Hypatia of Sparta

Deep in the forests of Arcadia, crickets sang and the moon casted dapped light through the thick canopy of trees. Hypatia of Sparta crouched behind a bush, staring at water that rippled unnaturally in the light of the full moon. And yet…despite her usual ability to remain focused on her task…something had her mind elsewhere— her golden eyes flickering in the light of the moon, reflecting the rippling water before her hiding spot.

It was three years after she had walked away from Damianos without looking back.

Three years of wandering, of throwing herself into battles, of taking coin for her spear and letting bloodshed drown out the echo of her brother’s betrayal. Three years of convincing herself she didn’t care, that she felt nothing when she heard whispers of his name in passing.

Three years of running from a wound that refused to close.

Hypatia shook the thought from her mind, bringing herself back to the present…she had no time to be thinking about such things…not when she’d been following rumors of a sacred spring hidden deep in the Arcadian wilds, a place said to grant visions to those desperate enough to seek them.

The grove was beautiful and still, save for the rippling water. Trees lined its edges, its pool reflecting light in patterns that would be unimaginable if Hypatia had not seen half the things she had in her time on this earth. But, what stood out was not what was seen…but what was heard.

And as she crouched low, watching the water ripple unnaturally in the moonlight, she heard a rustling in the bushes and trees. Something entirely out of place in a sacred place such as this…in a place where gods usually roamed and men avoided it as if it were some plague upon itself, too scared to be cursed or worse by the fickle immortals of their world.

Her eyes narrowed as she slowly moved her spear into a defensive position, waiting patiently for either a harmless creature to come from the underbrush…or an ambush. Both being quite possible in the unpredictable wilds of Arcadia’s ancient forests.