Anechka

It was years ago, now, since I've set foot upon the docks of the Tether. If I were not immortal, it would have felt like an age. As I am, it feels like it is no over-simplification to say the End of Days was mere days ago.

And yet...

So much happened, then. So much has happened since.

When I arrived back on the island, the ruins of my shop had not been purchased by any others. Instead, it had been left to rot, left to be reclaimed by the jungle.

So many terrible memories... so much blood, and suffering, and death.

As many bad things that have happened to me over my many years, they were nothing compared to what the victims of that calamity saw.

I have asked around, and while some guards do recognize me, none can say whether Bina or Haseya or any of the people I tried to help were alive, or around.

Three names stuck out, however: Jacob Cross. I am uncertain if he was with the lioness named Loraen, now Taneesta, back then, but I am certain he was not so high in station as he is now. Former Rah, Sienna has apparently left the island, most likely for good (or so the gossip-mongers say), leaving the old viking Muunokhoi to run the island in her stead.

I've not had personal dealings with this Muunokhoi, but if he acts like the other vikings I've known here, he is to be feared. And possibly a good person to share a stein or four of mead with.

Regardless of the others, my time away from the island has given me a new lease on life. I have discovered withim myself to ability to form my body to the shape I always desired - a male one - thanks to a Ukranian witch I met upon returning to the Mother Land.

Now, I will re-open my shop, I will find new contacts for silks, and I will attempt to begin anew.
May I find old friends and new, and may my soul and the lost souls of the End of Days somehow find peace, in time.

I fear it may be easier for them than it will be for me. The memories of those days haunt me more than the ghosts themselves.

I honestly do not understand why I am doing this... no one will ever read this, I have no living relatives (perhaps someone descended from my family's lines, though I am not aware of them) to write to... Perhaps it is just whimsy or loneliness. Perhaps it is simply to practice my writing to further my business. I know not, but I will endeaver to write as often as I can.

The End of Days
Where do I even start? I was puttering about the shop when it all happened. The first quake came and shook the ground beneath me so violently I was momentarily pinned beneath several hundred pounds of rolled cotton. Shaken (no pun intended) but not hurt, I began to pick everything up. I had no inkling of what would happen next.

The next day, another quake hit, shattering the front windows of my store and making a mess of the place, but not leveling it. I wondered when this hell would end (and I hadn't even seen the Tether yet), even praying to the God I once believed in... that was when the waters rose up, wiping the island, drowning many that had been trapped by falling debris, and completely ruining a goodly portion of my stock. The stench of mold and mildew is near impossible to stand, but I am lucky that is the worst I fared.

Once I had cleaned up as best as I was able, I collected some clean linens, my sewing needles, and several balls of thread, I headed to the Tether. I forged through dark, surging waters, bombarded by the scent of blood and sound of the wretched cries of victims and mourners alike. The under hall was completely flooded, the infirmary blocked off. I was pointed in the direction of the stage (where they were keeping the injured) and promptly headed there. Once there I found myself not only offering my supplies, but actually STITCHING UP A WOMAN'S HEAD. Yes! Haseya, Native American, had a split scalp. I managed to do a pretty good job, considering my lack of experience treating other people's injuries. My own, certainly, but I have the aid of advanced healing to ease the process... It was, to say the least, nerve wracking. She seemed grateful enough, however. I... cannot remember who else I treated, if anyone. It's all been a daze.

A Member-To-Be Goes Missing... AGAIN!
Once everything was starting to settle, I received word from a recently discovered disaster victim and wereofox shifter by the name of Bina. We agreed to meet on a planned time in a secluded location... but she never showed. When I inquired others as to her location, I found she had been missing for at least a day-and-a-half. Alarmed by this prospect, I began searching but found few leads. It seemed, however, that along with Bina, her slave Donaghan, and her friend (another lycan), Hauk had also vanished.

For days I lamented, continuing my search and coming up with nothing until... until last night. I came across an elf woman who transforms into a large crow, named Kopi who was seeking them as well. We combined our efforts and managed to track the trio down deep in a sub-terrain dungeon. After Kopi picked the lock, we came upon a hellish scene. I... cannot even describe it. All that I have been through... it reminded me of my days in Salem. There was silver everywhere, so much that it stung my eyes and nose simple from being in the room, cruel contraptions, cages, the floor was layered in gore and blood. Bina... I am so sorry I could not save you from this, dear. Somehow... somehow I and Sim'ya will make this right. I swear it.