She had been in a deep sleep. One that was deeper than normal if only because she had been meditating so that she would be able to maybe astral project, to leave her body for a little bit to seek guidance from the spirit world, and to find the answers that she wanted to find for the questions she had. One of these questions was of her dead son. Where had his spirit gone? Had he been put to rest correctly, or should they dig him back up and do a ritual for his spirit and then put him to rest the right way, even though she was sure that Zera had not gone against her wishes and she had put him to rest like a real wiccan would. Panda did notice that Zera, this shaman had many different methods that contradicted Panda's own method, but Panda did work around it, and Zera also worked around Panda's beliefs, and that was a favorable attribute that Zera possessed that Panda found to admire about the woman. This is why her sister was such a great addition to her family, and Panda knew right off the bat that something was going to tear her away, even though she hated the thought of Zera passing on, or of Zera ever leaving Panda. It broke her heart. She knew that wasn't going to be the end of her heartache though. Something in the atmosphere was telling her that there was something very wrong, and soon she was going to find out what exactly it was.
She had been deep in her trance as she laid in her bed. She could hear her own heartbeat slowing down, and her breaths were deep. She tried to separate from her body, but there was something that had disturbed the woman, her space had been broken, and it was by Venom. He didn't know that she had been going into a deeper trance when he had come in the room, but he figured it out quick because of the immense amount of pressure that was applied to his chest as he entered the room. He had invaded her space, her sacred space and her subconscious had let him know by letting this happen. He stepped away, to the hallway. "I do not mean to disturb you. Now is not a good time to be in that world, Panda." mentioned the male, and Panda heard him. It took her a minute to come back into her body though, and her eyes did come open slightly, but there seemed to be a vacancy behind the chocolate eyes of the woman. "Please Panda.." asked the male, whom the woman followed back into the real world. She sat up suddenly, and she opened her eyes wide and she blinked a few times. She turned her head towards him. What is it? she asked the male. Something...Something is wrong....I know you were probably trying to mend it, or find out answers, but maybe we could ask Zera'im first and then look in the spirit world for help?" asked the male, cocking his head lightly and then Panda nodded her head quickly. Octopus had jumped out of the bed and trotted his gray body towards Venom, and he pushed past the being and ran out towards where Lillith and Zera'im were, sitting at the fire.
Panda got up, and she grabbed her staff to help her up, and she slowly walked from her den to the living area, where there was a masked collie shaman with her daughter. Panda hadn't brought up the mask. She'd seen it a few times now, but she did not know what it was about yet. She was scared to ask really. She didn't want to come to the reality that Zera'im was sick. Zera'im, my sister. Why must you cover your maw with such a contraption? Panda quickly got to the point, for she was not one to beat around the bush. She did not believe in censorship, nor did she believe in sugarcoating things. That itself made things slightly hard for her daughter to understand. Lillith herself looked at her mother, and ran up to her, and then cocked her head. "Contrap-tion?" asked the child. Panda did not answer her though. She would learn soon enough. Should Venom and I be wearing masks as well? she asked the woman, wanting to know what was going on exactly.
Zera thanked the heavens for the Anathema caves this day, for the snow and wind screamed outside, causing the caverns to moan like a crone in despair. Zera’im had her cloak wrapped tightly around her alarmingly emaciated frame; it had had been difficult for her to find nourishing food, and her store of fruits had run dry. Her cough had also returned with a vengeance, and every bout now was coupled with the regurgitation of blood. She could hear how raspy her breathes were, could feel how her lungs rattled in her chest like a snake’s tail; she was dying. She had realized it after the return from Ichika, when her sickness had returned where she thought it was finally leaving her. It seemed like she had not caught the consumption in time, and her body was dying slowly on the inside, succumbing to the disease. For the first day she had mourned for herself, but then had made peace with it. Zera, being a woman of the cloth and earth, knew that the afterlife held more riches then anything she could have ever hoped to have on earth. She realized she was blessed to have lived such a long and fruitful life, and was happy that the Great Spirit was now calling her home.
Zera’im had returned to Anathema after her time away to look after Lillith, the pup of her dearest friend Panda, and it seemed that the weaker she became, the stronger did Lillith, almost as if she sucked the life out of her nanny just like the succubus that lent her her namesake. But Zera loved the fiery female, and watched with unabashed joy at everything she did. Even now she was sitting at the fire in Panda and Venom’s abode, watching their child play with a bone. The girl was so cute, and so lively, and she was beginning to speak now. She was bright. Zera’im wondered if she would live to see the girl’s first shift. With a sigh the shaman woman reached up to tighten the cloth around her mouth more securely, she did not want Lillith to catch the disease that was now claiming her body.
Panda was in the next room, meditating. Even from this distance the pressure that came along with astral projection was not lost on the Shaman woman and she tried to block her essence from disturbing her friend. The power that Panda possessed was great, though she was still young and inexperienced enough to not know how to harness it to its fullest potential; something that the collie woman had taken years to learn. But Zera’im had not released her power in all it fury in a long, long time, and she now doubted if she ever would again. It seemed as if she had fulfilled her purpose in life, though what that purpose was had never been fully revealed to her. The Great Spirit worked in mysterious ways it seemed.
Zera’im knew why Panda was so strongly meditating, it was to seek answers on her dead son. Zera’im had not spoken about what she had done with the body, for she did not wish to speak of the dead in this case. The spirits of children were sometimes the most dangerous, as Zera herself had been haunted by one in her youth. No, the little pup had been concecrated and buried correctly, and Zera had made an offering to the greater spirits for the safety of his soul. But Panda, as any mother would be, was curious. Perhaps she would find the answers in her astral visions.
But it seemed this would not be, for Venom entered her room and the sudden pop in pressure caused even Zera to become dizzy for a moment. Lillith ran over to her and suddenly splayed out in her lap and Zera’im was forced to fight through the delirium back to reality. The collie-woman grinned beneath her mask and pulled on Lillith’s black ears, much to the pup’s delight. But then the parents entered the room quite obviously intense in their focus, which was directly squarely at her. Zera’im raised her mismatched eyes to Panda’s brown ones just as the woman asked about the mask. Zera’im knew that eventually the question would come, and after shooing Lillith from her lap the woman stood to her full height, which did not seem as impressive because both Panda and Venom were similar in stature.
She walked over to Panda’s side, No, you need not worry about wearing masks yourselves. But please, I will tell you everything sister, but not here. Let us go outside. The prospect of leaving the warmth of the den was dismal, but Zera’im wanted to speak with Panda and Panda alone. Venom could look after Lillith. Besides, Zera’im felt that once the truth was told, Panda might want to do something that would require space and privacy.
Venom was not an idiot in any way, really. The male just forgot about some things when he was high, and now seemed to be one of those times. He missed things when he was high, and one of those things were the barriers of energy that were surrounding the premises. He was a walking ball of energy himself, sometimes very erratic, and not standing still, and his footsteps were also filled with an energy that seemed to just be ripped from the earth because of his grounded walking technique that he naturally had. He had been slightly unaware of his power when he was high, and therefore, he would do things without really thinking.
When Panda and Venom had come into the room, it seemed as if the shaman had been aware of the thoughts, because she seemed to have an expectant look on her face when she rose her mismatched eyes to look at the two. The emaciated woman got up and stood to Panda's height, for Venom loomed over all of them, being near eight feet. He moved to a seat, and sat down. Something told him to, and that was when Zera'im spoke, and then she addressed Panda, and told her that she would tell her everything for some privacy from father and child. Panda looked to Venom, a slightly anxious look, but she knew that she was in no danger with the older woman. There was just something that was obviously bothering the woman, and Panda needed to know. She had noticed the signs, the leaving for days on end, the distance that Zera seemed to be trying to put between the two so that she and the child, and the father would not get too attached. Panda was not stupid to these things, she chose to ignore them though, until now, where she was about to see what was really going on. She could feel her heart sinking into her stomach though. She got anxious about this, and all of her senses were alert, and her spine had shivers running up and down them like mice crawling across a ships docking ropes. They tickled her spine as she stood there. She genuinely was nervous though.
"Let me grab a few things before we head out." she spoke to her friend, and she dismissed the woman to get whatever she may need, and Panda moved towards her room again. Lillith bounded after her, but Venom intersected and picked his daughter up. "Want, Momma, daadddy." spoke the girl as she reached out to her mother's direction. "Let momma get ready. She's gonna go outside, and it's real cold, so we gotta stay inside, okay, bambina?" asked the father as he licked his daughter's head. She huffed and looked up at her father, but could not find a way to be angry with him, so she released the anger in a flurry of licks to his chin, in which he took in stride.
Panda grabbed a few things, including her stone rose quartz and her pendulum, as well as her staff (this had the Thursaz rune etched into it by Venom, as well as other magickal enchantments placed by both Venom and Panda), a special cloak she had gotten from Ouija, made from a puma pelt, something that was seemingly rare in these parts, as far as someone actually going out to kill one for it's skin. Ouija had done it though, and didn't waste a lick of meat from that sucker either. He also was able to keep the tail in tact, and Panda did some hem work and she also fashioned the head of the puma into a hood for her to wear. She mounted the cloak onto her shoulders, and she had put the hood over her head and she also tied the pelt closed with the flexible tail that Ouija was able to preserve from the beast. She sighed lightly and tried to shake the bad feelings she was getting. She grabbed a few incense sticks, and a bowl. She also grabbed her small leather bag of magickal tools that she had. She tied this to her belt and then she walked back out of the room.
Venom knew what was happening when the woman had come out in that hooded pelt of hers. She did not wear the puma pelt unless she was going to do Magick. Venom's ears fell back on his head lightly, and he gave her a look, one that was longing. He wanted to participate, but he had to watch the child in this situation, and he was forced to sit out. Panda felt his energy shift before she had seen the look, but she had seen the look too, and she gave him a sad look and she shook her head lightly. It was one of, "You cannot join because this is not that type of ritual" not one of immaturity, or anything like that. Venom looked down at their child. Panda went over to Lillith, who was on Venom's lap and she bent down and touched foreheads with the girl. This was the loving touch of their family, something much more special than a kiss to them, really. "Momma will be back. As will Nana Zera." she spoke to the girl, and then she pet the baby's head and gave Venom the same head touch she had given her daughter and then she looked to Zera'im. Once she was ready, Panda would lead the two out of the den, and towards a more isolated part of the chambers where they could be in private.
"I did not get to ask, but how was your journey? Did you find anything that was useful for you?" she asked as she walked along the hallways, trying to make conversation so that she would not get uncomfortable about all of this. She knew in her heart though, that this all was going to be uncomfortable. She silently asked the god and goddess to not make this uncomfortable. There was also an edge to her voice that was slightly apprehensive, and almost careful of the things she asked. Panda knew it would be sensed, but there were some things that Panda knew that she couldn't hide from the woman. Actually, with someone as powerful as Zera, there were a lot of things that she could not keep from the woman. There were still times where Panda tried to keep things from her though. There were just some things that Zera'im did not need to know. That's what Panda believed anyway.
Panda’s aura became electric after she spoke, fuzzy and frayed about the edges from anxiety. Zera’im knew there was nothing she could do now to relieve her friend’s nerves, and it would only get worse from now on. But all things would right themselves in time, and if it weren’t for low times then the good times would not seem as sweet. Panda was apprehensive, but she went to go fetch some things for her trip with Zera’im to the cold outside. Zera’im decided to do the same, heading slowly to her small room and cot. She retrieved her heavier shaman cloak, which when put upon her shoulders was heavy like stone. She was so weak now, her bones like ice slivers and her muscles limp. With a groan she then lifted her pack to her shoulder, but the action of this caused her body to break under the spasms of a violently coughing fit. She rasped and wheezed, trying to catch her breath, the mask turning crimson. She discarded it, and replaced it quickly with one of the clean ones that she had prepared for herself. She always made sure not to let others see the blood, she did not mean to frighten anyone.
Finally she grabbed her scythe and headed back out into the common area, Panda was already there ready to go, and bidding her mate and child farewell. She had adorned the beautiful cougar cloak that Zera’im had spied before but never seen her wear. She looked strong in it, foreboding, like a powerful shaman should. Zera’im caught the woman’s eyes and the two exited the den.
The two walked down the dark hallways of the caverns, the sounds of the other inhabitants muffled by stone walls. Zera’im walked slowly, for she could not keep up a strong pace as she once could. It was amazing the difference between when she had first met panda and now; she was like an old woman. Panda asked her about the journey, not the question she truly wanted to ask but one to break the silence. Zera’im answered, her voice weak from the coughing fit, It was well. I met several others in my journey across Nova Scotia, and I visited Ichika no Ho-en. There I heard that a new pack has settled in the North, did you know this? She looked at her friend, wondering if the rumors had reached Anathema. Little did Zera’im know that the Alpha of the new pack considered Panda his friend.
Soon it grew colder, and the two exited the caverns into the snow. It was dark, but the moon was out, and thankfully the clouds had cleared enough to let Luna light the earth. In the snow, the moon spirits light was magnified, almost making a pseudo day. It was beautiful, and Zera’im took a moment to rest against her scythe to look at it, What a lovely night… She said softly, some of her breath managing to escape the mask and float upward. Then, turning to Panda, her eyes reflecting the light of moon eerily she asked, Where shall we go? She wondered if perhaps Panda had a specific location that she wish to go, for it was obvious from the things she had packed that she was planning on doing Magick this night.
Word Count → 1616 :: Panda is so sad already. She can feeeeeeel it coming! :[ also, another long post for you, that was longer than the last one. I'm going to make you suffer with this thread muwhahahahaha! ilu don't hurt me.
I return your glare and my bones are chilled.
She noticed the slower movement of the woman, and she almost had to fight with her own strength to not move too much faster than the elder woman. She noticed how Zera'im seemed to age out of nowhere, her body becoming much, much slower, her tools seeming to lose a bit of their own power because it seemed as if the elder woman needed their power just to keep going. Panda's anxiousness turned into sorrow. Her aura shifted again as the uncontrollable thoughts entered her head. What if Zera'im asked Panda to end her life tonight? What if Zera'im dropped in the middle of ritual and she died there? What if Zera'im left them tonight and went to go die where she would be able to find peace? (in Panda's morbid mind, she could imagine Zera leaving and saying goodbye, and then, well, then she would walk into the night, and eventually she would just drop dead in the middle of the forest, and then Panda would go looking for her and then there would be her frozen corpse just laying there lifeless on the ground.) Panda sniffled at her thoughts. She could not control them, not when she was so curious as to find out what ails the woman. Her mind flew about a million miles an hour, which would make anyone dizzy, especially Venom, if he was in the area, since he had a 'psychic' connection with Panda, and the way that her thoughts moved so erratically in her head, the male would be running into circles with the thoughts, and it would more than likely just give him a headache. Panda was getting one herself, and if Zera'im was in tune with the woman's thoughts as well, she would also feel the same thing.
They walked down the hallways and made sure to try to avoid the presence of others, so that they would not be distracted from their motives. Panda hurried slightly, but kept in mind that she had an ill elder behind her, so she did a lot of waiting for the woman to catch up. When the woman's maw chimed words of her journey, her voice was weak, weaker than Panda ever could remember. Her heart sank more as her sorrow, and morbid mind was going in circles again. She breathed slowly in and out, trying to clear her mind, so the pressure of the atmosphere would not put the pressure of anxiousness and nervousness and sorrow on her chest, nor the other shaman whom had spent the last six months or so with. How cruel was it for the world to want to take the collie woman from the Panda pelted woman? She did not think it was fair, but maybe, just maybe the woman's departure of this world was the end of Zera's road, and that road ended in the presence of the young shaman whom had found great affection for the woman.
"I do know of Ichika. Their energy is weird, like it has been misdirected in it's path. They settled deep in the valleys over the Anathema mountians. It unsettles me that they are so close with their misdirected natures, but I can imagine that Naniko and the leader of Ichika are probably friends or something. I did meet a blind shaman woman there, though she did seem complacent to stay within that pack. Maybe it was her job to lead the Ichikans on the right path, she was nice, and spoke in olden words, so it was pretty interesting..." she started to speak, sharing her view on the other mountain pack that had their lands too close for comfort. She thought that Ichika's misdirection had seeped into the mountains and infected the land that the Anathemans had found first. She did not voice this concern though, for this was not too important to her. She did not plan on staying in Anathema for much longer. Even if she had just gotten promoted to Corson, she did not think she would make it to Empusa before she decided to leave. It would be a surprise to her if she did though, between now and the time when they could leave, that being around the time that Lillith was able to shift, maybe slightly sooner.
"As far as another new pack being to the North, no, I did not know this.Did you visit them too, or did you just hear of them?" asked the younger shaman as they finally made it to an exit into the cold, but clear and lit night. The moon was full, and the spirits seemed to be dancing in the moonlight, even this early. Panda looked around at all of the energy orbs that had come out, and she gave a silent "wow" at them, and then thought of how Venom would have loved to see this because he would more than likely be able to see the individual colors of each energy rather than a super faded color that Panda was able to see.
Zera'im rested, and Panda stood next to her, the enchanted, human skull mounted staff standing strong next to her, and it giving the woman a prickly exterior to her body, to protect her from the spirits of the unkind, and the ones whom became too curious as to what Panda's powers were. Some of these spirits would be allowed to be in the presence of the two later on, when the ritual started, but for now, Panda made it clear that she was not to be bothered by them. Thursaz made her skin hard and prickly to the touch,(as if a rose bush had encased her being) weither it be psychically, or physically, so it would not be smart for even Zera'im to touch her. "It is very beautiful." She spoke in agreement even though her body had it's spiritual protection around it to protect her and her objects from the spirit world. The gaze of the woman was enlightened by the moon, and Panda found the look to be rather otherworldly. She wondered if Zera'im would ever help her when she was over on the other side just then. Part of Panda hoped that Zera'im would be a constant ghost companion. Part of her, and most of her wished that when she passed, it would be peaceful and she would be at rest. This was the unselfish part of Panda that she mostly demonstrated. She'd probably think about doing something to make the woman not go, but she would do the opposite and make sure that Zera'im had a peaceful rest. Panda sniffled again and she pulled the puma pelt closer to her body so the cold air would not sink into her pelt and eventually make it to her skin. Panda did love the cold though, she loved it over the vileness of her homeland and it's heat and humidity.
At the question of where they should go, Panda looked to the east. She knew of a spot where she would go with Venom and sometimes cast spells, and she already had a small altar there and she also had kept a broom there to purify the spot. The set up was bound to be covered in snow, but they could clear it when they got there. "I'm going to take you to where Venom and I practice. It's pretty isolated, and the energy there is good. There won't be as many distracting energies." The young woman spoke, and she nodded her head as she had started to walk away from the caves and towards the ocean. It was not as far as the water was, but it had been a good distance away from the cave entrances so that they could be secluded from the rest of the pack. They did not want to be disturbed. Panda was a woman on a mission though, you could tell within her gait that she was trying to hurry, but also be patient and within the same speed as the other woman. Panda was thinking that maybe the horses would have helped the elder woman at least, but it would be double the trip if they went to the stables and then gone to the circle site. The shaman with the staff cast her gaze at Zera'im, her eyes almost playful as she looked at the woman and her mind wheels were turning. She thought of carrying the woman, since she would have lost some weight, and it would prove to Panda, in a subtle way that the woman was dying, and it would make her sad, but at least she would be helping Zera'im out, and it could be one of the last good things that Panda could help the woman with. It was a silly thought, but she came out with it anyways.
"Zera, I know this might sound funny, but do you want to have a ride on my back?" asked the woman as she pat her shoulders. "Bet you it's been a long time since you had one of those." she commented, and giggled lightly, trying to loosen the woman up and let her help out. After all, it was not like Panda was a weakling, she could piggy back someone for at least a little bit. The height never bothered her, it was always the weight, and Panda figured it might be easier for the woman to just ride a back rather than trucking along in the snow.
The crisp air felt so marvelous on her skin, which surprised her, for she had found that retaining heat had been difficult as of late. But this chill seemed to energize her, and she swept open her cloak and stepped out into the snow in a strong and deliberate fashion. The white receded beneath her paw with a resounding and satisfying crunch and Zera’im smiled behind her mask. Ah what it would have been like to be Panda’s age at this moment, strong and vibrant and matching her friend in such a way that their power would be unstoppable. But Zera knew it was not wise to dwell on dreams such as these, even though she had found herself doing so more and more; she afforded herself such delights at the end of her life.
Realizing she had neglected to answer Panda’s question regarding the new pack, she looked to her friend, No, I did not visit, for I was weary and I was not sure of the road. It was only rumors I heard and nothing more. Still, I found it interesting that a new pack has blossomed up. She had found it interesting indeed, for Nova Scotia was full of packs, so why did the leader of this one feel the need to settle another stead in the north? It was too bad she was dying, she would have much enjoyed to visit there and converse with the black wolf she had heard about and to learn his reasoning for doing so.
Zera’im could sense that Panda was anxious and worried, it was much like Eclipse, the Ichika girl Zera’im had met in her time away from Anathema. The shaman woman considered herself lucky that she had befriended individuals who had genuine care for her, rather than those who might seek to take advantage of her in her weak state; it seemed as if the Great Spirit had really blessed her in the end.
Panda spoke of an area to the east where they could go for whatever ritual she wanted to practice and Zera’im nodded and took a step in that direction when Panda suddenly asked if she could offer Zera’im a ride on her back. The collie woman looked back at her with unabashed shock, save for it being hidden by the mask, before waves of melodious laughter pour from her throat, Oh sister, bless you! She said merrily, the life coming back to her voice as she clamped a hand down on Panda’s shoulder, No, I am fine. If you needed me to hurry then why didn’t you just say so! It was true that Zera’im was weak, but she had some reserve energy yet.
With this said Zera’im put on a strong show and trudged quickly out into the snow, her back straight and her head held high. She walked very paces away before turning, Come now, show me this place of good energy. Her eyes were twinkling with laughter as she said this. How funny Panda could be sometimes, and how naïve; but it was what Zera really liked about her… she wished she could have lived long enough to see the monochromatic woman fully mature.
Zera'im was late to respond to her, but she forgave the woman, and thought nothing of the delay rather quickly. She informed the woman that she had not visited because it was uncharted territory that she had never gone through before, so she did not want to lose her way. Smart woman. It was a good thing that Zera did not leave for too long though, because the long absence sometimes scared and worried Panda, so she was happy to have the woman close by when she was around. She knew that shamans were prone to wandering though, so this was why she would try to not be as worried as someone normally would be. Panda looked at her and nodded her head when she said that she found it interesting that a new pack was around. Panda had seen it happen before, she was slightly uninterested. "This place attracts packs it seems." she spoke, her tone sorta flat and uninterested and slightly worried.
She walked silently until Zera'im had answered her about the piggy back ride, and she laughed when Zera'im had laughed, because it seemed then, that the woman was full of life, and young and energetic. Panda could feel herself become happy, but then really sad. She wore a unsure smile as she gracefully caught up to Zera'im and continued to trudge through the snow to get to the place of energy that Panda and Venom had created. Panda wore a smile and she looked at Zera'im several times. Her eyes had lingered on the woman sometimes, and her brown eyes traced the lips of the woman, as well as the other facial features of the woman that made her so unique and beautiful. Panda's emotions went from happy, to sad again, which had made her aura keep shifting. As she ventured towards the magickal place she had reigned in her emotions, trying not to have other energies attracted to her strong emotions. She breathed deeply and let her mind fall into a slight trance as she walked along, her body knowing exactly where she was going without her really being present. She moved gracefully still too, which gave her a very distant look to her. Maybe she was numbing herself.
"Before we get there, I need you to tell me what is going on, my luff." spoke the woman, sadly, but it had brought her back into this world and her Thursaz rune had started to relax, and give the woman a much less prickly exterior. She continued to walk though, not wanting to delay their trip for longer than it needed to be delayed for. She would cry and keep going if she needed to. She thought of Venom then, and how she wanted to hug him and make things all better, even though it was not like that at all, for she didn't even get the news, and he was at home, watching and waiting for her to come back with Zera'im and tell him the news that she was dying to hear so that she could just let her suspicions be true and so that they could accept this, and then help Zera'im move on, and then mourn the loss of a friend and then move on. She wanted to move on before it even began, but she knew that she would linger a little bit on this.
