Heart Of Revege

Chapter 2;  Heart of Revenge

    Standing there silently in the charred remains, anger raging within, she calmly stared at the skyline, smoke pouring from every barn, every building, every rooftop in the distance.

   There is  hot rage and there is cold rage and today her rage was cold indeed. She took no notice of  the white ash settling on her shoulders or the carcasses lying around her feet. They had come without warning late in the night, maiming and destroying everything in sight. They came destroying HER home, HER land, killing what belonged to HER, It was HERS and they TOOK IT FROM HER! she wished she had magic, the magic that others could wield. If she had, nothing would be left. The whole world would pay for this today, she would rain down fire and lightning consuming everything before her, she would scourge the Earth! The ground would  erupt under the very feet of anyone who stood before her. Nothing would live, nothing! Her eyes flashed with ice and fire, her soul raging with a cold calm anger. She did not have magic, but she knew one thing they would die oooooohhh THEY WOULD DIE.

    She Reached down wrenching what remained of a sickle from the charred remains of a  large hairy body as memories from the night flashed before her eyes...

  She had smelled smoke. Racing out the door she dashed madly for the barn as billowing flames consumed the thatch roof.  “Fire! Felicia probably didn't put the damn lamp out!” she thought angrily while fearfully dashing towards the stall with the largest water trough. Her angry thoughts interrupted as her head was jerked backwards sending her crashing to the cobblestone floor. Unable to breath she looked up stunned. A giant hairy man shaped beast with a wolf like head snarled down at her. She knew she had only seconds to escape, unable to breath, she tried to force herself to move, but it was to late. The beast was on top of her, pinning her down, snarling and snapping, ravenous eyes glowing red, its teeth  dripping with saliva and blood. She screamed and writhed in agony as its jaws clamped down on her shoulder. Futilely she beat on the beast with her knees trying to get a limb, any limb free as its teeth began tearing at her flesh. At last after what seemed to be an eternity she slipped one hand free. With all her might she thrust her hand at his face, clawing into its eye, digging her nails deep, deep as she could into its soft flesh. With a howl it flung itself backward, she wasted no time in snatching up the nearest object.

   It was a poor choice  for a weapon a sickle with its  short handle, and small blade that was only sharp on the inward curve of the blade, but it was the first  thing she could reach. The only thing she could reach and this, this thing.. it ...had... tried ..to ..eat... HER!  Fear vanished consumed by fury, at the thought that it would DARE try to EAT HER. She snatched the sickle off the barrel and strode towards the snarling creature still attempting to nurse its eye, and drove the blade into his neck. Howling it screamed  and clawed at her arms. If she noticed, it didn’t show. She leaned in closer, staring it in the eye driving the blade deeper and deeper until they were nose to nose his howl becoming a gurgle and his limbs no more than twitched.

      The memory of that night sent a cold jolt through her body as she walked on to the next body trying to hide a shudder. “Still breathing” she sneered to herself in disgust and contempt. She bent to-......

   Suddenly she was back in the barn standing, "no,...straightening,.... straightening herself up.” She mused to herself dazed, wondering when she had begun crouching, why had she been crouching. She became vaguely aware of the blood and saliva covering her face, her arm, her shoulder, but only for a moment until screams and the smell of burning flesh  from outside began to overwhelm her senses, with a start she realized the barn was burning, near on the point of collapsing as searing heat hit her and the air thick with smoke choked her. “I have to get out!” she thought frantically spinning round and round searching for a way out. “ I must get out!”

  Suddenly she was back in the present. She Inhaled sharply as if she were back in the burning barn, as if remembering would take her back to that moment. Jade tried to stop herself from bolting back upright from her stoop. “ Stay in control, it is just a memory, focus on the task!” she snapped at herself harshly. As she reached out to slit its throat.

     Se still wasn't sure how she had gotten out. But she did not want to recall those moments ever again, she had fallen across the tool bench that much she remembered. Blindly fumbling she swept all she could feel into her arms and frantically continued fumbling along the wall feeling for a way out. Breathing became heavier at the recollection and a part of her wanted to panic inwardly, “FOCUS!” She snapped to her mind trying to banish any further memories from flooding back, from pulling her back into those moments. She calmly pulled her knife from her belt and slit the beasts jugular.

   This one had been just outside the barn when she finally managed to fumble out from its collapsing walls. Dropping to her knees she had been heaving and coughing desperately trying to fill her lungs with air. It must have thought her an easy target as it snatched her up by her hair.

    She sneered to herself recalling the look of shock in its eyes as it dropped her, staggering backwards, enormous hairy hands going to the sharp iron spar usually used for keeping the thatch roof in place but now sticking out of its throat. She hadn't stopped there either. She had driven two more through its chest before running for the tree line.

  She tried not to think of it, as she continued on, moving from corpse to corpse checking to ensure all were truly dead. She paused as she passed one with a boar's snout and tusks, “that one” she almost spat as she vehemently glared wishing, willing it to come back to life so she could kill it again and again and again. When she had come across it, it had had its snout buried in the gashed open stomach of Keres, the goat Felicia was always sneaking mints too. Devouring her, ignoring her screams of agony and helpless thrashing.

She couldn't recall much after that, how she started, when she started, she couldn't even recall when she picked up the sparhook and began moving from beast to beast. What she could recall was anger.  Not fear, fear had left her with her first breath of open air, but anger, it seethed from her even now.

  She stiffened at the sudden sound of footsteps, every muscle going rigid in place, adrenaline and rage coursing through her veins. She tightly grasped the handle of her spar hook. Ever muscle poised and on point to attack. She would be ready this time.

Reviews

[Momo]

Wow. This writing got me hooked! It pulled me in, making me feel the character's emotions from the very beginning. It is very enticing.

The idea itself is also very intriguing. I'd love to see where it goes from here.