Corerra

[rincewindy]

It had been almost two weeks since the baby was born. Mula sat back in a seat sipping at a cup of tea and tried to wrap her head around things. It was one of the first moments when she'd actually gotten to relax. She had named her child Corerra due to the rapidity in which she was born and how quickly she was growing. During the past two weeks, she'd made five trips up to Moonglade.

Corerra was the equivalent of a seven year old, now. She was frail, due to her rapid growth. And as much as Mula fed her, it was still hardly enough. She'd even gotten several elixirs from the druids at Moonglade to supplement her diet and hopefully slow her growth. The first few elixirs they gave her hadn't worked. Despite her frailty, Corerra was a bundle of energy and always on the move. Mula kept expecting her to injure herself, but that never happened.

While she was out, she left the care of Corerra to her eldest daughter, Lucerra. Lucerra did a great job watching over Corerra.

She'd noticed something different about Corerra, this morning when she slept, and she told herself that it was just the shadows playing tricks on her eyes. She stopped in mid-sip. She got up and walked down the hall to where her room was. She'd put another cot in after the first week. She quietly opened the door and peeked in. Corerra was sleeping. Mula lit a candle and brought it close, getting a good look at her daughter. She didn't really know what to expect. She looked normal enough...considering.

She sighed and crept back out, quietly shutting the door behind her.

[rincewindy]

Corerra's eyes opened. She'd heard her mother come in and leave. She sat up. She put on a frock that her mother had gotten for her. She rummaged through some of her mother's bags and grabbed some things, including the medicine that her mother gave her, and put them in a bag. She pulled on a cloak and quietly opened the door to the room. She crept down the hallway, keeping to the shadows. She could hear her mother talking to one of the others who resided at the guild.

"She's a handful. I can hardly keep up."

"Have they figured out what's wrong with her?"

"They've tried a few elixirs, but she's still growing so fast. I don't know what to do."

Corerra turned down a side hallway. She walked down it until she reached a door that led to the greenhouse. She sidled through the door and tiptoed down the aisle, careful to not touch any of the plants. She got to the door and opened it just enough to slip out. The cool night air hit her face and she was surprised at how warm the greenhouse was compared to the outdoors. She closed the door behind her and walked out into the night. She was running down the hill and heading south. She got to the base of the hill, breathing hard. She caught her breath, then started walking through the field. She heard a noise and stopped. Something was growling over by that tree. She took several steps backward, being as silent as possible. She saw the eyes of the beast and froze.

[rincewindy]

The beast had white fur and a big bushy mane. It's claws glinted in the moonlight. Corerra could see that it was tensing up getting ready to pounce. It did.

She closed her eyes tight, but the creature never made it to her. It landed with a thud at the base of her feet. She opened her eyes, looking down at the beast. She then looked up, expecting to see her mother there. She was alone. She saw something out of the corner of her eye and raised her hands up. Dark shadows encased and swirled around them. No, not just her hands...her whole body. She walked on, anxious to test out her abilities. She heard the sound of hooves and ran towards them. Three huge beasts, like the one her mother rode were plodding along.

She closed her eyes and tried to recreate the feeling that she had before, when the white beast attacked her. The shadows gathered around her hands and she opened her eyes. She 'threw' the shadows at the first beast. It let out a cry of pain then fell down dead. She attacked the second one, then the third one. They collapsed like the first two. She walked up to them. She put a hand on one. White light pulsed and the beast's chest began to rise and fall. It struggled to its feet, still weak. Corerra struck it with another bolt of shadow. She heard the thud as it fell dead a second time. She walked on.

[rincewindy]

Her mother and Sreng had found her sitting in the midst of a massacre of Quillboars, shadows enveloping her.

"You gave me such a fright!" her mother told her wrapping her in her arms. She saw the worry in her mother's eyes. She looked past her mom's embrace at the troll who was cutting some flesh from a body of a Quillboar and tossing it to the raptor. He glanced over at her, and she saw a hint of fear. She smiled at him.

She 'put' the shadows away. Her mother took her hand and the began to walk back towards their 'home.'

"I'll meet you back at the hall, Sreng. We'll be fine,' her mother said to the Troll.

"I'm just glad I could help," he said.

[rincewindy]

The demon called to her, this one that was so open, so unbiased. The previous test went smoothly just as it had planned. She did everything the demon suggested to her.

And, it was easy getting the orc child to choose that spot to dig. It was easy getting the goblin to start digging that night. The only slight hitch was the warlock. The demon nearly succumbed to his will, but was able to slip out at the last moment.

It slipped down the hall and entered the girl who was not a girl. The girl's mother tried to stop her, but she blasted her mind with almost limitless power. The cow would not remember even having birthed her. She took a secretive route out of the guild hall and into the night. She nearly laughed from the newly acclaimed freedom. She walked down the hill. First, a change of clothes, then...well, anything was possible.

[rincewindy]

"Mother?"

Mula looked up. "Lucerra, come sit by me."

Lucerra walked over and sat beside her mother on the couch. "Where's Cor?" She'd gotten used to calling her sister 'Cor' for short.

"I haven't seen her in a long time. How do you know Coranda?"

"Who?" Lucerra frowned, completely confused. "No! I'm talking about Corerra!"

Now it was time for Mula to be confused. "Who?"

"Mom! How can you joke about this?! Corerra! My sister!"

Mula put her arm around Lucerra. "Hon, you don't have a sister. You're my only child. Look, I know you had a trying time at the hands of that monster. You just need some rest."

Lucerra stood up with a start, took several steps away, then came back and sat down. Tears formed at her eyes, and Mula drew her in, arms embracing the girl. "I'm so confused," she finally said.

Mula held the girl tighter, whispering words of comfort.

((Mula doesn't remember even being pregnant with Corerra, nor does she remember anything about that time....For more information regarding Lucerra's trying time, see the post titled "Surprise))