The winter sun was starting to set and I'd made it into the outskirts of Mirasel.
I was sure to have blisters soon in these poorly made boots and the stress of Ryker waking up back at home (if I could even call it that) any minute now was rising.
Wagons kicked up dust from the unpaved sidewalk and roads and people gazed unwelcomingly at me. If I wasn't able to find a way back, I was going to get myself in a lot of trouble here. I keep my chin up in defiance and continue to trot along to my faraway destination. If it took a horse almost a day to get here, it was going to take me three days to get back.
My excitement to leave the Ryker's chains meant I didn't think to bring anything with me, including coins to pay for a stupid inn at least. If I were to walk in one now without proper compensation, they would make me pay in other ways…
"H'there, missy. You're in the wrong place." A twangy, cracked voice yells.
Oh no, here we go…
A muddy man is leaning against a wooden fence with something sticking out of his mouth as his teeth play with it. He's dressed in stained workwear and his facial features are unable to be discerned from the splatters of grimeall over his face. His long hair is matted in different directions and everything about him is rough and unkind.
I give him brief attention before I kick my boots up and keep walking, a little hurriedly this time.
"I'm only tryna help ya." The smoke-filled voice relays.
I breathe through my nose to calm myself and see the sky is now turning to dusk. I am fucked.
How could I be so stupid to trust a guy like Geralt? He had used me as planned and left me for nothing except no answers, barely any reprieve, and a shatter in my life.
More people wander about. A woman in a raggy dress spits on the ground when she sees me as she carries a sack of flour over her shoulder.
"Come on Goldie Locks, don't be so skiddish." Another voice booms.
They've caught up to me and a tight grip shoves me around so I'm facing two stench-ridden men whose exposed skin are calloused all over. The men tower over me darkly and I gulp.
"I'm just waiting for my husband." I say, hoping it will scare them off. It doesn't. They smirk and use my lie as a challenge.
"Husband, aye?" The one with cut brow snickers.
"Pro'lly some small, rich guy." The friend replies.
The air has gone even colder without the sun and the people from before have closed their doors and gone home. I'm alone and no one cares.
They take a step closer and I match their step backwards.
"Leave me alone."
"Aw come on, you're hurtin' our feelings."
"I don't care." I say tensely.
They both frown angrily at my retort and one of them cracks their knuckles. I immediately turn around and start running as fast as I can.
"Come back here!" They roar.
I hear their heavier stomps behind me but I don't dare look back. At twenty-five, this is the fastest I've run in a while. If I survive this, I'll feel the pain of pushing my muscles tomorrow. The ground is becoming even more uneven as we completely leave the desolate town and the forest line comes into view. But it's still too far away and I feel the reach of one of the men.
They claw until one of them grips me properly and we take a tumble, the remnant pain of my fractured rib comes back to me. I'm too preoccupied as I'm flipped onto my back and I grapple with the man. The other circles us and doesn't intervene.
"Get off me, you half-wit!"
"Shut up, girl!"
"Yeah, shut up! Get her Arnie!"
I kick, scratch, and growl as I make a nuisance of myself. I start to run out of breath and strength and the man begins to overpower me.
"I've got money! Just let me go!"
I get no response and one his elbows clocks down onto my cheek. It shocks me to the core and my eyes shut momentarily, having almost blacked out.
When I open them, my gaze zeroes in on the evening stars above me. The planet of Venus shines brightly amongst the speckled sparkles littering the beautiful night. Somehow, my keen eye spots Rigel who calls to me.
"Our little lantern has lost her tread. Remember, you are a steadfast glow, a silver thread. Call to us, let us hear you speak. For your heart wonders, and our light seeks."
The men start to drag me away as I no longer fight back.
"Help me." I whisper.
Suddenly, lights beam down and capture the two men like whips. They yelp and try to pull the obstruction away as they're lifted up and thrashed around the air. I sit up and my vision starts to transform completely. Instead of the mundane surroundings, everything turns black and the outline of the men and the buildings can be made out by a glittering static. Some spots are brighter than others. One in particular can be seen where a human heart would be.
"What you are seeing are atoms that build up everything on this Earth". The voice describes. "That includes weak points of the structural makeup of everything. The star's creations and the star's destruction."
Everywhere I look is an imprint of what would usually have texture and colour. It's like I'm seeing the inside of the world. I lift up my hands but I don't see the same thing. I'm a mix of orbital colours that blob together.
"A star."