1 Who They Are? Who They Are

The Red Earth's Guardian

CHAPTER 1.

Who They Are?

Kiera staggered, her body pushed back. Several men who tried to lunge at her with punches, bounced off at once. A fainted of red light enveloped the girl's body. Protecting Kiera from the attacks that following without she know.

"Who are you!" Kiera hissed. Her's eyes were was red. From head to toe, Kiera's hair emitted a reddish-orange glow. She looked at some unknown people who were now standing alert in a combat stance and locked her pace.

Kiera didn't understand where these people came from. Nor did she understand why they insisted on taking her with them. All her life, Kiera has been in that place and this is the first time Kiera has met the people who are now locking her up.

"Insolent girl! You must answer our questions! Where did you get the power of Heliós? You must have stolen that power! Now come with us, or we will drag you by force!" shouted the skinny man who was standing right in front of Kiera.

Even Kiera couldn't understand their words. She never met the man they called Heliós or anyone else. Especially to steal something from that person.

"No need for further ado! Obviously she has stolen the power of our clan! We know, no woman can inherit the power of Heliós! If it wasn't for a mage then she would have clearly stolen that power. Seize her and bring her into the fortress!" shouted the burly man standing some distance to Kiera's right.

Several of the men who were confining Kiera, unhesitatingly lunged out while simultaneously throwing punches at her. Spontaneously the girl tried to shift her body to avoid. She raised her right arm to protect her face from the attack. Unknowingly, a ray of light shot out of her hand.

Kiera's attackers were blown away before they could touch the girl. Their bodies were thrown in a state of fire.

Without Kiera knowing, a very strong heat wave shot out of her hand, swarming around the girl's body, uncontrollably. Several trees in the vicinity, caught fire in an instant.

Seeing the chaos, Kiera's body shivered in panic. The girl was scared and nervous. She didn't understand what was really going on. Unable to stop her, her body swayed and fell to the ground.

Kiera. The sixteen year old girl was looking for plants to make medicine, in the Larangan Forest not too far from her house. The forest had been Kiera's playground since she was a child.

During this time, the White Stone and the Larangan Forest had been a very safe place for her until a moment ago. Some foreign men, came locked up and tried to catch her. They called her a thief and insisted on taking her after them.

Meanwhile, several people who had attacked Kiera earlier, were thrown in a charred state. It was as if they were counterattacked and burned by an invisible hand. In fact, the grass around where the girl was lying, now looked black and burnt. Red embers burned in several places.

Only two people remained, the skinny man and the burly man, who had previously shouted at Kiera. The two people in black costumes with golden belts on their waists slowly approached Kiera, after being sure that the girl had lost consciousness.

Hesitantly, the two people looked at each other. Carefully, the two watched Kiera's condition. It seemed that the girl was no longer able to put up a fight anymore. They approached to confirm that Kiera was already helpless.

"Aagh!"

The two men bounced off, with their bodies on fire, just like some of their previous comrades. Both died, following the other, without having time to know what had really happened.

Not far from the two people, Kiera's eyes slowly closed. The last sight he caught before closing her eyes, was two bodies that were thrown and fell not far from where she was.

For a moment, something bothered Kiera's mind. However, she didn't know what it was. Kiera could no longer endure the darkness that slowly swallowed her whole consciousness. She fainted without knowing what was really going on.

While not far from the place, a small old woman with almost completely white hair, walked back and forth in the yard of a wooden hut that seemed to stand firmly not far from the Larangan Forest.

Kiera's grandmother, Bianca, since this morning she has had a premonition troubling her mind. For some reason, the memory of Anyeelie—her daughter—suddenly appeared in the woman's mind. She just suspected, maybe her daughter was missing her and Kiera. Bianca intends to take Kiera along to visit Anyeelie's grave.

Almost all her life, Bianca has lived and settled in the White Stone. This area is included in her territory. She knows all the places and everyone in this area. The White Stone was a safe place for her. However, for some reason, right now, she seemed to feel something bad was happening.

Restlessly, the woman waited for Kiera. The girl, had ask permission to look for medicinal ingredients in the Larangan Forest as usual, but until now Kiera had not returned.

Time goes by, the old woman approaching sixty years old who still looked lively and healthy, glanced at the end of the road bordering the forest where Kiera had last disappeared this morning. However, the grandchild that she was waiting for did not show her nose.

Bianca sighed, that's when the corner of her eye caught a glimpse of a flash of light like lightning flashing at a point in the forest close to the path of the village boundary. The woman's chest thumped. Her heartbeat not even returned back to normal, a second flash flashed, even brighter than the first.