Sunset Valley rabies awareness pro-am fun run race for the cure

There was a dead woman on the plains.

Lilitu had smelled something strange, and come across the body a little while later, brows knitted together in concern and horror. The wolf was stiff, lifeless, bloodied, with foam at the corners of her mouth.

The sight of her struck something deep and primal within Lilitu. She stood, stiff-legged with fear. 

She stood for a very long time, the wind howling over the flatlands, past her pinned ears.

Had she died alone?

There were scents here.

Lilitu would follow them to their source.

she was a mother, you know. qiao stepped from under the eaves of mountain laurel, her gaze masterfully communicating a sorrow she did not feel. 

she turned to the granite woman, noting the missing eye. that would be two cyclops in one day, wouldn’t it? fate had a strange sense of humor. 

her mate left not so long ago. in bad shape. qiao motioned towards the distant peak. i plan to visit with food in the morning.

Her head shot up, eyes catching sight of the newcomer. That golden gaze seemed to go right through her.

No, I didn't know, Lilitu replied, though the question had likely been rhetorical. She licked her lips nervously, nodding at the woman's plans.

I'll come with you, she decided, with a conviction that went down to the marrow of her bones.

She'd lain with a man once more, and her womb had not been filled. If there were children in need of a mother—perhaps, this hopeful mother in need of children was just what was required.

this woman’s compassion intrigued the priestess. qiao would likely have never extended such knowledge to a man, but she was curious what this stranger would make of it. 

come, the crone motioned. do not touch her. the sickness that killed her is very old, and very fatal. it has many names - but my kind called it ukugula. had she been human she would have held out her hand to guide lilitu around masquerade’s body. it would be best to bury her. you can dig, i hope.

she did not know what motives lilitu served, but in that hour it did not yet matter. qiao set to worrying the ground with her claws, preparing a shallow hole not so far from masquerade’s body. while she dug, she looked about her for any sort of tool that might help shift masquerade to her grave without risking transmission.

The matter-of-fact way the woman spoke about all this sent a chill down her spine, and upon request to dig, she did so. Lilitu was more than happy to bury the poor dead wolf—though wondering how close she could get without catching said. . .disease.

How do you know what she had? she asked, glancing at the other wolf through the spray of dirt as she worked. Her breath was coming shorter, but that was only due to exertion. And, perhaps, her heavy heart weighed her down as well; she hadn't had much experience with death.

Not in front of her face, at least.

blackened earth tilled with long pulls of each of qiao’s limbs. lilitu worked besides her, her breath jagged. 

it is the smell. qiao motioned to the body and stopped. the heavy scent of loam dispersed between them, but there was another lingering scent too. it was sour, a distant cousin to death — with a strange heat to it. and the condition. look at her mouth. she motioned to the red rime that frothed the dead woman’s jaws. 

she resumed digging. a shallow pit would be enough; once it was a satisfactory depth she motioned for the shadowed woman to stop. show me your hind paw. qiao turned, inspecting the offered digital cushion for any scrape or cut. use this one — do what i do.

qiao backed up to the dead woman, raising her hind limb to the body’s spine. once lilitu was in place, qiao gave a mule-kick aimed at the body. after several such blows, the body moved just enough that gravity took care of the rest.  in a cloud of dust and scree, masquerade fell into the pit. 

qiao spun and peered down from the lip of the pit. rubble was already falling around the stiffened body. it was a shame this body’s bones were cursed; she could have used them. 

now came the harder part of their task — pouring disturbed loam back into the hole. qiao worked until a mound appeared, and then she surveyed their work. that’ll do. come, i will show you our camp and introduce you to @Stormchaser.

Lilitu's one lime-colored eye rested upon the dead woman's face. Bloody froth dried upon the mouth; eyes staring sightless. She shuddered and looked away, awaiting the next instructions.

She lifted a hind paw, as instructed. Winced as Qiao kicked the body into the grave; it seemed so cruel, so callous. . .

But if this disease was truly contagious—

Okay, Lilitu murmured, and helped bury the body. Her stomach was churning and her heart hurt with the callousness of it all. But at least they were giving the wolf a proper burial.

She remained silent, unnerved by the stiffness of that she-wolf and the specter of death.

She did not sleep a wink that night.