Short Story:
~ The battle was long and hard. More times than one my strength failed me; staff slipping, blade contacting the leather armor. Sparks flew, fire and ice. Screams of the dying, screams of rage filled the air around me. The ground gave way beneath its roar. Frantic running, yelling, hoping but it was too late. I fell into the abyss, clawing, scratching at the air.
~ Sunlight flooded my body, warming the cold, exposed flesh. The air smelled of salt and water. There was no hint of the grim battle that had took place. My eyes opened to the brilliant blue sky of midsummer. A relaxed haze hung over the trees and sand surrounding the beach.
~ "Be still," she said in a tone as soft as the sand beneath me. Her hand rested on my blood soaked midsection, the only reminder of reality. "You've been hurt, but I can help you."
~ Her smile reminded me of an attentive elder, healing a sick child, but her body showed someone of my own age. Thin and tanned, beautiful hair cascading down her frame. Her kind eyes told the story of a thousand lives.
~ She cared for me. Took me back to her hut, feeding me from her own stock. Clean water and clean bandages, songs and stories. Never felt alone or a burden.
~ "How many days have passed?" I asked one day. I felt the sadness over take her.
~ "Enough." She said. "It's time for you to return." With that she placed my staff in my hand and led me to a door.
~ The fresh mountain air rushed as I walked through the portal. Stone stairs ascended to the palace above. Eire quiet and hushed sobs hung in the air, like an unspoken hymn of a momentary. The footsteps echoed as I made my way into the great hall.
~ Few people gathered in front of a wooden table. Tear stains faces, blood shot eyes. No one spoke, only tears. Armor had been replaced with black cotton garments.
~ "What's going on here?" I asked. Eyes shot in my direction, the heavy wooden door slammed. Gasps and cries shot through the air. His eyes met with mine. Sadness, loss, hope, and hate. Confusion and longing. Hysterical hallucination. But maybe...
~ "It can't be you." The words finally falling from tight lips. I rested my hand on his cheek as he fell into the touch. Over his shoulder I saw the wooden table, my dead form as the center piece.
~ Fear took over before anything else. Springing to action, my staff as a shield. "That's not me." I hissed. Fear was contagious. No armor, no weapons, no hope.
~ The demon's sickening laugh amplified by the stone filled the great hall. Cold froze the air around me. Despair. Fighting, back to back. Clashing of fire and ice.
~ Finally, victorious. His hands find mine, eyes locking in place. "Are you really alive?"
~ "As far as I know."
