Sky Eyes awoke the morning of The Terrible Day screaming violently.
Xipe Totec checked on her quickly, as he always did, but he was starting to wonder why she screamed when there was nothing threatening her. Or why she moaned and jerked in her sleep, her eyes rolling beneath her lids.
Sky Eyes ran her hands carefully down her face, for one horrible moment thinking her tears were blood. She collapsed in relief when she saw they were merely tears. She sobbed once and wiped them away.
"Caw-aw-aw-aw-aw-aw!" a nearby crow cawed mockingly, as if laughing at her distress. The woman felt her fear dissolve instantly into rage and she chased the crows away. The squawked in protest and circled lazily back, oddly unafraid of humans. Sky Eyes flew into a greater rage, ripping up rocks and clods of dirt to hurl at them. She screamed obscenities at them.
The god watched his woman with amusement, but grew uneasy when he caught a whiff of stale fear. There was nothing here to be afraid of, no wild animals or wild humans to scare his tame one. All there was were crows, and they were nothing to be afraid of.
However Sky Eyes was afraid of the crows, deep down inside she knew these were not normal crows. Although they wouldn't let her hold them they came closer to her than any normal bird would. They circled above her and around her audaciously, cawing annoyingly. Then they hopped onto Xipe Totec's shoulder, glaring at her with what seemed distaste, cawing at him, as if asking their god-master why this woman wasn't dead yet.
Sky Eyes tried to tell herself she was being ridiculous, they were just crows, she had always liked birds. Now these crows were making her feel sick and afraid. They were the messengers of the god, she assumed, they were not only supernatural but probably hostile as well. She had seen them eat flesh.
She could feel their beady eyes on her. She was beginning to think they were eyeing her with hunger. Last night was the worst, she had dreamed-she blinked back tears-she dreamed she was dead. Deep beak gouges adorned her body. Blue eyes hanging by strings were carried in the crow's mouths.
It was the most terrifying vivid nightmare she had, and that was saying something.
More and more people appeared to her in her dreams. She saw the hunter whom the god tore up, whose widow and brother condemned her to him, as well as the man in the field, wearing his own flayed skin. She saw Club Foot; a putrid reeking mass eternally picked at by crows, only recognizable by his deformity, and many, many others.
They all spoke to her. They had the same glaring, accusing eyes as the crows. Sometimes their eyes looked at her in desperation. Some had tried to talk to her, but the words were always garbled and incomprehensible. She felt like she understood some words though.
They whispered: run, help, hide, sometimes they screamed.
-------------------------------
She tried to work off the nightmare, which possibly wasn't a nightmare, the bright sun helped, but the crows didn't. She shivered.
She tried to chase them away, but they kept coming back. She kept reflexively covering her eyes. They cawed at her.
In the dream she was dead and broken. She could see her own corpse lying unceremoniously on the ground, blood trickling out of her mouth. A few flies buzzed here and there, she hadn't decomposed yet. Sky Eyes didn't know how long she stared at her own demise.
Then the crows came, plucking out her eyeballs. She could clearly see them hanging like bright blue berries from their beaks. Before she awoke she thought she felt their little black talons on her face. That's why she woke up screaming.
The rest of the day she was quiet and cross, ignoring the god's suggestive nudges and finally driving him to hunt with her tired sighs. As soon as he left she regretted her attitude but the lack of decent sleep and her conflicted feelings were driving her crazy.
Sky Eyes wandered from the cave area somewhat aimlessly. She liked the god, he was kind and attentive to her, yet she was disgusted and repulsed by his grotesque actions. Even now she knew he was plotting or doing something terrible, yet she did absolutely nothing to discourage or stop him, or even to the steps to remove herself from his presence. She just sat there, trying to ignore the fact that people we're being brutally killed.
The woman tried to reason with herself, he was a god. Maybe she had no right to judge or criticize him, being a lowly human being, even if she did have supposedly have divine ancestry.
Maybe that was it, maybe as a human she shouldn't be living with him, never mind actually mating with him. Nevertheless it felt so right and good being with him, as opposed to being in a loveless marriage and a tribe that barely tolerated her. Still on some level it felt wrong. Very wrong.
Sky Eyes meandering came to an abrupt halt at the edge of what she thought was another arroyo, then she peered down and saw that it was a cliff. She steadied herself as she realized she could have very nearly walked off. It was a very sheer drop into the valley below.
She merely stood at the edge lost in her thoughts, an eagle soared below her and back to it's cliff nest. Returning, no doubt, to a nest full of chicks.
A slight cramp shot up through her loins, through her pelvis and up her spine. She closed her eyes in annoyance and gritted her teeth. Great. How many days would it be? Two? Three? Just one more thing to worry about. She wondered if she could use the old rags she saw lying around in the cave.
Suddenly she realized the significance of it. She smiled slightly, no wonder she was so irritable! She was always like that before she bled, well the nightmares weren't helping either, but now she had understood her behavior. She wondered if the god would understand. Sky Eyes giggled slightly, even Xipe Totec had to face some realities when living with a woman.
Feeling relieved she turned back. Still smiling slightly she meandered back to the cave. His vocabulary had improved enormously in the past few days, he learned very quickly. Language was sort of like a toy they could fashion endless games to amuse themselves with. Of course they could communicate even better now, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to talk to him about blood yet.
Maybe if he's god he would already know, already understand, especially a cycle driven god like him. Maybe she wouldn't have to delve too deeply into it. If he's a god.
Sky Eyes blinked. No, she knew he was a god, didn't she? There was no if. She began to feel uneasy; that suggestive voice came from nowhere, she had a nasty feeling it wasn't hers. For some reason it reminded her of the nightmares. She shook her head and returned to the cave, he was already there shoving bodies wrapped in skins into his lair. Sky Eyes carefully looked down.
He grabbed her chin and moved her head up, admiring her unusual feature. The woman smiled back, then pressed he nose against his in an apologizing gesture. He rubbed his long nose against her and as well as breathing in her scent. It was a mutual silent sorry. A wordless gesture of forgiveness for a wordless spat.
As they mated once again Sky Eyes felt as ecstatic and happy as she did the very first time. However this was the first time doubt entered her heart. If.
-------------------------------
Later that day he grabbed her unexpectedly. She jumped in great alarm, angry at being so startled, but she had no time to tell him off, for they were soon to the air again. All angry thoughts were driven out.
Naturally she was delighted, seeing what birds must see, an old dream of hers. This time she was less frightened, leaning out to look at the ground rushing by below, watched as the few people beneath them turned away at their shadow, the air whipping by her face yet loosening her hair gently. At one point he even let her ride on his back (not for long since that interfered too much with his wings) Sky Eyes felt like a bird, a goddess, the Queen of Heaven.
At one point they passed clouds. One was low-lying and heavy, moving slowly and lazily as a fat goose in the air. Excited she tapped the gods shoulder and pointing to it. He shrugged and gained altitude, flying towards it. He always granted her harmless requests, and this one seemed the most harmless one of all.
What fun! I've always wanted to see inside one, the woman thought giddily. She almost felt like a little girl again, all her silly whimsical childhood wishes we're being belatedly granted.
It turned out clouds we're very wet, and very cold. It was nothing more than flying through thick mist. They came out thoroughly soaked. The god didn't seem to mind, probably because he was naked and dried quickly. Sky Eyes sat miserably cold for the next few minutes. It was more than a little disappointing.
Her mind wandered, if she didn't know he was Xipe Totec she would have said he was a rain god, one of the men with wings who carried water down to the thirsty Earth. He didn't bring rain, which was obvious, in fact it did seem to be getting drier, but she never heard of any legends of Xipe Totec actually having wings. To clear her head of the doubt she looked down again.
The territory looked familiar, she realized in half a second this was her territory, or her old tribe's territory in fact. She was just seeing a bird's eye view of it.
No sooner had she said this than the Pueblos came into view.
Sky Eyes felt her heart sink. She didn't really know what to think, she didn't know if she still hated them, or if she wanted to see them all dead. The woman thought back to her curse and was suddenly horribly embarrassed by her outburst. True they hated her, and some wanted her dead, but she wasn't dead she was alive and largely happy. She really didn't want to see them again.
The circled and landed on top of the cliffs the pueblos were built on, the tribe said they we're unscalable.
Suddenly she remembered her mother She wondered were she was.
A bad feeling was rolling in her stomach. Why was she brought here? She started getting upset. Seeing the look on her face the god sniffed her and checked her carefully. "Hurt?" he asked in her in his deep raspy voice. Sky Eyes shook her head.
Xipe Totec gestured to the Pueblos beneath them. Sky Eyes taught him the word "Pueblo". "Pueblo." He repeated. He pointed to the chimneys with smoke rising gently to them. She explained their purpose best she could and taught him the word "kiva". He drew pictures in the dust, and she realized they were partial floor plans of the entire dwellings, at his request she filled in the rest and corrected his mistakes. He asked how people got in and out of these dwellings and she explained the rope and the notched tree trunks they used for ladders. He nodded and absorbed the information.
Sky Eyes bad feeling grew worse. She didn't know exactly what he was going to do, but she had a general idea, and it alarmed.
She started to plead, surprising herself by begging him on behalf of her treacherous people. He didn't listen, merely affectionately licked her face and scaled down the wall like a lizard.
Sky Eyes felt another panic attack coming about. She sat down very fast and struggled to breathe, when she thought she had some control she began to panic with indecision again. Torn between the love she had for her god and the tribe she was born into. She knew what would happen. The whole community was designed to repel a human invader; they were helpless against the god. He would trap them inside, penetrate their defenses, cut off their only means of escape, he would leave them totally vulnerable.
For a moment Sky Eyes wavered, then started searching for a way down.
The Pueblo wasn't designed to accommodate people traveling from the very top into one of the dwellings, but Sky Eyes had grown up here. She knew how to climb and navigate the treacherous rock.
Still it was difficult; she had to slowly climb down, feet first. Keep three limbs on at all time, she repeated her earliest instructions to herself, do not get trapped. The wall down to the first dwelling was sheer, practically vertical; she only survived by finding the minute cracks and hollows to support her weight.
It was tedious and slow going. One careless lurch or loose rock could have been the death of her, and it was excruciatingly difficult to get her body in though the window with falling and breaking her neck. Still she managed to swing her weight forward neatly through the opening and fell into the dwelling unharmed. By then she could already smell smoke.
"Xipe Totec" was hungry.
He detected many nice ripe scents emanating from these cliff dwellers, and he could get a few of them if they strayed out of their protective rock dwellings, or if someone carelessly left a child alone in a room, but he didn't like being in there. He felt trapped in the rooms and narrow corridors. Places so tiny he couldn't stretch his wings or even his arms out. It would easy for him to get caught in some narrow choke hold, with a dozen spears harassing him. By then all the good prey could have escaped.
He shook his head in wonder as humans constantly created tiny cramped spaces for themselves. Like ants in a hill.
Now thanks to the invaluable advice from the breeder he new what he could do. He blocked some of the kivas, it would create smoke, which would affect his sense of smell, but also created invaluable panic. The cliff people were scurrying around already.
They had no place to go he had knocked down or destroyed there means of escape.
A tide of alarm gradually swelled into to flood of terror as rumors and sightings spread through the Pueblo. The demon-god was here. He would kill and eat them all.
Sky Eyes heard a chorus of wails.
She didn't know what she was doing. She didn't know why she was here. Honestly she couldn't tell you her feelings about the whole situation. But it started to feel wrong, very wrong.
I could die in here, she though wildly, be killed or suffocated. Still she raced through the Pueblo, perfect memory allowing her to navigate through fear and smoke. She paused to cough, clearing it from her lungs. She had no real plan.
Sky Eyes followed the screams, which we're rising up from everywhere it seemed. In one place she slipped and landed in gore.
Wailing with fear, horror and disgust she got up and ran way blindly, the panic of the herd was getting to her.
Why did I leave the roof top? She thought. Why?
Then she realized, her mother! She didn't know where she was or if she was even alive. They could have killed her for bearing a witch, or thrown her out. After all she had no where to go, she would just be a burden until she died. All she had was Sky Eyes.
Her eyes stung with smoke and tears. Maybe the god killed her. Maybe she was being eaten now.
No, she couldn't allow that to happen. She had to find her, stop him, they could live together like always, she couldn't abandon her, her mother had been the only person in the world who cared for her.
Sky Eyes ran to her old pueblo, but doubts nagged her mind again. It had been her husband's place after all. Maybe he would have been unkind and thrown Mother out after his "witch" wife had been gotten rid of. But she had no where else to go.
She found another corpse, this one with its heart removed. She heard a baby wail in the distance.
Then her old tribe mates suddenly began streaming past. She tried to stop, but their panic overwhelmed her and they brushed past without seeing her. The stream of people soon turned into a flood. She thought she saw the Oldest One's granddaughter running by, clutching the wailing baby she was accused of putting a curse on. The outcast yelled and they paid no attention. She tried calling her mother's name but in her heart she knew she was not in this crowd, she had been far too old to run.
A man knocked his shoulder against hers, she grabbed him in desperation, "Please I'm looking for-" then stopped. It was The Brother.
Their eyes locked together, and she saw the unimaginable fear in his grow lager. He began screaming and wailing: "The witch! The witch!" he shrieked in agony. The crowd finally seemed to see her and shrieked in unison.
It was probably the most terrifying moment in her life, surrounded by a mob that hated and feared her beyond reason. At least there was some organization to their paranoia before; she had actually been given a trial. Now they were desperate and panicked and the gods knew what they would do. Sky Eyes felt her knees quake in fear.
The mob seemed torn: wanting to run, but wanting to dispatch this evil in their midst. Sky Eyes pressed her self into the wall, trying to disappear.
Before anything could happen though there was another shriek and all heads turned towards a dark figure crouching low atop one of the roofs, barely visible in the waning sunlight. A low growl emanated from it.
The crow now all jumped back instantaneously, like a hand that touched a hot cooking stone. The witch no longer mattered, what mattered getting out alive. Xipe Totec jumped directly in front of her, screaming menacingly. She watched in shock as his head started to writhe. The bony claws that encircled his skull suddenly stretched out in a grotesque spectacle.
The effect on the crowd was incredible. They stampeded in deafening hysteria. Even Sky Eyes nearly sank to the ground in fear. There were too many people and not enough space, the woman could see and hear people being trampled, some clambered down the cliff wall, others just jumped in desperation. She knew the monster god had got them in this spot. For a moment even she could smell the fear. The god began choosing his victims.
Sky Eyes ran.
Those who lived or escaped and were brave enough to look back saw the angry demon guarding the witch. They moaned in realization that Sky Eyes curse had sprung to life and wrapped itself around there necks, destroying them all.
Tears blurred her eyes at the desperate brutal scene. Still she raced to her husband's pueblo.
Sky Eyes husband hid, cowering like many others who had not joined the crowd and cringed in their pueblos. Hoping against hope the vengeful demon would pass them over, or that the smoke and fire wouldn't kill them. He clutched his good spear. His panic and horror was far deeper than the others, a feeling in his gut told him it was because of him. He thought the vengeful demon-god was coming after him.
As if to confirm his worst thoughts he heard the violent pounding of footsteps, only slightly muffled by the heavy rock floor. It didn't sound like the stampede, which was already dying down, it sounded like it was coming towards him. He whimpered and shoved himself into the corner. Where his new wife was he didn't know. He lost her in the crowd when he doubled back.
A dark figure stood in his threshold, he positioned the spear. It was far to cramped of a space to aim and throw, the horror would have to rush at him. He felt his guts shrivel at the thought.
The figure stumbled forward; he cried in alarm and raised his spear, suddenly a soft, hoarse voice called his name.
He froze, for a moment thinking his wife had returned. He was right, he was wrong.
Sky Eyes stepped forward again, searching for her mother. When she could not see her she cried in anguish. Her husband's blood froze in his veins at the sound and sight of what he was sure was his dead wife. Her face was smeared with pale ash and dust. She was covered in gore and her voice damaged from the smoke. In his terrified state he was sure she was a ghost in the moonlight, covered in her own blood, howling from beyond the grave. Sky Eyes ghost would demand vengeance.
"Where is my mother?!" she cried out. Her husband trembled and said nothing. He didn't want the old woman in his pueblo, and although it was considered a rude gesture to an elderly person, the tribe accepted his decision considering what had happened to him. Most felt pity that he had been married to a witch. (Even though he knew Sky Eyes hadn't been a bad wife, just a barren one.) So he gave that impression and allowed the council to evict the old woman, he didn't know where she was now.
Sky Eyes tore at her hair in anguish and frustration, "Where is my mother?! Where is my mother?!" she shrieked at him repeatedly. "Mamma!" she screamed in desperation into the empty pueblo. Her husband clutched his spear and jabbed at the angry spirit. "S-s-stay b-b-ba-a-ack." He bleated.
Sky Eyes was sure her eyes were ice grey at this point. "Tell me were she is traitor! Coward!-" she spat out a flood of angry curses. In truth she was just desperate. She badly wanted her mother.
He gaped in horror at the apparition with the flashing blue eyes that haunted him and gave him nightmares. He was always afraid of Sky Eyes. Now he knew it. His fear spilled over into desperation as he jabbed the spear at her. She dodged but he lunged and caught her again in the chest. It was a very shallow wound, but nonetheless she screamed in pain.
Feeling triumphant and less afraid he sneered and moved forward. Irrational fear was morphed into hatred that was finally unleashed and given to murder. Sky Eyes clutched the shallow wound over her heart. She knew she would be killed now.
Before she could scream, or even react, she saw her husbands eyes widen in horror and shift her gaze behind her. "AH-h-h no! No!" he screamed as something shot passed her with speed of a diving eagle and plowed into her husband, knocking him to the ground.
She knew it was Xipe Totec; she could see him in the dim light on top of her shrill panicking husband. He sniffed him thoroughly, thoughtfully. Her husband babbled worthless pleas as he saw sharp awful teeth, the ugly demonic head, and noticed, oddly enough, the Golden Eagle feathers of status on the demon's head. The demon withdrew a sharp obsidian blade with a carved bone handle. Before the man could even panic about that he neatly cut off his deer skin leggings. The nice ones Sky Eyes made for him.
Her husband threw her of look of mixed and horror and pleading. Sky Eyes merely shrugged dispassionately, watching the whole scene with neither fear nor regret, nor horror, nor sadness, nor anger, nor vengeance. It was just something that was happening.
The demon paused, sniffed. He made a small sound, a small "ahhh" of appreciation.
Then he bent down and removed her husband's genitals in one neat, savage bite.
-------------------------------
Sky Eyes honestly didn't know what really happened after that.
The whole Pueblo was in total chaos, many dead or dying, or like her husband, wishing they were dead. She must have tried looking for her mother, she knew she screamed for her, but she did not find her, the god had spirited her away to a safe location.
Sky Eyes really felt nothing; she was numb to the whole experience. Later her emotions would catch up with her, but for now she nothing but a vague dissatisfaction. She wanted her mother; she wanted-weirdly enough-to go home. To be someplace familiar.
Xipe Totec had other plans.
He pushed her to the ground gently, sniffing intently. She saw his eyes roll upward in joy, sniffing the air around her passionately. He climbed on top of her.
At that moment Sky Eyes didn't want it. She squirmed and pushed him and protested, trying to wriggle out of his grip. She really just wanted to be left alone…
Using the same obsidian knife he cut off her torn bloodied clothing, he licked the blood, dirt and gore off the flesh that suddenly rose in response to the cool night air. He could taste a sort of burning heat inside of her and he liked it, he liked it immensely, he allowed himself to taste in between her legs again. Savoring the sweet tang from her.
Sky Eyes tried again to squirm away, she felt her backlogged emotions starting to be released by his attentions. She felt like crying, not because of the god as she loved him, but because her home was gone and she wanted to see her mother and a whole lot of confusing things her mind couldn't sort out right now.
The god was having none of it; he pushed her down and asserted his claim over her again. "Mine," he growled softly in her language, Sky Eyes suddenly felt a thrill of possession, knowing he was claiming her again. Her mind drifted back to her husband, and what the god did. It was like with Club Foot, he was using her husband on her, her mind tried to wrap around the concept. The god mounted her and began thrusting. I guess he's my husband now, the thought thrilled and disturbed her.
That was the night he finally planted a baby.
It didn't feel too different from their normal sessions, however when he released himself in her, (his wings beating rapidly) she could feel something odd. She couldn't really describe it but it was like soul was changed. That was the closest way she could express the feeling.
The god licked her clean, the smelled her all over, he raised his head and uttered a long primal howl into the night, at the waning moon. The sound gave Sky Eyes a not-unpleasant-tingle and raised the hair on her arms. The surviving pueblo dwellers heard it and shuddered.
She was pregnant and she didn't even know it. The god hid her in a safe hollow and ordered her to stay. She nodded, still stroking her stomach and wondering what was so different.
Sky Eyes slept awkwardly in the hollow, while the "god" raided the Pueblo and took whatever bodies, parts and possessions he needed. Since his wings could only carry so much it took several tedious trips. No matter, the people would stay away, and he had to prepare for the long term. His cycle was finally broken.
Unsurprisingly Sky Eyes had terrible dreams again.
-------------------------------
The Aftermath.
The survivors looked around with dull haunted eyes. People dead, people mutilated, people not killed by the monster god but merely trampled or killed by stupid human mistakes. A few survivors peeked out from their homes and joined the rest, gazing numbly at everything.
To their surprise their home wasn't destroyed by fire. A few kivas had been blocked, creating smoke and further panic. The Pueblo was largely intact, but it's spirit was gone. People really didn't want to live there anymore. Their home had becomes a death trap, a slaughterhouse.
The dead were hastily buried, broken bodies tucked underneath floors. Most grabbed what they could and left, pausing only for the all-important task of disposing of dead loved ones. Some loved ones were never found. Some wish they hadn't found them.
The young mother with twins ran down in horror screaming that her husband had been castrated. He was lying dead on his floor, blood everywhere. The mother screamed it was Sky Eyes, Sky Eyes curse came true. The Brother screamed at her to shut up. There was a sudden epidemic of bad posture among the men of the Pueblo as they hunched over, protecting their valuables as they thought about that poor man's fate.
The Brother, more or less de facto leader now, drafted five cringing men to handle his burial. The all realized during the interment his genitals were no where to be found. They left his pueblo quickly.
The Oldest One's granddaughter and her baby survived, looking and tired but relieved as she tried to persuade her grandmother to come with her. The old woman moaned and shook her head. She was too old, too much of a burden. The young, strapping grandson that usually carried her was gone. The never found him.
"It's the end, it's the end of us, can't you see that?" she asked "I'm done for," the crowd cringed. The old woman began wailing and singing the death song, surprising them all with a traditional death dance. However she collapsed soon afterwards. The buried her next to the Pueblo.
When all was said and done people left quickly, spreading themselves out to relatives in neighboring Pueblos, telling tales of vengeful demons and witches curses. Many left wondering what happened to certain family members. Most left broken, smashed corpses in their home. Hundreds of years later a radically different culture would send it's archeologists to the abandoned Pueblos, probing the dismembered bones in fascination. They would concoct theories of tribal warfare, genocide and cannibalism, but for now the Pueblo stayed empty.
The greatest mystery of all was Sky Eyes mother. Her clothes and shoes were neatly folded and stacked. All her possessions were left behind in the hovel they exiled her to. There was no body, no blood. It was as if she had disappeared.
Some said the demon got her, others said Sky Eyes came back for her. Still others said she had died and disappeared in shame, which is what they would have done. However the rumors soon became quiet, as it became forbidden to speak of Sky Eyes.
Still she wouldn't die. She stayed written in their hearts. They hated her still of course, but deep down they knew they largely brought this on themselves. They didn't share their shame and horror with the younger generation. They kept their lips sealed and the name of Sky Eyes died with them.
The Brother gathered a few remnants. The mother with twins, the Oldest One's Granddaughter and her husband and baby, his beloved brother's widow, (who was badly injured and might not survive), and several others were going with him. They hoped to found a new Pueblo somewhere, away from demons.
The Brother watched his small band set out, they were the last to leave. When they all trailed somberly in from of him he gathered his spear and followed him.
-------------------------------
The first few days after words were sort of a blur. When she awoke she was inside his cave, her former tribesmen were hung from the walls and ceiling, looking down at her. It was not an auspicious beginning to her new life.
Sky Eyes did consider this her "new" life. It was like being reborn; all the senses were overwhelmed by all the new things. Her old home was no more. This was her home now, her life.
Everything seemed indefinably different somehow; it was very hard to explain, even to herself. The night of the massacre seemed to be a line of demarcation, a clear line between her old and new life. And now, she silently admitted this to herself, she had always wanted to go back somehow, be accepted. Now that was impossible.
The days wore on, and the god's interest in her did not wane. Nice as it was Sky Eyes felt she was losing energy. She would leave baskets half woven, clothes half-sewn. The god never seemed to mind. He would bring her the clothes of dead women, (which she tried not to think about) then nudge her to get up and teach him more words or something else new.
Sadness began to take root in her, she didn't know why. Her hands stayed idle, and she let her food go to waste, much to the god's obvious disapproval, her feet grew soft. Sky Eyes whiled away her days by gazing at clouds and waiting for her god-husband to return, reminiscing about her life.
It made no sense, her behavior. Once she was sitting on the ground teaching him how to play a simple childhood game with pebbles in the sand and before she realized it she was crying copiously. Ashamed and taken aback she ran off.
Sky Eyes found herself at the cliff again, watching the eagle returning to its nest with prey and drying her tears. She pondered about what had just happened. After a long period of thought she decided she was depressed about what he had done, as much as she thought they deserved it. The woman also realized she missed her mother terribly. Her mother had taught her to play that game. All the children spit at her when she tried to join in.
All her life she tried to show control, like her mother taught her. Now she felt like a basket with frayed edges. She always hid her true self, her disappointment at her bareness and her general unhappiness at her life by keeping her head down and focusing on her work.
When she went back home she came to god and simply told him "Pueblo." Sighing he picked her up and flew her to her old territory. Flying was still good, still new…but different, like everything. The woman did not ask to pass through any clouds. She sat in solemn silence, her eyes lowered.
The whole place was shockingly empty, she had never seen it like this before, never even imagined it. The desolate Pueblo only increased her melancholy, and Xipe Totec's actions irritated her. He kept his hand on her arm, or grabbed her hand. She wriggled her fingers slightly as her hand went numb, it practically disappeared into his. He growled reflexively and yanked her closer.
"Mother, mother." She called out, wandering through the empty Pueblo. Her voice echoed sadly in the empty rooms. The god sniffed the air and shook his head. Sky Eyes sensed the place was full of ghosts. She broke free his grip and scrambled down the Pueblo wall, he quickly followed her.
Outside the sun was setting and the wind was howling, making angry WHEEEE-EEE sounds as it whistled through rocks. A few crows cawed ominously. Sky Eyes shivered. To her the whole world looked desolate and abandoned, for a moment she could easily believe she was the last human alive. She called for her mother again.
As soon as she did she saw some figures in the distance. Her heart racing she called out to them. She heard a shout in an unfamiliar language and saw spears; these were all men, strange men. Instinctively terrified she ran away. The woman turned and ran to the god, who gladly herded her away.
The whole trip had been pointless, and left Sky Eyes feeling even bleaker than before. That night as she cringed in the enveloping darkness, she cried for her mother and heard horrible screams came from the god's cave.
That night they came. They always did.
They had driven out her happy dreams, haunted her thoughts, kept her terrified, even in the day time. Not even her powerful divine protector save her. A whole flood of them came, moaning or screaming, stumbling towards her, pushing past each other to see and grab and haunt Sky Eyes. It was like this every night now. Bloody hands clawed at her.
"Please leave me alone." She whimpered, begged. "Please leave me alone."
Sometimes they were hard to understand, but they became clearer every night. They gave her orders, shouted accusations and curses. They tortured her repeatedly. She couldn't get away.
There was the hunting party who tried to sacrifice her. Club Foot, The Man in the Cornfield, her Tribe Members. She even saw her old husband, his lower half covered and blood and hatred burned into his eyes. There were also those she didn't recognize, they stretched back like an army, a parade. An endless march of the dead stretching back through time came towards her.
"Please leave me alone."
She knew these people were dead, there was no other explanation. Sometimes they were decapitated or missing limbs. Sometimes their guts hung out. They walked impossibly with shattered pelvises. They reached to her with no hands, or no eyes. A few naked women were among them. They struck her face, calling her a thief.
Sleep had become an ordeal; even waking had become a nightmare. Sky Eyes knew she was cursed haunted by thousands of ghosts, thousands of ghosts screaming at her. Telling her to do things she didn't want to do.
Sometimes they simply pleaded, "Help us! Help us!" they screeched. Or they bullied her, calling her the worst names imaginable, far worse than what the tribe called her in their moments of anger. They yanked her hair and ripped at her skin pulling her towards them.
Their orders were confusing, they served only to bewilder her further and make her sick. "Run! Hide! Help! Coward! Traitor! Witch! Demoness! You should just-"
Sky Eyes screamed in horror.
They had her now. They were shoving her, pushing her toward something.
"I didn't do anything!" she insisted. This felt like her witchcraft trial all over again, except it was a thousand times worse.
"You killed us, you will kill us!" the dead insisted Sky Eyes shook her head.
"Why do you obey him?" came a soft voice. It was the Oldest One's grandson, the one who always carried his grandmother on his back. Sky Eyes couldn't answer, her mouth was too dry. "Did I deserve it?" he asked her softly, reasonably. His throat had been torn out.
Sky Eyes felt a wave of misery roll over her. He had never said a bad word to her in his life. He looked at her with soft sad deer eyes.
The woman knew it was her fault. All her fault, but she tried to reason with the mob of the dead. "He's a god!"
"Not a god! Not a god!" they screeched in a worse anger than ever. She felt her body be carried, ripped apart. Her nightmare was reaching a climax. She opened her mouth to scream, she was in the abyss-
The dream abruptly ended. Sky Eyes felt herself being shaken awake. They were still there though. Thousands of angry invisible ghosts surrounded her, whispering their curses and orders and pleas. All she could do was curl up and cry.
-------------------------------
It was pure torment now. She tried to distract herself. She worked but never finished. She made love to her new husband and cried. The fresh deer meat tasted like ash in her mouth. What little food she did eat soon came rushing back up.
Her former tribe was the worse. She could see what her curse did. It utterly destroyed everyone, even those who didn't deserve it.
She cut her hair off so it was a ragged circle around her face, which she rubbed with ash. She wore dirty clothes. She was a woman in mourning. Sky Eyes acted like a woman who lost her family, who was taken and disgraced by an enemy tribe. The ghosts were still not appeased.
The woman watched as people were slaughtered in front of her. Her teeth ripped her lips and tongue open in her attempt not to scream. Her nails tore at what was left of her hair and skin. Still they were slaughtered.
She did not know any of them, did not recognize their language, but she could see the agony on their faces. She could hear the torment in her voice. Without knowing how or why she knew what they were saying. Pleas of mercy, cries for their mother. When they grabbed her they were begging for help. Sky Eyes could do nothing. The worst part is that she knew they would be in her dreams that night, swelling the ranks of the army of the dead.
She had tried not to sleep, but the ghosts chased her into the daytime. Once, when it rained she was forced inside his cave. Surrounded by his furs, artwork and the beautiful baskets she made for him, she watched the skins and bones and bodies dance in the flickering light created by the burning of foul-smelling fat she knew was human.
I will not fall asleep, I will not- but dreams came to her anyway. The dead people came to life and howled at her. She covered her ears and wept, sobbed for hours on end.
Throughout all of this the god remained the same. Never did he attack, injure of even raise his voice at her. He nudged and smelled and licked her constantly. He invited her to sex or fun or companionship and seemed only disappointed when she failed to respond. He grinned bloody grins at her as he killed, the spirits got angrier and each passing day.
It seemed like their anger physically manifested itself. She looked at her torn skin, her clawed scalp and the bruises on her body in a vague wonder, forgetting she had inflicted these on herself. Even the Xipe Totec was growing uneasy at her random fits. He smelled her quietly and bound her down, wondering what she was doing, hoping she wouldn't hurt the precious cargo within her.
Sky Eyes didn't sleep anymore. Her blue eyes stared wide open every day. Heavy shadows grew underneath them. They saw crows and other birds soaring, they saw Grandmother Earth rushing to embrace her. She spoke whisperingly of these things, as her eyes stared out blindly.
The god twisted his mouth uneasily, he only understood about half of what she said, but it still made no sense. Humans were a mystery, her behavior incomprehensible. He wished she would be more enjoyable, but his nose never lied, something was wrong, she was sick.
It made sense, she looked sick, acted strange, smelled odd. It didn't immediately frighten him, because the sickness didn't smell pervasive or terrible, as it did in those who were truly dying, he figured she would recover, she just needed extra help.
He chose his "help" very carefully. A young woman and a male companion walked made their way carefully through a forest. The woman hummed and sang softly to herself, he paused and listened for a moment (the Breeder had stopped singing for him), the young man leaned on his spear. His eyes wary and alert.
She chanted to some spirit in thanks as she gathered berries. It was necessary but had to be done quietly, as her companion needed to watch her.
It was all so silly, she thought. She was arrogant, ripe, drunk on her own youth, and nothing would happen, nothing would kill her. As long as gave reverence to the gods and her companion looked out for her she would be fine. She hummed/sang happily.
He could smell her, the healthy young animal smell within her. The companion actually smelled more promising, but this wasn't about him. The young woman walked on obliviously.
He needed to be silent, because the young man was alert. They were all alert to his presence now. No huge obstacle.
She had time to scream. Once. Her young man came running to her in an instant, he had time to see her basket shatter and hear her scream fade away into the sky. There was absolutely nothing he could do. He wailed in agony.
He found the Breeder by the cliff. She went there often to stare out into its abyss. The Breeder seemed almost mesmerized by it. It was her favorite spot; she went there often when he went hunting. He saw no harm in it.
Her unusual eyes were wide as she beheld the struggling screaming woman. Sky Eyes recognized her tribal tattoos; the strange woman threw herself at her, babbling incomprehensibly. Sky Eyes shook her head, she didn't know her language.
Xipe Totec withdrew his obsidian knife, Sky Eyes fled in terror, as she usually did. This time however the god grabbed her. What is he doing She thought in terror. He sat on the ground calmly, holding the struggling woman with his feet, and holding Sky Eyes easily in one hand.
As expected the knife came down, slowly. It wasn't a stab or a thrust aimed at anything vital, it was a slice.
The woman's eyes bulged out in shock. Sky Eyes could see the disbelief written on her face. She could hardly believe it herself, but what happened next was unimaginatively worse. She saw him grinning as he held the strip of fresh meat to her. Sky Eyes screamed in terror and tried to jerk violently away. He held her patiently and forced the flesh into her mouth. He held her nose and mouth shut until she swallowed, nearly passed out.
"Xipe Totec" held both struggling women easily as he sliced up one and fed her to the other. Part of a breast. The soft underside of an arm. Her full cheeks. The god carefully picked out soft delicious parts to feed to his Breeder. He ignored the two's terrified shrieking-one of pain the other of disgust- and continued to feed the blue eyed woman scraps as patiently and diligently as a mother bird. It was an image amplified by his occasional chewing of the flesh and forcing it via the mouth down Sky Eyes throat like a perversion of a kiss.
The woman finally, mercifully seemed to be dying when he cut her open and began feeding Sky Eyes choice womanly parts. (Appropriate enough given her condition, he reasoned). He even fed her tidbits of heart. Not too much, enough to make her feel better. Sky Eyes was nearly passed out anyway.
She didn't remember being carried back to the cave, or the woman being fed to the crows. All she knew is that her stomach war burning, churning to pass up that most taboo of foods. She was tainted now, beyond evil, totally beyond redemption.
Sky Eyes actually prayed for an end.
She was in the Spirit World, again. The army of the dead were all there, and all menacingly silent. Sky Eyes trembled.
The dead began to speak, softly. They told she was evil, tainted, worthless, doomed. One of them grabbed her arm, "he's not a god." He hissed. "He's not Xipe Totec." Run away. They ordered. Get rid of yourself. He will turn on you.
Sky Eyes cried, not knowing what to do.
Suddenly, the whispers abruptly ceased in one, unanimous hiss. A strange man stepped forward. He was wearing his own skin. This victim looked truly dreadful, one of the worst she had seen. He gazed at her sadly.
"Sky Eyes" he said in a not unkind voice, and laid a gnarled mangled hand on her head. She tried not to cringe. "Child." He said fondly. "I am so sorry for no being able tot return to you." Since he was not cruel Sky Eyes listened to his apologizing patiently.
Suddenly she knew who he was.
"Father," she whimpered in realization. She could see herself through the mangled mess. He favored her with a twisted, broken smile.
She had been a few days old when he left and never came back. She suddenly realized for the first time she had been born when the god last appeared. She was too frightened and confused to question why his cycle seemed delayed, or ask the same thing of herself. Her father and reportedly left the Pueblo after her birth and never returned. That meant-
She looked at him in sudden horrifying realization. He nodded and said almost casually, "I'm over you right now, where you sleep."
This didn't make Sky Eyes feel any better.
He spoke to her seriously. "Daughter, I want you to run, run away from the demon as far and as fast you can." Sky Eyes shook her head, more in confusion than anything, he grabbed her arm with broken fingers, his gaze frightened her. "I was returning, he killed me, your demon killed me." His grip hurt and Sky Eyes struggled. "He's not a god, he does not-can not love you, you must run." He ordered.
The Spirit World faded away. She was in the cave again.
Sky Eyes crawled out slowly (not looking up at her father's skin) she crawled outside, it was windy. Without knowing why she began to run. She ran screaming, fleeing into the wilderness. Anywhere but here.
As she ran she stumbled, then fell, but still struggled on. Her knees were scraped open and thorns had dug themselves into her pawns. She cried in pain, but mostly misery. She finally fell for the last time. Sick and confused.
The vomit was coming up before she realized what was happening. The vomit was thick and red, mixed with blood. Whether it was her blood or the woman's she didn't know. It poured out in successive painful waves, the most horrifying sickness she ever had. It burned her throat, came up through her nose. Sky Eyes howled in pain.
"MAMMA!" she screamed. She knew it must have sounded childish. She didn't care. She wanted her more than anything in the world right now. She needed some one to talk to, someone who actually cared about her, who had her best interests at heart. All she had now was venom and confusion and pain.
She didn't know where her mother was, she didn't visit her in the Spirit World, maybe she died and wasn't buried properly. Ohhh, what if she was eaten? What if the god wanted to feed her mother to her? Sky Eyes rapidly grew sick again. She vomited one last time and rocked back and forth whimpering, "mamma, mamma." The woman tore at her own skin and pulled out what was left of her hair.
Sniffing, she stumbled along, still murmuring for her mother. She didn't know what to do, so she just ran like they ordered her to, like they were commanding her now. She was so confused.
Maybe it was a bad spirit; maybe it had escaped from Club Foot's head and entered hers. That's what if felt like. Maybe she really was a witch whose hatred conjured up death and destruction. Now she knew it would destroy her. She kept running, trying to escape. She ran to her favorite spot.
"What do I DO!?" She screamed to the nothingness around her. Her voice seemed to echo back.
A vision slowly appeared to her: a soaring eagle. It was soaring to the heavens.
Sky Eyes knew what to do.
All her life she wanted to be a bird, to fly, to escape the miserable world her difference had caused her. What seemed like a nightmare evolved slowly into a dream, but every second the dream threatened to turn back into a nightmare. Sometimes it did, but her world would try to fool itself into thinking all was love and happiness again. Inevitably it would return into the nightmare. Now the nightmare wouldn't stop, wouldn't end. She just wanted to wake up.
Love and passion turned seemingly into hate, beauty into ugliness, birds became evil crows, and wonderful clouds turned into cold mist, flying had turned into falling.
Grandmother Earth came rushing up to greet her.
The god that wasn't a god but something far more unknowable and mysterious saw it happening. He didn't realize it until it was too late. Even his wings couldn't stop it. In one heartbeat he knew it was over.
The blue-eyed Breeder had thrown herself of a cliff.
Still he spiraled down to her rapidly. She lay broken on the valley floor. She wasn't quite dead yet. Her slender legs stood out crookedly, some ribs poked through as she wheezed her last breath. He saw her unusual eyes gaze at him before she sputtered something incomprehensible. The woman didn't explain her actions, or even attempt some last clichéd declaration of eternal love. He heard her death rattle. Her blue eyes glazed over.
The monster whined softly in confusion.
He really couldn't understand it. What? Why? He had no answers. He prodded her body gently, nothing answers issued forth from it.
The monster didn't cry or scream or do anything else to indicate grief. He hunched over her, sniffing occasionally. She continued to stare blindly at him in death. There was a bit of blood on her chin. When the crows came he shooed them away.
He tried and failed to comprehend. Humans were innately self-destructive after all. That's all the explanation he had. He had liked her, he really did, but she was dead and gone, and that was that.
He hovered over her like this for an hour, keeping away the greedy scavengers and not eating. After an hour he smelled, or just sensed that their last connection was gone. What was inside of her was dead too, gone forever. As such his bond with her died to.
Smelling her slowly he came to her eyes. They were very pretty, her best feature. Gently he pulled them out, the optic nerves snapping. With one gulp he swallowed them both down. To his surprise the world didn't look much different through them. Maybe they seemed more sensitive to bright light, but no major differences.
The rest of her was not innately useful. She had grown appalling thin and weak. He picked over her bones for dinner, then left. The crows descending on what was left of the woman known as Sky Eyes.
He had to prepare, with his offspring gone his cycle had resumed. He could feel his old adversary, sleep, crouching in the near future, waiting to capture him. He had to prepare his spot, and then sleep until another generation was ready.
-------------------------------
Sky Eyes died and was largely lost. Whispered, distorted rumors still spoke of witches and gods, but she had died unlamented by humans. Her body corrupted and her bones turned to dust until she was finally blown away.
She had died without knowing her greatest wish had been fulfilled. That wish died with her.
The monster returned, generation after generation, as he had for an eternity. Terrified stories and legends accompanied him, now speaking of a demon with eyes that could strike a man dead. Eyes that glowed in the sun and captured the sky within them. Those few left who had remembered Sky Eyes trembled and went white with fear.
The tribe of cliff dwellers that his Breeder was born into continued to be hunted and eaten. He found no more breeders within them though. The bad luck he brought eventually became just a small taste of what was to come. A massive, terrible drought and aggressive nomadic tribes to the north eventually drove them southwest, and he never saw or smelled them again. The same drought eventually sent him to farther east, where prey was more plentiful.
It was a very long time before he saw eyes like hers again. Until then he largely forgot about her. Breeders where that rare. When he saw suicides and sacrifices and the same mindlessly destructive human behavior his mind drifted back to those few short happy months, and how they ended in insane terrified confusion. When he learned what a nightmare was he thought of her, but she had largely faded from his memory.
This memory comes back to me like all others. I can see the warning signs now. I see them in my newest breeder. I know I must stop this. I don't understand how and why, humans are silly and foolish and disparaging, especially to themselves. But I won't allow this. She is mine. Any woman who smells like her is mine.
-------------------------------
A/N: See, this is the problem with relationships nowadays. It's communication. Too much communication. ;-p
Sky Eyes is actually based on a small unnamed character in the fic "The Acolyte, AKA The Other Other Half." She appears in the Creepers memory in Chapter Nine, obviously she's the woman who jumps off a cliff. (Bows before red's brilliance) So if you feel the need to do some "backseat writing" and nag me for killing off a character you liked go yell at redplanetes first. She'll probably kill you, which is my plan.
Her tribe is largely based on (okay ripped off) the Anasazi tribe. The mythology is based half-assedly on Wikipedia-researched Southwestern native stories with a hint of Aztec. Her pale "god" ancestors are of course Vikings, who are rumored to have reached the North American coast long before Columbus.
/History geek mode off now