Spring 1-2, 122
As Astra and Bennu struggled with their foes, Khenera had run into one of her own. An arrow had taken her in the stomach before she had realized there was danger. She fell to her knees, staring in a daze at the arrow that had just pierced her. The wound was not immediately fatal, but the shock caused by the pain was there. She turned her head and saw where the shot came from.
Her hand was shaking. She thought she had to remove the arrow... That she had to get up. Fight and help her sister. But as soon as she placed her bloody hand on the arrow, the pain increased tenfold. Her instincts told her to simply flee back home, but she couldn't just abandon Astra. If she did, she might as well run away from home because she'd never be welcome back. She let her rage that was usually buried deep inside her awaken.
It was a feeling of rage and power that rose, invading her mind and spreading throughout her body. With a deep breath, she grabbed the arrow in her hand and pulled it out with a scream. Then, ignoring the pain, she stood up and notched the arrow. She drew her bow as hard as she could and with a scream let go of the string.
Bennu stared at the man who had gotten hit by her dagger in the shoulder. He pulled it out with a sharp hiss and glared at her. The young woman took a few steps back, continuing to stare at her opponent. He took out his bow and notched an arrow, aiming at Bennu, whose heart began to pound. She was petrified, her whole being was screaming at her to run away, to run far away, but yet she could not move. She needed someone to pull her out of her paralysis.
To her surprise, nobody shot at her. Instead, she saw the man run at her and beat her to the side. A club in his hand and a wicked smile was drawn on his lips, revealing his dirty teeth eaten away by time. He took the dagger he had received in his shoulder and advanced to his prey once more. The girl, panicked and slightly dazed, brought her hand to her forehead. When she pulled it away, blood stained it.
She backed away as best she could, but the moment she put her right wrist down to lean on it, a sharp pain made her scream. She looked at the cause of this pain, horrified. She must have sprained or broken her wrist because it was swelling rapidly. Her efforts were in vain because the pain was so great. As the poacher positioned himself above her, dagger in hand, to finish his work, Bennu made a circular movement with her legs, which caused her opponent to fall. Not a second to lose, the young woman picked up a large stone, and tried to smash his skull with it.
The arrow that Khenera shot ripped through a small portal and though she barely knew how to use a bow, it was hard to miss when firing point blank. It hit the man right in the back, where his heart was. The shot had been so powerful that the arrow came out and stuck itself in the tree opposite. The man turned around, astonished. He stared at the women, one hand on his chest, then his knees gave way and he fell onto a carpet of sand.
Astra had barely realized what had happened when she saw Bennu on the ground, striking a violent blow with a stone into her attacker's head. He'd fallen somehow, but the rock wasn't enough to kill him instantly. The attacker regained control and started beating her up. Her face was bathed in tears when her gaze met his. Astra stared at her, if only for half a second, but long enough for Astra to feel the pain in her eyes. A look that implored her, that called for help. She could feel her pain. Her fear too...
"No!" Astra shouted.
She grabbed her sword and let out a cry of rage. The obvious answer would have been to use hemomancy, but showing that ability would mean she had to kill Bennu anyways. So, she rushed towards the poacher, sword raised, ready to strike. The attacker, taken by surprise, did not even have time to prepare for the attack as she was far away from him. A dagger was more maneuverable than a sword... He jumped up, took out his dagger and with a fluid movement he aimed at the young girl's throat before she had time to close the distance.
Astra, stumbled to a stop so she wouldn't impale herself on his dagger. She had never been so close to dying. The dagger grazed her skin. Before he even reacted that he had missed his slash, Khenera blinked towards him and smashed her shoulder into him, sending him toppling over. Bennu wasted no time getting on top of him and smashing him with the rock some more.
"Here… let me," Astra said, taken aback by Khenera's appearance. She lifted her sword and shoved it into the last man. Astra was at the end of her strength. Panting, she looked at the man's dying body. His eyes were empty. Expressionless. Her head was spinning all of a sudden. Her throat was dry and her vision was fading.
Astra, overcome by a new dizziness, brought her hand to her forehead. She looked down and saw that the entire left side of her tunic was soaked in the same bloody hue. Her heart raced. There was so much blood around her and she was always so hungry.
Bennu said, "we did it… we beat them." But she didn't seem to be in very good shape. Her face was broken and she was having trouble breathing. She had been pretty just a few minutes ago.
Astra liked to tell herself that she was kind hearted, that she wanted to save Bennu… but she wasn't the innocent girl she'd been at 18. She had needs now, and if Bennu was at death's door, it would be a waste of blood to let her go free.
"No..." she murmured weakly. "No, not now. Please... please..." She dropped her sword as her madness started to make her vision blurry. The absentia in her was turning her mad, but she usually kept it at bay. She had to resist... She dragged herself weakly to the side then suddenly she felt her legs give way under her "No... I have to..." As soon as she finished her sentence, she saw Khenera cut off Bennu's head. Her older sister wasn't nearly as trusting as Astra was.
The next morning Khenera and Astra parted ways. They had too much ground to cover to stick together, but they did plan on grouping back up so they could share a portal back to the kingdom. The winds had died down and now the desert was as mild as normal. Astra soon found herself travelling with a convoy of sorts that was heading in the same direction.
Astra pitched herself as a travelling musician, which she kind of was. She sang songs for the group while they travelled along. She did not need to satisfy her thirst nor did she even lack sleep. It was only the sun that seemed unpleasant to her. Whenever she could she found shade behind one of the caravans.
It seemed that the convoy was filled with merchants and was always in need of guards. Astra didn't blame them – it could be dangerous out here and not just because of bandits. The looks on the guards faces told her all she needed to know.
She glanced at one of the guards. They had not yet spoken to each other, yet he had something to pique her curiosity. He hadn't even tapped his foot when she'd been singing and dancing.
"Hello, I am Astra. I was wondering, what weapons do you have? It might be useful to know, if a fight breaks out."
Saahir was so deep in thought that he hadn't seen the woman approach him, as beautiful as she was. Saahir looked at the woman quickly through the horizontal slit in his helmet. She seemed to be as exhausted as he was from walking in the sand in this heavy heat.
"My name is Saahir. Nice to meet you. And as for my weapon…" The man placed his left hand on a handle. The two-handed sword was attached to Saahir's belt. He normally wore it on his back but his armor being in poor condition as of late, it was impossible for him to attach a strap. The sword's scabbard drew marks in the sand as he walked.
"I fight with this. It may be a little rusty, but it is still capable of cutting through a person with ease. And you, what do you fight with?"
The vampire observed the weapon with an interested eye. She had never wielded blades of this this, due to the force required to move them effectively - not to mention their bulk. Finally, no matter how inexperienced she was, the beauty of the sword did not escape her. She let her gaze linger on the shapes of the handle.
"Pretty blade. I use a sword, sometimes a bow… not great at either, I'm afraid," Astra said with a sigh. How could one define the exact nature of her "weapon" without talking about blights?
"I tend to rely on conjurations, if I must fight," she said.
Saahir was astonished. "You can afford to do that?"
"At times," she said with a grin, "my purse is a bit empty now, so I would have to rely on strong men like yourself to save me. I have a sword and bow, but my aptitude in those areas are questionable." She giggled and continued, "it's so hot isn't it?"
Saahir shrugged, "I don't have much to offer you. I only have a canteen of water that's near empty. I never drink alcohol either."
Saahir's surprise amused her. She didn't need to drink, but she still brought up the desire in casual conversation. It helped sell the lie. Don't worry about it. I'll survive. But I will promise you some extra money if you keep an eye out for me. A girl like me needs all the protection she can get!"
"Erm, alright. Just stay close to me."
The convoy advanced like this all day long, before dusk came to bring a welcome stop. The group stopped between two dunes, where a small oasis allowed the mounts to quench their thirst. Astra did took advantage of the opportunity to was away some of this sticky sweat that had become too odorous for her sensitive nose.
She then went to set up her rough camp behind the fire that the merchants had lit, so that she could stay warm. Deserts were odd like that. During the day one had to avoid heat but the cold nights necessitated fires.
Saahir poured some water into the slit of his helmet to quench his thirst. It might have seemed strange but he had always made sure never to remove his helmet in public. Not that he found it repulsive, but it was an old war habit. "Expose your face and the enemy will take advantage of it to put an arrow in it." That's what his father used to say. Since then, he typically only removed his helmet to sleep and eat when he wasn't in town.
A desire to immerse himself crossed his mind. Without even glancing at the rest of the convoy, the man stepped forward put his feet in the water. He felt the water seep between the plates of his armor. Saahir let out a slight moan of happiness. He continued a little longer and only his head stuck out from the water. He must have stayed there for half an hour before he came out, dripping and wet but happy.
After a short half hour, giving the armor time to drain of water, Saahir approached Astra who seemed to be looking for something.
"It's getting late. I can stay up to keep an eye on you if you want."
"Insomniac?" she asked, but he shook his head.
"No, I've got to do rounds anyways."
She looked at the moon for a moment before wrapping her clothes around her more tightly.
" Let's walk around together, if that's okay with you?" she suggested.
There was silence for a moment, without it being awkward. The two were strangers and yet Saahir did not feel the need to fill any kind of social void. He preferred to be alone, Astra did not, when she had a good feeling that they were good people. She looked at him sideways. Tried to see the man under the armor…
"Who are you under this armor?"
Saahir smiled under his helmet.
The armored man couldn't help but let out a small laugh. It had been so long since he had been asked that question. "A long time ago, I was a great warrior." Saahir paused for a few seconds, then continued.
"That war happened about a hundred years ago. I nearly died after decimating some bandits that had ambushed us."
The armored man removed the glove from his left hand, revealing a powerful, but sickly looking hand. It was white, almost purple, and one could clearly see the purple and black veins on his hand and the rest of his forearm.
"I have been afflicted by a disease, some kind of poison that no healer I've met has been able to fix." He put his glove back on and adjusted it properly.
Astra walked with her gaze fixed ahead, turning her head from time to time to scan the surroundings in search of danger. However, the night seemed to want to grant them a respite and not invite its creatures to a meal. She would not be the one to complain. She thought about how different the two of them looked. One a beautiful songstress, the other a force of nature. A strange pair.
While Saahir explained himself, Astra tried to remember if she had heard of a disease like that before. Must have been some kind of powerful poison, but it was odd that nobody had been able to heal these effects. Maybe he just hadn't been able to afford a healer.
"Well, it doesn't look like it's preventing you from finding work."
She felt that something was wrong. What, she couldn't say then, however her instinct urged her to know a little more about him... one could never know too much information. He didn't seem as bland as he wanted to let on. He had been through a lot.
"That is true. I am free now. I spent my old life fighting, obeying orders, killing men who were like me, simple hands for hire, surely with a wife and children, who had probably fight to have a little money to feed themselves. But I feel like that life is too much for me. I can feed my family by doing these more simple jobs."
She gave him a knowing smile, understanding a little of this aspiration to freedom. Perhaps she envied him a little of that, but she herself could not bring herself to put herself in that much danger. Being too quick to be sympathetic could prove fatal for someone who played with politics.
"It is respectable path that you have chosen to take... Can't fault a man for doing what he can to get by."
The conversation continued throughout the night, without disturbance, until Astra decided to let him finish his rounds alone. She went to steal a few hours of sleep while the camp woke up gently at dawn.
As fate would have it, the desert decided to pay them back for a calm night. A particularly strong and hot wind swept the dunes, delaying the convoy's morning routine. Astra woke up to sand being blown up her nose – not a pleasant experience. She was in a grumpy mood the entire morning and she was starting to feel the need to feed. She was good on blood for a couple days, but she needed to fulfill her other needs. Perhaps tonight she would find her opportunity.
After a few hours, the wind had calmed down and the group could move a little faster. But the temperature was increasing by the hour. The sooner they arrived the desert village, the better. That was where Astra was supposed to meet up with her sister.
Her gloomy gaze swept across the expanses of sand. Sand, sand, sand... And that damned sun that insisted on showing up to work. Her thoughts wandered while remaining attentive to her surroundings. She was eager for this journey to end... Not that she was in a hurry – she had lots of homework to do.
Suddenly, Saahir heard a noise. The kind of noise that you don't forget. He turned quickly and saw in the distance two fins in the sand that were rushing towards the convoy. He had travelled these sands for so many years that he knew that this kind of monster was not very dangerous, but that if they attacked in groups, the damage could be significant. Saahir took his sword out of its sheath.
"Sand sharks!!! Take cover!"
Fortunately, the convoy had stopped near a rock just before a dune. The rest of the group hid behind it while Saahir approached the other guards…
A scream made Astra shake off her bad mood. She had not seen the sharks speed towards them, her gaze had wandered in the opposite direction. She did not go straight to Saahir. She could tell the sharks would not arrive immediately and the protection of the convoy was essential for the moment. It would be safest to be near the center of the group.
Astra:
1.89 (from previous part)
NPC:
0.22 (from previous part) - 0.04 apprentice portal = 0.18
1.89 (from previous part)
NPC:
0.22 (from previous part) - 0.04 apprentice portal = 0.18
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