Never In Silence (Free Edition)

1. Without Silence

        The frigid air did nothing to soothe the burning that seared her clammy skin as she convulsed, expelling what little her stomach held.

Go back.

We told you not to eat that, heh.

Reckless stupidity.

Death crowded her.

She expelled it.

Useless again.

        Slowly she planted her hands into the frost burdened soil with the chill stinging her nerves while her arms shook. Bit by bit she forced herself up, lugging her legs under her as she managed to move onto her knees with the cold still gnawing at her hands. Vomit and mud soiled her clothes again as her vision blurred, threatening to leave her while pain tore through her abdomen.

        Faced with starvation and armed with incomplete knowledge of foraging left her with a stomach full of deadly plants, however, through a stroke of luck she remembered a root that would force her to purge her stomach. She did not know how long she must endure the convulsions it produced or how much more of them she could bear.

        Her arms slipped around her stomach with her fingers digging into her sides in her desperate clutch, silently begging for the pain to stop. She was cold, hungry, and exhaustion did not broach the truth of how little energy she had.

Keep going. Don't stop.

You can't.

Death waits behind us.

You can't go back.

They plot against us. Against you.

Go back and the Unworthy will find youuuuu.

        Years had passed by without a moment of silence. Always a whispering voice at the back of her mind, and always five more to follow. She tried to live around others, but the whispering souls kept her from trusting, kept her from breathing, kept her from living, except on one occasion, but that was a fluke. She did try again though, but the voices were right. Amidst their doubting words, truths lie.

        It was nearly a month the last time. A month until the town started whispering of necromancers - of the foul acts she must commit - of the reasons that they must purge the town of her to ensure their own safety. But, that was weeks ago. She retreated to the mountains to live where the harshness was not disguised, where death was too lazy to hide, where she could see truth without agonizing over the fake smiles.

Don't eat the poison! Then you ate it.

You will survive.

This is your fault.

We told you.

You're competent.

Don't fall asleep.

        Slowly Reena released her bruising grip on her sides to grab the edges of her fur cloak, pulling it tighter around her shivering form as she laid a top her knees, rocking slightly. Her pants were soaked by mud and vomit, and her shirt was soiled as well, while her cloak - dampened by the rain - weighed heavily on her shoulders.