Prompt Number One
Herald
9.23.06
When you come upon the scene, it is a weak and dying Herald that you find, unable even to stand. A few scattered feathers on the ground are the only remnants of the wings it once possessed. It has come to this place to die...or be saved? That, of course, is up to you.
You are alone when you find the angel. The Heralds have long gone unsaved, and though it appears to you, it does not hold much hope of living on. Near to where the two of you meet rests a grey stone slab that the angel seems desperate to reach. With your help, the Herald climbs upon it, needing something from you to save its life. What will you choose to give it? And what significance does that item hold for you? Is it a family heirloom? Something you happened to have on hand? Something you'd purchased earlier that day? A lucky charm?
You may have noticed that many details have been left off. This is because we want you to have plenty of freedom to develop the scene yourself. Consider time of day, weather, season, etc. when you post.
Elizabeth had taken it upon her own shoulders to circle her property at least once daily, to ensure that everything was right with the small amount of world she occupied. Though she had only a small acre, it was heavily forested, and animals seemed to love her wild garden, and her not so wild herb patch. Being soft hearted, Elizabeth often found that she could not bring herself to shoo the deer from her garden, and would stand for hours, just watching them.
It was early morning yet, in that queer span of time when the sun should have already risen, but was obscured by a thick fog that clung to everything, giving a mystic aura to the land. Shivering with delight at the cold weather, Elizabeth slipped on a simple hooded sweatshirt, than ran outdoors. The cold air came at her in a sudden blast that made her laugh in the sheer delight of it- nature was truly one of the most wonderful aspects of her existence, which could be rather lonely at times; she was the first one to admit that.
Fleet as a deer, Elizabeth charged into the forest, wind whipping at her hair. She simply could not bother to care about mussed hair- this area, small as it was, was all hers, and no one else could have it. This piece of Heaven was her own, and it was her spot to go and unwind from the day. Still sprinting, Elizabeth increased pace, until she fairly flew about the area. Finally she stopped, panting heavily. She had reached her spot, her shrine.
The forest here somehow seemed more silent than the other areas. Here, a rich stand of oak, ash, and hawthorn trees grew, along with plenty of underbrush. A small creek ran about the main feature of the place- a large slab of grey stone upon which sat her prize and joy, an article of deep spiritual meaning to Elizabeth- a solid antler, carved so it appeared like knot work. Infused with a deep sense of Celtic religion, the young woman often found herself coming to this shrine to give thanks to her own personal gods, to question life, or simply just to think. It was so quite here, so at peace…
Suddenly, Elizabeth’s eyes spotted something amiss with her environment. Normally, the area around here did not change. There may be a few more birds nest, a few different animals, but there was never anything substantially different as there was today. Today… well it was rather obvious, wasn’t it?
A prone form lay at the base of the rock, fingers trailing so they just touched the edge- there was no movement coming from the creature. Elizabeth noted that it did not wear much- just the sea of silver hair and silver glow that enveloped it and the immediate area, making it almost difficult to look upon the picture. Her mind stretched, trying to think what matter of creature this could possibly be- school was coming soon, but she couldn’t just leave the poor thing lying there, could she?
Finally, Elizabeth’s mind stumbled on what the creature could possibly be- a Herald. They were only rumors, only legends, but so very real to a young woman who had seen the faeries gather under toadstools in her garden. They were said to be Angels, but she found that a way of thinking she didn’t believe in, and often grouped them in the fae category in her mind- not that it mattered now, not when the creature was so clearly almost dying to get upon that slab.
With bodily strength that reflected her training as a junior archer, Elizabeth hauled the pale creature onto her grey slab, leaving it so that its fingers just touched the antler. Poor creature… touching it sent shivers up her spine.
As soon as those pale silver fingers brushed against the antler, the creature’s eyes opened their full way, and it spoke. “Thank you”, was all it managed to croak in a voice that was tinged with a heavy accent- possibly Irish.
“You’re welcome.” It seemed almost sacrilegious to speak to this creature in such a casual tone. “I need to go to school… I’m sorry I have to leave you here.”
“It’s fine... I’m warm now.” The creature smiled, somewhat weakly. The weather was still cold and foggy, and promised to be so for the rest of the day, but Elizabeth really had to leave.
“I’ll be back soon, I promise.” With those words, she dashed off, already late.
