Umbra 40, 228: Beat The Drum

Beat The Drum
Summary: Nima has a life altering dream
OOC Date: 14/November/2013 (OOC)
Related: Coming Soon
Players:
Nima Dair 
Dreams
Lost in a dream, with sand, stars, drums, dancing
Umbra 40, 228

Finally, Nima had found rest. She was sleeping beneath the stars her cloak as a blanket, her sleep fitful. She is near her handmaid Syri and her brother who is serving as her guard. She is cleaned a little better now, not so muddy, new change of clothes and her hair is kept free to dry.

In the dream the night sky is filled with millions of stars. These stars burn brightly and in the distance there is the sound of a drum circle. The scent of wood smoke, cinnamon and sandalwood fill the night air. A fire appears and so do the drummers. Hot embers spew towards the as a log of wood snaps and crackles beneath the heat of the flame. Those embers seem to dance and move to the beat of the drummers. There is a sense of peace here. If she moves towards them she will start to see young women who are dancing and old women gathered around the fire.

Nima had danced around many fires in the desert and as the stars glitter overhead, she can just see herself rising, hearing the beat of the drum. Feet trail through the hot sand… funny that it was hot when it was dark outside. The beat brings a longing inside of her to dance with the others, to move her body in that sensual way of her people, around the fire to the beat of the drum. So at peace, she must be home, for only home had ever afforded her such a luxury. She was no longer sick, that thought also crosses her mind as she approaches. Oh she felt so wonderful, never moreso than now.

The drums continue to beat as she loses herself in the music. The scents seem to cling to her skin washing away the illness. In the warm glow of the fire and within the circle she feels safe. Beyond the circle the stars wink out of existence and in the darkness creatures gather watching. The feel of hidden hungry eyes of many predators can be felt. Their whispers are like poison, but they can barely be heard above the call of the drums. In the circle a young woman takes her hand. She is beyond beautiful and her hair brown as rich loam. Her skin is nut brown and her eyes warm as amber. Her touch is light. "Push them back, you knew how to do it ounce. Think about them going away. Feel the earth beneath your feet and push them away! Feel the energy of the fire and the drums use that to tell them to go!"

It is all fun and games, the dancing, the beat of the drum, the warmth of the fire. Her smile comes naturally and she twirls, toes buried in the sand, laughter bubbling from her lips.. until she notices the stars beyond them winking out. Nima is reminded then of the panther and the small evil things that Little Princess Elly was chasing. Dismay fills her. Where was Elly? A young girl takes her hand and leads her in a dance, a dance as happy and carefree as before.. until she begins speaking. Push them back, she hears. Oh if only she could! "How? How can I?" her voice is soft, uncertain. Something about the earth, the energy of the fire, the beat of the drums. She could. She had to find a way, she would do anything to protect the girl.

"Feel the earth, you are part of the earth, feel the heat of the fire in your blood and feel the stars and the sunlight. Use those see the earth telling them to leave." The woman calls out to her as they continue to the dance. The darkness then starts to press against the circle. Their Whisper are louder now and can easily be heard over the drums. "Come to us." They whisper. "Be the defiler, comes we can give you the little girl." They tell her with their poisoned voices. The air begins to cold. The fire fights against it. The sand beneath her bare feet is still warm.

Feeling them press in on her, Nima halts the dance a moment. She stiffens, the look on her face no longer afraid or filled with dismay. Now she is a mother bear protecting the cub. "YOU WILL NOT!" She growls out fiercely. Digging her feet into the sand beneath her feet, she warms the fire with the heat emanating off of herself now. The stars glitter in her eyes like blades as she stares out at the darkness, at those pushing in. "Go!" She wills it even as she says it. "LEAVE ME!"

"She is already ours, we have tasted her sweet spirit." They whisper back. "Come to us, if you want her and want protect her." The creatures whisper back, the drumming in the circle continues. The cold and the heat, the light and the darkness fight over this small area of land. On the edges of the light it is grey. The fire starts to glow brighter as the stars that are directly above them. The sand turns to gold beneath the dancers' feet.

Draw from the earth. The words echo in her mind again. And so Nima does so. She closes her eyes, feels the earth surround her feet, empowering her, giving her energy, life, strength. Wisdom. Wisdom as old as the earth itself. She laughs, the sound melodical in the night, so lighthearted and free. "If you had her, you would have no reason to be here. You do not have her. You cannot have her. You will never have her as long as I live. As long as I breathe. As long as I am here to protect her, she is gone to you, and you can get no where near her because I would never allow it. You will leave, and you will be forgotten. Forgotten forever as your power is gone." Peace. Her peace has returned. The earth was inside of her, the stars were within her. The fire burned in her soul. The drums beat with her heart.

The sand beneath her feet starts to glow and the more energy that comes from her the brighter the sand gets. The fire and the stars continue to glow brighter and brighter and the creatures that had been gathering scream in pain and in fear as the light washes over them. "She is ours!" The cry out again. "She is ours." The keeps pushes them further and further away. The dancers continues to dance adding there energy to Nima's. The drummers continue to play and it drowns out the darkness and their cries.

Unaware that she is glowing, Nima is still laughing, though it is a happy sound, not menacing. "You have no power over me. You have no power here. Leave, before the drums get louder, before the stars lead the way to the sun, before there is nothing left of you to flee." The voices no longer scare her, they sound lost in fear and pain. She calls the light, the sun, the fire, the stars. Every sunbeam the earth has soaked in beneath her feet becomes part of her as she pushes, harder and harder.

They flee and as the light that is Nima becomes as bright as the noon day sun. Then they are gone. The drumming continues and slowly each drummer fades one by one. The women dancing and the old women do too, until all but remains. It is the girls she was dancing with. "They will come back for you, know that but rest. Sleep but this took much out of you. You will need to sleep and rest more when you wake. Ride with the man in the carriage." The woman kisses her cheek and fades away. The fire disappears and soon she is standing on the desert sand surrounded by the stars and the night and that sense of utter peace.

Sleep? Had she ever truly woke? Nima feels she has, she feels she has run through the desert in the heat of the day. She was warm. And in the day she must sleep for only a bit, in the carriage. With Elly, yes. And Eldan and Kieryn and Cai. She must protect the family and her own, for she loved them. "I shall." The words are murmured softly.

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