Lucien
01-28-07, 10:12 PM
((Thanks mister Poe, for the thread title. Gotta' give credit where credit is due. Closed))
The sand grew soft and malleable under the relentless lapping of waves. Each rolling wall of foam carried with it a piece of debris. There were splintered beams snapped in twain by the sheer force of the sea, waterlogged chests filled with soggy maps and rusted treasures, all washed ashore to the barren beach where nothing seemed to live. And how could it? The sun beat down with a relentless fury unknown in the outside world. It was a deceiving ploy, the golden orb above promised beauty but delivered only wrath as it scorched everything in its sight. The sand grew dry in minutes when the waves stopped reaching them, leaving a thin and grainy crust to each piece of salvage that managed to finally set foot on Fallien.
From the far off dunes came three travelers. Like wraiths they moved, relentlessly despite the heat and sand. They were natives; born into the harsh conditions they traversed and experts in how to survive it. Behind them they lead horses burdened with the task of pulling wagons through the shifting landscape. When the natives reached the shore, horses in tow, it was no surprise to them what clung to the land. They'd seen the signs of the shipwreck from miles away as the vultures gathered at the beach. The fresh corpses made a meal rich in salt and still moist from the water. But the dead were not what the men were after.
One by one they split off, looking over every inch of the sand. They picked up crates and barrels, large chests, pieces of gold shimmering in sunlight; whatever could even be considered of value they took and loaded onto their wagons. When the larger things were packed, the three moved to each corpse, scaring the vultures off as the did. Taking clothing, coins, jewelery; the natives seemed to lack any respect for the dead. Their faces and skin were hardened with sunlight, and so it appeared that their hearts were as well.
And then one came to the last body; the body of a boy not yet in manhood. He wore a bright pink shirt tousled from the sea and exposing his midriff. His pants were foreign, made from a tough material in dark blue. Shoeless and wearing bare minimal, the traveler who bent down to examine him could only assume he was just another sailor. Perhaps his end was tragic; a young boy trying to earn his keep on the ship after being orphaned. But the man shook his fantasies out of mind. He'd come with a purpose, not to daydream in the restless heat.
Yet as he dug his large dark hand into the loose jean pockets, the boy groaned in a weakened voice. The man stumbled slightly, taken aback by the small surprise. He stood up with wide and focused eyes, calling to his comrades in an alien tongue. They chattered amongst themselves, undisturbed by the boy who only slept there in the sand. With precious few words, the men had finished their talk. The largest one, the one that had found the lad, lifted his lithe body into the air and loaded it on with the rest of the salvage.
Their work complete, they set off into the dunes once again, hidden behind a distorted veil caused by the heat.
The sand grew soft and malleable under the relentless lapping of waves. Each rolling wall of foam carried with it a piece of debris. There were splintered beams snapped in twain by the sheer force of the sea, waterlogged chests filled with soggy maps and rusted treasures, all washed ashore to the barren beach where nothing seemed to live. And how could it? The sun beat down with a relentless fury unknown in the outside world. It was a deceiving ploy, the golden orb above promised beauty but delivered only wrath as it scorched everything in its sight. The sand grew dry in minutes when the waves stopped reaching them, leaving a thin and grainy crust to each piece of salvage that managed to finally set foot on Fallien.
From the far off dunes came three travelers. Like wraiths they moved, relentlessly despite the heat and sand. They were natives; born into the harsh conditions they traversed and experts in how to survive it. Behind them they lead horses burdened with the task of pulling wagons through the shifting landscape. When the natives reached the shore, horses in tow, it was no surprise to them what clung to the land. They'd seen the signs of the shipwreck from miles away as the vultures gathered at the beach. The fresh corpses made a meal rich in salt and still moist from the water. But the dead were not what the men were after.
One by one they split off, looking over every inch of the sand. They picked up crates and barrels, large chests, pieces of gold shimmering in sunlight; whatever could even be considered of value they took and loaded onto their wagons. When the larger things were packed, the three moved to each corpse, scaring the vultures off as the did. Taking clothing, coins, jewelery; the natives seemed to lack any respect for the dead. Their faces and skin were hardened with sunlight, and so it appeared that their hearts were as well.
And then one came to the last body; the body of a boy not yet in manhood. He wore a bright pink shirt tousled from the sea and exposing his midriff. His pants were foreign, made from a tough material in dark blue. Shoeless and wearing bare minimal, the traveler who bent down to examine him could only assume he was just another sailor. Perhaps his end was tragic; a young boy trying to earn his keep on the ship after being orphaned. But the man shook his fantasies out of mind. He'd come with a purpose, not to daydream in the restless heat.
Yet as he dug his large dark hand into the loose jean pockets, the boy groaned in a weakened voice. The man stumbled slightly, taken aback by the small surprise. He stood up with wide and focused eyes, calling to his comrades in an alien tongue. They chattered amongst themselves, undisturbed by the boy who only slept there in the sand. With precious few words, the men had finished their talk. The largest one, the one that had found the lad, lifted his lithe body into the air and loaded it on with the rest of the salvage.
Their work complete, they set off into the dunes once again, hidden behind a distorted veil caused by the heat.