Death
Alone, screaming. She was left with only her own tears, her own anger, sadness. The only feelings she still had in her heart, and the more she screamed, the more they left her, empty like a shell. To her chest she clutched the two charred bones that remained of her lover, under her the mud was disturbed by her kicking and punching, a giant scar was left into the land that day, not only in the material sense, beside the charred patch of grass, the spirit of the land, the weave itself, was crying for the loss of the shaman.
The rain came, mixing in with her tears, she had nothing. At that very moment, any shred of remaining illusion that was her power, had gone away. Closing in was the sorrowful snorting of a bear that followed his nose. The magic touched animal felt his master but could not find him, only did he find his mate, reeking of his scent. Beltzer sat beside her and nudged her with his powerful snout, not to avail, she refused to move.
Where's my angry human? he seemed to say, but Stela laid in a heap, dead silent. The wet bear laid beside her, mourning, but still braving the rain to keep her warm. She smelled so much like his master.
Come morning, the rain had gone away, a smoky fire was drying the little wet wood she would throw at it. Beltzer dragged back a doe, still warm, still twitching. He felt he should care for his master's mate. She was the one who would bring him honey and pet him too, also, she made his angry human calmer. But she did not hear him, not like Huntsekker did before. He nudged the doe at Stela, who looked his way a moment then to the doe. A swift knife in hand, she stabbed the twitching animal and it stopped, finally. She removed the bloodied knife and continued what she was doing. The bear licked his snout and watched her again some more. Knife on bone, she was carving the second femur into a snake, slowly and with great care. The shape was there, now she was adding little rings for the scales, she would soon switched to a steel needle for smaller details.
The first femur she'd kept it's shape, washed it, boiled it. Was now ivory white. She would bury that one, even if that's all she would bury, he would lay in the ground he loved so much. With his spirits of stone and earth. Once she was done with the bone snake, she placed them together and turned to the doe. She was hungry now and the bear had little patience when food was so close and yet so far. She carved out a large chunk and left it to the bear and turned to the fire to cook her own. But then she looked again and the fat Beltzer wouldn't touch the meat, instead he had turned and yelled out to the woods. Stela didn't understood, but after a moment, a fatter, bigger bear lumbered out of the bushes, a tiny cub padding along behind her. Danger, she thought, but her sense of preservation failed to engage, she just sat there, bloody meat in hand. The female bear spotted the woman and quickly got to her hind legs and let out a dominating growl to scare off the woman, but still she didn't budge. Beltzer turned to his mate and in their own language, tried to make her understand, but she would not have it. She kept on screaming at the woman who just sat there, head low.
Eat me, she thought in vague despair.
Sniff sniff she looked up, the small cub was licking the blood from her hand, yearning for the piece of meat she still held. She opened her palm and allowed him to eat it, she even laughed through her tears because the soft tongue was tickling her. The cub climbed over her lap and licked her face, the salty tears tasted delicious.
She raised her hands and petted the small creature and whispered to his ear.
Baruk... The two parents watched on, mute with sorrow.