Aching pain, coursing through his body. He hadn't moved on his own for the last two hours, but with the thought of his ally, no, friend, being worse off than him, it stirred in his head like a foul smell. He needed to purge it, and make sure his friend was fine. As soon as Tanythe could feel a cool breeze against his face, his eyes slowly opened. In his own bed that he's slept in for the past week, probably even more time than that. Just how long has he been out for? A question for another time, his gaze went onto the figure that stood by his doorway. Børrn, who was in fact sitting, on a closer examination. His head perked up, and focused onto Tanythe. "Ah, Tanythe! You are awake, good!" He'd climb to his feet, trotting on over, thumps in the ground getting the hunter to sit upright.
"Good to see you too, friend. Is Pergos alright? What happened to him?" Many, many questions came to his mind, about what happened, if anybody else was hurt, but before he could ask more, Børrn began to speak. [br]
"He's alright. Please don't worry on that. You are hurt," His vein-covered hand pointed over to the cast his leg was placed in. "Broken, Colette fixed it enough but it's rather weak, at least that is what she had told me," He would go to poke it, before then hesitating. "No, that's a bad idea. Colette shouted at me for trying that with Pergos. You should really just stay put. I know that'd be hard, kind of, but... I think you can do it!" His cheerful voice echoed from his mask, then sitting down on the floor, able to be face to face with Tanythe when he sunk back down. A long moment of silence came from Tanythe, he struggled to figure out how to respond. [br]
"Thank you, I suppose, Børrn, you're really kind for an adventurer, you wouldn't ever see Gaius be that nice," It got a chuckle out of them both, Tanythe turning over the pillow he had. "I'm guessing Hammond isn't happy with what we have done, is he?"
"Not really, he seemed a little angry at the hole in his roof, but other than that, I reckon the guy was more happy that none of his men died,"
"No casualties? At all?"
"Yeah, none. You're quite lucky about all that!" Børrn's gaze went to the window, which let the half-giant see the ruins of the castle. Sigh escaping his lips, he'd get to his feet, and trot back to the door. "You should get some rest, friend," His hands grasped together, leaving soon after. The door closed itself once Børrn's weight was relieved from it's side. The half-elf sunk back down in his bed, eyelids growing heavier and heavier. The bed he was in felt much better than before. He's not too sure why, yet it is. Soon enough, his tiredness caught up to him and the blissful sensation of sleep took him from consciousness.
He found himself standing, in an empty field, no sun, no stars, nothing that should explain the light he saw. A dream, Tanythe came to the conclusion. He gazed about, turning his step. He was standing, he just realised. No harm on his body. No stubble on his chin, or dirt in his hair. "I usually don't remember these. Why am I here?" He turned one last time, no longer upon a glade of emptiness, and instead facing a portal. One of sparkling, azure design. It swirled, almost hypnotically, drawing Tanythe's hand closer, and closer, soon being submerged in the texture. Liquid-like, he could not describe it. Although, a tugging came, the hunter being pressed closer to having his head taken by the portal. Why was he reliving this? What made this day as important to be relived by his subconscious? His hands, they had less scars on them, less wounds healed by Colette. He knew exactly when this was. No point in wasting time, Tanythe brought himself into the portal. Spectral, he could see himself, younger, back slightly hunched, trembling hand resting against his bow. This was the day that Tanythe's life changed, from a mere member of the Nythe Conclave, his home, to a mere mercenary of Morden's Adventuring Guild. [br]
"Ah, you've finally made it! Took your time, I expected the summons to come from well... you know, like an hour ago! These people here have been waiting! You should be honoured that I am still here, in the least. Tell us your name, kid," A noble voice rang out, coming from the novice's side. He turned his head, being met with a formally-outfitted man, standing tall, over himself. Masked, fashioned in a cape, in his hand sat a large tome. One larger than any other book that the hunter has ever seen. Then again, where he's been, he was taught things through speech, not pages. "Kid? You gonna tell me it?" He seemed impatient, and once the younger Tanythe swallowed the lump in his throat, he finally began to speak. [br]
"Tanythe," He was blunt, by mistake, only wishing to keep his time in the spotlight short and without much meaning. From the small group of about half a dozen onlookers, one shuffled forward, short, and with pale blue skin. [br]
"Just Tanythe? Nothing else?" His voice was squeaky, it made Tanythe dig his nails into his palm, both himself from then and the onlooker watching his memories unfold once more. He always hated that Fae. "and also, where are you manners, don't you know who you are dealing with?" Spat out, the fae took to the air, bat wings flapping to keep himself in a hover. Swirling from one side of the formal man, to the other. "THE Morden! C'mon, offer your apologies for the man that basically runs this continent!" Tanythe blinked a few times, keeping his hands by his sides. [br]
"Sorry, cannot say I've heard of him, I mean, you, before," Silence came from everybody else, but the stranger finally turned to face the others. [br]
"Regardless, everybody in your party is here now. Oh, and also, don't bother trying to say no. By stepping through that portal, you've all signed onto my contract!" His book opened, flapping through the pages. On each one held a different signature, for each page, soon going to Tanythe's. "There we go, Tanythe, then there is Børrn," A large, goliath-like figure tilted his head, then looked down at the metal casts upon his fists. [br]
"How did.. how did I sign that?" He lifted up his hands, to which got a laugh out of the other man. [br]
"Oh, no no. You didn't sign it with your hands, you signed it with, well never mind, it is not that important!" His laughter came to an end, and he flicked through the next two pages. "then it is Pergos, and Colette, you two, right?" He pointed his finger between a tall lady, clad in the uniform of a divine warrior. Holy crest embedded on her plate mail, and a thieves symbol on the shoulder of Pergos. Tanythe was surprised by the two not already getting on each other's nerves. They seemed more neutral than anything. The lump in Tanythe's throat grew. Did he actually have a choice in this? [br]
"and if we object?"[br]
A long laugh came from Morden, followed by a more subtle one from the short stranger. Only noticing now, it seemed he had wings. Translucent ones, they weren't even keeping him off the ground. Tanythe brought a fold to his arms, his future self staring down in horror. "Right, I get it. No choice," With a deep sigh, the ranger would bring himself forward and look for a place to sign. [br]
"Oh, oh no no no, it's already done. No need to worry. A prophet, that Morden is! He'll get it from you later," With a flick of his hand, the stranger turned on his heel and began walking away. "Also, sir, Mr Morden. I'm gonna be getting my stuff moved to Airfelt's Cross at the end of next week. I'll set up a study for you there, kay?" His voice got even worse when he was leaving. Tanythe, despite being in this strange situation, was happy to see him leave. [br]
"Wait... so, I don't write anything?" Børrn tilted his head, large metal cast over it. It was threatening, Tanythe had only made two glances at him. One to begin with, then a retrace upon seeing the frightful visage of his helmet. [br]
"No no, big guy, looks like you don't need to, for now," Another stranger, Pergos, he remembered, commented, slapping the back of his hand onto Børrn's chest. It was met with an aggressive grab, followed by the lifting of the human into the air. [br]
"No touch! Don't touch performer unless asked to!" His deep voice rang out, a little in a panicked tone rather than threatening. Pergos made a loud yelp, his arms blabbering about in front of him, soon grasping onto the metal cast, spinning it so the slits for the half-giant's eyes would be mismatched, rendering him blind. His hands seized, and let go of the stranger to go against his helmet. With his feet hitting the coarse dirt below, Pergos would begin trying to scamper off, beginning to dash across the barren fields. He would have gotten further, if not for the metal-clad paladin, Colette, Tanythe believed. A simple extending of her arm caused Pergos to hit the ground, blood streaming from his nose. The laughter from Morden was loud, it made Tanythe flinch in anguish. [br]
"Oh ho, looks like you four would make good company. Now; No killing one another, or stealing. I get a quarter of what you earn, and do expect to hear orders from me," Morden's head tilted to the four of them, finally resting on Tanythe. "Do not disappoint me. You do your work, and we both get benefits from it," A hand reached to the inside of his cloak, and pulled out a beige document, signed with the same emblem emboldened onto the chest plate worn by the guildmaster. "Here, take it, half-one," He felt his cheek twitch at the phrase, one hand going up to catch the document that was just pushed against his chest. "read it, tell the others, memorise it, then burn it," With that, Morden turned, and the flap of his cloak covered his body, which was left without any other explanation as to where - or how - the stranger had disappeared to. Tanythe's gaze sunk down, his eyes going across the recently pressed paper. His fingers gently smudged with ink when he shuffled the page up to read the print upon the bottom. [br]
"It seems he wants us to work already. Some place known as Tithefilt. By the looks of it, it is just to escort some materials for..." Laughter came from Pergos, the bloodied bandit, holding his nose with one hand, the other having grabbed the contract. The crimson liquid dripped onto the papers, and his grip tightened, crumpling the previously-neat document. "Hey, Elf man, you saw the price tag on that, right? Five hundred. Five Hundred gold! We're stuck here, in the middle of fuck-all nowhere with a split of a hundred and twenty five gold, I reckon we'll be living in manors and the revels of riches by the time this month ends! Everything's going to turn out okay for us all!" A cheer for the glory to come came from the bandit, as the spectator of the unravelling scene turned. Closing his eyes, the Tanythe of the current day shook his head in a mixture of embarrassment and shame. Some part of him really believed Pergos that day. Not the living in manors, or revelry, but instead that he may finally be fine, or happy, or at the least comfortable. He hadn't a clue on the restless nights, constant fights, indefinite bloodshed. He's broken more bones in the last six months than anybody did back home in the span of a decade. He misses it, really. Even with all of the turmoil it caused him, at least he could call it a home. His eyes came to a close, and when they reopened, he was back in the blank space of his dreams. [br]
"I didn't mean to see it, I promise," A voice rang out, the same one he's heard in his dreams for a while now. Tinka. Tanythe's tired gaze turned to face her, who was clutching onto her staff tightly, the upper end of it resting upon her shoulder. [br]
"Even if you did, there was nothing important to see,"[br]
"Nothing important?" Tinka took a step forward, peering over his shoulder to see if she can get a second glimpse. "It seemed important. You know, just signing your life over to some sociopathic freak and a being of the faelands. That was somebody that was a fae, right? You can't trust tricksters of the wilds, everybody knows that," [br]
"Right. I get it. But what was I supposed to do? Seems as if I had nothing I could do. Apparently I already signed it, whatever that meant. I can assure you, I'd never work for that filth of a man if I could've said no. He is just... strange. I don't get it. How come, of all people, I am forced to be of a place that hasn't a care for me? Why?" Tanythe clenched one hand into a fist, the other raised to the bridge of his nose. A long period of silence followed, only broken by the hunter when he realised how long it had actually been going on for. "Didn't you say this was painful for you to do?" The ever-shifting eyes of the druid soon focused in once more on Tanythe. [br]
"Oh! Excruciatingly so. I just... needed to talk to somebody. It's been lonely since..." She went off into a long silence, before focusing back onto Tanythe. "Right, never mind that. From what I saw, Airfelt's Crossing, right? Isn't that like... right next to Granairg? You're waiting to hear from Morden, yeah?" Tanythe's gaze flickered from the ground back to his friend, and then he made a soft gasp. [br]
"You're right. It is nearby. Morden's been silent to us this entire time, and those soldiers were close to the castle walls not too long ago! They came from north, right? Right?" He stepped closer, about to grab onto Tinka, before hesitating. His arms dropped to his side, the slightly alarmed druid taking a cautious step back. [br]
"How am I supposed to know? I wasn't there, Tan, was I?" [br]
"Did you just call me Tan?" Long pause, Tinka looked up and down, then back to Tanythe, repeating the cycle until she gave a quiet nod. "Huh. Nobody's called me that before. Weird, just Nythe,"[br]
"As in the Nythe Conc-" [br]
"Yes, probably," Tanythe kept his eyes trained on her, before she let go of her staff, sighing. [br]
"Right. Okay, I'll be going then. Hopefully whatever it is, it gets fixed," [br]
"We'll get the message, don't worry," [br]
"I wasn't meaning with Morden," Giving a single glare to Tanythe, before disappearing. With that, Tanythe awoke, in his bed, once again. [br]
It was dark, now. He must've been asleep for a while. His gaze went to the open window, bringing in a breeze that left the thin curtains flowing. Back to the door, it was shut. Alone, Tanythe edged closer and closer to the edge of the bed, and swung himself up, his leg hitting the ground. Pain shot through his body, causing his face to scrunch up and for tears to begin to build from the extreme pain. Deep sigh later, he began to raise from the bed, holding onto the bedside table for support once it was at the same level as his waist. Even with his senses being much more powerful than a regular human's, the hunter's arms shot out, looking for something to lean against. The wall had to be close. It had to be. Eventually, he had to take a step forward, the anguished pain causing his throat to tighten, and for his palms to soon enough hit against the thin wall. His left hand trailed across, and grabbed onto a broom. He could use it, as a temporary crutch. Fitted for the much taller individuals of Granairg, it was just as large as him! His hand wrapped around it, giving it a quick spin as the handle hit against his back. The bristled, itchy side was against his palm. A single tug with his forearm, pressing it against his back, and it snapped rather easily. Tanythe dropped the functional side, and pressed the smooth top to the ground, alleviating the pain from his leg. Tanythe began limping on over to the door, the illumination from the lobby outside painting a target for him to get to. Upon placing his hand onto the doorknob, he gave it a slow twist, and peered out into the dimly lit corridors. Nobody else around, if Airfelt's Crossing was where he had to go, and it was already rather late, it'd be best if he told somebody, anybody. [br]
Anybody else would have done, though. Upon the further end of the corridor stood the idle, slouched over, Gaius. Even then, he was not there for that annoying sprite. They had much more in common than Tanythe originally thought. Going to speak, he'd close his mouth and try to limp past him without putting up much of a fuss. "No, go on. You were about to say something anyways, were you not? Go on, tell me. Don't be a coward, now, Nythy," Gaius smirked, folding his arms, tapping his foot against the ground, gentle tapping of the stone beginning to irritate Tanythe further. [br]
"Listen, I'm not in the mood. Piss off, and let me find somebody who actually gives a flying damn about something that isn't themselves, alright?" Followed by an eyeroll, Gaius unfolded his arms and would reach out, to grab onto the leaving Tanythe. [br]
"Hey, I'm not done with you, am I? You want me to listen to your ramblings about how annoying I am? Ever th-" Gaius was interrupted, Tanythe's hand squeezing his in a tight, constricting way, one of malice, rather than how he was used to. [br]
"Let go of me, before I make sure you can't hold onto somebody again," [br]
"Oh, real scary. Have you ever, you know, actually gone through with one of those empty threats of yours, hmm?" Long pause, before Tanythe's hand slipped down, back to his side. "Exactly. I knew you'd do that. Run along, Nythy, clearly you have a place to be, and I won't be the one to hold you down. You do that to yourself far enough more than anybody else," Gaius flicked his hand, then yawning, beginning to pace down the corridor, the way Tanythe came. Tanythe really hated that man. [br]
It would not take long for the Hunter to find himself a friend to talk to. He was passing into the infirmary. Weakened soldiers filled each bed he saw, but there was one with a curtain pulled, away from the burly warriors. Tanythe reached out, and pulled it away from them both. It was Pergos, sunk back in his bed, body healed. Next to his bedside sat the unconscious Colette. "Oh, hey. Mind being quiet, Tanythe?" He asked, then gesturing to the vacant chair next to them both. "Both for me and Colette. She could use a bit of rest, and my head is killing me. I never really reacted well to her magic, did I?" Tanythe got himself seated, watching Pergos force a toothy grin. [br]
"Thanks. For you know, saving me. You're not a jerk, all the time, after all," He chuckled, sinking back, rubbing his head. "Another thing - before I forget - when we first met. With Morden, I mean. There was that short, blue-skinned fae, weren't there? He was going to Airfelt Crossing, was he not?" [br]
"You remember that? What are you, guildmaster of his fan club?" Getting a laugh out of Pergos, Tanythe paused, waiting for him to finish laughing at his own joke. [br]
"Right, I'm not, but as I was saying... Airfelt Crossing's half a dozen miles away. Morden's message would've been to there. He probably was not planning on showing up regardless. You think we should head up there?" He offered, leaning forward, more pressed about the matter than he usually would be. [br]
"Sure, if that's what you think. But, don't go by yourself. I don't want to sound selfish when I say this, but leave a little of the action for the rest of us too, Hunter," He put on a laugh, sinking back into his bed. [br]
"You'd rather I take you out of this bed across a boring trek?"
"It won't be boring. We both know that. When has Morden's most respected allies ever been lacklustre, pathetic, or unable to keep track of time? Something's happened over there. Maybe they're holding the lil' guy hostage, to a ransom. My manly charm can totally get him out of there, no swords needed!" He began to put on a heroic voice at the send of his little tangent. A small twitch against his cheek, subsequently followed by the distinct noise of nails digging into skin. Pergos was scratching his arm. Enough to eventually draw the smallest drops of blood. "Eugh. Of course I'd do that," He wiped the blood with his finger, then wiping it down in a nearby tissue. "But yeah, as long as we're all there, I mean, I'm there, then we can totally go off and find out what is going on," The panicked look on his face lingered for much longer than the Charlatan expected. [br]
"Whatever you say, friend. Now, I've disturbed you long enough. Get some more rest, Pergos. We'll talk together in the morning," Returning to his feet, after the brief conversation, his glimpsing eyes turned to the dimly lit lantern on the sill of the window. He bent over, ready to disperse of the flame. [br]
"Tanythe- wait. Please, uh." Deep breath, his cheeks were a rosy pink. "You mind, not putting that one out? I could do with a little light, tonight," If it was any other time, one where his friend was much less vulnerable, and up for more playful banter, he would've joked on it. Not this time though, Tanythe just gave a smile, a warm one, rather a cynical one, and gave a gentle nod. [br]
"Of course, friend. I'll not disturb you any more," With a light bow, Tanythe turned on his feet, got to the edge of the curtain, and gave Pergos one last gaze. Maybe, just maybe, these people were not fellow adventurers to him anymore. [br]
