Burned and Bloodied

The start of a poor mans destiny.

Chapter 1

A sea of turning clouds as black as oil rumbled, and boomed, fierce waves of lightning pulsed out of the darkness lighting up the valley for a blink of an eye and no more. The ground still unquenched, for no rain came down just blinding beams of electricity with the message of death. Trees that man himself could not cut down exploded into smoldering embers with one touch. The embers began setting small fires through the forest scattering the creatures that reside within. The wind stoked the small fires turning them into one raging beast consuming all in its path predator and prey were one in the same to the fire.

Only a small cottage on a tiny farm was left in the valley of flames. The cottage creaked and moaned from the great gusts and came close to being struck down by the pillars of light. Other noises could be heard coming from within its thin walls. The loud cries of a woman. These were not cries of sadness but of immense pain and strife. The kind of cries only a madman could ignore and only a creature of opportunity would fallow.

Inside she lay in her bed crudely fashioned of straw and cloth, her hair dripping with sweat with child inside. Her husband sat in silence unsure what to do for the blood was gushing out far too fast for a normal birth and she had already miscarried once before. He shook his head and rocked crying and sobbing. Hours of pushing were starting to take there toll and she was growing weak and pale.

The electric spit was still spewing but wasn't effective to a forest already engulfed. The wind made the fire dance like a roaring crowd of spectators watching the cottage. The place of safety was now becoming an oven.

Back inside he had now went to his wife and held her hand. “Please don't take her from me lord!” he screamed toward the ceiling. “Please, she is my strength and my life!” He buried his face in his wife’s full belly and sobbed some more.

She turned her head and pleaded with him, “save our baby my love, you must save our baby.” Her word barely legible from exhaustion and loss of blood.

He lifted his face and squeezed her hand harder. “what shall I do my love? I am but a simple man, not a man of miracles or a healer. Just tell me!!!” She glanced at his blade on there nightstand. “No, no, no” he shook his head, “No, no, no!! I can't.” he pleaded.

Her eyes began to glaze over and she just smiled at him. “it's OK my love, I cannot feel pain anymore, only peace inside. Please just save our child before its too late.”

He let go of her hand and picked up the dagger. Laying it on her chest he leaned forward to give her one last kiss on her cold lips. He sat up and ran his hands over his face and sighed. Picking up the dagger with both hands he looked into her eye's. “God help me”. He plunged the dagger into her and cut her stomach open enough to put his hands in. Frantically he swished around for the baby. Finally grabbing a limb he pulled it out legs first, she watched with a odd sense of satisfaction and finally drifted off into eternal sleep with a smile. He fell back and cut the cord with his dagger examining the baby to see if it was moving.

It sat still and lifeless, “NOOO!!!” he screamed. “Why would you do this to me.” he wailed frantically and held the child close. “Why, Why, WHY!!!” The glow of the fire lit the inside of the house as if it were daylight and the heat was intense. He rocked back and forth inconsolable. Then just when he had abandoned all hope the baby twitched, he quickly held it up and watched it come to life. It began to cry and now for the first time all night he began to cry tears of joy. His son was alive!

Then when the worst seemed over the towering inferno became too much and the cottage began to catch on fire. He panicked and held his child close to his chest and faced him toward the ground. He froze already exhausted from his ordeal he did not know how to react emotionally. The flames grew and began to heat his back. The intense flames began to blister it and he screamed in pain. “Please don't do this to me, if not for me don't do this to my child!!”

As if his prayers were heard the skies finally opened up and a flood of water came pouring onto the Charcoal ground. The sizzling of his back could not be distinguished from the sizzling of the embers and the pain was already too intense to tell if it was over or not. Unaware that the flames had been extinguished by a legendary downpour he pleaded again. “Please stop this, I will do anything for you my lord, just let my son live!!” He began to cough from the smoke and noticed the heat had died down a lot . Dried from crying so much already he just listened to his son do the crying for the both of them. Exhausted he stayed on the ground and began to drift off holding his son tightly in his arms.

He awoke to his son still crying and the searing pain of his back, shocked that he still lived and unsure how long. Barely able to move he used every ounce of will to stand gripping his son close. The cottage lay in ruins all around him charred black. Not a wall standing, were his wife lay was no more than a pile of black remains that no one would ever be able to distinguish from rubble or organic remains. His dagger lay still intact on the floor.

He picked it up and began leaving the rubble, that's when he noticed the rubble didn't end at his cottage. All around him was a field of charred death. In a way this was relieving because the creatures in these woods would have made easy prey of him and his child, but in another he would have a hard time finding food and shelter. He would be forced to eat the charred indistinguishable bodies of the random unlucky creatures scattered over the wastes. Never quite knowing what he was eating.

No time to think about that now he thought as he stumbled exhaustively through the wreckage. The sun was out in full force and he could feel it on his exposed back . His sons crying was almost drown out just by the pain of it all. Moving was such a chore and stepping over logs and other things only made it more tedious. He had no hopes of making it but continued along anyway.

As his energy wore down more and more, feet became yards and yards became miles. His vision blurred and his lips began to crack from dehydration. In his delirium the smell of his back roasting became the smell of fresh suckling pig in the oven, and the sound of his sons cries became the beautiful sounds of a minstrel playing just for his amusement. With a sad attempt at a smile he stumbled and fell onto a log. “Well this chair seems rather comfy doesn't it.” he said cheerfully to the stump in front of him. “Now, now dear be quite your going to wake the baby.” of course the stump never spoke but in his head it was his wife and she had cooked up a hearty meal. Thank you dear, this looks lovely. He picked up a charred log and began to gnaw on it unaware it was wood. “Mmmm, your swine always tastes divine honey.” After chewing the log for a bit he put it back on the ground and yawned. I think I'm going to lay down with the boy for a bit. He picked his son back up and gave the log a kiss. Then curled up on the ground. Unable to see hear or even feel reality from the exhaustion he blissfully dozed off in the middle of nowhere “happy” and “full”.