25th of Winter, 520 AV
Day 1
Day 1
Aster squinted, blinking her eyes open. She wasn't sure what exactly had woken her, but something had changed; the sun was in her face, which wasn't usually the case in the morning, and the air was cooler and more fresh. A bird sang over head, but it sounded startlingly close. Pushing herself up, grass tickled the palm of her hand, and she stared around in confusion.
She was sitting in a forest. Lush greenery surrounded her, and the air was moderately warm despite being notably cooler than the Outpost. The warm weather wasn't out of the norm in winter lately, but the vividness of the plant life around her was a bit surprising. A stream bubbled faintly somewhere not too far away, birds chirping and singing around her. The trees were dense, the canopy of leaves stretched above her, but sparse enough that a healthy amount of sunlight dappled through and fell across her bare skin in warming spots.
Wait. Bare skin? Aster's hand flew up to her chest, a blush creeping up her neck, though there was nobody to protect her modesty from. She was entirely naked, though she certainly hadn't gone to sleep in that state. Her hand crept up to her neck, slight panic beginning to set in. Even her necklace with Navi's tooth on it was missing.
Scrambling to her feet, Aster spun around in a frantic, decidedly ungraceful circle, nearly tripping over her own feet as her fawn-coloured waves whipped around her face, her hair catching in her mouth. "Hello?" She called out, startling a flock of birds in a nearby tree, causing them to explode into flight in a cacophony of flapping. Only the sounds of the forest answered her.
Where was she? How had she gotten there? Had someone brought her here? But who? A million questions raced through her mind as she took a few uncertain steps forward, pulling her hair from her mouth and away from her face as she swallowed hard. The intensity of the sudden shock of awakening naked in a strange place was wearing off, but her anxiety was still simmering beneath the surface. Forcing a few deep breaths in and out, Aster looked around, something out of place catching her eye; a burlap sack hung from a nearby tree branch, just low enough for her to reach up and grab.
It took a jump or two to hook her fingers onto it, but she managed to grab it and tug it off the branch. Kneeling in the grass, she carefully poured the bag's contents onto the ground. The first thing that flopped out was furry, and Aster bit back a startled cry as she fell back on her behind. A dead rabbit lay in the grass. Aster grimaced, righting herself, and prodded at the dead creature gently. It was fresh; the body was almost still warm. So someone had brought her here, then, and they clearly wanted her to at least potentially survive. Unease crept through her, the hairs on the back of her neck raising as she glanced around, peering over her shoulder, wondering if she was being watched.
But nothing else seemed out of place. Still, the dappled shadows of the trees around her suddenly seemed a lot more ominous. Chewing on her lower lip, she turned back to the bag, dumping the rest of the contents out onto the grass. Flint and steel tumbled out, followed by a small, tied bundle of tinder, and a short wooden spear. Lastly, a piece of paper fluttered out, marked with crude drawings; a map.
Word count: 597
She was sitting in a forest. Lush greenery surrounded her, and the air was moderately warm despite being notably cooler than the Outpost. The warm weather wasn't out of the norm in winter lately, but the vividness of the plant life around her was a bit surprising. A stream bubbled faintly somewhere not too far away, birds chirping and singing around her. The trees were dense, the canopy of leaves stretched above her, but sparse enough that a healthy amount of sunlight dappled through and fell across her bare skin in warming spots.
Wait. Bare skin? Aster's hand flew up to her chest, a blush creeping up her neck, though there was nobody to protect her modesty from. She was entirely naked, though she certainly hadn't gone to sleep in that state. Her hand crept up to her neck, slight panic beginning to set in. Even her necklace with Navi's tooth on it was missing.
Scrambling to her feet, Aster spun around in a frantic, decidedly ungraceful circle, nearly tripping over her own feet as her fawn-coloured waves whipped around her face, her hair catching in her mouth. "Hello?" She called out, startling a flock of birds in a nearby tree, causing them to explode into flight in a cacophony of flapping. Only the sounds of the forest answered her.
Where was she? How had she gotten there? Had someone brought her here? But who? A million questions raced through her mind as she took a few uncertain steps forward, pulling her hair from her mouth and away from her face as she swallowed hard. The intensity of the sudden shock of awakening naked in a strange place was wearing off, but her anxiety was still simmering beneath the surface. Forcing a few deep breaths in and out, Aster looked around, something out of place catching her eye; a burlap sack hung from a nearby tree branch, just low enough for her to reach up and grab.
It took a jump or two to hook her fingers onto it, but she managed to grab it and tug it off the branch. Kneeling in the grass, she carefully poured the bag's contents onto the ground. The first thing that flopped out was furry, and Aster bit back a startled cry as she fell back on her behind. A dead rabbit lay in the grass. Aster grimaced, righting herself, and prodded at the dead creature gently. It was fresh; the body was almost still warm. So someone had brought her here, then, and they clearly wanted her to at least potentially survive. Unease crept through her, the hairs on the back of her neck raising as she glanced around, peering over her shoulder, wondering if she was being watched.
But nothing else seemed out of place. Still, the dappled shadows of the trees around her suddenly seemed a lot more ominous. Chewing on her lower lip, she turned back to the bag, dumping the rest of the contents out onto the grass. Flint and steel tumbled out, followed by a small, tied bundle of tinder, and a short wooden spear. Lastly, a piece of paper fluttered out, marked with crude drawings; a map.
Word count: 597