Taking some time to think things over..
Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 7:13 am
Bryce sat down on the front step of the small home he shares with his brother and older sister, a glorified shack really that sits outside the town wall, up against the woods north of town. He had his ivory pipe clenched in his teeth, and was leaning against the door to the house watching the colors streak across the sky as the set began setting to the west. He thought he might take some time to think over all the recent activity he's paid witness to.
First there was the flux, a plague that came with swarms of viscious bugs. Black wasps that maliciously attacked people and infected them with disease that sickened a person and ate at their insides. There hadn't been a cure originally, just a means of delaying the illness that bought some people more time to fight it off, and prolonged suffering for others. He had gotten in the habit of waiting though, trusting in Janessa's judgement of when a person might pull through before he stepped in to work his own magic healing. It had been difficult to wait though, and pay silent witness to the pain that ate away at those that came to Edificium with hope for relief.
Then Janessa fell ill, and Bryce and Raziqa knew they couldn't wait around to see how she would respond to the treatment. Even if she did fight off the sickness, she would be so weak from the battle that she wouldn't be able to help them with the rest of the patients. He tried to heal her right away, ignoring her protests that he should be careful, that people had used magic on her before. He had never encountered anything in the past when healing people and brushed her concerns away. It had been a bad idea, and when the backlash of some other dark magic gripped him he was lucky to survive, though it left him incapacitated for over a week recovering. During that week people started dying from the flux, suddenly the staff wasn't efficiently performing miracles anymore. Agniezska personally blamed him for the death of her younger brother, and still does even now.
He tried not to let it get to him though, he knew he had done everything he could and would have saved her brother if he had been able. But she hadn't relented and when she got snatched by that dragon, he was suprised to find that a part of him actually considered it to possibly be a good thing. He had banished the thought quickly enough, and luckily the girl had survived.. But when he healed her of her injuries, it was with some resentment.
Thinking about Agnie brought his thoughts winding around to Rhaena. She's the first normal girl he's gotten to know since moving here. And even she has some oddities about her. The green scales on her leg that he had gotten a glimpse of has him constantly wondering what her face looks like. Is she covered by scales? Will he let that affect him if he finally does manage to start a relationship with the girl? He wants to tell himself that he won't, but he had liked Alligail at some point as well until he learned what she was.
He hadn't seen Alli in weeks though and that's possibly because he was gone in the clutches of Choss with the Nightmare Company. Even thinking about the minotaur sent a chill through the healer and he looked around the yard nervously. The creature had an uncanny ability to sneak up without a sound, and it scared him. Never had he felt so completely helpless as when the minotaur had him pinned on the ground so easily. His ribs still ached from the savage kicks from that heavy hoof. No, he doesn't even want to think about that. He had told Lieutenant Bishop what he knew about the group of monsters, and he'd rather just shove the rest of the experience into a black hole to never dwell on again.
He thought about the Lieutenant for a bit, how dedicated the man seemed to be and found that he could admire him, even if the soldier had seemed irritated at his failure to learn more about the Nightmare Company. Eventually his mind wandered back to Rhaena.. his eyes landing on a few brave flowers attempting to survive in the wild yard that the twins have neglected since the summer began. Would she like flowers? No way to find out if he never gives her any. He rose from step, plucking the only colorful thing growing in the weed-infested yard and decided to visit the tavern. She's likely gone on business, but when she returns she'll find them tied to the doorknob of her room.
First there was the flux, a plague that came with swarms of viscious bugs. Black wasps that maliciously attacked people and infected them with disease that sickened a person and ate at their insides. There hadn't been a cure originally, just a means of delaying the illness that bought some people more time to fight it off, and prolonged suffering for others. He had gotten in the habit of waiting though, trusting in Janessa's judgement of when a person might pull through before he stepped in to work his own magic healing. It had been difficult to wait though, and pay silent witness to the pain that ate away at those that came to Edificium with hope for relief.
Then Janessa fell ill, and Bryce and Raziqa knew they couldn't wait around to see how she would respond to the treatment. Even if she did fight off the sickness, she would be so weak from the battle that she wouldn't be able to help them with the rest of the patients. He tried to heal her right away, ignoring her protests that he should be careful, that people had used magic on her before. He had never encountered anything in the past when healing people and brushed her concerns away. It had been a bad idea, and when the backlash of some other dark magic gripped him he was lucky to survive, though it left him incapacitated for over a week recovering. During that week people started dying from the flux, suddenly the staff wasn't efficiently performing miracles anymore. Agniezska personally blamed him for the death of her younger brother, and still does even now.
He tried not to let it get to him though, he knew he had done everything he could and would have saved her brother if he had been able. But she hadn't relented and when she got snatched by that dragon, he was suprised to find that a part of him actually considered it to possibly be a good thing. He had banished the thought quickly enough, and luckily the girl had survived.. But when he healed her of her injuries, it was with some resentment.
Thinking about Agnie brought his thoughts winding around to Rhaena. She's the first normal girl he's gotten to know since moving here. And even she has some oddities about her. The green scales on her leg that he had gotten a glimpse of has him constantly wondering what her face looks like. Is she covered by scales? Will he let that affect him if he finally does manage to start a relationship with the girl? He wants to tell himself that he won't, but he had liked Alligail at some point as well until he learned what she was.
He hadn't seen Alli in weeks though and that's possibly because he was gone in the clutches of Choss with the Nightmare Company. Even thinking about the minotaur sent a chill through the healer and he looked around the yard nervously. The creature had an uncanny ability to sneak up without a sound, and it scared him. Never had he felt so completely helpless as when the minotaur had him pinned on the ground so easily. His ribs still ached from the savage kicks from that heavy hoof. No, he doesn't even want to think about that. He had told Lieutenant Bishop what he knew about the group of monsters, and he'd rather just shove the rest of the experience into a black hole to never dwell on again.
He thought about the Lieutenant for a bit, how dedicated the man seemed to be and found that he could admire him, even if the soldier had seemed irritated at his failure to learn more about the Nightmare Company. Eventually his mind wandered back to Rhaena.. his eyes landing on a few brave flowers attempting to survive in the wild yard that the twins have neglected since the summer began. Would she like flowers? No way to find out if he never gives her any. He rose from step, plucking the only colorful thing growing in the weed-infested yard and decided to visit the tavern. She's likely gone on business, but when she returns she'll find them tied to the doorknob of her room.