Literature from Ge
In the Immemorial Layer of the universe, the Ninth Planet it's home to a world known for showing diversity in all aspects. While some civilizations give different names to the world, most call them Ge, the Immemorial word for "ever-changing".
Just like everything else, literature takes different forms, and is precious or disregarded according to the culture of each region.
Eraly's last escape
Eraly wished nothing more than to collapse on the floor and cry for the death of her loved ones until exhaustion took over. But they were getting close. So close that she could smell the smoke of their torches, hear the beating of the hounds' wings.
She had been running all night, and the day before that. Not a single stop for rest. No matter how much her bare feet hurt with each new cut against the gravel, or how hungry and tired she was, somehow she still had the energy to continue. But they had white lizards and now that the trackers had picked her scent... Maybe it was time to give up. Let them end her. At least then she would see Miral, Iork and her parents again.
The image of her loved ones smiling at her was immediately replaced by the screams of horror that plagued their last moments. And just like that, she was running again. She didn’t dare to face the assassins that were hunting her.
She would have run forever. But it wasn’t that simple. They were faster and this was what they did best. Before the darkest hour reached its end, the first arrow hit Eraly’s back. They must have missed somehow―a first time for everything, as earthlings say―because she could still move. So she kept running until the hounds got in her way, and she tried to change her direction so she didn’t get any closer to them, but the assassins were all around her.
Surrounded and hopeless, she felt nothing but relief when she finally stopped and fell on her knees and palms. She didn’t struggle when a hand forced her head up and a knife slid against her neck. She tried to fight later, not against the men that desperately stabbed her but against the hunger all her wounds were causing. It was a lost cause, though. One by one, they felt weaker and weaker until their life was gone.
The first light of the day found them all on the floor, dead for no apparent reason in a puddle of Eraly’s blood. As for the fugitive, she was running again. Stronger than ever but even more terrified of herself.
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Author's Notes
The Eraly's last escape story was originated by two different prompts from october 2021: "Hunt" (spooktober) and Gone (31 days of horror). I'm planning on linking Eraly's story with a another one I wrote a while ago, that takes place in the Fifth World of Grista.
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Known Universe and related stories by Escritora Novata (AKA tyess)
is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.