Sun Mote Copse Holding out

She was slightly surprised but pleased to find that Bastian had remained in the area. The weather was rough, raining ice to coat the ground and freeze the already frigid snow. The cold had come and it held them tight, unwilling to release it's prey. Asherah thought this more proof of Molech's punishment, though she prayed that the Many Armed God would soon note her undying devotion. Somewhere she hoped that both Honey and Eshamun were cold in the storm. It was the only way she could make herself feel better about the situation, though she hoped that somehow the children that Honey had taken (even her own daughter) were warm and safe. The sins of the father were not those of the son.

She had just finished praying at the shrine, having delivered the bloodied bones of a hare. She had torn it before the shrine to melt the snow and stain the ground with red. She hoped this would please her God. As she made her way back towards her den and her children, she caught sight of Bastian and drew closer to him. She was alarmed by his appearance and her eyes widened. His pupils were tiny, smaller than they should be, his nose dripped and there was some kind of energy to him that unsettled her.

"Doctor." She called, running a critical eye over him. "Bastian...are you okay?" She knew that some plants could be addictive, knew that they did things to your mind and your body but she had never seen withdraw before. She kept her distance, fearing perhaps that he had the foaming madness her mother had spoken of once-upon-a-time. It made wolves turn on their families. If only Eshamun had a madness to claim other than selfish sin.