Chapter 8. Much is Broken
Since she had been flying just below cloud cover, to hide herself easily from any harpy/ies who may be flying back to the Raven Kingdom, Sephora hadn't noticed the lack of creatures below her at all.
To a human, this might seem a trivial detail. Yet, hawks, eagles, ravens and other such harpy all had some of the sharpest eyesight around. Owls, could even see details in dim lighting, or the complete darkness, where the ravens, eagles and hawks would fail. If it had taken her so long to notice that there was an absence of any movment... of any life... this was wrong.
"This is wrong..." Sephora muttered out loud, to herself. As she continued flying back and forward in a grid pattern, her stomach felt like it was dozens of miles below her, - on the forest floor. Every fiber of her being was screaming at her that something was very off... what she couldn't decide was if she was in any danger or not.
She was making a point about being thorough about finding something alive! If I haven't seen movement; I haven't seen any danger below or around. The analytical training her mother forced on the twins, kicked in somewhat. Despite Sephora hating it, she found herself glad that she had something of use.
Nothing. She had flown the same grid pattern three times now, just to be sure of what all of her sense were telling her. The princess' skin prickled all over, goosebumps rising on her arms, and cold sweat dewing on the back of her neck while she slowed her flying speed. Bringing herself to a complete hault, landing on one of the overly, large redwood branches of the ancient trees. There really is... nothing here? Her thought's quickly shifted into talking to herself, a habbit her mother despised and often told her that it made her look crazy and "tainted."
"Now, let's think about this..." Sephora paced back and forwards, on the space the branch allowed. She continued to verbalise her thoughts to help herself piece together what she knew, and how that fit.
Her glorious midnight black wings remained partially outstreched, as she paced. Never fully tucked away. Long locks of her jet black hair had been wind whipped from the flight over to the forest, giving her a wild look. Like an etherial gardian of the forest in her casual velvet dress, if anyone other than a harpy were to see her right now.
"The fact that I haven't seen any creatures, nor even heard a single bird song or tweet is worrying. How much of the stretch of forest is..." taking in her surroundings, once again, before she said it alout, "...empty? Is it just this section? Becuase I wasn't paying attention to what wasn't there I can't be sure if it's here or all the way back to the heart of Raven Harpy territory and our city, or if its just this one section of the forest."
Tapping her index finger against her cheek, she mused. "I'll have one last look, to see if there's anything I might have missed from higher up."
Glancing at the sky she added, "It's getting later, and mother will be furious if I just don't turn up."
The speed and elogance, between the movement of fully unfurling her wings and proceeding to bring them down, not once but, twice was as smooth as silk. You could be forgiven for thinking that they were all the one movement. This was the years of training as the least favourite twin daughter of the Raven Queen. Despite how flawless any of her movements were, or how good she was in battle... her icy blue eyes would always cause her mother to view her as imperfect and flawed.
A few further flaps of her wings, and Sephora was once again climbing the skies to ascend to a position above the trees. Going further and further up, as she wanted to get a really good bird's eye view of the situation.
She was almost back to the point of cloud cover. Actually, her wings were in the clouds as Sephora gazed down with horror and astonishment. Forcing herself to remain in place as she survayed the sheer desolation.
Not to far from where she had landed on the top of an old and large tree, some 5 to 7 rows away, the entire forest was destroyed. The trees, which had stood over 300 years with ease, had been snapped in half. Some clearly ripped, other twisted. Others, their entire root system had been pulled out of the ground. Almost nothing was in tact, it wasn't a small section... it was a whole swathe.
No tree had been removed, but all of them had been destroyed by something violent.
Has no one reported this?? Was there no one around to hear... or see whatever has happened here?! After these thoughts bubbled to the surface of Sephora's mind. She let out, what could only be described as a battle cry. At this point, she really did look like a vengeful valkyrie of the forest, - though she had no weapons, other than her talons, and that was if she chose to extend them.
Anger swelled in Sephora's chest again.
This was not the same, reminants of teenage angst, anger.
This was the true rage from a ruler of a Kingdom. Rage for whoever had desolated the ancient forest of the Raven Kingdom... it wasn't sacred and held no ritualistic or religious value, however it was honoured and for Raven's sentiment was as close as they got to religion. They, the Raven Clan were careful with their territory and treated their surroundings well. Working with nature; never against it.
Without hesitating.
Without thinking; all training abondoned, Sephora darted down.
Angling her body for maximum speed and distance, over toward the area, where the ancient forest of every Raven's folklore tales held unforgivable distruction.
It was not the type of wreckage that could have come from a storm; it was not natural. Not with trees so ancient, holding roots so deep.
Considerations like these whirled in Sephora's head. Fueling her fury and spurring her on farther, faster.
Within minutes she had done a smooth falcon-like maneauver from the sky, to the center of the wrecked swathe of the ancient forest. Her eyes darting, here, there and everywhere. Looking for signs of anything... anything that she could use to add reasoning and solve what had occurred here. Especially since it was a short Raven's flight away from the kingdom...
Sephora had never landed, instead she hovered meters above the ground.
This time, it wasn't just to get a better look. Her survival instincts had kicked in, her stomach felt like it had been carved out and her mind was a war ground.
I swear on the blood of my ancestors... "I swear on the blood of my ancestors, I will kill whoever cause this..." With a sweeping motion using both of her arms, over the whole of the forest, with a fancy flying 360 twirl, "...this senseless distruction!" Her large wings flapping often to keep her comfortably in the air.
Just as she was thinking about blood, the forest seemed to awaken to her spoken oath.
The breeze changed and the trees which surrounded the destroyed section, rustled. Their branches and timbers creaking and crakcing.
That, is when she finally noticed it.
The gleam of blood, off center of the entire ruined field.
It was a field now, not really a forest. While the trunks and snapped trees remained, the sky was clear for miles across, before the other side of the forest.
With a huff, to attempt to vent some of her fury, Sephora went over to it. Her pale blue eyes, which were so often round, large and kind were narrowed and cold. Piercing... if looks could kill... her's right now, certainly would!
As she got closer she realised that there was an unusual amount of blood. Not only that, but it was in unusual places for just senseless destruction. Large splotches and chunks of flesh lay below her has she hovered over it. "This was a battle field," she said to herself, confidently, "But... for who?"
Sephora looked from the blood below her, to the next gleam which caught her eye... a slashed claw mark on one half of a snapped tree near by, the large pool of blood and chunks. The blood had seeped into the tree itself. If it hadn't been for that, it would have been far less visable. Only the glimmer of the sun, sifting through a brief cloud break gave it away.
Now, she had the trail of blood...