A teenage girl sat upon a once great cobblestone road of the High Moor, now reduced to not but dirt upon its surface and mud upon its shoulders. The men's plaid woolen trousers walked by and she seemed not to care, for she wailed tears of pure agony, grasping a letter within her hand.........
"Dear Hilga,
I rejoice to hear that your people have now moved to return to our ancestor's home in the north. I however, can not make such a move from a land that offers me such promise. I must decline your offer to proceed with you. Please, do not take this as rejection, for I do love you in so many ways that our people do not understand. Still, while we have found each other as such kindred spirits of art and literature, I fear that to move north, would only subject me to further the limitations that our people place upon us.
We shall always have that which is truly important, the full moon's fever of partnership and one in being. There can be no greater bond, no matter the sense of distance. Our time learning under the Bard's of Ole will not be forgotten by me and it will be with pleasure that I look back upon our kindred spirits in union to smile. May your people's god smile upon you, as Milil does ours.
I know that you say the men of your tribe are boorish, but in time, I am sure you will grow to love one of them. Because, if not, then what is this life really for anyways?
Your muse,
Aelfric Battlesong"
.........Hilga kept crying with her head held within her hands. She cried until a giant of a man, wearing thick hide armor and a two handed axe strapped upon his back, came to scoop her up within his arms. As he did so, the letter fell into the mud and the teenage girl began to cry out, "STOP, NOOO!!!!", but the large barbarian didn't stop, he trudged down the road as Hilga screamed out.
Her people were returning from which they came, and the promise that had been offered to Hilga was being torn from her heart. She wouldn't stop twisting and flailing about as the barbarian carried her, his strong, confident stride marching single-mindedly towards their home. "Why won't you STOP?" she wailed. But it made no difference, the barbarian soldiered on with little concern or recognition of her suffering. Eventually, her body and soul completely drained and every last drop of energy being used up by her anguish, she gave way to a deep slumber. When she awoke she was lying within the cold, desolate camp that Hilga had grown up in. It took her a minute, as she woke in a frantic manner, to realize exactly where she had come from and when she did her inner being had felt as if it had been obliterated.
She curled up within the bear fur blanket, her knees tucked within her arms as a terrible retching cry went out that could be heard for many a tent. She lie there, alone and crying for some time to come, and no one came to see her pain. The pain of one sent to realize a world, a world of which she could never be a part.............
Last edited by Maverick 40 on Sun Nov 24, 2019 10:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Laisren Ua Tiernan:
The heart must die, so thy loving progeny may live.
Hilga walked the mud paths between the tents, her mind a smear of cloudy smoke from mushrooms she had just taken. The world blurred and suddenly she felt the need to exit her stomach. There was a terrible squeeze of her guts as she vomited what little contents she held before her onto the ground. There might have been people around but she didn't know, moreover she didn't care, she never cared anymore.
As she wiped the remnants from her lips with the back of her hand, she stood and began staggering back down the path of tents. The world around her was still a mix of blurred visions and colors. Then, she did see the people sitting by a hellish tear within the ground. She walked over and began to stare through portal and saw dancing demons upon the other side inviting her in. She staggered back and away from the roaring flames, falling over backward as those gathered around the portal began to stand.
They spoke but in a language she could not comprehend. When she looked at these men, for now she could see that they were in fact men by the depth of their roaring voices, they had devil red eyes and the sky behind them was a terrible hazed violet. One of them reached for her leg but she struck out to kick him and began to trying to scramble away. Then she felt hands grab her lift her into the sky and carry her as she began to scream.
Suddenly she felt the rush of air as she was thrown through a flap of a small tent only to come crashing to the ground inside. She could feel the impact but not the pain and quickly she tried to stand, only to be kicked back down to the ground by a large boot. She looked up and saw the same three large devilish men standing before her. They began to laugh and Hilga was confused and then suddenly as if a rush of blood to her head, she knew what they were to attempt next.
She began to cry out as one lunged forward to cover her mouth and pin her head to the ground. She kicked violently, trying to break free and scream but it was no good as the second man came to pin down her other arm. Hilga closed her eyes and cried helplessly but before the unimaginable horror that she knew to take place could happen, she heard the a terrible roar and suddenly a great tear in the tent broke violet light down upon her.
She felt the men suddenly release her just as a great beast entered in from the flap to pounce upon the one man still standing. It tore the man's guts with it's claws and then turned it's giant maw toward the two remaining men whom were grasping for their blades. Suddenly, the site of the beast and their once friend shredded upon the ground, seemed to make the devil men change their direction.
One tried to run for the flap, the beast swatted and tore the man's head clean from his shoulders to bounce beside the Hilga as she slowly crawled backwards in sheer terror. The last man simply stood, watching the beast as it stalked toward him and as if accepting his fate simply stood as the beast grabbed the man by the throat, crunching down bitterly killing the man and with a simple flick of it's broad neck sent his body sailing off. Blood splattered like embers of fire, seeming to burn Hilga. She rubbed at the bloody flames as if attempting to stamp them out.
Then suddenly the violet light dissipated, for the beasts shadow now fell over her. She simply sat there in sheer shock, trembling, her mind having lost all capacity to reason. Just as she felt her mind starting loose conscious she thought she saw the beasts shadow turn into the form of a large man. Then, there was nothingness.....
When Hilga awoke she was within her father's Chieftain's tent and covered in wolf fur. "What.....", she began to ask but was interupted by a booming voice "What in the nine hells Hilga......", the voice said before erupting into a terrible cough. "Father?", Hilga asked as she spun around to see him sitting upon his make shift throne, that was really just a large iron-wood chair. "Whom, else would be sitting upon this thrown", he said in a dire tone.
Hilga tried to stand and run to the sickly man but was suddenly struck back down by her father's booming voice. "HOW DARE YOU DEFY ME!!!", he yelled and beat his hand upon the arm of the chair nearly cracking it. Hilga just looked off and tears began to fill her eyes. What was she to say, she had been under the haze of opium and mushrooms for how long she could not remember but she did remember her father's last command.
She was to stay within the tent and was not to interact with any more "chattel". He had found out of her liaison with the lowborn Aelfric and he commanded her never to go forth without guard again. She was to be married off to some old chieftain, or chieftain's son before she could ruin her name any further but the terrible pain and loss of Aelfric was too much for her to bare. So, she snuck off to the outskirts of the Grayfox camp and had committed herself to drugs and further adultery to numb her mind of Aelfric.
Yet, here she was again trapped, without any power, or Independence from these men, these terrible gruesome men. They controlled everything, they controlled her, her life, her people.......what was she to do? Why could they not be like....him....
Hilga sat there weeping while her father coldly and silently sat there watching.
((edited:))
Last edited by Maverick 40 on Sun Nov 24, 2019 10:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Laisren Ua Tiernan:
The heart must die, so thy loving progeny may live.
The air around her was stagnant.The flies buzzed lazily about, only stirring slightly more when the tent door flapped open and the oppressively humid air moved ever so slightly through the dwelling. The men would constantly come and go, speaking their short, brutish words to her father. Hilga did not care to hear what they said; she did not care for anything anymore. She woke, she breathed, was bathed and groomed by the other women and barely ate but soured cultured milk and stale bread.
The time between the cycle of the sun and moon became a haze, for her eyes burned for sleep but her mind allowed for naught. She dreamed while awake that he would come to her and rescue her, taking her from this place, from her people and their savage ways.Though she stayed awake, it was to no avail, the guards would stay awake too. She knew there was no chance, not even any chance for hope, so she lived only within herself, she died to everyone else.
Her father, out of shame, had refused to speak to her for weeks now. He continued to sit in his pathetic wooden throne, the one that anyone of the written people would know was naught but a chair. He sat there, sickly, coughing day and night, like a tired bear too old to forage out on his own. So was the one she once loved and revered, as both her keeper and executioner.There was a commotion, the damp air suddenly blowing upon her with more force. This caused her curiosity to be piqued and her gaze was drawn to what stood within the entrance to the tent.As she sat up, her guard leveled his spear point slowly in her direction, though she hardly took notice. A large warrior, the one whom brought her here from the Grayfox, stood as the only large shadow, rays of light bending around his large frame as if the sun itself was directly behind him. It had been weeks since she had seen the sun’s light and though her eyes burned like fire, but she kept them open.
She did not know why, but somehow she knew that what was to come next was to free her of her bonds. Is it finally happening? Is he finally here to take me from this place? Her thoughts scrambled and she saw her father's hand wave from behind the chair, causing the warrior turned to exit the tent. She looked up to her father as if wanting to smile, though to look upon her drawn and sullen features seemed more an expression of the sarcasm of delight, then of delight itself.
Her father turned to her with a grave expression and Hilga’s confidence fled.She knew this look all too well; it was the same look her father would give her when he was to leave her presence as a child.The same dread feeling of disappointment she felt then came rushing back to Hilga now. The crooked half smile of her skeletal features ran from her face and her father gave an almost pained expression as a large body was suddenly hurled within the entrance of the tent. A strong gust of the damp cool breeze that was the High Moor blew in behind the large object and Hilga closed her eyes and breathed it in, it was the freshest air she had breathed since she could remember.
When her father finally stood up from his chair, she opened her eyes. IT IS AELFIC!, her delirious mind screamed out to her.But she could find no words and resigned to simply staring in disbelief, wondering if this was just another horrible mirage set before her. It couldn’t be though… something was wrong… and then she realized it was Aelfric’s face, beaten and bloodied.
Hilga’s heart leapt into her throat, and immediately she jumped forward.Her sudden movements after weeks of lethargy caught the guards momentarily unawares, but they quickly recovered and easily restrained her, stabbing a spear point gently into her breast.She fell back into her chair and remained seated.“Is this the one?Is this the one who deflowered you?!?!” her father belted out while holding his sword under Aelfric’s chin, forcing him to look up at him. "Yes! Yes!!!......Please!!!” Hilga screamed out, in such anguish that it caught both the men’s attention. Only Aelfric turned to look however, his crystal blue eyes changing from an expression of relief, to a mixture of confusion and concern, and finally to one of terror and alarm.
"Hilga?” Aelfric asked in disbelief, she slowly nodded her head in confirmation. She was completely speechless, it was more than her tired mind could handle and suddenly a great need to sleep came upon her. Her lids fell heavily upon her eyes and she found herself sliding sideways in heavy breaths. She felt herself floating away when suddenly a booming voice resounded as if in her conscious alone, snapping her back to the unbearable present. "You bastard of a (germbag)!!!!” her father bellowed, and he began beating upon Aelfric with his ringed fist. Aelfric threw his hands up and cowered in a pathetic attempt to stop the bludgeoning.
"Stop it!!!” Hilga screamed as she arose from her near slumber. Her eyes were immediately filled with tears and the snot building within her nostrils, slowly began to ebb on down her face. Her father stopped, almost breathless, turning to Hilga and shouting "Did I not tell you?? This is what you get for consorting with these rats?!?!" Hilga could only continue to look into the pleading eyes of her once love. A violent sob escaped her and she put her hands up to cover her face.Therefore she did not see the gesture her father made to the guards, motioning someone else to be shoved through the tent flaps.Feeling the humid air shift again, Hilga peeked between her fingers to see a dark haired woman dragged in by the guards and thrown down next to her beloved Aelfric.
Hilga looked up at her father with an expression of confusion, but as realization dawned the confusion began to distort to terror, and the sudden onslaught of hot, wet tears that was blurring her vision only a moment ago, dried quickly, scorching her eyes. She knew then, because for the first time in weeks, perhaps months, she could see him clearly as she looked upon her father’s face. His gaze met hers, his eyes frowning down at her with an expression of both sympathy and pain. Hilga glanced between her father’s look of consternation and Aelfric’s look of sheer terror and she knew the truth, even before her father said "This is the bastard’s wife."
Hilga felt as if her bowels would void in the horror of it all, but since her stomach held no contents she merely shook, as if in freezing cold.Though her head began to shake in disbelief, her conscious knew her father spoke the truth. She turned her devastation towards the crystal blue eyes of her former lover, “Is this true…?” she demanded.Though as the words were leaving her mouth, she already knew the answer.“NO, NO....you don't understand...!!!", Aelfric urgently began to plead, but Hilga's father turned back to beat down upon him further. Hilga did not scream for her father to stop this time, for she saw the look of disdain upon the raven haired woman's face as she stared down at her husband. Hilga knew the look, for she was giving this same look toward Aelfric. It was at this moment that Hilga came to know, her life as she knew it, meant less than she had ever realized...........
Last edited by Maverick 40 on Sun Nov 24, 2019 10:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Laisren Ua Tiernan:
The heart must die, so thy loving progeny may live.
