Post by Deleted on Sept 16, 2015 19:51:52 GMT -5
She couldn't find their bodies.
Cua'd waited days for the herd to pass, skirting the edge of them, keeping out of sight. She circled the spot where they'd camped last. When the last of the herd shambled away, she began to search.
She found the campsite soon enough. Sleeping bags were kicked up against trees, ripped to pieces, or hundreds of yards away. They'd kept their packs ready, in case of exactly such an emergency, but they'd abandoned the sleeping bags in their flight.
Cua wished they'd abandoned the packs. Maybe they'd have lived if they'd been faster.
She scoured the woods for her sister-in-law's body. She could hear MaivTooj screaming, ringing in her ears, a persistent echo. She knew her ghost still followed her, agonized from being trapped in this world. Cua wanted nothing more than to help MaivTooj's soul move on, but she couldn't find her body.
Blood stained tree roots and the leaves of ground plants. She tried to follow it, but the tracks had been overwhelmed by hundreds of dragging footsteps.
She never found any of them. MaivTooj was still screaming.
Desperate, Cua dug three graves overlooking the river, facing West. The spirit of Death wouldn't find them if they weren't facing West, she remembered. She had nothing else to put in the graves, so she buried what she did have: the sleeping bags.
She laid snares in the forest, asking God to send her a wild pig, at least, so that she might make a proper offering to send off her family's souls.
Cua filled in the graves, topping the heads with crude wooden crosses formed from sticks and string.
She went back to the snares. She'd caught a rabbit.
Glad to have at least something, Cua returned to the grave site. Holding the small body as firmly as she could, she pressed down with her knife. Blood bubbled over her hand, staining fur and skin alike. She couldn't remember the words for the sacrifice ritual.
Cua prayed, instead.
She could remember the Lord's Prayer, so she said it over each of the graves. She couldn't make a sacrifice for all of them though. She never caught anything more than the one rabbit that day.
Without the guidance of a Shaman or a Pastor, Cua sat mutely at their grave sites and waited.
Eventually, she got up and retrieved the shovel she'd stolen. She dug another grave next to the others. Then she laid down in it and waited some more. She fell asleep.
Rain drops woke her.
It was overcast, and starting to drizzle. Her pack lay where she'd left it the day before. She sat up, head coming over the edge of the shallow tomb. Her clothing was beginning to soak through. She could feel the water on the skin of her back, dripping off the ends of her hair.
The three graves stood undisturbed next to her.
Cua climbed out and picked up her pack, buckling it on at the chest and waist. She stood there a moment, staring at the three wooden crosses stuck in a row. She turned away and walked several paces.
Then she knelt down and cried.
(Wanted to get a feel for my character before I jump into any RPs, so I wrote this as a warm up, then figured I might as well post it!)
Cua'd waited days for the herd to pass, skirting the edge of them, keeping out of sight. She circled the spot where they'd camped last. When the last of the herd shambled away, she began to search.
She found the campsite soon enough. Sleeping bags were kicked up against trees, ripped to pieces, or hundreds of yards away. They'd kept their packs ready, in case of exactly such an emergency, but they'd abandoned the sleeping bags in their flight.
Cua wished they'd abandoned the packs. Maybe they'd have lived if they'd been faster.
She scoured the woods for her sister-in-law's body. She could hear MaivTooj screaming, ringing in her ears, a persistent echo. She knew her ghost still followed her, agonized from being trapped in this world. Cua wanted nothing more than to help MaivTooj's soul move on, but she couldn't find her body.
Blood stained tree roots and the leaves of ground plants. She tried to follow it, but the tracks had been overwhelmed by hundreds of dragging footsteps.
She never found any of them. MaivTooj was still screaming.
Desperate, Cua dug three graves overlooking the river, facing West. The spirit of Death wouldn't find them if they weren't facing West, she remembered. She had nothing else to put in the graves, so she buried what she did have: the sleeping bags.
She laid snares in the forest, asking God to send her a wild pig, at least, so that she might make a proper offering to send off her family's souls.
Cua filled in the graves, topping the heads with crude wooden crosses formed from sticks and string.
She went back to the snares. She'd caught a rabbit.
Glad to have at least something, Cua returned to the grave site. Holding the small body as firmly as she could, she pressed down with her knife. Blood bubbled over her hand, staining fur and skin alike. She couldn't remember the words for the sacrifice ritual.
Cua prayed, instead.
She could remember the Lord's Prayer, so she said it over each of the graves. She couldn't make a sacrifice for all of them though. She never caught anything more than the one rabbit that day.
Without the guidance of a Shaman or a Pastor, Cua sat mutely at their grave sites and waited.
Eventually, she got up and retrieved the shovel she'd stolen. She dug another grave next to the others. Then she laid down in it and waited some more. She fell asleep.
Rain drops woke her.
It was overcast, and starting to drizzle. Her pack lay where she'd left it the day before. She sat up, head coming over the edge of the shallow tomb. Her clothing was beginning to soak through. She could feel the water on the skin of her back, dripping off the ends of her hair.
The three graves stood undisturbed next to her.
Cua climbed out and picked up her pack, buckling it on at the chest and waist. She stood there a moment, staring at the three wooden crosses stuck in a row. She turned away and walked several paces.
Then she knelt down and cried.
(Wanted to get a feel for my character before I jump into any RPs, so I wrote this as a warm up, then figured I might as well post it!)