A ritual of passing

[Rhonya]

The sun just made her way above the land, the first rays shining on the dense ground and the treetops of the Hinterlands. Movement was visible close to the place where remains of a pyre could be seen, burned out and blackened. The female moved a little clumsily on the steep hill, her point of balance these days quite far off. She seemed to carry some items, an armful of hard acquired wildflowers, a bowl and some candles. Also five torches under her other arm. She was standing on a hill just above the one with the pyre, so she could look down on it. With some effort and the wind blowing her hair around her face, she put her items down. Rhonya wiped at her forehead a little, she was already sweating from the climb, carrying the extra weight of the twins in her stomach. It slowed her down more and more… The female was wearing the same outfit she used before in ritual, purple and blue, adorned with wolf decorations.

A single beam of sunlight shone on the hill the she-orc was standing on. For a moment she just looked at the pyre below her, before moving to pick up the torches and pinning them into the ground in a circle around her. Her face moved to look up into the sky shortly before she closed her eyes and stood like a statue in the middle of the circle of unburning torches, her kilt slapped around her legs in the wind. She raised her hands in the air to her side.

“Fire, heed my call this morning, for I ask for your presence. May it light my way during these times.
Wind, heed my call, for I ask for your presence. May your invisible presence sweep me up.
Water, heed my call, for I ask for your presence. May your liquid touch calm my mind to do this.
Earth, heed my call, for I ask for your presence. May your strength guide me in this task.
Spirits, heed my call, for I ask for your presence. May your knowledge enlighten me today.”

As the female started speaking, she opened her eyes and moved to every of the unlit torches. At one she put a candle, lighting it with two firestones. The second torch she passed got a feather, somehow staying put on the ground even though the wind whipped around her harshly. The third received the bowl which she filled with water from her waterpouch, before moving on to the fourth. There, she emptied a little pouch of earth, standing out on the dry hill, it being rich, fertile earth. At the last torch, she paused the longest to cut her hand with her dagger and let some of the red fluid drip from her fingers onto the ground. As the female moved back to the center, she closed her eyes again.

“Heed my call, Fire, Wind, Water, Earth and Spirit. For I do this for an Orc who passed, as a last farewell.”  Suddenly a silent whoosh is heard around her as all the torches light up on their own. The feather drifted off into the air, floating high up. The bowl of water tipped over, the liquid seeping into the earth. Rhonya opened her eyes again and looked around, smiling sadly.

She spoke in a rich, deep tone, a little unlike her own voice.

“This morning I am here to bid farewell
to one who has begun the journey from life into death.
This morning I am here to call the Ancestors,
those who have gone before us,
to be with me in this rite.
I call to the elements of Earth, Air, Fire ,Water and Spirit,
who are with me here tonight. “

The wind continued to swirl around the female, raising her black hair into the sky, letting it move around her face like some Banshee. The torches flickered but remained burning. Bending over, Rhonya grabbed another candle, moving sideways to the torch, continuing to speak softly as she did this, passing every torch again slowly with the burning candle in her hands.

“I offer these gifts to you, Sharptongue.
May they guide you now and always.
By Fire may your soul light shine brightly in the other world.
By Air may your spirit rise and soar.
By Water may your emotions be carried and cleansed.

By Earth may you find comfort and peace.
By Spirits, may the Ancestors light your path.”

She sighed softly as she ended up in the middle again, blowing out the candle in her hands. The moment she did this, the torches also died out, as if blown out by some invisible force.

“Sadok… You were my tutor in many ways, not only the one of Gosh’kar. You taught me more than that, from the start I joined to journey with the pack. You taught me to joke, to think and even made me write a poem. You taught me to push on, that I have more value than I thought…”

A lone tear made its way down her cheek as she spoke these words. She couldn’t have done this yesterday, the pain was too fresh, and she still blamed herself partly for his death. She should have been able to do more. Heal him..cure him again. But she’d been too late, and she would never forgive herself for such. At least she could give him this, a ritual for him alone, from her alone.

“There is a reason for being here
In this world and this life.
There is a reason for leaving,
When the purposes of this life are done.
The soul must journey beyond
To pause, to rest,
To wait for those who are loved.

For the world beyond is a land
Of eternal summer, and of joy,
Far from the cares of this world,
With happiness and with youth anew.
May you find this joy and happiness, Sharptongue… I will not forget.”

With those last words she moved around, gathering her things but leaving the torches there. With a soft mutter she thanked the elements for being there, as the wind softened and felt more like a soft caress, blowing the tear from her cheek. The sun shone on her, giving her warmth and announcing the new day.

They were right. Her time for grieving was over. It was time to be strong for those who needed it, who needed her help with getting over this. A new day had come, a day to remember and to find out what exactly had happened. A day for rebuilding…
With one movement she threw the armful of wildflowers into the air, watching them fall onto the hill below, scattered on the cremation site.

[Sadok]

((This was great. Very touching and terribly evocative with a good attention to detail. More rituals and more stories, I say!))

[Rhonya]

((I am glad you liked it! Will try to write some more rituals haha.))