Rider's Maze
Mar. 28th, 2006 06:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
birthrightgreenAfter this.
Surreal was much more cautious after the near choking and drowning by the little girl spirit thing, whatever it was. Something in it had called to her. Kinship, perhaps. She knew that rage. She would have felt guilty for hurting her except that survival was survival. She'd been just as willing to help as fight. The girl made her choice and Surreal won. Simple as that.
She moved cautiously through the maze, on edge now, the pain in her throat making her wince, anticipating anything and everything, and yet finding nothing as she wound through the corridor. It swung to the right and downward and she followed it, edging carefully, probing the darkness ahead, around corners, though her senses seemed to be off and she couldn't get a feel for what might be coming. The path merged with others and she bit her lip, worrying at it as she contemplated her choices.
With a sigh, she stayed straight, following the path she'd been on before. A slithering sound sent shivers down her skin. She was not fond of serpents at all. Her hand slid around her stiletto again. These would undoubtedly be poisonous. A little test, making sure her gray shield was in place. No fangs would be able to penetrate it and bury in skin, at least. She still shuddered again at the sound.
She was nearly frozen in shock when she rounded the corner and saw it, coiled there, with talons and wings and...it looked at her and she cried out sharply when it's gaze met hers, the pain surprising her as it ran through her, and she stumbled against the wall, sagging, trying to breathe through it and not scream, feeling her Jewel strength drain out of her. Her body felt weak, almost numb, and she was trembling. She tried to pull on the Gray, but it was drained. She closed her eyes, not able to stand opening them. Something sizzled on the wall next to her, odor rank, and she knew she had to do something. She pulled on the Green's strength, there but faint, to stand up again, even though she was still shaking. She kept an eye on it, looking down, at its body, as she scanned the area...
Scarves. Mirrors. Knives. Her mind flickered over them. Don't look. It was its eyes. Don't look into them. She eased toward the table, jumping back when it lunged. A twist of her lips and she dropped a sight shield over her as well. She saw it pause, seeming to sniff. It knew she was here, but not being able to see her, to see her eyes seemed to have baffled it. A mirror. More than one knife. It lunged at the mirror, but she'd been expecting that, retreating a bit out of it's reach. Using the mirror as her guide, still careful not to look, she hurled a knife at one of its eyes.
It made a ghastly noise, rearing up at the pain, and she hurled another at it's other eye. It was wailing, flailing. She barely had the strength of Craft to encase it in a bubble, trapping it. She didn't know what magickal strength it might have, or how long her bubble could hold, but she knew she didn't have enough strength to finish it with Craft, and from it's hissing bellows, that made her ears ache, she didn't know how deep the knives had sunk or whether it had some way of protecting it's brain from her knives.
She managed to stand upright and slip by it, ducking under the bubble she'd created around it, even as she felt it failing, giving out as the Green was drained.
She stumbled out, bruised and shaken, trembling. But she was out. She'd made it through. She hadn't found the center, but she sank to the grass outside the North entrance, and closed her eyes. Triumph there, yes. She'd done it. But the creatures...she'd never seen their like.
A wish. She had a wish, she remembered vaguely. She didn't know what to wish for. Nothing she needed, really. Her family was as safe as could be and she doubted the Riders had the same sort of power to grant things in Kaeleer. She had Samael...
She'd wish for peace, but she doubted that was in their power, either.
She'd think about it. Right now, she just wanted a hot bath and her wolf and a bed.
Preferably without encountering Daemon or Sam on her way to said bath and wolf and bed. She didn't like to think what either of them would say about this, and while she'd never shirked from a fight with either of them--or anyone else--she really didn't want any delay in that bathtime. Or fussing. No fussing. She touched her neck gently. She might need to find a Healer to get rid of any bruises or marks. The family's eyes, not to mention Daemon and Sam's, were much too sharp. She'd sleep, and get her strength back. And maybe have tea to ease the ache in her throat.
And then she'd be fine and they never need know.
Wasn't that for the best?
Surreal was much more cautious after the near choking and drowning by the little girl spirit thing, whatever it was. Something in it had called to her. Kinship, perhaps. She knew that rage. She would have felt guilty for hurting her except that survival was survival. She'd been just as willing to help as fight. The girl made her choice and Surreal won. Simple as that.
She moved cautiously through the maze, on edge now, the pain in her throat making her wince, anticipating anything and everything, and yet finding nothing as she wound through the corridor. It swung to the right and downward and she followed it, edging carefully, probing the darkness ahead, around corners, though her senses seemed to be off and she couldn't get a feel for what might be coming. The path merged with others and she bit her lip, worrying at it as she contemplated her choices.
With a sigh, she stayed straight, following the path she'd been on before. A slithering sound sent shivers down her skin. She was not fond of serpents at all. Her hand slid around her stiletto again. These would undoubtedly be poisonous. A little test, making sure her gray shield was in place. No fangs would be able to penetrate it and bury in skin, at least. She still shuddered again at the sound.
She was nearly frozen in shock when she rounded the corner and saw it, coiled there, with talons and wings and...it looked at her and she cried out sharply when it's gaze met hers, the pain surprising her as it ran through her, and she stumbled against the wall, sagging, trying to breathe through it and not scream, feeling her Jewel strength drain out of her. Her body felt weak, almost numb, and she was trembling. She tried to pull on the Gray, but it was drained. She closed her eyes, not able to stand opening them. Something sizzled on the wall next to her, odor rank, and she knew she had to do something. She pulled on the Green's strength, there but faint, to stand up again, even though she was still shaking. She kept an eye on it, looking down, at its body, as she scanned the area...
Scarves. Mirrors. Knives. Her mind flickered over them. Don't look. It was its eyes. Don't look into them. She eased toward the table, jumping back when it lunged. A twist of her lips and she dropped a sight shield over her as well. She saw it pause, seeming to sniff. It knew she was here, but not being able to see her, to see her eyes seemed to have baffled it. A mirror. More than one knife. It lunged at the mirror, but she'd been expecting that, retreating a bit out of it's reach. Using the mirror as her guide, still careful not to look, she hurled a knife at one of its eyes.
It made a ghastly noise, rearing up at the pain, and she hurled another at it's other eye. It was wailing, flailing. She barely had the strength of Craft to encase it in a bubble, trapping it. She didn't know what magickal strength it might have, or how long her bubble could hold, but she knew she didn't have enough strength to finish it with Craft, and from it's hissing bellows, that made her ears ache, she didn't know how deep the knives had sunk or whether it had some way of protecting it's brain from her knives.
She managed to stand upright and slip by it, ducking under the bubble she'd created around it, even as she felt it failing, giving out as the Green was drained.
She stumbled out, bruised and shaken, trembling. But she was out. She'd made it through. She hadn't found the center, but she sank to the grass outside the North entrance, and closed her eyes. Triumph there, yes. She'd done it. But the creatures...she'd never seen their like.
A wish. She had a wish, she remembered vaguely. She didn't know what to wish for. Nothing she needed, really. Her family was as safe as could be and she doubted the Riders had the same sort of power to grant things in Kaeleer. She had Samael...
She'd wish for peace, but she doubted that was in their power, either.
She'd think about it. Right now, she just wanted a hot bath and her wolf and a bed.
Preferably without encountering Daemon or Sam on her way to said bath and wolf and bed. She didn't like to think what either of them would say about this, and while she'd never shirked from a fight with either of them--or anyone else--she really didn't want any delay in that bathtime. Or fussing. No fussing. She touched her neck gently. She might need to find a Healer to get rid of any bruises or marks. The family's eyes, not to mention Daemon and Sam's, were much too sharp. She'd sleep, and get her strength back. And maybe have tea to ease the ache in her throat.
And then she'd be fine and they never need know.
Wasn't that for the best?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 05:29 am (UTC)But he was still torn between grumbling and clinging.
no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 05:33 am (UTC)"I didn't know what it was."
no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 05:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 05:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 02:52 pm (UTC)Then stood, taking her hands in his. "Into the tub with you." It was just full enough; a little telekinetic twist turned off the taps.
no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 03:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-01 04:58 pm (UTC)After a little while he started to rub her shoulders, gently, very carefully.
no subject
Date: 2006-04-01 05:08 pm (UTC)