Sacrifice to Odin

[13:29] Audfrith (emmiedee): Audfrith checked the tracks to be sure: Ja, rabbit. Rabbit would make a fine sacrifice to the memory of her foster father, Asmund, whose own death day she had witnessed only two years ago today. She had gone a year without sacrificing to the gods, and she knew that this year, she had to do better. "A fine start to a fine daeg, Foster Father," Aud said under her breath, noticing that the sun was coming up to throw its light on the fresh tracks. "Ye'll hae ye fav'rit today, Asmund," she continued, "Rabbit stew. Ee only Odin wills it fur ye." She followed the tracks carefully, always wary of the Faithful soldiers walking in the woods. [13:42] Audfrith (emmiedee): Audfrith waited patiently behind the rock that she knew would give her cover. One rabbit bounced out of the bushes, and she took careful aim with the slingshot she had been practicing with. (Need 60 or better on roll). [13:51] Audfrith (emmiedee): ((40 on percentile roll)). She missed the rabbit but strangely did not spook it. She reloaded, aimed better, and tried again. ((better aim, 40 or better: I rolled 41!)) She hit the rabbit, but she knew that she had only knocked it unconscious. She moved quickly to it, picked it up by the legs, and hit its head soundly against the rock she had been hiding behind. Now she knew it was dead. She sniffed the air and scouted the area again for Trueblut's men, but the woods were strangely quiet this morning. She gathered some small rocks and built a circle of them. [14:21] Audfrith (emmiedee): Audfrith then placed a flat stone in the middle of the circle, and took a small tallow candle out of her bag. Her fingers searched for something else there, and she made a face of concern until at last she had it. She pulled out a small object of wood and placed it on the rock across from her. Then she laid the rabbit with its neck on the stone. She took the knife from its holster on her lower right leg, where it was usually hidden by her pants. [14:57] Audfrith (emmiedee): She slit the rabbit's throat and watched as its blood gathered in the crevices of the rock. She placed the small wooden figure in the blood, then concentrated on the candle's flame. "Here we be, Asmund, and this here I do fur ye, in yer name, on this day when ye joined Valhalla two year back." She took another breath and continued softly. "To Odin, the god ye always trusted to hae his own way, we ask him to take this sacrifice in yer name." She still hesitated before she said the one-eyed god's name out loud. She never liked to think that she was calling attention to herself with the gods. But she continued. [15:04] Audfrith (emmiedee): "Father Odin, ye who sees the world w' one eye, but sees more 'n alle, please take this good blood in the name o' Asmund, who followed ye and yer ways to the end o' his days. May it please ye that yer name is ever in me mind, as me foster father would hae it." Audfrith finished her breath, then took the candle and dripped its wax on every stone around the circle. She finally let one drop land on the small object that lay in the rabbit's blood. "An may I bring ye another such sacrifice on this day next year," Aud finished, then blew out the candle. [15:34] Audfrith (emmiedee): Audfrith packed the candle back into her pouch and retrieved the small wooden figure from the rabbit's blood, holding it tightly in her hand for a moment before wrapping it into a small cloth and slipping it also back into her bag. She took the rabbit by its back legs and continued covering the stones with its blood. After a few more minutes in silent thought, she carried the rabbit back to last night's camp, leaving the blood-stained rock circle behind.