quiet | panya & illias
illiasrivers:
δύσμορος (dusmoros) ill-fated | for inspiration, listen here Beasts have pushed forward — the free folk are no longer safe, even on the outskirts of the city. Chance brought Panya (@panya-irvine) here; family kept Illias here. The pair come across each other and hear something neither expected: a deep, guttural noise that is like nothing natural in the woods. Between the trees, they glimpse something even more terrifying: a bull-like creature with horrific horns that smells them on the air.
There was no escaping the Keep, of that he was becoming certain. Every time he finally found himself clear of its borders, he was forced back inside. He wanted to mutter a hundred curses, but at least he was not alone this time around. At least there were no kings holding threats over their heads — at least, that was what he told himself.
He wandered the edges of civilization in the hopes he would see something that would lead them far from here. The free folk had never allowed themselves to be trapped before, why would this prove any differently? Beasts approached them sometimes in the wilds, and beasts were sometimes killed as a result of it. Still, his people lived. There was nothing else to do. He gripped his spear, looking among the trees, when he heard the snap of a twig. Someone with light feet.
She was only a short distance away and had caught sight of him as well. No words left the pair; they were animals passing by, no more. It would have remained that way, if he did not catch a glimpse of deep brown lumbering in the distance — a creature larger than any he had seen before. It was not the color alone that captured his attention. Fuck. Even from such a ways away, he could see brilliant, curved horns jutting from its head. Fuck, They caught on trees, and when the beast moved, the branches broke beneath the pressure. Fuck!
He mouthed a single phrase to the woman: “Follow me.”
She cursed herself for deciding that today was the day she’d venture into the woods to hunt some fowl for dinner. There was hardly any meat being sold on the market and she and Cason had been struggling more and more with finding food to eat. Panya honestly hadn’t believed that there was any such thing as beasts guarding the city –––– thought it was just some rabid animal pack hunting. But now that she was stuck standing still, caught between a wildling and that horned creature, she couldn’t exactly deny its existence.
Her heart hammered in her chest as she glanced to her left. It was sniffing the air, as if still trying to pinpoint the source of human scent. Then her eyes flickered to the man not far from where she stood frozen in place. Perhaps it was stupid... or blind. She knew that probably wasn’t the case, but hoped it wasn’t very fast on top of being at least twice their size.
Panya took a tentative step forward, pausing to gauge the creature’s reaction. She was still okay –––––––– hadn’t stepped on any twigs to alert it. Another step and another... and soon she was right behind the stranger who apparently had some sort of a plan to escape.
