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Post by Joe on Mar 8, 2012 0:56:59 GMT -5
His essence shifted roughly, flashing red a moment as it hovered to the door.
Convenience makes me all you have, it is by no merit of my own. Would it not mean abandoning you I would wish to stay away only to keep you from further harm that I will surely bring. As long as you wish me stay.. then I will, at least until I can remake what I have undone.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 8, 2012 1:02:10 GMT -5
 The movement of his essence broke her concentration and she snapped out of the shaman trance to look at him in panic. The vivid colors of the world became once again mundane in comparison and she looked upon his physical form. Was, he leaving? "Asher..." She stood to her feet, turning her body to face his own. "You are not merely a convienance to me, can't you see?" She threw up a hand in exasperation. "Please, do not despair so. I would not see you in misery." |
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Post by Joe on Mar 8, 2012 1:25:52 GMT -5
Asher opened his eyes, pulling himself slowly back to reality. "What are you saying.. were it between your father as you knew him and myself you would choose me?" He shook his head, his thoughts conflicted, "You do not mean it, nor do I deserve such a sentiment.." He lifted up his hands, gazing at his palms as he tried to come to terms with his unexplainable powers.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 8, 2012 1:46:42 GMT -5
Her lip began to tremble and tears welled up in her eyes. His apathy to her feelings, his denial, wounded her deeply. "The father I knew is dead, not that thrall who wished to be an instrument of my death."
She took in a deep breath, her body trembling. "Is that what you think? That you remain with me to right some debt you owe me and only that? You would not be in peace by my presence, but only when you lose this great guilt you bear inside you for what you have done?"
"You've saved my life many times now. I live because you saved me from the sword. If a debt must be repaid then you have paid it in full. If I can only bring you pain, if you would leave me when you have righted what you feel is so wrong, then why should you stay even now?"
Her voice began to pitch higher as tears rolled down her dusty cheeks. "Why should you know me when I can only bring you anguish? Why should you know my heart when your words only break it? Perhaps you should have let me die by the sword rather than burden me with your pain when you will not let me relieve it?"
She clenched her hands and then relaxed, pushing beside Asher and hovering in the doorway for a few moments. "I will not cause you pain any longer Asher. You are free of your debt to me. I release you from that pain."
Amber stubbornly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "Do what you wish, may you find peace." She said softly. Without another word she ran out into the rain, leaping over the underbrush to disappear into the woods.
The rain mixed with her tears. He would be happier without her. She could not invest in him if she would only be hurt, it was true. Her heart couldn't bear it.
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Post by Joe on Mar 8, 2012 2:03:04 GMT -5
He turned to her as she spoke, attempting to interrupt but unable to. She did not cause him pain, if anything he felt he wasn't worthy of the comfort she brought him, not with all he had done. Asher simply stood by as she pushed him aside and ran out the door, himself looking hurt and confused as she disappeared into the woods. He clenched his eyes in frustration, he did not know how to handle his own emotions, much less hers.
He stepped carefully out into the center of the derelict village, gazing up at the sky holding out his arms as he let the rain wash over him. His eyes snapped open, suddenly an unsettling feeling came to his senses. He was being watched. The rain came down in torrents, shrouding everything beyond the perimeter of the village. A stinging pain struck his neck, instinctively he reached to the afflicted area and his hand touched a shaft. He gripped it, wincing as he pulled it free from his flesh. Asher brought it in front of his eyes, turning it over - a dart.
Suddenly the world began to spin, the edges of his sight darkening. He had been tranquilized. In his last moments of frantic consciousness he tried to spot his attackers, to no avail. He fell to his knees as his muscles gave out, he tried to shout but it barely escaped his mouth uttering "Amb.." before crashing into the mud.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 8, 2012 2:10:05 GMT -5
She had not looked back, swiping at the hot tears that mingled with the cool rain that ran down her face. Amber stopped when at last her breath gave out, steadying herself against a tree with her hand. She turned her back to the tree and slid down in dejectedly and pressed her head to her knees as she curled up, pulling her arms around her in a loose embrace as she tried to control her sobs.
She felt empty when at last the hitching in her breath stopped and she had no more tears to shed. Amber glanced the way she had come and hung her head again, wondering how her words had affected Asher.
She wounded him, she knew. She did not know how he felt about her, and she had torn herself from him for fear that the truth would hurt her already wounded heart. All she could hear was the rain and the gentle rustling of leaves as the rain drops pattered against them and fell heavily onto the muddy ground about her feet.
Amber wondered if she should go back, shivering in the coldness. But she had not the courage to. And she would not confirm her fears, not when she could push them away.
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Post by Joe on Mar 9, 2012 12:05:30 GMT -5
Asher's eyes opened sluggishly, his vision fading in and out. He tried to lift his head, his senses spinning, the tranquilizer was obviously still in effect. Two men were dragging him by the arms, Asher could see his legs making trails through the mud behind them.
He tried to summon the will to move, to shift, to do anything, but it took all his effort just to try to keep his eyes half-open. His head dropped, losing consciousness again.
When he finally woke again the sun had dropped far below the hills. The tranquilizer was somehow still in effect, with some effort he lifted his head to look forward. Several dark-skinned tribesmen stood around him, seemingly discussing something, one adorned in obvious shaman garb. Asher strained to turn his neck to examine his arms; they were tied to a post along with his legs, he gave a pathetic attempt to resist the bindings but they held firm. He turned back around and noticed the Shaman held a bowl filled with a green liquid that Asher knew to be a strong narcotic. Were they purposefully keeping his drugged? Did they know what he could do?
Asher strained to stay awake, wracking his enfeebled brain for a way to escape.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 9, 2012 17:04:49 GMT -5
She shivered in the rain and longed for the warmth of a fire and of food. She thought of the cheerful fire in the abandoned hut and cursed her desire for it meant that she would have to face Asher after her outburst. She was awkward and resentful of her words, so hastily spurted from her lips but his dismissal of her feelings had hurt her so deeply. He thought himself unworthy of her. Gods be damned for his way of thought, for it vexed her so. Why could he not allow himself to accept her love? She was pushing against some unmoveable force within him. He was dwelling in his despair and she thought that selfish. But what could she do about it? What could she do to turn around that way of thought?
Asher had existed for a long time, and it had turned him bitter. She knew that now, for his words. Perhaps she was very much a child in comparison to him, only just having become womanly with womanly feelings. If only she had been born a man, she thought. Then perhaps it would be easier to steel her thoughts against him, for as a young woman she could not help herself. She was a silly thing, and she cursed herself for her weakness.
She shivered again, miserable in the rain. Her clothes were soaked and covered in mud. She most likely looked a mess. Amber rose to her feet at last, looking up at the trees, the rain spattering her upturned face. She turned her head towards where she had come, running from Asher, running from his words and how she felt about them.
Amber found herself walking back, though she knew that doing so would only cause her to hurt again. Perhaps in time she prove herself to him. It is said that love was patient. She would have to learn that patience for in her heart she knew he was worth it. To see him smile, to see that tenderness which he kept inside locked away tightly...
At last she reached the abandoned village, pausing at it's reaches. With resolve, she stepped forward, forcing her feet to move her forward. She took in a deep breath and ducked into the hut and found him gone.
Her heart wrenched and she felt it's pain. So he had left her, as she had left him.
But there was a fire to attend to, warm and welcome and a promise to take away the cold from her bones. Without shyness, for she was alone, she pulled off her garments to the thin shift beneath her clothes and hung them to dry. She sat herself beside the fire to warm her chilled skin. It was not long before she nodded off despite herself.
She opened her eyes after some time and found that the rain had stopped. All she could hear was the crackling of the coals. She tested her clothes and found them dry. She dressed herself, wondering how much time had passed, how long she had slept?
Amber wondered as well if Asher had himself returned, perhaps willing to talk things over. She wished to find forgiveness, find comfort in his presence. She darted outside to look around but found that she was still alone in the ring of huts. No Asher to be found.
She paced into the center of the village, her heart again plunging into pain. She felt very much alone. Lowering her eyes she noticed fresh footprints in the drying mud. It looked as if a scuffle had happened, those tracks were much to fresh. She bent down, seeing someting protruding from the ground and found a dart. Amber knit her brow, sensing that something had gone awry for Asher.
Her keen eyes picked up skid marks along the ground that meant that something had been dragged from this spot. Lifting the dart to her eyes she tried to piece the puzzle together. Surely Asher had been involved in this against his will. Perhaps, he had been drugged? Darts like these she had heard of before, which carry on it's tip poison. Her skin prickled as she realized that Asher was either dead or captured. Amber began following the tracks in a quick jog, to find where Asher's body, alive or dead, had been taken.
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Post by Joe on Mar 9, 2012 22:16:15 GMT -5
The men spoke in a foreign tongue. One of them approached him, pointing to where the dart had struck Asher's neck, while motioning to the others. They seemed to have noticed that the signs of the wound had already completely vanished. One of the other tribesman stepped forward, unsheathing a crude wooden dagger, advancing toward Asher. Asher grimaced, tensing his muscles and holding his breath as the man plunged the dagger into Asher's gut. Asher growled and then released his breath in a grunt as the tribesman roughly pulled the dagger from his body. Blood gushed from the wound, trickling down his naked legs.
At this moment Asher hung his head low, despair overtaking him almost completely as pain rushed through his body. He knew not what Amber thought of him now, he was captured with no escape, seemingly tortured, he had not the will to go on.
After a few minutes passed the tribesman started discussing, their whispers growing louder as they pointed at Asher. The wound was starting to close, rapidly healing, the gash vanishing completely after a few moments. Asher barely paid them attention, unconcerned with what became of him.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 9, 2012 22:41:35 GMT -5
Within the forest she slowed her pace, having to search for the tracks over roots and between underbrush. Here a broken branch hanging from where it had snapped on the bushes, there a pile of fallen leaves distrubed by careless haste. She kept her eyes and ears open, beginning to stalk like a lion after it's prey, for it would not do well for Asher if she was taken as well.
She lowered herself to her hands and knees as she brushed aside thick groves of weeds when she noticed a clearing ahead, silently willling the plants to not rustle with her movement. She heard a language of a foreign tribe, likely an aggressive one if this dart had anything to do with it. A weapon of subterfuge, a weapon of cowardice.
Dark skinned natives were pacing about a pit where she could see the top of a post of which crude rope was knotted. By the way they stood, they were observing what was within the pit with various degrees of emotion. The marks were his body had been dragged ended there and went no further. It was clear that it was Asher was being held.
But why had they brought him here alive? If he was being held it was for a purpose. Did they know who he was? What he was? With this part of the mainland in view of the island, surely Asher's tribe may be known to them. They may be mistaking him for one of the dark god's minions. Revenge, perhaps. Or simply some method of torture for their own amusement?
She was acutely aware that these that surrounded the pit were all males. Amber shrunk back as a terrible thought occured to her. She was foreign, without the protection of her people. They could do horrible things to her all for the sake that she was a woman. They could pass her around among them, doing all sorts of unspeakable acts to her.
No, no... Asher was in a bad situation. She should not think of herself, not with the countless times he had saved her life. But she was one against so many. Amber decided she would observe for now and wait until darkness, for within the darkness she may do something to save him.
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Post by Joe on Mar 9, 2012 23:01:35 GMT -5
It was at this moment, head sagging, that Asher actually got a glimpse of his surrounds. He saw red, he blinked, his eyes focusing. It was a pile of flesh, torn bits of meat and muscle, scattered limbs and organs. A pang of fear climbed his throat, he turned his head again, how had he not noticed them before? Bodies were piled here and there, the pit was practically a mass grave.
He looked again at the tribesmen, they all looked pale and sickly, then it hit him. This tribe were cannibals. His mind raced a moment as he tried to fathom what they would do with someone whose flesh would regenerate. The shaman among them stepped forward and jabbed Asher with another poison-filled dart. Asher struggled vainly a moment as his vision began to fade.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 9, 2012 23:12:21 GMT -5
She knit her brow as one of the dark skinned paced down the incline of the pit, something in hand. A dart just like the one that she herself had kept as evidence. She lowered her eyes for but a moment, her hand tightening around that which she held. Amber glanced up again quickly as the enemy did not dwell long within the pit but emerged just as quickly. He had a broad smile on his face as he joked with the others. Apparently he found Asher's plight amusing. They were toying with him, keeping him alive and drugged. But why?
Amber watched them though the evening, her eyes narrowing with spite for them, who entered the pitt with knife or club in order to torture Asher. Based on the frequency, they had by now discovered Asher's ability to heal quickly and were toying with him. Unconscious or not, a body could take only so much.
Night crept in and the dark skins settled in by their fires. One remained awake, a night watchman to keep his eyes on Asher, no doubt. She would have to incapacitate this one quietly without alerting the others. She glanced down at the dart in her hands. If she could get her hands on some of that poison, she could use it on him.
She searched the grounds with her eyes from her hiding place. She had seen liquid administered to Asher throughout the day and the liquid was contained in a wooden bowl close to a man dressed like a shaman. Amber waited until all was quiet before sneaking among them, casting her eyes from time to time for the watchman who had his back to her, and made way for the bowl of poison.
Quickly, she dipped it's tip as she crawled beside the sleeping shaman, careful to not make a noise and stood up, bending at the waist to creep up behind the watchman, who suspected no allies of the one they had captured, and stood to her full height behind him with a glare of hatred.
She reared back her arm and plunged the dart in the man's neck as hard as she dared.
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Post by Joe on Mar 10, 2012 0:03:55 GMT -5
The guard whirled around at the sudden pain but even before he could raise his arm to strike her, his grip weakened, his spear dropping to the ground, and he soon after. There were no sounds of commotion, her attack had gone unnoticed.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 10, 2012 0:11:45 GMT -5
Amber was shaking, adrenaline overcoming fear. She stepped aside only to watch the man fall unconsious beside her. She bent to take his spear, for a moment admiring its balance and weight. She ran her thumb over the obsidian point and found it sharp and unlikely to shatter. She lowered the spear and strode into the pit, her eyes resting on Asher. She halted when she noticed that no clothing was on his body. She turned and peered up over the side of the pit, her eyes roaming about for moment and reached up, tearing at the cloth that swathed the dark skinned man and slung it over her shoulder. She noticed a knife that had disloged with the motion and grabbed that too. Turning again to the post she used the knife to cut the bindings. It was then that she noticed the carnage around her, the smell, the sight of the innards cast about carelessly. Amber put a hand over her mouth, feeling sick but swallowed that down. Sticking the knife in her belt she slapped Asher on the cheek to attempt to wake him. "Asher!" She hissed.
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Post by Joe on Mar 10, 2012 0:22:33 GMT -5
The slap was nothing at first, like a tap on the shoulder. His mind wanted to still sleep, but he tried to lift his head to see his attacker. Was it his torturers again? His eyes would barely focus, he saw her form, and knew it not to be the ones from before. He hadn't seen females among them, but it wasn't beyond possibility that they had come down to experiment with him as well. With that thought he dismissed her, his head sagging again. Her whispers came to his ears like dull barely audible moans, he could make no sense of it, and didn't try.
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