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Post by Dina Doo on Aug 2, 2013 20:43:16 GMT -8
(sosorry..)
The blizzard winds roared loudly as they danced down from the mountain tops. Snow hailed down from what seemed like an eternal veil of black and dark gray clouds, darkness left over from the quite recent apocalypse that had crept through Adalinda. It was like a plague, slithering through the land at a quick pace, killing with its venom and leaving the once lively land of Adalinda as nothing more than a desolate rock floating on the ocean's waters.
And while the Inu hid, it did not mean they were spared from such a dark storm. They weren't spared the suffering the rest of the land had endured.
Even now, one could hear the voices of evil on the wind if they listened close enough. The spirits of those who did not deserve such peace after they died lingered on, manifesting into demons, monsters. Even now, they roared and howled out, searching for innocents to torment. As they did now.
On the raspy breaths of the ice cold wind, came a howl. Following it came several others, even growls and other harsh noises. And there they were, a group of monsters raced across the frozen plains, not at all bothered by the blinding snow flurries. What they were after dashed only a few yards ahead of them. Despite the snow, neither side seemed willing to give up.
A closer examination of the creature who dashed ahead of the monsters, a snow leopard with a pelt as unique as the ones similar to the tribe that lived near by, was limping terribly. Her hind leg hung above the ground as she ran on three legs. The pain of her wound, the feverish haze caused by infection, nor the agony that teared through her heart were enough to stop the young woman from running. The fear that pulsed through her body, the adrenaline, forced Tikani to keep running.
The village was near, it had to be. It has to be! Even still, the monsters that screeched for her blood to spill were closing in quickly. And Tikani felt her limps finally give in from exhaustion, and she felt the snow press to her furred face as she fell down.
(imsorry..)
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Post by clouds just clouds on Aug 3, 2013 2:20:33 GMT -8
(Itisbeautiful) Icy weather proved to make hunting more difficult. Food supply ran a little lower than usual, causing Eska to step up and call for a hunting party. Underneath his boots, the cold snow crunched lightly. Each member of the tribe preferred to hunt their own way--Eska had no preference between either. Stubborn, he had his brother at his side; the two stalked the tracks of a deer. Icy winds seemed to grow thicker and howl with more anger. Snow fell before them with little to no help in finding the deer. Dusty walked silently for once, intent and focused. It could be because he knew the severity of the situation, or that he sensed Eska's foul mood. Carefully, the two brothers pressed forward. Usually by now Dusty would slump down and complain about how worthless it is to bring him along, and then for the rest of the trip he would try and convince his brother he was right and make every wrong step possible. This usually ended in a squabble between the two brothers, and the fight wouldn't end until Eska got exhausted and ordered Dusty to hunt on his own--sometimes if Eska was in a really foul mood, he'd just send Dusty back alone and spend nearly the whole night out to avoid him. To the right of them, noise of approaching figures startled both the brothers. Two uniquely colored leopards shot into view and skidded to a stop in front of Eska, sending snow flying to the left of them. Both transformed into their human forms, and both breath heavily from lack of breath. "C-Chief, we saw something. It looked like... well.. something chasing one of our own!" Respectively, the older of the new members spoke first. But the younger forgot his place and with a lack of respect, he said, "Eska! We have to help him... or her... She was limping!" As always, there was no punishment for this. Eska replied softly, "Return to the village and tell the others. We must hurry," he nodded to the older male and rushed passed them. Dusty followed at his side like a loyal shadow, but his veins were pumped with exhilaration--fighting was something h e could do. The older male followed them while the youngest trainee made a run back for the village. In mid leap, Eska transformed into a snow leopard, the other two following in suite. As the three ran, they were joined by a couple others of the wandering hunting party. Even though the icy weather beat them down, Eska pushed on. He smelt it first. The smell reminded him of decay and death. His stomach churned with worry, but he had to save a tribe member. With ambition, he rushed forward, just in time to see the figure collapse. His heart shot up into his throat, just as he rushed forward and leaped blindly towards what ever chased her. What he saw caused him to nearly stumble with disbelief, but his claws reached out to shred the closest beast. Beside him, Dusty fought with barely a flinch at seeing the beasts, but in his eyes he showed all his worry and fright for such things: what could they be? (Maybe some of the hunters that joined you can control or Dusty's mistress Imsorry;~
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Post by Dina Doo on Aug 6, 2013 20:52:37 GMT -8
(Skip because I suck....)
Perhaps hours passed, days even since the young woman's sprint across the frozen fields. Even if the monsters and demons had stopped chasing her and she had found safety, there were still the demons that haunted her dreams. Even in the safety and warmth of the village, sickness caused death to plague her dreams. The faces of those who had been killed, those slain, those who were sacrificed, for her...
And finally, a light appeared, an escape to the darkness. It was foggy, fuzzy, but still there... And it grew.
Finally, strength returned to her, enough to open her eyes. Silver orbs slowly cracked open, though the view was still cloudy. The sound of a soft voice outside pulled her further back into the world of the living, and her environment became clear. The ceiling Tikani looked tiredly up at was adorned with feathers and pots tied to beams that no doubt contained herbs. Now she noticed the blanket that covered her.
The hushed voices she heard in the cloudiness of her dreams returned, making her weakly sit up. It didn't take much longer for Tikani to realize she was back in the village but before she could even worry too much, another sound was heard. It was the heart wrenching sound of a child's cry, though this one was weak, tired.
Panic fired through Tikani and before she could even wonder, maternal instinct drove her to her feet. Granted, her knees shook feebly and her leg, the one that had been injured and caused an infection, was numb and limp and she stumbled a few times but some motherly demon drove her to the drapes that served as the door. Wildly, Tikani ripped them aside to step out blindly into the snow covered village with no shoes, thicker clothes, or even a blanket.
Maybe, just maybe, she stumbled into the sight of two men, maybe one was carrying a small, precious bundle in his arms, her precious bundle.
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Post by clouds just clouds on Aug 7, 2013 0:39:27 GMT -8
(LOL NOPE NO SKIP NO NO
Your post is so beautiful~ Gorgeous, just like you)
Memories filtered into his thoughts whenever he glanced down at the baby. The child's own soft, yet weak, face always filled him with a sense of longing he could never cure. He remembered late nights, hand-in-hand with his late wife, whispering and giggling nonsense to eachother. The topic of children always came up and scared Eska, but he kept his fear hidden.
Now he isn't afraid. You never know how much you want something until you can't have it. The baby's weak cry shook away his attention from his friend. Instantly, Eska became absorbed in the small child. Hidden under his mask, worry pressed his eyebrows together. "Shh... sweet, sweet child..." He tried to soothe the weak baby.
It hurt Eska to think this baby could die at any moment. In such harsh lands as this one, wouldn't it be a miracle if the child lived. Just as Eska adjusted the blankets around the bundle, movement caught the edge of his vision. His gaze ripped up yo rest upon the distraught woman that stood there. He felt guilty for holding something of hers far from her reach, but a selfish part of him wanted to steal away the child and care for it on his own.
"You're up." He winced, slightly. A part of him hated it when people pointed out the obvious, and here he was doing it. He gave a look to Sakari--which could probably be interpreted as, "Well... you're the shaman. Go do your... shamany-thing."--before glancing back up at the woman. Carefully, he closed the distance and stepped beside the woman. His voice came out gentle and soothing, yet it still was the voice of a leader, "You should rest," he spoke quietly. "As soon as you sit down, would you like to hold your child?"
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Post by Dina Doo on Aug 7, 2013 8:05:17 GMT -8
Tikani's mask hid the shock the froze her but the way she said nothing and the way her gaze was so transfixed on the weak little baby perhaps served as a translator. The lump that had appeared in her throat made it impossible to swallow, much less speak. "I... I.." was the only word she could muster.
Finally, Sakari followed Eska's lead and stepped beside the newcomer. He reached to snake an arm around her shoulder while he muttered softly, "Come, let's get you back inside. You shouldn't be out in the cold like this, much less moving around.." The tribe's shaman led the still recovering Tikani back inside. Finally, her weak knees gave in and she would have fallen if Sakari hadn't been holding her up.
The shaman led Tikani back inside and helped her sit back down on her temporary bed, even wrapping a blanket around her shoulders. If Eska hadn't followed them, then Sakari went to fetch his friend because it would be pretty rude to just leave the chief outside, even if Sakari already wasn't so big on following rules and protocol. Oh well. He probably just wanted to get the baby inside in the warmth. Who cares about Eska? Poor Eska.
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Post by clouds just clouds on Aug 7, 2013 13:27:21 GMT -8
Eska hadn't stayed outside, he took a step into the warmth but he held the baby for some last few moments until the shaman returned. When Sakari stepped into his edge of vision, he glanced up and cocked his head. The deer mask on his face permanently hid what ever expression Eska might have. Perhaps only those close enough to him could read his moods and expressions hidden beneath something that has so rarely left his face for the last couple years.
Dipping his head to his friend, he stepped forward to either walk beside Sakari back to the woman or by himself, it all depends if Sakari came. The chief walked towards the woman and gently crouched down, making no movements to make her think that she was in danger. Then, he freed the precious bundle from his chest and held it out for the woman to take. "Here is your son."
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Post by Dina Doo on Aug 7, 2013 14:34:50 GMT -8
Tikani hesitated for a moment, slowly reaching her arms out, her hands shaking lightly. Though, not another moment passed before she went to take the child from the chief, only to pull the baby close to her chest. Good thing she wore a mask, otherwise Sakari and Eska would see the way her face broke. As she held her son close, the agony and loss that had been building up inside of her for so long folded her, bending her as a sob shook her chest. It wasn't right... Her husband should have been there with her to see his child, their child.
But then she remembered.. That in the last few weeks of her pregnancy, she had been ill and weakened by an infection. And she had always feared something would happen to the baby. Her sobs pause but it was still easy to hear the sorrow in her voice as she glanced up at the shaman. "Will he live? Will he?" It wasn't heard to figure out why she would be so afraid of another person in her life dying and leaving her.
And Sakari wouldn't be so blunt about it. "He's a sickly little thing.. Whether he will be strong enough to survive in the cold mountains... Well, I guess only time will tell for sure." Maybe then he glanced over at his friend, probably expecting him to ask the newcomer how she got here, what happened, all that jazz.
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Post by clouds just clouds on Aug 7, 2013 15:49:11 GMT -8
As soon as the child was freed from his arms, Eska stood up straight and backed up till he stood at Sakari's side. His light purple eyes watched the woman closely, analyzing and thinking. Even if the mask covered her features, she still looked so broken. When the question was asked, Eska felt himself tense a bit.
But he should have known better. Of course Sakari wouldn't trouble this woman more. It would be a miracle if he lived. His purple eyes shifted to the pots of herbs, shifting over them a little at a time, thinking.
He felt his friend's gaze on him and turned his head to glance at him. Perhaps it was better to not ask. To let her heal a bit before she was interrogated and forced to remember all that had happened to her. But waiting would make the tribe's people antsy. "You are one of us. I do not know what happened to force you out, but what I wish to know is who you are and where you came from. But, if it is too painful now, you don't have to tell me everything now." Eska paused and glanced at Sakari. "This is the shaman, Sakari, and I am the chief of this tribe."
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Post by Dina Doo on Aug 7, 2013 17:26:51 GMT -8
"I know who you two are," Tikani muttered quietly, looking up at the two. Though one arm was wrapped around the precious bundle and one arm held the infant's head, her fingers creasing gently through the fine hairs on the baby's head. Deep down, below the sadness and despair, she was having typical new mother feelings. Anxious because this was her first child. And he might still die..
"It's only been three years since I was last here," her voice was soft, it even splintered a few times. But what would happen if she told them who she was? Would she be exiled again? Would the little one die sooner because there was no way she could care for him? But you can't disobey the chief... Unless you're Sakari. Or Dusty. Not Dusty as much. "My n-name is Tikani.. My family and I, along with my husband and his family had been cast out of the village and into exile three years ago. We had been wandering around ever since.."
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Post by clouds just clouds on Aug 7, 2013 18:28:38 GMT -8
Three years. Eska felt his whole body tense. That was a dark year for him. Three years. No... No. That was when... Stop. Eska can't remember how many times he had been glad for the mask that hid away all his emotions, because his own face twisted with pain as if Tikani had stood up and stabbed a blade right into his chest. A childish part of him wanted to reach out for Sakari's hand and be pulled away from this pain.
She's from... His throat closed. "I see." Mouth dry and knees shaky, he turned his back from her and paced the room till he couldn't take her presence any longer. "Give me a moment." He walked right out of the hut and out into the snow. It took everything he had to not rip off his mask and puke into the snow.
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