We once lived in a peaceful time where the cults all got along and respected each other, but those times are long gone now. It's been ten years since the fallout. And it's all thanks to the bitch, the monster that slaughtered half of my village and forced us to leave our homes to escape being imprisoned and eaten and her name is Mother Croc. She is the reason for our exile. She is the reason why the elderly are sick and dying right now. And that just means that sooner or later we and our ways of life will be extinct. And I won't let her get away with it. My name is Lena and I am a member of the Snapping Turtle Cult and I will have my revenge. After we were exiled from our homes we were forced to trek across the land through deserts, forests and even mountains in order to find what we now call our home in the glades. But it will never be the same and the numbers are smaller than they were before our rough journey. We lost good people on our journey, but they will never be forgotten. I have them written down in my diary, their names forever etched into the pages as a reminder. And when I finally face Mother Croc it will be their names that I scream into her face as I am killing her.
And now one of our elders is dying now, Elder Josiah. He is one of the few that we have left, several were slaughtered by Mother Croc and some died on the journey here. Out of the four that we had when we arrived we only have two left, oh wait sorry let me correct myself if Elder Josiah dies we will only have one left. Even Though there are apprentices in the waiting, ones trained personally by the elders; it still means a huge chunk of our history is dead and dying and with it our ways of life. There is a stream not too far outside of the border of the village that connects to the well just past its banks. Every morning it is my job to go and fetch the water that we need to do chores around the house. As I walk back to the house from well carrying the pails of clean water we need for bathing and cooking one of Josiah’s apprentices, Gregory comes running up behind me panting and screaming my name. When he finally catches up to me, I pause in front of my house and look back at him. “What is it that has gotten you so worked up that you had to run over here like a maniac Gregory?” “Master Josiah requests your presence at once Lena!”, Gregory weazzed out “ Alright let me set these down first and then we can be on our way”, I said as I lifted the pails of water and set them on the kitchen counter for my mother. “Alright let us be on our way” Gregory nods at me and walks out the front door and starts making his way down the path that leads from the house to the hill. We make our way down the hill and into the village towards the Hall where the elders live. I look around and stare up at the sky as we are walking, wondering what it is that Josiah would want to talk to me about. I hope it's a mission or some recon , something that requires me to go out of the village and somewhere else. I’m itching to get out of the village even just for a little bit. Sometimes the noise can be too much and being out there in the wild is quiet and surreal and peaceful. It gives me time to think about what life would have been like if we hadn’t been forced to leave back then. Who would I be now if none of that had happened? Would I have so much hate inside me or would I have met someone and lived a peaceful life just outside of the village. Sometimes when that thought becomes so overwhelming I go to the temple and pray to our God for guidance and for peace of mind. But at the same time I ask him for the strength to avenge those we have lost and to allow me the power to destroy those who have put us in this situation in the first place.
As we make our way into the temple and down the hall that leads to Josiah's room, I look around and see all the portraits of all the elders, present and past, hanging on either side of the wall. I hope to one day make a big enough impact on the lives of our people to end up somewhere on the wall with all the great leaders of our cult. But I don’t know if that will ever come to pass with the way things are going. Once we are only a few feet away from the door, I pause, close my eyes and take a deep breath. And then all I can hear is the flickering sound of the candles lining the halfway walls and the slow slippery sound of the wax melting and oozing down the sides. It's the sound of a wet, choking cough that snaps me back to reality. And with that sound Gregory knocks on the door. And a bellowing “Come in” makes its way through the wooden door. Gregory opens the door and moves aside so that I can walk in through the threshold. “Ah, Lena just the women I want to see” “You sent for me, Elder Joshiah?” “That I did my dear, I have a task for you. “Yes” I say as I make my way over to the side of his bed. I pull up a chair and scoot close to the edge of the bed so I can sit next to him and hold his frail hand. “It is time. I don’t know how much more time I have left. He pauses to cough and catch his breath. “But I know that if we don’t make a move now then we never will.” “Are you sure?” “Yes, all the arrangements have been made with Gregory’s help.”
I glance over in his direction and see him bow his and close the door. And then the sounds of footsteps getting farther and farther away. And then a door opening and then shutting. And with that I turn my head back towards Josiah. “Master, I swear I will not fail you or our people.” “I know you won't be my child, avenge us all and don’t let them hurt us ever again!” “I won’t!” And with that I stand up, lean over and kiss his forehead and then bow my head. Then I make my way towards the door, only to pause with my hand on the doorknob and look back at the sickly man laying in the bed. And I shed a single tear and pray for his soul and for peace. I pray that the man who was like a grandfather to me, finds solace in knowing that his best warrior is on her way to avenge the wrong that has been done to us. As I make my way out into the chapel I see Sierra and Autumn standing next to Gregory with backpacks on their backs and a third bag in Gregory’s hands. I walk up and retrieve the bag from his hands and nod at him. And then I look back at my teammates and nod. And they nod back as if to say, this is the mission we have been waiting for, revenge. The whole trek takes a month. Across and over the mountains, through the forest and across the desert all to reach the valley of Mother Croc. It takes us another take to make our way through the valley and to the gates of the village. As we arrive at the gate, I take a deep breath mentally preparing myself to step into the den of my enemy. Finally I will have my revenge. Mother Croc will rule the day that she let us live.