A Warrior's Redemption (The Warrior Kind)

I leaned heavily into the mane of the horse that I rode. The mane was thick with lather, and through the fog my brain was lost in I registered that neither I nor the horse were going on much farther.

The horse stumbled into a depression and caused the broken off arrow shaft lodged in my side to move painfully. The moment of clarity afforded me by the pain of the arrow moving awoke me to the realization that the horse was starting to fall forward. I kicked my legs out of the stirrups moments before the horse's chest made contact with the ground.

The impact threw me from the saddle into a cluster of boulders to the side of the trail we had been traveling along. I screamed as the arrow worked deeper into my side. I managed to briefly sit up and take in my surroundings before the darkness overwhelmed me. I was at the beginning of the Ernor Hills not far from my home. How ironic I thought, before I passed out.

It was hot. Slowly my eyelids fought their way open. It was hard, because they felt glued shut and foreign to me, but there was something moving nearby and then something pecked my leg hard.

My eyes shot open, with the new addition to the world of pain I was already feeling. Vultures! A whole flock of them covered what had been my horse in a busy feeding frenzy. Now one of the buzzards was getting the idea that I was on the menu as well. Panicked at the thought of being eaten alive I managed to move my legs and waive my arms some, which left me panting for breadth and exhausted.

The vulture fluttered back a couple of feet and cocked its head at me. It then proceeded to settle down and wait. Vultures prefer to eat the soft organs and tissues first, such as the eyes, but they rarely eat something that is still alive and protesting. Scrunching back deeper among the boulders and brush I tried to make myself inaccessible to their probing beaks. I felt like I would pass out at any moment and eventually against my will I did.

I could feel a gentle breeze touching my cheek, as I heard the sound of a musical instrument floating on the breeze. My body felt at peace surrounded by a firm softness. I had made it to heaven after all. I hoped it wasn't a mistake that I had been allowed in, because it felt to secure and peaceful here to leave. Even if it was a mistake to let me in I decided that I would bask in the moment as long as they would let me. I turned on my side. Big mistake!