Shards of darkness (watty awards 2012)

The becoming of fate

All through the day Doran was kept busy. From Geuda, she was taught potion craft and cookery. She could only watch on in terror as Geuda appeared to eat a poison berry only before opening out her hand to reveal that it had not been consumed.

"Bah! The joke was wasted on you!"Geuda snorted "I s'pose it takes more than a petty carnival jest to swindle you." Doran thought that Geuda was probably attempting to make communication.

"No, I did not react as could not. My flesh is dead, devoid of emotion; no smiles, no laughter, no screams nor visible surprise... I could only react mentally and yes you did fool me. I was just slow to react in a physical sense..."

Her words seemed to have the opposite affect of making conversation and Geuda clammed up for the rest of the session, looking thoughtful. Silver came to 'relive' Geuda of her duties after an hour or so.

"Ah you are here!" Geuda grinned "Where've you been?"

"Looking for Kaa." Silver looked puzzled as ever he could, horse-formed. "With all the disruption you would have thought he would have noticed by now.."

"Oh no. He left ages ago, when the moon was still round this morning.

"What! For the love of... You didn't even think to tell me!?"

"Oh... I though you knew..." She gave a cat like grin which made it quite clear that she didn't. Silver tossed his head and let out a loud snort.

"I don't believe you! Bah! Who knows what goes on in your poxy head.

"Alright! I was leaving already...!" And with that she ran away chuckling. Darting behind stalls and people who yelled in surprise, before Silver could do anything about it, she had gone. He let out another estranged groan.

"Dekkil! That poxy little scabscrotter! Bah! Oh well, at least that would explain why 'his Madge' hasn't done anything about our little Farrez problem! Oh well! Still... how can she be so annoying?!"

Silver had filled Doran's knowledge with al the great histories of the army until Doran could hardly register any more tales of woe and adventure.

"Am I boring you?" Silver grinned.

"No, not at all. In fact I find it interesting by the way you tell the stories. I have heard many of them before, but from the mouths of the story tellers of the Horror. It is very intriguing to hear them spun in a different light..."

Like Geuda before him, Silver had gone quiet, looking thoughtful. Doran should have known he was scheming something.

Doran inwardly smiled as she remembered the day's events. It seemed that Geuda and Silver had been plotting for little tasks for Doran to complete. Errands to mingle her with the people of the army. So here she was; alone in the dark, delivering goods to the people who hated her. Surprisingly, though she was not at ease, she did not feel afraid. She had the feeling that through all the hate they showed, the people of Kaa really would get used to her and treat her like one of their own. Eventually. Either way, they would not harm her as Silver had explained it was not permitted to harm a member of the army, and that it was punishable by whipping or exile, two things that no one wished to be cast upon them.

She looked down at the list. Somehow she could not concentrate on the names of the people yet to receive their goods. The script was thin and spiky and as she squinted, the runes merged together as her dead eyes strained with anxiety Mentally, she shivered She couldn't lie to herself any longer. She wasn't scared, she was terrified, no matter how hard she tried to hide it from herself. Her body did not react to fear, as would a humans, in that her heart beat did not quicken; for it had thudded its last long ago. However, she had her own way of displaying her feelings. First, her speech would slur to the point where words would be unrecognisable, then, her eyes would start to become damp as beads of perspiration broke the surface of her other wise empty expression.