Dancing in the Fire - Chapter 1.
Strands of vermilion bled together through the clear air - fading into a horizon of purple that melted completely into the deep, indigo sky. Flecked throughout were small islands of orange and deeper sanguine, almost magical in their appearance. Gradients swirled together - a tapestry woven of wisps, clouds dyed plum shades of cherry hue. The fleeting illusion of paradise drooped - vanishing from vision behind a towering shadow.
Cerulean threads of balmy hair fell haphazardly about emerald-clad shoulders; a countenance of ivory gaining a sorrowful look. A bladed hair clasp rested within a tightly clutched gloved hand, the deep olive grasp obscuring the silverish surface. Its owner drew a slow, deliberate breath, before the air crept away in an exhale. Below the seated figure grass swayed gently in the wind, the breeze sweeping up to tease azure tendrils about the form's shoulders. The fading light caught the pair of descending sapphire gems, their gaze following the descending sun. Trembling limbs were raised upwards, the hair clip tumbling to the ground. Tugging pulls brought the pine-coloured gloves free, sending them after the blade. What came into view were -seemingly clean- palms, shaking in the still, quiet air.
A pained whisper gently crept free in a hoarse tone, "I can still see the blood, their blood... My fault.." Those blue eyes were riddled with tears that screamed to be free, a single droplet tearing lose and splattering upon an open hand. As if guarding a treasure, the fist clenched tightly about that precious drop, holding its crystalline form tightly. Within the water-laden orbs, images of bloodshed flashed by - a child running, screaming; the ground stained red from blood,
"Why? Why did I have to be cursed?!" was the shout that shattered the silence, its cry echoing heartlessly through the area. Punches flailed towards the sky, a scream tearing free.
"WHY WAS I DAMNED WITH THIS FATE?!" spluttered the sagging figure, the eruption of voice degenerating into a choked sob that barely struggled free of the throat. Body wilting into a nearly amorphous heap, the ocean-shaded hair cascaded about the lowered face, where it came to rest on folded arms.
"..Why...?" tremors shook through the tired timbre as it trailed off into nothingness, devoured by the sounds of faint weeping.
Leona peered around the corner of her father's hut, watching. There, a tall man with golden hair held her father tightly by his collar. Folds of his lengthy ebon cloak rustled with the movement of strongly muscled arms.
"Gaidel, I thought you were smarter than this," he crooned, releasing the man so harshly he stumbled back. "Your village will be made to pay for your treachery. You will not be forgiven!"
"We are peaceful, Goenitz. We will not fight in your Orochi war!" hissed the elderly man, clenching a fist.
"Very well," murmured the departing figure with a smirk. The powerful strides took him out of the small hut. Far below him, ginger steps sent the small child tumbling backwards, her small form crumbling to the ground beneath the man's glaring gaze. Midnight droplets sparkled with malice, a gruesome grin creeping across his hideous face before his departure, folds of silk swirling about him.
"Leona! Leona, come to your father..." called the tired voice of her father. He was perched dangerously on a chair, looking weak enough to collapse at any moment. With slow, deliberate movements, his ancient hands beckoned the young child towards him - causing her movements to involve a slow crawl towards him. Alighting upon her knees before her father, sky-blue eyes cast themselves upwards to observe him silently. His weak appearance belied his strength - his heavy grasp falling gently upon her shoulders.
"My beautiful daughter.. I will not always be here for you, you must confront and control your own destiny, no matter how dark or sad it may be." As he spoke, his words became weighted heavily with the task of speaking, gloom weaving its way throughout the morose tone and words he spoke. Dizziness washed over the small girl though she could not understand why - she had been feeling fine moments ago. Without truly understanding what her father said, her delicate head dipped slowly in a nod, acknowledging what he had said so she could lie down. Stepping away from her father, she stared up at him as he returned her nod, a smile cracking upon his weathered, sun-tanned flesh. Staggering, the small child fell onto her primitive cot, her robe fluttering about her as she closed her eyes, trying to make the world stop spinning..
It was night by the time she awoke, a quick jolt sending her tiny frame flying - to land flat upon the cold, dirt floor. Shaking hands found their way to her head, lithe digits digging deeply into deep azure hair to massage at her temples. How her head ached! It pulsed with blood, each beat of her heart distorting her already spinning vision.. Within seconds her family was at her side, her mother attempting to help Leona to her feet.
"What's wrong with her?? Is she okay?" could be heard murmured outside - several villagers were gathering about the hut.
"I don't feel good papa.." whimpered the small child, clinging to her mother's dress. Burying her face within the pristine white fabric, she trembled suddenly - the muscles of her slight build tightening fiercely as a rivulet of red dripped down the cloth she clutched.
"Blood?!" her father turned her around suddenly, shocked at what he saw - a thick fountain of crimson burst forth from the child's mouth, causing her to double over and vomit it across the dirt.
"That's the sign of the Riot of Blood.." "If she were to become Orochi.." "She doesn't know how to control it!" Villagers began to clamor - this was a sure sign of trouble.
Ruby hue began to bleed through into the irises of sapphire - the girl's eyes slowly disappearing into a chaotic haze. Clawed hands clutched themselves into fists, a fierce, devilish sneer seizing the small visage. An inhuman howl echoed forth from her fanged mouth, demonic image contorting into a state of rage. In a flash of light, it all happened - the screams, the carnage, the blood. Leaping upon a small child that had fearfully attempted to escape, Leona sank her fists into the boy's chest, shattering bone and splintering the cage of ribs. Warmth curled about the groping appendages; viscera was sent into flight by the tearing motions. A voice screamed inside her head, a lust for blood. Another howl tore free of her throat, her hands clasping the still-beating heart from the husk of a body. Almost instantly, it disappeared into her mouth, thick cardiac tissue fiercely torn into by sharpened, demonic teeth...
As a banshee's shriek sailed sourly throughout the room, Leona bolted up within the darkness. It was she who had screamed - for the nightmare had been so vividly real, so terrible. Fumbling fingers felt blindly through the nether of blackness, searching for the table lamp beside her bed. Light spilled forth, forcing pale lids to squint downward over the sleepy, blue eyes.
"I couldn't do anything..." spluttered a withering voice. Her pale palms were coated in cold sweat, trembling appendages clasping ever-so-tightly together in an attempt to stop the horrid shaking.. Labored breath shook with a hissing intake, liquid slowly pooling within sorrowful blue eyes. The kiss of saline trickled upon cold flesh, cheeks gently graced with a chilled touch. Lengthy lower limbs swung haphazardly out over the edge of her bed, the weary gaze finally absorbing its surroundings in the muted light. From the corner of that tired vision, in seemingly slow motion, the heavy wooden door was flung open, eliciting a quick leap to a poised stance.
"Leona! Are you okay?!" clamored the concerned intruder, rushing over to the shaking silhouette. Relief sent a sag throughout the body, wisping away the tautness the form had drawn around it.
"I'm okay.. I just had a bad dream.." she sighed.. Knees below began to buckle, and slowly, she simply withered into the arms of her concerned cohort. Sitting gently upon the bed, he drew her alongside next to him, placing her quaking visage gently down..
"I'm here for you, Leona.. Don't forget that.." crooned the umber-haired male, smiling gently down at his important package with a heavy heart.
"Thank you Ralf.. I'm just a little unbalanced.." was whispered, lashes fluttering faintly as dizziness claimed dominance over the wilting girl.
"I'll stay with you now.. I was worried when I found you on that hill, and I should have stayed here when I brought you back, I'm sorry."
"It's.. It's all right.. I'm grateful," came the reassuring reply, a weak smile curling upon the thin tiered lips..
The conversation fell away into silence, the shards of glass reassembling themselves once more into a fierce wall between the two. Tremors wracking Leona's body slowly faded as Morpheus once more ushered her away, under the watchful eye of her guardian..
Strands of vermilion bled together through the clear air - fading into a horizon of purple that melted completely into the deep, indigo sky. Flecked throughout were small islands of orange and deeper sanguine, almost magical in their appearance. Gradients swirled together - a tapestry woven of wisps, clouds dyed plum shades of cherry hue. The fleeting illusion of paradise drooped - vanishing from vision behind a towering shadow.
Cerulean threads of balmy hair fell haphazardly about emerald-clad shoulders; a countenance of ivory gaining a sorrowful look. A bladed hair clasp rested within a tightly clutched gloved hand, the deep olive grasp obscuring the silverish surface. Its owner drew a slow, deliberate breath, before the air crept away in an exhale. Below the seated figure grass swayed gently in the wind, the breeze sweeping up to tease azure tendrils about the form's shoulders. The fading light caught the pair of descending sapphire gems, their gaze following the descending sun. Trembling limbs were raised upwards, the hair clip tumbling to the ground. Tugging pulls brought the pine-coloured gloves free, sending them after the blade. What came into view were -seemingly clean- palms, shaking in the still, quiet air.
A pained whisper gently crept free in a hoarse tone, "I can still see the blood, their blood... My fault.." Those blue eyes were riddled with tears that screamed to be free, a single droplet tearing lose and splattering upon an open hand. As if guarding a treasure, the fist clenched tightly about that precious drop, holding its crystalline form tightly. Within the water-laden orbs, images of bloodshed flashed by - a child running, screaming; the ground stained red from blood,
"Why? Why did I have to be cursed?!" was the shout that shattered the silence, its cry echoing heartlessly through the area. Punches flailed towards the sky, a scream tearing free.
"WHY WAS I DAMNED WITH THIS FATE?!" spluttered the sagging figure, the eruption of voice degenerating into a choked sob that barely struggled free of the throat. Body wilting into a nearly amorphous heap, the ocean-shaded hair cascaded about the lowered face, where it came to rest on folded arms.
"..Why...?" tremors shook through the tired timbre as it trailed off into nothingness, devoured by the sounds of faint weeping.
Leona peered around the corner of her father's hut, watching. There, a tall man with golden hair held her father tightly by his collar. Folds of his lengthy ebon cloak rustled with the movement of strongly muscled arms.
"Gaidel, I thought you were smarter than this," he crooned, releasing the man so harshly he stumbled back. "Your village will be made to pay for your treachery. You will not be forgiven!"
"We are peaceful, Goenitz. We will not fight in your Orochi war!" hissed the elderly man, clenching a fist.
"Very well," murmured the departing figure with a smirk. The powerful strides took him out of the small hut. Far below him, ginger steps sent the small child tumbling backwards, her small form crumbling to the ground beneath the man's glaring gaze. Midnight droplets sparkled with malice, a gruesome grin creeping across his hideous face before his departure, folds of silk swirling about him.
"Leona! Leona, come to your father..." called the tired voice of her father. He was perched dangerously on a chair, looking weak enough to collapse at any moment. With slow, deliberate movements, his ancient hands beckoned the young child towards him - causing her movements to involve a slow crawl towards him. Alighting upon her knees before her father, sky-blue eyes cast themselves upwards to observe him silently. His weak appearance belied his strength - his heavy grasp falling gently upon her shoulders.
"My beautiful daughter.. I will not always be here for you, you must confront and control your own destiny, no matter how dark or sad it may be." As he spoke, his words became weighted heavily with the task of speaking, gloom weaving its way throughout the morose tone and words he spoke. Dizziness washed over the small girl though she could not understand why - she had been feeling fine moments ago. Without truly understanding what her father said, her delicate head dipped slowly in a nod, acknowledging what he had said so she could lie down. Stepping away from her father, she stared up at him as he returned her nod, a smile cracking upon his weathered, sun-tanned flesh. Staggering, the small child fell onto her primitive cot, her robe fluttering about her as she closed her eyes, trying to make the world stop spinning..
It was night by the time she awoke, a quick jolt sending her tiny frame flying - to land flat upon the cold, dirt floor. Shaking hands found their way to her head, lithe digits digging deeply into deep azure hair to massage at her temples. How her head ached! It pulsed with blood, each beat of her heart distorting her already spinning vision.. Within seconds her family was at her side, her mother attempting to help Leona to her feet.
"What's wrong with her?? Is she okay?" could be heard murmured outside - several villagers were gathering about the hut.
"I don't feel good papa.." whimpered the small child, clinging to her mother's dress. Burying her face within the pristine white fabric, she trembled suddenly - the muscles of her slight build tightening fiercely as a rivulet of red dripped down the cloth she clutched.
"Blood?!" her father turned her around suddenly, shocked at what he saw - a thick fountain of crimson burst forth from the child's mouth, causing her to double over and vomit it across the dirt.
"That's the sign of the Riot of Blood.." "If she were to become Orochi.." "She doesn't know how to control it!" Villagers began to clamor - this was a sure sign of trouble.
Ruby hue began to bleed through into the irises of sapphire - the girl's eyes slowly disappearing into a chaotic haze. Clawed hands clutched themselves into fists, a fierce, devilish sneer seizing the small visage. An inhuman howl echoed forth from her fanged mouth, demonic image contorting into a state of rage. In a flash of light, it all happened - the screams, the carnage, the blood. Leaping upon a small child that had fearfully attempted to escape, Leona sank her fists into the boy's chest, shattering bone and splintering the cage of ribs. Warmth curled about the groping appendages; viscera was sent into flight by the tearing motions. A voice screamed inside her head, a lust for blood. Another howl tore free of her throat, her hands clasping the still-beating heart from the husk of a body. Almost instantly, it disappeared into her mouth, thick cardiac tissue fiercely torn into by sharpened, demonic teeth...
As a banshee's shriek sailed sourly throughout the room, Leona bolted up within the darkness. It was she who had screamed - for the nightmare had been so vividly real, so terrible. Fumbling fingers felt blindly through the nether of blackness, searching for the table lamp beside her bed. Light spilled forth, forcing pale lids to squint downward over the sleepy, blue eyes.
"I couldn't do anything..." spluttered a withering voice. Her pale palms were coated in cold sweat, trembling appendages clasping ever-so-tightly together in an attempt to stop the horrid shaking.. Labored breath shook with a hissing intake, liquid slowly pooling within sorrowful blue eyes. The kiss of saline trickled upon cold flesh, cheeks gently graced with a chilled touch. Lengthy lower limbs swung haphazardly out over the edge of her bed, the weary gaze finally absorbing its surroundings in the muted light. From the corner of that tired vision, in seemingly slow motion, the heavy wooden door was flung open, eliciting a quick leap to a poised stance.
"Leona! Are you okay?!" clamored the concerned intruder, rushing over to the shaking silhouette. Relief sent a sag throughout the body, wisping away the tautness the form had drawn around it.
"I'm okay.. I just had a bad dream.." she sighed.. Knees below began to buckle, and slowly, she simply withered into the arms of her concerned cohort. Sitting gently upon the bed, he drew her alongside next to him, placing her quaking visage gently down..
"I'm here for you, Leona.. Don't forget that.." crooned the umber-haired male, smiling gently down at his important package with a heavy heart.
"Thank you Ralf.. I'm just a little unbalanced.." was whispered, lashes fluttering faintly as dizziness claimed dominance over the wilting girl.
"I'll stay with you now.. I was worried when I found you on that hill, and I should have stayed here when I brought you back, I'm sorry."
"It's.. It's all right.. I'm grateful," came the reassuring reply, a weak smile curling upon the thin tiered lips..
The conversation fell away into silence, the shards of glass reassembling themselves once more into a fierce wall between the two. Tremors wracking Leona's body slowly faded as Morpheus once more ushered her away, under the watchful eye of her guardian..