Unearthed Legacy

[Zach Kaiser]

With all the knowledge suddenly in her head, it was understandable that Xibtrae had fuzzy definitions of what she could do with it. While Val did know a spell that gave her some telekinetic powers, it was too weak and slow moving to use as an attack. Most mages used it for moving and carrying things when their hands were full or they were just too lazy to get up.

It didn't knock the shade off its feet, but it did swipe at its chest as it felt a light pressure on it, causing it to look around in confusion as it tried to identify the source. Shades fed on Qi and could sense changes in it instinctively, but mana was another story.

But though it failed as an attack, it did succeed in its purpose of distracting the shade, as it was unable to connect the pressure with the figure before it.

[Nayt]

Well . . . that is good, at least . . .

Now standing, Xibtrae was able to compose herself again. She leaned forward a bit, not yet refined enough to take a less-than-barbaric stance for battle. If she knew what she was doing, or at least had a decent grasp on this new development, she might have been able to stand up straight and fight gracefully like she did during her time before being trapped. Graceful, fluid, moving like an elaborate dance-- she couldn't do that just yet, but someday . . . someday . . .

The list of spells was a little daunting; she could go over them in her head now that the creature was otherwise occupied, but panic was still necessary, and she just needed something to hurt it really, really badly--if not kill it, but something hurt was also something stunned, giving her a little more time to think . . . right? Well, it was a good plan: just go with the first destructive spell she could think of, and if it didn't kill the shade, then come up with something else--rinse and repeat until the beast is slain.

So, Xibtrae drew her right hand back and conjured the first thing that came to mind: a small ball of fire held within her hand--which was, oddly enough, not hot in the least. It didn't burn her skin, at least. It was going to burn the hell out of the shade's skin, though. Xibtrae swiped her arm out, letting go of the ball of fire as she did, hurling it towards the confused creature. At the very least, it would need to avoid it--giving Xibtrae even more time to think up something much more useful and--more importantly--lethal.

[Zach Kaiser]

Ah, that's-!

Val's revelation was interrupted as Xibtrae threw the spell; fireball, one of her most commonly used spells--it was a good balance between power, mana used, and casting time, making it a favorite of many wizards.

She wasn't the only one who recognized it; the shade vividly recalled the glowing orange ball, and what happened to whatever it struck. It was used a week ago, by the prey that seemed to disappear.

Powerful legs pushed as it leaped away from the explosion, just barely clearing the blast--it could feel the heat from it, though. Even as the smoke cleared it make a decision: sticking around was not a wise course of action, no matter how it felt. Illuminated by a small fire that burned in the aftermath of the spell, it fled, its pitch black body quickly melding into the darkness. Just once its red eyes would reappear, as it looked back at her over its shoulder, before completely disappearing into the night.

And then, there was nothing but the eerie stillness of night...

Unnhhh....I'm....kinda tired....

...that, and Val's voice.

[Nayt]

The explosion wasn't too terribly large; large enough to make a horrible mess, but not excessive. It couldn't, say, take out even a portion of a city block, or even a large room, but half of a small room would be in shambles if she let it off there. The only debris were dirt and rocks, and they didn't fly too far; at best they were flung far enough to land nearby Garv. Xibtrae remained standing where she was, her hand drawn back again, close to her left should, ready to let another attack fly if need be. This time, she had a pretty good idea of how to act.

But instead of sticking around and further testing Xibtrae and these newfound abilities out, the shade escaped.

Part of her wanted to attack it from a distance, but that was a much less logical side of Xibtrae. It would have just been a waste of time and energy, like staging a massive effort to kill a single kestallent! There were going to be hundreds more, so it was just pointless if one wasn't going after the queen, and Xibtrae didn't even know if these shades even had a "queen," which would have to be looked into later. For now, though, post-combat rest. Val and Xibtrae both needed it, though Xibtrae's necessity of rest was more a means of calming down than anything else.

I thank thee for thine assistance.

Unlike most people who came across these special spirit weapons, Xibtrae didn't encounter the awkward experience of talking out loud to seemingly no one at all. As a [former? demi? mortal?] "goddess" herself, she knew explicitly how to communicate with one--she just never had to from the outside just yet. When the spirit inside was awake, it could be spoken to in thoughts.

If all ist well, I shall not need thy further assistance this eve.

[Zach Kaiser]

Okay...I'm not really sure if I did anything, though...

Though she studied arcane magic, there was still much out there that she didn't know about, and whatever just happened was one of those things. Perhaps in the "morning" (it was really hard to tell what time it was where she was) she'd be able to figure a bit out, but for the moment she was too exhausted to even guess at what was going on.

I...think...I'll go to bed then...

It was clear that while Xibtrae had a good grasp on how to communicate (and how not to), Val didn't.

M'glad your okay... she mumbled sleepily, not intending for it to actually be heard. At some point, Xibtrae was going to have to explain exactly what happened here.

After that, the voice in her head remained as silent as the forest--save for a single groan emanated from somewhere to her left.

[Nayt]

Xibtrae smiled a little. It was nice to have heard Val's voice again. Not only did it mean that the two could communicate again, but it meant that Val was currently all right. The two were going to have to talk next time they had the chance, specifically about the container, how it was going to work, and more importantly, how Val was doing. If it was anything like Xibtrae's experiences, she was probably upset. Calming her and reassuring her that it was very, very temporary, and telling her what to expect, of how time was going to pass--or not pass, rather, how hunger and fatigue and all bodily necessities would start to fade away if not used, of how the world she saw was her own, and . . .

There was really a lot to talk about!

Now that the area was illuminated by a nice involuntarily placed campfire, Xibtrae could see much better. It wouldn't last more than a half an hour or so without wood, but it was still a good source of warmth and light. Xibtrae didn't yet know that light attracted further dangers, though.

Nonetheless, able to see better, she looked for Garv. Hopefully he was okay. She wouldn't know where she was going without him! And besides . . . the trip would be so much less . . . enjoyable? It was hard to not enjoy Garv's company, and even harder not to like the guy--and worry about him when he presumably disappeared after a frighteningly powerful blow.

"Garv . . .?" she called out to him, hoping to illicit a response--to help her find him easier and all . . .

[Zach Kaiser]

While Garv seemed to be beyond the area immediately lit by the makeshift fire, periodic groans would lead her to a tree some yards away, with the vagabond sprawled out at its base.

"Bloody hell, that hurt," he muttered, but when she got closer he suddenly sprung up with a pair of knives in his hands, and started to swing at her.

"Oi, you'll-" Fortunately, as he saw the person who as actually in front of him, he stopped his attack. Unfortunately, the sudden movement didn't agree with him and he nearly fell over as he half-turned from her and leaned heavily on the tree.

As he bent over, Xibtrae would be able to see the blood that matted the side of his head, and if she was particularly observant she could note blood also on a nearby root of the tree; it would have been identical to the rest of the roots had there been any others sticking out. As it was, it seemed Garv managed to land his head square on the only root in a seven yard radius.

"So much for protecting you from the evil beast and making you smitten with my bravery and fighting skills," he murmured, clutching the wound on his head.

[Nayt]

Perhaps it would have been the other way around, had Garv been there to see her exploit! Granted, it wasn't too special; she had only thrown a ball of fire, but still--perhaps Garv would have been impressed with her ability and swooned a little over her! Just a little. As amusing as that might have been, it probably was the last thing she needed--nor was this a long and in depth train of thought for her, as Garv's injury had drawn more attention than anything else. Xibtrae slowly made her way to him, cautious, but worried.

"G-Garv . . ." She sounded concerned--deeply.

And she was, actually. Xibtrae was worried about the guy; he was kind to her, and tried to protect her, only to be hurt pretty bad--at least, pretty bad as far as she was concerned. She hadn't seem anyone bleed in awhile; it was surprising, and one very, very important organ resided within the skull, so bleeding from the head just could not possibly end well!

Xibtrae stood before Garv, just inches in front of him, standing as tall as she could and on the tips of her toes a little, just to see the injury. Gently, she rested one hand on his cheek, and the other upon his ear, both on the same side of his face, as she examined his head wound with much concern.

"Art thou all right . . .?"

[Zach Kaiser]

Garv blinked a bit in surprise; it was one thing for Xibtrae to express concern, but he wasn't expecting her to be so worried as to examine the wound up close. Fortunately, it wasn't very deep, and once it stopped bleeding there wouldn't be any lasting damage. Of course, the actual impact may have given him a concussion, but there was no way to check for that out here.

"Thanks, but I think I'll be fine, love," Garv responded, for once sounding relatively serious. "It probably looks worse than it is. If you can help me to my pack I can bandage it up."

More importantly, the last he remembered he'd been fighting, and now there didn't seem to be any kind of threat. "So, what happened to our friend?" he asked.

[Nayt]

Xibtrae bit her lower lip as she got a good look at the injury. He wasn't bleeding anymore it seemed, but he had really bled a lot. And what if something in his head was rattled, and he wouldn't walk right ever again? Okay, that wasn't really something to worry about, but it still crossed her mind.

"All right," Xibtrae, still noticeably concerned, replied with a nod.

She could take him back to the camp; pretty easily, so long as she wasn't carrying him on her back, which wouldn't be remotely healthy for him. Her horns would just get in the way with that. It'd be more dangerous for Garv than it would be impossible for her.

So, she moved to stand by Garv's side and put her arms around him--one around his back, one around his chest--and help him move, heading back towards what would now look like a sort of camp, what with the blankets, the items, and the makeshift campfire.

"He escaped," she replied, "He was much faster than I; I could not pursue him."

[Zach Kaiser]

"Aha." He didn't know what happened, but perhaps the wound he'd given it was more serious than he'd first thought. At least Xibtrae wasn't taking it too badly, though he had a hunch she could probably handle herself fairly well.

Fortunately, Garv didn't need much help walking; the biggest problem was that he was still a bit dizzy, so she didn't need to support his weight so much as just guide him and give him something to lean on.

Once they arrived, he sat down next to his bag and pulled out some bandages and gauze, applying it to the wound with practiced ease. One didn't survive traveling alone for long if one didn't know simple first aid.

"That's better. Though, maybe I hit my head harder than I thought, we didn't start a campfire and forget to put it out, did we?"

He looked over the fire, before making a surprised noise and giving Xibtrae a lopsided grin. "No, I don't think we would've used that for kindling. Hope you don't mind sleeping close to me for the rest of the trip..."

Sure enough, sticking out of the still burning fire was a corner of purple cloth...

[Nayt]

Once back at their newfound camp, Xibtrae continued to help Garv stand until he was sitting down. She didn't mention anything about the fire, that she was the one that started it or anything; it might have been better off not said. She hadn't told him about Val yet, after all. It wasn't pleasant to see that her blanket had been caught in the fire and was completely useless, though.

"A-ah . . . I . . . see," Xibtrae whispered, trying not to voice her disappointment.

She liked the idea of having another blanket handy, just in case she felt a little uncomfortable while laying on top of Garv and wanted some space--or if he did something to make her uncomfortable and she NEEDED the space. Now that wasn't an option. Such was life . . .

But it could be all bad. Xibtrae didn't think Garv was going to do anything terrible to her; nothing to make her want to get as far away from him as possible, at least. He was harmless. And besides, if all else failed, she could play along and put her hand on his chest and whisper Val's release command, and there wouldn't be a problem anymore.

Reassured, she shook her head. "It shall not be a problem."

[Zach Kaiser]

"That's good." For once, Garv didn't seem to be acting perverted and basking in the idea of sleeping right next to her every night. Perhaps it was the combat...or perhaps it was the thought of the money he lost. The blanket hardly lasted a day.

"Still, though...I didn't think one of those things was still roaming around. Regular shades are fooled by the color purple, see? But the humanoid ones aren't; we're going to have to be more careful at night."

Which was going to be difficult; if they had one more person they could perhaps sleep in shifts, but with just the two of them that was impossible, not without it taking twice as long or both of them losing a lot of sleep. They couldn't be on guard all the time, and that made him nervous.

The most prudent course would be to return to town and delay the trip until he could convince someone else to come with him, but who knows how long that would take? Plus, it would mean splitting the profits.

"Well, at least we should be safe for another night or two; those things are brutal, but they seem to startle easy."

[Nayt]

Splitting the profits in two, perhaps. Money, after all, wasn't something that Xibtrae was remotely interested in. She didn't make it a point to say it before when Garv was talking about money, but later on, if he mentioned anything about it--well, she might just have to turn him down. Switching back out with Val was her main priority. If she needed a small bag of gold to get to that goal, then so be it, but an excess of riches was just unnecessary.

Nonetheless, the information Garv presented about shades was definitely something to keep in mind; useful in the future, without a doubt.

"All right," she nodded at Garv's reassurance and sat down next to him.

Xibtrae would then help him bandage his head wound as needed. She was remarkably gentle, in spite of her overall willingness to blow things up without a second thought, and could minimize the pain involved while treating injuries just by being slow, methodical, and gentle. She had a soft touch and was just strong enough that she could make sure a bandage was tight around the skull, but didn't use too much strength to cause any sort of excessive pressure.

She'd be fine sleeping that night. A little edgy, a little paranoid, and a little reluctant to actually go to sleep, but it'd come in the end, and so long as nothing violently woke her up like the last shade, she wasn't going to have any problems.

[Zach Kaiser]

Garv, too, was a bit reluctant to fall asleep--sure, he'd caught on to the danger quickly enough, but that had obviously proved to not be enough. And just because the humanoid shades were usually more skittish didn't mean they all would be; he knew all to well that relying on consistency was not a wise move.

But despite their reservations, both he and Xibtrae would fall asleep under the sole blanket left, and the remainder of the night passed by uneventfully.

Morning came, and with it, everything Garv disliked about mornings. Sometimes being fully aware as soon as he woke up was a bit of an annoyance; there was something to be said for waking up slowly and being a bit drowsy for awhile, and it wasn't often he could let his guard down enough to do that.

Taking stock of the situation, Garv decided they were rather fortunate after all. Xibtrae's pack hadn't been too far away from the blaze the previous night, and as unfortunate as losing a blanket was, losing half their supplies would have been much worse. If that had happened, they really would have to go back to town.

"Well, we're off to a great start," he declared ironically. "I can't wait to see what wonders today holds."