Ugh, Back Again

Kyrel hadn’t been on a mission for some time and when it finally came, it was much to his displeasure.

Vilpamolan. Friggin’ Vilpamolan.

The inner groans of his soul couldn’t begin to signal his dislike of that city, for a lack of a better word. It took nearly all of his being to keep from refusing it, but the silver was too good and he knew it well enough to avoid the major pains it had to offer. But if there was one thing on this green realm he didn’t like, it was pirates and lawlessness. Unfortunately, Vilpamolan welcomed both with open arms.

He just made it to the city a couple of days ago, and his informant had yet to arrive. Knowing his luck, the guy was being held hostage by highwaymen. Lucky dog. Rather be tied up and kept as a prisoner than to spend his moments here. Kyrel was cautious with each day passing, but he was going agitated over staying here without good reason other than his objective.

After being held up in his room, he decided to go searching about and left the tavern for the time being to explore the “safer” areas of the city. The marketplace seemed to provide a steady environment, that was until a group of filthy pirates showed up with their latest wares and silently he sneaked away. Why, oh why of all things, why did he have to show come here? Adeluna was nice. Hell, he hadn’t been in Egjora in ages. Even Arri was vastly much preferred than here. But no, oh no, the gods felt like messing with him a bit, he supposed.

So it wasn’t long before he was back at the tavern, impatiently waiting for the man to inform him of this job, more than likely some sort of retrieval of an item. He prayed as he drank his ale at the table, that it wasn’t something that those pirates from earlier had in their dirty palms.

It bloomed as a rose, large and vivid red, stretching across the dark world of the angel’s mind. As she became consciously aware of it, Raziel jerked up with a groan. Her head felt as if someone was squeezing it between two massive hands. Limbs ached, complaining and threatening to give out from underneath her as she maneuvered onto all fours. ”Zander?” Raziel’s voice cracked, dry and hoarse, but there was no answer.

Frantic hands searched the immediate area. Nothing. No walking stick, no warm fur. Just a sticky pool where she had been laying. As the angel struggled to keep from panicking, she found a wall to pull herself up with. She leaned heavily against it, placing one foot in front of the other along the wall. Unsure of where she was, or where she was going, unable to think rationally, Raziel pushed forward. Snickers followed her, causing the angel to attempt to pick up pace.

What she wasn’t expecting was a door to easily give way at her weight, and crashing into the floor. Inside, all conversation stop, a heavy silence hung in the air at her unceremonious arrival. Dressed in naught but a short night shift, the angel continued her struggles to pull herself inside across the floor. ”Help.” she begged, trembling. Cuts and bruises lined her arms and legs, and one across her cheek. Blood practically soaked her clothing, and coated almost every inch of her body, caking as it dried.

Perhaps it hadn’t been a good idea after all, taking this quest that was. The longer he waited, the more he felt as though he was set up for something much more devious. His informant had yet to arrive, and already he was assuming the worst that this city had to offer as an explanation. Damn annoying past of his, it gave him too much insight on Vilpamolan.

As he waited, albeit stomaching the w, ait as much as possible, his eyes and ears turned towards the lady that burst through the door. Any and all conversations ceased as the others looked towards her as well. She looked fairly young and practically in danger from the stains and lesions he noticed. The was plenty of people there that gave her a once over look before slowly returning to their own affairs. As far as they knew, she was just one of the streetwalkers that met up with a bad deal. It wasn’t something out of the ordinary around these parts. Still, Kyrel wasn’t heartless and rushed over to her and kneeled down.

“Are you okay, miss?”, he questioned as he inspected her fully. This didn’t seem like a random attack to him- if it had been, then chances were good that she would be dead on the streets. No, if he had to make a guess, then it looked more like she was kidnapped or something worse. “It’s okay, you are safe here.” Well, perhaps safe wasn’t the exact word he would have went with, but it sure beat the hell out of wherever she just came from. He held out a hand for her and smiled. “Let’s see if we can take care of those injuries first. A bit of alcohol will clean them up, but it will sting a bit.” He would have to do that before they could wrap her up in some gauze or whatever they had in the tavern. It was a safe bet that they would, considering how the fights could get inside here.

Out of all the patrons of wherever she landed, only one came to her side. Conversation began to start back up as everyone else returned to their business. ”No.” Her voice shook as emotions threatened to dissolve her into a blubbering mess. Whoever the gentleman was, a jewel upon stones, he assured her of safety. Though, the angel was unsure about that. Someone would not think twice about taking advantage of someone in her situation.

Cautiously, the angel reached out to him, finding his knee. ”Please… I’m blind.” Normally, Raziel would not readily admit her disability, but informing him of her complete situation would be wiser, and easier, less awkward. With his assistance, the angel got her knees under her, followed shortly by her feet as she stood shakily.

”Anything that you believe is necessary…” She allowed the stranger to guide her to where he needed. The angel sat down on a chair, her face buried in her hands with a sigh. ”I don’t know what happened, or where I am… I don’t even know if my companion is safe…” What in the name of all that is good did her mother get her into?

It was surely by the graces of the gods that Kyrel was here to assist her- Vilpamolan wasn’t known for its kindness. She would have still been kept on the floor weeping yet ignored by the others; sadly that would the best thing that could have happened to her. The worst was that someone would have taken advantage of her in some regard. Fortunately they were left alone by the other patrons and he helped her up to her feet. “Careful now. Let’s get you over to a seat.” Kyrel looked onto her surprised that she was blind, which made this situation all the more difficult and he certainly couldn’t leave her be now.

“Don’t worry, I got you.” He was as careful as he could be as he led her towards the table far away from the crowds and helped her onto the chair. “Wait here.” He moved towards the barkeep and requested some alcohol and gauze before paying him the necessary coin. Sadly, this place wasn’t know for its generosity either. It would be delivered towards their table, but in the meanwhile, he quickly returned and moved his seat over closer to her. It hadn’t dawned on him until he got a good look at her clothes that it was drenched with blood. They would have to get her some fresh garments at some point, but what he was concerned with was her injuries. “You are in a tavern in Vilpamolan, miss. I’m Kyrel, a diplomat from Mamlak. I can’t answer what happened to you, but it looks like you’ve been attacked by something.”

A barmaid came with the instruments that he asked for and he immediately went to work, drenching the clean cloth also provided with the alcohol before he took her hand with his so that she could squeeze it as he started to clean her wounds. “I don’t know about your companion, only you came in here. I take it that they aren’t around either given that if they were, they would be with you now.” He started with her legs and then her arms before wrapping them up with the gauze. “Can you think back to what you can remember last?”

What more could she do than to wait? Raziel felt vulnerable, violated, and miniscule. She was a small grain of sand one would sooner walk over than realize her for the potential she was. This fact made her feel smaller than she knew herself to be. Yet, were people staring at her? Were they imagining all the terrible things that could be done to someone so helpless?

Whoever was helping her, or at least who she hoped it was, moved a chair closer to her. Until she heard his voice, Raziel was a tense ball of nerves and pain. Kyrel explained her location, who he was, and stated the obvious. She was literally shaking as a leaf, which worsened when someone else approached. The sharp scent of alcohol struck her. Medically, she knew what it was for, and what was coming.

A warm, soft hand took hers, and Raziel jumped at the sudden contact. The angel tried to calm herself down, whispering a small prayer from home as a mantra. Despite her uncontrolled shivering, and being close to a complete breakdown, she was a perfect patient. Raziel didn’t scream at him, kept her flinching down to a minimum, though she did squeeze his hand a bit. First the cleaning up, then the bandaging. It was all standard procedure. Yet, his medical attention brought fresh awareness to the extent of her mysterious injuries.

”Zander is a timber wolf… He’s my eyes, my guardian, my protector…” Tears welled up in her unseeing eyes. ”Um… I’ve been traveling… Looking for Ramiel.. My twin. But, she’s taller… Stronger… and can see…” Raziel fell silent, struggling to think back and follow the events precisely. She frowned. ”We had just entered a town. It was nearing dark, because the air was cooling. Someone gave me information to help, found an inn and checked in. Zander and I curled up to sleep…”

The memory flooded into her mind so intensely, the angel felt as if her chest was stabbed. Her body involuntarily slammed backwards into her chair, a scream ripping from her throat. Raziel fell from her chair, doubling over. Why was this so backwards? She was the healer! Not the patient. ”Najima…” The name came out as a sob, a prayer that he would hear and magically appear, to be her savior once more. This was her darkest hour to date, and he was becoming her security blanket.

Other than the physical injuries, the young woman would be alright. That made him sigh in relief as he tended to her wounds. The process wasn’t a long one and she didn’t fight against the alcohol or the wrapping. Her tolerance for pain seemed pretty good for a dainty thing like herself. But he hadn’t prepared for her emotional state, which seemed to become more unraveled the more she spoke about her dealings here.

It was unfortunate that he hadn’t seen her companion or her sister. He hadn’t particularly noticed a wolf going around the city and while it was likely that he could have passed her sister on the streets, chances were good that he hadn’t. He frowned slightly as the tears started to fill her eyes. This was a fine pickle he got himself into this time. “Perhaps Zander’s looking for you as we speak?” The wolf sounded very loyal to her, so nothing outside some sort of dangerous situation would have made him leave her side. Perhaps he was out there seeking the girl out, and Kyrel considered looking for him in a bit . Not too many of his kind would be around these parts, after all.

He leaned back into his chair and was about to ask for a drink from the barmaid when she fell backwards and the scream nearly made him jump onto his feet. “Najima? Who is that?” He left his seat and went to help her back up again and stand her chair back to the way it was. One had to figure that it was someone else she knew, perhaps another friend or companion. “Please relax, miss. You’re gonna throw yourself into a panic if you don’t.” After helping her, he requested a bottle of cherry wine and whatever she would want.

The only stranger kind enough to assist her helped her back into her seat. Kyrel was right, and she had to calm down. Nothing such as this had ever happened to her before, and while she was cautious by nature, perhaps she had grown complacent? In an effort to calm herself, Raziel placed her hands on the table, concentrated on her breathing, allowing Najima's memory to soothe her mind. ”He is a dear friend. Known him for decades. Always seems to show up when I'm in trouble.” Like the time she was in an avalanche and dislocated her shoulder. Or when darkness swollowed up the Bohar Plains.

”Raziel… my name. And, thank you… Kyrel.” The angel closed her eyes, as if in pain. She shifted through the memories as they moved as breezes. ”I think… while I slept, someone took me from my room. When I woke, I was chained, Zander no where near…” It was painfully clear to her that she was beaten, but her mind was trying to block everything about it out. Two names stuck out plain as day, even through the haze of screams and torment. Ramiel. Gabriel. Her family. What were they into to cause anyone searching for them this much trouble?

Her head turned toward where Kyrel sat, if memory served her correctly. ”Would it be too much to ask for a chance to clean up, a fresh set of clothing, and possibly assistance to search for Zander? If it's too much trouble, please forgive me. I truly do thank you for your assistance thus far.” He had said he was from Mamlak. Perhaps he may know of her family's presence there if there was one. But first, Zander was far too precious to continue the pursuit of what was possibly a folly quest.