-Chapter 2-
It wasn't the pain that stimulated her senses first, no not the pain but the bitter cold and wet. Instincts kicked in and she tried sucking in a quick breath, getting nothing but a mouthful of water. That was it, her consciousness kicked into survival mode.
Alphards eyes snapped open, she could see the sun glittering through the water above her head, how long had she been out to it? Surely not long if she hadn't yet drowned. Legs kicking out she tried to grab some sort of footing, finding something hard and solid she kicked upwards, black dots crossing her vision as her lungs started screaming for air.
As her head broke the surface she gasped, sucking in a lungful of air, coughing several times as the water she'd taken in moments ago forced its way back out of her. She didn't get much time to gather herself, the current was fairly strong here and it attempted to drag her back under, the cold biting into her limbs making her numb, she needed to get out of here, fast.
She couldn't see much, her vision was blurred and her brain threatened to drop into unconsciousness from blood loss and the cold. Aiming for the closest bank she could find she furiously made her way across, scraping a knee, elbow, legs and arm on the rocks while doing so. The current grabbing at her, dunking her head a few times as she tried to scramble out of the icy water. Finally she dragged herself out of the river onto the rocky bank, she knelt there a moment trying to catch her breath. Collapsing to her side she began to shiver vigorously, she went to wrap her arms around herself, but only one was successful, glancing down at the stump that remained of her left arm she slowly started putting back together what had happened.
Knowing she couldn't stay here she forced herself into a sitting position, grabbing a small knife holstered on the inside leg of her pants she flicked it open, running it up the inside of her pants, stripping the material into long pieces from about the knee down. Gritting her teeth she slowly began to work it around the stump that remained of her arm, using her teeth and right hand to tie it, this would be something that would take a while to get used to, she knew. Glancing up the cliff face she could barely see the train tracks where she had fallen, it hadn't been coincidence she had taken her own arm so quickly, if she was going to survive the day she had just one chance, to land here in this river, anywhere else and her body would've been left broken and battered. She'd be damned if she would let Canaan rescue her, her pride hadn't sunken that low, not just yet.
Grunting she dragged herself up into a standing position, her head swam for a moment, lifting a hand to her forehead she groaned, she couldn't stay out here for too long or she'd surely die, but where was she? She had no idea, thankful now for the survival training Siam had put her through although she hadn't expected to ever have had to use it, she was pretty good at talking- or shooting her way out of most circumstances.
She mumbled something unintelligible to herself as she slowly began to clamber up the small rock ledge bordering the river and forest nearby, it was slow going having use of only one arm, her head continued to spin from time to time as her blood pressure dropped slightly. Gulping a breath of air as she reached the top of the ledge Alphard paused, leaning on the rock, short quick breaths she tried to allow her heart rate to drop back to normal, the material of the pants leg she had torn was beginning to turn dark with blood, the wound was still bleeding, that in itself wasn't good. Glancing up once more towards the sun she allowed the warmth of it to soak into her face for a moment, the climb up the wall had at least done her one favour, drying out her clothes and warming her skin, at least she wouldn't freeze to death, although that wasn't of much comfort to her as she took a deeper breath, sliding off the rock and stumbling into the wilderness.
Time seemed to take in turns, skipping quickly or dragging on incredibly slow to Alphard, she knew she had to find shelter, food and somehow stop the bleeding to her now useless stump of an arm, but her consciousness wavered in and out, she began to wonder if it was worth it to keep going, would she die here in this forest alone. Could she really not fight her fate no matter how hard she tried now and in the past?
Feeling a cold chill run up her spine caused her thoughts to pause, shivering slightly she glances around, the forest was dark and quiet, she hadn't noticed that at some point the sun had gone down leaving her without shelter or warmth. A growl began to rise in her throat.
"Shit!" She swore quite loudly, her brows knitting together as she beared her teeth at nothing. Digging around in her pocket searching for something, hoping it hadn't been lost in the river when she fell. Fingers wrapping around cold metal a slight smile pulled at the corner of her mouth, she hadn't lost it. Pulling the lighter out of her pocket she flicked the lid back, striking it alight, to her glee it lit the first time, with this she could at least get some warmth.
After a little bit of searching she had found a small hollowed out rock formation, there wasn't too much room to move inside it but enough to keep her out of the weather at least. She had gathered some dry wood and leaves carefully stacking them in a pile, making sure nothing else nearby would catch alight from any stray sparks. It took a few goes to get the fire started but she had managed it, leaning back against the stone wall tenderly she slowly unwrapped the tattily made bandages from her arm, gingerly poking and prodding the flesh once she had, sussing out the damage. Blood still oozed slightly from the wound, coating her fingers, having removed the bandages the wound had reopened.
Sighing softly to herself, Alphard knew she didn't really have much other choice given the circumstances. She slid her knife out from its hiding place, eyeing it a moment she took the small holster off the blade, setting the blade itself in the edge of the small fire. She carefully placed the leather holster between her teeth as she watched the blade slowly begin to heat up, the metal glowing. She took a few deep breaths as she gripped the hilt of her blade, slowly easing it out of the burning embers. Gritting her teeth against the holster she turned the knife in her hand, bringing it up towards what was left of her left arm, she hesitated only a moment, the temptation to close her eyes fairly overwhelming but she couldn't, this had to be done precisely. Pressing the knife upwards she felt the pain shoot up her arm, piercing into her brain, the pained scream that ensued was mostly muffled.
A few moments passed before she finally dropped the knife, it fell clanging onto the ground beside her, her vision swam, blackness began to take over, trying to fight it she checked her arm once again, finding it to have been successfully cauterized she allowed herself to relax, the blackness took her and she sagged back against the wall, the small fire crackling away into the night.
The sound of chirping birds was the first thing Alphard noticed, piercing painfully into her brain, they didn't sound too close but the sound still managed to make her head sting, it took a few moments for her consciousness to arouse enough for her to lift her arm, pressing her hand to her forehead.
"My head..." She muttered to herself, opening her eyes she let out a slight groan as she forced herself to sit up from her slightly slouched position in which she had fallen during her blissful unconsciousness, what she'd give to go back there again. The sun had risen from what she could tell only a few hours before, this was a good sign, she would have plenty of time to at least find some food, or hunt something, whichever ended up coming first. She rubbed her forehead gently for a few moments, her temples pounding.
Her attention snapped sharp as she heard something outside her little hiding place, a rustle, footsteps? A twig snapped and she was up and out, scooping up her knife on the way, whoever or whatever it was it was close and she'd be damned if she would be caught vulnerable hiding in a corner. Pinpointing the location of the sound she ducked off in the opposite direction, slipping behind a nearby tree she kept her breathing low and quiet, waiting silently for whatever it was to show its face, then she would catch this intruder unaware.
Hearing another few leaves crumple beneath the steps of this thing she gritted her teeth slightly, flicking the blade over in her hand she gripped it close to her body, blade facing outwards. She bent her knees slightly, taking a slow deep breath before spinning out from behind the tree, crouching down, blade raised, poised to strike in front of her, teeth bared and eyes dark, deadly, ready to take out any foe who dare spring her here.
Her eyes took in her surroundings, taking a few moments to register what exactly was going on, standing before her was a young woman, she was dressed casually, loose jeans hung from her legs, a loose yet still quite flattering tee-shirt donning her form. She had turned to face Alphard with surprise, the shocked look on her face clearly stating to Alphard, she was as surprised to see her as the injured mercenary was.
Alphard didn't get much time to take in any more detail of this girl, the young woman's jaw dropped, her voice caught in her throat for a moment before the shock finally took over and a high pitched scream hit Alphard like a hammer to the head. She flinched, raising her hand to block one ear, her head pounding, the world began to spin. She hadn't taken into account how weak she was when moving to confront this woman. Her blood pressure dropped again, she fought against the darkness that threatened to overwhelm her. A pain hit her gut like someone punching her, toppling over onto all fours her stomach heaved, emptying the contents, or lack thereof onto the ground in front of her. A groan escaped her before the blackness that had been threatening her took hold; she briefly got one last look at this strange woman before her eyes closed, her body collapsing limp to the ground.
A finger twitched, slowly, again. A small groan escaped the mercenary as she once again left the bliss of darkness, coming back into reality. This time however she wasn't greeted with the cold or the pain, in fact she felt quite warm and comfortable. Laying a moment, not particularly wanting to be disturbed by the real world, she would give anything to just go back to sleep, knowing that she should probably observe her surroundings and find out what happened to her, she peeled her eyes open.
It was reasonably dark, she wasn't sure if it was still night or day, the flicking of a nearby fire caught her attention a moment and she turned her head to face it, groaning as her stiff muscles sent shooting pains. She couldn't see anyone in the immediate vicinity, which suited her fine because she had no idea how she wouldn't handle it if that woman had have been here. Using her good arm she slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position, the blankets falling back off her, she shivered as the cooler air hit her skin, looking down at herself, she found that sometime in her unconscious state she had been stopped of all but her undergarments, this wasn't what surprised her most, lifting her arm she touched her left shoulder, finding her wound to have been bandaged and treated. Checking the rest of her wounds, the bullet hole in her right arm, the cuts and bruises on her body from the river, all of them had been treated, sewn or patched up.
Relaxing back against the wall behind her she glanced around the room again, clearly if this woman had treated her she meant no threat. Why? Alphard had drawn and likely readily used her blade against her had she not passed out from her wounds, so why did this woman help her? Shaking her head her thoughts cleared quickly as she caught the scent of food, her stomach immediately reacted, grumbling furiously, she couldn't remember the last time she ate and clearly her stomach agreed.
Kicking her legs to the side she pushed the blankets back, settling her feet on the cold wooden floor a moment, testing her legs before she slowly climbed out of the warm bed, shivering once again as the cold air hit her she shuffled over to the small table that was positioned in the middle of the room, from what she could tell the cottage appeared small, maybe one, two rooms at most, where was she? Shaking the thoughts from her head she eyed the bowl that was sitting on the table, it steamed slightly, the warm liquid inside enticing her attention.
Glancing around again she picked up a spoon left nearby, shoving it into the bowl she scooped it up with one hand, moving closer to the fire for warmth. Easing herself down on the floor she sat the bowl on the floor, taking a scoop of the contents, she eyed it once again for a moment, was this even for her? Had it been left here, or was she raiding someone else's food. She shrugged, she didn't care, she didn't care about anything or anyone, it wasn't about to change now. Shoving the food into her mouth she chewed it quickly, some kind of stew, the gravy slid down her throat eagerly as she munched on a chunk of meat, staring into the flickering flames in front of her, almost instantly feeling warmth soak from her core outwards.
"It's good," She muttered to no one in particular, taking another mouthful. Another few mouthfuls and she paused suddenly, the door to the cottage suddenly creaking open, her head flicked quickly in the direction of the sound, spoon in mouth she looked blankly at the entrant, her cold calculating eyes giving nothing away. Standing there in the doorway, the woman who Alphard had confronted in the woods stood. Tucked in her arms several cuts of wood, she smiled slightly at the sight of the mercenary perched in front of the fire, food in hand. Stepping inside she closed the door behind her trying not to allow any extra cold in.
"You're awake I see and eating already too, that's a good sign," She placed the wood down just inside the door, brushing her shirt off of any excess pieces of bark, moving to sit at the table she watched Alphard, who asides from removing the spoon from her mouth, hadn't moved at all, eyes watching the woman's every move. "By all means, don't let me stop you!" She exclaimed, a warm smile crossing her face, as though being friendly would relax the mercenary any.
Taking another spoonful Alphard slowly slipped it in her mouth, turning her gaze back to the fire, not particularly wanting to engage in conversation with this woman, she could just kill her, it'd make it simple and there'd be no explaining to do, how she lost her arm, how she came to be in a place like this, would make it so much simpler. This woman had helped her though, she could've ended up dead without her assistance, this peaked her curiosity, the cold hard instinct of killing anything that was a threat or risk to her fading as a new interest peaked within her.
"Where are you from?" The woman broke the silence first, clearly not picking up on Alphard's unwillingness to talk. "Sure are out in the middle of nowhere, we're miles from the closest town or establishment," Resting her chin in her hands she continued to watch Alphard with interest, clearly the fear she had shown at their meeting had been from pure shock, although she had no idea who Alphard was, otherwise, she probably would be afraid.
"Where I come from is unimportant," She grumbled, shoving another mouthful of food in she kept her eyes on the fire, hoping to leave it at that, why did she get the feeling this woman was nosey, maybe she wasn't nosey but just trying to be friendly? It was all the same to Alphard, her business was her own.
"Okay, how about we start off with something simple, what's your name?" The smile returned, it was obvious she didn't get the point that Alphard didn't need nor want the twenty questions.
"Alphard, Alphard Alshua," Came the quick and rather disgruntled reply. There was silence for a few moments, Alphard scooped yet some more food into her mouth, munching away before noticing the woman had fallen curiously quiet, her attention turned towards the other person in the room she eyed her off, the woman had lowered her gaze from Alphard and was thoughtfully watching some imaginary item on the table, the smile gone she even looked suddenly nervous. So, she had heard of the 'honoured' Alphard before it seems, this suited her just fine. Watching the woman a slight sense of familiarity flooded over her, she brushed it off, it was likely just the familiarity of the look the woman was now giving her, a small smile but Alphard could see straight through it, this woman was nervous, even scared.
"And yours?" Alphard retorted, deciding it best to not allow this woman to know Alphard had picked up on her sudden uncomfortableness to her presence. Narrowing her eyes she watched and waited patiently for a response.
"Err..um..it's Yazmine, but…you can call me Yaz for short…" Her mumbled reply came, she swallowed awkwardly and got up from her seat, clearly having decided it'd be easier to distract herself by keeping her hands busy. Alphard watched her as she picked up some of the wood from nearby the door and moved towards her, wishing to stoke the fire. Scooting back slightly after picking up her bowl she leaned against a nearby wall, still within warmth of the fire but far enough out of the way that she wouldn't be a hindrance. Alphard allowed her eyes to wander over this womans form, taking everything in, from the colour of her hair down to the well-worn combat boots she was wearing, how long had she been out in these woods she wondered.
"Where are my clothes?" A slight smirk crossed Alphards face as she saw the woman blush furiously out of the corner of her eye, she fumbled with the wood in her hands dropping a piece into the fire, the room lit up for a moment as the hot coals were stirred by the impact.
"The ones you were wearing were in tatters, I had to remove them to treat your wounds," Yaz replied, she carefully finished stoking the fire, turning away from Alphard she left the room. Alphards smirk didn't fade, she found it quite amusing that the young woman was embarrassed. Had she not been embarrassed when she stripped her to treat her wounds? Of course not, she had been unconscious there was nothing to be embarrassed of at the time, but now Alphard was perfectly awake, and clad only in her undergarments the woman had been highly embarrassed to be confronted about it. Her smirk deepened as the woman re-emerged carrying some plain looking clothes.
"Here," Yaz tossed them in the direction of Alphard, they were caught easily in her one remaining arm, a slight nod from the dark haired woman she stood, dropping the shirt onto a nearby chair she stepped carefully in the pants, not having too much trouble until she tried to do them up, not being used to having the use of only one hand, small things began to tick Alphard off, not being able to do up her own pants was one of them. Hissing in frustration she took the shirt, sliding one arm into it she glared at the floor, struggling to work out how to get the shirt done up with the use of only one arm, she couldn't even get it over her wounded shoulder. A slight growl rose in her throat at her anger hit it's boiling point, would she ever be able to get used to this, she didn't know.
"Let me.." At some point during her struggle with the clothes, Yaz had moved over to Alphard, holding her hands out slowly towards the woman, questioningly. Alphard huffed slightly, turning her head away she glared at something else, she felt a slight growl in her throat, frustrated at feeling vulnerable to anyone. The younger woman gently fixed up her shirt, carefully making sure it sat correctly on her wounded shoulder she did the buttons up, perhaps it would have been a better idea for just more casual wear, a shirt she could slip over her head and makes some sweatpants. Wasn't much point worrying about it now, she dropped her hands to the waistband of Alphards pants, suddenly blushing again furiously, she may not have been able to see it but Alphard could sense the tension in the air. Doing the button up, Yaz stepped away once again, giving the mercenary her space and a chance to allow her flushed red skin to fade.
Alphard couldn't shake the feeling of having met this woman before, she couldn't tell if it was a simple passing in the street or more, something was familiar and she couldn't pick up what.
"How did you find me? Why did you help me?" Quirking an eyebrow Alphard decided to defuse the situation, now warmer from the clothes she had been given she moved away from the fire, taking a seat at the table, she went to across her arms across her chest like she was so accustomed to, a small frown settling on her features she opted to just tuck her hand in her pocket instead.
"I was out collecting firewood, seeing the smoke from your fire I was curious, people don't travel this far into the woods to go camping, so it was strange, as for why I helped you? Well I couldn't just leave you to die, there's a storm coming, with how injured you are it wouldn't have been right to leave you out there." Yaz held Alphards gaze now, her jaw set in determination, baffled by this womans such random change in mood Alphard quirked an eyebrow again.
"Makes sense," Shrugging lazily Alphard glances about the room, checking for her weapons, they weren't too far from reach, not that she would need them it was still nice to have them close at hand.
"Anyway, it's late and even though you slept all day you should get as much rest as you can, you lost quite a bit of blood from that wound of yours, I was honestly surprised to even see you out of bed," Yaz rubbed her chin gently, a small yawn escaping her as she moved around the table to check the fire once more, making sure it was stoked enough to get through the rest of the night. She gave a small smile in Alphards direction before leaving the main room, closing the door separating the rooms gently.
Alphard just sat there a moment, watching the closed door curiously, thoughts flooding through her mind, still chasing circles around the fact she recognised this woman from somewhere. Shrugging in the end she eased herself up from her chair, slowly moving over to the bed she sat down on the edge, resting her head in her hand, now that Yaz had mentioned sleeping she had to admit she was still fairly exhausted. Sliding into the bed she just lay there for a while, watching the flickering of the fire light on the roof, she could hear the chirping of crickets outside and the occasional chirp of a stay bird who wasn't nesting. Taking a deep breath she allowed her eyes to close and once they did the black abyss she had become accustomed to the past few days swept her away into dreamless sleep once more.