Vali cel Tradat woke one morning to terrible back pain. It was unbearable, he could barely bring himself to sit upright. Once he did manage to get up, he struggled to stay that way. Something was clearly wrong, and he would need to do what he hated most- ask for help. Not just to cure his pain, but to do anything as simple as get dressed. He found himself glad he neglected to change into his sleep wear before hitting his pillow the night before.
It took all of his efforts to ease himself off his bed. The pain was excruciating and it seemed to increase with every movement. Vali cursed as he made his way out of the shack he d spent the night in, and hobbled onto the streets of Constantinople. The templar scanned the bustling city before spotting a familiar mask-wearing being by a fruit stand. He grimaced. Shahkulu. Of course the only ally in sight would be an idiot such as Shahkulu. While Vali would have preferred to limp to the other side of the city, the already horrible pain in his back was becoming more pronounced, and it seemed he would have to push aside his animosity in order to find a timely remedy.
He took a good breath and squared his shoulders, not one known to be in need of help. Luckily Shahkulu hadn't seen him yet.
"Renegade." He said it loudly but flatly, making it obvious he wished anyone else could have been nearby. Mirella, Lysistrada, hell, even Seraffo would have been preferable. At least he was a doctor. But Shahkulu didn't turn his way. "Renegade!" He shouted again, louder this time. Finally, the silver mask turned it's face Vali's direction. Vali motioned for him to come closer. Shahkulu hesitated before complying, the grimace almost visable under his mask. It seemed Shahkulu felt the same way about Vali's presence. At least he had gotten his attention. He struggled to maintain his composure as Shahkulu made no hurry of walking closer.
"What do you want, Sentinel?" The irritation was clear in his muffled voice. Vali gave Shahkulu his best glare- or rather, he attempted to. In truth, the expression he wore was somewhere between annoyance and poorly disguised pain.
"I need help," he whispered, his voice as low as his pride would allow. Shahkulu tilted his head, his silver mask having succeeded at blocking Vali s words.
"What? Speak more loudly, Sentinel!"
"I need help!" Vali hissed.
Shahkulu stared in surprise- though it was impossible to tell through his mask. The sentinel asking for help? There must have been something seriously amiss.
"Help? Help for what, exactly?"
"I... I'm injured. Call for a doctor." Vali muttered. Shahkulu looked him over.
"I don't see any blood." Vali didn't know if Shahkulu meant he didn't see Vali's blood, or his target's. Vali glowered up at the taller man. His crippled posture only made him seem shorter, and that made him even less happy about his already unpleasant situation.
"None was spilled, obviously. I was struck by a blunt object, in my back." Vali lied. The night before had been a fruitless tracking endeavour, and save for a torn cape, uneventful. "I was outnumbered, at least twenty of them." It was his already bruised pride that kept him talking, his back cried for him to stop and lay back down. It felt as though he had a knife wedged in his spine. Shahkulu appraised the lie for a moment.
"You look pathetic. Hunched over like an old woman. Where did you stay? Somewhere secluded? Let's discuss this where I won't be seen with you." Vali sneered at him and gestured behind him, to the shack. Shahkulu turned his head upward and started to the shack. Vali turned to follow, but sharp pangs in his back forced him to stop. He had never known such pain.
"Shahkulu, wait." Vali called after him, barely keeping his pain out of his voice. The man stopped and turned on his heels, waiting impatiently for Vali to continue. "I... I need help." The pain from his back was made less only by the pain to his pride.
"You cannot even cross the street?" The disbelief in Shahkulu s voice did nothing to improve Vali s mood.
"Will you help an ally in need or will you not?" Vali no longer had the patience to come up with lies in order to protect his pride- he was about to collapse.
Shahkulu frowned before reluctantly returning to Vali s side and wrapping one of the sentinel s arms over his shoulder. He used his other arm to support Vali as he lead the cursing templar into the run down shack. Once they were within a reasonable distance to the bed, Vali all but flung Shahkulu s arm off of him. He then gingerly eased himself onto the bed, refusing to meet Shahkulu s eyes. There was a momentary silence, which Shahkulu broke.
"What happened to your back? I find it strange that someone as injured as yourself would make it out of such a fight alive."
Vali hesitated before answering. Surely, the truth would only help his treatment. And he would have no bruising or broken skin to support his story. He let out a shallow sigh. Shahkulu would find the truth sooner or later. "I woke up like this, I don't know what brought forth this fate. Old wounds, bad sleeping position... Karma." Shahkulu laughed at him. Vali shot him a stare that could daze a basilisk.
"Karma? I suppose you're going to suggest it was 'voodoo' next? I didn't know you bought into such fancies." Shahkulu laughed again and made himself comfortable on a shoddy chair in the shack.
"I don't know! Just fix it!" Vali spat back, wishing he had opted for crossing the city in search of someone else. "Or get someone who can!" The shout made a dart of pain spike up his back again, and he did everything in his power not to whimper. Shahkulu was enjoying this too much. If only he had something to throw at him.
"You misunderstand me, Sentinel. I would not have suspected you to believe such things- that does not mean they are not true." Vali rolled his eyes. Surely he wasn't serious.
"What, someone with a grudge shoved some pins into a doll and gave me a backache? Great revenge. You got me!" Vali cursed under his breath as another pang made him gingerly hold his back with one hand.
"Anyone can access string and pins. The question is, who would want to? Who wants you dead?" Vali couldn't believe how serious he sounded. Did Shahkulu, The Renegade, really believe in voodoo? Vali scoffed at the question.
"Who doesn't?" Surely every Assassin he once called his 'Brother' would want him dead. Many of his Templar associates believed him to be untrustworthy, and they aren't exactly known for mercy.
"Surely there must be someone- or some event that stands out from the rest? Something recent, I presume."
At this Vali paused. He had done nothing unusual in the past while, and it was strange to think it would have taken this long for any of the Assassins to extract such a type of revenge. His eyes widened as a recent incident came to mind, but, surely it couldn t be...
"Does anything come to mind?" Shahkulu asked, noticing the other man s change in demeanor.
"I..." Vali hesitated, not believing something so preposterous could have anything to do with this, "I encountered a strange creature the other night."
Now Shahkulu s interest was peaked, "A strange creature? What strange creature do you speak of?"
"It was akin to a horse, though, there was a horn atop of its head."
The chair fell with a clatter as Shahkulu shot up off of it, "You, what did you do to this being?"
Vali flinched at the sudden movement, inciting another sharp pain in his back. "Calm down, you fool! It was dark and I had yet to eat-"
"You killed and ate it?"
"Do not interrupt me! I may have attempted to, but I did not succeed. The beast was far faster than I could have imagined! I only managed to graze its leg with my blade," Vali chose to not mention the foreboding gaze the strange creature had given him before galloping away.
"I suppose the good news is that it isn't voodoo." Shahkulu said, appauled. Vali looked back up to him with inquiring eyes. "You came close with 'karma', but this isn't your everyday what-goes-around-comes-around. This is much more grave. You see, that beast you encountered marked you for death." Vali gasped.
"Death? Can it be reversed?"
"You must clear your name in the eyes of this creature. Do not fret over finding it again, this beast has created a bond between you that is not easily broken. He will know when you have redeemed yourself. Of course, such creatures tend to have high standards of purity. It will not be an easy task. One, I'm afraid, with a time limit." Shahkulu relayed the information with a deadpan expression. It was clear this was nothing to take lightly. He even seemed concerned.
"What do I have to do, to clear my... uh... What's it called again?"
"Unicorn Karma." Shahkulu shifted uncomfortably at the name, uttering it barely above a whisper. "It varies from one beast to the next, but the task is to purify your soul and clear all regrets. I suggest retracing your life from childhood, in a linear fashion. Then nothing will be overlooked."
Vali sighed. This was not going to be easy.