ἔκστασις

At the very centre of the village there was an open area that had many people gathered around.

There was a large stack of wood piled up and Almura had began to start a small fire which slowly grew larger.

If there was anyone in the group that could play the role of a fire keeper or someone that kept the fire going then it was most definitely Almura.

Everywhere surrounding the fire was left neat and tidy as there was a certain distance kept from it.

It was not allowed for others to use it to cook or to throw their trash inside.

Not a single blanket or personal item was anywhere close to the sparks that were coming from the fire that continued to grow in size and danced around in the night.

It lit up the village and became the biggest attraction of the whole area as many villagers had chosen to stay out when it had become dark and when they would usually rest up for the night so they could work hard the next day.

The villagers helped with the atmosphere by playing on some easy to use instruments like hand drums or horns.

There were others that chose to sing, clap or hum but everyone kept up with the rhythm of the music due to them singing a well known song that most of them were familiar with.

Everyone was gathered around the fire in a circle and were either seated or standing as they were enjoying themselves with the ongoing music and the food that had been provided.

Almura looked towards the distance and gave a thumbs up. 'Now it is time for the show to begin.'

She started adding cedar and sage to the bonfire in small amounts which Mallory had explained that it was part of the ritual to ward off and purify.

A young cat girl with golden blonde hair, green eyes, spotted tail and ears had stepped through the crowd and began dancing to the rhythm of the music.

She was dressed in a short sleeved top and some ceremonial looking clothing which matched well with the flames behind her.

As Mallory danced and moved to the beat of the drums, she moved around the circle in front of the crowd and kept up the performance for a long time until the dance and the music finally came to an end.

Each movement fit well with the atmosphere and the music but it was very unusual to watch for so many.

Mallory had fully abandoned herself to the rhythm of the music without following any specific steps.

She moved so freely to where the music took her which lead to her being in a trance like state which was described as a state of ecstasy.

Ecstasy, ἔκστασις or ékstasis was the kind of dance that she was performing that let a person get easily lost in the state of ecstasy, seizure and rapture.

There were certain practices that used fasting and hallucinogenic drugs to induce that state during the dances but Mallory just stuck to the repetitive music and dance around the flames.

Those that performed similar practices were believed to experience or receive warnings, whispers of inspiration, a prophecy or they may even receive a gift like w high grade of inspiration.

Other cultures simply used such dances or ceremonies to ward off or call for spirits while others used similar practices for other purposes.

During her travels with her master during her previous life. Mallory had learned about many different rituals, had participated in them and had worked hard to grasp the essentials that had allowed her to perform.

Even if Mallory was a little out of practice and had a new body, she quickly found that she was becoming more comfortable with every movement she had made.

She gave a light bow as the flames had grown higher suddenly during the finale then Mallory added. "May the blessings be placed on this village and may this village receive protection from any kind of misfortune. This sacred bonfire and fire ceremony is but a small gift I give to you all to express my gratitude to each of you for cooperating with me."

A fire ceremony involving a bonfire required many different things to ward off or purify evil presences or spirits and other cultures in her previous life had used the same thing for a variety of different purposes.

Even if it may not have worked as Mallory had envisioned it to so that an additional layer of protection was on the village, it was worth trying out to test the limits of her Apotropaic skill and there were other reasons why she had chosen to use it.

One of them being that it helped Mallory to put on a show in front of so many people and gathered everyone together.

So many eyes were attracted to her and many others were too busy enjoying the food, drink or festivities to care about anything else.

Anyone could slip away from the crowd and not many would notice due to them being so immersed in the festivities around the bonfire.

During the bonfire further away where it was much darker, two figures had met up after they had got away from the festivities.

One had spoke in an angry tone which Mallory would be able to recognise right away. "What is going on? Why are the lands cursed? You did not mention anything like this happening."

A cold voice spoke up. "You did not want to know the details so what does it matter. I think that we should not meet after this and even meeting now is too risky if we remain here for too long. I will say this.. so long as you keep looking the other way then I can assure you that everything will be fine."

The village head had questioned. "How can you be so certain? Your plan has just been halted by a single child. How can I trust that you will even be able to do as you have said?"

The cold voice had spoken again. "You dare to question me? How could someone like you possibly gain that position without my families help? You should be grateful that I am even being this patient with you right now. Our family already has control of most of the land and it will soon fall into our hands.

That kid will leave just like the others and my family has more than enough control over almost everyone here. So many owe us and we already have a large voice that could be used to sway everyone's opinions in our favour. Visa City is not worth relying on.."

The village head had grit his teeth then remained silent as he expressed that he would cooperate and did not disagree with the words that had been spoken.

Just as they were talking among the selves, they did not realise that there were two people who had followed the village head and had been listening from a distance.

Swaine and Franco had drawn their weapons and a battle had suddenly broken out among the four people.

The music and the festivities around the bonfire had drowned out the noise that came from the four of them.

The village head was very weak and the other person seemed to be able to put up a little bit of resistance but they were both quickly subdued by Franco and Swaine without any talismans being needed to be used.

They were tied up and then were dragged away to be dealt with once Mallory had finished with the ceremonial bonfire dance.