Personality

The creature that once was has now faded into history. That lack of confidence is gone as is the empathetic creature that always wished to help a stranger. She has grown older and wiser...and lost her mind on more than one occasion. She is a very whimsical being now...though this only seems to appeal to the demon folk around her. With the new black heart that Kasdeya forced upon her, she gained immortality as well as a great deal of strength and power. Danika does not hold any desire to rise in the ranks of Kasdeya's army, though. In fact, she fancies herself as a simple cheer leader. Constantly cheering on Kasdeya and her forces, Danika is extremely supportive and proud of her daughter. Though Kasdeya is seen as a literal blight upon the world, Danika could not be more proud of all that her daughter has done and gained. She knows her daughter will rule the world one day and she hopes to be there to see it. Childish and silly, she loves her fellow demon, Malice, and finds him absolutely adorable. She still loves to collect bones and make jewelry out of it. Due to Kasdeya's orders, not a single demon will refuse a gift from Danika...though most have come to enjoy the females presence. She dotes on the demons as if they were her own children...and since most never had parents who cared, they simply allow it. Eating the attention up. Cruel as they might be, Danika is now one of them...not to mention Kasdeya's mother. Anyone loyal to Kasdeya would absolutely give their life for Danika as well.

Life update. (Current as of 2020)

A life full of hardships seemed to come to an end when she met Loa, though like every other happy moment in her life, this one was brief as well. Children were had and not a single one seemed to linger or remain with Danika. She did her best to be a good mother but her children simply abandoned her. In grief she pleaded to whatever spirits would care to hear her to grant her a child that would love her as she loved them. It turned out someone heard her plea and the Viscet known as Tyramet, whom came from another world entirely, granted her wish. Together they bore a child, and though Danika gained a daughter whom loved her dearly...it caused a great rift between her and her mate, Loa. Feeling not only betrayed, but cautious of the new child, he chose to leave. Danika had born a child of darkness and she would not heed his warnings about her, so he simply abandoned them both. Danika devoted her entire life to Kasdeya, raising her with all the love a mother could possess for her only daughter. As Kasdeya grew and eventually parted ways from her mother, Kasdeya always returned to her, bearing gifts for her beloved mother. Danika had finally gained the child she always wanted. But the outside world gained nothing from Kasdeya's birth but devastation. As Danika grew older, Kasdeya found herself growing angry at her mothers mortality, not wanting to lose her. For a brief time she placed her mother into a chamber within the Abyss that stopped time. Leaving her mother in a deep slumber so as not to have to worry over her lack of ability to sit within the small cave for such a length of time. In the end, Kasdeya appealed to her father, requesting for a method of returning her mother to her youthful form. Tyramet, being the loving father that we was, actually gave Kasdeya what she desired. Danika was returned to a youthful age, something around 19 or 20, but her mind seemed to be lacking due to her time within the Abyss. Danika had been trapped within a horrific nightmare, unable to escape. Her awakening displayed a different Danika than the one Kasdeya had placed to sleep. A Danika that seemed oddly free of the grief that had held her captive for so many years. To avoid her mother aging again and perishing of mortality, Kasdeya forced her mother through the trials of the black hearts. She forewent the torture that most subjects went through and simply hardened her mothers heart to that dark black stone that radiated demonic energy. Her mother died, then, only to be reborn as a false demon. A black hearted beast of the Abyss. This seemed to eliminate any empathy that remained in Danika for anyone or anything aside from Kasdeya and a choice few demons she previously knew. Danika is not overly powerful but her aging has ceased. She is never required to preform any tasks for Kasdeya but she almost always desires to follow her child to the surface any time she goes. The wars and devastation that Kasdeya has unleashed does not seem to affect Danika in the slightest. In fact, she seems to encourage her daughter on her chosen path. She is a very proud mother and cheers for her daughter and her demon army from the side lines. She does not allow people to suffer, though, and fancies herself the clean up crew. Placing a quick 'shot' of energy to the forehead of anyone that survived the destruction Kasdeya's army laid upon the land. It is mostly due to Danika alone that no survivors are ever recovered from a place that Kasdeya's army attacks.

Early life.

From the very moment that Danika's mother, May, laid her egg, Danika faced judgement. Danika's egg was pure black with small flecks of color decorating its form. However beautiful the egg might have been, May's sister Urth, warned her that the egg was an ill omen. Should May keep the egg, and the child that hatch from it, unfortunate times would be hers. For the longest time, May ignored her sister Urth, and held all the love for her unhatched child as any normal mother would. Danika's father, Seeker, being far more superstitious and secretly thinking over Urth's words, it wasn't but a short time after the egg had been lain that Seeker began noticing things. Perhaps it was simply due to Urth pointing out that bad things would be happening that he noticed them more. Perhaps it was truly because of the egg, and some curse or omen attached to it. He did not know for certain, all he knew was that the humans had come and had begun to tear their forest apart. Their territory was shrinking, trees ripped down and the land dozed over, leaving nothing but empty, destroyed, land. Within a matter of days of the humans arrival, the pack had needed to pick up and relocate. Urth had tried to tempt Seeker and May into leaving the egg behind, but May refused, and wanting to keep his mate happy, Seeker supported her. A new home was found, high in a forest mountain, and not long after the pack had settled in, the egg had hatched. Now, none of the pack had horns, nor had they ever seen a horned viscling or viscet before. Such things were simply...unimaginable. Urth once more claim bad omens, pointing to the odd coloring of the little viscling and its strange eyes, not to mention that horn it bore. The pack began to whisper among themselves, but May would not have any of the negative talk about her child. Silencing anyone who spoke ill of her newly hatched daughter, May gave the viscling a name. Danika. A beautiful name, May thought, Danika was her little morning star, bright and beautiful. Peace was brief, and it was barely into Danika's first month of life that a new pack decided to visit the forest. Instead of avoiding Danika's pack and seeking elsewhere for land, the new pack decided to challenge them for the land. Danika's father attempted to persuade the alpha of their pack to simply move on and find a different piece of land where they could settle, not wanting the pack to suffer. The rival pack was much larger than Danika's pack was, and they would be sure to lose if they decided to fight. The Alpha did not listen, though, and the pack was confronted. It was cruelty that drove the rival pack, it seemed, for instead of simply fighting and chasing Danika's pack off of the land, the rival pack seemed to want to kill them. The Alpha was killed. Instead of a fair fight between Alpha's, Danika's Alpha was attacked by three rival members, along with the Alpha.

Danika does not remember the events that unfolded that night, but after the death of the Alpha, the pack attempted to flee, several members being taken down by the wicked rival pack. Danika, Urth, May, and Seeker, all managed to get away and hide higher in the mountain, a snow storm causing the rival pack to call off their search and to head back to their newly claimed territory. It was just the small family now, but at least they had all survived. Huddling together in a small cave, attempting to not disturb the hibernating bears that were within, the family waited out the storm. For three days they waited, hunger setting in. Danika was growing weak due to lack of nourishment and her mother began to worry. After a short debate between the three adults, May decided she would simply go out into the storm and find food of any kind to bring back. Not wanting his mate to endure the storm, Seeker forced May to stay with Urth and Danika, claiming that Danika liked May way more than she liked him. It was with a kiss and a smile to his mate that Seeker said farewell and vanish into the storm. A storm from which he never returned. Chances were that he lost himself in the storm and could not find his way back. Danika's father most likely froze to death, somewhere buried under the mountain snow. Three more days went by and the storm finally moved on. The two adults had needed to dig themselves a path out of the little cave, the snow having completely covered the opening. The sun beamed down, though offering no warmth to those below as they climb their way out of the cave. Danika needed to be carried, for she was far too weak to move about on her own. Urth was an older Viscet and her body did not quite work as well as May's did, so it was May who volunteered to hunt for the three of them. Heading back into the cave to wait, Urth set Danika closer to the bears and moved away from her, whispering the entire time that May was away of how this all was Danika's fault. The pack was gone, because of Danika, Seeker was gone, because of Danika....and if May didn't come back, this would be Danika's fault, too. Danika was a curse, she was cursed. Danika should never have been born. Danika, being so very young and impressionable, took all of her aunts words in, her heart breaking with each idea, each comment. Each nasty thought...

May returned, though, carrying two rabbits and a fox. As weak as Danika was, she crawl her way to her mother, attaching herself to her leg, and weeping softly against her fur. " I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." This was all that Danika could muster, May all the while attempting to soothe her daughter. She had no idea why she was crying, nor why she was apologizing, but she did have her suspicions. Not wanting to cause a commotion and perhaps wake the sleeping bears, she sat herself down, ensuring that Danika ate an entire rabbit. Snow was used to keep everyone hydrated, and there was plenty of it. Having not eaten, and knowing that two rabbits and a fox were not enough to hold everyone over, she gently sat Danika near the edge of the cave and pat her head. " I will be back soon, with more food, this time..." With a glance towards Urth, May made her voice firm, but still soft. "Don't even talk to her..." With that, May head back into the snowy forest. Danika watched her mother until she could no longer see her, glancing back inside the cave and allowing her eyes to adjust. When they did, she saw her Aunt Urth, glaring at her. There was so much hate within that glare that Danika had to turn away, curling herself up and burying her head in her paws.

"This is all your fault..." Whispered Urth. "Everything is your fault...Our pack is gone, your daddy is gone. You are going to kill us all. I should just feed you to the bears right now. At least the world would be rid of you....Before you can cause any more problems." Danika shook, moving her paws to her ears, she didn't want to hear it. " It's not my fault...I didn't do anything..." Danika whispered, a little horse, her voice shaking with sobs. "You were born!" Snapped Urth. "I told your mum to get rid of you, and look what happened! This is all your fault! If only she'd have listened to me, none of this would ever have happened!" Urth's voice, and her fury, had begun to rise, now. "It's not my fault!" Shout Danika, shaking her head and turning to look at her aunt. "EVERYTHING IS YOUR FAULT!" Urth screamed. Danika gasped, pointing her paws forward. "Aunt Urth!" Urth turn her head, just as a massive grizzly paw shot forward and right into the side of her head. Urth screamed as she was knocked over, the bears woken from their slumber due to the arguing. "Help me! Help...me...!" Urth scream, her voice garbled. What was Danika to do, though? A little viscling was no match for three massive grizzly bears. One of the bears caught sight of little Danika, only to turn and begin a quick run towards her. Turning, Danika scurry out of the cave and began running as fast as she could, fear gripping her body and sending adrenaline coursing through her. "Mommy! Mommy!" She cried, glancing back, only to see that the bear chose not to chase her any further than the edge of the cage. She still ran, crying and screaming for her mom.

"Danika!" Came a shout, some distance away. "Momma!" Cried Danika, the two rushing together. The rabbits that May had been holding were dropped and Danika scooped up in her arms. "What happened? Where is Auntie Urth?" Panic was clear in her tone, but Danika could do little more than sob her reply. " T...The...b...bears...s...she woke...w...woke the...them..." As horrible as she felt about her aunts passing, Danika also felt...somewhere in her heart...that Urth had deserved it. She had been so mean and cruel. She got what she deserved...May held her daughter for a short time, allowing her to cry herself to sleep. Cradling Danika in one arm, she stoop to pick up the rabbits in the other. She use the rabbits as a sort of blanket, covering Danika with them and tucking her tightly against her chest. Night was coming and she needed to find shelter for them.

A month, then two, passed, just Danika and her mother. Danika's mother was always sure to tell her how lovely and beautiful she was, and never once seemed to claim that Danika was at fault for the horrible happenings of late. Danika cherished her mother, watching everything the female did and attempting to mimic it. The winter seemed to grow far more nasty than it had been before, though, and several nights were spent hiding in a den May had dug for the two of them. Foot upon foot of snow fell, and again, the two were able to come out of the den when it had stopped. Food was scarce, but the two seemed to make due, May always allowing Danika to eat her fill. Danika never eating as much as she should, because she worried for her mother. She could see that her mother was thin, her ribs showing at her sides. Her mother always told her to keep looking forward to spring and summer. They would eat great, then!

Allowed a moment to play outside, Danika took it. Her mother offering a game which Danika had never played before. May claimed that it would help Danika learn to hunt, so Danika was eager to participate. May would hide, and Danika would seek her out, but once she was found, May could run, and Danika would have to chase her down! It was a fun game, and the two played for several hours, laughing and giggling. When it was Danika's turn to hide, she picked a spot she thought was good, only to have her mother sneak up behind her and whisper a low 'boo' into her ear. Screaming in mock fright, Danika began to run, her mother snickering as she gave her a head start. "You can't get away from me!" May shouted. All the noise took its toll, though. The vibrations against the soft, fresh, mountain snow, causing it to tumble. May glance up and back as she caught the sound, her heart dropping and body bursting into action. " Danika! Run!" May shout. Danika still thought her mom was playing, though, besides, she was already running. May began running, chasing after Danika, only to have her veer sideways. " Danika!" The sheer panic in May's voice cause Danika to stop where she was, ears low, and look back. May had to turn, scooping up Danika and once more breaking into a run down the side of the mountain. "Head low, head low!" May screamed, pressing Danika's head down and into the fur of her chest. May ran as fast as she could, but it was not fast enough, the snow tumble around her, pushing her forward. She did her best to try and stay atop it, but to no avail. The two were pushed down the mountain, tumbling in the snow. In the end, May curl herself up, wrapping herself tightly around Danika.

Danika had been knocked out, but when she woke she saw nothing but darkness. She could feel fur against her body, could smell the scent of her mother. As she move, though, the snow seemed to press in around her. "Momma..." She whined, tugging against the fur of May's chest. May did not move, her body stiff and cold. "Momma...?" Danika whisper, nudging her mother and attempting to get her up once more. No reply. It was perhaps then, that Danika lost every bit of hope she had held. Her body crumple, curling into her mothers form and tears streaking down her muzzle. "My fault, my fault...my fault..." These were the words she spoke as she cry herself to sleep. Huddled against and clutching tightly to her mothers form.

It was perhaps the warmth of her mothers fur that had saved her, though. Keeping her just warm enough that she could survive. Some short time after the avalanche, Danika woke to the sound of barking. She had never seen a dog before, so the paws that uncover her then and the muzzle that poke down into her hole startled her. More barking, and a human child ran towards the dog. "What'd ya fin' this time, Judy?" The little boy spoke, words that Danika could not understand. "Aww wow! Looky there!" Amazement was clear in the boys tone, Jude, the dog, waggling her tail as he reach in and grasped up Danika. She offer no struggle, no movement, nothing...Her will was gone, she didn't care what he did to her. He could feed her to the dog, for all she cared. "I ain't never seen one with a horn b'for, 'ave you?" He spoke to Judy, the dog simply waggling her tail in response. Looking into the hole once more, the boy frown, using his foot to uncover a little more of May. " Oh..." Hesitating, he clutch the little viscet to his body, petting it gently. "I'm sorry little'un..." He spoke gently before lowering his body and attempting to recover May's from with snow. He couldn't really bury her, and burying her meant nothing to Danika, but for a human, he felt it was needed. "I didun' know ya, but i'm sure ya were a good'un..." The only words he knew to say to a deceased critter.

With Danika still in his arms, he took her down the side of the mountain and towards his home. A tiny village just at the base of the mountain. "Look ma! Lookit what Judy foun'." Once inside the warm house, the boy offer Danika up to his mother so she could view her. "Wha..? Oh lordy Jim! What is that thing?" She narrow her eyes in surprise, attempting to get a better look at the creature before her. "I thin' it's onea 'em viscets...but this'n's a baby, ma. 'Is mum an 'em got caught in 'at avalanche. 'is mum ain't make it..." There was a pause, and Jim open his mouth, only to be interrupted by his mother. "No, ye ain't keepin' nuthin' else, Jim. This's been a hard winter, an' Pa can barely feed us...let 'lone all them animals ya keep bring'n home." The boy whined, tucking Danika into his arms and hugging her tight. "But Ma! 'Ee ain't got no family! 'E'd die if I sent 'em back out 'ere now!" The human woman shook her head and motion towards a large pot she was working over. " If'n ya want, Jim...I can put 'em in tha stew..." Horrified by the idea, Jim turn and stomp his way out of the house. He didn't go far, though. Heading to another house, he knock on the door and wait until it was answered.

A human female, about the same age as Jim's mother, answered the door, glancing down to Jim and his charge. " Whacha got 'ere Jimbo?" She inquired as she step aside, opening the door for him. "It's one a 'em baby viscets! It's ma and it got stuck in 'at avalanche...It's ma ain't make it..." This human seemed to sympathize more with the boy than Jim's ma had. "Oh...poor thing..." Petting behind Danika's ear, she pause, poking the horn on its head. "I ain't ever seen one with a horn a'fore..." She questioned, curiously. "Me neither..." Said Jim. There was, again, a pause, before Jim finally spoke. "I know you'd lost Sally recently, an' she was as good a huntin' dog as huntin' dogs go. Ma won' let me keep 'is baby...she said she'd put 'em in a stew...." The woman laugh at this, nodding for Jim to go on. "I was wonderin' if you'd keep 'em...'E ain't got no Ma, now, an' I can't keep 'em....Maybe you'd be able to train 'em?" The female was quiet, and silence ran on for a short while before the woman sigh, moving to take Danika from Jimbo. "Well..." Danika didn't move, her head low and eyes never once looking towards the human woman, her body limp in her hands. "Poor babe..." It was obvious that something was wrong with the little 'cet. Pitying the creature, and not able to simply send it off to its death, the woman nod her head. "Okay Jimbo...I'll keep 'em..." The boy threw his hands up in a cheer. "Yess! I knew you'd come through for 'em! Thank ya Ma'am! " Shaking her head, she gently pat Jim's back and guide him towards the door. "Go home, Jimbo...sun's settin' an' yer ma 'll be callin' fer supper soon..." With that, Jim head out and the woman took over.

For the longest time, Danika did not care. She had lost everything, and sometimes, all she wanted to do was die. However, the human woman, who came to be known as Ma Red, was very patient. The first that Danika had actually looked up and viewed the woman, she noticed how different she was compared to the others. Most humans had pretty dull hair, blonde, or brown, or black, but not Ma Red. Ma Red, probably got her name due to the fact that her hair was a brilliant, fiery red. Her skin was pale, far more pale than any of the other villagers, and a lovely splatter of freckles all over her pretty face and body. Danika didn't really think humans were all that appealing to look at, but Ma Red was beautiful. She always wore a gentle smile for Danika, and seemed to have so much patience to offer. Ma Red didn't pester or push Danika, though, and gave her plenty of space and time to work things out. In time, Danika chose to give Ma Red a chance.

Ma Red's patience seemed to have paid off, for Danika emerged from the corner where she has positioned herself and began to explore. Eventually, Danika came to trust and love Ma Red, the female reminding her of a human version of her mother. Jimbo came to visit often, though it wasn't until Danika gained a little more courage that she was able to actually entertain the little boy and his dog, Judy. Strength returned to Danika, and eventually she forgot her sorrows. Though she could not communicate with the humans, Ma Red and Danika seemed to work out some form of communication. Ma Red trained Danika to hunt. Typically the two would scout the forest together, searching for tracks. When prey was found, Ma Red would choose a position to hide and she would send Danika out to retrieve the prey. All Danika had to do was listen for Ma's whistles and return a whistle of her own. There was a whistle for just about anything, left, right, circle, backwards, forwards, help, killed, attacked, so on and so forth. They made an absolutely wonderful team. Not just Ma and Danika benefiting from their teamwork, but the entire village. Meat was able to be traded and everyone was able to eat.

At the end of Danika's first year, she had grown a great deal, and Ma had decided to trade some meat for a little home improvement. Danika was so large that they needed the extra space. It was about this time that a new illness was beginning to make its way through the village. It began as a simple cough and soon became fever. The affected persons would vomit and be unable to eat, their body sweating profusely. Anyone affected was highly contagious, and family was forced to stay away. During this time, Jimbo's father became afflicted and his mother sent him to stay with Ma Red while she tended to him. Busying Jimbo with helping fix her home, Ma Red attempt to keep the boy busy so he wouldn't worry over his family. Danika was charged with helping Jimbo, and she would try to do her best. Jimbo, on the other hand, happened to want to do a little more than what he was capable of. Instructing Danika to lift him up on her back, Jimbo climbed atop the roof and try and begin a little patchwork of his own. Running out of supplies, he motion for Danika. "Brin' me up some a 'at wood." Not understanding, she gave a whistle, only to have him point and motion towards the wood pile in a corner. Hesitating a moment, she slowly move towards the pile and gather up a couple pieces. She brought them to him and try and reach them up to him, only to have him simply wave her up.

She had a feeling that she shouldn't, but in the end, she wanted to do as she was told. Using a set of stacked barrels, she climb her away up and atop them, then hop her way up to the roof. She slip a moment before catching her footing. Slowly and carefully padding her way forward, she brought the wood to Jimbo, only to have the roof give way under the stress of their joined weight and the lack of support. The two fell downward, right into Ma Red's home. Danika was fine, but she had landed right on top of Jimbo's arm, causing the boy to scream as his arm cracked. "My arm!" Danika jumped up, staggering backwards. Ma Red, who was inside the home but thankfully out of the way of the fall, rushed towards Jimbo, picking him up and helping him from the rubble. "Oh dear...I t's broken." Shushing Jimbo softly, she guide him out and towards the village medic, whom was away dealing with someone suffering from the sickness.

A guilty Danika did her best to place a tarp over the hole they had made, but she was too afraid to go back up on the roof, so it ended blowing off. When Ma Red return, she quietly helped Danika in her mission, covering the hole and gently speaking to the viscet. Danika couldn't understand what the woman was saying, but she could tell that she was upset. It wasn't until later that night that she learned the full extent of why she was, and it wasn't just because she had fallen through the roof with Jim and broken his arm...Jimbo's mother, along with a few other villagers, came pounding at the door. Upon opening it, Danika caught sight of a large group of angry faces. "'At beast ye got's bad luck. We think ya'd be best ta be rid 'a it. We ain't want'n no more bad luck ta be on 'r village!" Danika rose, worried for Ma Red's safety as she stood in the doorway and face the angry group.

"Lookit tha beast! I ain't ever seen nun 'at 'ad a 'orn... 'ave yee?" Spoke one of the men, the group shaking their heads. "'E didn' mean no harm, Sir. T'was all jus' a big accident...." Ma Red said gently. This did not seem to sooth anyone, nor deter them from their insinuations. "I bet if'n 'at beast leaves ever-one'd get better!" Shout a woman, everyone nodding in agreement. "You can't simply ask me ta get rid 'a 'em..." Ma Red plead, shaking her head. "Please...'e's done nothin' wrong, truly. T'was only a accident!" In the whole time she had ever been with Ma Red, Danika had never seen her act the way she was, now. Stepping forward, wanting to protect Ma Red, Danika lower her ears, drawing her teeth back and growling at the group. Her head low and the horn upon her head pointed forward. "Vicious beast!" Gasp one of the woman in the front. "Don' let 'at 'orn touch yee, prolly make ya catch a sickness!" To this suggestion, the group step backwards, almost as a whole. "Ye gotta get rid a it, Red! Ain't no one want's it 'ere!" The group nod in agreement. "Please..." Tears rose to Ma Reds eyes as she try and appeal to a crowd that simply would not listen, all the while trying to calm a protective Viscet. "Look...Give me a few days. I will show you all..." Reaching out, Ma Red gently touched all along the horn atop Danika's head. "If'n I get sick...I'll make 'em leave...But If not, ya'll gotta leave us alone..."

The crowd hesitate a moment, watching Red and Danika. Red seemed to grow tired of waiting for their reply, for she simply step back and close the door. That night, Danika try her best to sooth Ma Red as she sat before the fireplace, stroking her head. Thankfully, some form of luck was in Danika's favor, for Red did not get sick. People would come to the door and check on her constantly, seeking any sign of illness in Red. As time ran on, more people became sick, some even perishing from the sickness. People wept, mourning their losses. Jimbo lost his father, and soon after his mother, the boy becoming an orphan. Red offered to keep the boy, but he declined, no longer the pleasant and caring young boy he had once been. He now shoot accusatory glares filled with sorrow and hate towards Danika and Red. Danika's luck turned to be nothing more than a freight train in a dark tunnel, though. No real sign of positive change, but of something more sinister.

Knowing nothing else to do in their time of sorrow, the village began to whisper behind Red's back, calling her evil, or a witch, or a demon. Why else has the woman not gotten sick? She was a witch, and Danika was her familiar, or her demonic servant, or something equally wicked and sinister. Red was not deaf, she could hear these things being said as she pass by villagers and try and trade with them. She and Danika were no longer welcomed at any homes and they could not trade their meat to anyone. It seemed humans were like Viscets, in some ways, for they were blaming her and Ma Red for the goings on in the village. Danika couldn't understand it. Why was everything happening this way? Fearing for their safety, Red began packing bags which she had sewn together and made to fasten around Danika, a sack on each side. In the dead of night they left, just in time, it seemed. For as they head out into the forest, they caught the scent of smoke. Looking back towards the direction of the village, they could see fire, right where Reds home had been. The villagers would have killed Red and Danika...

Their pace increased, Red clearly worried that when the villagers found no bodies within the burnt remnants of the home they would look for them. She hoped she was wrong, but Red seemed to keep her quick pace until they were well away from the village. For two years Danika and Red lived on the road together, working as a team the way they always had. It was Danika that had found a rundown cabin in their travels. With a little patchwork, the two were able to make the cabin into a livable space. There they reside for a good long while, quite happily at that. At least, until Danika's bad luck caught up with them. The sickness which they had thought to have left behind, along with the village, finally found Red. The woman try her best to put on a brave face for Danika, but Danika could tell something was wrong. Her coughs grew worse, and soon Red began to vomit and fever. Unable to hunt with her, Danika try her best to hunt for the two of them. What she couldn't do, however, was cook the food. Danika kept the fire stoked and supplied with wood, assisting her human friend as best she could through her sickness.

Knowing that her time was running out, Red wrote a note and gave it to Danika, instructing her to find humans, specifically, a doctor. The command for find, and command for Doctor, were understood, but Danika did not know where to look, she had no idea where to start! What she did was run. Choosing a direction and running as quickly as she possibly could. She had not wanted to be away from Red for longer than she had to be, and she gave quiet prayers to whatever gods there might be to save her friend, to help her remain strong, at least until she was able to return to her. Without stopping to rest, Danika ran for two days straight before exhaustion finally caught up with her. She found water and food, resting only briefly before she began again. Thankfully, she found a road that seemed frequently traveled, taking it and running as quickly as she could. Two more days and she finally came to a human town, much larger than the little village she had been from. The sight of her seemed to startle and frighten the humans, most steering clear of her. As humans go, they seemed far to worried about themselves to give Danika a chance, even as she try and shove her letter towards them.

The letter was taken, finally, by one of the guards who approached her. Looking it over and shaking his head, he fold the note up and motion for Danika to follow him. Doing so, she followed him to a little home that smelled strongly of herbs and tonics. A brief discussion took place before the doctor who lived in the home threw his hands up in frustration. Stomping over to a wood shelf, he adjust his glasses and view the contents upon it. Picking out a few things, he began crafting some mix of herbs, finally bundling them up into a little package. Next came a note, which he scribbled quickly and attached to the package before tying it all up and together. "This isn't a charity...If I don't get paid I'll hunt you down!" spout the doctor, shoving the package at Danika. Taking the package and running, once more, as quickly as she could, she found herself lost. She could not exactly remember the path she had come from. It had taken her almost a full week to finally find someone who could supply them with medicine...she didn't want to waste another week to get back, but what choice did she have?

Her lack of direction caused her to spend a week and a half looking for home, but she finally found her way back. Panting heavily as she look to the quiet cabin before her. She could see that it was dark inside...she hadn't been there to keep the fire lit...Tears rose to her eyes as she step forward, gently pushing open the door, only to be assaulted by the smell of rotting meat. The food she had hunted for Red was still piled where she had left it, none of it had been touched. Her eyes needed to adjust, but she already knew what she would see. Her eyes fell upon the bed, where she could see the outline of the body, covered by thick blankets made of animal skins. Tears streak down her face as she approach the lifeless figure. Too late, she was too late. Chances were, though, she would have been too late even if she hadn't gotten lost. Red had probably passed somewhere close to the time she had left...perhaps the woman was sending her away in hopes that she wouldn't have to be there when she passed? She didn't know...

All that Danika knew was that, every single piece of her life came crumbling down once more. Every ounce of rage and sorrow she felt came bubbling to the surface and she could do little more than scream and cry, thrashing about the cabin and destroying everything around her. Tears streak down her maw and she finally spent the last of her energy, crumpling to the floor at the foot of Red's bed, clutching the blankets and crying herself to sleep. The next morning, when she woke, she felt empty, cold, and extremely lonely, a completely different viscet than she had been before. Placing the medicine package she had retrieved on top of Ma Red's body, she prepare a fire within the fireplace. With a large stick in her maw, she lit the end and carry the stick about the cabin, setting fire here and there. Once the fire grew, Danika thought about simply laying down and allowing the fire to take her with it, Red, and the cabin.

In the end, something forced her out of the cabin. She chose a spot near enough to the flames to feel the heat scorching against her face, the tears that streak down her face becoming steam. She stay the entire night, well into the morning, doing little more than watching the fire as it blaze, eating up the last thing that she had to care for. Only when there was nothing left but ash, did she decide to rise and move away from the scorched earth, a strange laugh emitting from her. Dankia did not know where she was going, or what she would do. She simply knew that she would stay well away from others. She was cursed, she believed this now. Why had it taken so very long for her to realize this? However, as horrible as the events within her life had been, she would continue on. If she were to perish, so would the good memories of her mother, of her father, of Ma Red...She was, perhaps, the only one left who remembered them, and she had to keep these memories alive.

Danika remembers them well, she could never forget them. Though some time has passed since Danika burned down the cabin after losing Red, she has grown past it and found herself a new home. She keeps to herself, and any time others approach her she will run away. She is afraid of whatever bad luck she may or may not have. If others move within a forest or land she has occupied she will quickly move on. Not willing to cause anyone harm. Though she finds herself extremely lonely at times, she just doesn't trust herself much, so she lives alone, her mind seemingly going the longer she remains alone. She lost a large piece of herself the night that Red died, and her continued loneliness seems to be taking a dramatic toll on her mental health as well, leaving a slightly less sane Danika roaming about.

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