Vengeance (A Short Story)

Morthel pushed up from the forest floor, wiping a bit of blood from her lip. Her entire body ached, she didn't think there was an inch of here that wasn't bruised, or bloody. She didn't know what a group of humans had been doing in the realm of the Wood Elves, but the condition in which she had been left, indicated that their intentions had been anything but pure.

They had attacked her while she was hunting, smashing her head against a tree to knock her off balance. Her vision blurred when her head hit the tree. Tears welling in her eyes.  A yelp erupting from her lips as they pushed her to the ground. As much as she tried to fight them, it only made their reactions worse. Fists slamming into her cheekbones, and jaw. Feet kicking her in the ribs, the legs. After that, she couldn't really tell what happened, her head was spinning and she was fairly out of her own head.

Next thing she knew, she was waking up, her clothes ripped and torn. Her face and body bloody, and bruised. She brushed off the dirt that she could, though some of it was caked on with the blood. So that made it harder to get off her skin.

            When she stood, she knew what had happened. The pain ripping through her lower abdomen to her that much. They had stolen her innocence, left her laying on the forest floor bleeding and broken. She would make them pay… No matter how long it took… Even if it killed her to do it, she would make them pay for this.

            Morthel spent years, continuing her training to get stronger and better. As an elf, this was a small amount of time, it barely made any difference to her. Though it did make her stronger, strong enough that even the men within their tribe would not dare to challenge her. She had become a very powerful young woman, despite her petite size as an elf. Standing just over four feet tall, weighing a miniscule eighty pounds.

            She had decided the night prior to that night that she was ready. She was going to find them, and she was going to make them pay for the things that they had done to her. She moved through the village, late that night. She didn’t want anyone to know she was leaving, she had become enough of a pariah when they found out that she had been attacked… She couldn’t let them know that she was hunting them down, to seek out her vengeance. Little did she know, she was being followed.

            It wasn't until she had left the village, and was headed for the towns populated by humans that he showed himself.

            “Morthel, were you planning on just leaving? Not telling anyone that you were going?” The young male elf asked.

            “Glawarion… Please… I have to do this, the things they did to me… I have to get revenge… No one else can know. Not even the elders… I know that I am forbidden to leave, but I can’t let those men get away this… They stole everything from me,” Morthel said softly.

            Glawarion move in close, moving his hand up to her cheek. He saw her flinch when he touched her, making him sigh. “If you’re going to take vengeance on them…. I’m going to be there to help you…” He said. Pulling her into a tight hug.

Morthel nearly cried when she heard his words, he was willing to help her, even though it was forbidden.

They traveled for months, spending time in over fifteen cities trying to find them. They traveled together, finally, on the sixteenth city in a small tavern, they found them sitting there. Harassing another young elf, Morthel looked up at Glawarion, and he nodded. “You look ravishing,” he whispered.

Morthel did look ravishing, long, platinum blond hair that fell in soft cascading curls down her back. Rich, deeply tanned skin from being out in the sun for most of her life. High cheek bones, and sharp facial features that were so prominent within the elven races. A corset, tightened and enhancing her bust, and a long skirt flowing around her feet.

She moved over to the group of humans. “Hello boys, would… Would you like to have a little fun?” Morthel asked softly. Looking up at them, biting her lip gently. She prayed they wouldn't recognize her. If they did, it would ruin everything.

Though, from their reactions she realized that they indeed did not recognize her. One placed their hand on her backside, making her flinch.

“Let’s go sweetheart,” one of the humans whispered.

“I have a room, it’s just upstairs…” Morthel said softly.

“Good, lead the way knife-ear…” The man said.

The term knife-ear was used to degrade and insult elves, no matter what race of elf you were, you found the term insulting. She tried not to let it show on her face, but her she was boiling on the inside. She lead them upstairs, Glawarion was waiting in the room, hidden away in the rest room. This way she could get them relaxed.

Once they were inside, she made them all drinks, but they were laced with a type of toxin that would knock them out for enough time to tie them up and have them all in chairs waiting when they woke up. She was playing with her knife when the first one woke up. Looking into his eyes, she grinned.

“You don’t remember me… Do you?” Morthel asked softly.

“N… No… I don’t know you are...” The human said. Obviously panicked, evidenced by the look in his eyes.

Morthel punched him hard in the face. Tears welling in her eyes. “You and your friends… You came in the woods… Into the home of my people… You attacked me… You beat me… You raped me… And you left me to die!” She screamed. “I wasn't even an adult! I was still a child! You took everything from me!”

The human’s eyes began to go wide, in realization. He remembered now… He remembered her. He had tried to talk his friends out of this. Her screams had haunted him every night. Her face had haunted his nightmares… He regretted everything that they did that night…

“I… I do remember you…” He said. Swallowing a bit, his face beginning to swell already from her punch.

Morthel smirked, she spent the next couple hours torturing the man. She hit him, she stabbed him, and sliced him open in multiple places. She could hear his screams, and she loved to hear it. The screams were therapeutic. Making her feel better the more he screamed. Though she knew that it would eventually attract attention. She had to hurry. She made fairly short work of the others… Until she came to the last one. The one she recognized the most... The one who had insulted her… The one who had attacked her initially and taken her back to the others that fateful day.

Morthel looked into his eyes. “You… I recognize you the most… It’s been a few years… You haven’t changed a bit…” She whispered.

The man’s eyes narrowed, as he spit at her. “Knife-ear bitch… I recognize you… We had our fun with you years ago…” He said.

Morthel wiped the spit off her face, and punched him. “I may leave you alive…” She whispered softly. “But I will not let you do this to another girl.”

She smirked at him, as his eyes widened in terror. She punched him again. Leaning in, and licking the blood off his cheek. “I’m going to make you pay for what you did to me…” She whispered.

He struggled against his bonds, but she had tied him tightly. She continued the punching for a long time, hours. Covering his body in bruises. “I should make you feel what I felt… But I’m not going to do that… I will make sure you never make another girl feel it again…” She said. The venom dripping from her words.

She picked up her dagger, looking into his eyes. “I’m sure you won’t miss it anyway… Not after a while anyway…” She said. She plunged her dagger into the crotch of his pants. His scream echoing through the tavern, I’m sure that a healer will find you… But you’ll never feel the same way again…”

Though, she quickly told Glawarion that they needed to go. They slipped out the window, and heard the guards coming in after them.

They ran, escaping the city without incidence. She was glad that they got out before they had been caught. She wrapped her arms around Glawarion. “Thank you so much,” she whispered softly. “I’m so glad that you came with me… I am sorry that you had to see what I did… It had to be done though…”

“I know… I know it had to be done…” Glawarion said. “I know to keep you from becoming obsessed with vengeance… That this had to be done… It would have driven you mad…”