Sarkata (On Hiatus)

Chapter 14: Nina

Erok had left to find food and Nina sat alone with dried tears tightening the skin on her face. The fire was warm still and the ring glistened in the fire's light. She swallowed her saliva harshly and tried to ignore the creature, but how do you ignore something that has turned your hand black and is sucking away at your soul like a baby to a nipple? Nina decided to lie down. The ground beneath her was cold and itchy. The little gravelly stones pierced her skin and she soothingly rubbed the back of an arm that was exposed to the rock hard treatment, dusting the latched sand off of her skin. She stared up at the ceiling of the cave, falling into a trance. Hunger, tire, fear, and anger rubbed her mind and she slipped into sleep to escape it all.

Nina was in a forest. The foliage was thick, and birds and other animals called out to each other as the ecosystem sang of life. She looked down at herself. Nina was wearing a dusty red gown with gold embroidered trims on the trumpet sleeves and boarder of the skirt. She was running fast in soft brown leather slippers. A smile was plastered on her face as she ran merrily through the woods, her side fringes flowing back with her ponytail. The scents of the flowers passed through her using her nostrils and it elevated her feeling of happiness. Blues, pinks, greens, all colors you could imagine whirled past her. The person had no longer been calling her name, it was either that or she was long ahead of them.

She stopped to catch her breath and bent over, resting her hands on her knees in a slumped position. When her breathing was leveled she looked up and knew where she was. If she went just through that foliage then there would be a water spring. Nina made her way through the bushes and branches.

There, a couple feet away from her, was a water spring. A waterfall cascaded down a rocky white, granite cliff and into a pool of itself at the bottom. Nina's smile widened as she made her way over there, shedding her shoes and dress by the time she reached it. Now that she was adorned in a pair of panties, the young elven woman sat on the edge of the spring. The water was deep, but not too deep, making it the perfect pale orange color. She dipped her feet in and sighed contently. The cool water engulfed her feet and her eyes slid closed. Nina pushed her legs into the water until they were knee deep, then she leaned back on her supportive arms.

She let out another content sigh as the cool water lapped at her tired legs. There was a party in the town square for her friend Evanara whom was getting married. Nina smiled at the thought, her friend deserved it. They had known each other since they were born, and upon thinking of the groom she approved of his marriage with her beloved friend. Although she was her best friend, Nina never really was a party person. Suddenly her feet were tickled and she let out a soft giggle before twisting her feet around in the water. Nina looked down and could see tiny tracks of whirls in the water. Instantly she knew that what she was witnessing was the swimming activities of rrories. She leaned over and looked closer into the faint orange crystalness of the water. While making sure to be soft, silent and careful, Nina dipped her hands into the water and held them there in a cupped stature. Her black nails were a dark contrast in the water and appeared matte. Then she began to feel and see the whirring of moving water above her hands, quickly she pulled her hands up. When she lifted her hands a pile of shiny jelly objects were in her hands. Rrories were clear and tear drop shaped. They could not eat because they did not have a mouth. To move in water, they spun rapidly and pushed themselves around. The tiny creatures were an excellent source of protein and water however and Nina relished their natural purpose as she threw them in her mouth and savored their jelly-like texture and watery taste. Content she leaned back on her arms once again and stared at the sky.

A row of stars was visible in the light orange sky above her at a slightly high line of vision. There were about five of them and they were artificial. As of a few decades now the Dunni men and women were fighting and separating. The Dunni were the Fennerb species that were not elven. The artificial stars in the sky were of their making. It was a belt that was going to be built around Fennerb to protect it from the men who would inhabit another planet and other beings not of this world. There was even talk that the Dunni women would rename the planet Sarkata after the Goddess, yet the elves collectively agreed to continue calling the planet Fennerb. The elves were strictly against the war between the Dunni men and women; in their eyes it was pointless, unnecessary, tedious... Nina could make a long list of the things wrong with it and the consequences that would follow but her train of thoughts were interrupted when she heard a loud drum sound.