Chosen [Part 9]
Nov. 9th, 2011 10:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
esp_dragonFandom: Original
Summary: Ras has just been chosen by the Gods to protect humans from geists, beings that prey on people's souls. Sent by Them to aid her is Aldran, a psyven; through the bond forged on their first meeting, Aldran can pass his magic to Ras for her to use against the geists. Only those bonded with psyvens can fight the geists, as a psyven's magic is the one magic that is truly effective against them.
But stories are told to children to placate fears and soothe nightmares. Ras has to learn that Aldran and living as a khertan are not what she expected and that the danger is very real.
While she adjusts to her new life, she and Aldran begin to discover all is not as it seems; however, realising and accepting the truth is not easy and ultimately, in the end, is it worth it?
Rating: PG-13/R
Notes: Contains bloody fighting.
You can find my commentary on this part here.
Genre: Fantasy/Friendship
Word count: 2,968
Total word count: 24,307
Status: Work in progress
With a grimace, Ras slid off Speckles, feeling every single muscle aching. She leaned her head on Speckles' side, just getting used to the feeling of being on her own two feet, before she held out her hand for Aldran, who took it gladly as he uncertainly made his way off.
"Ow," she said succinctly, taking a meandering route to the riverbank, Speckles already ahead of her. She glanced behind her to see Aldran rubbing his behind, wincing. "How's your tail?"
"Sore," was his reply. He'd eventually had to wrap his tail around his waist and holding it there after the near miss of sitting on it.
"And how's the rest of you?"
"Sore."
Ras chuckled. "And we're only about halfway there." It really had been some time since she'd ridden anything, she thought, nostalgia bursting in her. She didn't enjoy being saddlesore, but the actual riding part was a joy to do again. The weather had been fair all morning - not too hot to make things uncomfortable, and there was no sign of rain either.
After drinking a few handfuls of water from the river, Aldran joined her. Once she'd quenched her thirst, she moved away far enough to not get anything wet and sat down on a tree's roots, sighing. She sat back, just letting her muscles rest. Ceilha and Dracer were around another tree, and Aldran followed soon after.
"I'm surprised we weren't thanked, considering how the people have been so far," Ras mused out loud, playing with a fallen leaf.
"We were, actually," Ceilha told her, quirking a smile in her direction. "You were asleep at the time."
Oh. Ras huffed, not sure to be glad for missing it, or worried that she didn't know how to react when the time came for her to do it, telling the leaf fall from her hands. "Is that the usual routine then?"
"Essentially, yes," Ceilha said, nodding. "All that happened over the last number of days are the usual fare in our line of work."
"Apart from the destruction of the teleportation circle," Ras couldn't help but point out, that still weighting on her mind.
"Yes, that," Ceilha conceded, frowning. "I'll be interested in finding out if there has been other times that has been found."
One part of Ras worried, because if the teleportation circle was destroyed, and the khertan couldn't get in contact with Winolock, then they wouldn't be able to tell anyone else of their knowledge, and if the geist were able to kill them, then the khertan and psyvens would never know... Ras shook her head, trying to dislodge her dark thoughts.
After the horses had rested, and they had some of the bread that had been given to them, they started moving again.
* * *
Ras sighed in relief as she saw the outline of what was hopefully Sous on the horizon. They'd made good time, the trail had been easy to follow, and the path had been clear the entire way. The weather had stayed the same, for which Ras was thankful, and she hoped they would have another chance to rest before leaving for Winolock - unless they could rest there as well. It was hard for her to remember sometimes that the teleportation circle was instantaneous, when she was used to travelling largely by foot.
But that also meant this dizzying way back, so maybe it would be a good idea to rest before going back to Winolock.
No-one was there to greet them when they neared the village, which Ras thought was a little strange; there hadn't been an official goodbye from Jonset either, but Ras was sure Ceilha had a hand in that. Surely someone would have seen them approaching and would want to know what their business was?
In fact, Ras realised as they padded in, there was no-one else to be seen around either. By this time of the day, there should have been sounds of working and people, but the only noises were the whispering wind and the lonely bird, and those were infrequent as well.
They made their way to the centre of the village, standing next to the church, but still no-one came to see them.
Ceilha and Dracer dismounted, Ras following them soon after, while Aldran stayed in place, his tail tapping Speckles' side as he peered at the houses.
"They're hiding..." he said quietly, and Ras followed his eyes, seeing the top of someone's head as they hid around a window.
And that was even stranger. Ras knew about people being wary around her now, but she hadn't thought it would be to this degree!
She turned to Ceilha and Dracer to ask them a question but stopped when she saw their serious expressions. She realised what it was for when her skin prickled, the sensation growing stronger with every second.
A geist.
Her eyes wide, Ras scanned the village square with new determination, seeing nothing out of place. But there hadn't been - Ceilha had said that Jonset had lost contact with Sous some time ago, so the people of Jonset couldn't have known what was going on; they wouldn't have let them walk into this situation without letting Ceilha know!
"Aldran," she hissed, still scanning around, knowing now why the people of Sous weren't out, had stayed inside. Aldran was already scrambling off, Speckles thankfully keeping calm.
But while Speckles was a calm horse in most situations, Speckles had most certainly never seen psyven magic before, so when Ceilha's hand burst shot out multicoloured sparks, he reared back, baying, and threw Aldran off his back. With a curse, Ras ducked his kicking hooves, and only heard Speckles and his stablemates running away as she whirled around to see what Ceilha and Dracer were attacking.
There were two geists, one looking male, the other female, their clothes cleaner than the last pair Ras had fought, both looking confident.
For something that Ceilha had said was reasonably uncommon, why did they seem to be fighting pairs of geists every single time? But this was only the second fight with them that Ras had been in, though the first hadn't had a pair - and her mind was babbling again.
Magic flowed into Ras like a river, filling her up, and she flung it at the geists. They ducked, the magic not touching them, and Ras briefly wondered about short, quick bursts of magic, rather than one big one - especially if the geist could cover the distance between them in that time, as they were doing now.
The male ran for Ceilha, while the woman headed towards Ras. Gritting her teeth, Ras tried out the smaller bursts and was rewarded with a number of them hitting the geist. It wasn't enough to damage it, but the magic at least pushed it back a few steps, making it snarl. Ras used that to call more magic to her palm, and while the geist was quick enough to dodge out of the way, it wasn't so fast enough to get out unharmed, the magic leaving a gaping hole in its side.
Taking a few deep breaths to try and calm her heart, Ras tried to ignore the yowls echoing from the other fight, but the sounds weren't coming from Ceilha or Dracer, so it was fine to filter it out.
Dammit, one part of Ras' mind complained, her body was sore from the day's ride, and her neck throbbed, like it was reacting to the presence of the geists. Maybe it was, but so long as it didn't lead the geists to Ras didn't particularly care. Especially at that moment.
She wanted the fight to be over as quickly as possible, so that she could rest.
Blue blood splattered the walls of the cottage behind the geist as Ras was eventually able to hit its head, and she heaved a shaky breath as her legs weakened under her, the hissing in the air as it disintegrated sounding like cold water hitting hot coals. She could still hear Ceilha and Dracer fighting the other geist, but it was already bloodied in places so –
Aldran screamed and Ras whipped her head around just in time to see someone on top of Aldran before pain slammed into her -into her heart- and she fell to her knees, feeling that there was something wrong in her body, that -
Choking, she stared up at the person -no, another geist- wondering, realising, was this what it felt like when your soul was being dragged out of your body? It had to be because of their bond that she was being affected.
Aldran had enough manoeuvring room to unsheathe his dagger, and before the geist could get out the way, Aldran had slashed it across the belly.
There was a whoosh as another ball of magic shot past Ras and slammed into the geist, knocking it off Aldran, and Ras no longer felt as if her heart had stopped beating. She got shakily to her feet, feeling the trickle of Aldran's magic flow into her again once more, seeing Aldran keep his dagger out. If it was between more magic or Aldran being able to defend himself, Ras would take Aldran being able to defend himself.
She hurried to his side, just in case, glancing left and right, just in case there was a fourth geist around (who knew, what with how their luck was running at that moment). She didn't see one and threw out another ball of magic.
"I'll watch our back," Aldran murmured and Ras nodded, wanting to save her breath for fighting, trusting Aldran to do that and give her his magic.
The geist was nearly upon them again, the gash Aldran had given it already healed over and gone, and Ras gritted her teeth, fighting the wave of tiredness and weariness demanding that she rest. She could do that after, once the geists were gone.
She flung her hand out, catching the geist in the stomach, making it drop to its knees, when Aldran's next shout made ice shoot through Ras' body.
"A fourth! Dracer, to your left!"
Where-? Ras pleaded with the Gods that that was the last one to show itself, that it would be the last one in this cursed village. She hoped that Ceilha and Dracer would be able to take care of it, that they had already killed the other geist (they had to have; they were far more experienced than she and Aldran) but she couldn't look back, not when the geist in front of her had already lurched to its feet, snarling in fury.
Aldran's magic whirled around in her and Ras forced her shaking arm to lift, to point it at the geist and cast the magic. She gasped as the magic left her, and it was only because of Aldran catching her under her arms that she didn't find herself in the dirt again. Dammit, while she had hit it, the geist had stayed on its feet, growling at them.
She had so very little strength left but-
Something flew in from their right and thwacked the geist in the arm. Narrowing its gaze furiously, it snapped its head to glare at someone behind Ras and Aldran. And Ras couldn't look, she couldn't waste time and energy finding out what it was -small, light coloured; a stone?- or who had tried to help them because while she had the magic in her, she had to scrabble for control to aim and a miss could very well mean the end.
"You'll be next," the geist in front of her hissed and the shock of hearing it speak nearly made Ras lose what little control she had again. This could be the only opportunity she had so she had to make good use of it. Leaning on Aldran, Ras raised her arm and aimed while the geist was distracted.
She knew as soon as she saw its wide eyes between her fingers that it would hit, and its shriek was the last thing ringing in her ears as the world filled itself with white light, the last of Ras' strength leaving her.
* * *
Wherever Ras was, it was warm, especially with the blanket that was cocooned around her. And bar blinking and breathing, Ras couldn't move - her limbs felt completely unresponsive to her, barely even twitching when she tried to move. Her stomach gnawed at her insides, demanding food and her hair was in her eyes, but no matter how much she blinked, she couldn't get them away. Ras huffed in frustration.
Aldran was hovering over her in the space of a heartbeat, his purple eyes filled with worry. "You're awake," he whispered, his breath shuddering. "I thought you might-" He cut himself off, ducking his head, but all that did was bring his head closer to hers.
She tried to open her mouth to say something, but when she did, her mouth was too dry to make a sound, and she didn't know what she could say either that would make him feel better.
Seeing her do that, Aldran blinked and then exhaled softly. "I'll just get it." He left her view and Ras could hear the clattering of something as Aldran moved about, and then she heard the familiar sound of water being poured into a cup. She sighed, a smile tugging at her lips.
Aldran came back into her view a few seconds later and set the cup down somewhere behind him. "Do you want help getting up?"
Ha. There was no way she would be able to get up by herself otherwise. She nodded jerkily, and Aldran manoeuvred himself to help her gently up, Ras holding her head up. When she was upright, she panted, the world swaying like she was ill - which, one part of her mind supposed, was true enough.
As soon as she felt able, she shuffled her way back so that she could lean on the wall. Once she was there, Ras felt like she would tip right over again.
Aldran was by her side instantly, his shoulder keeping her in place, and he held out the cup for her to hold. Ras stared at it doubtfully, unsure if her hands would be able to hold it on their own. With a steadying breath, Ras reached up to grasp the cup, and once Aldran was sure she had a firm grip on it, he let go. It didn't slip from her hands, and Ras eased the cup towards her, gulping down as much cool liquid down as her lungs would allow. When she was done, she handed the cup back to Aldran with a quiet thanks.
That was all the strength that she had spent, and Ras tumbled back into obliviousness.
* * *
Ras was back inside the bed the next time she woke up, and she could feel Aldran's hand absentmindedly stroking the blanket where her shoulder was. She could also feel his tail as it curled over her face, and while it was interesting to know that it had a fine coat of fur on it, she hadn't wanted to find out when it brushed under her nose.
She sneezed, causing a slight headache by how hard it had been, and Aldran's tail was instantly away from her face.
"Sorry about that!"
Ras waved a lethargic hand, making some sort of noise, but even she couldn't interpret what she meant. Night had fallen again - Ras could see the way the light from the fire's embers made the room glow softly.
"How long-" She stopped to cough, her throat feeling far too dry again. Aldran leaned away for a second and there was a cup again in his hands when he came back.
With a grunt, Ras heaved herself up into a sitting position and then sighed once she was leaning on the wall again. The cup was easier to hold on to this time, and she drank her fill. Aldran already had the plate of food ready when she was finished and she rested that on her lap while she started eating.
"How long have I been resting for?" she asked.
Aldran glanced out the window, his tail twisting in different directions. "Over half a day," he said slowly.
They had arrived soon after noon, which meant… Ras stared blankly at Aldran. "Why are you up?"
Aldran frowned, his tail pausing. "If you woke up and needed something…" As you have just shown right now, went unsaid but was still easily heard.
"And you need sleep as well," Ras said, nudging his arm.
Aldran made a grumbling sound, his lips twisting unhappily.
"If I wake up again before you do and I need something, I'll wake you up." Which Ras wasn't pleased about, but it was probably going to be the only way Aldran would let himself rest.
Aldran didn't look convinced, his eyebrows drawing inward. "You croak when you first wake up – I won't hear you."
"And I should be feeling better enough to reach the cup." Hopefully.
They stared at each other for a number of heartbeats, before Ras yawned, feeling slightly better after she had some food in her. It wasn't enough –she still felt hungry- but it would do for the time being.
Aldran sighed, his tail flicking out the way as he walked over to a table in the corner. Ras was already slipping into sleep, so she slid back under the covers and watched Aldran come back over.
"You're going to sleep," she said muzzily, the words slurring in her mouth.
"I will, don't worry."
She would though, especially if he was still awake when she woke up.
* * *
Summary: Ras has just been chosen by the Gods to protect humans from geists, beings that prey on people's souls. Sent by Them to aid her is Aldran, a psyven; through the bond forged on their first meeting, Aldran can pass his magic to Ras for her to use against the geists. Only those bonded with psyvens can fight the geists, as a psyven's magic is the one magic that is truly effective against them.
But stories are told to children to placate fears and soothe nightmares. Ras has to learn that Aldran and living as a khertan are not what she expected and that the danger is very real.
While she adjusts to her new life, she and Aldran begin to discover all is not as it seems; however, realising and accepting the truth is not easy and ultimately, in the end, is it worth it?
Rating: PG-13/R
Notes: Contains bloody fighting.
You can find my commentary on this part here.
Genre: Fantasy/Friendship
Word count: 2,968
Total word count: 24,307
Status: Work in progress
With a grimace, Ras slid off Speckles, feeling every single muscle aching. She leaned her head on Speckles' side, just getting used to the feeling of being on her own two feet, before she held out her hand for Aldran, who took it gladly as he uncertainly made his way off.
"Ow," she said succinctly, taking a meandering route to the riverbank, Speckles already ahead of her. She glanced behind her to see Aldran rubbing his behind, wincing. "How's your tail?"
"Sore," was his reply. He'd eventually had to wrap his tail around his waist and holding it there after the near miss of sitting on it.
"And how's the rest of you?"
"Sore."
Ras chuckled. "And we're only about halfway there." It really had been some time since she'd ridden anything, she thought, nostalgia bursting in her. She didn't enjoy being saddlesore, but the actual riding part was a joy to do again. The weather had been fair all morning - not too hot to make things uncomfortable, and there was no sign of rain either.
After drinking a few handfuls of water from the river, Aldran joined her. Once she'd quenched her thirst, she moved away far enough to not get anything wet and sat down on a tree's roots, sighing. She sat back, just letting her muscles rest. Ceilha and Dracer were around another tree, and Aldran followed soon after.
"I'm surprised we weren't thanked, considering how the people have been so far," Ras mused out loud, playing with a fallen leaf.
"We were, actually," Ceilha told her, quirking a smile in her direction. "You were asleep at the time."
Oh. Ras huffed, not sure to be glad for missing it, or worried that she didn't know how to react when the time came for her to do it, telling the leaf fall from her hands. "Is that the usual routine then?"
"Essentially, yes," Ceilha said, nodding. "All that happened over the last number of days are the usual fare in our line of work."
"Apart from the destruction of the teleportation circle," Ras couldn't help but point out, that still weighting on her mind.
"Yes, that," Ceilha conceded, frowning. "I'll be interested in finding out if there has been other times that has been found."
One part of Ras worried, because if the teleportation circle was destroyed, and the khertan couldn't get in contact with Winolock, then they wouldn't be able to tell anyone else of their knowledge, and if the geist were able to kill them, then the khertan and psyvens would never know... Ras shook her head, trying to dislodge her dark thoughts.
After the horses had rested, and they had some of the bread that had been given to them, they started moving again.
Ras sighed in relief as she saw the outline of what was hopefully Sous on the horizon. They'd made good time, the trail had been easy to follow, and the path had been clear the entire way. The weather had stayed the same, for which Ras was thankful, and she hoped they would have another chance to rest before leaving for Winolock - unless they could rest there as well. It was hard for her to remember sometimes that the teleportation circle was instantaneous, when she was used to travelling largely by foot.
But that also meant this dizzying way back, so maybe it would be a good idea to rest before going back to Winolock.
No-one was there to greet them when they neared the village, which Ras thought was a little strange; there hadn't been an official goodbye from Jonset either, but Ras was sure Ceilha had a hand in that. Surely someone would have seen them approaching and would want to know what their business was?
In fact, Ras realised as they padded in, there was no-one else to be seen around either. By this time of the day, there should have been sounds of working and people, but the only noises were the whispering wind and the lonely bird, and those were infrequent as well.
They made their way to the centre of the village, standing next to the church, but still no-one came to see them.
Ceilha and Dracer dismounted, Ras following them soon after, while Aldran stayed in place, his tail tapping Speckles' side as he peered at the houses.
"They're hiding..." he said quietly, and Ras followed his eyes, seeing the top of someone's head as they hid around a window.
And that was even stranger. Ras knew about people being wary around her now, but she hadn't thought it would be to this degree!
She turned to Ceilha and Dracer to ask them a question but stopped when she saw their serious expressions. She realised what it was for when her skin prickled, the sensation growing stronger with every second.
A geist.
Her eyes wide, Ras scanned the village square with new determination, seeing nothing out of place. But there hadn't been - Ceilha had said that Jonset had lost contact with Sous some time ago, so the people of Jonset couldn't have known what was going on; they wouldn't have let them walk into this situation without letting Ceilha know!
"Aldran," she hissed, still scanning around, knowing now why the people of Sous weren't out, had stayed inside. Aldran was already scrambling off, Speckles thankfully keeping calm.
But while Speckles was a calm horse in most situations, Speckles had most certainly never seen psyven magic before, so when Ceilha's hand burst shot out multicoloured sparks, he reared back, baying, and threw Aldran off his back. With a curse, Ras ducked his kicking hooves, and only heard Speckles and his stablemates running away as she whirled around to see what Ceilha and Dracer were attacking.
There were two geists, one looking male, the other female, their clothes cleaner than the last pair Ras had fought, both looking confident.
For something that Ceilha had said was reasonably uncommon, why did they seem to be fighting pairs of geists every single time? But this was only the second fight with them that Ras had been in, though the first hadn't had a pair - and her mind was babbling again.
Magic flowed into Ras like a river, filling her up, and she flung it at the geists. They ducked, the magic not touching them, and Ras briefly wondered about short, quick bursts of magic, rather than one big one - especially if the geist could cover the distance between them in that time, as they were doing now.
The male ran for Ceilha, while the woman headed towards Ras. Gritting her teeth, Ras tried out the smaller bursts and was rewarded with a number of them hitting the geist. It wasn't enough to damage it, but the magic at least pushed it back a few steps, making it snarl. Ras used that to call more magic to her palm, and while the geist was quick enough to dodge out of the way, it wasn't so fast enough to get out unharmed, the magic leaving a gaping hole in its side.
Taking a few deep breaths to try and calm her heart, Ras tried to ignore the yowls echoing from the other fight, but the sounds weren't coming from Ceilha or Dracer, so it was fine to filter it out.
Dammit, one part of Ras' mind complained, her body was sore from the day's ride, and her neck throbbed, like it was reacting to the presence of the geists. Maybe it was, but so long as it didn't lead the geists to Ras didn't particularly care. Especially at that moment.
She wanted the fight to be over as quickly as possible, so that she could rest.
Blue blood splattered the walls of the cottage behind the geist as Ras was eventually able to hit its head, and she heaved a shaky breath as her legs weakened under her, the hissing in the air as it disintegrated sounding like cold water hitting hot coals. She could still hear Ceilha and Dracer fighting the other geist, but it was already bloodied in places so –
Aldran screamed and Ras whipped her head around just in time to see someone on top of Aldran before pain slammed into her -into her heart- and she fell to her knees, feeling that there was something wrong in her body, that -
Choking, she stared up at the person -no, another geist- wondering, realising, was this what it felt like when your soul was being dragged out of your body? It had to be because of their bond that she was being affected.
Aldran had enough manoeuvring room to unsheathe his dagger, and before the geist could get out the way, Aldran had slashed it across the belly.
There was a whoosh as another ball of magic shot past Ras and slammed into the geist, knocking it off Aldran, and Ras no longer felt as if her heart had stopped beating. She got shakily to her feet, feeling the trickle of Aldran's magic flow into her again once more, seeing Aldran keep his dagger out. If it was between more magic or Aldran being able to defend himself, Ras would take Aldran being able to defend himself.
She hurried to his side, just in case, glancing left and right, just in case there was a fourth geist around (who knew, what with how their luck was running at that moment). She didn't see one and threw out another ball of magic.
"I'll watch our back," Aldran murmured and Ras nodded, wanting to save her breath for fighting, trusting Aldran to do that and give her his magic.
The geist was nearly upon them again, the gash Aldran had given it already healed over and gone, and Ras gritted her teeth, fighting the wave of tiredness and weariness demanding that she rest. She could do that after, once the geists were gone.
She flung her hand out, catching the geist in the stomach, making it drop to its knees, when Aldran's next shout made ice shoot through Ras' body.
"A fourth! Dracer, to your left!"
Where-? Ras pleaded with the Gods that that was the last one to show itself, that it would be the last one in this cursed village. She hoped that Ceilha and Dracer would be able to take care of it, that they had already killed the other geist (they had to have; they were far more experienced than she and Aldran) but she couldn't look back, not when the geist in front of her had already lurched to its feet, snarling in fury.
Aldran's magic whirled around in her and Ras forced her shaking arm to lift, to point it at the geist and cast the magic. She gasped as the magic left her, and it was only because of Aldran catching her under her arms that she didn't find herself in the dirt again. Dammit, while she had hit it, the geist had stayed on its feet, growling at them.
She had so very little strength left but-
Something flew in from their right and thwacked the geist in the arm. Narrowing its gaze furiously, it snapped its head to glare at someone behind Ras and Aldran. And Ras couldn't look, she couldn't waste time and energy finding out what it was -small, light coloured; a stone?- or who had tried to help them because while she had the magic in her, she had to scrabble for control to aim and a miss could very well mean the end.
"You'll be next," the geist in front of her hissed and the shock of hearing it speak nearly made Ras lose what little control she had again. This could be the only opportunity she had so she had to make good use of it. Leaning on Aldran, Ras raised her arm and aimed while the geist was distracted.
She knew as soon as she saw its wide eyes between her fingers that it would hit, and its shriek was the last thing ringing in her ears as the world filled itself with white light, the last of Ras' strength leaving her.
Wherever Ras was, it was warm, especially with the blanket that was cocooned around her. And bar blinking and breathing, Ras couldn't move - her limbs felt completely unresponsive to her, barely even twitching when she tried to move. Her stomach gnawed at her insides, demanding food and her hair was in her eyes, but no matter how much she blinked, she couldn't get them away. Ras huffed in frustration.
Aldran was hovering over her in the space of a heartbeat, his purple eyes filled with worry. "You're awake," he whispered, his breath shuddering. "I thought you might-" He cut himself off, ducking his head, but all that did was bring his head closer to hers.
She tried to open her mouth to say something, but when she did, her mouth was too dry to make a sound, and she didn't know what she could say either that would make him feel better.
Seeing her do that, Aldran blinked and then exhaled softly. "I'll just get it." He left her view and Ras could hear the clattering of something as Aldran moved about, and then she heard the familiar sound of water being poured into a cup. She sighed, a smile tugging at her lips.
Aldran came back into her view a few seconds later and set the cup down somewhere behind him. "Do you want help getting up?"
Ha. There was no way she would be able to get up by herself otherwise. She nodded jerkily, and Aldran manoeuvred himself to help her gently up, Ras holding her head up. When she was upright, she panted, the world swaying like she was ill - which, one part of her mind supposed, was true enough.
As soon as she felt able, she shuffled her way back so that she could lean on the wall. Once she was there, Ras felt like she would tip right over again.
Aldran was by her side instantly, his shoulder keeping her in place, and he held out the cup for her to hold. Ras stared at it doubtfully, unsure if her hands would be able to hold it on their own. With a steadying breath, Ras reached up to grasp the cup, and once Aldran was sure she had a firm grip on it, he let go. It didn't slip from her hands, and Ras eased the cup towards her, gulping down as much cool liquid down as her lungs would allow. When she was done, she handed the cup back to Aldran with a quiet thanks.
That was all the strength that she had spent, and Ras tumbled back into obliviousness.
Ras was back inside the bed the next time she woke up, and she could feel Aldran's hand absentmindedly stroking the blanket where her shoulder was. She could also feel his tail as it curled over her face, and while it was interesting to know that it had a fine coat of fur on it, she hadn't wanted to find out when it brushed under her nose.
She sneezed, causing a slight headache by how hard it had been, and Aldran's tail was instantly away from her face.
"Sorry about that!"
Ras waved a lethargic hand, making some sort of noise, but even she couldn't interpret what she meant. Night had fallen again - Ras could see the way the light from the fire's embers made the room glow softly.
"How long-" She stopped to cough, her throat feeling far too dry again. Aldran leaned away for a second and there was a cup again in his hands when he came back.
With a grunt, Ras heaved herself up into a sitting position and then sighed once she was leaning on the wall again. The cup was easier to hold on to this time, and she drank her fill. Aldran already had the plate of food ready when she was finished and she rested that on her lap while she started eating.
"How long have I been resting for?" she asked.
Aldran glanced out the window, his tail twisting in different directions. "Over half a day," he said slowly.
They had arrived soon after noon, which meant… Ras stared blankly at Aldran. "Why are you up?"
Aldran frowned, his tail pausing. "If you woke up and needed something…" As you have just shown right now, went unsaid but was still easily heard.
"And you need sleep as well," Ras said, nudging his arm.
Aldran made a grumbling sound, his lips twisting unhappily.
"If I wake up again before you do and I need something, I'll wake you up." Which Ras wasn't pleased about, but it was probably going to be the only way Aldran would let himself rest.
Aldran didn't look convinced, his eyebrows drawing inward. "You croak when you first wake up – I won't hear you."
"And I should be feeling better enough to reach the cup." Hopefully.
They stared at each other for a number of heartbeats, before Ras yawned, feeling slightly better after she had some food in her. It wasn't enough –she still felt hungry- but it would do for the time being.
Aldran sighed, his tail flicking out the way as he walked over to a table in the corner. Ras was already slipping into sleep, so she slid back under the covers and watched Aldran come back over.
"You're going to sleep," she said muzzily, the words slurring in her mouth.
"I will, don't worry."
She would though, especially if he was still awake when she woke up.
no subject
Date: Nov. 13th, 2011 05:41 pm (UTC)I've been busy.
"Essentially, yes," Ceilha said, nodding. "All that happened over the last number of days are the usual fare in our line of work."
Some work. How often do they go on these missions?
"In fact, Ras realised as they padded in, there was no-one else to be seen around either. By this time of the day, there should have been sounds of working and people, but the only noises were the whispering wind and the lonely bird, and those were infrequent as well."
Creepy. I have a bad feeling about this.
"A geist"
Of course.
"There were two geists, one looking male, the other female, their clothes cleaner than the last pair Ras had fought, both looking confident. "
Do geists have genders or do they only appear to have them?
"who knew, what with how their luck was running at that moment"
Who knows ;P
"A fourth! Dracer, to your left!"
Wow. There really was one. That can't be common, can it?
"You'll be next,"
They can speak?!
Interesting! And Ras and Aldran are sure getting stronger. I love their relationship too! *goes to read next chapter*
no subject
Date: Nov. 15th, 2011 01:57 am (UTC)I've been busy."
*wry laugh* Since I haven't been commenting on your chapters, I really can't judge. XD;
"How often do they go on these missions?"
Kind of depends on how long their previous mission took, really. (But if things were running smoothly and they could get extra rest between each call...that would be boring to read. XDD *continually puts pressure on them*)
"Creepy. I have a bad feeling about this."
*grins*
"Do geists have genders or do they only appear to have them?"
Yeah, they have genders, but Ras is thinking of them as 'evil soul eating monsters!' so they're 'it' to her - which makes fight scenes really hard to write! D: Pronoun problems is always a thing with me. Gaaaah.
"That can't be common, can it?"
It's not that common, no. Mostly, pairs or in threes, at worst?
"They can speak?!"
Yep. >D
"Interesting! And Ras and Aldran are sure getting stronger. I love their relationship too! *goes to read next chapter*"
\o/ :D :D