Drunken Soul

All that mattered to her was the hope of a copper which would free her drink from captivity at the inn. The man's face shifted from concern to anger and he spun around and walked away from her. He had not spoken a word, she was sure of it. Liss could not fathom what had made the man react in this way. Anger grew inside of her. This man was trying to keep her away from her precious drink. How could he do such a thing, had he no heart?

The anger turned to boiling rage. The rage of a mother as someone stole her baby. She would have none of it. She bent and picked up a loose cobblestone; the weight felt good in her hand. Arm lifted high she charged. She had never run so far before. She reached him an instant. He had not even the time to turn before the heavy stone hit him over the head. There was a large cracking sound as the skull bone fractured. The sound echoed over and over again in her head. A sound so brutal, so grotesque, yet it gave her something, a feeling she had never experienced before. It felt good, it gave her strength. She knew it was wrong, but she could not stop. She relished it, she drank of it, let it fill her.

The man fell to the ground, his head hitting the cobbled street with and audible crack. His head lulled to the side. Blood started running out of his nose. The sight of the crimson liquid heightened the passion of the situation even further. She felt in control, no, she was in control. She controlled over life and death. And this time, she had decided, death was the way to go. She kicked the man hard in the side. A kick in the side did not have the desired effect, so she set to kicking at his already damaged head. The man was dead, she knew it; it did not really matter. She sat too her knees, deciding to use the weight of the cobblestone instead, pounding at his head.

As she saw the pus running from his ear, all thought of the drink, and all effect of the previous drinks were gone, all that was left was the ecstasy of the battle. Her senses returned to normal, to better than normal, and she saw everything with a brilliant sharpness. She could hear the thuds as the stone hit the man's head.

Her pounding stopped in the beat of a heart. She knew the man lying facedown in front of her.

It was her father.