Ascent - Stickdom

[Grey]

@Stickdom


Harvest time. The priesthood are so very serious now, but the rest of the village are all revelry and joy. There will be a bonfire, and a feast, dancing and music. There is still the day to end, of course - and you’re expected to help your mother prepare. There are things to cook, and bake, and stew while your brothers carry from the fields and father takes one of the pigs to Joyce for slaughter.


The air is a little chilly, but the sun is bright and the leaves are falling softly on the village. The forest bordering the village whispers in the wind and carries soft, feminine laughs that fall silent as they cross the iron rods hammered into the earth on the village's edge.


There is a nervous energy in the air, like ice threatening to break.

 

[Stickdom]

Kathina hurriedly moved the lump of dough from the counter where it had been rising into the brick-lined oven, already glowing a dull red-orange from the coals nestled under the iron rack. This was followed by another and yet another, transferred with a long-handled wooden paddle. She brushed the flour that had caked on her hands onto her apron, then shook it off onto the dirt floor of the kitchen. There were patrons to be served, beers and plates of food to be delivered to the tables, wooden serving trays to be scoured and dried. Kathina reluctantly performed these mundane tasks, secretly hoping to get the chance of slipping away to the festivities of the harvest celebrations.


But this year was different. Instead of the usual laughter and gaiety in the little village square and its streets, a somber hush had taken root. Incursions against nature had taken root in the rural community, livestock had become hostile without warning, a creeping illness had settled into many of the households. Caution was the watchword of the alleys, and requests to the Inquisition to investigate these mysterious circumstances had gone mostly unheeded. It was considered at most to be a pestilence, an inconvenience to the comfort of local society, but nothing to be immediately reckoned with by the royal powers that were. A handful of Inquisitorial troops had been dispatched from the capital, they spent their days patrolling the streets and prying into the lives of the commoners on the pretense of searching for a cause of these effects, but it seemed to the citizens more of an excuse to confiscate their goods and wares for no charge.


As the evening drew to a close, Kathina had finished dragging a dirty, wet rag over her latest round of tables, then found her mother toiling over a steaming pot of her thick stew. Father was away with the sow that had stopped birthing the last year, she would be the main selection on the guest-house tables. Kathina's brothers were also away, bringing in the harvest that was the festival's namesake. The Festival of Autumn Wheat was one of the most important in the village's traditions, without it and the ceremonies held, there would be no harvest next year. Kathina could stand to be left out no longer, and seizing the chance of distraction and the low traffic through the dining room of the tavern, ran to the town square to take in the festivities.

 

[Grey]

For all the quiet and subdued atmosphere of home, the worry dragging down your father's brow and stiffness in your mother's back, the square is still magic. A bonfire burns and music plays. Young men and women dance around the blazing pit, and the air is full with the smells of hot meat, toasting bread, and strong ales. Here and there a few wealthier men smoke, and the smoke is rich, intoxicating, dancing towards the flames to be swept into the darkening sky like raindrops to a stream.


Someone hands you an apple, dipped in honey and stuck onto a little stake - Balostis, the heavier of the town's two Royal Huntsmen. His skinny, rat-faced counterpart Sven stares over his mug with disapproval. Father Thomlen watches everything with grandfatherly benevolence, studiously keeping his eyes from the older girls who, you notice, are letting their dresses slip a little in some of the dancing.


Your friends are gathered at the far side of the square, and there, beside the smithy, you can almost feel Lew staring at you over through the dancing tongues of the bonfire.

 

[Stickdom]

The aura about the square seemed to reek of enchantment, a thick and heady smoke covered the air above the heads of the citizenry like a blanket. Since she was a small child, Kathina had always loved the air of gaiety and celebration that fell over the village this time of festival, that the hardships and sacrifices of the year had become fruits of labor. One of these fruits was the honeyed-apple that was handed her by the rotund Huntsman as she passed. Balostis had garnered some rumors about his tendency towards the younger and more innocent maidens, but his smile appeared genuine enough given the occasion, though Sven, his companion and fellow Huntsman, was careful to keep an eye on him lest he tarnish their reputations. But, Kathina's attentions are drawn to festivities further down the square, the dancing and singing and music only enhance the setting and the shifting shadows of the dancers encircling the bonfire cast ethereal shapes down the streets and alleys around.


Many others are also watching the dance from this distance, not engaged enough to join the frolic but still desiring to absorb the events of the evening. Among them, the elderly Father Thomlen, who to Kathina had always been a pillar of piety and guidance, though stories through the years had circulated of some connection between himself and a cruel past involved with the Inquisition. Still, his present countenance belied only gentle kindness, and whatever his past may have entailed, he was a welcome light in the often shadowed superstitious beliefs of common talk.


Still, a conversation with the old man would not be enough to satisfy the thirst for celebration, which Kathina's own friends were drinking deeply of. Slipping onto one of the bales of hay that surrounded the bonfire, engaging in petty chatter among the other girls her age, when a sudden chill runs down her neck. Looking directly across from her, she felt that she could tangibly touch the look that Lew was casting her way. She decided to ignore him for the time being, if he chose to pursue her even here now, she would have any number of fellow girls to retort that his advances were not welcomed or appreciated. Honey-apple still in hand, half-eaten, Kathina chose to discuss the recent events with her friends, not least of which was the rash of tales about several diseased animals running rampant through the fields or attacking the populace directly.

 

[Grey]

"I heard Yohn Petersson was attacked by a wolf, but fought it off!" Lisa breathlessly claims - but she's often breathless where young Yohn is concerned, and the other girls roll their eyes.


"Cotter Pike told me one of his rams got its horns all turned around and tried to gore him with them." Says solemn Una, sipping a hot spiced cider and staring into the flames. The other girls laugh, at first, but then shift uncomfortably.


"Did I ever tell you about Ashenvale?" She adds, suddenly, pale features made eerie by the flame.


There's a chorus of no.


"It was a village east of here, founded by a member of the Kelene royal family. They said it was struggling, so when Autumn came and the Dancing Reaper lead his revelers through the woods, the young prince challenged him to a game of riddles.


"He was a clever man, that prince, but arrogant. He won the game, and demanded for his prize a great harvest for the village, the likes of which the world has never seen. But he was haughty and rude, and gloated to the Reaper.


"But the Folk keep their word, and he promised the prince; 'at next harvest will you reap a grand bounty of all things buried in the earth...'"


She looks from the flames, at each of you in turn.


"And Ashenvale had lost a lot of good men to the monsters of the eastern forest."

 

[Stickdom]

Among the normal gossip, the tales of the recent attacks stood out in the conversations held in small groups and hushed whispers around the great bonfire. Lisa's enraptured telling of her Yohn's bravery was ignored, at least by Kathina. She had always despised the haughty butcher's daughter, who was one of the richest families in the town thanks to his trade, and Lisa often flaunted her relative wealth to the 'common folk' who must work for their own bread. May the cows turn on your father's knife at butchering , was an often muttered curse from Kathina's lips in regards to her extravagance, though in these times of bewildering beasts and strange tempers, this was not too far from unlikely anymore.


Una's tales were at least of interest, though the tale of the Dancing Reaper's Bounty she had heard before, or similar at the least. Kathina had a form of friendship with the girl Una, if they spoke of any meaningful content, they both shared the same story of hard work and family background, a bond that often lead to shared sympathies and a friendly rivalry. Una's head was squarely set between her shoulders, Kathina knew that any news from her would not be exaggerated or stretched.


"Hi, Una," she said quietly in greeting, sitting next to her friend as she finished her story and the other girls turned to whisper to their neighbors as well. "Cotton Pike's ram, was it? I heard from Oland that one of he went to the coop to collect the eggs, and he found all of his chickens dead. All but one, a bloodied bird that strut around and picked the feathers off of the others." The image was horrifying, Oland had always been proud of how docile and consistent his chickens were, he could lift them from the nest and pluck the eggs out from under them, still warm, so he had always said. "What are we coming to, Una? Do you think we are cursed? Or just one of us maybe. But who could it be?" The talk had been of the doctor, one Coritus Mulsch, who had been staying at Kathina's family establishment recently. He had often treated the rear end of such attacks, but had an almost precognitive knowledge of when and where they would occur. Kathina had seen him in his room, taking meals or changing the bed-spread for him, and she noticed the he often appeared to be preparing his medical kit for very specific circumstances, only to have them met a day or two later in the form of some animal turned on each other or a citizen of the village.


She had not mentioned this behavior to anyone, mostly because there was no concrete proof of his guilt, but also the doctor's temperament was so kind and he genuinely treated his patients. She could only assume that he was preparing for all situations, and was very expedient at his profession.


Kathina pondered these, but was snapped back from her thoughts by Una's inquisitive stare. She always seemed to know when something was pestering Kathina's mind, so she redirected the attention from herself. "What do you think, Una?"

 

[Grey]

Una draws her feet up onto the bench, chin on her knees. A slight girl - your mothers are always tutting about her narrow frame - she seems like a doll on the rough wood.


"This land is cursed," she says, softly. "Something wicked must have happened here, long ago, and we're still suffering for it."


Presently there's a scream from somewhere to the north, the other side of the bonfire.

 

[Stickdom]

The scream pierces through the darkness outside of the ring of firelight. Questioning whispers turned to panic and the crowds began to scatter frantically, most away from the direction of the scream, but some few brave or foolhardy towards it. Kathina was initially one of the former, she grabbed Una's hand and pulled her along, maneuvering behind her friend to stay between her and the calamity. Pushing Una in front of her to get away, she saw her friend's mother searching the crowd for them, and then Kathina's own father pushing through the commotion to assist at the site of the screaming. They made their way to the street curb where Una's mother embraced her. Letting go of Una's hand, she bade them "Go to my home, see that my mother is safe, I have to find my father," and turned back as a wave of citizens headed towards the bonfire and the screaming, some armed with torches, others only carrying frightened faces.


Kathina felt strange, this was different from the disquiet that had swept its way over their village these past months. This was sheer mayhem, unadulterated fear, nothing like this had been seen in many years in such a quiet village. She had no plan, no idea what she might do if she found whatever it was that was attacking them, Kathina only knew that she felt a pit of unease in her stomach and not much more than that. She only knew that she had to find her father, or fall prey to the dread that something terrible was unfolding.

 

[Grey]

The girls murmur fearfully, and you feel hands at your back as if to draw you with them, to stop you from going.


But you slip through the dissipating crowd towards the last sight of your father, towards the scream and the few brave souls heading the way way.


The street is desolate; the detritus of the celebration lying in the dirt, the windows dark and empty, a few men gathered around something with spears, pitchforks, and shovels in hand. A gloomy pall hangs over it all, like the bonfire's smoke.


"...is it still here?" One man asks.


"Lord save us, I hope not. It wouldn't stay, would it?"


"Was it the only one? What if they hunt in packs."


"It's sick, no doubt. Rabid."


They have not yet noticed you. But you can see something glinting in the gap between houses, like three golden eyes arranged in a triangle. Like cat's eyes. Watching.

 

[Stickdom]

The firelight of torches casts an eery glow on the walls of the otherwise darkened streets. Even the bonfire some distance back at the square appears to have dimmed, like a lantern that had quickly had the hood put over it. The men had not yet acknowledged Kathina's presence, and she was yet too far to recognize any of them. Their voices and words were grim, but none she recognized as her father's. Looking towards the group, she crept slowly towards them so as not to startle them, for fear they turn on her by mistake.


But, in her cautious sneaking and her vigilance, she saw something that froze her blood in her heart. A set of eyes, not a pair but three, glinting in an alley, clearly no beast known well in this region of the world, if any. With a stifled scream, she regained her composure and carefully knelt, never taking her own eyes from the trio in the alley. She swept her had over the street, searching for anything to defend herself with, a loose cobblestone from the path, a stout stick or cane hurriedly left in the commotion, anything would be better than her bare, dainty, dish-worn hands.


As she sought, she imagined she glimpsed a movement from the alley, and in her fright, she could not help but shriek and point, "There! There! Th-the alley!" Kathina clapped her remaining hand to her mouth at this outburst, more for fear it would provoke the beast into action, and she frantically redoubled her search to arm herself in preparation of however this fiend chose to respond.


@Grey

 

[Grey]

As you cry out, it moves. Oh gods, how it moves! In the flickering torchlight you can only make out the impression of too many, spindly limbs and rippling streaks of light. The men turn to look at you, first, only catching sight of the thing as it descends upon them with a strange, thrumming howl like a plucked string.


You recognize one of Una's older brothers the moment before it hits him, a black spray of blood in the flickering light.

 

[Stickdom]

The sudden attack gives pause to Kathina's actions, the utter shock of the slaughter almost too much to bear. This was clearly like no creature ever known before, Kathina almost felt that she would be overcome by the malicious evil that seemed to emanate from it. Her resolve weakened, she slumped to the ground, staring mindlessly as this monster proceeded to kill the members of what was supposed to be a group of the village's bravest, strongest, staunchest defenders. Its intentions were clear, it was not hunting for prey or sport, it was bent on death in the purest form, no conscience or morality. Only bestial destruction.


Her body seemed out of her control, she had accepted that she could not run and had no means to fight. But, her wandering hands fell over the raspy surface of a wooden handle. Kathina was roused from her stupor as she hurriedly looked to her newfound weapon. A stout pole tipped with a brass lantern, perhaps flung by one of the men in the fray several meters ahead, or knocked over during the mad rush of civilians from the area. Its capsule had remained closed and while flames themselves had died away, the dying embers of a few coals lay trapped within. In a moment of unsure judgement or lapse of sanity, she tore some of the lower lining from her skirt and balled the fabric into the lantern, attempting to coax fire back into life once more. It did so momentarily and with her courage bolstered, Kathina rushed forward, brandishing the lantern as it were a flaming mace, attempting to thrust and smash it upon the creature's face.


@Grey

 

[Grey]

The lantern breaks against its hide; the flame flickers across its flesh and vanish, leaving you in darkness but for distant fires, and those three eyes turning upon you, the patches of glowing skin like whorled tattoos across its spindly body.


There's a hard, wet crack and something warm splashes your face - a body falls from the creature's claws, and it rears up to a height taller than any man you know, howling again, jaws clicking and flexing just out of sight.


It lunges, lightning-quick, claw outstretched towards your face.

 

[Stickdom]

The beast seems unfazed by her attack, which both did and didn't surprise Kathina. But, the breaking of her weapon also signified a slight breaking of her spirits, as she realized the futility of her efforts against such an enemy. Her fear turned to dread as she dropped her shattered weapon to cover her ears as the beast howled again, closing her eyes to shut out the sight of its eldritch features, the shatter of a human body in its clutches deepened her dread to terror. A sudden chill down her spine as hot liquid splashed over her, she dares not guess what it was for fear of losing her already wavering nerve, but the instant thought of blood, and the implications thereof, passed through her mind.


As the howling ceased, Kathina quickly went back on the defensive, snatching her weapon from the ground, broken though it was. She heard the sound of mandibles, like the grasshoppers she had sat and watched during her Summer days turned monstrous, and tried to locate them on this beast's body so as to avoid them. Another movement, a swift strike from its claws, Kathina screamed and closed her eyes as she raised the wooden shaft in her hand in front of her. A solid snap and an impact that thrust her backwards. She felt the solid wood had broken, now only barely a foot of it left in her hand, and she had been thrown backwards down the street. She screamed in the anticipation of pain, though whether she had been hit or where she had yet to discover, she only know that her legs and her lungs yet worked, and she would use them. Rolling to her feet, she began to run in the other direction, towards the square and the promise of firelight, screaming for help and someone to save them from this monster.

 

[Grey]

The warmth spreads. The light of the bonfire illuminates you like your own corpse surrounded by candles. There's a searing pain across your collarbone - on touch, you find torn dress, deep gash. Your fingers are bloody and numb. The stick feels so heavy in your hand....


The creature advances with a squirming gait, low to the ground, then looms over you.


And sprouts an arrow from the central eye. Falls heavily to the ground beside you.


"For fuck's sake, child, run!" Cries a deep, but feminine voice at your back, above you somewhere.

 

[Stickdom]

Bewildered by her sudden salvation, Kathina stopped short a moment in a daze, looking about and above for her rescuer. At the call to run, she tried to comply, but her feet seemed suddenly to drag as if encased in stone, her will sapped of its strength of a moment before. She knew not where to go, the memories of the slaughter back in the alley flashed through her mind, though the terror was not so great now, the thoughts of those people she knew, the baker's boy, the blacksmith, Una's brother...


Una! She stopped short mentally. Una and her mother were with her own mother, hopefully safe at her own house, but a lit of unease still settled in her stomach. She ran down the streets back towards her own house, it would take only a few minutes to reach her own stoop, and there she would embrace her mother, apologizing for abandoning her for the sights of the festivities, she would kiss her father's grizzled cheeks and praise him for his bravery in helping to fight off the monster, but it was slain now, and she would ever after be an obedient and subservient daughter. These thoughts filled her spirit with some joy, almost a delirious euphoria, she seemed as if in a dream and that she felt reality slipping away. She did not even notice or care for her own injuries, the loss of blood might have contributed to her mental state of the moment, but she was too focused on reaching her destination to realize she needed tending to.


She came around the corner and saw her own house, sitting as it ever had, with the firelight in the kitchen spreading out through the windows, welcoming and comforting. She ran to the doorway, standing before it in a daze, like a child receiving a present for her birthday, anticipating opening it yet loathe to spoil the moment by destroying the dainty wrappings. She chose to put her ear against the door and listen for sounds of her family within, hoping to hear them talking, they would be worried at her long absence, and she would choose the right moment to burst through the doorway and calm their fears.

 

[Grey]

Silence beyond the door.


No - there's the crackle of a fire, and something that crunches like breaking twigs.

 

[Stickdom]

Kathina's cheerful and giddy attitude deflated immediately. The sounds of fire are not exactly welcoming, her mother would normally have doused the fireplace by this time of evening, the rooms only lit by the few oil-filled lanterns set on the center of each rounded table of the spacious dining hall. But, perhaps given the circumstances, she had left the fire smouldering, some source of comfort at her daughter's absence and her father out among the streets searching, so she had thought. The other noise, of breaking and crunching, that was totally unknown to her, and it rose up in her gut like a poorly digested meal, sticking in her throat and causing her to choke a little. But, this was her home, surely it's safe haven would shelter her and her family. No evil could penetrate its walls, surely, it had always remained a structure full of gaeity and mirth, of customers and well wishes, no harm could possibly befall those who dwelt within. And with these thoughts slightly lifting her disquieted spirit, she took the handle of the door in hand, turned it, and entered.

 

[Grey]

The door swings open onto darkness, the glowing embers of the fire alone at the side of the room.


The stink of blood and shit assails you as the door opens, the sound of crunching grows louder.


Something large and slick is picked out by the dim light of the dying fire, a long hound-like flank in the middle of the room. Back to you, you think.

 

[Stickdom]

Freezing in her step, Kathina peered into the room at the sights, sounds, and smells that attacked her every nerve, every corner of her mind telling her to flee, to escape. She realized now that the small shank of splintered wood was still in her hand, but that compared to the last terror seh had encountered, this one would be just as futile, the outcome possibly more deadly. Yet, perhaps if she could assure its attentions elsewhere, she might be able to make towards the other end of the house, where various utensils and possible means of defense were available. She crept forward, watching the beast as closely as she dared without trying to recognize what it was devouring. At the very thought of that which she should not think, the realization struck her of what exactly it was that she feared. Her parents. Una. It could be any or all of them. Now, her only thought was her own survival, and slaying this creature by some means. As she stepped daintily forward, as slowly as possible, she watched it, and at the first sign of movement in her direction, she would throw the stake in her hand to the fireplace, hopefully stirring up noise and flashes of embers, then dash towards the kitchen doorway, where she knew there would be at least a long-handled farm implement by the backdoor, a shovel or a pitchfork for tending the animals out back, as well as the hard, oaken table to dive under. If she made it that far at all.


@Grey

 

[Grey]

As you circle the creature, you catch sight of the distraction - it's gnawing on something bloody and glistening in the firelight, shreds of cloth obscuring it in the low light.


The monster is too intent on its meal to notice you.

 

[Stickdom]

Her breath catches yet again, the thoughts returning of exactly who or what it is this creature is devouring. Kathina stifles the rage and blood-red mist that begins to cloud her vision, her reason returns and bids her to think through the situation at hand, rather than acting on base emotion alone. There are no visible weapons to assault the creature, and anything of use would be a full minute's running and searching, a minute she may not have before it notices her. She thinks back to the defeat of the other monster, and the sudden recognition that it had been slain by the hands of another. Inching backwards out of the doorway through which she entered, she reached the front stoop, nearly tripping over the sudden lack of floorboards beneath her feet, but regaining her balance with a muffled exclamation of startlement.


And now came the running, she forsook stealth for speed, as fast as she could make her way through the streets back towards the square, calling out into the dark alleys for aid, "Help, someone! Murder! Monsters! Help me!"


@Grey

 

[Grey]

You run into the street at a rabbit's pace, and no sooner have you left the door than you hear the creature gurgle and turn. You can hear its clicking claws, feel its foetid breath on your back as you flee.


A dark figure stands in the middle of the street, and turns as you approach. In the light of his torch you can make out a bald head and lined features riven with scars. His black robes betray nothing. You almost collide with him, but in stopping trip and land half-sitting at his feet. He steps past you, swinging an enormous hammer emblazoned with holy sigils.


There's a damp crunch, a foul smell, and a slight patter of warmth on your back.


"Can you stand?" Asks a voice behind you, in heavy, foreign accent.

 

[Stickdom]

The splatter of bodily fluids on the back of her neck sent shivers tingling up and down Kathina's spine. It became obvious that she was either very lucky or very quick on her feet, the beast would have had her in a few paces and she'd be only another corpse. Looking up at her savior, his features stark and bold in the torchlight, her unceremonious near-collision betraying what little pride she cared to hold onto. "I-I'm fine, thank you. My parents, where are they? And the village! What in the name of all things holy is happening!?" Kathina dared not look back at the creature, its horrific features could be smelled and their very presence felt, if she dared comprehend what it was, she feared of losing her last meal on the cobblestones.


Instead, she looked again at the man who had saved her, his massive hammer gleaming with a pale glow that hinted at enchantment, his dress and manner were as she had heard the Inquisition to be, cold, proud, and darkly noble. If this man was an Inquisitor, mayhaps he would be the one to find the source of these vile creatures, along with his assumed compatriot who had slain the first monster in a similar fashion, and she wondered if it were chance after all that she ha been assaulted by not one but two of these, and how many more roamed the streets of her once-quiet town. And she was beginning to suspect her original thoughts true, that these were not mere happenstance, but planned and planted in this city for a purpose. And she had a theory as to what could be the cause. "Sir, my thanks for rescuing me. I believe that a man is summoning these abominations, and has been for some long time now. I know this man, Doctor Coritus Mulsch," she was spouting these suspicions hastily and the words alms it ran together, as if she feared the man would leave her if he did not hear her story in an instant, "and he was staying at in our rooms and he was at the attacks after they happened and I believe he is some conjuror of these fiends."


Her accusation all told, she wiped her brow with the back of a hand, she had stood up in front of the Inquisitor during her telling, and now she looked to his face, though his height tilted her head back at an angle. "Take me with you, I beg of you, I must search for my mother and father, and mayhaps I could help identify the doctor if we find him." Her inclusion of herself along with him showed her eagerness to accompany him, though whether in fear for her own life or by the rage that overtook her at first sight of the creatures, she knew not yet.


@Grey

 

[Grey]

"A doctor," he says, slowly, thoughtfully. Or perhaps choosing his words like one unfamiliar with the tongue. "No mere physicker could have done this. Get to safety, girl, lest you be trampled underfoot."


He begins to walk away without backward glance or hesitation, certain his command will be obeyed. A woman - a woman with dark skin, long black hair, and lustrous golden eyes, with a strange gauntlet of ivory and gold creeping up her arm - drops from a rooftop to fall in step with him. She carries a spear and is spattered with blood barely visible in uneasy torchlight.