The District Search (Shrimp, Rosetta, OPEN!)
Dec 7, 2010 18:11:05 GMT -5
Post by Rosetta on Dec 7, 2010 18:11:05 GMT -5
Ariadne felt the pain subside, and she could hear words...words floating all over her. Greg was doing something...something that stung, and made her gasp, and then subsided...into nothing.
She raised her head a little to see, and through the darkness, she saw the huddled form of Greg. He was wrapping bandages around her arm, which now felt numb and limp. How was she supposed to defend herself if she couldn't even move her arm? The bandages tightened, and the word came to her, easily.
Tourniquet. That was good. That stopped blood from gushing freely from serious wounds...It could make the difference between life and death. If done right, you could save a life. Asimila had taught her that.
She had been walking through the forest, trekking lightly over snow. It had fallen in the night, landing gently outside the tent, and clothing the ground in a white blanket. Trees had been weighed down by the snow, and an occasional plop would sound as a pile fell down from branches. Asimila had let her out, just to go for a walk, and stretch her legs.
"Don't go far." She'd warned, huddled in several blankets, her dark face peeking out at her. "Only to the edge of the woods."
Of course, she hadn't listened, and had gone past the outskirts of the trees, into the misty forest. The afternoon sun attempted to shine behind the gray clouds, but was soon lost behind the tall pine trees. The snow got into her boots, and freezed her toes, but Ariadne kept at it, her breath visible in small puffs. She had seen tracks in the snow, and growing up in the forest had taught her they were wolf tracks. She was young, 11, and naive. She should've known better, but instead, she followed the tracks into a clearing, curiously.
There, she'd stopped, in a deafening silence, gazing up at the towering pine tree. It was so nice, a soft flurry drifting down and kissing her nose. She felt at ease. Suddenly, the calm atmosphere was broken by a low growl, and she'd turned to see the wolf she'd been tracking, a handsome alpha, large, and gray, his fur matted with the blood of his meal. He growled again, defending his territory.
She'd tried to back up, holding up her hands in surrender, but her movement had been too quick and sudden. He had lurched forward, his large snout clamping around her leg, sharp teeth digging into her calf. Her scream sent birds in the trees into the air, but it was nothing compared to the cry that went out, moments after.
The wolf released her, to see what was the commotion, but Asimila's javelin landed in his side, and with a small whimper, he'd fallen, dead. Ariadne fell too, overcome with the fire-like pain in her leg, and Asimila instantly ran to her side, pulling fabric from her bag.
She wasn't even angry, no shouting, no sharp words. She just wrapped the wound, with meticulous hands. "A tourniquet." She told her, helping her to her feet, one arm around Ariadne's waist, the other yanking the javelin from the hairy beast. "You weren't bleeding too hard, you'll be able to walk in a few days, but if I'd waited longer, and he'd held on..." She shuddered. "It'll stop your bleeding, quick, and efficient, just until you can get some proper treatment. Remember that next time you plan on following wolves."
And with that, Asimila lead her back to camp, with a new life lesson. Ariadne now looked at her wound, biting her lip. It wasn't as tight as it should be, but perhaps that was good, she wouldn't lose her arm...right?
With a pang in her stomach, she realized Greg had wandered off, and she was left in the darkness. The fear had taken hold now, as tightly as the wolf, clamping down on her. She was alone...
Her survival skills kicked in, and raising herself up with one arm, she felt around the gravel, frantically, for her javelin, finally finding the cool metal, a couple of yards away. Using it to help her, she managed to make it to her feet, stumbling slightly. Her head had cleared up considerably, but she still felt as though the floor was tipping.
Taking a deep breath, she squinted into the silent black night. "Greg?" She whispered. Then came the noise, the sound of running footsteps, loud and awkward. Only Greg could make that kind of sound.
She was right, as she saw his figure appear out of the darkness, and in an instant, she knew he was in trouble. Her bad arm instantly moved towards her back pocket, to feel the blanket still there, but that simple movement sent pain up her arm. Gritting her teeth, she muttered. "We need to move, don't we?"
Without waiting for his reply, her good hand tightened around her javelin. "This way."
A dark alley was to her right, stretching into the unknown. It could either lead to a dead-end or safety. There was no way of knowing. But, it had to be safer than the open street, so she ran down it, into the suffocating darkness that enclosed them.
She raised her head a little to see, and through the darkness, she saw the huddled form of Greg. He was wrapping bandages around her arm, which now felt numb and limp. How was she supposed to defend herself if she couldn't even move her arm? The bandages tightened, and the word came to her, easily.
Tourniquet. That was good. That stopped blood from gushing freely from serious wounds...It could make the difference between life and death. If done right, you could save a life. Asimila had taught her that.
She had been walking through the forest, trekking lightly over snow. It had fallen in the night, landing gently outside the tent, and clothing the ground in a white blanket. Trees had been weighed down by the snow, and an occasional plop would sound as a pile fell down from branches. Asimila had let her out, just to go for a walk, and stretch her legs.
"Don't go far." She'd warned, huddled in several blankets, her dark face peeking out at her. "Only to the edge of the woods."
Of course, she hadn't listened, and had gone past the outskirts of the trees, into the misty forest. The afternoon sun attempted to shine behind the gray clouds, but was soon lost behind the tall pine trees. The snow got into her boots, and freezed her toes, but Ariadne kept at it, her breath visible in small puffs. She had seen tracks in the snow, and growing up in the forest had taught her they were wolf tracks. She was young, 11, and naive. She should've known better, but instead, she followed the tracks into a clearing, curiously.
There, she'd stopped, in a deafening silence, gazing up at the towering pine tree. It was so nice, a soft flurry drifting down and kissing her nose. She felt at ease. Suddenly, the calm atmosphere was broken by a low growl, and she'd turned to see the wolf she'd been tracking, a handsome alpha, large, and gray, his fur matted with the blood of his meal. He growled again, defending his territory.
She'd tried to back up, holding up her hands in surrender, but her movement had been too quick and sudden. He had lurched forward, his large snout clamping around her leg, sharp teeth digging into her calf. Her scream sent birds in the trees into the air, but it was nothing compared to the cry that went out, moments after.
The wolf released her, to see what was the commotion, but Asimila's javelin landed in his side, and with a small whimper, he'd fallen, dead. Ariadne fell too, overcome with the fire-like pain in her leg, and Asimila instantly ran to her side, pulling fabric from her bag.
She wasn't even angry, no shouting, no sharp words. She just wrapped the wound, with meticulous hands. "A tourniquet." She told her, helping her to her feet, one arm around Ariadne's waist, the other yanking the javelin from the hairy beast. "You weren't bleeding too hard, you'll be able to walk in a few days, but if I'd waited longer, and he'd held on..." She shuddered. "It'll stop your bleeding, quick, and efficient, just until you can get some proper treatment. Remember that next time you plan on following wolves."
And with that, Asimila lead her back to camp, with a new life lesson. Ariadne now looked at her wound, biting her lip. It wasn't as tight as it should be, but perhaps that was good, she wouldn't lose her arm...right?
With a pang in her stomach, she realized Greg had wandered off, and she was left in the darkness. The fear had taken hold now, as tightly as the wolf, clamping down on her. She was alone...
Her survival skills kicked in, and raising herself up with one arm, she felt around the gravel, frantically, for her javelin, finally finding the cool metal, a couple of yards away. Using it to help her, she managed to make it to her feet, stumbling slightly. Her head had cleared up considerably, but she still felt as though the floor was tipping.
Taking a deep breath, she squinted into the silent black night. "Greg?" She whispered. Then came the noise, the sound of running footsteps, loud and awkward. Only Greg could make that kind of sound.
She was right, as she saw his figure appear out of the darkness, and in an instant, she knew he was in trouble. Her bad arm instantly moved towards her back pocket, to feel the blanket still there, but that simple movement sent pain up her arm. Gritting her teeth, she muttered. "We need to move, don't we?"
Without waiting for his reply, her good hand tightened around her javelin. "This way."
A dark alley was to her right, stretching into the unknown. It could either lead to a dead-end or safety. There was no way of knowing. But, it had to be safer than the open street, so she ran down it, into the suffocating darkness that enclosed them.
