Orphaned Memories: Part 2
Well, I'll be honest, it's less of a part 2, more of a chapter 2...Hehe... rubs paws on head. I am suffering from a very debilitating artist block as far as my digital work goes. I think most artists can relate. You finally think you're art is evolving and getting where you finally want it!....AND THEN...!!! DEATH! Out of nowhere you're back to looking at some art that's vastly better than yours, sighing, and wondering when the hell you'll catch up >.<; Anyway, enough of this rant, my point was going to be that writing is my only outlet right now, so I write sporadically and in spurts soooo I'll try to label the parts correctly for those who are following. Kind words are always appreciated, and thanks everyone who is reading!
There was a scent that suddenly grabbed my attention, and fiercely commanded my fur to bristle and shake. It wasn't Bajuu, I'd know her scent anywhere. This wasn't my friends, coming to try to break this mood I was in. No. This was the scent of humans. Worse, it was the stench, the reek, of men.
Bajuu knew every nook and cranny of the mountains, places far too treacherous for any human to dare enter. This mountain, was one of them.
I could feel my pupils contracting, my ears twitching like crazy. How? I thought frantically. How did they find us?! Wait, there was no us. There was only me, alone. For a moment I was relieved Bajuu was gone, but then the reality of my situation hit. Here I was, alone. I knew Bajuu would have been useless against the two...no- I inhaled deeply at the scent- three men. But if I had to come face to face with my enemy, I didn't want to do it alone.
Noises, coming closer, dragging that horrible smell with them. It triggered another memory of that day...
I was out playing, I remember I hadn't even grown into my paws yet. My mother, keeping a watchful eye on her only cub, and my father insisting I would grow up to be the most fierce tigress the land had ever seen. He bragged a lot, a lot about nothing. A fierce tigress would have saved her parents...
I fumbled to the ground, tripping over my clumsy paws trying to catch a mouse that had scurried by. "Papa!," I shouted. "Papa! Teach me to hunt, Papa!" I pranced around him, pawing gently at his flank. I dove under him, and then began to stalk some invisible prey. "Lyra," he chuckled, "I told you, I'll take you out for your hunting lessons soon. Today is to get you acquainted with your new surroundings. Besides..." Suddenly my mother and I were face to face. I remember that smirk I stared at for so long. "You're much too obvious to be a hunter," he continued, nodding approvingly at my mother's first lesson in hunting.
"Momma!," I exhaled in shock, "You're fast!" She laid down beside me, and pulled me close. I could see every beautiful detail of her sapphire eyes, radiating as she looked at me. "I have to be, to keep up with you," she nuzzled me.
_It was the last time I ever felt my mother's warm heartbeat again. _
Chapter 3:
Now, I could make out shadows etched in the darkness, heightened by streaks of lightening. Should I fight? I wanted to so badly. Every bone in my body was tensed and poised...and ready to kill. I could have done it. I wanted to feel my jaws bathe in their blood, to see the life drain from their eyes. The way I stared in agony watching my mother's brilliant sapphires eyes fade to a listless, ugly grey. I wanted to rejoice in their pain and death, the way they had excitedly celebrated the fall of my kin.
"I wont hide anymore!," I let out a low rumble from deep in my chest and slowly, methodically made my way to the cave's entrance, to face my enemies.
"Lyra...No..." A voice traveled through my marrow and blood, a voice I knew. "Bajuu?!," I roared, furious. I could smell her now, her scent mingled and mixed with those of my enemies. If they had hurt her, I would have wiped out the entire city!
"Lyra, please dear. I'm...alright. Move honey...move to...the back of the cave." Her voice was so tired, so empty. But I never disobeyed Bajuu, and I wasn't about to start now. Begrudgingly, I stepped back.
"Bajuu, what the hell is going on! Did they hurt you?!" I growled again for good measure.
"No, no...Let the humans come in, don't frighten them dear." I could hear the desperation in her voice. "Promise me, Lyra, don't hurt them."
"I...promise."
They all walked in at once, cautiously waving some type of...thing. It was making light in the cave without the sun. For some reason, I was especially drawn to this light, but I held my ground. I looked these men over with mixed feelings. They didn't look like the men who killed my parents, they even talked different. And as they came closer, I noticed they smelled different too.
My wide eyes finally rested on Bajuu, and I was immediately paralyzed by what I saw.