Death's Black Wings

The tides of life keep changing and Ricin and his brother seem to be swept aside by the waves of time. Seasons came and went, stripping away the youth that once cling to their blue frames and, in its place, settling lines of years. The itch to explore had pulled Ricin from familiar lands today and, because they hardly ever do anything apart, Chade had gone out with him. Gnarled trees twist in silent agony, reaching their bent fingers skyward as if to pierce the very heavens in their enteral anger as the brothers make their way carefully through the fog laden land.

Normally, the woods whose ancient giants scream out at the sky, is impressive, awe-inspiring and even somewhat magical. But not today. The thick fog boils across the ground, coiling around blue legs and stealing his sight away until he can only see a few inches in front of his face. A chill, not wholly natural, creeps along his skin, causing goosebumps to spread in its wake as a dark feeling of doom settles heavily in his stomach. But Ricin plays it off, knowing, of the pair, he was always more likely to be more afraid while Chade was the level-headed and he does not wish to let childhood fears steal his courage away.

Each step scatters the rolling mist, sending is away from his paws for a moment before it comes coiling back, caressing his long legs with their ethereal tendrils before being dispelled once more. Chade is beside him as they explore, the early morning sun not daring to touch the ground they walk upon. With a chuckle, Ricin lightly says, “When I invited you for a stroll, I didn’t except it be…” his attention deviates as his gaze turns to his brother and one massive tangled root peeks through the fog to ensure his dark blue ankle and steal the lighter blue brother from his darker counterpart’s side.

The world twists and turns in a nauseating whirlwind of helter-skelter information of ground and sky while his name chases after him and the fog swallows his body whole. That rogue root sends him careening down an embankment riddled with knots of roots and big, pointy rocks. Grunts of pain emanate from Ricin each time his body smacks into one of the immovable objects. Finally, after gods know how long, his body finds soft ground and rolls to a stop while his brain attempts to correct the roll of the world. The vomit comes unbidden to the back of his throat and he is powerless to stop the violent express of his morning meal.

Chade’s voice reaches his ears, calling for him to answer and Ricin huffs, working up spit in mouth to dispel the foul taste from his maw before calling out, “Yeah! I’m fin…” the words die on his lips as, close by, a pool of fog curls around the paw of a bear, making it appear to be floating for one brief, horrifying moment before being swallowed up by the gray mist. That old turncoat, fear, spears his brain, dries out his mouth, and has his tail tucking. The scents all mingle together, the moister, dampening any foreign smells that might linger in this unnatural haze.

Mouth pumps as he shouts up to his brother, “BEAR!” The one word ripping open the silence that had engulfed the space around him and he suddenly feels very… guilty. All his life, Chade has protected him, fought his battles because he was weak and useless. Courage turns away the fear, lodging in his mind the idea of battling the bear together, like old times. He surges forward after the hulking beast, charging with a battle cry on his lips as he seeks the leg that he had seen mere second before. Teeth close around the leg and…. He realizes his error too late. The leg is much too slender to be ursine and the blood that meets his tongue is definitely canine.

In the end, retribution is swift and death comes to carry him away on black, cold wings.


-exit Ricin via death-




WC: 683
Total WC: 683 / 1500


"Chade & Ricin"