#augustday1dwc2022

[aerdendios]

August Daily Writing Challenge Day 2 - Displaced

Continues from this story ---> HERE

The military forces had managed to keep the Scourge contained to the Ghostlands this time. They seemed without purpose: Running rampant towards anything that moved, not working together as well as he had witnessed in the past. Thank the Light. Those near the border of Eversong Woods had been evacuated to the city; he could distinctly remember passing by families carrying few belongings as they hastily fled to safety. …And the look in their eyes, he knew that look all too well: The confusion, the fear, the worry. This time wouldn’t be like the last, their people didn’t deserve to go through that again.

It was a strange feeling being the one to fight against the Scourge now when he could so vividly remember hiding and running from them before. He wasn’t alone either, every single one of his fellow soldiers had that same look of terror in their gaze. This was a shared trauma from their past, and this would not happen to them again.

Aerden didn’t sleep much during that (thankfully) short campaign. There was a vehement need for revenge that could not be realized when he was young and helpless. He could rest once that bloodlust had been sated; there was no need for mercy here and there were times during battle he didn’t even recognize himself. It felt…good.

This was for all the elves lost or displaced in the first Scourge invasion, but mostly this was for himself. For that little boy that hid inside of a dumpster and watched in horror as his friend was torn apart with a gurgling scream all while staring right at him. For that little boy that ran barefoot through the blood-soaked and soot-covered streets, unable to recognize where he was within the city due to all the destruction caused. For that little boy that witnessed so much death that day, things that would scar him for life. For that little boy that had lost all of his friends and all of his extended family within the span of a few hours, only to be called a coward by his ‘father’ later when they were unfortunately reunited. 

He had so much pent up anger and pain that he didn’t realize was festering beneath the surface until he began slicing his way through the Scourge. Hours felt like minutes out there and eventually someone had to physically pull him away to make him rest. He never felt as if he needed it, he just wanted to keep going. A mindless killing machine, the irony.

By the end, it was all a giant blur and he could barely remember any of it. The only feeling that remained as he walked through his apartment door and collapsed on his bed was emptiness. But maybe that was for the best.

@daily-writing-challenge​

[theconstructsworld]

August Daily Writing Challenge Day 1 - Darkness

The Construct gazed out over the ragged landscape and the sweeping darkness of The Maw, fingertips idly tracing the delicate ridges of the soulkeeper crystal he had acquired nearly a year ago. One year was nothing but a speck of dust for one such as ‘C’, yet he had learned so much from this place and the inhabitants, explorers, and even the banished within.

It was here he was met with a Crossroads of sorts, and it was there he still stood with infinite pathways from which to choose - yet he found it difficult to stray from what had already been chosen for him. Chosen for him. Was the feeling of free will just a farce all along? Was he made to choose only this path or did he fully believe in the cause? He wasn’t so certain anymore and his recent conversations had only muddied his thoughts.

“Why do you obey and follow him so blindly?”  The feminine voice broke the comfortable silence.

“You are one to speak on having loyal subjects obey blindly.” It was meant to be a tease, yet was delivered more harshly than intended unbeknownst to himself. “This is the reason for my…being. It is my purpose”

“It is dangerous to confuse what you are made to do and what you choose to do. Perhaps you should look inside of yourself more closely and decide if this is your purpose, your life’s path, or someone else’s.”

Her words faded from his thoughts as he clutched the crystal tighter. It was a peculiar ‘acquaintanceship’ the two had formed, especially since his presence directly impeded her penance. Yet she never tried to stop him, at least not physically. 

Free will had often been the topic of their brief conversations. It had been weighing on his thoughts for a long time. After being a part of this world and walking among its people for nearly a decade now, The Construct had often found himself questioning everything that had been already present within his mind - and his Master wasn’t always there to remind him of their path. With their presence growing and ever-expanding, C was alone more often than not.

With a fervent expression, he made his way to the portal, through Oribos, and into the Arbiter’s chamber. Unfurling his grip from the soulkeeper crystal, he raised his hand in offering. “I present these souls for your judgement.” There was a wave of euphoria in his defiance, or perhaps over the anticipation of his inevitable chastening. It wouldn’t be the first time he had rebelled for attention. Anyways, he had already retrieved many a soul for Gaebral, perhaps it would provoke a different feeling to do something unexpected.

@gaebral​ @daily-writing-challenge