?" he whispered, his lips moving down her chest to the swell of her breast. Sythenra pulled her arm out from under the blanket and pushed him back by the chest. Kiran rose up to look down at her, gaging her expression.
"Yes," she groaned, her voice firm, her disapproval clearly evident. She turned her head to the side to avoid his gaze, looking to the floor to pick out her clothing from the scattered articles. "Now get off," she added, pushing at his shoulder. He gave way slightly, but seemed to change his mind as his hand began to slide over her slim figure over the blanket.
"I promise you, it will be more enjoyable than last night," he spoke, his charming grin returning. Sythenra wasn't convinced though. However, he leaned in and began to kiss her neck while his hand moved up her arm, coming to pin her hand gently against the mattress.
However, no matter how gentle the grasp, Sythenra felt a chill up her back at his fingers wrapping around her narrow wrist. Suddenly, the ranger rolled out from beneath Kiran, yanking her wrist free. Taking the blanket with her, she yanked it out from beneath him. Kiran gave a slight chuckle as he rolled onto his back on the bare mattress. Rolling onto his side, he posed for her, displaying his manhood in all its full glory.
"Ugh," Sythenra scoffed.
This only gets worse, she thought to herself as she wrapped the blanket around her body. Without saying anything further, she bent over to begin picking out items of clothing off the floor.
"Why bother hiding? I've seen every inch of your body now," Kiran purred from the bed. He shifted to sit on the edge, waiting for Sythenra to give him her attention.
"I'm going home," she replied, having found her pants and shirt. Now she had to find where he had tossed her undergarments last night...
Kiran suddenly rose off the bed, and as she rose up to face him, he pressed himself against the front of her body, wrapping his arm around her back. She was much slimmer than he, though rather close in height, however he had no trouble lifting her off her feet and pressing her against his bedroom wall. "You shouldn't tell your father where you were tonight," Kiran spoke, leaning in to kiss her neck again. His free hand moved behind her head, his fingers sliding through her white hair at the nape of her neck. "He'll never understand our love," Kiran purred in her ear after his lips broke from her neck.
Sythenra strained against him, at first expecting him to let her go, but she soon began to panic when he didn't budge. His arm slid out from behind her back quickly, like a snake strike, and suddenly snatched the protective barrier of a blanket wrapped around her. He didn't remove it completely, but it did bare her legs, just enough to fill her with fear. His hand then grasped her thigh, forcefully lifting it. "Stop it!" she shouted, pushing back against his shoulders. He didn't move again, he pressed his weight against her as she struggled. "KIRAN! STOP!" she shrieked as she felt him move between her legs.
He didn't respond, only pressed further, and though her panicked attempts at freeing herself were vain, when she felt she was nearly defeated, a brief moment of clarity reminded her that she could do more than push. Drawing back her arm until her elbow touched the wall, Sythenra's fist then shot forward, landing a sharp, quick blow on his nose.
It worked. Kiran released her just before he could penetrate, staggering back as he reached for his nose. "FALARIS!" he cursed. Sythenra snatched the blanket still secure around her chest, and grabbed her pants and shirt from where they had fallen when their bodies parted. The elven woman dashed for the door, slamming it behind her. It gave her just enough of a barrier to buy her enough time to snatch her boots off the floor near his front door. As she yanked open the door of his house, he opened the bedroom door. She glanced back just enough to see him still nude, clutching his nose while blood poured down over his lips. Sythenra slammed the door, and carrying her belongings, hurried down the stairs as fast as she could.
Kiran didn't follow once she left his house. Though still overwhelmed with anxiety, she ran a fair distance, still wrapped in his blanket, then ducked behind a thick tree trunk. Her breath came raggedly, her heart pounded, and she slumped down against the trunk until she was sitting on the roots. There was no sound of him stalking her. The leaves on the forest floor did not make a sound, there was no obvious disturbance in the spirits to signify a summoning of Sylph to cover the sound of his tracks. As she began to calm down, she realized that he probably wouldn't dare making his attempt at raping her any more public.
Oh Falaris, he almost raped me... Sythenra suddenly realized. She clutched the blanket at her chest desperately, feeling her heart pounding behind her small breast. Then, another realization came to her. She was wrapped in his blanket, the blanket they had 'made love' under, the blanket was saturated with his scent, his sweat, his seed... and now that she thought about it, probably her blood, and maybe even the sweat and blood and tears of any number of other women that he no doubt shared his bed with. Sythenra hopped up and ripped the blanket off from around her body.
As she flung it aside unsatisfactorily, finding that the blanket couldn't fly far enough from her, Sythenra took a deep, staggering breath as emotion overtook her. Tears began to flow from her golden eyes and she sobbed openly. In this deserted region of forest, she collapsed to her hands and knees, weeping with body-wracking sobs, and despite how horrible she felt and how much she wanted to hide, she cried so hard that she couldn't even manage to pull her clothing back on.
After several minutes of sobbing, Sythenra rose back up to her knees and gathered up her clothing. Still simpering, she pulled on her clothing. She needed to cover up again, she wanted to hide her entire body. It was shameful. He had taken advantage of her heart and used her for his own enjoyment. She was nothing but a toy to him.
And how many other 'toys' have there been? she thought.
How many other women has he done this to?
Once Sythenra dressed, she decided she wouldn't go home. She couldn't face her family, especially her father after how he tried to keep her away from him. Ketri knew better, she should have realized that much. So, she headed deeper into the forest and found a spring to bath in. She felt better after having the sweat washed away, but it wasn't completely cleansing, she didn't think she'd ever feel right again. Dressing in the same clothes she had worn the night before only made her feel filthy again, but she returned home when she knew her parents wouldn't be there. She redressed and packed all of her most necessary belongings, then set out to find Myrela, from whom she requested an outpost assignment. Myrela was reluctant to grant it, but Sythenra's conviction led the commanding ranger to give her an assignment at an outpost deep in the heart of the forest.
And thus, began Sythenra's life of solitude.
Author's Note: Originally in Sythenra's history it was written that she and Kiran had a one night stand after she confessed her feelings for him, and he disappeared the next morning. However, I don't think that would have been quite traumatizing enough, and I didn't see a way for him to really slip away; she couldn't go to her parent's house, he wouldn't ditch her at his own house, etc. I also thought that perhaps she needed something more traumatizing. I got stuck after their first night together, but then I realized that he could rape her, but I was torn between him plying for more sex and her rejecting him and leaving, or him raping her, so I settled on something in the middle; attempted rape.