Aara sways on her feet, trying desperately to clear her vision. I must be more drunk than I thought. There are two Goddards standing there. Why is he standing there, anyway? He's mad at me.
"So why are you standing here, anyway?" she slurs. "We haven't shared a cabin since the mountain." The boat shifts beneath her, causing her to moan and slide to the floor. I am never drinking with Katarina again. Not ever.
Goddard grabs her by her shoulders and tries to lead her across the deck. "I came up because the captain called me and you're right," he mumbles. "You have your own cabin and I'm taking you there so you can sleep this off. I have work to do."
ReplyDeleteShe tears out of his grasp. "You and your books again. Maybe I should learn some magic. Then at least I'd be worth talking to again."
ReplyDeleteGoddard snorts. "Lecai, you know you can't do that...let's just get you to bed and when you wake up, you can wake up with a bit more sense. You're not worth talking to after you've drowned yourself in alcohol. You're fine sober."
ReplyDelete"I could! If that hot-headed friend of yours can learn, so can I!"
ReplyDeleteHe tries to grab her again to get her to bed. "Lecai, you're too old..."
ReplyDeleteHer face goes slack. "Too old?" she whispers. "Too old?! You're 74 thousand years old and I'm too old?" Her voice steadily rises until she's shouting and pulling at her hair. "You jerk! I'm only 24!"
ReplyDelete"What!? I'm not...look...what I mean is, humans have to train when they are very very young. You tend to explode anyway...you'll just hurt yourself even more now," Goddard mumbles. "Like I said...you should just head to bed...come on let's go."
ReplyDeleteThe ship shifts and Aara's world spins, reminding her how drunk she is. "No," she mutters back. "I do not explode. I am calm and a little reckless."
ReplyDelete"Calm?!" Goddard says a bit on edge before pulling his tone back. She's drunk...she's drunk...remember she probably has no idea who she even is right now...
ReplyDelete"Lecai," he says sweetly, "Masters don't even call apprentices by their names because they blow up...they get too attached...like a pet..."
"Gee, that sounds familiar. Had I known ustadh wouldn't be the last man to ignore me, I would have told you my name was Four."
ReplyDeleteShe almost goes with him this time, but pulls away again. "Maybe then you'd get over your books."
Goddard has a difficult time keeping a hold of her but continues to try anyway. He feels if he doesn't get her to her room soon, he may lead her over the side of the ship.
ReplyDelete"This is different," he grumbles. "I'll explain when you know what's happening around you."
He then furrows his brow and grits his teeth. "You do know my books are the equivalent of your training and meditating and all that physical nonsense you do right?"
"Nonsense?" she shrieks. "Forgive me for wasting my time on physical nonsense. Why don't you go find Katarina and talk about the winds from your arse! She's the one you wanted in the beginning anyway!"
ReplyDeleteGoddard opens his mouth to speak then stops and thinks for a moment.
ReplyDelete"Maybe!" he yells at her. "But...I warned you about myself didn't I?" He crosses his arms and tries not to laugh at her inability to stand motionless on the deck.
She grabs the railing, wondering if she's going to be sick and decides that if she is, she'll vomit on him. "Maybe I'm the one who was too willing to change," she mutters to herself. Ustadh was right...this is torture. "And don't you yell at me! You're always yelling at me! Unless you aren't speaking to me at all!"
ReplyDelete"I think I've earned the right to yell at you even just a little after what you did to my face!" he almost growls at her.
ReplyDelete"You deserved it! You get angry at me for the smallest thing, you're so possessive of me, but I can't react to seeing your hands all over the woman you prefer over me? And don't think for a minute I'll stand here and let you-" she steps forward, wanting nothing more than to disengage from the argument, but her foot hits a puddle of water. She goes flying, cracking her elbow against the deck and starts shouting at him in Arabyan.
ReplyDelete"I did not! You could have ruined me! You know, if I didn't have that idiot Arha, I wouldn't have been able to manipulate the winds! It's all spoken! Not to mention, MY FACE!" he begins to yell over her.
ReplyDelete"I'm not possessive of you! You could go...right now," he points toward the city, "Right now and find someone in a bar, and I wouldn't even bat a lash!"
When she hits the deck, he cringes a bit and offers to help her, despite what he assumes is her cursing at him and probably saying all sorts of awful things.
"You're such an ass! I only matter to you when you want something! Then you're willing to close your damn books and look at me! I could parade naked down the street at noon and you wouldn't care so long as I didn't lay a finger on your precious books!"
ReplyDeleteShe slaps his hand away and looks up at him the deck. "Just go read and do your notes," she says harshly, cradling her elbow in her left hand. "I can take care of myself."
"I never said you couldn't look at them! Wait...are you planning on doing this? UGH! No...you're drunk! You can't take care of yourself!" Goddard gets on one knee and attempts to lift her up off the ground.
ReplyDeleteAara attempts to headbutt Goddard but misses, making her head spin and stomach lurch. Ugh, why am I still seeing double?
ReplyDelete"Don't pick me up," she demands weakly, her eyes closed. "I don't need your help."
Goddard quickly backs up and sits down on the deck. "Trying to break my face again?" he says, annoyed before sighing and trying to scoop her up again.
ReplyDelete"You need more help than I think I can give you," he murmurs to himself.
"Shut up, you camel. Go sit on your metal pet and talk to your bat. I'm tired of trying to apologize to you. Let Arha be your adoring audience and leave me alone."
ReplyDeleteGoddard gives up trying to help Aara. He stands up quickly and stuffs his hands into the sleeves of his robes. "Maybe I will...maybe I'll go work on the useless magic in my stupid books that will keep you from turning into another mass of tentacles once we head out from Prague. Or you can always opt out of using any of it..."
ReplyDelete"Go then," she hiccups. "I just wanted to gve you this anyway." She tosses the wineskin of alcohol to him, missing him by several feet. "All I've done lately is give to you. Time, space, the Breton's ashes. There's even a pouch with some of my hair in that box."
ReplyDeleteShe staggers to her feet, still holding her elbow. "I forgive you for things all the time. I don't make you suffer over it."
Stumbling away from him, she runs into the rail and curses loudly in Druhir as her elbow connects with the solid railing.
Katarina's eyes open wide as she feels distress in her stomach. Pulling herself from the bed, she grabs hold of the pail Zorgrat kindly left for her. Breathing deeply, she tries to make it past the danger. Slowly, she exits the room and heads for the deck. Just make it to the deck. Don't spoil Zorgrat's pretty unicorn ship, Kasha.
ReplyDeleteTraversing to the top, she stops and groans inwardly. Aara and Goddard stand there arguing loudly. Enough sobriety has returned that she blushes in embarrassment. I should have cut her off really early in the evening, this is my fault. But she wasn't worried, and the threats of the world weren't closing in on either of us for a time.
I should go back down stairs and let them get this out with out me being anywhere near. I've learned my lesson about meddling in that...
The feeling hits Katarina full on again. Dropping the pail, she grabs the deck's railing. She swears the sound of emptying her stomach echoes across the docks in the chill night air, even silencing the argument to her ears. Squeezing her eyes shut she silently hopes. Please, let them have not heard me.
Normally Aara would realize how little the ship is actually moving, but her stomach rolls and she gives in to her nausea. Hanging her head over the rail, she stops cursing long enough to be violently sick. Clutching her elbow, she sinks to the deck in a dead faint.
ReplyDeleteHearing the thump of Aara hitting the deck, Katarina's head snaps around to investigate. Clutching the railing a bit tighter as her heads swims, she moves down the deck to the unconscious Aara and Goddard.
ReplyDelete"Goddard, did she pass out again? Did she hit her head?"
"Merciful Morr!" Goddard gasps. He moves quickly enough to keep Aara from hurting herself but they still end up on the deck of the ship. "Oh lecai," he mumbles as he orients her to lift her.
ReplyDeleteHe hears a voice and looks up at Katarina. "No. I made sure she didn't take anymore damage to her brain," Goddard chuckles. "Please don't fall over too...I don't think I could carry you both."
"I'm fine for the most part. Just no sudden movements." Katarina replies with a small nod. "But if I do pass out, just have your little mechanical not-moose drag me back down. If it can carry all of your stuff, it should be able to carry my ass with ease."
ReplyDeleteShe looks to the elf and gives a weak smile, before her faces becomes somewhat crest fallen. "I have to apologize Goddard. This is my fault. Back at the dwarf city, I told Aara something about this mission that Otto believes will only hinder you and I think it is helping cause more friction between you two. When we went out, she got so carefree and vibrant. I should have cut her off early into the night, but all our troubles could wait until tomorrow by then."
When he lifts her, Aara mumbles in Arabyan and snuggles close to Goddard.
ReplyDeleteKatarina looks over Aara then back to Goddard. "She does care for you, in her way. Enough to threaten me if I ever... well, you know. I don't want to pry, but what was this last argument about? I heard something about her changing again after we leave Praag."
ReplyDeleteGoddard looks at Aara and he frowns, pushing away the smile that was starting to come across his face. "I don't know what she was talking about...changing...but she is obviously drunk and had no idea what she is saying...she'll probably not remember a single thing when she wakes up."
ReplyDelete"Come on," he says to Katarina, motioning with his head to follow him. "I feel like I can't leave you alone or you'll fall and crack you head." He carries Aara to her room and gently places her on her bed before backing out and closing the door. He heads away from her room with Katarina then asks quietly, "Are you going to rest? Or do you plan on walking off the alcohol?" I can talk to whoever I want but...ya know...probably shouldn't wake her up with my talking...
Aara frowns in her sleep, rolling over and whimpering a little.
ReplyDeleteNaggaroth is laid before her, cold and dark. Nearly naked, she splashes through puddles of blood and gore, ignoring her revulsion as she smears it across her arms and bare stomach, the taste of blood in her mouth.
"No," she murmurs in her sleep, twisting herself up in her blanket.
The scene changes, and she's herself again, but standing in Goddard's tower, her gaze locked with his wife's. Suddenly there's a tearing sensation in her stomach and she looks down in horror at the tentacle sprouting there. Before she can utter so much as a word of surprise, another tears through her skin, emerging from her arm.
Locked in her dream, Aara begins to shiver and fight against her blankets, almost desperate to wake up.
Her senses begin to leave her as more and more tentacles appear from inside her body, the pain so great her mind cannot process it. Her body tears and rips itself apart, making more and more openings for the mutations to spawn from. The last thing Aara's eyes register is the fire as she feels herself propelled by her chaotic limbs towards it.
Fighting her blankets, Aara starts screaming in her sleep, nails scratching at her own skin as if to claw the monstrousness out of herself.
Goddard looks quickly at Katarina and hold his hands up. "D-don't go falling over board...ok? Ok? I have to...she...don't fall..." He quickly runs back to Aara's room and bursts through her door. It takes him a few seconds to observe what's going on before he's by her side and shaking her by the shoulders. "Wake up lecai! Wake up! You're safe! Safeish...but safe still! Wake up!"
ReplyDeleteHer eyes open wide, staring at him blankly, her face full of fear. What is that awful sound? Who is screaming? Oh gods, that's me.
ReplyDeleteBiting her lip, she buries her face in his shoulder, trying to muffle her screams.
Goddard holds her tight. "Shhhh...it's ok...just a nightmare...and too much alcohol...I'm going to blame that as well." After a moment, he pulls away a bit and looks down at her, hoping she's calmed down. "See? Well...probably not the best face to see after a nightmare but...everything is ok..."
ReplyDeleteSqueezing her eyes shut, Aara tries to stop panicking, but her breath comes in ragged bursts as she scratches at herself.
ReplyDeleteIt takes several minutes before she flinches and looks up, realizing Goddard's actually there. Throwing her arms around him, she squeezes him tight.
"Nuur'eni!" she whispers. "I'm sorry!"
"Don't apologize to me," he says softly. "You were hurting yourself. Are you ok now? Do we need to buy you that tea that helps you relax? There's a tea like that right? We can find it."
ReplyDeleteAara shakes her head. "I have some, but I can't drink it. It puts me to sleep too well," she explains quietly. "I can't wake up from them."
ReplyDeleteShe stands and starts to pace, and suddenly it's clear how much she's changed. Her hair is dull and ragged, she has dark circles under her eyes, and she's much thinnner. Her scratches even have left little scabs on her throat and hands. Nervously, her hands stumble through mudras, not able to decide on a single one in her distress.
"I can't sleep, I can't not sleep. I can't even meditate. It wears on my nerves and makes me feel out of sorts and...and angry all the time."
He sits on the bed and watches her. "What does? What do you dream about? Or is it not the dreams and it's something else?" Goddard sighs and holds his head in his hands, thinking about all the horrible things that could possible haunt Aara's memories and subconscious.
ReplyDelete"Maybe...you should go back home...and you can have all your pretty fabrics and fancy baths and you can relax."
She glances sideways at him and laughs a little. "I don't think being clean and well dressed will fix me. I've thought about it- going home, I mean. But every time I do...it doesn't feel right. I promised Koroush I'd end this, and I've broken so many promises in my life..."
ReplyDeleteShe straightens her shoulders. "I have to see this through. I have to make sure you get home."
Goddard stifles a chuckle. "I'm not expecting to make it back. You should worry about you getting yourself back home. Don't worry about me. Make sure Katarina, Zorgrat, Theo...make sure they get home."
ReplyDeleteHe ends up laughing. "Imagine how sad the world would be if it didn't have Theo's food and drink...Kat's um...iceyness....Zorgrat's...er...Zorgrat's....I don't know...you get the idea..." Goddard looks up at her with a slight smile before he looks down at his hands and twists one of the many rings on his fingers.
"i'm sorry...I'm sure my attitude isn't helpful...seems like I'm only good for carrying around books."
She moves stiffly to kneel at his feet and out her head on his knee. "Just once, can we talk about the impossible? Like how I won't get old, and you'll be fine and we can just travel around forever? I'm not sure either of us are going to get through this alive, but for once can we just pretend like we will? Like there's a future for us."
ReplyDeleteKatarina eavesdrops at the door for a minute listening to Goddard and Aara talk about the future. She blushes with shame. I need to be helping him fight for some future at each turn. I'm going to have to tell him more, just not now. He deserves to know.
ReplyDeleteMoving to the crack in the doorway, she catches Goddard's eye for a second and mouths "Tomorrow." to him. Slowly she shuffles back to her room and sits on the bed arms wrapped around her legs deep in thought. A smile spreads across her face and she begins to shake her head laughing. "Pretzel."
Goddard laughs and runs his fingers through her hair. "Ok fine...you'll live for a few hundred years and have lots of babies and a huge mansion to keep them all in! Arha and I will have been together so long, I will start to like him..."
ReplyDeleteReally Master!?
He pauses for a moment. He wants to say no. "Yes Arha...yes..."
"And I'll have names spiraling all over my body and be fearsome!" she adds. "All our...brands...will fade away when the gods realize that we're boring and not worth their notice." She laughs. "Maybe we'll live so long Arha and I will get along." She pauses.
ReplyDelete"But no babies."
Goodard laughs a bit then sighs. "Are you feeling better? Will you be able to sleep? Is there anything I can do to help?"
ReplyDeleteMaster...you need...
"I know Arha!" Goddard snaps. "I...I know...but...let's see what Aara needs...if she needs anything..."
As the rush of terror and adrenaline fade away, she's hit with an explosion of pain in her elbow and head so great it nearly makes her sick. Pieces of their argument comes back to her, and she flushes with shame.
ReplyDeleteShe shifts from leaning against his knee to against the bed and kicks off her boots. More than anything, she wants to beg his forgiveness again, but her pride won't let her.
"I'll be fine," she tells him. "Don't worry about me."
Goddard gently pats her head and stands up. "I'll be in my cabin if you need me. And you can always yell for Arha if anything and he'll get me...right Arha? Best buddy?"
ReplyDeleteReally Master!? Yes, yes of course Master, of course!
Goddard chuckles and walks out of her room, closing the door behind him. Once he gets to his room, he throws himself in his bed and buries his face in his pillow.
Master...it's ok Master...
Goddard nods his head into the pillow and tries to find sleep. It's almost impossible to sleep with the nightmares of shadows and ghostly green eyes. He bolts awake many times.
Still slightly drunk and in a lot of pain, Aara throws her miserable self into her bed and wraps up in her cloak, wishing it still smelled of spices and incense. After lying there a long moment, she sighs and sits up, far too awake to risk another dream just yet. She pulls her pack into her lap and digs for her box of spices and teas at the bottom.
ReplyDeleteI just want to sleep for a year, she thinks, filling a cup with water and setting it on top of the brazier warming her cabin. It takes a while to warm, but she uses the time to change out of her alcohol-soaked clothes and into the warm purple wool tunic she brought with her from Naggaroth.
At least he doesn't hate me too much, she considers as she waits. At least not so much as he has the past few days, anyway. I just wish I could sleep, then my temper wouldn't be so short and I wouldn't do stupid things like hit the person who means most to me...
As if on cue, the mark on her should blazes into heat, making her yelp quietly and reach back to rub it. It happens on occasion, and each time she expects her hand to come back with blood or charred flesh, but it never does. "I don't care who you are," she mutters, "that's not right. Damn gods. My gods never pay any attention to nobodies like me, they couldn't be bothered to actually mark one of us. Uzzaya save me from the bastards."
Soon enough, her drugged tea starts to take effect, and she lies back down, forcing herself to think of Araby, and the temples of Uzzaya. It works, and her dreams are of home. If there happens to be a face in the sand or the touch of something slithering against her skin, her drug doesn't allow her to wake from it.