Sightless Sanctuary
She is not scared of the attack, mainly because she can't see it.
She could smell the destruction.
Anita turned her head slightly toward the door, yet not completely to it. She wanted her ears to be in a better position to hear the noises. She sniffed the air.
Burning flesh and fur came to her nostrils, as did blood. She heard screaming, and swords clashing. She knew the attackers were close to the house, but she was ready.
Anita carefully went over the plan. She would lead the attackers down into the cellar, where she was told it was dark. She would close the door and allow the attackers to fumble in the darkness without their sight to aid them while she got out without trouble. Then she would escape the city.
She knew that it was probably messy outside, and she would stumble. But she could not feel for the walls and the rubble if Burmecia was being attacked. She would just have to run.
The pounding of feet came to Anita's extremely sensitive ears. They were coming! Slowly Anita rose from the wooden chair. She pushed it out until she heard it hit the wall. If she stumbled over it, she would know she was going the wrong way. But Anita had confidence in her sense of direction.
Someone outside screamed, and burning fur and flesh suddenly came to Anita's nostrils. The smell of blood also came, and Anita understood immediately. Someone had tried to protect her home. The attackers had nailed them. Anita sighed. Sometimes she felt a little too protected. She certainly wasn't worth enough to be protected. Besides, she could take care of herself. That person should've escaped, or helped their own family, rather than try to help her. Now they were dead, and they had not accomplished anything they could've done.
But it was not the right time to hold a funeral, or to mourn silently for the anonymous Burmecian. It was time to escape. Swiftly Anita felt her way to the cellar entrance. Then, realizing that the attackers may not come, she felt for something she could hold. She felt an item, and more feeling confirmed its identity to be a pan. Anita took it carefully into her hand. She then felt the cellar door with her other hand. She then began to bang the pan against the wood.
Come on, she coaxed to the attackers with her noise. I'm in here.
Anita stopped making noise and listened closely. When she heard nothing, she made more noise. Then she stopped as footsteps made themselves heard over the racket. She soon heard the front door being opened. She smelled something burn. Had they burned down the door? Anita shook her head to clear her senses, then sniffed the air once more. Yes, it had been burned.
She heard footsteps from within the room next to the one she resided in. Quickly Anita felt for the doorway, and opened the cellar door. She stepped carefully onto the stairs. She then put one foot onto the stair in front of her. She pounded her feet wildly yet in order, making the illusion of someone running down the stairs. She then felt for the rail, and carefully swung her leg over it. She hopped onto the rail, then slid slightly to the side. Holding on carefully while still completely on the rail, she waited.
Suddenly she heard footsteps charging down the stone stairs. She waited until they had all gone away from the door before she swung over the rail and slammed the door shut. She heard a startled gasp, and someone fell. She heard many people fall soon after.
Anita ran down the stairs, then leapt the rest of the way down. She landed on smooth ground. She put her hand out in front of her, and felt the wall. She could scarcely believe she had leapt over all of her attackers, but now was not time to celebrate. They were stirring.
Anita took a sharp right and began running. She knew the way.
"That way!" someone in the room shouted.
Other footsteps soon started, and Anita knew she was being chased. But suddenly she took a sharp turn. She heard the footsteps being replaced by someone crashing into the barrels Anita had avoided.
Anita had made this little maze on her own when bored. She never knew she'd be using it to her advantage. She weaved perfectly between the rubble she had randomly placed, and felt satisfaction when her pursuers crashed. After two minutes she knew she was getting closer to the exit.
She suddenly heard a strange noise. She couldn't identify it, but then heat suddenly whizzed by her and crashed into something. The smell of fire came to Anita's nostrils, but she kept running. If there were mages, she could only trick them too.
Anita soon held out her hands, and she pushed open a knobless door. The smell of destruction welcomed her as she felt the rainfall on her. She had made it outside! Now she had to get out of Burmecia.
Anita took a sharp right and began running with her hand tracing the wall. Soon the wall left her, and she took another right. She began running again, and soon tripped over something on the ground. She fell roughly to the ground, and heat whizzed over her. Anita rose, and soon she heard the strange noise she had heard before. She now knew what it was, and dodged the fire that she understood had sped toward her. She began running again, knowing enough running would lead her to the gates.
Anita tripped once again, but the thing she tripped over was soft, and it smelled. Anita felt it, and she felt fur. It was a Burmecian. She frowned, wondering whom it was. She would've sniffed the body to try and identify it, but she heard the footsteps of pursuers. She had to escape, not mourn. She quickly rose, and suddenly heard more footsteps. She ran again, but her direction was off and she collided with a building. She backed up, and then felt something slice into her arm. She yelped and punched randomly. She felt flesh, then felt it leave. Something hit the ground with a thud. The smell of blood came to Anita, and she felt something trickle down her arm.
Anita turned to the right once more and began running. The footsteps followed. She then heard a spell discharged, and she dodged, only to stumble over another soft body and fall. She rolled around a bit, then stopped. She scampered to her feet, and used the footsteps she heard to figure out which way to go.
Someone screamed, and Anita heard the footsteps head in the direction it came from. Relieved, Anita sniffed the air. The smell of blood was extremely close, but so was burning flesh. She used this to dodge another body. She kept running, feet pounding against the ground, and her breaths coming out in steady flows despite her run. Running was not an everyday activity for her, but it didn't mean she wasn't good at it.
Anita tripped once again, and rolled onto her back. She began to rise, but she suddenly heard footsteps. She heard metal scrape against something. Then she felt something sharp and cold against her nose. Anita became stiff. It had to be a blade. It could be nothing else. Anita wanted to sniff the air, but then she knew she'd cut her nose. She would have to stay still and not try to figure out the identity of her attacker, despite her great discomfort at doing this.
Not nervous, Anita waited quietly for death to come.
It never came. The blade moved from Anita's nose to the bottom of her snout. Her head was titled upward, and Anita had a feeling that someone was watching her. She sniffed the air, and detected no signs of wounds, except her own blood. The person was completely healthy. The blade pushed against the bottom of her snout, and Anita wondered why the person dallied. Weren't they going to kill her?
The blade moved away, and Anita heard someone move closer. She stayed still. She heard something softly hit the ground. She automatically moved her head toward the sound. Anita thought she felt a rush of wind. Then, flesh touched her nose. She sniffed automatically, and caught the scent of a human. Who?
The flesh moved, and Anita felt her snout being traced with a single finger. She could feel fabric against her snout. She stayed completely still. The finger soon reached her nose, and she sniffed it. It then moved away, and so did the human she knew was before her. Anita felt someone grab her thighs, and pull her roughly to her feet. Anita was then spun around and shoved in the direction she had been previously running.
"Go," said a voice. It was feminine, cold, and hard. "Go now, before I change my mind."
She was being let go? Anita could scarcely believe it. She turned in the direction of the voice and did her best curtsy.
"Thank you, kind miss," Anita said quickly.
She then turned around and ran. She heard the human walk in the opposite direction. After a few minutes, though, other footsteps headed in her direction. She heard a spell discharge, and moved to dodge it. She tripped over rubble and crashed to the ground. Not paying close attention, Anita scampered to her feet and began to run again.
Something hot slammed into her back and sent her flying forward. She smelled burning fabric and fur. Soon she felt extreme pain, and she smelled burning flesh. Anita screamed, and soon hit the ground with a crash.
She didn't stay there. She instead rolled, rolling around on the wet ground to soothe the burn. She bumped into something hard. She rolled the other way, then rose to her feet. She felt sharp pain in her arm suddenly, but instead of fighting, she ran away from the blade causing the pain and in the direction she knew the gates were in.
Someone tackled her roughly to the ground. Anita rolled onto her back and kicked outward. She heard someone fall, and metal clanged against the ground. Realizing she was in grave danger, Anita knew she would have to divert her run. She rose to her feet and sniffed for fire. She caught the scent, and ran in the direction of it. The footsteps followed.
Soon heat came to Anita. She stopped moving and felt for an opening within the fire, not wincing when the fire flickered on her flesh. She soon found an opening. She fell to her hands and knees and crawled. She soon felt a wall, but she did not feel fire. She rose to her feet and felt her way to a doorway. She entered nervously, smoke filling her nostrils. She fumbled about the unknown house, until she felt something soft. She grabbed it, and recognized the material as a blanket. Satisfied, she carefully got out of the burning house.
It took her a few minutes to realize that the house should not be burning in a city that always had rain. She frowned, confused, but chose to put it aside. It was most likely the mages. Maybe they had special fire.
Having come out of the building and away from the fire, Anita let out a scream and waved the blanket about. She heard footsteps, and identified them as antagonists. Slowly she put herself in front of the blanket and put it behind her. She didn't know if it would work, but she could only try.
The footsteps stopped.
"I don't know," someone said. "It could be a trap."
"Just rush forward, kill her, and move out of the way," another said.
The footsteps came again in a rush. When they were inches away, Anita rushed out of the way, dropping the blanket. She soon heard yelps, and burning fabric and flesh came to her nostrils. How someone could fall for such a trick Anita didn't know, but it had worked. Relieved, she felt her way to the main street. She stepped out into the street and sniffed the air while listening. She wanted to be sure no one was around before she began running.
No one seemed to be around. Anita began to run in the direction that she had memorized the gates would be in. Her feet were the only footsteps that she heard. She ran quickly, panting, the pain she once felt not noticed.
"KILL!"
The sudden shout startled Anita, making her stumble and fall. Heat whizzed over her head. She slammed into the ground, and just managed to stop herself from rising.
"KILL!"
Don't move, she told herself in her mind. Play dead.
She allowed herself to be limp. She kept her eyes open, since they didn't focus or work and would help her with her death look. She kept herself from breathing, and heard the footsteps come.
"KILL!"
The shout was right above her, but Anita didn't allow herself to respond. Her ears twitched, however, and her heart skipped a beat. Would the killing beast notice the twitch?
Apparently it hadn't, or it had thought it was the wind. The footsteps headed in a different direction. She then heard it shout kill while discharging a spell. A scream pierced the air and Anita heard someone fall. Another Burmecian dead. Anita's heart ached as she heard the scream.
Anita began to breathe again, but very softly so she wouldn't be heard. The killing beast's footsteps were becoming faint. Anita's heard pounded, and it sounded as if the world could hear it.
The footsteps faded out and died. Anita waited a few more minutes, and for good reason, as a group - no doubt the one she had tricked - raced by. She waited until they were also faint, then rose slowly to her feet. She began to run again, and within a few minutes stumbled over someone.
"Who's there?"
The body was alive? Anita sniffed it curiously. She smelled blood and burned flesh.
"Who are you? A dog?"
"No," Anita muttered. "I-I'm sorry. I wish I could help you."
"Don't worry about it," the Burmecian said, and Anita heard him shift. "Just get out."
"Can you see me?" Anita asked.
"No."
Anita nodded. "It's all right. I can't see you either."
"The killing beasts blinded you too?"
"No. I was always like this. I'm used to it."
The Burmecian took a shaky breath. "I know I'm going to die. Get out of here. The gates are close. If you've made it this far."
Anita fumbled for the Burmecian's hand, and found it. She squeezed it.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I send my blessings to the Great Dragon. May she accept you under my request and let you live in her kingdom."
"Thank you," the Burmecian said, and Anita could hear a smile in his voice. "Now get out."
Anita slowly released his hand. "Goodbye."
Anita rose to her feet and turned around. She ran forward frantically. Her heart ached even more, now that she had met the Burmecian. She once again prayed for him, hoping that the Great Dragon will accept him without a single pause. He deserved it for being so kind as to talk to her.
Anita heard more footsteps, but she kept running anyway. She was tired of diversions. She was sick of fighting. She just wanted to get out.
A spell discharged, and Anita moved to dodge it. She crashed into something hard and thick. She fell to the ground, but she was actually relieved. The gate! She had finally reached the gate. Now if she could get through it alive, she would probably cry with relief.
Anita rushed to her feet. She heard someone approach, and kicked outward. Her feet nailed the person and she heard them hit the ground. Someone else approached, and she punched high. She felt her fist hit flesh, and she heard feet stumble on the ground. Two bodies then clearly bumped into each other and fell. Anita listened for more footsteps, but none came. She turned around and felt for the gate. She found it, and felt her way to the opening. She rushed out it and kept running.
Soft ground came under her feet, but Anita kept running. She heard someone rise behind her. "Should we chase her?" someone asked. "No," someone replied, and Anita recognized it as the person who had let her ago only a few minutes before. It was the same feminine voice, with its cold and hard tone. "Let her go. One blind rat isn't going to make a difference." "Yes, General. At your command," someone said.
Anita heard the already faint footsteps fade away. She allowed herself to slow to a stop. She then fell to her knees, panting. She sniffed the air. The smell of destruction was being replaced with an odd smell. It smelled fresh, unlike the city. She could smell her own wounds, but other wounds - including the wounds of the city - had left. The fresh smell was similar to the smell of the greens she would eat. Were they related? Were they the same things?
Was this the wilderness? Anita took a deep breath, both to gain her breath and to test the air. Fresh air filled her lungs, and when she exhaled she couldn't believe how refreshed she felt. Her heart still pounded, but this time it pounded from the shock of her feat. She had escaped! She had escaped from Burmecia on her own!
No, Anita told herself firmly. That General let you go. Twice, in fact.
Despite this thought, Anita couldn't help but feel self-satisfaction. She sniffed the air constantly, and rose to her feet to try and feel for anything restricting. She found nothing but air. Everything seemed so empty. No walls, no restrictions. Just nothing.
It was nice, but Anita quickly brought herself to reality. She still remembered the tales the Dragon Warriors would tell her about the dangers of the wilderness. Of course, most of the tales could've been told to try and keep her within the city's safe walls, but Anita knew that they could be true. She had to get to someplace safe.
Anita knelt down and felt the dirt. It was soft and easy to grab due to the rain. She lifted a large clump into her hand and held it to her nose. She smelled Burmecians immediately. She padded along low to the ground for a while, sniffing the ground she picked up like a dog. The Burmecian scent stayed strong. Anita lifted her head to get a sense of where to go. They had headed in that direction? Then it must be safe.
Anita rose to her feet and began to run in the direction that the scent told her to go.
--------- Ta da! Hehe, I just had to write this. Why? Two reasons, really: I thought it was a good idea, and I wanted to see if I could do it. I think it came out really nice! Oh, and I do hope you figured out that Anita is blind. =) Do you know what General let her escape? (you should!) Think a bit, make a guess, then read the answer after the copyright!
This story is copyright to me. Some characters, locations, and Gaia in general are copyright to SquareEnix.
The general who allowed Anita to escape is Beatrix. =) I felt it was something she'd do.
She is not scared of the attack, mainly because she can't see it.
She could smell the destruction.
Anita turned her head slightly toward the door, yet not completely to it. She wanted her ears to be in a better position to hear the noises. She sniffed the air.
Burning flesh and fur came to her nostrils, as did blood. She heard screaming, and swords clashing. She knew the attackers were close to the house, but she was ready.
Anita carefully went over the plan. She would lead the attackers down into the cellar, where she was told it was dark. She would close the door and allow the attackers to fumble in the darkness without their sight to aid them while she got out without trouble. Then she would escape the city.
She knew that it was probably messy outside, and she would stumble. But she could not feel for the walls and the rubble if Burmecia was being attacked. She would just have to run.
The pounding of feet came to Anita's extremely sensitive ears. They were coming! Slowly Anita rose from the wooden chair. She pushed it out until she heard it hit the wall. If she stumbled over it, she would know she was going the wrong way. But Anita had confidence in her sense of direction.
Someone outside screamed, and burning fur and flesh suddenly came to Anita's nostrils. The smell of blood also came, and Anita understood immediately. Someone had tried to protect her home. The attackers had nailed them. Anita sighed. Sometimes she felt a little too protected. She certainly wasn't worth enough to be protected. Besides, she could take care of herself. That person should've escaped, or helped their own family, rather than try to help her. Now they were dead, and they had not accomplished anything they could've done.
But it was not the right time to hold a funeral, or to mourn silently for the anonymous Burmecian. It was time to escape. Swiftly Anita felt her way to the cellar entrance. Then, realizing that the attackers may not come, she felt for something she could hold. She felt an item, and more feeling confirmed its identity to be a pan. Anita took it carefully into her hand. She then felt the cellar door with her other hand. She then began to bang the pan against the wood.
Come on, she coaxed to the attackers with her noise. I'm in here.
Anita stopped making noise and listened closely. When she heard nothing, she made more noise. Then she stopped as footsteps made themselves heard over the racket. She soon heard the front door being opened. She smelled something burn. Had they burned down the door? Anita shook her head to clear her senses, then sniffed the air once more. Yes, it had been burned.
She heard footsteps from within the room next to the one she resided in. Quickly Anita felt for the doorway, and opened the cellar door. She stepped carefully onto the stairs. She then put one foot onto the stair in front of her. She pounded her feet wildly yet in order, making the illusion of someone running down the stairs. She then felt for the rail, and carefully swung her leg over it. She hopped onto the rail, then slid slightly to the side. Holding on carefully while still completely on the rail, she waited.
Suddenly she heard footsteps charging down the stone stairs. She waited until they had all gone away from the door before she swung over the rail and slammed the door shut. She heard a startled gasp, and someone fell. She heard many people fall soon after.
Anita ran down the stairs, then leapt the rest of the way down. She landed on smooth ground. She put her hand out in front of her, and felt the wall. She could scarcely believe she had leapt over all of her attackers, but now was not time to celebrate. They were stirring.
Anita took a sharp right and began running. She knew the way.
"That way!" someone in the room shouted.
Other footsteps soon started, and Anita knew she was being chased. But suddenly she took a sharp turn. She heard the footsteps being replaced by someone crashing into the barrels Anita had avoided.
Anita had made this little maze on her own when bored. She never knew she'd be using it to her advantage. She weaved perfectly between the rubble she had randomly placed, and felt satisfaction when her pursuers crashed. After two minutes she knew she was getting closer to the exit.
She suddenly heard a strange noise. She couldn't identify it, but then heat suddenly whizzed by her and crashed into something. The smell of fire came to Anita's nostrils, but she kept running. If there were mages, she could only trick them too.
Anita soon held out her hands, and she pushed open a knobless door. The smell of destruction welcomed her as she felt the rainfall on her. She had made it outside! Now she had to get out of Burmecia.
Anita took a sharp right and began running with her hand tracing the wall. Soon the wall left her, and she took another right. She began running again, and soon tripped over something on the ground. She fell roughly to the ground, and heat whizzed over her. Anita rose, and soon she heard the strange noise she had heard before. She now knew what it was, and dodged the fire that she understood had sped toward her. She began running again, knowing enough running would lead her to the gates.
Anita tripped once again, but the thing she tripped over was soft, and it smelled. Anita felt it, and she felt fur. It was a Burmecian. She frowned, wondering whom it was. She would've sniffed the body to try and identify it, but she heard the footsteps of pursuers. She had to escape, not mourn. She quickly rose, and suddenly heard more footsteps. She ran again, but her direction was off and she collided with a building. She backed up, and then felt something slice into her arm. She yelped and punched randomly. She felt flesh, then felt it leave. Something hit the ground with a thud. The smell of blood came to Anita, and she felt something trickle down her arm.
Anita turned to the right once more and began running. The footsteps followed. She then heard a spell discharged, and she dodged, only to stumble over another soft body and fall. She rolled around a bit, then stopped. She scampered to her feet, and used the footsteps she heard to figure out which way to go.
Someone screamed, and Anita heard the footsteps head in the direction it came from. Relieved, Anita sniffed the air. The smell of blood was extremely close, but so was burning flesh. She used this to dodge another body. She kept running, feet pounding against the ground, and her breaths coming out in steady flows despite her run. Running was not an everyday activity for her, but it didn't mean she wasn't good at it.
Anita tripped once again, and rolled onto her back. She began to rise, but she suddenly heard footsteps. She heard metal scrape against something. Then she felt something sharp and cold against her nose. Anita became stiff. It had to be a blade. It could be nothing else. Anita wanted to sniff the air, but then she knew she'd cut her nose. She would have to stay still and not try to figure out the identity of her attacker, despite her great discomfort at doing this.
Not nervous, Anita waited quietly for death to come.
It never came. The blade moved from Anita's nose to the bottom of her snout. Her head was titled upward, and Anita had a feeling that someone was watching her. She sniffed the air, and detected no signs of wounds, except her own blood. The person was completely healthy. The blade pushed against the bottom of her snout, and Anita wondered why the person dallied. Weren't they going to kill her?
The blade moved away, and Anita heard someone move closer. She stayed still. She heard something softly hit the ground. She automatically moved her head toward the sound. Anita thought she felt a rush of wind. Then, flesh touched her nose. She sniffed automatically, and caught the scent of a human. Who?
The flesh moved, and Anita felt her snout being traced with a single finger. She could feel fabric against her snout. She stayed completely still. The finger soon reached her nose, and she sniffed it. It then moved away, and so did the human she knew was before her. Anita felt someone grab her thighs, and pull her roughly to her feet. Anita was then spun around and shoved in the direction she had been previously running.
"Go," said a voice. It was feminine, cold, and hard. "Go now, before I change my mind."
She was being let go? Anita could scarcely believe it. She turned in the direction of the voice and did her best curtsy.
"Thank you, kind miss," Anita said quickly.
She then turned around and ran. She heard the human walk in the opposite direction. After a few minutes, though, other footsteps headed in her direction. She heard a spell discharge, and moved to dodge it. She tripped over rubble and crashed to the ground. Not paying close attention, Anita scampered to her feet and began to run again.
Something hot slammed into her back and sent her flying forward. She smelled burning fabric and fur. Soon she felt extreme pain, and she smelled burning flesh. Anita screamed, and soon hit the ground with a crash.
She didn't stay there. She instead rolled, rolling around on the wet ground to soothe the burn. She bumped into something hard. She rolled the other way, then rose to her feet. She felt sharp pain in her arm suddenly, but instead of fighting, she ran away from the blade causing the pain and in the direction she knew the gates were in.
Someone tackled her roughly to the ground. Anita rolled onto her back and kicked outward. She heard someone fall, and metal clanged against the ground. Realizing she was in grave danger, Anita knew she would have to divert her run. She rose to her feet and sniffed for fire. She caught the scent, and ran in the direction of it. The footsteps followed.
Soon heat came to Anita. She stopped moving and felt for an opening within the fire, not wincing when the fire flickered on her flesh. She soon found an opening. She fell to her hands and knees and crawled. She soon felt a wall, but she did not feel fire. She rose to her feet and felt her way to a doorway. She entered nervously, smoke filling her nostrils. She fumbled about the unknown house, until she felt something soft. She grabbed it, and recognized the material as a blanket. Satisfied, she carefully got out of the burning house.
It took her a few minutes to realize that the house should not be burning in a city that always had rain. She frowned, confused, but chose to put it aside. It was most likely the mages. Maybe they had special fire.
Having come out of the building and away from the fire, Anita let out a scream and waved the blanket about. She heard footsteps, and identified them as antagonists. Slowly she put herself in front of the blanket and put it behind her. She didn't know if it would work, but she could only try.
The footsteps stopped.
"I don't know," someone said. "It could be a trap."
"Just rush forward, kill her, and move out of the way," another said.
The footsteps came again in a rush. When they were inches away, Anita rushed out of the way, dropping the blanket. She soon heard yelps, and burning fabric and flesh came to her nostrils. How someone could fall for such a trick Anita didn't know, but it had worked. Relieved, she felt her way to the main street. She stepped out into the street and sniffed the air while listening. She wanted to be sure no one was around before she began running.
No one seemed to be around. Anita began to run in the direction that she had memorized the gates would be in. Her feet were the only footsteps that she heard. She ran quickly, panting, the pain she once felt not noticed.
"KILL!"
The sudden shout startled Anita, making her stumble and fall. Heat whizzed over her head. She slammed into the ground, and just managed to stop herself from rising.
"KILL!"
Don't move, she told herself in her mind. Play dead.
She allowed herself to be limp. She kept her eyes open, since they didn't focus or work and would help her with her death look. She kept herself from breathing, and heard the footsteps come.
"KILL!"
The shout was right above her, but Anita didn't allow herself to respond. Her ears twitched, however, and her heart skipped a beat. Would the killing beast notice the twitch?
Apparently it hadn't, or it had thought it was the wind. The footsteps headed in a different direction. She then heard it shout kill while discharging a spell. A scream pierced the air and Anita heard someone fall. Another Burmecian dead. Anita's heart ached as she heard the scream.
Anita began to breathe again, but very softly so she wouldn't be heard. The killing beast's footsteps were becoming faint. Anita's heard pounded, and it sounded as if the world could hear it.
The footsteps faded out and died. Anita waited a few more minutes, and for good reason, as a group - no doubt the one she had tricked - raced by. She waited until they were also faint, then rose slowly to her feet. She began to run again, and within a few minutes stumbled over someone.
"Who's there?"
The body was alive? Anita sniffed it curiously. She smelled blood and burned flesh.
"Who are you? A dog?"
"No," Anita muttered. "I-I'm sorry. I wish I could help you."
"Don't worry about it," the Burmecian said, and Anita heard him shift. "Just get out."
"Can you see me?" Anita asked.
"No."
Anita nodded. "It's all right. I can't see you either."
"The killing beasts blinded you too?"
"No. I was always like this. I'm used to it."
The Burmecian took a shaky breath. "I know I'm going to die. Get out of here. The gates are close. If you've made it this far."
Anita fumbled for the Burmecian's hand, and found it. She squeezed it.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I send my blessings to the Great Dragon. May she accept you under my request and let you live in her kingdom."
"Thank you," the Burmecian said, and Anita could hear a smile in his voice. "Now get out."
Anita slowly released his hand. "Goodbye."
Anita rose to her feet and turned around. She ran forward frantically. Her heart ached even more, now that she had met the Burmecian. She once again prayed for him, hoping that the Great Dragon will accept him without a single pause. He deserved it for being so kind as to talk to her.
Anita heard more footsteps, but she kept running anyway. She was tired of diversions. She was sick of fighting. She just wanted to get out.
A spell discharged, and Anita moved to dodge it. She crashed into something hard and thick. She fell to the ground, but she was actually relieved. The gate! She had finally reached the gate. Now if she could get through it alive, she would probably cry with relief.
Anita rushed to her feet. She heard someone approach, and kicked outward. Her feet nailed the person and she heard them hit the ground. Someone else approached, and she punched high. She felt her fist hit flesh, and she heard feet stumble on the ground. Two bodies then clearly bumped into each other and fell. Anita listened for more footsteps, but none came. She turned around and felt for the gate. She found it, and felt her way to the opening. She rushed out it and kept running.
Soft ground came under her feet, but Anita kept running. She heard someone rise behind her. "Should we chase her?" someone asked. "No," someone replied, and Anita recognized it as the person who had let her ago only a few minutes before. It was the same feminine voice, with its cold and hard tone. "Let her go. One blind rat isn't going to make a difference." "Yes, General. At your command," someone said.
Anita heard the already faint footsteps fade away. She allowed herself to slow to a stop. She then fell to her knees, panting. She sniffed the air. The smell of destruction was being replaced with an odd smell. It smelled fresh, unlike the city. She could smell her own wounds, but other wounds - including the wounds of the city - had left. The fresh smell was similar to the smell of the greens she would eat. Were they related? Were they the same things?
Was this the wilderness? Anita took a deep breath, both to gain her breath and to test the air. Fresh air filled her lungs, and when she exhaled she couldn't believe how refreshed she felt. Her heart still pounded, but this time it pounded from the shock of her feat. She had escaped! She had escaped from Burmecia on her own!
No, Anita told herself firmly. That General let you go. Twice, in fact.
Despite this thought, Anita couldn't help but feel self-satisfaction. She sniffed the air constantly, and rose to her feet to try and feel for anything restricting. She found nothing but air. Everything seemed so empty. No walls, no restrictions. Just nothing.
It was nice, but Anita quickly brought herself to reality. She still remembered the tales the Dragon Warriors would tell her about the dangers of the wilderness. Of course, most of the tales could've been told to try and keep her within the city's safe walls, but Anita knew that they could be true. She had to get to someplace safe.
Anita knelt down and felt the dirt. It was soft and easy to grab due to the rain. She lifted a large clump into her hand and held it to her nose. She smelled Burmecians immediately. She padded along low to the ground for a while, sniffing the ground she picked up like a dog. The Burmecian scent stayed strong. Anita lifted her head to get a sense of where to go. They had headed in that direction? Then it must be safe.
Anita rose to her feet and began to run in the direction that the scent told her to go.
--------- Ta da! Hehe, I just had to write this. Why? Two reasons, really: I thought it was a good idea, and I wanted to see if I could do it. I think it came out really nice! Oh, and I do hope you figured out that Anita is blind. =) Do you know what General let her escape? (you should!) Think a bit, make a guess, then read the answer after the copyright!
This story is copyright to me. Some characters, locations, and Gaia in general are copyright to SquareEnix.
The general who allowed Anita to escape is Beatrix. =) I felt it was something she'd do.