A short bit of story.
Sep. 3rd, 2009 12:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kippurbirdTitle Prayer
Series Alternates (Ten Alternative Shorts)
Character(s) Marlina
Notes Number five out of ten shorts.
Prayer
There are no priests to Tangar left. At least not here at the ruins of Pentarch. They were all element wizards and now they are all dead. The great temple, home of the Oracle and priests is nothing much but melted stone. So, I do the next best thing: I build a traveler's shrine. I make it away from the camp of refugees, of those people who are now homeless because of the destruction caused by an element wizard. I don't want to remind them of my existence, of what caused them this misery of being homeless and hungry and hurt.
It's easy to build the shrine. I take flat stones and layer them on top of each other to create a curving pyramid. The stones are from the rubble of the city. Even a mile away there is still debris around. I wonder how far out it goes, but I haven't bothered to look. Placing each of the twenty four stones needed, I whisper the words, "Tangar, please hear me. Tangar please heed me."
"Stones for earth."
On top of the pyramid I light a small flame. It flickers blue for just a moment as I blend it into the song of earth. It goes from a flickering alto to that of a steadier rhythm, almost still and frozen. Only if you look hard enough, or listen closely can you hear it moving.
"Fire for the sun."
"Earth and Sun, the father and mother of the world. Father and mother of Tangar."
I have a glass bowl, a cup really, which I nestle into the curving arms of the pyramid. One of the healers was kind enough to give me purified water, just enough to fill the bowl. My finger runs around the outside of the bowl, feeling the smooth edges. Focusing only on what I have to do is comforting, it lets me disavow what has happened.
"Water for the womb."
Some people have a special knife, made just for this ceremony, but any knife will do. I don't use a special one. It is one more thing I have to carry. The knife just has to cut. Taking a deep breath, I draw the blade across my palm and let the blood drop into the water until it's tinged pink. I'll go to a healer later, for now a swath of cloth will do to cover the wound.
"Blood for life."
The shrine is done and prayer can begin. I'm not sure what I need to pray for, I just know I need to ask for some help, some guidance. The days and weeks ahead will be a test of faith, I know. So, for now, I shall reaffirm it.
Series Alternates (Ten Alternative Shorts)
Character(s) Marlina
Notes Number five out of ten shorts.
Prayer
There are no priests to Tangar left. At least not here at the ruins of Pentarch. They were all element wizards and now they are all dead. The great temple, home of the Oracle and priests is nothing much but melted stone. So, I do the next best thing: I build a traveler's shrine. I make it away from the camp of refugees, of those people who are now homeless because of the destruction caused by an element wizard. I don't want to remind them of my existence, of what caused them this misery of being homeless and hungry and hurt.
It's easy to build the shrine. I take flat stones and layer them on top of each other to create a curving pyramid. The stones are from the rubble of the city. Even a mile away there is still debris around. I wonder how far out it goes, but I haven't bothered to look. Placing each of the twenty four stones needed, I whisper the words, "Tangar, please hear me. Tangar please heed me."
"Stones for earth."
On top of the pyramid I light a small flame. It flickers blue for just a moment as I blend it into the song of earth. It goes from a flickering alto to that of a steadier rhythm, almost still and frozen. Only if you look hard enough, or listen closely can you hear it moving.
"Fire for the sun."
"Earth and Sun, the father and mother of the world. Father and mother of Tangar."
I have a glass bowl, a cup really, which I nestle into the curving arms of the pyramid. One of the healers was kind enough to give me purified water, just enough to fill the bowl. My finger runs around the outside of the bowl, feeling the smooth edges. Focusing only on what I have to do is comforting, it lets me disavow what has happened.
"Water for the womb."
Some people have a special knife, made just for this ceremony, but any knife will do. I don't use a special one. It is one more thing I have to carry. The knife just has to cut. Taking a deep breath, I draw the blade across my palm and let the blood drop into the water until it's tinged pink. I'll go to a healer later, for now a swath of cloth will do to cover the wound.
"Blood for life."
The shrine is done and prayer can begin. I'm not sure what I need to pray for, I just know I need to ask for some help, some guidance. The days and weeks ahead will be a test of faith, I know. So, for now, I shall reaffirm it.
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Date: 2009-09-04 07:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-09-08 03:50 pm (UTC)