No need for the Black Maria

[Ataraxis]

Sequel to Into and Out of Hiding (http://althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=8651).

Closed to Izvilvin.

“Can you still walk?”

These past few days, the voices without had become distant warbles, a mess of strings that she cared not to disentangle. She would nod and smile, wanly of course, but would give no one the comfort of an elaborate answer. And yet, the citizens of Scara Brae never ceased to flock at her bedside, to the point that there was now a greater influx of visitors than actual patients in the clinic.

They always made a mess of her assigned room. Twice, they broke the oil lamp on her night table; because of that, she hadn’t been allowed to read after dark until they could find replacements. Simple candles were apparently a fire hazard that they could not risk. She’d also stopped counting the times they tipped over her broths by mistake. Everyday, she looked forward to that soup. It was the tastiest thing they were able to cook in this catchpenny place, and by common standards it wasn’t even that good.

Lillian sighed. She had saved Scara Brae from ruination, and she would never regret it. The librarian only wished that the citizens of the port city weren’t so annoyingly grateful.

Three days. Three days since the attack of the goblins, riding their giant spiders. Three days since the little grey buggers were betrayed by their own chitinous steeds, when what could only be described as their eight-legged God had risen from the shadows of the docks. Three days since she had fallen from its back, and into the mercurial seas. The waters had spit her out, swallowing the beast instead. She was told that was when they brought her here, fearing that she might have caught a cold.

She hadn’t. What she did have was a broken spine.

“Can you still walk?” repeated the freckle-faced boy at her bedside. “Come on, let’s go out and play! You can show everyone how you defeated that monster! I’ll play the Drow mister, okay?”

The physician came back not a moment too soon, hurrying to pull the boy away by the shoulder. “Miss Sesthal can’t come out yet, I’m afraid. Oh, don’t be mad at her, those were my orders.” The child ran out, turning back one last time with a wounded frown before disappearing down the stairs. “I’m sorry, I told the nurse to stay here and keep them from coming in.”

Lillian met the man’s apologetic gaze. It fell away, hiding the hurt in his eyes. Then, he left. 'She smiles... and nods. Always.'

Slowly, carefully, she turned to the other side and peered through the latticed window. It was a clear sky, but the sun was elsewhere. She watched the clouds for a while, puffy white brushes drifting from frame to frame on a canvas of pastel blue. Carefree.

“So tired.” Giving up, Lillian let her mind go numb, until she was sound asleep. She wondered if she would dream, this time.

[Izvilvin]

((It should be noted that Ataraxis and I were planning to write this at a time when Lillian was still at level 1 or 2. Oopsie.))

In the moments that followed the Spider God's end, Izvilvin's injuries became more and more apparent. With adrenaline coursing through his veins like motor oil empowering an Alerian ship, the drow fought on regardless of what was blocking his passage. With that fuel emptied, the cracks in his frame widened and sunk him into this lonesome bed, where he lay with eyes pinned against the far wall.

These last few days had made his mortality clear. He'd come closer to death than he'd expected, with multiple wounds that could have crippled him, including a deep pierce that had somehow evaded his armor and punctured a hole in his chest. A miracle of fate, merely, kept that spider's claw from his heart, lungs and liver. He was well enough that a few days at the inn and some medication would suffice.

He, too, was feeling the suffocating praise of the city. Izvilvin's visitors at first poured into the inn; families of victims who violently wished their loved ones could be returned, grateful shop owners and residents of the city, soldiers who had taken up work as guards at the end of a long line of duty in Corone's military, men and women who had been saved personally by the drow...

Each of them, without exception, spoke to the back of Izvilvin's head. They thanked him profusely and left without a courtesy response, some leaving flowers or gifts or memories of their fallen kin. He hardly listened, uncomfortable with the praise and the attention. Izvilvin knew he had done the right thing by fighting the spiders, knew he would do it again if it were possible, but this was too much attention for a wanted man to have. He was anxious to leave.

On his third day in bed, late in the day as the sun began to retreat over the horizon, he finally turned to stare at the ceiling. A doctor had tried to insist on staying with him in the room, but Izvilvin would not agree. There had been herbs and medicine left for him, and after making certain that they were safe, he'd been taking them regularly. His energy had climbed back up and he felt comfortable, though still in pain.

He stood and wobbled for a moment, but felt liberated. He looked at his blistered black hands, squeezed them shut and opened them again, feeling the tight constriction of his own knuckles and fingers. His ribs, left wrist and both ankles had been bandaged, so they felt stiff.

He dressed. His clothes had been washed and sewn by an expert seamstress, so his black linen shirt and flexible pants looked new and felt clean. Izvilvin didn't feel complete, though, until he strapped on his weapon belt and felt the familiar weight of his swords.

But something still didn't feel right. Some discomfort that he couldn't pinpoint. It felt as if he was being prodded directly in his core, but it was impossible for him to describe the sensation. He could still move, and that was enough, so he left the inn and made his way outside, where there was thankfully nobody around to see him.

[Taskmienster]

This thread has been waiting for over a year. If you would like to complete it, or work on it further, you can PM myself or another staff member and ask for it to be moved. However, till that time, it will be resting in the Scara Brae Archive forum.

Thanks,
~Task