Chapter 4: The Stranger's name is?
Author's Note: Well, now we learn who the stranger is...or will we? Sit back and relax, as a few new wrinkles will come to light.
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.
Carrying fresh cloths, blankets, and some clothing, Terra tried to tune out the rubling of the villagers from the riverside. It had been a task of almost impossible scope to try to bring the stranger into the sanctum, and she was forced to grab what little supplies she could from within the sanctum; the villagers were paying unusually close attention to Ivonari's lectures today, and Terra could only wonder if she had somehow missed what was setting them all off.
She did not know if the man was truly as dangerous as Sage Ivonari was making him out to be, but if he was somehow related to the ending of the world, would not such a being not need a fisherman's net to escape the flow of a river? Would such a person need to be cared for?
And think what they will (and would), but she would not abandon her teachings just because the local sage suddenly brings up the apocalypse without a valid explination. She was taught to respect life, to heal the sick, and to embrace the lush world that life created. If she did learn that the man was responsible for the end of ends, she would try to reason with him, to prevent him from destroying everything.
But she would not be able to kill him. She could not even bring herself to eat meat, so strong was her love of life.
Entering the small room that she had placed him in, she stopped at the doorway to stare at him. Whatever psynergy he used earlier, it had not healed up the few bruises or scars he had suffered from his trip down the river. Though she had placed a blanked over his torso and legs earlier to keep him from catching any one of a dozen illnesses, she could tell that the injuries in those areas had not healed; if the herbal remidy and psynergy she had used on his hands had not worked, the rest of his wounds would not have healed.
What kind of being was this?
By the Elements, her healing arts should have made him look as good as new, and should have awakened him from his slumber. As it was, only the gentle rise and fall of his chest signified that he was even breathing; he did not even have a pulse.
What WAS he?
Still, she had heard of wierder things, and had even had to take care of a boy that somehow was part wolf. First she thought that he was some kind of rare, mystical werewolf, but werewolves changed during a full moon; the boy had been a man and wolf meshed together. Compared to that, the mystery laying on the cot before her was basic.
Setting the supplies on the ground, she knelt down and picked up a cloth. Gently applying her psynergetic abilites, she used the now-moist cloth to dab his forehead, taking care around his scar. She had noted it before, and noticed again as she carefully avoided the somehow fresh-looking violation of flesh. The scar was not a huge gash, but a finely cut jagged line across his left eye. But, even though it had seemingly healed, the depth of the wound, plus her training, indicated that whatever had caused the would should have taken out his eye.
Resting the cloth on the soft earth, she leaned forward, trying to get a more detailed look at the scar. Before she knew what had happened, something had spun her around, forcing her to stand up. Though she had not tried to scream, something felt as though it was covering her mouth. Her attempts to make sense of what was happening were cut short as she was pulled backwards, her body slamming into another body.
The man was doing this?
She tried to turn her head, to move her arms, but somehow, if it was him, he had incapacitated her, holding her either by psynergy or by means she did not know. Never had she heard of psynergy being used in such a way, or even so controlled. And what else could explain this?
Abruptly, whatever held her dissipated, and she stumbled forward, trying to catch her balance. Regaining her composure, and trying to look like she was not as frightened as she was, she turned to look at the stranger, and her eyes widened.
The man was standing, his eyes staring directly at her. And, in some way that she could not fathom, he had managed to get the clothes she had brought with her onto himself. And, oddly enough, his hair had through means unknown changed from a long, flowy style like hers to a shorter style.
Glancing back at his eyes, she noticed that he was studying her, almost as if he were sizing up an opponent or whether or not she was a danger to his being. As if her thought had pulled a lever in his mind, he spoke, "Where?"
Taken aback by the bluntness yet gentleness of his tone, Terra had to strugle to answer: "Ima."
He continued to stare at her, acting very simmilar to the "nulmans" that Tolbabi used. "Ima. Also known as the City of Mia. Population cira plus Two hundred fifty-two years post-Bibidi, Tolbibi scale approximately nintey-five." Even though she knew he was staring at her, Terra could not help but feel that his gaze grew even more intense. "Terra, desendent of Mia and Felix, saviors of Weyard. You will come with me."
Before she could answer his bizzare (yet somehow friendly) statement, a burst of psynergy wrapped around her waist, pulling her as he walked out of the room, and towards the sanctum's entrance. Hopeing to somehow stop him before the villagers were given a reason to kill him, she opened her mouth to ask him to stop, before freezing, realizing she did not know his name.
And come to think of it, how did he know HER?
"Hey! Stop! I'll do anything, but you don't have to drag me!" She bit her lower lip, hoping for a reply. Hopefully he would not know that it was only a twist of a truth, an act that she knew would take several hours of praying and begging of forgiveness to rectify. "Please!"
Abruptly, he stopped, less than a meter from the door. The psynergetic bonds around her body dissipated, and with shock all over her face, she stared at him, wondering what she had said to cause him to stop. Silence greeted her puzzlement, and for a second, she thought he would turn around and go on, with or without her.
"Why would you go when you know not where it is you go?"
She still could not believe how soft his voice was, even when it spoke in such a forced way. "I...I..." Why WOULD she go along without knowing?
"I...If you told me why, I might be willing to go with you," she managed, hoping he would not force her out the door again. Yet there was silence again, except for the still-audible sound of the villagers muffled by the walls.
"No time."
Terra stared at the man, and decided to gamble, hoping she was right, "how about you tell me on the way?"
"Agreeable."
Allowing her face to show a smile, she walked past him towards the door, opening it. "Just walk where you need to go, and I will follow." She tried to keep her smile on her face, and fought the urge to close her eyes from the brilliance of the sun, hoping to keep whatever trust he was going on to allow her to roam free.
The minute he stepped out the door, something flew past her head, smashing against the wall beyond the doors. To her horror, a group of villagers, armed with whatever they could find, were approaching. Worse yet, off on the horizon, she could make out the unmistakable sign of a caravan, a flag flying to symbolize it's ownership.
The Tolbibi Empire's troops were coming, and wherever they went, death followed.
End of Chapter 4
Well, that should tick a few people off... At any rate, several new wrinkles have been raised, and before anyone asks what a "nulman" is, wait for it - it will be explained soon.
Unfortunately, I do not have the time to write up a commentary to the reviews, and will try to get to that next time.
Hope you enjoyed this fic, and please review and leave your thoughts.
MIKAA