Beneath a Starry Sky

There was always a joy to the sound of snow crunching beneath her feet, a reminder of simpler times when she would run through the white fields of Yeven, a small village where she grew up, her family were farmers and in the colder months, their lands would be a beautiful canvass for her to play upon.

Tonight, however, Clarissa was not so thankful for the sound as her feet traipsed across the barren lands, the snow wasn't as she remembered, spoilt and tarnished by the darkness, and droplets of crimson dirtied the snow in her tracks as an arrow was revealed to be protruding from the back of her hip.

She had no time to stop, to slow down as the sound continued to follow from behind, a collection of reanimated, shambling cadavers chased Clarissa into the night.

The tears that fell down her cheeks were threatening to freeze in the cold air, her heart beating haphazardly as her breath continued to fight and hitch in her lungs.

She felt a thousand minuscule mountains and craters form across her skin as it was exposed to the elements, her clothes a mess of rags that barely covered her form, stained with the blood of her oppressors and sadly, her friends.

Her hand grasped the only thing that seemed to have a shred of survival in this agonising adventure, a leather cord with a small pewter pendant of her chosen deity.

As she clung to the religious symbol, she felt a warmth in her palm, her shivering lips continued to beg and plead for guidance, for help out of this hell.

Her voice grew more desperate as she prayed to the star-filled sky, scared that her words were reaching deaf or disinterested ears.

Had she lost the favour of her faith?

A loud groan broke through the chain of deafening thoughts as she felt the cold hand of death reach her shoulder, pulling her back in her tracks, causing her to spin and face the soulless, emotionally void face of the undead as it bared its discoloured teeth in an attempt to bite at her.

A shrill scream echoed through the winds as Clarissa managed to avoid the bite, falling back to the floor, the shambling beast tumbling with her as others continued to approach.

She heard the thud of another falling to the ground, its hungry hands pulling at her boot, its teeth grinding against the leather and steel that protected her foot at this moment.

The pendant fell to the snow, sliding just out of reach as she tried with all her might, to fight off the creature, managing to push it aside before she turned, scrambling to her charm desperately.

"Please, please please please" she begged between sobs as she clutched it to her chest, her eyes closed tight as she felt the fingers trail over her calf, the nails dragging slowly as the putrid breath tormented her skin, she knew the bite was coming any second now as she gave up any hope of survival.

There was a moment when she felt the teeth finally press to her flesh, she cried out in pain as it began to press down, at that moment she was sure it would rip through her skin, her flesh and muscles, and a wave of warmth swept across her body, the pressure vanished as a low groan of pain echoed from multiple sources surrounding her.

The hands of her oppressors were no longer clawing and grasping at her body as each vanished into an eruption of dust and smoke.

Clarissa was unaware of this as her eyes remained tightly closed, her sobs she was sure were just an echo of the torment as she must have died by now.

"Clay, it's okay"

The voice was familiar, one she knew so well, but also knew to be dead, her eyes opened as she turned, sitting up and searching for the source of her husband's voice.

She was greeted by nothing but the snowy domain that reached as far as the eye could see.

"Up here Sissy"

This time, her brother spoke and Clarissa almost cried to the sound, she had longed to hear him, to be called Sissy once more as she lifted her eyes to the sky.

The stars that had been so bright, that illuminated the world around her had grown dull in comparison to a collection of orbs in the sky.

Gathered together in a huddle of light and a strange sense of warmth that could be felt to her very core, Clarissa couldn't stop the sobs that escaped her, couldn't pull her eyes from the skies above.

"Please.. please don't leave me again" She pleaded, reaching a hand up to them all. Seeing their familiar smiles glow in the bright lights, their eyes on her with love and care, although, a sorrow could be seen within them all.

"We can't stay, he only allowed us a minute here" one answered.

"He said we could intervene this one" another followed.

"He gave me ice cream!" a third chimed, its childlike tones echoing through the air like a razor blade to her heart, it brought her such joy and yet so much pain to hear, "It's banana flavoured" he continued as fresh tears fell down her cheeks.

One hand still clutching the pendant, the other fell to her stomach, remembering the sensation of another within, kicking and twisting in her for months on end.

"Don't cry mummy, I'll not spoil my dinner"

Her sobs grew harsh as she felt the tender hand of her husband on her shoulder, lifting her eyes he gave her an apologetic smile, his tears leaving no trace to the snow they crashed upon.

"We're doing good Clay, He's safe now"

"I, I want to come with you" she admitted, her throat tightening.

"I wish you could, but he needs you down here still"

The pendant in her hand grew hot with these words.

"You have to live on, for us, for you. When it's time, you'll be with us, but, for now. We have to go" He warned, reaching down to press his lips to her head.

In an instance, the world was engulfed in a bright, momentarily blinding flash of pure white light as the sensation of his lips vanished, the illuminated orbs filled the night sky before vanishing from sight once more, causing her to fall to the ground in agonising pain.

The sound of snow crunching beneath her feet once more drowned out all thoughts, Clarissa began to slowly make her way back to the last sign of civilisation she had encountered, her pendant hanging loosely from her white-knuckled, clenched fist.