She could never say how long she lay there crying, but by the time she had gathered enough strength to stand the smell didn't bother her so much. She heard crows and looked back at the pile of corpses in front of her. The burning hadn't been so bad she realized, what really made the bodies look so destroyed was the birds picking at them.
"Shoo! Shoo! Go away birds!" A few of the birds turned at the unexpected sounds, but seeing no threat from the little girl, quickly returned to their feasting. Tears coming up anew, Edana fled. She got back on Firestorm-he hadn't wandered away while she was crying- and tried to go back to her home. Arriving at the ruins, there was even less of it left than she had feared. Not a single timber still stood on another. What furniture that hadn't been consumed by the flames was shattered into pieces along the path. There was nothing left for her here: no friends, no family, no bed, no food, nothing.
"My my my, what have we here?" The sudden voice filled her with fright, spinning around Edana reached into her pocket for her small knife.
"Who-” She barely got the word out of her mouth before the brute slammed into her.
"A little fire-witch come back home? Well Mommy and Daddy aren't here anymore, are they?" The sneer he gave her sent ripples of horror through her slight form. Eyes flicking about, the man saw her pocket and snatched the knife before Edana could even think of a protest. "Oh, and she’s even armed; how cute." Tears once again formed at the corners of her eyes, this time of fear and anger instead of horror and loss. This man was the object of her sudden fury. This man, no, this monster was a part in what had killed her family. Being pinned to the ground left her few options, and this was a full grown man, not one of her playmates, she couldn't just roll him off her; she had to have help or nothing she could do was going to save her. "Well, one more body to add to the pile." He stretched Edana's own knife towards her throat when a sudden peal of neighing broke his concentration. "What the-" He was silenced as a hoof slammed into his face. Flying off her, the man rolled into the ashes of her home. Firestorm had saved her.
"Stupid beast!" To Edana's horror, the man wasn't dead; in fact he only looked angrier than ever. Blood was dribbling down his face from a gash above his eye. "I'll kill you first, and then take care of the karking witch!" Firestorm, leaping over Edana, struck again with his forelegs. But this time, the man was ready; he caught the blows with his hands and twisted one of the horse’s legs with an intensity that stunned Edana just as she was rising to her feet. With one of his front legs now broken, Firestorm didn't stand a chance. The man, drawing his own weapon, a sword, hacked at the horse with wild abandon. Moments later, covered in hot blood, he turned back to Edana. "Now, where were we?" The leer pushed Edana over the brink. She lost herself in a sudden flame of rage. Now it was the man who didn't stand a chance. Fires sprung up from his wrists, cutting his hands off with a swift roar of heat. He screamed as he was quickly engulfed in an inferno. Edana fed the fires all her will and all her grief.
Edana blinked in shock, how could she have done that? Up till now, the largest fires she could call would only be large enough to cook an ant or two. Shock at her new-found power overwhelmed her. Rising completely from the ashes, Edana stared numbly at the remains of her horse. The saddlebags were still there, so she had no choice but to go get them. Stepping gingerly across the newly dead man's corpse, she unstrapped the bags holding what little she still had. The bags were heavy, and deciding she couldn't do much with the heavy stuff anyways, Edana cleared a space and dumped out the pouch. Keeping the dried biscuits that remained, as well as the water bladder, she put her knife back in her pocket as well. Then she started wondering who the man had been. In a sudden burst of inspiration, she scoured the area looking for the man's provisions or camp. Finding what look like a small tent, her heart leapt in hope. Maybe the man had some food stores! Scrabbling across the loose, ash-covered ground between her and the tent, Edana suddenly froze. What if the man hadn’t been alone? Now she crept silently toward the tent, half expecting someone to jump out at her any moment. She reached the tent uneventfully, and felt a surge of relief. The man had been alone. Combing through what was there, she found several pounds of dried meat, and a few camp pots and such. Ignoring the complicated foodstuff, Edana greedily grabbed some of the jerky.
Refreshed by her impromptu meal, Edana looked out at the horizon, the sun would set shortly, and she didn't want to stay anywhere near the remains of her childhood home. Placing the rest of the meat and the man's other travel breads into her saddlebag backpack, Edana decided to set out. Hopefully, she would be able to find someone who could help her, but Edana didn't know if she could even trust anyone but herself to take care of her anymore. Now on foot, Edana left her little village of Flame's Rest behind. The sun casting a shadow far ahead of her, she moved west, leaving everything she knew behind.
Sorry for the cluttered format on the first part, I think I got all the paragraph breaks this time though.
Build Your Dream Nation 2
, 24 hour phases, points per center, 10 days to join
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