Chapter 7: Sunburn (Maribelle)
With their victory at the Victrion Stronghold the Plegian army stormed across the mountains separating them from Ylisse and entered the country proper near the Palmira Plains in the region of Themis. There the bulk of the Ylissean army had set up camp ready to stop the Plegians in their tracks. As both sides prepared for the first skirmish a miracle happened. The Exalt herself appeared asking for a truce between both sides. Eagerly the Plegians accepted but once the Exalt drew in close enough, they struck. Breaking the rules of parley they captured the Exalt and her entire Pegasus guard. General Aversa personally escorted her back to the Plegian capital leaving the Ylisseans enraged but fearful to act. While they glared at the Plegians in an uneasy ceasefire Chrom received word in Dalanzadgad, capital of Regna Ferox. Whipped into a frenzy he demanded a strategy from his tactician Ursula.
Azalam, Historian.
"This…this is what our esteemed tactician came up with" Maribelle deadpanned as she surveyed the miles and miles of sand that lay before them.
"Cut her some slack Curly, Blue was frothing at the mouth" Gaius commented uncorking the lid of his canteen. He poured the water over his head sighing in relief "Damn, it is as hot as hell out here." Maribelle smacked him over the head with her parasol
"How dare you waste a precious resource! Article 67 Section 7 of the Ylissean military rules book specifically explains the importance of water conservation during desert travel. You could doom our entire campaign because of your negligence." She smacked him again "And for your information my name is Maribelle, not Curly." She whacked him thrice "And using such language around a lady such as I is incredibly uncouth. You should make strides to be less of a cur."
Gaius glared at her before shuffling away rubbing his sore head; he'd find someone nicer to complain to. Maribelle might have stewed over his brutishness if she hadn't caught sight of her dear Lissa. The poor girl had turned a dreadful shade of white ever since the horrific news that Emmeryn had been captured by the Plegians.
"How are you faring sweetheart" Maribelle cooed placing a supporting hand on the princess' shoulder.
"Well" came the uncharacteristically morose reply. Maribelle frowned; it hurt her to see her best friend so lifeless. 'Curse those Plegians' she thought as she ground her teeth. "Come now, even that cur Gangrel would be foolish beyond measure to lay one finer on the Exalt" Maribelle said "Within two fortnights she will be at your side as happy and hale as ever, I promise."
Lissa looked up at Maribelle, her eyes glimmering with fear "You do?"
Maribelle placed the back of her hand against her mouth very posh like "Ohohohohohoho! When I see that Gangrel I teach him a lesson he'll be loathe to forget. For his transgressions a sound round of spanking is the just punishment. I shall even mete it out myself." For emphasis she smacked her hands together creating a sharp crack that rang in the dry air.
Lissa did her best to hang onto her gloomy persona but bit by bit her shoulders began to shake, her lips curled up into a smile, and a giggle escaped into the air. "Hehehehehehe" Lissa snorted "Hahahahahahaha! I can totally see you spanking Gangrel. Will it be with a board or with your bare hand?"
"If Gangrel does not have any paddles available I will make do with my hand."
"Kinky" Lissa commented as she continued to snicker. That earned her a rap on the head from her best friend, it was much softer than the blows she had rained on Gaius though.
"That is not an appropriate thought for someone of royal bearing such as yourself" Maribelle chided "I realize we travel with characters of…less than upstanding character out of necessity but I do request you don't pick up their habits."
"Come on now Maribelle, I realize that they don't confirm to your standards but everyone here is super awesome" Lissa said defending her friends "Just who would you say is of a less than upstanding moral character."
"That thief for one" Maribelle commented piercing said man with her best stink eye "Sully, Vaike, that man who hates women, Khan Basilio, Miriel, and, of course, that brutish tactician your brother fawns over." Her stink eye turned to the hooded woman who was being pestered by the prince.
"Be nice Maribelle, besides what has any of them ever done to you" Lissa asked "Also why is Miriel on that list? She's a bit bookish but by no means is rude or uncouth."
"I invited that woman over for tea once and instead of talking about normal things like style or men she went on and on about the urine samples she had collected for the sake of some silly experiment" Maribelle griped "I couldn't enjoy the refreshments at all thanks to her."
The pair continued to chat about a wide variety of things for the rest of the trek. The morning sun soon brightened into the lethal hot afternoon sun forcing Chrom to call for a midday siesta which would last until the sun began to set. Everyone hurried to unpack the great rolls of clothe they had brought with them on the caravan. Instead of the typical tents made of leather and hemp they constructed tents out of this material which was light enough not to stifle the occupant but a mere three layers blocked out the sun providing excellent shade. From a mile away one could observe the brightly colored campsite that had sprung up out of nowhere. After a brief repast everyone settled down for a nap, everyone except Maribelle that is. As the self appointed moral guardian of the Shepherds it lay on her shoulders to insure that no hanky-panky went on during this period. With her great book of rules tucked under her arm the formidable noblewoman went on her rounds. Her awareness paid off, she caught a glimpse of Sully's red armor as she tiptoed her way out of her tent. Maribelle narrowed her eyes; it was possible that his was not something shady so she did not immediately apprehend the knight. Instead she followed Sully to the prince's tent.
Unabashedly the knight entered without knocking 'Highly inappropriate' Maribelle thought frowning 'That's a massive breach in the rules!' Gathering her resolve Maribelle took a deep breath and drew close to the tent. Even if he was her prince justice was blind, rules had to be followed. As she was about to pull away the tent flap and announce her presence a snatch of conversation caught her ears.
"I tried everything you said" Chrom insisted "I batted my eyes and puckered my lips but she didn't do anything."
"How about flowers, did you give her flowers" Sully asked.
"It was hard but I managed to pick some from a few cacti" Chrom said.
"That explains the bandages" Sully noted "Could you even arrange them into a bouquet?"
"Um…no…" Chrom admitted "I just kinda…gave them to her…in a bundle."
"What did she say" Sully asked, apprehension lining her voice.
"I think she liked them" Chrom said, perking up "She took them. The she asked me why I was giving her shredded shrubbery and called me a meat sack."
"Um, what part of that reply made you think she liked the flowers" Sully asked.
"The meat sack part" he replied.
"What" Sully deadpanned and Maribelle silently mouthed it in unison.
"It's a term of endearment" Chrom explained like it was the most obvious thing in the world "Couples call each other cute little names to show their affection. You know, like honey pie or sugar lips or potato eyes."
There was a moment when both Sully and Maribelle were too stunned to speak 'Potato eyes' Maribelle thought 'Is prince Chrom that dense?'
"Chrom, meat sack is not a term of endearment" Sully said "And neither is potato eyes for that matter."
"If it's not a term of endearment then what is it?"
Maribelle flinched, she was glad she wasn't in Sully's shoes right now.
"I'm…not sure" Sully said artfully dodging the question "A-anyway, maybe you should talk to her more."
Chrom sighed "I don't know, there's not much to talk about and she's very reticent. Plus, I yelled at her when we got word about Emmeryn. I doubt she wants to talk to me right now."
There was an uncomfortable pause. Maribelle considered breaking it but then Sully piped up. "It's going to be ok Chrom. I don't get the whole political side of it but how Frederick explained it, it doesn't sound like they'll kill her. With Ursula plotting our course we can't fail."
"I know" Chrom said taking a deep breath "But I can't help but worry. Emmeryn has always had trouble with conflict. Remember how she used to be the peacekeeper between me and you when we fought? Whenever we refused to come to an agreement she would begin to bawl her eyes out."
"That guilt trip always worked" Sully reminisced "I felt so bad when she'd start to sob."
"Exactly, she's always looking to negotiate and I'm afraid that Gangrel will try to twist that to his advantage."
"The exalt is stronger than that" she replied "Believe in her, she won't let scum like Gangrel jerk her around."
"Maybe but what if he doesn't just try to force her" Chrom said "What if…what if he uses her as a bargaining chip against us. What then?"
"I'm sure Ursula considered that when she plotted out our strategy" the knight said "That's why we're trekking through this Naga forsaken place. The element of surprise is key."
Chrom nodded "You're right, thanks."
"It ain't nothing Chrom, you're my friend." Sully said nonchalantly.
"Well, I appreciate it" Chrom said "Hard to believe we're so close."
"What makes you say that?"
"Aw come on, so you remember the scrapes we used to get into?" Chrom asked incredulously "I still have that scar on my thigh where you hit me with that poker."
"I only hit you because you laughed in my face when I told you that I was going to be a knight" Sully exclaimed "You're lucky that Frederick was there to stop me or else I would have mangled that pretty little face of yours."
They shared a boisterous laugh while Maribelle rolled her eyes. Leave it to Sully to nearly maim the prince because of a little wounded pride. She straightened up and was prepared to sneak away. A bout of conscience attacked, she had been eavesdropping. Unless it was for political reasons there was no way to justify eavesdropping.
"So, you think my face is pretty?"
Maribelle nearly tumbled backwards; did the prince just ask that? "What" was Sully's less than tactful reply.
"You said you nearly ruined my pretty face" Chrom pointed out.
"Oh, um, yeah. I meant man pretty not pretty, pretty. Not that you're pretty, you're manly, really manly. But I don't see you that way cause we're friends, best friends." Sully babbled getting more and more frustrated "I mean, I see you as manly but not pretty because you're not pretty, it's just your face. Mainly your eyes, not that I notice."
"What are you doing" a voice behind Maribelle asked.
It was Frederick, the ever faithful watchmen, and beneath his stern gaze Maribelle scrambled for a plausible excuse as to why she was snooping around Chrom's tent. While her mouth flapped trying to form words the prince and Sully walked out of the tent with light blushes coloring their cheeks. Unbidden, the memory of her childhood nursemaid rose into her mind 'The worst sort of fear is the kind you feel when you get caught doing something unladylike.' Her nursemaid had shared this bit of knowledge when she had caught Maribelle trying to steal a piece of cake from the kitchen.
"What is going on here Maribelle" Chrom asked angrily "Explain yourself!"
"Well...I…I…I…lost my…hairpin while I was patrolling the camp and I was looking for it" she lied.
"I would have thought a noblewoman such as you would have more integrity than that" Frederick chided "She was spying on you milord, I observed her hunched near your tent flap for the past five minutes."
"You little-" Sully started angrily but Maribelle cut her off.
"Don't you dare start with me. I was insuring that our unit was sticking to the highest moral standing possible. You entered the prince's tent without announcing your intentions before hand and you were with a man without a proper chaperone. In accordance to the Third edition of the Ylissean military rulebook you should be suspended and court-martialed.
"Bullshit, this isn't one of your hoity-toity noble things" Sully fired back "I was just visiting Chrom! Besides, what's the punishment for eavesdropping, huh? For someone who's such a Ms. Manners you like to play the damn fool whenever you're sticking your nose in other people's business."
Maribelle bit her tongue, she had been caught and no matter how much she tried to deflect it the blame fell squarely on her shoulders. Bringing all her noble upbringing to bear she demurred "You're right, I shouldn't have been snooping. The punishment for eavesdropping compounded by lying is…" she rifled through the rules book and added up her transgressions "Two days of working the night guard which I accept as just."
"Oh please" Sully said rolling her eyes "You sneak around here like a damn voyeur looking for trouble and all you get is two shitty night of night watch? I bet you twenty bear asses that stupid rulebook of yours has a way worse punishment but you're too much of a chicken shit to abide by it."
"How dare you! If you're so sure of that why don't you take a look for yourself" the noblewoman thrust the book at the knight but after an uncomfortable second she retracted it "Oh right, you can't read can you?" Maribelle smiled triumphantly "I suppose that makes it your word against mine. By the way, your punishment is mucking out the stables for a week."
"You've gotta be fucking kidding me! Chrom, tell her we weren't doing anything hinky."
"Maribelle, Frederick, please back off" the prince said "We were merely making conversation, nothing more."
"Understood milord" Frederick demurred "Please excuse us." He grabbed Maribelle by the shoulder and dragged her away. "You should probably retire to your own tent Lady Maribelle. You will need the rest for tonight's nightwatch.""
Maribelle looked at him aghast "Beg pardon? Why would I be taking the night watch when it isn't even my shift?"
"Did you not say the punishment for eavesdropping is two nights' of camp patrol?"
"Well, yes but is Sully going to be punished?"
Frederick shook his head "No, Milord does not see Sully's actions as a transgression worthy of punishment."
"Then I shouldn't be punished either" Maribelle protested trying to shake the grip he had on her arm.
"I have no authority to enforce a punishment not approved by Milord" Frederick admitted and for a second Maribelle felt triumphant. "Of course as a woman of noble breeding such as yourself I'd imagine you'll sufficiently oversee your own punishment. After all what are the others going to think when they see you gallivanting about flaunting the very rules you tried to instill in them?"
"H-how would they know I broke the rules?" Maribelle said weakly trying to defend herself "Surely the Prince and yourself will keep quiet on this little transgression of mine. I meant no harm by it."
"My Prince and I are honorable men milady" Frederick said with a wry smile "However who knows from what ill wind vicious rumors are borne from?"
"I-I see" Maribelle said, wilting "If you will excuse me I must get my rest. Nightwatch awaits." She scurried back to her tent her cheeks red from anger. Being scolded by her nursemaid was one thing, getting shut down by Never-to-Wed Fred was quite another. It also did not escape her that Frederick had been assigned to the nightwatch today and tomorrow.
The afternoon bled into evening prompting the shepherds to wake and prepare for travel. Meals were scarfed down and tents rolled up and put away in the caravans while the first stars of the evening glimmered weakly in the on setting gloom. They travelled until the moon overstepped its zenith and the cold became unbearable. Tents were hastily resurrected and thick sleeping bags unrolled as the group sought protection from the desert chill. Soon they were snug and warm, save for one.
Dourly Maribelle gazed around the dunes as she readjusted the scarf wrapped around her neck. The day's heat was still hours away and the wind cut through her clothes like a knife. "A pox on both your houses" Maribelle grumbled imagining Sully and Frederick coming down with Clingman's disease. Despite her hatred she still couldn't bring herself to wish the same to the prince, she was a lady after all. The wind bit at her knees making Maribelle shuffle a bit in an effort to stay warm. Soon she was moving in circles about the camp trying to keep her body heat high. The frustration continued to boil hotter and hotter in her gut till she was about ready to explode. She was so distracted by her anger she didn't notice the way she wandered away from camp, the dunes all looked the same. By the time she had realized her mistake Maribelle was lost amid the darkness of the desert.
"Damn" she whispered under her breath. Her nursemaid would have died if she had heard her do that but right now Maribelle didn't give a rat's ass. "Damn, damn, damn, fuck." A new moon hung in the air cloaking the entire landscape in deep darkness. The only light shimmered fro, the stars above, far too weak to navigate by. For a quick second Maribelle wallowed in helplessness, childhood fears of the dark swamping her imagination. However a few deep breathes later her rationale returned to her. Looking around she spied the highest dune she could see and climbed it. The footing was extremely poor; with each step cascades of sand would roll down the dune and threaten to unseat the noble from her footholds. With sand in her shoes, hair, and small clothes Maribelle finally crested the dune. Below her lay void of darkness, she might as well have been looking into the abyss. Thanks to Frederick there were no fires lit in the Shepherds campsite leaving Maribelle as clueless to their location as before but much more sandy.
She wanted to cry but her noble breeding wouldn't let her admit defeat so easily. "Crying solves nothing" the noble whispered under her breath before sliding down the dune on her bottom. After trying to shake the sand out well…everything she thought about her predicament. Clearly wandering off now would be a great way to get even more lost, her best bet was to stay put until morning. Sighing she wrapped her arms around her waist and shuffled as the cold wind blew about the plains. This promised to be a long night.
Two to four hours into vigil Maribelle had decided to give up and bury herself in the sand. She was already covered in enough of the grains to make her crazy with irritation and while they weren't warm they offered a modicum more protection to the wind than just standing around. She had allowed herself a few tears during this time but every time she began to sob the image of her nursemaid would appear in her mind's eye chastising her weakness.
"Woah, are you ok" a small voice piped up.
"Oh thank Naga" Martibelle shouted pushing the sand off "I thought I'd never be able to get back to camp." She turned her head and spotted the small child who was crouched next to her. "Who are you?"
Instead of answering her the child looked at her clothes "You don't the black garments those other guys have" she said "Are you here to capture me too?"
"What" Maribelle asked "Who are you?"
"I am Nowi" the girl said jumping up and placing her hands on her hips "So are you here for to capture me?"
Maribelle shook her head "no, me and my friends are trying to cross this desert."
"There are others here?" Nowi said looking around "Where are your friends?"
"I don't know" Maribelle sighed "I got lost."
"Hmmmm, that is bad. I was hoping your friends could help my friend."
Maribelle opened her mouth to reply but the little girl slapped a hand against it. Nowi froze and closed her eyes, it was then that Maribelle noticed her ears. They were tipped, not rounded and every few seconds they would twitch. Removing the hand from her face Maribelle asked "What are you?"
"I am Nowi" the girl replied in a whisper "But now we must not talk. The men in black robes are near. It will be very bad if they catch us."
With surprising strength the girl hoisted Maribelle to her feet and grabbed her hand. With her finger she pointed ahead then began to drag Maribelle after her. The noble might have complained but in the weak starlight she saw shadows flitting over the ground and the smell of death invaded her nostrils. Deciding it was best to follow the small child Maribelle followed treading as lightly as she could. Any hope of staying close to the Shepherds' campsite was dashed as they wound their way around dunes. Every now and then they would stop and Nowi would listen for the men in the robes before choosing their next course of action. By the time they reached their destination Maribelle was out of breath.
"They are gone" Nowi said after taking a long moment to listen "But for how long? I am tired of leading them away from my friend." The little girl looked at Maribelle "Will you help my friend? He is very sick, he spent too long walking in the desert sun without any water or a shirt."
"Of course" Mairbelle said grabbing at her staff only to grope thin air; she hadn't brought it with her on patrol. "Dam…er curses" she sighed "I left my staff back at camp."
"Never fear for Nowi is here" the girl chirped pressing her hands to her sides "Those guys following us have healing staves. I'll grab one and be back in a flash." With silent strides the little girl vanished back into the pitch black night before Maribelle could even open her mouth. She might have gone after Nowi if this "friend" hadn't given a particularly painful groan from inside the tent. Waffling between decisions Maribelle decided that it was already too late to follow the girl, no doubt she would get lost again.
Plucking up her resolve Maribelle entered the makeshift tent. A small lantern lay inside; instead of a normal orange flame a weird greenish blue wisp soaked the wick bathing the room in strange colors. The tent was made up of a few layers of silk, muck like the Shepherds tents but it was much more ragged looking. Aside from where she was standing most of the room was taken up by the ailing friend. Hoisting the mystical lamp up she gave her mystery patient a once over. It was a man with red hair and even redder skin 'Sunburn' she noted 'it's quite a vivid shade too. He spent a long time in the sun.' The sunburn was most prominent on his face with a lighter color covering his upper arms, chest and lower torso. 'He took his shirt off' Maribelle recalled 'that's really dangerous when you trekking through the desert. This is sun stroke for certainty.' A quick check of his forehead and chest confirmed it; he was blisteringly hot despite the frigid night.
Maribelle quickly rustled around inside her pockets and withdrew a spare vulnerary. She had gotten it from the medical tent earlier to treat a sunburn Stahl had gotten but her emotional turmoil over the events of the day had distracted her from administering it to him. "Lucky you" the noble mouthed to herself as she broke the bag open. The herbs stored inside assaulted her senses; it was a very familiar and comforting smell for a healer like her. She didn't have a mortar and pestle to crush them with so she had to make do with her teeth. The intense bitterness didn't faze her at all; she had done this a number of times in similarly bleak situations.
Once it was ground to a paste she spat it out into her hand and smeared it all over the man's chest. She repeated the process several times until the paste covered as much of the burn as possible. She didn't dare risk rolling him over to get his back, she needed as much of the vulnerary applied to his front as possible. The paste would help lower his temperature, which was going to be critical. Without any sources of water around them he was in serious danger of dehydrating. The vulnerary would also sink into his skin and help the epidermis recover quickly.
A quick check of the tent reaffirmed the lack of water. Perhaps that was what Nowi was looking for when she tumbled across Maribelle? Aside from them and the lamp the man's shirt was being used to bandage a wound on his arm and his sword was lying next to him. The leather it was sheathed in was extremely worn and shiny from considerable use. 'A mercenary perhaps' Maribelle wondered. Her brief reverie was broken by something rustling. At first Maribelle thought it might be Nowi returning with a staff or water or one of her friends. The noble nearly cried out a welcome but then remembered the strange men that had been snuffling around outside. Could one of them have double backed towards their position?
Cautiously Maribelle hid the lamp under a piece of cloth and peeked outside. The weak starlight made it really hard to see anything but after a time Maribelle noticed something darker lurking about in the shadows. It was their pursuers, how many of them Maribelle wasn't sure but they were uncomfortably close to the tent. They hadn't seen it though, otherwise they would have attacked. Instead they shuffled around outside and Maribelle could hear snatches of their conversation.
"The night is dark and the manakete is quick" one of them lamented "Master won't be pleased if she runs."
"We see and know" another one replied "But Master must obtain the heart of the manakete or else the hierophant will be angry."
"We are conflicted" a third commented "We have been told to trust the hierophant yet all she does is scheme without us. We do not like the hierophant."
"We know and understand" the second voice whispered "But we must place faith in her for she will lead us to Grima's hell. She is most trustworthy to us."
"All is naught is we do not find the manakeet" the first one piped up "the night is dark and cold. We are a mere acolyte unable to overcome it."
One of the men sighed "We are flustered with your inexperience with the elder magicks. It prevents you from being useful to our hierophant." He withdrew a small lamp and lit it with a pale green flame. "Use this and endeavor to find the manakete."
"We thank you; brother" the first one said "We shall search without stop."
The men scattered into the night leaving only the one with the lantern to snuffle about the area. With his green flame lantern sweeping around Maribelle caught a glimpse at something strapped to his side. "A Mend" she mouthed as she watched its garnet gleam temptingly. She had two options here, wait for Nowi to get back or kill this guy and take his staff. On one hand it was much safer for Maribelle to wait for Nowi to get back but there was no guarantee that she would return with staff in hand. The man with the lamp began to patter off into the distance forcing Maribelle to choose. Taking a deep breath she ducked back into the tent and grabbed the sword lying next to the guy. She pulled it out of its sheath, the steel shined weakly in the lamp light. Padding softly through the darkness Maribelle took a moment to chuckle at herself. 'To think I am in this position all because I eavesdropped. My nursemaid would be chortling at me right now.
The man's lamp made it easy for Maribelle to creep up behind him. The sand muffled her footsteps. He took a second to readjust his collar to protect against the cold giving Maribelle a chance. For one second she hesitated, stab in the back or lop off the head? Her amateur mind immediately equated her position with a back stab; it was thieves did wasn't it? With a grunt she buried the blade of the sword into his back just left of his spine. Had she been experienced Maribelle would have known to aim higher in order to his heart. Her blade bit into the skin but was stopped by the rib man cried and staggered forward dropping his strange lamp. Panicking at the thought of his cries summoning more of comrades Maribelle wrapped her hand around the man's mouth muffling him. His mind caught up with the situation and he jerked backward sending the noble off balance. The blade wiggled out from his wound and clanked onto the ground near Maribelle's leg.
Both battlers took notice of this. With blood dripping from his back the miscreant turned around and tried to grab the weapon from the ground. Swinging her leg she knocked him away and grabbed the sword slashing it in front of her. Two gaping wounds appeared on the man's shoulder causing him to howl in pain. Scared shitless that his friends were going to come back and help him Maribelle ran forward and gutted the man in the stomach. His cry turned into a death rattle as he slumped onto the ground lifelessly. Pulling the sword free of his corpse Maribelle looked around horrified a the possibility that reinforcements could be approaching. While her mind was paralyzed her body was not, it moved separately. She pulled the staff from the corpse's side and picked up his glowing green lantern. Using it to light her way she ran back to the tent, doused the lamp that Nowi had given her, and held her breath.
The weird green lantern gave off the smell of rotting wood despite the fact the flame within was not being nursed by anything. At first Maribelle was sure that she would be discovered but as time passed no one reappeared. After a long time the noble relaxed and got to work healing the man. Holding the staff above his chest Maribelle softly sang:
O maiden, of the sacred sanctuary...
grant weary soldiers,
a moment of peace
Words of Laksimi the Half-Beast
Gentle red light spilled from the garnet filling the man's body. He grunted as the magic circulated within his body before settling in his core. Placing a hand on his chest Maribelle dragged it upwards and spread it over the chest and head. Once it was set the noble saturated the skin and sat back letting the magic do its work. The magic hastened the speed of how skin sloughs, layers of angry red skin flaked off in in wafer sized chunks revealing the tanned skin underneath. Once the sunburn was gone Maribelle used the magic to quell the fever reducing it to a shadow of its former self. The man sighed in satisfaction and Maribelle knew that she had done all she could do. Nowi had to find some water once she got back, the magic couldn't prevent or reverse dehydration.
A little while later the little girl returned. There was an imperceptible scratch near the tent flap and Maribelle saw a lock of green hair in the light of the lamp. "I'm right here
Nowi" Maribelle whispered "No one else." The little girl ducked into the tent, a large staff with an emerald in her hand. "I have returned with…"she saw the man's skin as well as the staff in Maribelle's hands "Ah poo, you already got one."
"I grabbed it from one of those loathsome creeps who were stalking around outside the tent." Maribelle said "I'm surprised you didn't see his corpse. Where are the rest of them."
"To the north" Nowi replied "They got into a scrape with a band of people, your friends?"
Maribelle nodded "Probably, I hope they'll be alright."
"There was only a small group of them thatwere after me and him" the little girl replied "I think they picked a fight they can't win."
Maribelle sighed in relief "Alright then, do you know if there is any water nearby? You friend needs to rehydrate or else."
Nowi pumped a fist into the air "No problem. Now that they aren't chasing me finding an oasis will be easy peasy." Putting the emerald staff on the ground Nowi ran back outside, for someone so small she sure had a lot of energy. Curious, Maribelle examined the staff Nowi had brought with her, she knew what it was but she wanted to be extra sure.
The fact that it was tipped with emerald was a pretty dead giveaway, this was a Physic staff, one of the most invaluable tools in a healer's inventory. Emeralds could only be mined in a few select places, Rosanne in the Valm continent and the village of Akzeriuth in south Plegia. Hence they were extremely expensive even in the regions where they were made. The fact Nowi had managed to procure one from those guys meant something. They had a lot of money.
Who were these mysterious men? Most of the Plegian army was in Ylisse, there would not have been any patrols in the Nagaforsaken desert. But what small group of bandits could possibly afford something this expensive? Due to the rarity of such staves in the first place Maribelle doubted they had simply taken it from some unfortunate traveler.
Her patient began to stir with low, painful groans rousing Maribelle from her reverie. "How do you fare" she asked him.
The man opened his eyes, a surprisingly deep shade of olive green, glancing around the tent before focusing on Maribelle's dimly illuminated face. "Who are you" he asked, the "who" part of the sentence scraped out of the back of his throat.
"My name is Maribelle and Nowi brought me here to help you."
The man laughed "She is the good girl, Nowi but to think she has brought the angel of death to my sides. Gregor is in the surprise to find death most beautiful. Perhaps this won't be the bad thing, ya?"
The man had a really heavy Plegian accent, apparently that phlegmy sound he made with his "h"s' was a normal part of his speech pattern. Even so Maribelle was fairly certain he had just complimented her but other than that the meaning of his words were buried beneath his accent.
"You said your name was Gregor, right?"
"Ah yes, is strong manly name for manly strong man."
Still no idea what the hell he was jabbering on about but Maribelle decided to try and get some information out of him "What are you two doing in the desert? Why are those men chasing you?
Gregor gave a laugh "The making of so many questions makes Gregor's head spin with the dizziness but with the answering he will try. Gregor hired by men to guard leetle girl they capture. Give her to boss so he may chop out heart, ya? But Gregor, he hear leetle girl crying much and it breaks his soft, soft heart. He frees girl in the jiffy and angers former employers who make with the threats and swords."
"So Gregor slings leetle girl over shoulder like the sack of potatoes and they making of the tracks to the desert where Gregor hopes to do the losing of them, ya? But Gregor not make with the realizing how much they are wanting the leetle girl chasing him into deep desert. Leetle girl makes with resisting at first with the punches to Gregor's very sexy groin but when she sees Gregor dissect men who grab her she is most consistent with the helping. But even with all the helping of the Gregor former employees still make with the pursuing and this time they bring boss with them to make with the ending of Gregor.
Maribelle rubbed her forehead; she had barely managed to get the essentials out of that "So that makes you a sellsword then?"
"Hahaha, yes, Gregor very swellsword" the red head said.
"So you have no ties to Plegia whatsoever?"
"Gregor has the ties only with the monies. He be bad swellsword if he think of the other things."
An idea formed in Maribelle's mind, naturally it would be up to Chrom to accept this but perhaps Gregor could join the Shepherds. That would of course hinge on his ability to fight, the Shepherds only accepted the cream of the crop, like herself. "So Gregor, how many contracts have you had in the past year or so?" Maribelle asked.
"Very, very many. At least the twentyish four in the past of the year." He gave her a confident smirk "Gregor is swellsword of highest demanding."
"And how many of those did you complete successfully" Maribelle asked.
Gregor's face scrunched up "I am not with the understanding?"
"How many contracts did you complete?" Maribelle asked, again a blank look. "How often were you paid?"
This seemed to clear things up "Ah yes, Gregor get paid about the thirty of the three percentage of time."
"You only paid for a third of your jobs?" she replied incredulously.
The man nodded emphatically "Gregor is swellsword but not good with the finessing. The words Gregor speaks, not so good. The stabs Gregoir stabs, very, very good. When contractors try to do the cheating with Gregor out of his monies Gregor responds with the evisceration. Not good for the monies but Gregor's reputation be at all-time high."
Maribelle sighed as her idea unraveled at the seams. There was no way this contrary man could possibly be a good fit into the Shepherds. Suddenly Nowi broke through the tent, a bowl of water in her arms. "They saw me! They are coming here!"
"I thought you said my friends were fighting them?" Maribelle said.
Nowi nodded in confirmation "They were but they won, they beat back the men super-duper easy-peasy! But then the boss died and the others ran away and one of them saw me and he's coming here right now and he's bringing more of them and…and…and…" The poor girl looked so distraught she was literally shaking in place while her eyes began to drip with tears.
"Come now, don't cry" Maribelle said wiping away the tears "I have no doubt that my friends will be chasing them down."
"No they won't, no they won't" Nowi sobbed "I saw them return to their campsite. None of your friends are going to help us!"
Maribelle's heart quickened, what were they going to do? Suddenly Nowi slapped a hand over her mouth and ushered for the others to do the same. Outside they could hear footsteps in the sand. "Come out, come out wherever you are" a horridly screechy voice called out dulcetly "We aren't going to hurt you manakete, we just want to rip out your heart!" A strain of chuckles echoed through the dunes confirmed that there were more of them prowling about.
"Gregor's sword" the red head whispered trying to stand up "Gregor needs sword!" He managed to grip the handle but he was shaky on his feet.
"Wherever could you be" the bullies whispered getting closer and closer to their tent "Come here my pretty, we won't bite too hard now."
Trapped between a rock and a hard place Maribelle took a deep breath and did her noble duty "Both of you stay here" she whispered before ducking out of the tent.
"No, they will kill you" Gregor insisted but that did not stop her.
Outside the starlight revealed many men standing there all wrapped up in black cloaks "We found you" they sang dementedly.
"Who are you" Maribelle asked "Why are you bugging me?"
"Not the manakete" they whispered in unison sounding discouraged "Where is manakete?"
"I don't know how you are but there is nothing like that here" she insisted. It was a hollow lie but it was all she had. For a moment they stood there stumped and a brief surge of hope flared in Maribelle's chest. But it was dashed when she saw their sharpened teeth flash in the void of the night.
"Liar, liar" they chanted "We can smell her in the tent. We will kill you and take her to hierophant."
"I see, so you will not see reason" the noble said haughtily. In response the bullies withdrew their weapons; many dark tomes were among the swords and knives. "Very well then, en garde." Sweeping her staff overhead Maribelle blanketed the area with a piercing green light from her Physic staff. The bullies howled as they were blinded, any spells being readied on their lips forgotten. "Hiyah" Maribelle cried dashing into them. Her first staff strike sent one of the bullies to the ground with a nasty concussion; a second swing knocked two back several paces. Whirling around Maribelle smashed downward on one poor fool's head splintering his skull like a melon. Blood leaked out of his cranium as he fell, most likely to never rise again. Huffing Maribelle ran forward and tried to sweep another off his feet but by this time the bullies had gathered their senses and launched a counter attack. The bully she was aiming for blocked her whack with his arm and tried to jerk the staff out of her grasp. Running forward she body slammed him, freeing his grip then pivoted and sent another blast of green magic directly at four trying to flank her. The healing magic had no effect on their healthy bodies but it did blind them once again.
Twisting about on the balls of her feet she stomped the one she had laid low with her body slam right in the head. The soft sand prevented it from incapacitating him but the moan he gave off guaranteed it would be awhile before he would be getting back up. Something hard slashed its way down Maribelle's arm, one of them had gotten too close. Her staff hand was bleeding badly and the man, confident that he had the upper hand, raised his sword high for the killing strike. With one smooth motion Maribelle used her uninjured hand to grab her large parasol from her belt loop and opened it with a flourish. The sword came down but instead of hitting Maribelle it cut into her parasol.
"You brute" she shrieked "That was Chon'sin silk." Jerking the parasol back she knocked the sword out of his hand and kicked him right in the balls. He gave a girlish squeal as he went down then took several kicks to the face until he stopped moving. The noble whirled about using her improvised weapon to block another sword. While she struggled to disarm him a dark mage had managed to get some distance away from the scuffle. Grabbing his Flux from his cape he opened it and began to croon in a high falsetto.
"I summon thee,
burier of the dead...
Let- Gack!
A sword slid through his gullet killing him at once. Gregor kicked the man off his blade and struggled to stay standing. The bowl of water Nowi had given to him to drink had helped somewhat but he was still woozy on his feet. Taking notice of the men focus on Maribelle Gregor plodded forward as quietly as he could trying to kill the ones hanging onto the fringe of the brawl. Before long the men had taken notice of him and after one good kick to the side into the center of the fight he found himself back to back with Maribelle. "This is not of good looking" he growled keeping his sword raised in front of him "Gregor have one question before the dying. Why did Maribelle make with the charging? She is good healer yes but bad swellsword."
"If you must know that was how I was raised" the noble answered her head held high "It is the duty of the gentry to look after the serfs in times of crisis. How else would we command your love and taxes?"
Gregor laughed "Maribelle no swellsword but Gregor consider her swell."
With a shriek one of their attackers ducked low, the starlight illuminating the wickedly curved blade of his sword. Jumping up Maribelle dodged the low slash and hammered him in the back of the face just in time to see a dark mage finish his spell. The ground welled up with darkness that sought to kill them for sure but then a miracle happened. A massive blast of fire burned the darkness and several of the bullies away leaving Gregor and Maribelle unharmed. "I have located Maribelle" Miriel shouted from her position atop one of the dunes "They need extraction at once!" There was a whoosh of air as Cordelia and Sumia dive-bombed the group spearing several poor, unfortunate souls on their lances. Scared witless of death raining down from the dark night the men abandoned their quest and tried to run away only to be chased down and gutted by Sully, Frederick, and Stahl. Soon they were no more than corpses in the sand leaving Maribelle to sigh in relief.
"They saw me" she said stroking the emerald on her Physic Staff "I was terrified they had already gone to bed."
"Aha, there you are Lady Maribelle" Frederick said sidling up to her "We were concerned that these Grimleal had managed to spirit you away. I am overjoyed you are unharmed."
Even Frederick's face was a moment of ecstasy for Maribelle "For a second there I had lost hope." She admitted.
"Maribelle!" a voice called from the darkness. Lissa ran over and hugged her friend "Thank Naga, when we counted heads and you weren't there I nearly peed myself."
"Darling, it will take more than these troglodytes to best me." MAribelle sniffed.
"May I inquire to the man that is uncurious beside you" Frederick asked.
"Wha?" she said before turning to her side. Gregor had passed out face first into the sand. "Oh my stars! Water, I need water!"
Someone gave her a canteen that she popped open and proceeded to pour onto Gregor. "You shouldn't be wasting precious resources" Gaius remarked and smacked her on the head.