1. Repress

As you grip the edge of the altar behind you, another shiver runs down your spine when the man finally approaches. His narrow and slightly tan frame is covered by a somewhat familiar looking uniform. A sense of dread quickly fills you when you look up into the man's dark, cold eyes. A large, fresh, cut runs down the side of his hard and angular face. A look of contempt comes over it as his eyes slowly rake over your shivering body. "There will be no escaping this time." He hisses while reaching out and roughly grabbing your arm. Your eyes widen in fear as you find yourself unable to speak or move. Despite his lean size, he's able to easily pull you up onto the table behind you. His grip on your arm tightens while his other hand reaches down towards your legs. Wincing, you regain a small flash of memory when his hand begins sliding up your thigh. The image of being pinned down by this man burns in your mind, causing another jolt of fear to hit you. A small whimper escapes your lips when you feel the bottom of your skirt being lifted. "You're going to pay for what you did to me." His angry words are initially confusing, until another sliver of your memory is regained. You obtained the cuts and bruises on your body during your first run in with this man. However, you had returned the favor by slashing his face with a dagger you've since lost.

Something stirs inside you when you recall this detail. Though, you're unable to remember anything else from your past, you do know you're not the type to go down without a fight. Calming your breath, you slowly look down at the man's waist and take note of the short sword strapped around it. "Perhaps, we got off on the wrong foot." You **** yourself to say in an even tone. The man's hand pauses for a moment while he looks at you questioningly. Your heart races faster as you reach down and reluctantly pick up his hand before placing it on your breast. His eyebrow raises but after a moment a smug grin spreads across his face. "I always heard girls from Carthage liked a good time." You smile back weakly despite his gloating tone and move your hand towards his belt. Just as your hand reaches it, you quickly lunge forward and wrap it around the hilt of his sword. Before he can react, you lean back and kick into his chest with all your might. The man stumbles backwards as you quickly scramble to your feet. His face is cold and dark again as he slowly straightens up and stares down at you. Your hands tremble slightly while you hold the sword out in front of you. The man scoffs slightly before he takes a step forward and reaches towards you.

Adrenaline courses through your body as you quickly duck below his grasp. As if moving on their own, you feel your arms swing up and the sword connect with something above you. Warm liquid splashes against your face and you hear the man cry out in pain. His figure slumps forward and you lose your grip on the sword as he falls on top of you. His breath begins to grow shallow and eventually ceases altogether. Your own breath is labored as his full weight bares down your smaller figure. After a moment of struggling, you're eventually able to pull your arms up to your side. Placing your palms on the fallen man's shoulders, you begin trying to push him off you. Your arms tremble slightly as you **** them to exert what little strength they have left. Finally, you lift him up enough to slide out from under him. Inhaling deeply, you look up at the rafters and see the rain has cleared. Warm rays of sunlight shine down around you as you shakily rise to your feet. The sound of horses approaching outside causes you to quickly scramble for the discarded sword. Using the last of your strength, you manage to roll the man over. You're just pulling the sword out of his gut when you hear someone step in through the doorway. Heavy footsteps fall on the stone floor behind you and your back tenses. There's a pause followed by the sound of a sword unsheathing. You close your eyes for a moment before slowly rising and turning to face the unseen person.

Bright sunlight shines in front you, obscuring your vision. A tall silhouette stands a few feet away and you see them raise a hand to their face to block the rays. The figure seems to regard you for a moment before lowering their weapon and stepping forward. "Are you alright?" You're surprised to hear the man ask when he reaches you. His pale blue eyes glance down at the sword still clenched in your hands. Your grip around it loosens slightly as you take in the imposing figure before you. Beads of water drip down the short, light brown locks of hair curl around the top of his head. A stern, yet slightly concerned look covers his broad face as he waits for your response. Swallowing dryly, you hesitantly nod your head 'yes'. His gaze trails down your body and you look down to see you're covered in blood. "What is your name, maiden?" Your eyes widen slightly when you realize you can't answer his question. "I...I don't remember." Your voice sounds slightly foreign to you when you finally speak. The man frowns when he sees the look of distress come over your face and sheaths his sword. "In that case, I will call you 'Kora'." Lowering the sword, you pause before giving the man an appreciative nod. His expression softens slightly as he goes on to say, "I am Alexius." Your brow furrows when you get the feeling you've heard that name before.

Though you're still cautious, you're far too weak to fight and follow him when he turns to leave. A few soldiers stand at the ready outside of the temple and straighten up slightly when they see him. He remains silent as you walk past them and he leads you to a large steed. When you arrive, a large man approaches and regards you for a moment before speaking, "The scouts found the last of the detractors. How shall we proceed?" Alexius doesn't turn to face him and begins unfastening the horses reigns as he replies, "Then we are to return to the Capital at once." The soldier's eyes drift over to you again before he nods and walks away. When Alexius finishes, another soldier quickly helps you onto the horse. Your back stiffens slightly when Alexius slides in behind you and grabs the reigns. His arms brush against your sides when the horse begins to move forward and you quickly pull away. As you silently trek through the forest, your thoughts return to the strange feeling of somehow knowing this man. You're not sure if that's possible since it appears he has no recollection of you. Still, you're not ready to let your guard down until you know more. After a while, you finally exit the dense forest and begin following a stone road. The sound of hooves clicking against rock triggers another memory.

You've been to the Capital before, though, you're sure it was a long time ago. You can almost picture the busy streets of the city and the large stone buildings. Frowning, you notice a slightly uneasy feeling come over you. Trying to put this out of your mind, you close your eyes and attempt to remember anything else from your past. The only thing that can come to your mind is the events of the day so far. Sighing softly, you eventually give up and open your eyes again. You're surprised to see the outline of a large city in the distance and feel yourself growing restless again. It didn't occur to you that you were so close to its borders and would be arriving this soon. Alexius' broad torso brushes against your back and you instinctively lean away from him again. The rest of the ride is slightly uncomfortable as you continue trying to avoid bumping into him. Eventually, you reach the city gates and feel your body tense further. Your hazy memory did little to prepare you for the real sight of the city's interior. People quickly scatter about to get out of the way of the horses yet seem oddly excited by your arrival. A blush quickly creeps over your cheeks as you feel a plethora of eyes on you. The noise of the crowd around you sounds muffled and you reluctantly draw back into Alexius. The ride feels excruciatingly long as you continue past the people and further down the road. Your feeling of anxiety only grows when you round a corner and begin approaching a massive stone citadel.