6th Ashan 718
It was quiet, Faith realised.
It had been trials since it had been quiet. Since it began, it had not been quiet but, as the sun sank into the sea the lack of noise, shouting, whistles blowing and all the other ambient sounds was deafening. Faith breathed in and walked in to the office which had been hers for the last six trials. She had come back from the Council Offices and had spent the last few breaks just helping out here and there, feeding the volunteers, checking on the patients in the field hospital. There were far less of them now, the Order of the Adunih was full to capacity and things here were now just getting the place ready for the rubble to be cleared. Faith looked out of the window and she breathed in, then out again.
Very calmly, she lifted her hand and closed the blinds. Alissa was still at the scene, Faith had asked her to help with the moving of some things, larger stones which were being taken away. So, she closed the door and she closed the blinds and she moved over to the wall with the lists. The lists of names. People's names, each one. Mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, brothers, sisters. Friends. Souls each one, someone she had not saved. Even without Vri's blessing Faith thought that she'd remember them.
Failures. Especially those people pulled from the rubble who had died of dehydration. People they could have been saved if only they'd done it better. Different. More. If.
Reaching out, she saw that the hands which worked almost mechanically to take down the lists were trembling. It was strange, really, Faith reacted physically to things and always had. Yet, as a slave that had not been an appropriate way to behave. Taking down the list, she looked at the piece of parchment which fluttered slightly in her shaking hand and she wondered what that soft thunk sound was. It was a drop of water, she realised, landing on the paper and splashing there. Her tear. It was followed by another and Faith turned her back to the wall and slid, slowly down, looking at the list. So many names, six trials of exhausting, emotional, demanding work. During that time she'd pulled the man who had bought her at breaks old from the rubble, she had met her sister for the first time, and she had saved people, held them as they died, as they sobbed over the death of their loved one and she had not slept or barely eaten, but she had simply carried on. Because that was what she did. She got on with the job.
Except there, at the end of one part of it and just before the beginning of another, she sat on the floor, pulled her knees up and buried her face in her hands as she sobbed, the parchment discarded next to her. Six trials, hundreds and hundreds of people - dead bodies and seventy five living people. Children, there had been a lot of children in both numbers, it had been a place where families lived. Faith had stood and fought and argued and determinedly, doggedly maintained her focus.
And just for ten bits, she allowed herself to feel what she had felt the whole time and she sobbed. As she did, Skeet - the member of the faction who had been closest to her during this, stood outside the door and made sure that no one disturbed her. Or came close enough to hear the sobs.
605 words
No knowledge.
It had been trials since it had been quiet. Since it began, it had not been quiet but, as the sun sank into the sea the lack of noise, shouting, whistles blowing and all the other ambient sounds was deafening. Faith breathed in and walked in to the office which had been hers for the last six trials. She had come back from the Council Offices and had spent the last few breaks just helping out here and there, feeding the volunteers, checking on the patients in the field hospital. There were far less of them now, the Order of the Adunih was full to capacity and things here were now just getting the place ready for the rubble to be cleared. Faith looked out of the window and she breathed in, then out again.
Very calmly, she lifted her hand and closed the blinds. Alissa was still at the scene, Faith had asked her to help with the moving of some things, larger stones which were being taken away. So, she closed the door and she closed the blinds and she moved over to the wall with the lists. The lists of names. People's names, each one. Mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, brothers, sisters. Friends. Souls each one, someone she had not saved. Even without Vri's blessing Faith thought that she'd remember them.
Failures. Especially those people pulled from the rubble who had died of dehydration. People they could have been saved if only they'd done it better. Different. More. If.
Reaching out, she saw that the hands which worked almost mechanically to take down the lists were trembling. It was strange, really, Faith reacted physically to things and always had. Yet, as a slave that had not been an appropriate way to behave. Taking down the list, she looked at the piece of parchment which fluttered slightly in her shaking hand and she wondered what that soft thunk sound was. It was a drop of water, she realised, landing on the paper and splashing there. Her tear. It was followed by another and Faith turned her back to the wall and slid, slowly down, looking at the list. So many names, six trials of exhausting, emotional, demanding work. During that time she'd pulled the man who had bought her at breaks old from the rubble, she had met her sister for the first time, and she had saved people, held them as they died, as they sobbed over the death of their loved one and she had not slept or barely eaten, but she had simply carried on. Because that was what she did. She got on with the job.
Except there, at the end of one part of it and just before the beginning of another, she sat on the floor, pulled her knees up and buried her face in her hands as she sobbed, the parchment discarded next to her. Six trials, hundreds and hundreds of people - dead bodies and seventy five living people. Children, there had been a lot of children in both numbers, it had been a place where families lived. Faith had stood and fought and argued and determinedly, doggedly maintained her focus.
And just for ten bits, she allowed herself to feel what she had felt the whole time and she sobbed. As she did, Skeet - the member of the faction who had been closest to her during this, stood outside the door and made sure that no one disturbed her. Or came close enough to hear the sobs.
605 words
No knowledge.
