Morning all and welcome to the last writing prompt of the week. Are you ready? Excellent. Timers set and off we go.
I am going to need to think about this caravan but I think I know where she is going to go and will be adding a few more notes to the end of this so I don’t forget.
Friday, August 22nd: The mountains looked hazy in the distance.
The mountains looked hazy in the distance. As sweat rolled down her scalp she thought the haze made the mountains seem cooler. ‘They probably are at the summit,’ she thought.
Denaris swallowed hard, her throat dry. She reached for the canteen strung on the side of her pack. It was lighter than she liked, but there was still water inside. She unscrewed the cap and took a swig. The water was warm and oddly metallic tasting, but it provided moisture and that was what she needed. She tightened the cap, making certain no drop could escape and clipped it back on the side of the pack.
She kept the water in her mouth as long as she could before slowly letting it trickle down her troat. She looked at the haze mountains in the distance, imagining cool mountain streams and long, deep shadows from trees and rock overhangs.
She put one foot in front of another as she continued moving forward. One step at a time. Were the mountains any closer? She didn’t know. It didn’t seem like it, but it felt as though she was walking forever.
‘Surely they are somewhat closer now,’ she thought.
She felt the ache in her calves. Was that a sign the ground was sloping? She hoped so. Her thoughts circled through her head as she tried not to think about how far the mountain was. She had not planned to be out here. Not alone and not with only the supplies she could carry with her. The caravan she joined was traveling on the safe route. The accepted path. At least until the attack. She got lucky.
She had her pack with her when the attack came and managed to keep it. She was down by the spring. The last fresh water spring they would pass for some time. She wanted to take the opportunity provided by an abundance of water to at least wash off some of the dust of travel. Everyone filled their canteens and the large water jugs. The animals drank their fill and returned to the camp for the night. She lingered around the spring and when she was alone, dipped a cloth into the small pool the spring created. She didn’t strip down, but she used the cloth to wash any part of her she could reach without a full strip down and immersion in the pool.
She filled her canteen, drank her fill from the spring, bathed and had just dipped another cup of water from the pool when she heard the sounds of the fight. She slung her pack on and took the cup of water with her as she started to return to the camp. She didn’t get far and luckily the rocks hid her presence.
Not expecting an attack those in her caravan were unprepared. The fight was over quickly and the animals and the goods they carried were taken by the invaders. Only bodies were left behind. Denaris knew that the raiders would stick to the routes. She knew of an alternate route and decided it was best to take it. She found the slim path through the rocks and brush and hurried away.
That was three days ago. Since she had seen no one. The path she was on was disused and offered little shelter from the burning sun. She rested during the worst heat of the day, but that had passed. Now the evening shadows were lengthening. It brought some coolness to the air but no rest as she knew she would walk through the cool moonlight.
Ten til Midnight 