Her eyes fluttered as the seemingly sudden awakening bestowed upon her a horrible headache and a freezing sensation in her limbs. She bolted up, and regretted it immediately as her head throbbed in pain.

The shards of the pod were scattered about, already half-covered in powdery snow. She soon discovered it as she jabbed her foot into one. The shard slit right through her boot, narrowly missing her foot. However, not one to let anything go to waste, she picked up a few shards.

The pod was pretty much destroyed, and would give no defense from the cruel winds and stinging snowflakes. The base was in tact though, so she started there.

Banging her freezing fists on one of the sides revealed a small first aid kit, completely empty and completely useless. However, she tried to open another compartment, and it revealed a dark brown tarp. It kept in hardly any heat, but it stopped the wind so she wrapped it around herself.

After finding nothing more, she raised her eyes in search of rescue of any sort. Nothing, nothing but snow and darkness was out there. The snow seemed to rake across her bare arms and the wind seemed to laugh at her futile situation. She could keep herself alive for a while, but without food she was dead.

Curling up the tarp even more around her, she set off. Nowhere to go, no one to plead to for help. Her watch was gone, and all the distress signals she had programmed into it were gone with it.



Evidently the Kzirin didn’t want her to tell anyone what happened.



Cupping her hands together she concentrated, and a small orb of fire appeared in between her hands. The slight heat helped, but the wind almost immediately killed the small flame.



She was really in deep quail* now.



Her puny attempt to find shelter was indeed puny. She could still see the remains of the pod, and she couldn’t feel her fingers. Her steps were getting shorter, and the freezing air was painful on her lungs.

As she trudged along, snow filling her boots, she murmured chants and prayers she learned as a child. Whether it was an actual prayer for help or delusions brought on by the cold she didn’t know. All she knew was that she was fading fast and all she could do was plead to her Deity for help, or for mercy after her death.

It was too much for this frail girl raised on a sun-blistered desert planet. As her feet gave way, she curled up as much as possible, with the tarp around her. Her lips were already chapped and had a small ice crystal forming to one side, but she still continued her endless prayers. She rocked back and forth slightly as the cold seemed to close in on her, depriving her of her needed heat.

The needle-like cold was now stinging her neck, slowly numbing her for the final strike. Her lips hardly moved as in her seemingly last breaths she begged for her Deity to remember her and the promises she made.

Her eyes slowly closed and she breathed in deeply, not expecting her lungs to be able to handle anymore. In her mind flashed the image of herself, standing at the gates of time, standing proudly with all the promises she made etched into the background behind her.



“I’m not finished with your life yet”



The words will almost whispered, but had the force of everything pure and mighty behind it. Her eyes snapped open, and she shot up into a sitting position. A girl rabbit, clothed in heavy garments to keep the cold out was leaning over her.

Although her lips refused to move, in her heart she offered thanks to her Deity and praises, as the girl gave a start and whispered.



“You live.”

~*~





*Deep Quail -- Basicly means, "trouble unlike anything you have seen or will seen". Applause to the person who get the Biblical referece.