Sorry about the delay everyone! I had to fill in a gap in my story, and my new router was giving
me grief at home. Anyway, here's Sat and Sun! And I have Mon and Tue done, but I'll post that tomorrow. Happy Monday everyone!
It must have been close to midnight before her father stopped the cart. “Kitten are you awake?” He called out, his voice barely above a whisper. “Yes, she replied, whispering back”. “Good.” He cleared his throat nervously. I’ve been traveling on the road just long enough to avert suspicion. But we’re far enough from the village now, and we need some deeper cover. I’m going to take the cart into the forest to hide our trail. Hopefully that will buy us a head start.” He kept his voice calm, but he was scared. She could hear the tremble in his voice. What could those creatures want with them? Why was her father so worried about discovery? Shouldn’t they stay and help the village? It was as if her father read her mind. “I know you have questions, but they’ll have to wait for another time. Do you trust me?” She nodded. He tugged at the reigns and the cart swung around and into the forest. As they entered the woods, a sharp wind came blasting down the road, carrying with it leaves and loose bramble. It was almost as if the night was swallowing them up, covering the place where the cart left the road.
He stopped the cart, but only when it was starting to get light out. She looked out at the pale pink sky, and saw nothing but giant trees and wild plants she had never seen before. There was no grass under the canopy, but plenty of moss, wild mushrooms, some ground berries she recognized from one of her classes, and several fallen logs. Her father jumped down from the cart and began unpacking their gear. “We were fortunate that we decided to stay late for the ceremony” he said. “We have several blankets, some leftovers from our dinner and the tarp from our camping trip a month ago”. She was only half listening. She gave her father a quizzical look. He caught her pained look and understood. “Well, let’s see, there’s a nice thicket on the other side of the fallen log that would offer some privacy.” He handed her a roll of toilet paper and a trowel. “Lucky these were left in the cart too. Pick a spot, but stay in shouting distance” he reminded her. She collected the paper and trowel, grumbling to herself. This was her least favorite part of camping. When she finished, she returned to camp to find Raylin had lain out the blankets over the moss, and fixed the tarp to the side of the cart, and nearby to the ground to form a lean-to. “It’s not much, but it will keep the wind and rain off us”. Morika settled down on the blanket under the tarp, and took some of the food her father handed her. “So daddy, what’s going on? He set his cup and plate down, and and looked her in the eyes. “Long ago, our village was led by the Melmanzos; powerful spellcasters. There were three families who possessed the gifts. Their children and offspring were born with many abilities, healing, sightseeing, control of the elements, even the power of invisibility, or so ‘twas said. The Melmanzos had an enemy, the Caorthannach, creatures of darkness, terrible to behold. They were burning, raiding, and killing all that was good and wholesome in the shadow of the mountains. Finally, tired of beating back the demons that came upon our gates, we brought the fight to them. Many of our warriors gathered their finest weapons, and armor, and made the long journey to their domain, the marshes near the black lake. The battle was grimly fought, and no lives were spared on either side. Not a single warrior returned that day, but ever since, not a single of those dark creatures has been seen.”
She had heard this tale before, but to hear it again right after an attack on their village brough shivers down her spine. “So they survived somehow? What will happen to the town?”
“It seems they somehow are still alive, yes. I’ve heard some rumors from one of the border guards who fought off a pair of black wolves 3 weeks back. He swears the wolves could breathe fire, but I just couldn’t believe that after all these years…” His voice trailed off. Seeming to change the subject, he added, “What do you know of the offspring of the three families?”
She furrowed her brow, remembering. “The lineage has been lost all these years, but some panthers still are born with gifts, like the ability to hover, or fight well, or even baking.” She giggled. Her nana, a kind hearted panther with wisps of silver in her hair had insisted she was given the power to cook delicious food. “There’s no denying your nana has talent. Do you think I would let just anyone cook for us?” He joked. Her felt a pang in her heart. Her father had invited nana in to watch over her after Mom left. One day suddenly, she was gone. She hadn’t even left a note. Her father had been frantic. He tore their house apart looking for clues, then would go out searching the village and forest, sometimes for days at a time. There had been no sign of forced entry, either at the gates, or their home. Finally, they just had to accept that she wasn’t coming back. Her father’s grim voice brought her sharply to the present. “As for the town, I don’t like to think what may have happened. If the alarm was raised in time, maybe most made it out into the forest…” His voice trailed off. “And once they find out we left, they’ll be looking for us.”
She started. She couldn’t imagine why they would be after them. Why were they so important? He noted the look of confusion on her pale face. “I can’t tell you why just yet, but you carry the future of our village on your shoulders. It is imperative that we keep you safe and hidden!” His tone of voice scared her. She had never dreamed of being anything more than how she saw herself; a slender, black furred, average panther. A bit small for her age, and completely normal looking. Well, except for the white patches on her ears, and bright blue eyes. Most of the village had liquid black eyes, or a dark brown. Still, nothing to set her apart from the rest. “Why me daddy?” He shook his head. “It’s time we get some sleep. We’ll sleep during the day, and travel by night. And try to stay off the path as much as possible.”
me grief at home. Anyway, here's Sat and Sun! And I have Mon and Tue done, but I'll post that tomorrow. Happy Monday everyone!
It must have been close to midnight before her father stopped the cart. “Kitten are you awake?” He called out, his voice barely above a whisper. “Yes, she replied, whispering back”. “Good.” He cleared his throat nervously. I’ve been traveling on the road just long enough to avert suspicion. But we’re far enough from the village now, and we need some deeper cover. I’m going to take the cart into the forest to hide our trail. Hopefully that will buy us a head start.” He kept his voice calm, but he was scared. She could hear the tremble in his voice. What could those creatures want with them? Why was her father so worried about discovery? Shouldn’t they stay and help the village? It was as if her father read her mind. “I know you have questions, but they’ll have to wait for another time. Do you trust me?” She nodded. He tugged at the reigns and the cart swung around and into the forest. As they entered the woods, a sharp wind came blasting down the road, carrying with it leaves and loose bramble. It was almost as if the night was swallowing them up, covering the place where the cart left the road.
He stopped the cart, but only when it was starting to get light out. She looked out at the pale pink sky, and saw nothing but giant trees and wild plants she had never seen before. There was no grass under the canopy, but plenty of moss, wild mushrooms, some ground berries she recognized from one of her classes, and several fallen logs. Her father jumped down from the cart and began unpacking their gear. “We were fortunate that we decided to stay late for the ceremony” he said. “We have several blankets, some leftovers from our dinner and the tarp from our camping trip a month ago”. She was only half listening. She gave her father a quizzical look. He caught her pained look and understood. “Well, let’s see, there’s a nice thicket on the other side of the fallen log that would offer some privacy.” He handed her a roll of toilet paper and a trowel. “Lucky these were left in the cart too. Pick a spot, but stay in shouting distance” he reminded her. She collected the paper and trowel, grumbling to herself. This was her least favorite part of camping. When she finished, she returned to camp to find Raylin had lain out the blankets over the moss, and fixed the tarp to the side of the cart, and nearby to the ground to form a lean-to. “It’s not much, but it will keep the wind and rain off us”. Morika settled down on the blanket under the tarp, and took some of the food her father handed her. “So daddy, what’s going on? He set his cup and plate down, and and looked her in the eyes. “Long ago, our village was led by the Melmanzos; powerful spellcasters. There were three families who possessed the gifts. Their children and offspring were born with many abilities, healing, sightseeing, control of the elements, even the power of invisibility, or so ‘twas said. The Melmanzos had an enemy, the Caorthannach, creatures of darkness, terrible to behold. They were burning, raiding, and killing all that was good and wholesome in the shadow of the mountains. Finally, tired of beating back the demons that came upon our gates, we brought the fight to them. Many of our warriors gathered their finest weapons, and armor, and made the long journey to their domain, the marshes near the black lake. The battle was grimly fought, and no lives were spared on either side. Not a single warrior returned that day, but ever since, not a single of those dark creatures has been seen.”
She had heard this tale before, but to hear it again right after an attack on their village brough shivers down her spine. “So they survived somehow? What will happen to the town?”
“It seems they somehow are still alive, yes. I’ve heard some rumors from one of the border guards who fought off a pair of black wolves 3 weeks back. He swears the wolves could breathe fire, but I just couldn’t believe that after all these years…” His voice trailed off. Seeming to change the subject, he added, “What do you know of the offspring of the three families?”
She furrowed her brow, remembering. “The lineage has been lost all these years, but some panthers still are born with gifts, like the ability to hover, or fight well, or even baking.” She giggled. Her nana, a kind hearted panther with wisps of silver in her hair had insisted she was given the power to cook delicious food. “There’s no denying your nana has talent. Do you think I would let just anyone cook for us?” He joked. Her felt a pang in her heart. Her father had invited nana in to watch over her after Mom left. One day suddenly, she was gone. She hadn’t even left a note. Her father had been frantic. He tore their house apart looking for clues, then would go out searching the village and forest, sometimes for days at a time. There had been no sign of forced entry, either at the gates, or their home. Finally, they just had to accept that she wasn’t coming back. Her father’s grim voice brought her sharply to the present. “As for the town, I don’t like to think what may have happened. If the alarm was raised in time, maybe most made it out into the forest…” His voice trailed off. “And once they find out we left, they’ll be looking for us.”
She started. She couldn’t imagine why they would be after them. Why were they so important? He noted the look of confusion on her pale face. “I can’t tell you why just yet, but you carry the future of our village on your shoulders. It is imperative that we keep you safe and hidden!” His tone of voice scared her. She had never dreamed of being anything more than how she saw herself; a slender, black furred, average panther. A bit small for her age, and completely normal looking. Well, except for the white patches on her ears, and bright blue eyes. Most of the village had liquid black eyes, or a dark brown. Still, nothing to set her apart from the rest. “Why me daddy?” He shook his head. “It’s time we get some sleep. We’ll sleep during the day, and travel by night. And try to stay off the path as much as possible.”
1 comment:
Completely normal and average. Except for these super unusual things. But those are normal, right?
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