Hymns of the Wild by Nathan Hartle

Author:Nathan Hartle [Nathan Hartle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Moon River Media LLC
Published: 2023-07-16T00:00:00+00:00

25

Shada

Somehow, Shada slept despite her pain. When she woke, the burning in her hand had faded somewhat, becoming bearable.

Her dreams had not been orderly memories like the other dreams she’d had lately. These, too, stayed with her after waking, but instead of making her mind cloudy, they clung to her like nettles. She blamed the plant’s poison.

She would have traded all her previous baths to take one now. Her throat still stung from the smoke last night. Ache piled on ache.

When she sat up, the Lady was in the room. Shada jolted forward like a catapult.

“You’re still here!” she cried.

The Lady had assumed her golden, matronly form. She knelt on the floor in front of the shrine. “Still?” she said in her familiar chorus of many voices.

“I don’t know why I said that,” Shada admitted. Nothing she said was right. “You were here while I slept, weren’t you? Or was that a dream?”

The Lady’s head snapped around to face her, twisting far enough to break a real human’s neck. “Were you listening to me?”

“I didn’t mean to. I think I overheard you in my sleep.” She remembered now. Through visions of blood-soaked vines circling her throat, she had heard an argument. It had started as begging, turned to threats, and then turned back into begging.

But the Lady was the only other person here. “Was someone yelling at you?” Shada asked.

The Lady hesitated minutely then replied with a question. “What did you dream about?”

“It was a nightmare. Poisonous vines were tearing me to pieces. My body swelled like a balloon.” Fear of it still clung to her. “There were other things too. Lots of things, all jumbled together.”

“Did you relive any more memories?” asked the Lady.

“No. I think the visions are over. Strange as this sounds, it feels like they’ve finished with me. Actually, my head hasn’t been this clear in days.”

“Let’s hope they’re not over. We must learn what we can from those visions and the memories in them.”

They hadn’t spoken about the visions since Shada had first reported hers to the Lady. Shada wondered why. “Lady, where did they come from? Did the Goddess send them?”

More hesitation. “I don’t know, child.”

That was disconcerting to hear. Shada knew the Lady was not privy to all Huire’s thoughts, but she’d hoped the Lady at least knew more than Shada did. She said, “Other people in the company are having them now. Maybe it’s this planet. It’s known to play tricks on the mind.”

The Lady’s head turned back toward the altar. “I don’t think the planet is at fault here. And the dreams don’t sound like Huire’s doing. I sense something else at work.”

“Could it be the man I saw? The one with the face that shone like crystal?”

“Perhaps.”

“Can’t you… speak to Huire about it? You’re her messenger.”

“I am Huire’s will given form. No speaking is needed.”

Shada was not sure if she should press the point. The Lady had just returned. It would be foolish to risk angering her again.

But Shada’s newfound clarity told her it was better to be frank.

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