Bardic Tales.

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rivaan
Antediluvian
Antediluvian
Posts: 1977
Joined: Sun Apr 15, 2012 10:47 am
Clan: Gangrel
Garou Tribe: Glass Walkers
Sabbat Clan: Tremere Traitor

Bardic Tales.

Post by rivaan »

The night's air carried a chill as Salissa walked through the forest, her destination the village on the other side of it. She had spend the entire day walking and finally she was near, but something was off. In the distance there was too much smoke that could be seen even through the night's sky, especially when it blocked the soft light of the moon, turning the forest even darker. She had seen similar things in the past and knew that something had happened. Something horrible to the people who lived ahead.

As she neared ever more, the smell was the next thing to reach her. The night's wind carried the smell of burnt flesh, making her grimace at it as she walked. She placed a hand on her mouth, her eyes narrowed beneath her silvery mask. Her senses were irritated as she now could see the warm orange glow in between the trees in the distance. The glow grew stronger as she walked until she finally found herself on the edge of the forest, seeing the scene. It was something she had seen a few times in the past, but it never allowed her to get used to it.

The few houses that barely remained were still slowly being burned to cinders, but overall the fires were dying out. Judging by the time it took to burn away, it probably meant the attack had happened more than a few hours ago. Salissa grimaced once more a she resumed walking. There was nothing she could do or could have done even if she arrived earlier. She'd probably have just joined the rest of the dead if she did, still she walked, to see... to witness and to remember. Finally the first bodies were in sight. There was little left of them, the fires that had razed this place had left little traces on the charred corpses. She crouched by one only to see through the burnt flesh that there was a deep cut all the way across the back. Another body still had an axe head stuck in the skull. Those people were killed from behind.'They were run down while fleeing... no weapons near them. Probably the first unlucky sods who got at the wrong place at the start of the attack.' She thought, standing up, walking further. In the distance there appeared to be a building still standing relatively unharmed probably on purpose.

Stepping through the ash and corpses, Salissa always stopped at each, studying their final resting places, the last positions their bodies would take. There were people who had fought, some had fled to be struck from behind. By one of the buildings there were the now charred bodies of what she realized were a mother and a child. Both struck from behind, probably by swords. The body of the mother still looked like she's trying to reach her child.

She closed her eyes for a moment before crouching and without minding the fact she's dirtying her clothing, she moved the smaller body do the other, allowing them to rest together in the beyond. This was all she could do as she progressed, memorizing each little tragic tale while she walked. The smell of the burning flesh around this building was the strongest a people appeared to have been burned on big stake here, tied to them in some for of sick perverted display of sadism. Using her sleeve to cover her mouth and nose she entered what must have been the village elder's house. Inside were the spared of the flames bodies of dozen women and children. The stench of body fluids hit her nose right away. The bodies were covered in the ash from the air, but the state was clear. They weren't spared the torture neither the physical of mental.

Salissa felt disgusted, realizing that the women were raped, the only small nod of peace she could find was that the children appeared untouched aside the cuts on their throats. Their eyes were closed... Her heart tightened, reaching a realization. The children had died before the attackers arrived... Mothers had killed their own children to spare them the hell they would face otherwise. There was no need for this to be left standing... a display to someone's perverted delusions of grandeur for slaying everyone. The people who had done this were no men no more. She walked outside, grabbing a still burning piece of wood and throwing it in the floor covered by bodies inside. The clothes caught on fire quick, followed by the wooden walls.

“Hahhaaa....hahahaahaha *cough cough * Baaaaah... that was fine booze and the gold!! Gad thing I hid after the others left! This haul!” A male rather drunk voice resounded as he appeared from one of the others not entirely crumbled houses. He had a big bundle which she assumed was his plunder.” Damn that girl was one thought whore. Still better than my life if she behaved I would have took her as my personal slave HAHA! Huh...cugh...?!” He made a sound of realization as he was witnessed something red, white and silver. First he saw the long flowing ashen hair, next was the flashy clothing and finally his eyes fell on the silver mask and the eyes looking at him from underneath.” Who...” He let out a last breath as he crumbled on the ground.

The Dhampir didn't even bother to loot the man. What he carried was what he took from the people here, she had no need for that. Instead she followed the direction the man appeared from, eventually finding in the crumbling building a single young woman. She was beaten to a pulp, obviously raped, but still alive. It wasn't hard to realize she was not going to make it though. She was bleeding badly from every orifice. Her limbs were broken and with those head injuries it wasn't a stretch to assume the worst. Her breathing was also ragged, suggesting internal damage that Salissa couldn't cure or mend without use of healing magic... and there were no clerics here now.

Tears mixed with blood were dropping down the cheeks of the woman as she noticed someone was standing in front of her. She couldn't see clearly anymore, it all was a blur, nor could she utter a word anymore. Her teeth were broken or knocked off from her jaw witch hanged limply also. Still Salissa understood. She pulled her knife, crouching in front of the woman, gently caressing her hair.”It's fine now. You can rest.” She said softly, reassuring the woman, as ran the sharp edge of her dagger across the girl's neck, still holding gently onto her until the painful breaths and cries finally ended.

Finally the place returned to complete silence with only the sound of embers still disturbing the darkness. Salissa stood and once more started walking, again into the forest she just came from. There was no need to stay here, no need to continue on the intended path. She knew what she'd find there.

“A burning graveyard...” She whispered, pulling her lute.” A tale of many...” She started mumbling as she was thinking up lyrics, pulling the strings ever so softly as a melody was forming in her head. She was going to remember those people and through her art, others would too.

“Ohh Patron of the night... did you hear the plights...” Her soft melodic voice rang in an almost ghostly way as it was slowly vanishing into the night as vanished among the forest's trees.
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