In flames
As the last riders left behind the area and the clashing of steel started to disappear, people began to look around themselves with fear and pain, irregular breaths showing their exhaustion. Some sat down on the floor, breaking into bloody tears, some slowly moved to the closest person they could find and hugged each other. It was over, for now. They could breathe for a moment, but they had to move on. This win was not of a war, just of a step.
Kin'rah started walking past everyone, returning to the medical tent behind the battleground. Some people were limping towards it, some were dragging other people to it, it was miserable, everyone needed some help and the healers wouldn't be able to help everyone; some had to be left to die so others could be saved, Kin'rah felt sorry for whoever had to take these decisions.
The tent was overflowing with people in need, the healers and nurses running non-stop around everyone. But Kin'rah had only one person in mind and sight, Leviaat. She lost Leviaat in the middle of the battle and she was worried for him and prayed he managed to get to the medical tent before it overflowed. She found him hiding behind the tent. Such relief, such happiness, she couldn't care less about the battle if he died, but he was fine.
Rushing to him as fast as her wounds allowed her, she dropped her weapons and took off the more annoying parts of her armour before reaching him and dropping it to the floor to hug him, hiding her face in his shoulders before tears covered her bloody face. "It's all good, we are fine now..." he murmured while stroking her hair, with a cracked voice which betrayed his crying.
Eventually, Kin'rah's crying stopped and she sat next to Leviaat, still not letting him go, and both fell asleep out of exhaustion. They awoke later on, with the smell of fire. The night sky almost shone with the clear moon and all the stars, but a small layer of smoke climbed to the sky over Leviaat and Kin'rah. The couple stood up, helping each other, and started walking towards the fire, using their discarded weapons as walking sticks. The pyre was beginning, they had slept enough, and it was time to help.
A group of people were gathering corpses from the field and bringing them to the pyre, where a priest was praying and blessing the deceased's flames. One pyre wasn't enough, but there was a limited amount of people able to help, and that group the couple joined, gathering corpses, making sure to take the identifying tags out of the corpses, minding not whether they were enemies or allies, feeling the warmth of the pyre wherever they went.
"I would do it again..." said with a fading voice one of the corpses Kin'rah was dragging. Out of the surprise, she dropped the corpse before looking at it. This is not right, this armour doesn't fit in this battle. She looked up and saw a building being engulfed by flames in front of her. Grief and rage flooded her body as if a cold water wave hit her. How dare this man claim he would kill her hatchling again? What kind of MONSTER would say so?
But he was dead, and so were his comrades. The flaming building that warmed her body had no other objective than to attempt to calm her wrath, but she had no time to calm down, she'd like to bury her, now forever, unhatched child, and the house was on the other side of the town. As she crossed the town, the warmth of fire didn't leave her, not because it followed her, but because the rage inside her burnt brightly as the building.
But fighting is exhausting, and adrenaline could only take her so far. She didn't manage to reach a bench before her legs gave up and made her fall to her knees. She punched the floor, how much had she to lose? How much pain had she to deal with? Where was her husband when she needed him most? She... no, no more children. She shall be no more she, but they. They won't have more children, surely Leviaat will understand.
They moved to stay sitting on the floor and hug her knees, hiding their face in their arms, grieving the unhatched and everything else they lost. Yet the warmth of fire didn't leave her behind but there was no more rage, just scars of old grieving, never leaving but healed, or so they thought. They raised their head to find the source of the warmth.
Oh, right... Zembu had started a fire to cook some dinner. They were having cooked rabbit with mushrooms; the kids had found some mushrooms that Zembu claimed edible and they had hunted a rabbit. They wonder if Zembu would make it a stew, his stew is delicious. Probably not, it's already late in the night, no time for it while travelling, maybe once they are back home? If that ever happens...
They caught the girl staring at them with worry in her innocent eyes but the girl quickly turned around to speak with the other kid. How were they convinced to travel with these two kids? Zembu convinced them that the girl could be their ticket home, they doubted it though, but the boy? He just stuck with them like a tick, well, stuck to the girl, Kin'rah wondered if his love was fraternal or something else.
They stretched their arms towards the fire, the warmth was such a nice feeling against the cold of the night. It often brings smells of death and trauma, but maybe, with this weird group they found themselves travelling with, they could try to change the smell of fire to the smell of love and happiness. It was a beautiful thing yet found in too many bad memories.
Zembu sat next to them, breaking their trance, and gave Kin'rah a warm plate of rabbit and mushrooms. His smile was comforting and warm. "They remind of you and Leviaat when you both were young and nice. I hope their future is nicer than what the world gave you two. I'd love them to be forged in happiness rather than in battles... But anyway, are you fine, Kin'rah? You look distant." his soft voice was like a blanket. "I think so, I just... Just got flooded by some bad memories." halfway through the sentence their voice cracked up but they were speaking so low that the kids didn't hear it. They felt Zembu's hand as he wiped some tears that had covered Kin'rah's eyes, with warm fatherly love.
"It's all good, we are fine now..."
Comments