Week 38

Life, Death

Autumn 4 The strongest among you dies. What caused the death? or... The weakest among you dies. Who's to blame for their death? Tate a child in the town dies after falling into the cold water of the river.

There was no sanctuary today, where the river danced with the rhythms of ancient secrets, a shadow was cast upon the spirits of its dwellers. It was young Tate, the wildchild of the town, whose laughter had been a melody in the winds, who now lay cold and still, claimed by the chilling embrace of the river near the hydro dam. Patty, Tate’s mother and a river driver familiar with the river's moods, was a statue of despair, her heart a cavern of sorrow, as the river she had once called friend, had now turned foe, snatching away her child. Kerry, the watcher and father to Tate, harbored a storm of guilt and sorrow in his eyes, the loss a shadow upon his soul.   Clarence, the Half Orc Cleric of Pelor, and Salandra Greenfield, the half-orc mechanic, stood by their sides, their presence a beacon of support in the tempest of grief. Clarence, with the light of Pelor illuminating his path, murmured prayers of solace and light, his voice a soft whisper in the winds, seeking to bring solace to the wounded hearts of Patty and Kerry.   Salandra, her hands more accustomed to the dance of machines, felt a helplessness shroud her spirit. She had been a companion to the elements of mechanics and gears, but in the face of such loss, her hands were shackled, unable to mend the broken hearts of the grieving parents.   The town, now draped in the veils of sorrow, moved in a symphony of muted tones, the laughter and the chatter a distant echo in the shadows of loss. It was the river, the keeper of ancient tales, that bore the silent weight of guilt, its waters a canvas painted with the shades of a young life lost.   In the embrace of silent nights, where the stars whispered tales of eternal light, Clarence found himself standing by the river, his prayers a melody in the winds, seeking forgiveness and light from the divine realms. He asked Pelor to guide Tate’s spirit to the realms of eternal sunshine, where his laughter could dance with the stars, free from the shadows of the transient world.   Patty and Kerry, their spirits fragments of their former selves, found solace in the embrace of each other, their tears a silent symphony in the night, the memory of Tate a light in their hearts. Salandra, the mechanic of elements, found herself whispering to the gears and the machines, her words a silent promise to protect, to be the guardian of the innocent spirits of Sanctuary.   In the tapestry of existence, where the threads of life and loss were woven with the colors of experiences, the town of Sanctuary bore the imprint of Tate, his spirit a whisper in the winds, a melody in the river, a reminder of the fragility and the beauty of the transient dance of life.