Flash Fiction Friday (2)

Dottie over at Tink's Place have come up with the idea for a Monday Morning Flash Fiction challenge. Each Monday a new picture prompt will be posted and if you choose to participate you post your story on Friday - 350 words, give or take.

I have to thank Blodeuedd at Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell for introducing me to this fun meme. I don't know if I'll be able to keep up with every week, but I'll give it a try from time to time.

And this weeks Picture is:

I am trying to continue with the story from last week.  And I'm sorry as it ended up a little bit loong this week.  I hope you don't mind and enjoy.  It is still a little rough.

If you want to read last weeks beginning, CLICK HERE.

This week:

By Melissa

Lea cautiously stepped through the gates when a shutter from her head down her spine to her toes racked her whole body. There was something magical here, she felt it in her skin and bones the moment she crossed the threshold of the glowing gates. Lea stopped in her carefully pick track and cringed at the dreaded sight before her.

She had seen results of border disputes with hoblins, the damage their hoof like hands do to human skin and bones, even skulls. She’d even seen the slaughter of animals on the farm. Oh, the farm, Lea found herself thinking and mumbles, “I should have minded my own business and not done as the others did. Curiosity got to me once they started wondering away.”

The memory of her mother saying, ‘If they all jumped into the hollows of Shars’ waiting for Goddess Shar to catch them, would you as well?’ jumped into her head. Lea shock herself as if to scatter the thought from her mind. Shar is the goddess of love and tranquility and wouldn’t hurt an ant. And she knew the hollows were a place to send the gifts down to the goddess, but she wouldn’t be there to catch you from falling.

The sight in front of her now came into a sharp vision and turned her stomach. The children walk around with smiles not seeing what she sees on the mound in front of her.

“Keep walking.” The whisper of a girls’ relaxed and excited voice made Lea jump and sparred her from her shock of the view. She turned, seeing Saria smiling, and nodes slowly. Walking with Saria, she couldn’t bring herself to smile like the others. If anyone saw her they’d know she didn’t fit here.

The woman lay draped over the mound with her head hanging down with wide open eyes watching all that entered through the gates. But the haunting of the eyes as the woman laying unmoved seemed to follow her as she walked around the side of the mound. And the blood. Oh the blood. Lea didn’t know where it all came from. Did it belong to this woman or someone else? Who was this dark haired woman?

As Lea walked around the mound with Saria as she tried to look away and felt as being watched. Then a silver sparkle caught her attention from the corner of her eye. Everything here had a gold or bronze shine to it. Silver was something new. She turned her head to see a sword standing out of the ground beside the drapery of a woman on the mound. And as Lea looked she saw the woman had been sliced open at her midsection, where a baby would have been, and laid open for all to see. Lea tore her eyes from the woman to the sword. It was a magnificent thing. With feathers carved of the metal curling back over the hilt. The she spotted an bright green eye at the center of the pummel. Just as Lea squinted to look closer at the eye the sword sucked out of the ground and flew at her. Lea realized it was coming hilt first, not blade. Not even thinking she brought her hands up and the sword settled in her palm with ease.

Astounded Lea gawked at her own hand. The sword was surprisingly light and felt at rest in her hand. There was a hiss from beside Lea. Slightly turning her head to hear, never taking her eyes off the sword she realized everything and everyone became very still. Finally able to remove her eyes from the silver shining extension of her arm she slowly looked around the circle. Taking in all the childrens’ faces, now staring at her with no smile. The happiness had vanished from their faces and demeanor.

None of the children moved. They seemed to be waiting. Waiting on me? Lea wondered. Lea’s heart felt as it would bang out of her chest at any moment and her mouth dry. Lea decided this is her one chance to get everyone out of the gates, closer to home.

Lea grabbed Saria by the wrist and started moving back to the gate. And looking around said with what felt like a scream from her hoarse and dry throat, “Come. Hurry. We have to get to go. To our parents now!” And by the time she was done, she was at a dead run dragging Saria behind her.

The children finally took her lead and started to follow running behind her. They ran through the gates and as they got closer to home the spell started to wear off. It started with whimpers but then lead to cries of the younger children for they feared if they would be followed remembering where they where.

They had gone on a trip into the woods to pick and study herbs and plants only to be spelled into a sacrificial yard. But, they where on their way home now and Lea had the sword that seemed to make that possible. She would keep this sword for when the troubles return, as she didn‘t know who or what did this and it couldn’t be happy.