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Returning
by A.F. Stewart
Aka knew she would soon be tested, for the change of seasons was fast approaching.
Turning her head, she glanced at the lofty Temple of Bones, her home for as long as she could remember. The grand, sprawling structure towered over the bucolic countryside, looming from its hilltop, a fierce guardian for the people. Studying the impressive walls, she stared into the hollow eyes of its exterior skulls and shivered, yet took macabre comfort in their existence; her fallen sisters grinning defiance at the world and extinction.
Aka wonderful if this would be her fate in the coming days. One more brief life standing an enduring guard for eternity. Her answer would come shortly.
Such was the life of a Warrior Daughter of the Moon.
The summer waned, and the moon goddess painted the trees red with her blood, her warning for the Ascension. The gentle heat of the sun god faded with each day, swirling into the shadows of the moon and the chill of the bitter winter goddess.
Aka, and the other Daughters of the Temple, prepared.
With each cool breeze, the Ascension drew closer. The new acolytes prayed for the favour of the moon goddess, the veterans offered gifts for her continued loyalty. All sharpened their weapons and their battle skills.
Aka prayed for blessings and courage.
She prayed to fight with honour and survive.
And she waited. For the first crimson leaf to drift to earth…
Crisp morning air slapped her face as the battle horn sounded, as she and her sisters raced from the temple. They ran, legs pounding, dust rising, under grey skies, the smell of smoke and sulphur choking the air. Side by side they sped, weapons raised, honed into battle sisters, an armoured shield of protection.
They ran to their destiny.
They ran to fight the Ascension.
Formations locked as the first wave of demons rose from beneath the dirt. Steel blades met claws, shields met fiery breath and teeth. Resonant life teetered on the edge of moonkissed death as both demon and daughter clashed, fluid and blood arcing through the morning air, spattering the world.
Aka surged to the front line.
First blood, the first demon death, was hers.
Her heart sang, her limbs strengthened. Her blade slashed. Stroke after stroke, as the Daughters pushed back the demons.
She knew.
The goddess favoured her…
At the end of their victorious conflict, Aka wiped a smear of blood from her face, and walked among the bodies, demon and Daughter alike. Another year holding back the hoard, another year of peace for their people. As her feet slowed, as she neared the edge of the battlefield, she bowed her head in prayer for her fallen sisters. More skulls would adorn the walls.
But not hers. Not this year.
Her day on the wall would wait.
.
Fiction © Copyright A.F. Stewart
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com
More from A.F. Stewart:
Visions and Nightmares
Tragedy spares no one… and takes no prisoners.
In the twilight shadows, secrets are revealed past the whispers of madness.
Wander into the realm of the old gods with Elenora, where humanity and marriage are a prison.
Step through a looking glass of dark horrors with an Alice you never knew.
Join with Zenna to seek the truth as her death by magic grows closer.
Journey with Olivia as she crosses paths with a monster of the forest and runs for her life.
Watch Isobel summon the faerie to solve her problem of an unwanted husband.
Shiver as Doctor Killbride experiments with corpses to create life from death.
All that and more await within the pages.
Ten stories. Ten women.
Who will survive? Who will fall? And who will succumb to their inner evil?
Find out in Visions and Nightmares.
Warning: This book contains disturbing scenes that may be upsetting to some readers.
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