The Trail We Left Behind – Chapter 1

The sun rose above the horizon in the distance, the forest of the sacred lands engulfed in bright hues of oranges and reds. The breeze carried with it the soft scent of pine needles and early morning dew. The soft clanking of metal and the pressure of air releasing itself filled the outside void with a gentle rhythm, the Strider taking care of its speed to the wishes of its rider.

Aloy breathed deeply, taking in the scents of the plants around her as they clouded her troubled thoughts. It had been months since the defeat of Hades, the city of Meridian being released by the deranged A.I.'s control. The world was yet saved again from extinction, and all of the tribes could live freely as they did without fear from the Eclipse. Meridian celebrated that day, the streets lined with people as they rejoiced in their victory. While the city was in much needed repair, many were too focused on drowning themselves in Carja ale.

While Aloy did want to stay and revel in the victory with the other hunters, she had one thing she wanted to take care of before resting. Going through the memory logs of Elisabet Sobeck, she had traveled to the last known location of the former Alpha in search of any remnants that she may have left behind. To her surprise, Aloy had found her deceased body intact due to the protection of her environmental suit. It was overwhelming, to say the least, for the young Brave. To think that without this woman, not only would she have not been able to save humanity, but she would have not been born to see the outcome of what she left behind.

Aloy's selfishness of finding her mother became more than finding her origins, but rather became the outcome of fighting for the safety and longevity of project Zero Dawn. It was what Dr. Sobeck and the other Alphas had fought so hard to create. It only felt right that Aloy would carry on their legacy by defeating the Faro plague so their deaths would not be in vain.

And now here she was returning to the start of it all. What had once shunned her existence now welcomed her with open arms. Aloy would be lying to herself if she did not still harbor a bit of resentment against her tribe, but in the midst of it all she had eventually found what she was looking for, herself. Giving the sides of the Strider a hard hit, she urged the machine to gallop faster, pulling its reins to avoid losing control over the sharp corners of the trail in front of them.

It didn't take her long to reach the northern gates of the Embrace as the Braves rushed to open the large wooden doors to let her through, welcoming their anointed with shouts of praise. The gesture was nice, but Aloy still felt funny about it, and she knew that once she was in the center of Mother's Heart, she would be bombarded by the Nora villagers as they bow at the feet in worship. If she had the option of not being overwhelmed, she would have stayed right in Meridian. But Aloy was on a personal mission to visit Rost, and to see High Matriarch Teersa to give a proper thanks. Leaving tracks of dust behind her, Aloy continued to ride forward, hoping to reach Mother's Heart by high noon.

Teersa saw in the distance the light of a fire arrow being shot into the air, the white smoke following behind it as a sign that Aloy had returned into The Embrace. Other members of the Nora saw this as well, a wave of small murmurs being exchanged between them until they all started to rush down to the center of Mother's Heart. The mountain breeze started to flow down from its peak as Teersa sucked in the air with content, a sure sign that All Mother's child had returned home safely.

"I see The Anointed has return home." Jezza came from inside the sacred mountains and took her place beside her sister Matriarch, the breeze picking up speed.

"Yes. All Mother seems to be quite excited for her return as well. We must make haste and give her a proper welcoming."

"This will be the first one within our history. But do you think it wise to have one in the coming days when the tribe still needs to be rebuild?"

"The Nora have suffered enough hardship, and rebuilding has taken its toll on their strength. I believe we deserve some rest, and a long awaited celebration for The Anointed is the perfect way for that."

Jezza lamented on Teersa's suggestion, thinking it would be too risky to lower their guards now. But for what she had learned when the war party returned, they had defeated the threat that all of the tribes had suffered under. And thanks to Aloy, they would not have to worry anymore about foreign attacks for many months to come. Reluctantly, Jezza agreed that it might be best for them to finally rest.

"The Nora will always have time to start again, but for now, let us celebrate the Anointed." Jezza proceeded to follow Teersa down the mountain. It was only then that she did not realize that Lansra wasn't with them. "Lansra, will you join us?"

Lansra looked out into the view of the Embrace, lost between the thoughts of her own mind and that of the outside world. She struggled internally with herself; her legitimacy as a High Matriarch was shattered at the thought of the demon child saving the Sacred Lands. It didn't make sense to her. And yet, All Mother opened herself to her, accepting her into her holy light. It filled Lansra with confusion and bitterness, something that she was not used to; something that she truly hated.

"I will join you shortly. I must…..think." Her hollow reply caused Jezza some concern, but not knowing how to ease her troubled mind she continued to follow Teersa down the mountain.

If Teersa was younger, she would skip down the mountains and into the center of Mother's Heart, embracing Aloy in her arms. It was true that All Mother awaited for her child to return, but Teersa prayed to the goddess every single day in the hopes that Aloy would return safely, knowing that she could have died in battle. Now that she was here, Teersa could tell her how proud she was, how proud Rost would be for protecting the tribe, how sorry she was for letting her be unfairly treated for years. There was a burning desire in her chest that begged to be released, and now that time seemed to come.

'All Mother be praised for Aloy's safe return. Goddess bless her eternally.'

A/N: Thought this would be a fun little story to come up with. Forgive me for any small errors in this chapter. I'll make sure to take a triple look at it again when it's not so early in the morning. Please let me know if you enjoy this so far, and many thanks in advance!

- Antigone97