(Okay! sounds good with me, I'll come up with some filler for now until we get them to the bigger plot beats)
There are many, many things that couldn't be helped, in this world. There had once been a time when the gods were kept in check, long ago. Before the world had been remade into what it was now. People had even been able to deny there were gods at all. That was impossible now, though.
If Victoria was listening, she'd be able to hear a not so nearby struggle going on. Someone was trying to run, stumbling over their own feet as they presumably tried to get away from whatever god was dealing with them. It didn't last long, though, their struggles stopping with a loud, piercing scream before being cut off.
She held Joel close as she listened to the struggle, her breath gradually becoming shallow. She started to murmur, “Yeah, easy for you to say, you’ve been wandering like this since-“ the scream cut her off, and even Charlie flinched. They froze. Charlie put a finger to her lips, signaling for quiet. Then they continued on, Victoria with her arms around Joel like a shield.
“If I recall correctly, there’s something up ahead,” Charlie whispered. “But I haven’t come across the place in a long time, so I’m not sure what we’ll find…”
There weren't any other major events in the forest, for now. Whatever the god had done to the person seemed to be enough to keep them from going for anyone else. No gods passed by the two women either, the entire forest seeming to have calmed down from the excitement of a home being burned.
Eventually, they came to a break in the trees. Charlie pushed away some overhanging branches, and they entered another clearing. Well, sort of.
In front of them lay the remnants of an urban city. What used to be skyscrapers standing tall were now sliced in half, collapsed in on each other, or half-buried in the earth, rising out of it at an angle. What was once gleaming, shining straight metal was now warped rust and vegetation. It was almost like a pile of decaying bodies of giants, left to rot, their skeletons covered over with soil and flora. The three, maybe four, hundred-year-old structures lay dormant, the bustle of life they once possessed now reduced to the silent spirits of trees, vines, and bushes.
The women stared in awe. Then Charlie whispered, "Right. I think I remember now. It might be dangerous, some animals might have made a home here, I'm not sure, but I want to see if we can find anything useful."
Victoria glanced at her, hesitant. "Gods?"
She bit her lip. "I'm not sure. Last time I came, I don't think I stayed long enough to find out."
"Should we, then…?"
She shrugged. "We're basically doomed to wander the earth forever, Victoria. Might as well have some fun with it."
The area was as calm as the rest of the forest appeared to be. There was a breeze, a cloud covering the sun for a moment before drifting past. Things weren't going to go wrong, were they? There'd be nothing that could happen in this skeleton of a once-bustling society. For now, there didn't seem to be any sounds or signs of gods, nor any large animals. This could change the further they went in, though. Things could always change in an instant.
(would humans be able to have/make weapons?)
(Yes, thankfully, seeing as it was deemed they still wouldn't be powerful enough to take down a god)
(Nothing advanced, though)
They stayed close, Charlie holding out her knife just in case. Victoria kept a hand over Joel's head. They stayed on stretches of grass that used to be streets, weaving around the large, overgrown piles of rubble that rose up on either side.
"These places always had big spaces where there would be piles of random stuff," Charlie murmured. "I just hope we can find something that isn't rusted or covered in weeds…"
"Why would there be piles of random stuff around here?" Victoria asked.
"Mm, I've heard different things. Some people say they were sacrifices to the gods, some say they were just piles of trash. Seems to be the latter though, because nothing happened to the people that did raid them."
She tilted her head. "And what are we looking for?"
"Something that will make it easier to carry this." Charlie gestured to the pack and the skins over her shoulder. "This will get harder to carry the longer we travel. I can't carry it forever."
"I can carry it when you get tired," she offered.
"Victoria, you have the baby."
"But I can still help…" Victoria knew Charlie tended to be a bit too prideful and independent to accept help from others, but she at least wanted to be of some usefulness.
"No, no, I'm fine. You don't need to do anything for me. Just be on your guard, yeah?"
"Yeah…"
They continued on, the conversation dying.
The space was quiet, for now. The sounds of animals were sparse here, even for someone with the abilities Victoria had. There seemed to be… less life, here, even with the lush plants and how hospitable it would be to animals and even humans. These places weren't forbidden, of course, there was nothing a human could do to try to fix this place, but visiting them was frowned upon. Not to mention what had become of them in recent times.
"Duck!" The word was said far off, possibly even on the other side of the area, but it was there nonetheless. It was hard to tell just what was going on other than that- that was the only word that had been shouted loud enough for anyone to hear.
At some point, Victoria sneaked her father’s camera out of the pack and took a few pictures of the fallen city. It was something she had never seen before, a moment she wanted to capture. Even if though there was the possibility of danger, she felt the urge for something to remember it by. Then she took a picture of Joel drooling, looking up at her.
The silence unnerved her, though. Occasionally she would hear the scuttling of rodents or the rubbing of a locust’s wings, but even that was rare.
The shout shocked them; instinctively Charlie put her hand around Victoria’s shoulders, bringing her down with her. Victoria gasped, then quickly put a hand over her mouth. They waited.
The sound of a skirmish could be heard from where the shout came from, in a moment one of the people involved breaking away to make a run for it. It was a young girl, running as fast as she could to try to find somewhere to hide. A boy was chasing after her, fireball in hand. He threw it, and it soared back the girl and over the two women before hitting a wall. The boy ignored the two women, though, focused on the girl. He tackled her, and they tumbled some.
"Got ya!" He said triumphantly, laughed as she tried to push him off.
"Jonnieeee, this is no fair!!"
Victoria felt something hot pass over her head. She looked just in time to see the fireball crashing into the wall, then turned back to see the boy tackling the girl. Feeling Charlie loosen her grip and standing, Victoria also got to her feet.
“How did I not hear them until now?” She muttered.
Charlie shrugged. “Maybe they’re not human.”
“I hope not,” she sighed.
“C’mon, let’s find out.” Charlie dragged her over, squeaking with surprise.
Charlie would wait for a break in the kids’ fun before she asked, “What are you two doing in a place like this?”
The two children looked up when they realized Charlie and Victoria were there, moving to get off each other and stand up.
"Big sis sent us here to play," the boy, Jonnie, said. "She said we're too destructive around the orchard, so we have to come here to play!" The girl nodded along, humming in agreement.
"Mhm! Jonnie's big sis is really nice, she's just waiting over there for us when we finish!"
"Ah, I see," Charlie said, offering a smile. "That's good. Just remember to be careful, yeah? I'm Charlie. This is my friend, Victoria."
Victoria gave them a wave, then gestured to her baby. "And this is Joel." He was staring at Victoria's hand, trying to mimic her wave.
Charlie chuckled at him before turning back to the kids. "What are your names?"
"I'm Jonnie, and this is Sara," the boy said, pointing to himself. Sara was looking at Joel, hands coming up to her cheeks.
"He's so cute! He reminds me of Miss Dare's kid back at the village, doesn't he remind you Jonnie?" Jonnie thought a moment, then nodded.
"He's really cute!" The boy concluded.
"Nice to meet you," Charlie said.
Victoria smiled. "He is, isn't he?"
They silently exchanged a glance as they spoke. Village? What village? Something in Charlie's gaze told Victoria not to ask about it.
Charlie turned to Jonnie and Sara. "So, how well do you think you know this place? We could use your help with something if you don't mind."
"Ah, we don't come here a lot," Sara said, sighing. "Jonnie's big sis doesn't like us exploring too much in case I end up getting hurt. I'm sure she does, though! Come on, we can take you to her!" Sara moved to grab Charlie by the hand, Jonnie moving to lead them through the city to the side they had come from.
“Oh, okay,” Charlie said, a little surprised when Sara grabbed her hand. “Thanks.”
Victoria momentarily stayed still to take a picture of the three of them before following behind Charlie.
The two children giggled some as they led the women away, Jonnie leading the way still. Sara and Jonnie led them around one of the buildings, a girl, perhaps fourteen years old, on the other side. Unlike most, it was very, very clear she was a minor god. She had large wolf ears, which perked some as the people approached. She looked at Jonnie in particular, starting to sign something to him.
"These are Charlie and Victoria! They're trying to find something around here, and we figured you could help big sis!"
When the older girl came into view, Charlie let go of Sara's hand, cursing under her breath. She'd been an idiot. They did not need another minor god right now. Even if she could prove helpful, it would be best if they went on their own. She felt Victoria cautiously coming up behind her.
"Um, actually, it's alright, we don't need to bother you, it's not that big of a deal…" she waved them off, taking Victoria's hand. The other woman's eyes widened when she caught sight of the girl's wolf ears.
Sara looked back when Charlie let go of her hand, confused. The girl looked up as Charlie spoke, reaching into her own pocket to pull out a whiteboard and marker before writing something down.
Are you sure? I'd be happy to help, the goddess offered, looking between the two women. Jonnie was by her side, looking at the two women himself.
Charlie was about to say something when Victoria tapped her shoulder. She gestured for Charlie to accept the girl's help.
"Are you sure?" Charlie muttered incredulously.
"Goddesses are better than gods, it would seem," Victoria said. "You asked them, we should let them help."
She sighed. "Not always true, but I suppose you have a point." She looked at the goddess. "Alright. We just need an easier and more efficient way of carrying our things." She gestured to the pack and skins over her shoulder.
The girl nodded some, looking over what the two had. She put her board away, motioning for them to follow her. She kept slower than the pace she usually kept, but it would still be relatively faster than a human's walking speed. Jonnie seemed to have no problem keeping up with her, Sara having to jog some.
Charlie pulled Victoria along, jogging alongside Sara. Joel gurgled; he was drooling again. Victoria kept one hand on the carrier so he wouldn't bounce around too much.
The young minor goddess led the two women through the city, coming to one of the buildings. It didn't look as reclaimed as the rest, pushing the door open. She paused there, pulling her board out again.
We need to be quiet, she wrote, looking around once before stepping in. This building isn't totally stable, but if no one shouts we should be perfectly fine.
They stared at the building, fascinated by the fact that they could actually see a few straight edges. Looking back at the goddess, Charlie nodded, while Victoria cleaned Joel and pressed a finger to her lips so he knew to be quiet. The child clumsily mimicked the gesture.
Charlie looked them over, an unreadable expression on her face, and led them inside.
Jonnie and Sara were quiet as well, each going up to take one of the goddess's hands. The girl offered a smile to both of them before looking back to Victoria and Charlie. Sure they would keep safe, the minor goddess made her way through the building with a much more leisurely pace. The building itself seemed to be less reclaimed by nature than the rest of the once soaring city, doors still able to open and the structure itself not being near as worn away. The goddess kept them to the first floor, though, walking to the end of the high ceilinged area.
The two women followed quietly after them, Charlie keeping her gaze ahead of her while Victoria looked around, taking in their surroundings. The floor seemed to shift between soft moss and crumbling concrete, and vines curled shyly on the walls. Yet the deeper they went, the less green and more brown and gray there was. It was almost like the cave that was once their home, and yet nothing like it.
Joel murmured inquisitively, but that was the only sound anyone made. Victoria kissed his head to quiet him as they approached the end of the room.
The goddess opened the door she had walked to, motioning for the two women to join her inside. She signed something to the children, and in a moment they were off with soft giggles to play together in this building. The girl watched for a moment before pulling her board up again.
There are supplies from the old world here, so there might be some kind of bag for you to use. The goddess stepped to the side, letting the two women look for themselves. There were shelves and shelves of things, dust covering most of the area. Everything was in boxes, though, and any markings that showed what was in them were lost to time.
Most gods can just make what they want appear, the goddess explained, Or through… She hesitated a moment before continuing to write, Other means, so no one really comes in here anymore. Means like using souls, trapping them in new, inanimate objects. A cautionary tale to tell to children that seemed to be more than fiction.
