Night and Day

Take Two

The reflection turns its head towards the water and I can finally see her lips well enough to read them.  “Death will come to you!”  Her words are met with laughter.  The voice is soft, feminine, but deep.  “Death will come to us all someday. Today it is here for you.” Out of the shadow comes a slice of silver. La Zorra falls into the water and is washed away by the waves.” 

 Dax drops La Zorra on the bed like a sack of potatoes. Malacity hits him. “She is alive, Dax, so have more care.” Carin, our town healer, gets to work cleaning her up so that he knows where to start. “Tell me what happened.”  He looks around the room for someone to answer. “She was stabbed. Yesterday, maybe the day before.” Carin nods and goes back to work. He cleans all the blood and sand off of her and notices that there aren't any open wounds. “I thought you said she was stabbed?” Aldfalric looks at me pointedly. “I gave her a potion before we brought her here. They don’t usually work that fast though.” I move closer to La Zorra, contemplating what would cause such a rapid recovery. “Drows tend to heal faster than most people in general, so whatever you gave her accelerated the process most likely. Looks like she just needs a couple days rest.”  I watch Carin clean up the area around La Zorra. Is this his normal routine?

“We should head over to the town hall to see if Luna has seen anything new.” Aldfalric reminds us. I nod, turning to leave. Augury gives a loud squawk hovering over Dax’s head. “What are you sensing?” I’m thrown into another vision. This one of Dax, fighting one of those creatures on the beach. The creature he has stabbed his sword through reaches up and touches him.  I can feel the magic he uses surge through Dax. “Carin, can you look over Dax as well. He was hit with something magical in the fight.” Dax glares at me. “Hey, take it up with the bird. She’s the one that likes you and would like to keep you alive.” Aldfalric pushes him onto the bed they’re standing next to. No words were exchanged, just a series of increasingly off putting looks. I giggle at the fact that someone my size can get the tall and dangerous fighter to yield with just a look. “They have been friends for a very long time.” Malacity has snuck up on me again. I hid my annoyance with questions. “Why do the drow heal as rapidly as they do? Is it the living conditions, the genetic composites of elves in general or something uniquely their own?” Her eyes narrow. “You tell me your secrets and I will tell you mine.” I think about that offer. Would it be worth the risk of exposure, to understand the drow race better. “Maybe. I didn’t mean any harm in the questions either way. I grew up understanding that knowledge is just as powerful as everything else is. Knowing how to help, how to care for and how to heal those around me was drilled into my head from a very young age. I’m new here, so I don't know what I can do to help unless I ask.” Her eyes narrow even more. “You want to help? Start with telling us who you are? Why are you here? And most importantly, What do you want?”

I sigh, she’s not wrong. I’ve been pretty secretive since my arrival. I can understand how that would make most people suspicious. We just fought a battle against creatures that should be long dead. Right now what is needed is trust, not suspicion. “My name is Nsia La Rin. Princess Nsia to my tribe back home. My family was killed in a coup. I escaped and now I am hiding out and researching what I can and should do now. Do I go back and fight for my throne, and how? Do I keep running and live a nomadic life always looking over my shoulder?” “Do you find a new home with people who will protect you, while you protect them?” That's the second time someone has snuck up on me in as many minutes. I watch Luna take in the room, La Zorra on the bed, alive but still fighting for her life. Her warriors, bloody and worn. She looks at me. “You have a lot of choices to make. But remember that we are a choice for you too. You could have a life here. Family and friends.” “But don’t expect us to call you “your majesty” or anything like that.” Dax says while holding Augury in his lap while Carin looks him over.  She pecks at his armor, whether because she likes the sound or she's worried about her friend and needs something to preoccupy her I will never know. Luna locks arms with me and Aldfalric. “You two tell me everything that you have learned. Everyone else please take a bath before you head to the tavern. Otherwise you will scare the other villagers.” 

Back at her office, Rath and Garrett are discussing the dock's ledgers. “I am telling you that La Zorra didn’t sign her return slip. Cyrus signed them both in.  So where the hell is Cyrus?” “I’ll send someone by to check their place, she could be hurt or missing.” Could Cyrus be the caged warrior? She is tall and broad shouldered. I don’t get to follow that train of thought any further though as Luna commands Aldfalric and I tell her everything about the battle. “What we fought was definitely not succubi. And according to Nomad and Deraxal, all the caster’s on the boat were human and male.” “Are the casters still alive? Should we send Carin and back up to retrieve them?” They all look at me like I have grown a second head.”This isn’t an  altruistic act. They could have information.” “We don’t take hostages.” Aldfalric looks at me, willing me to understand. I sigh. If everything is killed or be killed then we are grooming ourselves for death and nothing more. “I need every book you have on incubi, succubi, and mind control.” “Why mind control?” Rath hands over one of the books on the desk next to the dock ledger. “Dax was hit with some kind of magic during the battle. I am starting to think that the incubus was trying to control him. But as far as I know incubi and succubi powers stop at charming a person, and you have to want what they are offering even for that. But only full on mind control could make La Zorra meet someone she doesn’t know at the docks at night. Most caster’s I have met have high intelligence that doesn’t lend itself to charming, so that would have to be mind control as well.” I get to work reading the book Rath handed me, while the others try to digest the new information. “I should go tell Dax.” I look at Aldfalric. “He already knows. Augury is with him and somehow he can communicate with her just like I can.” Aldfalric glares at me, one black, bushy eyebrow raised. Questioning without words. I really have to learn how to do that. “Go check on your friend Aldfalric.” Luna’s voice is pushing him out the door, in a way her physical body never could.  “What do you mean he can communicate with the raven? I am almost certain that is not a thing he can do.” Marking my page, I close the book and look at him. “Back home, ravens are a rarity. They are seen as entities of bad omens and death. Bastite, our goddess of death, uses ravens to let people know that death is coming for them. Usually only people of pure hearts, who have touched death can communicate with them. With how skilled Dax is with a sword, I can only assume that he has been near death at one point or another. Though I don’t think I will ever be brave enough to ask him the when, where or how of it all.” 

“You realize that you just told us something very big about yourself right? I watched you in battle today. You are as skilled with a sword as any of us are. Why are you so ashamed of that skill?” Blink. “That is a rather astute observation. I will have to think about it more before I can give an answer to your question Aldfalric. But in the meantime you should go check on Dax.” I return to the book on succubi. After a few moments of silence I hear a door close. “It has been a long day.” I stand, book in hand. “I will return tomorrow for the other books, but I think it's time to call it a night.” I head outside before anyone can ask more questions. The air is cool and calming. I can smell freshness and something sweet, like honey mixed with something metallic. That scent belongs to only one person.  “Why are you crying? Was someone mean to you, princess? Shall I go beat them up for you?.” Dax and Augury stride up to me coming from the tavern it seems, as Dax is limping slightly. He only lets his guard down like that when he has had too much to drink. “I am fine Dax thank you for asking and also for bringing Augury back to me. It is greatly appreciated.” I hold my arm out for Augury, but she squawks quietly and gets more comfortable on the tall blondes’ shoulder. “She’s still very worried about you and has no designs to let you out of her sight.” He looks at the bird. “So that's why you wouldn’t even let me bathe in peace? Worried I’ll go off and join the incubi hoard?” She squawks more profoundly and nuzzles his head. “Looks like you're stuck with me for tonight. My place or yours?” I stare at him. Do I want this guy in my home, my sanctuary? No.Do I want to go to his, which is with Malacity and Aldfalric? That is even more so of a no. “My place it is.” He chuckles. “Don’t want to deal with all the questions from Falric and Mal, huh? I get it. I love them to pieces, but they can be an inquisitive pair.” We walked the rest of the way to my home in silence. I unlock the door and walk through. “Welcome to my humble abode.” My home is small with a kitchen, a living space, a bathroom and one room off to the side that holds my bed and clothes.  My kitchen is neatly organized with cooking stuff on one side and my herbalogy stuff on the other. My living space has a wall of books and a few decorative items from my travel/escape. I grab some linen from the recess in the wall next to the bathroom and set it on the couch. “Is that for me? Not going to invite me to join you in your bed.” He wiggles his eyebrows. “Um. No. You can sleep on the couch or you can go home to your bed.” I turn to go into the bathroom. “Every other woman I have met would happily take me to bed.” He sounds almost melancholy about that statement. “Are you sad that I am not or that they do?” I mentally smack myself. “Maybe both. You could use some fun in your life. I could be that fun.” I start the water for a bath. “Sleeping with you would not be my idea of fun. And certainly not when you sound so bad about the kind of fun you have been having with all those women.” I sink into the tub and sigh. The water is hot enough to make my skin feel like it is being stabbed by tiny needles. That is one thing that I can give credit to Harbour for. Their use of magic to light this town, provide heated water through pipes to every home and just the unheard magic advances this place has is out of this world. “So what is your idea of fun?” A very naked Dax steps into the tub with me. There is no heat to his words, no playfulness like usual. He really wants to know what I do for fun. “Reading mostly. Hanging out with Augury on the coast shore. Playing around with herbs and potions. I sing and dance sometimes.” I shrug as I try to hold the bubbles closer to me for cover. “I train mostly. I like to read too. You won’t catch me singing or dancing though.” He motions for me to turn around and when I do he starts washing my back. We talk while I clean myself and Augury. Afterwards we drink tea and talk some more before falling asleep on the couch.