Lost, confused and far from home

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

(Solo for now but open to those brave enough to encounter a soon to be very agitated young woman from a different world.) ((Bunnying pre-approved))

I was first conscious of a bright light, it pierced my clenched eyelids and stabbed into my brain with viciousness worthy of a night filled with alcohol. I groaned and threw an arm over my eyes. I tried to remember if I had gone to a party last night, my last memory was sitting at the computer.

“Oi! Turn of the damned light.” The silence followed my growl made me attempt to open my eyes.

“Jas…” I cut off the call to my husband as my eyes managed to open a crack and took in a very important fact, blue sky over head. I watched a flock of birds fly by before I sat up.

“What in the world?” I whispered to no one in particular, staring at a forest unlike anything I had ever seen. Yards away trees stained red from root to leaf tip started, a vague recollection tickled my brain but I pushed it aside as I climbed to my feet. I bent over, placing my hands on my knees as everything wavered for a moment. Exhaling hard I waited until everything to settle before inhaling. Looking up the strange forest was still there.

Okay where am I and what is going on? What is with this place and why does sit seems kind of familiar? Wait, is that vine, moving? My thoughts broke off as I screamed and yanked my foot away from what I realized was a slender snake, almost the same shade as the grass. Something tangled itself around my feet and I fell over. A slight whine escaped me as I sat up and gently touched the place on my hip where I had landed. Reality clicked and I scrambled to my feet looking for the snake.

I noted a black bag at my feet, a moment later I realized that it was my backpack. I grabbed my bag and walked away from the area, hopefully away from the snake. It was a good bit of distance before I felt safe enough to stop and dig through the bag. I began to pull things out of the bag and spread them out around me a bewildering mix of items came out, thankfully there was a water bottle. I pocketed the swiss army knife I found in the bag, it might come in handy later.

“Okay, I have some useful items, are these gold coin?” I whispered to myself, looking in to a small ouch. Shaking my head, I carefully packed everything back into my backpack and shouldered. Glancing around I decided to explore the odd forest while the sun was still high, perhaps it could create some from of shelter until whoever was responsible for dumping me out here came back.

At the edge of the forest I stopped, a little apprehensive at entering such an odd-looking place. Trees were supposed to be pretty greens and browns, not red. The wind blew astray leaf against one foot, I bent down and picked it up. There were no traces of paint, it was real, not cardboard, and not plastic. An idea occurred to me and I shook my head chuckling, I was not on Althanas. It was a made up world, wasn’t it?

Whispering a few choice comments about revenge I steeled myself and walked into the forest. Instantly the light took on an eerie quality, the atmosphere was hushed. The lack of normal bird calls and shuffling of forest animals raised the hair on the back of my neck. I could feel my heart start to pound in my chest and I glanced back at the open, prairie like area I had first woke up in. The sunlight seemed to cheerfully shine on the green grasses, beckoning me to return.

Deciding that the call of pure light was a better decision than the creepy forest I turned to head back. A tug at my ankle stopped me. I stared fascinated at a vine, no bigger around than one of my fingers, that wrapped around my ankle. A series of sharp stings woke me, trying to yank my foot away only rewarded me by the digging thorns in deeper. The vine pulled, trying to pull me deeper into the forest. Shrieking I stomped at the vine, digging in my pockets for the swiss army knife. I nearly dropped the little tool when I was pulled off balance, opening the blade of it I hacked at the vine until I cut it off.

Not bothering to pull the part off the vine still attached to my ankle I ran for the sunlight that beckoned me. Breathing hard from my panicked run I stopped when I was absolutely positive that nothing from the forest would or could come out for me. A stinging pain reminded me that I still had the vine attached to my ankle. My hands decided to start shaking as I sat down, carefully prying the vine out of my flesh.

Looking from the peculiar wounds on my ankle, a neat puncture from the vine and the jagged half moons around each hole, to the vine that of all things oozed blood from the cut end to the forest the loomed near by. I sat on the ground, my arms wrapped around my knees and simply stared at the forest for a long time trying to deny what my mind shrieked at me. The giggle that caught in my throat surprised me a little as I finally gave in to the oblivious.

“I’m in Althanas, and that is the Red Forest.”

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

How long I sat there, I didn’t know. Finally the backbone that had gotten lost somewhere in the Red Forest found me and decided that I had spent enough time being girly and helpless. No one else was out here to help me so I had to help myself. I shook off the lingering shakes and tears before I climbed to my feet. If the sun moved in this world like it did back home I knew I need to walk away from the afternoon sun. I just hoped I wasn’t too far from one of the major cities. Readjusting the backpack on my shoulders I headed east.

The sun was perhaps a hour away from setting by the time I spotted something worth while. Against the sky ahead of me there was several grey stream floating up into the sky. I stopped to stretch my tired legs, and rubbed the right calf, it kept cramping up on me.

“Man, I’m out of shape.” I grumbled to myself, as I tried to rack my brain for places and names of Althanas, particularly those in Raiaera. I muttered to myself as with a last stretch I began walking towards the source of the smoke. I pushed myself to hurry to reach the village or city before sunset.
~~~
I studied the shadow walking in front of me, and regretted the fact that my shadow had a better figure than I did. I glared at it as I kept my feet moving mechanically over the ground. A quick glance behind me showed a swollen red orb lurking at horizon and I cursed it and myself. ‘Come on, move move move! There’s no telling what will come out at night.’ I turned my head to look at the Red Forest, worrying that the smoke that I followed seemed to be taking me closer than I wanted to the forest.

Thoughts of the blood vines, shape shifting wolves, other deadly and venomous creatures the lived with in the stained borders made me anxious to get to shelter as soon as possible. With out realizing I had pulled it out of my pocket I found that I held the useful little tool from my world out, the swiss army knife on it out. ‘As if it would scare anything away, the most use I get out it is dragging what ever gets me to hell with me.’ Despite my negative thoughts I still found some comfort in the fact that I wasn’t completely helpless.

I cursed, using word I knew as the sun slid past the horizon. Unsure if the moon would rise, or if it would be full enough to travel by I stopped my eastward trek and turned away from the Red Forest. Paranoia and the thought of something coming out to eat me was incentive enough to push my tired body into a wavering trot. Once it grew too dark to safely travel over the uneven ground I stopped.

Sinking to the ground I let my back pack slide off my shoulders. I pulled the backpack around in front of me and dug out my glasses. Unwillingly, I put them yet sighed in relief as everything jumped into focus in the dim twilight. Shuffling everything around in the pack I pulled out the blanket and my water bottle. The fact that I had little water left worried me, I took only a sparse sip as I waited to see if I was grounded by the moon or if I could continue.

[None So Blind]

Jennifer had every right to fear the darkness in the Red Forest. She had been tracked for some time now, but it wasn't one of the strange wolves who, like nymphs, made the trees their cover. It wasn't a creeping vine or a soul flower. It was something, to tell the truth, that wasn't supposed to be there at all.

A Drow man watched her from the treeline, the foliage in which he perched providing shelter for his ink black skin and brilliantly platinum hair. That was the terrible thing about being monochromatic, he decided. He was easily spotted in the open. Amber eyes watched through the crimson leaves as his quarry laid down her pack and began to watch the skies.

Why do you care so much about this? Queen asked in derision. She's a mere human. Plain in coloring. Nothing to get excited over.

"Can't a man be curious?" Kor asked quietly while he watched her. He felt no desire for her, but it was odd for a human to be merely wandering around the Red Forest. There was no denying that he was bored to tears. Hiding after his aquisition of a pair of pants seemed demeaning and he was looking forward to a change of luck that would allow him to walk around in plain sight again.

Seriously, you need a woman. Queen remarked and began to fly towards the woman, keeping high. Kor rolled his eyes and dropped down to the ground. He hadn't seen a Tel' Algarim patrol all morning long, surely it would be safe enough to have a little fun with this woman.

Shoving his thumbs behind the 'belt' of hair that kept his pants in place, he began to walk towards Jennifer. His bare feet made no sound in the grass, but his shadow began to stretch once he was free of the trees, reaching for her almost as his mind did. A sneer set on his face, and as he came within fifty feet of her, he stopped.

"Vedui', nindol tangisto." he said, giving her his most charming smile as he let the words rumble out of his chest in a growl.

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

Over head the sky darkened. I watched the beautiful colors of the sunset fade from the sky and the first stars appear. I let my guard down and watch as faintly at first then shining stronger the stars spread out across the sky in constellations I had never before seen. I looked away from one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen, melancholy gnawing at me.

An approaching shadow caught my attention, I followed it back to its source. A dark skinned man approached silently. I sighed in relief when he stopped a good distance away. He rumbled something at me in a language I didn’t understand. I climbed to my feet leaving the blanket to pool on the ground. I kept the hand that gripped the little bladed tool in my pocket, and casually shoved the other hand in my pocket.

For several long minutes I just stared at the man. Wary, I studied him unabashedly. My eyes raking him from his bare torso, a pair of pants held up with an odd looking belt and down to bare feet. I didn’t exactly get a warm and fuzzy feeling from this guy, I realized that the hair on the back of my neck was actually standing at attention. Something lurked at the edge of my mind.

“Evening.” Finally I broke the silence and staring contest. I just hopped, whatever his reasons for being here, he was up to no good. This man was familiar some how, a moment later it clicked. The only person that I was familiar with having dark skin and white hair was dead.

“Vith.” I muttered to myself. Even though I couldn’t help the slight grin that formed I knew I was in big trouble.

“Hi Ghauntyrr'Stra, sorry, but I can’t remember your new name at the moment.”

[None So Blind]

Kor's eyebrows flew upwards as the woman spoke the name. He thought those syllables had been buried beneath the earth, or at least within the stone confines of the Brotherhood's Shadow tower. Now he stood before a human girl who knew the name, who said it correctly! Now it was his turn to feel the roil of paranoia move through his system. His mind screamed that she must be obliterated from the face of Althanas forever, but instead his smile only grew more saccharine.

"Kor." he said. "A simple name, it surprises me that you'd remember Ghauntyrr'Stra over it. Tell me, xa'los, what is your name? I would hate to be at a tactical disadvantage." He stepped closer, yet keeping his movement in a crescent so as not to startle her. She had made her temporary camp near a fallen log, and he sat on it slowly. The distance had been halved, but he felt he was still far enough away that she wouldn't run. In his mind, he still wondered how she could have possibly known about his previous life.

Inspiration dawned.

"Queen," he commanded, holding his hand above his head. Twittering with anger and flying jerkily against her will, the bird perched on his hand. He brought it down before him, and stared at her, mouthing words that were nearly silent.

"How did you tell her?"

Even if she could understand me, I haven't spoken! The smile wavered for a moment and his hand closed around the little bird.

"If you are lying, I will kill you." he muttered again and tossed Queen aside as if she were only trash. The bird rolled in the air, landing roughly on the ground before flying to the cover of the forest again. Kor turned his attention back to the Earthian girl before him, and rested his chin on his hand as he studied her.

"If I were you, xa'los, I would begin to explain how you came by such knowledge very quickly. I am not a man who likes to waste time with formalities."

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

I snorted in a very un-lady like way. Turning partly away from the man, I watched him as he moved over to a near by log and sit. Watching as he called out to a 'Queen', I was vaguely amused as a beautiful little bird answered his call. I started to protest the abuse of the bird, but decided that Kor was probably annoyed enough as it was.

“Formalities? Such things are wasted on you, before and now.” I found myself irritated at being threatened. At least this was something that could talk, so sure Kor probably would rather kill me than kiss me. Fear wasn’t one of the things I was feeling at the moment. I think that particular emotion got burnt out from excessive use earlier. I thought to myself derisively. It was enough to make me grin.

I turned away to kneel and rummage through my bag. It gave me the excuse to openly pull out the tool I held in my hand. I pulled out the white t-shirt and threw it on the ground by Kor’s feet.

“Put on the shirt. You look ridiculous wandering around with only pants on.” I pulled my backpack up on one shoulder alone so I could easily swing it at Kor if he got too close to me. After a moment of hesitation I picked up the small bladed tool and held it down at my side. I bounced slightly after I stood up to settle the backpack comfortably. I looked at Kor, I’m sure I probably did not look very friendly. I thought on how to phrase my answer truthfully but tell as little as possible.

“My knowledge comes from what is now my past. I have a lot of knowledge of this world, the places and people in it but not enough. Now, I really need to reach the village I saw smoke rising from earlier. Hopefully form there I’ll find my way to Anebrilith.” I paused in surprise as the name of a city I just barely knew anything about fell from my mouth with ease. Absently I fingered the ring in my upper left ear, wondering just why it seemed the longer I was on Althanas the easier it was to recall things I had only read about.

[None So Blind]

"The smoke you see comes from Anebrilith. You are not so far from it now. Edging on the forest was a good idea," Kor said as he reached down and picked up the white tee shirt that she had thrown at him. He inspected the seaming, impressed with the quality. He had never seen stiches like this, and the material was softer than any shirt he had ever touched. Just on the inside was a small slip of a foreign material that he'd never touched before.

"Fruit of the Loom?" he asked, reading the script. After a moment, he frowned and looked up at her. "Don't tell me that's your name. I assume it's the seamhouse that did the sewing. It sounds decidedly Coronian, which makes sense." He began to brush the dirt off the shirt, meticulously making sure he got every speck.

"Only a Coronian would consider that a weapon." he said, glancing at the knife she held. The blade was tiny, and the body was bulky. It was something a child should weild, not an adventurer who skirted by the Red Forest at night. He gave a snort of his own and began to fold the shirt, making sure every crease and line was perfect before he stood.

"You can put down your little pin, Mrs. Loom," he said with a smile. "I only intend to cross to return your garment. I learned long ago that sometimes the best camoflauge you have is your own skin." He took five steps toward her, the shirt extended, and paused, waiting to gague her reaction.

"Tell me your name and I will escort you to Anebrilith. Perhaps you can help me as well."

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

Anxiety I didn’t know was there left me at hearing that I was actually close to Anebrilith. It left me slightly weak kneed. I took a couple of deep breaths to regain my customary balance, both mentally and physically.

“That’s great. I was worried that I was dropped into the middle of Raiaera.” Pausing, I frowned and looked around at the land. “Wait, what about the black desert? If I’m so close to Anebrilith I should have seen signs of it during the day.” I worried over it for a moment, I really did not want to encounter any of the black scorpions. A chuckle escaped me, I could not help it. The black desert couldn’t possibility run up against the red forest. Watching Kor brush the dirt off of the shirt and finger the material, I shook my head at my thoughtlessness. The simple cotton I was used to was more than likely a lot finer stuff than most people on Althanas ever saw.

“Fruit of Loom is the name of a, ah, very large business from where I used to live, not from Corone. Neither is my weapon. If you could even bother call it a weapon.” I finished the last of my sentence in little more than a mutter. I wondered just how much I should speak of my own world, things were so different here.

I tensed as Kor walked towards me, unsure if I should run or get ready to defend myself. Images of what possibility could happen flitted through my mind with startling clarity. Deciding that trying to earn Kor’s respect would be better I forced myself to stand in place and be reasonable. After all you don’t run from a predator, it will only chase you. I nodded my head slightly and took the shirt back. Flipping it out I simply tossed it over my shoulder, I would put it in my pack later.

“Perhaps your skin would work for you, but I would still stand out just as badly as my shirt.” I pushed back the sleeve of my blouse to show skin a handful of shades darker and pinker than the white blouse I wore. His offer made me stare at him skeptically, I couldn’t help the brow that rose. After a moment or three of thought I shrugged with the thought of oh what the hell, at least I’ll be a little safer.

“I am Jennifer, though I normally go by the name of Jenn.”

[None So Blind]

The smile returned to Kor's face as Jennifer introduced herself. He hadn't been expecting to win her over this easily. Apparently, he thought to himself, all of the knowledge she claimed to posses was worthless in application. He had been impressed, however, with her mentioning of the desert and the scorpions. Her understanding of her situation wasn't nearly as thin as he first perceived.

"Don't worry about the Black Desert. We will pass through there, but only briefly."

He turned from her and began to walk back towards the edge of the forest, where scatters of saplings began to turn to throngs of taller trees. When he had once again become swallowed into the shadow beneath the canopies, he turned around, assuming she had followed. His hands were outstretched towards her and he cocked his head to the side as Queen came down from the trees to rest on his shoulder.

"You will need to take my hand for this," he called out to her. "I hope that you are not afraid of the dark."

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

Briefly? I wonder at what he meant. He smiled again at me, it beginning to get on my nerves. If I can just put up with it until we reach Anebrilith everything will be fine. I looked up at him to see him walking towards the forest. What is he doing, that forest is dangerous, but then Kor is not your normal homicidal manic either. Geez, what am I doing following this guy? I brow beat myself as I slowly followed him back to the forest, pausing only long enough to grab my blanket. I stuffed it and my t-shirt in my pack as I hurried to catch up.

“What on earth?” I muttered to myself as the same little bird that he had abused earlier flew down to rest on his shoulder. Something clicked in my brain once more, several things I remember reading.

“Oh my god, that’s Natamrael! Avery is…” I cut off my exclamation, biting my lip to keep from speaking anything else that I really shouldn’t. I looked up at the shadowy form of Kor before me. He held out a hand to me and looked almost patient

Afraid of the dark? Why would I be? I gave Kor an un-amused look as I took his hand. Almost immediately I regretted that action. His hands were very warm, almost hot to the touch and callused. The shadows that were naturally wrapped around the flora of the forest flocked to us seconds after I took Kor’s hand.

“Oh? You’re actually going to use the shadows to move us, how kind. Here I thought I would have the pleasure of your company the whole way there as I walked.” I couldn’t help the sarcastic tone of my voice. I tightened my grip on Kor’s hand as I was blinded by the shadows, unable to see even Kor in front of me.

Never fond of heights I hissed slightly as the ground seemed to disappear from under my feet. There was the sensation of flying, wind rushing past us at great speeds. I kept my eyes open unwilling that the shadows would set us down and Kor would see the cowardice of my closed eyes.

It seemed as if only a minute passed before we were set back down. I slid a little as I found the ground beneath my feet less than firm. I looked down to see grains of dark sand gleaming back at me. I stood upon a tall sand dune, black, gleaming sand spread out around me as far as I could see.

“Vith.” I shook my head at my choice of curse words. Pulling my hand out of Kor’s I wiped my now sweaty palm against the leg of my pants.

“Could your hand be any hotter? Between the two of us, it makes my hand clammy. Let me guess you’re not actually going to leave me here, but you think it’s a good thought anyways.”

[None So Blind]

Her discomfort found in the shadows amused him, and he found himself pleased when she expressed it with a hiss. This human had a spirit to her, one that he would probably never respect but he could acknowledge. Something as frail as her wouldn't have survived if it weren't for that spark of fire. He saw it in her eyes; blue flames always burned so hot they felt like ice. He wondered as the darkness took them if there was a single human male who could contain her. He snorted as he began the process of moving them.

To Jennifer, it felt as if they flew, but Kor knew better. Kor knew every step, every small shadow jump, between the Red Forest and the edge of the sand dunes were he ran out of shadow. The breeze carried sand into his eyes and he blinked at their surroundings as Jennifer took her hand back.

"If I make your hand uncomfortable," he hissed at her as he began to walk as lightly as he could down the dune, "I could always grab you somewhere else." His orange eyes burned in the darkness, moving back and forth to find somewhere where he could again transport them. He was sure that it would take only one more string and he could get them across the desert safely, on the edge of the foothills that led to the port city of Anebrilith.

"Or I could leave you to find your own way," he suggested as he finally found what he was looking for on the horizon. As he began to plod through the sand, towards the rising boulders of a ridge ahead, he turned to look at the human. His eyes caught, instead, something moving just behind her. Diving down, he buried himself in the sand, wrapping the darkness that came with submerging himself around him. Seconds later, he burst upwards besides the brunette, shoving her aside with no kindness. As his arm cleared her out of the way, a black mass came from the sand. A scorpion the size of a large dog came clattering up, it's sting moving as fast as the Drow had slid through the shadows. The tip buried itself into Kor's arm, even as the Drow's foot came crashing down on the arachnid's soft head.

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

“…Or I could leave you to find your own way.” I snorted at Kor’s threat. I looked around to see if there where any recognizable features in the dark landscape around me. Kor moved away, I kept track of him by the shimmer of his white hair and the smoldering gleam from his eyes. Curiosity as to what he though he was doing held me in place.

Kor turned to me, undoubtedly to insult me once again and tell me to follow him. I frowned as he dove for the sand. The next few moments passed by in a blur, I caught only fleeting impressions of an explosion beside me and movement. I hit the sand with a heavy thump, I half rolled half slid down the rest of the dune. I laid at the bottom of the dune for a few seconds blinking in surprise. One would have thought the sand would provide a softer landing. That felt like concrete.

I rolled to my feet and turned back towards Kor, indignation at being shoved around as if I were nothing more than some puppet began to burn in my chest. Fastidiously I began to brush the black sand from my clothing, giving myself a minute to clam down. Yelling at Kor wasn’t probably the brightest of ideas. I froze as I looked up at Kor, he stood at the top of the sand dune, on hand clasping the other arm just above the stinger of a large scorpion that was buried in his arm.

I hastily grabbed my backpack that was half buried in the sand and clambered up the sand hill. I brushed sand over the crushed scorpion, hiding it and covering up the fluids that leaked out of its shattered carapace.

“This is going to hurt a lot.” I thought about adding that he should just deal with the pain but now was not the time to act bitchy. I grabbed the stinger as close to his arm as I could and yanked on it, pulling the stinger out. Immediately blood welled up from the wound. I dug through the backpack for anything to stop the bleeding.

“Gods, I have nothing but junk in here. I need to assemble a first aide kit. This world is hazardous to your health.” I pulled out my extra shirt and started cutting strips from it to bind Kor’s wound.

Bobbing my head in an apologetic way I place a folded strip directly over the wound and wound several strips around his arm. After I was done, I grabbed his other arm and tugged on it.

“Come on we need to get away from here. I’ve heard the scorpions are drawn to the death of one of their own by the scent. If that is true then soon this area will be crawling with them.” I grew silently for a moment, looking up at Kor. A question that I wanted to ask heavy on the tip of my tongue. Finally I gave in.

“How do you deal with is world?”

[None So Blind]

From the way she spoke of the scorpions, he knew now that she'd been truthful about knowing much of this world. The way she worded it made him suspicious that this world was not where she was from at all. Hewondered again where she came from. Where he had passed her off as Coronian at first, now he wasn't quite so sure. While she looked like nearly every human he'd ever seen, there was something in her voice that wasn't quite the Coronian Common. Her clothes were plain, and not at all the Radasanth fashions he'd seen. Then she asked the question that completely turned his opinion of her upside-down.

He thought long and hard as she bandaged his arm. Most of his thoughts were on his last life, when he had walked as the woman Ghauntyrr'Stra Do'afin. The Drowess had been piled upon with heartache, and as he thought, they all stemmed from the emotions she felt from other people. She had cared for her children, and it had broken her heart to have to kill them. She had cared for her Shadows, and when they were hurt by their own trials and tribulations, she silently wept for them. She had cared for Damon Kaosi. She had called him a dear friend, and gave her life to save his. Kor had heard some gossip on the death of the elven general, and there had come a bitterness with it. What had the death of Ghauntyrr'Stra Do'afin done if Damon Kaosi had also fallen afterwards? With his memories shoved firmly back into the far recesses of his mind, he could answer Jennifer honestly.

"The less you care, the less it hurts." he muttered, pulling his arm away when she'd finished using the refused shirt as a tourniquet. Now their need to get to Anebrilith was heightened. The antidote to the scorpion's poison was a dire need in his mind.

He turned and began to make for the rocks he'd seen before and as he knelt in the shadow, he held his hand out to her again.

"As much as you dislike it, take my hand. When you open your eyes again, we'll be nearly there."

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

For several long minutes Kor was silent, I wondered what he thought about. Muted emotions flickered through his orange eyes. His answer made sense to me, the less you cared the less it hurt. I wondered what happened when you went too far with not caring about anything.

I looked up at the unfamiliar stars and frowned. There were no friends, no family here in this world. I thought it unlikely to find my way back to the life I had on Earth. Resolve hardened in my heart to leave behind the weak person I was, had been. I would remake myself to fit this harsh world and remain aloof. I would never again depend on anyone else.

Nodding slightly to myself, I made the promise and held it close to my heart. I was alone in this world, the softer, kinder soul that was Jennifer was an unneeded restriction. I stared up into his eyes, challenging him, and I wondered if I would ever become as cold as the man before me. I hoped not, but I feared it would be so. I had nothing to stop me, no light to shine for me in the darkness that would eventually take my soul.

“You’re right. We must hurry, with how much venom is in your system. If you live to dawn I’ll be surprised.” I followed Kor into the shadows of the boulders, and took his too warm hand with out complaint. Just as the shadows wrapped around us I felt the need to push back just as much as Kor pushed me.

“I am not so weak as to close my eyes. I prefer to face what is coming with eyes open.”

[None So Blind]

"Inbal ol dosst i'dol." Kor muttered as she held his hand and stepped under the overhang with him. As the shadows enveloped them again, twisting to take them into that dark place, again the scenery rushed by. Seconds of darkness passed, punctuated with scenes of desert life blinking through, witnessed from the shadows. Once he had to jump back into shadow far quicker than he was used to to avoid a scorpion whose den they intruded upon, and the next time he nearly fell over with the nausea that skipping his beat had caused. In the course of half an hour, they were no longer in the desert, patches of hillside dotted with black rocks coming into view. When Kor finally stopped, his chest heaving with the effort that shadowwalking with another person had caused, they could see the skyline of Anebrilith ahead. The air was salty from the sea, billows of smoke rising in the early dawn light as baker's fires were lit.

"There is your target, Jennifer," he said, her name nearly tumbling out with his thick Alerian accent. "The great elven port." This second part he spat out as he began to walk towards the city. "I kept my end of the bargain; I helped you to arrive here, and now I need your assistance. I cannot just walk into the city, so I'll need you to help sneak me in." He stopped walking, sitting on a black stone as he wiped sweat from his brow. His breath was still coming heavy, and he had the sinking feeling that it was not the shadowwalking that had so fatigued him. Around the sting, seeing furling out from under the blood-soaked strips of cloth, his ink skin was swollen and stained so slightly burgundy. Silently, he stood and began to walk with an urgency towards the city. It would only take a few minutes before they arrived at a high wall and Kor turned to face the Earthian girl.

"Our next step, I leave up to you. The sky is not so light that we'd be seen scaling the wall, but if you are in doubt, there are other options. You could distract the gate guards while I slip in and then follow after, or if you don't want to mess with the guards at all, we could try and find a sewage gate. Or, if you intend on following my advice so soon," he mused with a small smile, "You could go through those gates without a problem. Just tell the guards you come from Corone, and not Salvar. You could let me take care of my own damn self."

The smile he gave was the same slow, arrogant one he'd given her at her camp, but somehow there was something more guarded in his eyes than before.

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

I felt Kor falter at one point in the shadow fueled travel and turned, wrapping as arm around his waist to support him until they reached the city. As soon as the shadows cold touch began to lessen I released him and stepped away. Grey streams of smoke rose up into the dark, star filled sky. I shook my head, I knew I was in a medieval world but that fact that people got up before dawn seem odd to me.

I caught the scent of salt, water and vegetation rotting. Vaguely I realized that it was the scent of the ocean. I kept an eye on Kor, he seemed, unstable. I laugh caught in my throat and I coughed a little. ‘Unstable? When has he ever been stable?’ I looked back at Kor as he sat down on a rock then moments later began walking again. The walls surrounding Anebrilith drew my gaze to them in silent complication.

Against my better judgment I kept silent about his movement. I knew the poison would spread faster the more he moved around. After a moment I sighed and walked up to him, shaking my head slightly.

“You’re an idiot if you think you can go through the sewers, or if you think I could distract the guards long enough to allow you to sneak in. I’m sure scaling the wall wouldn’t be that hard. For me. With your arm injured and the scorpions poison running around in your system are you sure you can do it?”

I ignored the little voice in the back of my head telling me to talk away and go to the gates of the city. I also ignored its whispering when I drew Kor’s good arm over my shoulder, silently offering what support I could. I didn’t want to acknowledge that this unpredictable man was shirtless and quite muscular. I frowned at him, my eyes narrowing in suspicion.

“Don’t get any funny ideas. The more you move around the more that poison spreads through you. I quite sure that you already know that, at least your former self would have.” I refrained from mentioning Ghauntyrr'Stra out right so I wouldn’t anger him. I smiled at Kor, knowing that it was more a thin glittering barring of teeth more than an actual smile. His obvious mistrust in the fact that I had any honor irritated me.

“I would have helped you into the city even before you took the jab at me. You helped me out, hell, you saved my life. I think I owe you on a couple of counts. Now how are we going to get into a city that you obviously are not allowed in? I doubt it that they will welcome you in with open arms.” I smirked at him, memories of reading his exploits surfacing.

“Only this time, wait until you get some help for the poison before you assault another old lady.”

[None So Blind]

Twice she spoke, uttering things that only he should know. His knack with poisons in a former life might not have transferred over. He couldn't remember for the life of him how to make half of the concoctions that had made Ghauntyrr'Stra Do'afin more deadly with mortar and pestle than any barbarian with a sword, but he did remember the basics. The girl was right, the more he moved and got his circulation pumping strong, the worse off he was going to be. The mention of the elderly woman whose hair was knotted around his waist also hit him with a paranoia. That was the recent past. Quite recent. Either this lorekeeper was brand spanking new here, or she was more psychic than he realized. He regretted letting her touch his hand, his arm, his chest. He should have made her walk. Hell, he should have let her die.

"I've gotten over this wall easily before. There's a place where a low-boughed tree grows close to it. We'll scale there."

He began to walk again, jerking his arm from her grasp. He didn't need help. Perhaps if he were on his deathbed, maybe. His feet were dragging more than usual, and a tree root caught his bare foot. While he stumbled, he caught himself in time and sent a disdainful glare Jennifer's way. She was amused by his weakness, he could tell. When they came to the tree he had been talking about, he stepped back to let her climb first. As she moved beside him, he crossed his arms over his chest and snorted.

"I don't count moving people forcefully out of my way as assault. They should know better, but use whatever words you wish. If I were you, I'd climb fast, for I may assault you as well."

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

"I don't count moving people forcefully out of my way as assault. They should know better, but use whatever words you wish. If I were you, I'd climb fast, for I may assault you as well."

I tapped my foot on the ground after Kor pulled away in impatience. You are a fool. I thought as I followed him. When Kor stumbled I didn’t bother reaching out to help him. I understood a little that I must be unnerving him. The things I knew as nothing more than stories were history to him. Hell, if some knew about my past in detail I knew his and many others I would freak.

I let a small smile creep out, it was almost fun to dance with Kor. I just had to watch where I stepped, I might find myself dead before dawn.

“You severed the woman’s hair, you wear it around your waist. Didn’t you know that a woman’s hair is her pride?” I stopped at the tree a turned to Kor, unable to suppress my smirk as I decided to egg him on just a little bit more.

“I may not be against you assaulting me, but not before you take a bath and see a healer. Stamina is not something found in a sick person.” I turned and reached for the closest branch. It was easy work to climb up high enough in the tree to reach the edge of the wall. I looked down at the ground far beneath me and swallowed back the sudden wave of fear.

I shook my head and pushed back the fear that threatened to choke me. Who cares if I die? This world is just a story. I jumped for the wall, almost knocking the breath out of me when the edge hit my stomach. I scrambled up it and straddled the wall, hunching low to make myself a less conspicuous target.

An odd grunt came from Kor. I looked at him to see him having trouble pulling himself up and over the wall because of his arm. Sighing I reached out and grabbed him just under the arms and pulled as hard as I could, using my own weight as a counter balance. Several moments of struggling passed before Kor finally was on the wall. I poke him in the shoulder to grab his attention.

“I should let you know. Before I arrived in this world yesterday this world was nothing more than a complex mess of stories for me. I'm not reading your mind.” I slid down to hang from the edge of the wall, just before I dropped I looked back up at Kor.

“Come on, you need a doctor. Oh, by the way. Don’t call me Jennifer. I hate that name, always have.”

[None So Blind]

His mouth moved in a silent curse as he glared at her. She was over the wall easily, and he fell forward as well, landing on the flat of his feet. Shock moved up to his knees, and he had to wait a moment before he could begin to walk past her, keeping to the long shadows of early morning. He turned from the main road that they'd jumped into down an alleyway, assuming that she would come with him. She seemed to be the type that wouldn't just let him go and arrogantly die on his own. She wouldn't give him that much peace.

"Should just use the hair to hang you," he grunted, disliking the fact that with his growl, the taste of copper invaded his mouth. He was at least lucky enough to know of a clinic here that he would be welcome. Without saying much more to Jennifer, he turned into another alleyway, moving silently. Here the buildings began to climb upwards as multiple families were sharing apartments. In more than a few of the windows, lanterns burned, the glass around the dancing flames painted red. He hoped she wasn't easily offended. But if she knew so much about this world, she'd know that the only elven doctor that would treat a Drow in good faith was the same one that treated the prostitutes.

As he turned down the street that would lead him to the clinic, two Tel'Algarim patrols were leaning against a wall, sharing a battered smoke between them. On the wall opposite them, a poster advertising "exotic entertainment from the far South" had been freshly applied. Kor could still smell the glue that was used to attatch it to the side of the building. The patrol officers had been admiring the artwork, but now one of them threw down the cigarette butt, and they gathered up their swords to resume their patrol.

Panic spread through the man and he wheeled around on his heel, grabbing Jennifer and tossing her up against the wall. His body leaned in close, his hips meeting hers to keep her pinned. So that she wouldn't protest and catch the guard's attention, he leaned his face in. His eyes stared hard at hers, and he let his lips brush up against hers as he spoke.

"What should I call you?" he whispered. As the footsteps of the guards echoed past, he turned the brushing of his lips into something more invasive, pressing them to hers without affection.

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

I landed on the ground, one ankle protested the abuse. Moments later Kor landed beside me. Unnoticed he walked forward as I looked around, studying the sea side city. Several other scents rose up to offend my nose. The scent of far too many people in one place without the convenience of modern luxuries. Kor’s growled comment, made me noticed that he was a good distance down the street. I hurried after him, wondering why some windows were lit while others were not.

“So where is this doc you can see? I assume given your history in this city that he’s a little off the beaten path.”

I finally caught up to Kor as he turned the corner. I caught sight of two men standing a little farther down the street. A post displaying ‘exotic entertainment’ caught my attention and I opened my mouth to question Kor on just how exotic they meant. The stray thought that my best friend would have gotten a kick out of seeing this world fitting across my mind.

I couldn’t help the startled gasp when Kor abruptly turned around and pushed me into the wall. The expression in his eyes kept me from protesting as he leaned his body into mine. The two men I spotted down the alley began to walk in our direction, I came to the conclusion that they must be guards. The sensation of Kor’s lips brushing mine pulled my attention back to him.

“Some whores will bed anything for gold.” I heard on of the soldiers say to his companion as they neared.

I struggled not to react and give us away. Hesitantly I placed both hands on his shoulders, my thumb nails digging into Kor’s skin where the soldiers would not be able to see. It seemed as if the soldiers walked as slowly as they could, down the street, finally the footsteps faded. Surprising myself I leaned just a bit more into the kiss, teasing Kor for just a moment. I caught his lower lip between my teeth and bit down on it, hard.

The metallic, sweet taste of blood trickled into my mouth almost immediately and I drew away. I stared at Kor with bored expression as if I hadn’t just bitten him until he bled, as if my lips weren’t stained ruby with his blood, as if his body wasn’t trapping me against the wall. I hissed at him before I caught myself, the sound nearly identical to a snake’s hiss.

“I don’t care what you call me. Use what ever you want. I’ll figure out something later. I seriously doubt it that I’ll ever see you again after this fun little trip.” I shoved at his chest, pushing him back just enough to step away from the wall. I turned to face him, pinning him with a cold nearly predatory gaze. I could feel my expression harden into a cold blank mask.

“Well? Lead the way, the sooner you find this healer the sooner the better.”

[None So Blind]

He nearly smirked when she leaned into his kiss. He knew he was irresistable, that no woman alive could possibly... and then the pain came. It flooded his arrogance and he grunted, pulling back to taste more of his blood. His fist balled at his side and for a moment the urge to hit her was nearly enough to send his muscles reacting. She hissed, spoke, and then he was shoved away. Putting his fist up to his mouth, he let the blood pool between his fingers slowly. It was just another injury the healer could take care of, and he was certain that she would not be there when that happened.

Two bags hung at his hip, and he reached with his good arm to remove one of them. They each contained one hundred of the small gold coins that were considered universally acceptible across the regions for payment. After tossing one of them up a few times and catching it, he threw it at her, not caring if she caught it or let it clatter to the ground.

"Go back the way we came. Near the wall we went over there's a tailor's shop. It's open aired, across from a water stand. You can't miss it, especially if you've 'read' about the incident involving my pants. Take this money and get yourself a Vlince shirt. You destroyed your Fruit of the Loom for my arm, and I've never felt fabric that soft. This is, I suppose, a repayment of sorts, but on two conditions. Firstly, you'll tell them to make sure it's in the latest of Radasanthian fashions, and a fine lady's shirt. Secondly, I will see you again, I think. You better be wearing it. If I see you, and you still look like shit, I'll take exception to everything I went through to get you here."

He turned the corner, waving his hand at her to shoo her away.

"Don't cry, either. Just go find someone else to be your bodyguard. I was never the protective sort."
`
At a doorway painted blue, with three muted red lights hanging in the window by the portal, he stopped. A light rap at the door, and he was ushered in, a cloaked figure immediately going to his arm. Before the doorway closed, he turned around, gave Jennifer one last look, wondering if she was going to be able to hold her own from there on. The blood on his lips said so.

"Don't go putting any more venom into that bite, Kahlina."

And the door shut, leaving the Earthian girl to find her way from there.

[RumpleGrumblePuss]

Kor lightly touched his bloodied lip, I watched him carefully. Certain that I had gone to far and that I should be running at this moment. I crossed my arms watching as Kor threw a small bag towards me, I barely managed to catch it with the tips of my fingers. From the metallic chink, I guess that it held the more of the same coins I had in a little pouch similar to my backpack.

“What in the…” I trailed off as Kor, ordered me to get a new shirt. Who in the nine levels of hell does he think he is to order me to do anything, I thought angrily. There was nothing wrong with the way I was dressed, everything was covered modestly. I watched Kor make a shooing motion at me and hissed at him again.

“I didn’t need you as a body guard, you forced yourself on me. I don’t cry either. Come back here and I’ll give you venom you…” I trailed off for lack of adequate words to yell at him and watched him disappear around the corner. I was half tempted to chase after him and give him a piece of my mind. A more rational voice chimed in, it was useless to go after someone that obviously was taking a different path than my own.

“Kahlina, I wonder what it meant. He used it as a sort of nickname or something. Mmm, Kahlina.” I wandered back the way we came. I realized that I was actually going to buy the shirt that Kor told me to. Half disgusted and half amused with myself I glanced up at the sky. To the east the sky was beginning to lighten, the first hints of lavender and pink staining the sky, chasing away the stars.

To my surprise I actually found the stall Kor told me of and that the tailor was already in at such an early hour. I stopped and finger combed my hair, quickly pulling it back in a low ponytail to look slightly more presentable.

“Good morning sir. I am…” I paused for a moment then smiled as an idea occurred to me, the older man stared at me, his eyes lingering on my clothing.

“I am Kahlina. I would like to purchase a, ah, vlince shirt in the latest of Radasanth’s ladies fashion.” I paused, feeling foolish and out of place. “If you have it in black that would be wonderful, other than that white is preferable. Also you wouldn’t happen to know how to get to docks would you? I need to book passage to leave Raiaera.”

[AdventWings]

Hello again, Manda and Jenn! I have your quest judgment right here! :)

Story

Continuity - 6/10

Pretty good tying your two stories together and working things through. I believe you could play on this a bit more, perhaps throwing in a bit of reality dilemma to depict the ever-infamous Timeframe Overlap that is present on Althanas from time to time. Just a thought, really.

Setting - 6/10

Good portrayal of the different areas and their unique geographical differences. The overall feeling was a bit fleeting, though, and I really did not see myself completely immersed into the scene as much as I would like.

Pacing - 4/10

Everything went by a bit to fast than I would like, though things played out fairly well enough. A suggestion would to be adding a bit more minor detail into each post that could add to the flavor of the story. Nothing overt or critical, but just some of the odd little things that each of you do from time to time or even the odd little occurances that any one of you may have noticed on the side. Like how the Blood Vines twitched and reeled about after being severed or how Jenn kept on scratching at the area where she had been bitten. This could also be taken as suggestions for Action and Persona, seeing as these little things also tell the readers tidbits about the characters as well.

Writing Style

Mechanics - 4/10

I found a good deal of run-ons from Jenn and just a hint from Manda. Not much else that needs to be fixed, but that seemed to be the biggest problem here. Read through your posts again from time to time when you have time and you may find that some areas may need to be written better. I have done the same thing and found that it greatly improved my writing. ^_^

Technique - 5/10

A good deal of literary devices used, though most are rather generic in my opinion. I can see a few that would constitute a more advanced form, but none of which I could really point out. Try using a bit more, like foreshadowing or even juxtaposition to enhance the storyline. I will be looking to see if you liked how it turned out. ^_^

Clarity - 5/10

With the run-ons and choppy writing style, it was a bit hard for me to understand what was going on in each of the posts. The backtracking in later posts compounded on the problem, something I also had problems with earlier in my time on Althanas. Actions that were not entirely relevent to the progression of the story can be left to the reader's discretion if the other option was to produce redundant details that readers could deduce for themselve (or best left to interpretations).

Character

Dialogue - 5/10

Not so much as to how witty the snippets of dialogues are, but rather the appropriatenes of each.

Action - 6/10

Well done for the most parts. I would appreciate the individual actions portraying certain aspects of each characters' personalities or thought processes, as I find the tiny character flaws delivering a more dynamic presentation than merely doing things straight-forward like a pre-scripted scene. Some form of randomness should do nice.

Persona - 6/10

Kor showing his soft-side? Now, there's a hint I would like to see explored. Not much action in this category for much of the story, however, and Jenn's subtle display is a tad too subdued I could not really point out what worked and what did not. However, Jenn seemed a bit too calmed after she realized she was in a fictional world. It is pretty much like her to stay calm, but I would imagine her being a bit more distressed than this.

Miscellaneous

Wild Card - 7/10

Hmm... Interesting... Who would have thought about putting themselves directly into Althanas and speaking of things only an ancient could only comprehend? Also, I see improvements from the both of you. Good luck and have fun on your next installment. I look forward to reading more.

FINAL SCORE – 54!

RumpleGrumblePuss receives 580 EXP and 200 GP, 100 from Kor and another 100 that seemed to materialize out of nowhere. However, the Vlince ladie's shirt in the latest Radasanthian fashion costed a great deal more than she could afford with only Kor's "donation." She did finally get the black Vlince shirt, at the cost of 250 GP which left her with only 50 GP total after haggling with the merchant.

None So Blind receives 1400 EXP and loses 100 GP. However, he easily compensated the loss from a chance brush with a wealthy hawker, making away with 200 of his gold.

[Cyrus the virus]

EXP added!