Message to the Moon - Book 1: The Forest

Chapter Three - Criminal

I was looking at a tree? A tree shaped like a person? He was definitely an elf of the forest. His eyes, although too light to be the normal shade of green, were slanted like one. His skin was pale and his limbs were long as well as the set of claws he had just like a forest elf. They're limbs and nails are always awkwardly long. I know that because my father told me it helped them climb trees. But they're weren't known for being- "-Hhh, tall..."

I forgot how to speak. How can this be a forest elf? Full grown, hundred year old forest elves are always shorter than even me. But here this guy was, towering over me with a look of disgust. Or is that just how everyone looks at me?

"What are you doing?" He spoke firm and stood taller than a second ago. I swear on my life that his eyes held a murderous intent. It frightened me.

"Oh. Oh, I'm just... Chilling. You know. Might have been about to take a bath." Please just be a random guy. Not someone out to kill me. Wait, also don't realize what I am either. Please be an idiot. "I did hear someone singing, though! You should, uh, go see what that person's doing. I couldn't find them bu-"

His expression suddenly softened, disgust replaced by what I can only describe as being extremely unimpressed. "You shouldn't be here." He spoke with in monotone, quiet now.

"Oh, I shouldn't? Huh, must have just... Wandered off. I should get back. Yeah, back. That's what I'll do! Bye!" I attempted to duck past him but in that moment all I saw was mossy green and felt cotton against my face. He literally grabbed my face to stop me. Who does that? "Hey!"

I tried to shove his hand away but he pushed me back. "You're too close to the border of the wasteland to have 'wandered off.' How did you get this far from home and why?"

"Pshh, what are you, the border guard? Relax."

"Yes." Yikes. How do I get myself out of this one.

"Yikes. Okay, where do I start?"

"Nothing you tell me can convince me should be here. Unless you have papers, but even then you should be with others, on the set paths, and we weren't informed of anyone coming through."

"Stickler for the rules, I see. That's fine! Uh, papers, you say? I have papers. Lots of papers. Hold on, just let me..." I held my hands out in front of me, cupping them as if to catch water. It was to be sure he knew I wasn't about to attack with my magic. Not that I could attack with ability, but he didn't know that.

His stance shifted slightly, readying himself for if I did decide to go on the offensive. It was easy to tell he was trained for this. Even for me and I have little knowledge of the world outside my town. Unless it was in the form of a story.

Just as the space above my hands glimmer with a chilly light, there was someone on top of me. I fell on my hip with a thud and a loud groan of pain. There was a weight holding me down and then hands securing one of my arms behind my back. My other arm was wedged between me and the rocky ground, said rocks pressing into all the wrong places.

"Suspect subdued!" I strained my neck to see the women who was speaking and now laughing. Probably at me. "Typeless, icy hair in contrast with their skin tone, black... Or maybe brown eyes, no taller than 5'5, it's hard to tell at the moment, and wearing what looks like a navy colored, magical protective suit, that a typeless shouldn't have, under clothing that are not even close to an attempt to hide the suit."

She squinted at me and I noted she had the normal shade of green forest elves should have. Like endless pits lined with moss all the way down. "We should also put down that it's fashion sense is as boring as most typeless little blanks."