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human wreckage - Aurelia - 10-08-2021
The rot of her flesh attracts them like flies to a carcass. She can even smell it, the festering stench of her own death. It thickens the air, it stings her eyes. The skin around her knee draws tight and red, each step an agony that squeezes more blood and pus from the wound.
Blistered fingers reach out for the support of a low-hanging branch. In her state of weakness, she's used everything she could to pull herself away from the looming shadows. But she can feel herself declining, bare feet dragging across the ground, muscles screaming in protest with every lurch forward.
The branch suddenly sways, twisting, snarling at her touch. Scarlet red liquid pools beneath the bark where her hand touches it. Something brushes past her ankle. The wind picks up and all of the trees around her come alive with the intent to catch her. The vines howl in their excitement for the hunt - and she the hunted.
[Say]No escape-![/say] is a venomous hiss in her ear. Mangled faces glare out from the tall grasses, rise up from the sinking mud. They bare ugly, gnashing teeth made of stone and roots, worms and beetles. [Say]No escape![/say] They chant the words over and over again, taunting her.
Pale white fear breathes new energy within her. Frantically, she scrambles away, but her shirt is snagged. [Say]No- nonono"No! No! Let me go! Please-!"[/say] She cries, her panicked voice echoing back at her. A mockery of her torment.
RE: human wreckage - Mildew - 10-08-2021
Mildew was gathering for her potions and soups; with the extended trip away she'd had, a lot of her usual supply had gone over. There were uses for the rot and mould, but she still needed fresh ingredients for some things, so she was searching for the right leaves, mushrooms and rarely, fruits. This was usually a peaceful activity, spent humming to herself and whispering to bugs and toads around her feet.
All was quiet and well until she began to hear screaming. As if someone was really struggling out in the swamp. Mildew straightened up from the bush she had been leaning over and blinked, looking around herself and trying to work out the direction it came from.
Cautiously, she began to walk in the way she thought it originated, slowly and carefully so she could be stealthy and sneak away if needed. As Mildew got closer to where she could hear heavy breathing and panicked noises, she saw no group or monster - just a single woman, laying on the edge of a muddy pond, covered in dirt and in a mess. The Goddess stopped at the perimeter of the clearing and watched for a moment, then sighed. The Feverlands had ways of getting to some, those with feeble minds.
[say]"Come on now, dear-"[/say] She began, walking towards the woman; it was then she realised it was Aurelia, someone she knew. Her general concern became a little more intense, because as much as she knew better than to grow attached to mortals, she had enjoyed the visit from the young woman. [say]"-Aurelia. Do you know where you are?"[/say] Mildew asked, kneeling down by her and gently touching her arm.
RE: human wreckage - Aurelia - 10-08-2021
The hem of her shirt rips on the branch, her legs sink into the brackish mud, and in this instant she knows she is caught. Like a rabbit in a snare; too weak and small to fight. She can only thrash out in opposition of her fate. Tears leave clean trails down her dirt-stained face. She doesn't even notice the figure at the edge of the clearing, not until they come closer.
Aurelia
Her racing heart takes pause and her breath turns shallow as she looks - really looks - at the woman before her. They kneel down, tresses of their hair shifting with the movement, and they touch her. She flinches back. [say]"Don't! They'll-"[/say] she begins to hiss out a warning but, as she glances about frantically, they've gone. The faces in the reeds, the whispers on the wind, the dark cloud that was chasing her.
She looks back up at Mildew, forlorn, lost. Was any of it real? Her lip trembles and she hugs herself, shaking. [say]"I don't know, I don't know,"[/say] she shakes her head, [say]"They- they wanted to hurt me and I.."[/say] she reaches out to grasp for Mildew's wrist, her grip weak, [say]"I can't run anymore. M-my leg..."[/say]
The wound above her knee lies open, oozing and throbbing with infection.
RE: human wreckage - Mildew - 10-10-2021
Mildew turned to where Aurelia's terrified eyes went, saw nothing but the swamp, and looked back to her with a sympathetic expression. [say]"Oh, dear."[/say] In the next few moments, Aurelia's weak grip, her words, the wound on her leg (the sight of which made Mildew cringe, the infection clear): it became clear what had happened and that if she didn't get help soon, she would likely be dead.
[say]"Listen to me. I will help you up and to walk to my house. I can treat you, but you must come with me quickly. I will protect you from..."[/say] She glanced up as if she were seeing the same ghouls Aurelia had. [say]"...Them."[/say]
Mildew would try to gently put an arm under Aurelias and around her back, with her injured leg inwards, so she could help her walk the way back to the house. [say]"It's not far, dear. Just need to get up and make it through the first bit of pain."[/say] She'd seen humans persevere through much worse; she stood quickly, knowing if they took time over it it would become a worse ordeal.
RE: human wreckage - Aurelia - 10-14-2021
She looks up at Mildew, at the curls of hair that frame the woman's face, as she glances toward their surroundings in emphasis of the things Aurelia had seen. 'Them.'
Despite the rabbiting of her heart and the disorientation she feels, she listens. More importantly, she trusts. With shaking muscles and pained groans, she gets up as quickly as she can. The supportive arm certainly helps things along, and from there she takes things one step at a time. Aside from that, she tries to concentrate almost solely on her breathing.
Her voice is raspy, it cuts at the back of her throat with each word she utters - but she utters them anyway. It had been so long since she'd seen a friendly face, or talked to someone other than... them. [say]"Where are we?"[/say] She asks, [say]"The.. the swamps? How did I get here? I was.. I was in the desert... with Remi.
"How long have I been out here?"[/say] The last question is quieter, breathier, spoken more to herself than to Mildew.
RE: human wreckage - Mildew - 11-04-2021
Aurelia came up easily enough, Mildew making sure to tighten her grip to push up her shoulders and take the first steps slowly. The Feverlands had never been a friendly environment for those unsure on their feet, but she tried to pick out the least troublesome path for them going forwards.
The voice that spoke was tired and worn; Mildew almost told her not to speak, but found that her curiosity about how Aurelia had ended up here made her stay the warning. [say]"We're in the Feverlands, not that far from my house. I'm afraid I can't tell you how you got here - you'll have to remember that yourself, darling."[/say] The mention of Remi's name made her wonder if something had befallen the Demi God too; surely he wouldn't have simply left Aurelia here if he had had a choice.
[say]"Again, I can't say I know. Though..."[/say] After a quick glance up to see the smoke from her chimney coming up, she looked back down to Aurelia's injury and stained dress. [say]"Probably at least a day. Far too long to be laying down in the mud."[/say]
RE: human wreckage - Aurelia - 11-05-2021
She tries to remember, to sift through the fog that lays over her mind until her brows furrow in against her nose and her lips twist downward. Time, being so illusory, feels loose and jumbled when she tries to pin it down. It's sand through her fingertips, but other things jump out at her slowly.
[say]"Ronin... was there. Ronin was there, too..."[/say] she manages, breathing shallowly, [say]"and Sunjata..."[/say] With the mention of those names comes a whole flush of memories, the likes of which make her steps falter for a few moments.
She raises shadowy eyes back up at Mildew, following the witch's gaze toward clouds of smoke rising out of a chimney.
At least a day. She repeats it over and over in her mind, as if trying it on for size. Her shoulders lift and her voice billows out with a tremble, [say]"It's cold..."[/say] And something about that feels strange. Out of place. Like... fish out of water. Or a puzzle piece that doesn't fit. Wasn't it only just barely Leafchange? [Say]"I think... I've been out here a lot longer than just a day..."[/say]
RE: human wreckage - Mildew - 11-08-2021
[say]"Ronin, Sunjata and Remi, and none of them could look after you?"[/say] Mildew tutted and shook her head, clearly disappointed in the three men, all of whom she knew were powerful, two of them Demi Gods. Unless all three of them were dead or in some kind of horrendous danger, she thought it shocking they would leave Aurelia on her own in her state. The next time she saw them, she would certainly give them a piece of her mind.
Slowly, Mildew helped Aurelia up onto the roots and planks that made up the walkway over the water to her hut, pausing to listen to her mumble. [say]"Well, you'd know better than me, dear. No matter how long it's been, I'd say it's a miracle that you're alive."[/say] One step in front of the other, slow and deliberate on the loose and often creaky planks, Mildew brought Aurelia closer to the hut, where warmth and a pleasant smell of food cooking with many herbs and spices emanated.
[say]"Come on. Inside. We'll get you laid down and seen to."[/say] She instructed, firm but kind, as she reached the door and opened it.
RE: human wreckage - Aurelia - 11-14-2021
Aurelia had a hard time understanding why the three would have left her behind as well. In fact, she didn't understand it at all. [say]"Something -agh- happened,"[/say] she presses one palm to the side of her head, gritting her teeth against the pain of a pulsating headache.
It's a good thing they've reached Mildew's residence. Trip her way over the roots as she does, she doesn't know if she would've had the strength to carry herself much farther. Glassy eyes lift to glance around at Mildew and then the hut as they make their way inside.
As soon as they're inside, Aurelia finds the nearest thing that might serve as a bed or a couch. Or just something soft to lay on. She's not about to be picky, not now. The safety and warmth of being within four walls, with someone she trusts, is enough for her to relax almost completely. Even her very bones seem to sigh with her.
For the first time in a while, she takes the time to pull up her ripped pant leg and actually look at her injury. She gives it a gentle poke, testing. She almost immediately recoils, stifling a groan and leaning back into the pool of her own sweat.
[say]"Some hero I became, huh?"[/say] She says {in reference to the fortune Mildew had given her the year before}, and the breathy laugh that follows is mirthless. There is some truth in jest, after all. But she blinks that away and looks up again, [Say]"Thank you, Mildew. Not very many people would have helped me, especially not... Now. I really don't deserve it anyway."[/say]
RE: human wreckage - Mildew - 11-16-2021
As soon as Aurelia was settled down on the cot Mildew used as a bed, stuffed with moss and fur, the witch got busy gathering various herbs and ingredients from around the walls, picking jars and pots from the slots there with an expert precision. Each went down onto a table by the large cauldron, where she began to grind them into a powder.
[say]"Don't touch it."[/say] Was the first thing she said, eyes darting up at Aurelia's groan, but then her tone softened as she continued. [say]"Darling, if you're expecting fortunes to come true within a year, you really must gather your patience. Every hero has to have their low points to learn from, hm?"[/say] To Mildew, Aurelia was very, very young: she had so long to go, to prove herself. This was nothing more than a blip (though it could have been much worse had she not been found).
Picking up the ladle in the cauldron and pouring a little of the unknowable liquid into the bowl of powder, she smiled softly and nodded. [say]"You're welcome. I can't have people dying in my Feverlands. But...what do you mean, you don't deserve it now? Have you done something wrong?"[/say] Mildew asked, but Aurelia would have to answer in a moment; she stood and poured the mixture into a mug. It was an odd orange-brown, with herbs and grains floating in the top - she held it out to Aurelia. [say]"This will taste awful, but it will help with the fever. Drink it all."[/say]
RE: human wreckage - Aurelia - 11-18-2021
Aurelia is thoughtfully (and perhaps exhaustedly) silent as Mildew speaks, watching the woman pour something into a bowl that she couldn't even begin to identify. But she's not about to refuse anything that might help, so she props herself up on her elbow and throws the mystery liquid down the hatch. As much as she can bear, anyway, before she's coughing and spluttering into her wrist.
It swishes around uncomfortably in her gut but she manages to keep it down. For now.
Looking back up, her gaze shifts with something akin to remorse. [say]"You're right, I don't have much patience. Even so, things did start happening for me... Safrin Attuned me, for one. Then she made me one of the queens of Torchline... Maybe it was too much, or maybe I'm not enough. I don't know..."[/say] she chews at her lower lip nervously. The thought of all of the things she's left behind in Torchline is haunting. She stares at Mildew for a moment, not sure how the witch will take something like this, but sure that she has to come clean about it.
She frowns and turns her gaze down, staring at an herb that had fallen on the ground. Its leaves were still green, fresh. Her hands clutch tighter around the mug. [say]"I killed someone's companion,"[/say] she swallows, [say]"I'm not sorry I did it. Because of what they did- what they destroyed. But ... I should be, I think. Ever since that, it's all been a mess. I've been a mess,"[/say] she admits, shaking her head, [say]"still, I wanted to do much worse things than that. I wanted revenge."[/say] She chances a glance back up at Mildew, to see the other woman's reaction to a "hero" story. Would she think of Aurelia as a villain now?
RE: human wreckage - Mildew - 11-18-2021
Mildew proudly nodded and smiled as she saw Aurelia drink the mixture like a champ, pleased that it wasn't going to be a fight to get the girl back to health. She was immediately busy again, taking a new selection of herbs and jars down to her work table to mix and mould into something else. While she worked, she listened to Aurelia speak, the smile remaining on her face throughout, faint but still there.
[say]"You seem desperate for me to judge you, darling, but when one has been alive as long as I have, nothing shocks anymore."[/say] Mildew said with a glance towards Aurelia, a twinkle in her eye as her hands folded over a dark brown paste on the board. [say]"A Queen, though. How regal. Do you like it?"[/say] Pushing the paste off the board and into a bowl, she took with her some bandages and a knife then sat by Aurelia's leg.
Soaking a rag in a kettle of water, she considered the killing of a companion; a severe act, to be sure, but Mildew knew better than to make harsh judgements. [say]"Did killing it feel good? Did you gain anything from the death?"[/say] Her hands wound the rag into a spiral and she squeezed out the excess water, then began to gently wash away the dirt from Aurelia's leg - from around the wound first, but soon enough she would begin to close in on it's edges.
RE: human wreckage - Aurelia - 11-19-2021
Mildew's words are humbling in a 'my life is way smaller than I think it is' kind of way. Aurelia wonders what the centuries-old witch thinks of the current 'political climate', but she decides to hold back that question for a better moment.
She stiffens uncomfortably at the words 'queen' and 'regal', but maybe she can get away with pretending it's the sight of the dark, brown paste that Mildew comes over with. There wasn't anything pretty or nice about healing, was there?
[say]"I think...a part of me hates it, because I had to give up a lot. Things that were important to me but not my position. The transfer of power also meant that Sunjata was stepping down. I wanted to help him. Not replace him..."[/say]
[say]"But knowing I could do something to help the city.. It's bigger than just the people I care about. It's everyone else, too. My priorities completely changed,"[/say] she gives a moment's pause and sighs, [say]"and I think my personal life has suffered for it."[/say]
And, yes, the irony of that statement does go completely over her head.
She flinches at the feeling of pressure - even just from water - on her leg. It takes a moment for her to relax, for her jaw to slack and her muscles to stop quivering. It helps to focus on the conversation, even if it isn't a very easy one.
[say]"I've had to hunt for food, or kill in self-defense. It was just another one of those things to me... A necessity,"[/say] she peers at Mildew with a deeper frown, ashamed. Not that she ever was proud of it but, in front of someone who valued nature so much - lived amongst it as if she were one with the wilds? It brings her no joy to explain, [say]"I've never really looked at animals as... anything more. To me, killing the unicorn was nothing. To their companion, it was... everything, I guess."[/say]
[say]"It nearly cost me everything, too,"[/say] she admits with a quieter voice, feeling more and more regret as she continues, [say]"the person was invisible and.. she struck me with her magic,"[/say] she pulls up the ragged sleeve on one of her arms, revealing the fern-shaped scars all across her skin from being struck by Hotaru's lightning. [say]"She tried to kill me. And if it weren't for the people in my life, or for Safrin, she would have."[/say]
RE: human wreckage - Mildew - 11-22-2021
[say]"What did you have to give up? And if this Sunjata is one of those that left you like that in the Swamp, he doesn't deserve your help, dear."[/say] Mildew half had a mind to write a letter to the men she'd mentioned, asking what they thought they were doing. She was almost fond of Aurelia, as she had been the first new face she'd seen in many years and respectful too.
The cloth moved closer into the wound now; Mildew put a steadying hand just under Aurelia's knee to keep her leg still as the water washed over ragged edges and came away pink with blood. [say]"I'm not going to judge you for hunting, either. It's life. You know that most of what I eat comes from the Swamp, meat and plant both? In time, I will die and the creatures here will eat me."[/say] To the ground, flesh slowly ripped away until she was naught but bones; it was the burial she wanted.
She tilted her head side to side as Aurelia mused on the companion, not giving any thoughts on that. They all had their sins and mistakes.
[say]"I see."[/say] Mildew took a break from washing the wound to reach and brush her fingers over the old scar, tutting and shaking her head. [say]"You've really been having a poor time, haven't you?"[/say] When it rained, it poured: it always seemed that the bad things in life came all at once. [say]"This person that hurt you...are you worried she might do it again? I could give you something for protection."[/say]