“Where am I?”
This was the first question I posed to myself. It was a very obvious thought, but to manifest it verbally was something else entirely. The inquisition to my surroundings hung in the air like a thick fog, unmovable, unanswerable. My immediate reaction was disbelief. There was no possible way that a man could travel this far. At least, I thought not. Well, this far in a short amount of time. A second, to be accurate. Yes, that seemed about right. But, as I shrugged the leaves off my body, and slowly staggered to my feet, I began to think otherwise.
I had been unconcsious for some time. My logic was that I had fallen from the canopy of tall oaks above. But the logic in my mind could not explain the anomally of how I had gotten that high. And... oak? There were certainly no oak trees at my previous location, let alone a forest of oaks this size. It was all too odd. I straightened, and dusted my armour off, scattering the last of the dark, damp leaves. I stared directly above. I couldn't exactly see to the best of my ability; my vision was blurred, and very shaky. I deduced that I had fallen from quite a height. I just wished that I knew where I was. My eyes began to adjust to the ruddy light of a winter's night, cold and dark. It was truly a miserable sight to behold, and I did not want the displeasure of seeing it any longer. But, first thing was first. While I was perusing the area of my fall, I noticed that my sword was wedged between two sturdy looking branches. “Not good,” I mumbled to myself. I could have easily scaled the collosal oaks if I weren't so hurt: it felt as though I had ran headlong into a battering ram. Despite the fact that I discovered several broken ribs as I felt under the fold of my armour, I resolved to retrieve my weapon. Then, perhaps, I could worry about other events that came my way.
I sprang lightly onto a thin but sturdy branch, nearly losing my balance. If you had asked me to perform the same task not but an hour ago, I would have scoffed, deeming it a task too easy for my prodigious skills. But, if I wasn't cautious, I could create worse injuries for myself. My hands in front of me, I pushed off the branch with my feet, aiming for a large, twisted, oak-ish arm. Success! My hands clasped around it's damp skin, slipping slighty, then holding fast. The muscles in my arms worked upwards to propel me higher. Eventually, I stopped, hunched, on the long branch that held my sword. Truly a wonderful instrument, I thought to myself; The sheath was a vivid, deep red, entwined with a golden yellow dragon on each flat side. The scabbard was wrapped in a tight, red and black woven rope. I felt a sense of pride as I crossed the branch. The sword was quite an achievement in mastering it's technique. I was taught to control, to fight, to... die, even, with honour. My studies and tootelage had led me to this sword. It was my companion, my only friend in an Empire of enemies. I picked it up and tied it to my back. With a start, I looked down at my belt, and sighed: my long assasins knife was still present: The same make as my friend, it too was very dear to me.
After my seemingly difficult retrieval of my weapon, I paused. What next? Do I journey on, or wait till morning? A question this simple was posing a great amount of difficulty. I was hurt, after all. Not many people could heal me as well as the people from where I came from, the place that I was... taken from? Taken didn't seem adequate. Perhaps transported. For I realised that, now. I had been transported to a far away location by my nemesis. But how far? Another question floated away, unanswered by even myself.I leapt down from the oak and landed disgracefully. Things were not looking good for me. I picked myself up once again, and made my way into the gloom of the night.