The Explosion

[Lani Stranger]

54th of Winter 518AV

The loud voices interrupted most of the morning diners. Lani was on her way to the enclave as per usual and had not get gotten herself out a sleepy stupor that overcame her ability to think straight in Nari, and so she let their voices carry over the usual sounds of the morning dining hall, paying no mind to whatever argument was capturing the attention of these Inarta. But it wasn’t until a ceramic something came flying over her head and slammed into the wall that she turned to pay attention. Anger spiked in her chest as she turned to yell at whomever through the thing that narrowly missed her when she realized what she was looking at.

In the early mornings Lani liked to grab the nearest seat she could find after grabbing her food, which placed her rather close to the entrance of the kitchens and the food. It was close enough that the things getting thrown with anger were reaching even her. Her own anger dissipated in her throat as she recognized the superior quality Vinati of two Endal. Even with her practice in the language, she could not understand a lick of their sharp and angered Nari as the trilled insults at one another, or tried to make a point for their side, it was hard to tell. She was sure everyone else that was watching the scene could tell what the fight was about but the Chiet began looking for clues. She could see a Dek in the center, an older man with white streaks coming through his balding reddish blonde hair. He was missing his left arm, and with his right arm and the left stump he cradled a very small, very thin looking buck. There were puncture wounds of where it had been shot, once in the front of the chest, twice in the rear. The three shots looks to be coming from two different angles, although their arrows had been removed so she couldn’t tell for sure. The deer had also been bled out for it was stiff with death in the Dek’s arm.

One Endal, the woman, reached for the deer, tugging at its torso pointing at the puncture wound in its chest and shouting at the other Endal, the man, who grabbed at the deer’s legs, countering her with sharp Nari while prodding the two wounds in the deer’s hind leg. The one armed man would have had trouble holding the thing as was, without the two Endal pulling at it, and it threw him off his balance, which only seemed to anger them more. It was then that Lani realized they were likely arguing over who could take credit for the death of the thing. Regardless, it was a pitiful kill,that surely even the expert hunters would be ashamed of. Why not just let the other take credit?

Honor. Lani reminded herself, forgetting how much it mattered to these strange red-haired humans. They wanted to provide for their people, and in times like these, it would be a great insult to try and take responsibility for something that wasn’t yours. And each thought it was theirs. As Lani was finally digesting what the argument was about, the woman reached forward and backhanded the man across the face. The foreigner couldn’t help a gasp at the insulting strike, and the Inarta surrounding her did so as well. Immediately the man was in action, reaching for the woman with both hands to strangle her.

But she was far too quick for him, and jabbed him in the ribs with a single quick punch, letting go of her end of the deer as well. The Dek that was struggling with the weight of the pitiful kill took a step back, his back falling against a wall, and no one seemed to want to interrupt the fight that was ensuing. Lani was still in shock enough that she did not look around to see why no one approached.

[Lani Stranger]

The man lost his wind for merely a tick before he lunged for her again, this time smarter. He hooked a foot out and caught it behind her knee pulling her forward, the woman was trying to fend off his reach so she did not see the trick, and fell to her back instantly. He bore down on her, much larger than her figure, but he was only able to get one hand around her neck. The other she caught in her mouth and Lani cringed at the scream of agony that he emitted as she bit down. Blood immediately welled around the finger that he might have lost to her jaws, and Lani knew she didn’t need to understand Nari to understand the pain of that move. But it worked in the woman’s favor because he released her neck with his other hand, and the smaller Endal was quick to scoot herself further into the man, wrapping her legs around his torso and torqueing her body away, drilling them both into the Dek that helplessly watched, holding the trophy they fought over.

Lani wondered why he didn’t move and then she realized he was trapped, and did not dare step over the wrestling couple to escape, and so he cowered against the stone wall, a dead buck as his only shield, not even a spare arm to cover his face.

But the Endals did not notice him. Apparently the woman had unleashed a greater battle between them and when the man regained his posture he pulled his large Talon Sword from his hilt, raising it to the woman in warning. She was too angry or too prideful to yield to the obvious threat, and while she merely had daggers, she hopped on her feet, pulling the two short blades from her hilt, as if it would fend off such a large sword. Surely this woman was confident in her skill and her claim to the buck, and not mad with rage to think she could fight him with only daggers? Lani hoped for sense for these two as she watched, and it was then that it occurred to her that no one was stopping them.

No wind eagles came to the dining hall, and so they would not stop their Endal, and as Lani looked around she saw only the faces of Chiet and Avora. Castes that were too low to safely end the fight, even if they had the fighting skill to do so, the repercussions for such a move would be dangerous in itself. But any who could overwhelm these Endal with force were other Endal, none of which seemed to be present.

Lani heard the scream of an attack her black eyes were immediately glued back on the fight, watching for what had caused the rage or agony that she had heard. The woman had slashed at the man first, and Lani saw the slash of red that welled on his forearm. It would hurt like hell, but the bone there would have saved him, still he was forced to switch his blade to his other hand, and now the woman had an advantage. He was not right handed. Lani watched as the quick Endal went low, slashing at his knees again. He was able to fend her off, slashing down with his sword, but she was quick enough to avoid his much larger blade. They were circling down, in close quarters, still screaming at one another in enraged Nari that Lani did not understand. She wondered if they even remembered the point of their argument or if they were simply hurling insults at one another now. It was clear that the woman was more skilled than him, and it was possible for him to succeeded, but the foreigner feared someone would die in this skirmish.

But as they circled, the Dek seemed to see his chance to escape. He dropped the buck and prepared to dart towards the opening, but the dropping of the trophy that they fought over seemed to draw their attention. The woman straightened, forgetting her opponent, and reached an arm out to throat-check the running man. Her forearm collided with his esophagus with such force that he immediately dropped to the ground, curling in on himself to spew out stomach acid and water, all that seemed to occupy his stomach at the moment. Lani gasped, and very few other people did. The onlookers seemed less shocked to see violence towards this innocent Dek than to another Endal who had half the responsibility for the fight.

[Lani Stranger]

The female Endal was screaming some direction at the Dek in Nari, pointing at the deer with her other dagger, and it was then that the male Endal took his chance to best her in the fight. He raised his sword and took two steps forward, likely aiming to take the woman’s extended arm off with the move. Horrified, Lani covered her eyes, and turned away as soon as she registered what he man was doing. She heard the sickening crack of metal on bone and worried to what the scene she had turned away from was. Unable to stop herself from looking she peeked around again, and found that the Endal had all of her arms. She was using them to strangle the male Endal in a headlock, her daggers forgotten as she now focused on subduing the larger but less skilled man. He thrashed and managed to reach up, pulling her head back by her hair to release himself of her. The hand that she had bit the finger off of sprayed blood across the watching crowd as he reached back for her, and Lani watched the man yank the smaller woman off of him like a rag doll.

The female Endal clearly had skill on the man, but there was only so much one could do against brute force. She fell to the ground, and Lani saw her scoop her daggers once again, and realized he no longer had his sword. He came down on her anyway, attempting to strangle her once again, and she reached up with her dagger and slashed at the inside of his bicep. The flesh parted with ease, and he screamed in agony, almost unrecognizable among the other agonizing screams that filled the room. His arm went limp and he tried to cradle it. Unfinished with her works, she slashed forward again, opening a wound on his chest twice before finding her feet and standing over him. He was effectively out of commission, unable to fight any longer with one arm threatening to bleed out, the other one missing a finger and with cuts up his arms and chest.

It was then that Lani realized someone was making their way through the crowd. Two more Endal parted the sea of Avora, Chiet, and Yasi who watched the fight, and immediately one took the woman’s arms away from her, pinning them behind her back. She did not fight the control of her fellow Endal, but craned her neck forward to spit on the other downed Endal. Immediately two Chiet parted from the crowd and helped the last Endal help the wounded one up. It was then that Lani realized the screams were not over.

The slashes on the man and the missing finger were not enough to create the amount of blood that now pooled on the floor of the communal Kitchens, and Lani’s eyes were dragged to the Dek who lay where he had been hit down, and she located the Endal’s talon sword. The woman must have evaded his slash somehow, and since she had been standing over the Dek, the one armed Inarta had received the blow. It was not pretty, and the sword had come across his face, which he now clutched in agony. No one approached him, and Lani didn’t think straight as she realized that he was alone.

”Oh my Gods. Gods. Gods no.” She shrieked, leaping forward, her bare feet marking through the pools of blood that seemed to seep from his face and neck. Unable to help herself, she stooped beside him, her hands over his as if to help put pressure on the wound. He cried and shrieked and when he felt the half-Chaktawe’s touch he removed his hands from his wound and looked up at her with the remaining eye. It was clear his skin was tanned and weathered with age and hard labor, but in this moment, he looked like a child, innocent and in pain. A single bloodshot blue eye looked up at her as if she was his savior, and Lani immediately felt her stomach sink. She was no his savior.

[Lani Stranger]

When he removed his hands, his skin flapped backwards, peeling off his face near his eye and down his cheek and neck. She could clearly see the clean cut muscle and shattered bone beneath his skin, and the mess where his eye used to be. It was surprisingly not bloody for such a horrific wound, and she guessed there was not large enough circulation in the face to cause such a pool as she was seeing. Instinctualy she reached for the flap of skin, plastering it onto his face where it should go and pressing down. Apply pressure, which was all she knew.

Her medical knowledge extended to minor cuts and bruises, and maybe colds. Nothing in her life had prepared her for something like this. And as she held the skin back into its place she realized where the blood was coming from. The dark red liquid still pumped from his neck, where the artery had been slashed along with the skin and now leaked his life force out onto the ground.

”You’re going to be okay, you’re going to be okay.” She began shouting at the man in common as soon as she realized his fate. She was not a hunter but she had seen enough death to know that there was a certain amount of blood loss that you just didn’t come back from, and right now she had no doubt the man was meeting Dira as she spoke to him. He moved his jaw as if he was trying to speak and it pulled at his wound in odd ways that made his skin slip under her hands, and she lapsed into silence, desperately trying to place his skin back in place. If she hadn’t understood the screaming Nari during the argument, she had no hope of understanding this man now.

Her whole world was consumed with this dying Dek that she could do nothing for but hold together. He was thrashing and weakening now as his violent death took him, and all that Lani could do was pull him into her lap and cradle his stump and shoulders between her, still keeping one hand on his face, holding him together. His working hand grasped at her waist, and she wondered in silence if he was reaching for her or if they were the spasms of the dying and involuntary on this stranger’s part. He was dying a horrible gruesome death for no reason, and she could do nothing at all to help him or ease his suffering.

It seemed an eternity, but it must have only been a few chimes before he stilled. The rate with which blood rushed from his neck had slowed to near nothing, and while he was still warm in her hands, he was entirely limp. A soft hand prodded her shoulder and she looked up to see a red haired human trying for her attention. The fire-kissed woman spoke to her and Lani did not understand the strange language coming from her words. When the human repeated herself, the mixed blood was able to drag her shock away long enough to understand the Nari. ”He is dead.”

She hadn’t actually practiced the word for death, but she knew what the woman meant and recognized the word for its true meaning in an instant. He was dead. He was gone, in a horrible gruesome manor, and she had been unable to do anything for him. She straightened up, still clinging to the body that rested on her, and looked around. The crowd had mostly dispersed, not caring for the death of a Drudge. She was the only one who had such a reaction to his death. Even this Chiet woman who grasped the Endal’s sword and seemed in charge of directing the immediate clean-up of such an event, seemed saddened but not drawn to shock and horror nearly as much as Lani had been. She realized the overreaction she had had to the Dek’s death, and then frowned. What was wrong with these people and their damned caste system that no one was shocked or horrified at such a gruesome death? Even for a Dek? Sure they were likely surprised and disappointed, but no one was crying or staying around to mourn him, they were somberly continuing on with their day. And the few Chiet and Dek who stayed behind were already helping clean.

[Lani Stranger]

It was then that she realized it had not been a few ticks or even a few chimes since the fight. But she had sat and cradled this man long enough for them to have mopped up most of the blood. The crowd hadn’t dispersed quickly, but over the course of three quarters of a bell, and she hadn’t noticed. Something the back of her mind nagged her that she was late for work, but she was now covered in blood and responsible for this corpse and the idea of work didn’t seem reasonable.

”He is dead, you have to go.”The Inarta repeated and Lani realized she hadn’t responded to the woman, merely looked around.

”Oh, okay.” Her voice was weak, and her usual bold answer fell from her mind so she merely complied. Lani unclasped her hands from the man, sticky fingers stiff from holding their position so tightly for so long. She had to peel her hand from his face, adjusting the flap back over his wound as it wanted to bind itself to her hand. For some reason it did not disgust her in a way that she thought dealing with such a wound ought to, but she daintily shifted it back over his face, the skin mostly covering the open wound across his eye, his cheek, and his neck. What a terribly placed accident. What horrible timing on this one-armed man’s part. What a shykeshow this whole morning had been.

Less daintily, Lani shoved the body from her legs, slowly stretching to a standing position, and feeling the weight in her clothes from the wet blood. She had ruined this pair of clothing, and she would need to bath before she could do anything else. One last time she looked down at the Dek, one eye open, half of his face ruined, mouth twisted in agony. He was growing stiff now, but did not hold her shape, an oddly curled arm falling by his oddly curled torso. Beside his head, blood swirled with his vomit from earlier, and Lani had to look away.

”What will you do with him?” She asked in common before remembering the Chiet would not understand her. ”What is to happen?” She repeated the words she knew in Nari to ask her question and the Chiet looked up at her, she had also been staring at the body.

”We take him to the Tomb of The Fallen, and then we clean.” She said simply, shrugging and then whistling to two other Deks, motioning them over to the body. ”You need to go the Tisuma baths.” She pointed at Lani, and Lani did not bother to look at herself. She could feel the chilly sticky weight of the blood on her and her clothes and knew what she had to do. She was strangely lacking in agony and emotion, a strange euphoria of shock settling in. It helped that no one else seemed in hysterics over the gruesome death, and so she was able to keep her cool as well, however it did not keep the death from seeming any less horrific.

”It’s sad.” She spoke in Nari, trying to confirm some form of emotion she was having with the strangely uncaring Inarta around her. The Chiet paused and turned, judging Lani’s expression carefully. She could see wisdom in the dark brown eyes of the red-kissed woman, and she could see the speculation of her foreignness being debated in her mind. Yes there was sadness, but there was a cold hardened something in the Inarta’s eyes as well. Something that one would have only achieved having grown up seeing events like these from a young age, perhaps not frequently, but enough to not grieve a Dek as one would an Endal. Was Lani wrong to grieve this Drudge?

”It is. But it happens. He is Dek.” She spoke his caste as if it was an explanation for his inhumane death, and it sunk into Lani hard in that moment. She could not speak anything in return, merely nodded as the stone caught in her throat and she realized the emotions were going to come relentlessly now, to make up for the time she had spent surprised and in shock, unable to process the events of what was happening. Mechanically Lani turned away from the deceased Dek, walking out of the communal kitchens and down the corridor towards the Tisuma baths. It was only when she exited the dining hall that her feet stopped feeling sticky and she assumed she left no more blood marks on the ground, she had walked far from the scene with the blood trailing her but she didn’t care. No one else seemed to care. The others were cleaning it, she had to clean herself. And then she had to go to work. And then she had to pretend like this wretched Volcano was not filled with insane and compassionless humans. And then she would have to find a way to leave. She needed to leave as soon as she got the chance to.

[Ssezzkero]

Medicine +1, Interrogation +1, Socialization +1, Rhetoric +1, Witnessing two Endal fight, Endal: Highly skills warriors, Inarta: Fight dirty, Logic: The effects of hunger on a large population, Nari: Trouble understanding when spoken in anger, Inarta: Honor matters, Wind Reach: Murder of a Dek is no big deal, Nari: Using context clues to understand, Wind Reach: Lower castes will not interrupt a fight between Endal, Observation: Where to cut to incapacitate an attacker, Observation: Skill beats brute force, Observation: Watching another person die by violent wounds, Medicine: Apply pressure to wounds, Medicine: Too much blood equals death, Wind Reach: No one cares about Dek, Memory: Comforting the dying, Wind Reach: What a Dek Funeral Entails, Location: Tomb of The Fallen, Dealing with shock, Rhetoric: Creating leading questions in another language, Wind Reach: Not A Home