The Legend of Ajira
Chapter 8: The Warrior and the Mage--Part 2 (Or: RIP)
"Oh, don't touch that! It hurts," Darq moaned softly as Stella tried to dress his wound. He was trying to stay strong, but the wild rogue had given him a good cut over his arm. It had been bleeding furiously, showing no sign of letting up, that is until Stella had to put an Astringency Spell on it to close the wound. It hurt devilishly, feeling as if his arm would fall right off if he even moved it an inch.
"Oooh, careful, careful!" he yelled as she touched a particularly tender spot.
"I'm sorry, I'm trying to help it," Stella complained, "If you would just hold still for one minute I could try and heal you but you keep wriggling around."
"Sorry," said Darq in his deep voice, that Stella noticed was getting fainter with every word.
"You need real help," said Estella, faltering. "I'm not sure I can cure this. We have to get you back to the Ashlander Camp. It's our only hope." Tears filled Stella's eyes, blurring her vision. She brushed them away with a swipe of her paw. "There is something I can do, however," said Stella softly. "I will carry you."
"But I'm too heavy!" protested Darq, pausing for a coughing spell.
"I'll manage," said Stella, sobbing. Taking a deep breath, she placed her arms under Darq's dying body and strained to pick him up. After a good deal of exertion, she had him comfortably (or as comfortably as could be said in her situation) cradled in her arms, and slowly, choosing every step, she began the long, slow journey back to the camp.
The evening wore on and turned to night. Stella was walking slower than ever now, clearly showing signs of exhaustion. She couldn't go much farther, and she feared Darq couldn't either. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. With a final scream, she sunk to her knees in the dust, dropping the pale body of her husband. She stroked his forehead with a loving paw, and put her ear to his chest. She gasped, though this had not been unexpected. His heartbeat was slowing. Thump-thump, thump—thump, thuumpp---thuuump, thummmmmp…… The heartbeat stopped.
"No," whispered Stella, gazing longingly into his now lifeless eyes. "No…" She lay across him, feeling his body heat diminishing. He was growing colder with every beat of her heart.
Feeling a rush of adrenaline, she picked him up as easily as if he were a feather, and lifted him to the sky, her tear-streaked face shimmering in the pale moonlight. "NOOOOOO!" she shrieked, crying and cursing the heavens. Why had they done this to her? And what would happen to Ajira? She must be getting terribly worried. How would she break the news to her?
Stella sat in the dirt for some time, careless of how long she had been there. The night was a blur, and she woke up the next morning with the sun blaring in her eyes. Maybe it had just been all a dream… she thought with her last bit of hope. But her fears were realized as she looked beside her and saw her husband Darq, cold, pale, and unmoving. The tears came again. She let them fall unchecked.
Stella looked to the distance; saw the Zainab Camp just barely in view. She had almost been there, now everything had been lost. Slowly she picked up Darq again and trudged toward the camp, tears dripping onto Darq's cold body.
At that very moment, Ajira felt a surge go through her. It was her Khajiit senses. She knew something was wrong, terribly wrong. And little did she know she would soon see her mother trudging into view, bearing the dead body of her father.