I regret NOTHING! Except that as I write this, I have run out of tea.
As well, this one is a little different. I'm sure you'll catch on to what easily enough.
They ran. They all knew they had to. Weapons broken, arrows depleted, armour rent, potions expended. They ran from what would have been certain death had they stayed. The fittest of them carried the wounded or the slow, all while trying to keep their eyes clear of tears.
Because one of them was missing. One of them stayed behind so they could run. So that the wounded could be carried further, and the fittest would have more time to carry them.
They only stopped running when they came to the eighteenth floor, the few adventurers living there wondering what the rush was, why they all looked so panicked, what had befallen such a well organized and high spirited bunch. Out of breath, crying, covered in dried blood and sweat, they explained. They all knew who was missing. They were all there the day of the Black Goliath.
Quickly, a group of them organized. All veteran adventurers and explorers, they helped the disheartened group back to their feet, helped them re-arm, and less than an hour after they returned, they left again, leaving the slowest of them behind to heal, and hope.
The smallest of them was the guide, her feet quick and sure, and though her eyes blurred frequently, they soon found themselves walking up and inclined tunnel, the colour of the walls swirling from white to milky red. Already the dungeon was healing itself, restoring the collapsed tunnel exit, though the room beyond was still heavily obstructed.
With expert skill and care, a group of them kept watch for monsters, while the other broke the rubble into smaller chunks with picks and hammers, while yet another pulled the broken bits away to give the miners more room to swing their tools. One of the smallest men there, eyes red, hair white, worked as hard as any three of them, trying to finish the job as quickly as possible.
But, they knew it was too late. As the rubble thinned, they all noticed the smell. As they started to see the room beyond the blockage, the scent in the air changed. What ever had happened, it was not clean, it was not kind.
The boy and his friends didn't care. Half crawling over the workers as soon as he thought he could get through a gap in the fallen stones, he pushed and writhed and finally squeezed himself into the room. The volunteer workers goal in sight, and to possibly save the boy from himself, doubled their efforts in one final burst.
Most of them regretted the sight they rushed to see.
The boy seemed to be frozen in place, eyes wide, hands twitching at his sides. The room, gently glowing red walls with the white swirls, were almost painted in blood. Going brown as it dried, long streaks of bloody spatter decorated the walls like some mad painter had simply stood in the middle of the room and danced, paint brushes in both hands. The floor too, was covered with not just the signs of the battle they fought from before, with the half healed pit in the middle where the beetles had emerged, or the pool of blood from one of their wounded companions, but now with new signs. Bloody footprints, hand prints, drag marks, claw marks, trenches that looked as if some one's body was used as a plough.
Along the first such trench, they found what at first, looked like a shed snake skin. Ripped and tattered, pulled apart in places, was what might have been a fine coat, made of scale. It lay in two main pieces, as if something had taken an arm in each hand, and simply pulled it apart. One half of it was leaning stiffly against the wall, as if waiting for its owner to return.
But it was along the second such trench in the floor, that made the volunteers from the eighteenth floor wish they had stayed home. It was hard to tell if the body was laying on its back or not, as both legs were mangled and twisted at odd angles. But, as they followed the trail upwards, over a body that looked like it had not just been ripped open like an over ripe fruit, but peeled like one too, all but the boy had turned away. Instead he got closer, eyes unblinking even with the tears forming in the corners.
The body, above the destroyed belly, was hardly recognizable. Skin and muscle had been clawed away, ribs exposed, crushed inwards, pulled outwards. Even the face was missing most of its features. Miraculously, one blue eye remained whole, and even like this, was able to look terrified.
Beside the mangled head, one on each side, were a pair of gloves. The metal backings half crumbled, the leather of the fingertips cut through, the palms shredded. Carefully, he gathered the bits of metal, the scraps of leather.
"How can I stop you from doing something stupid, when you send me away?" He asked the empty air around him, as he stood and shuffled over to the torn coat. With equal care, he picked up the two pieces, holding them in his arms like one would a body. "She's not here. Let's go home." He said as he returned to the group at the room's entrance.
Eina, in her perfectly clean Guild uniform knew something was wrong as the normally upbeat group walked by the guild hall window. Abandoning her post, leaving the puzzled adventurer she was talking with behind in mid sentence, she ran out of the building to see. Ignoring the calls of her co-workers and even her boss, she dashed out onto the street. She knew instantly something wasn't just wrong, but... missing. Only the angry shout of her boss, a titanically overweight elf, stopped her from running after them to ask what had happened.
It felt like I was dreaming. That half awake, slow minded drifting feeling of looking at your alarm clock, and wondering if it said one, or seven, and closing your eyes again regardless. I experienced many such moments, seemingly at random. A forest, green and lively. A tunnel of bone. Blue crystal walls. Darkness so deep it felt alive. Cool water. Feathers. Feverish skin. The smell of sulphur. Sweet fruit. A dozen pairs of eyes. The sound of sand over tile. An argument between animals.
After hours, Eina visited the group. She had been their adviser, and she felt, no, needed, to know what had happened. She visited the grand residence, their new home. The bright white marble and stone, with the Flaming Bell emblem above the entrance felt... Colder, than her last visit. With no one to greet her at the gate, she let herself in.
She didn't knock at the front door. It had been left open. Following the muted sounds of life within, she found herself in the dining hall. Most of them were still there, trying to plan. Their Goddess clung to Bell, sobbing quietly.
Unable to think of a better way, Eina simply asked. "What happened?"
I felt.
My last clear memory was standing in front of Phryne, and choosing to let my magic run wild. Not building up to it, not resisting it. Simply looking at the darkness that was clearly written in divine script on my back, and letting it out.
I felt. And it was not a pleasant feeling at all. I wasn't one to believe in an afterlife, or Gods, but since coming here, I knew I was wrong about the latter. But, I hurt far too much to be dead. At least I wasn't cold.
After that last memory, I had nothing. Just a half remembered dream. Feeling like I'd been tossed into an oil drum filled with gravel and rolled down a hill, I did the first thing any major trauma patient is asked after they wake up.
And wiggled my big toe. I think. It certainly felt like I'd done something. My eyes felt like they didn't want to open, but after a moment of what felt like entirely too much effort, I got one, then the other open just enough to see. Dim red, like a photography dark room light. Not feeling up to the effort of lifting my head, I tried to look down at my toes, only to be blocked by my feminine anatomy.
And once again, I was naked. I was starting to think that the Gods who didn't leave the Divine realm had a sense of humour and liked to do things like this to people.
Slowly, I tried to lift myself from what ever I was laying on. And I couldn't, not at first. It was like my body was waking up in a sort of ripple, from the base of my skull downwards. It even felt, as I took a deep breath, the it was my FIRST breath. But with it, came the strength to attempt motion. As I moved my half numb arms and legs, questions started rolling about in my head. What happened? How was I still alive? I was alive, and not captured, so how did I get away?
Most of the questions answered themselves as soon as I asked them to myself. I was alive, sore, naked, in some corner of level eighteen that I didn't know, and hungry. I was whole, not missing anything I didn't start with. Nothing was broken, my tail wasn't hurt, though it was still sleepy, and... I had a green feather in my hand.
Not just green, but absolute green. Like some one had taken the most vibrant and glossy green paint, and made it into a feather. It slipped out between my middle and ring finger as I moved my hand to check my ears, the vibrant colour making it so eye catching that I just had to pick it up again, and admire it.
This added one more to the list of questions. Where did it come from. And if it was a monster, why didn't it eat me? I'd have to ask someone later. I tucked the feather into my hair.
"Bell, its been a week." Welf said, his eyes dark with lack of sleep, his usual upbeat manner gone. "I want to find her too, but if we don't slow down, or you know... Sleep..."
"Lady Hestia says she is still alive." Bell replied, strapping on his armour, then growling as his usually sure fingers simply missed the buckle, making the bit of metal clang to the ground. "You don't have to come Welf, but, I must go. I have to look for her."
"Mister Welf is right." Lilly said, helping Bell with the strap, her eyes sharing the same dark look of near exhaustion. "Miss Mikoto is tending to Miss Haruhime, and the rest of Takemikazuchi Familia are all exhausted."
"But..." His pale face almost ashen, eyes almost a total red with bloodshot, Bell started to take a step forward.
"But when she comes back on her own, and finds out you were killed by a goblin, what would she think?" Lady Hestia asked. "I know she is alive. You are my children, and it is our divine bond that tells me if one of you is alive... or not." Of them all, she was the worst. Her divine gift of endurance for others, she looked pale, hungry, weak. Forgetting everything else, Bell was by her side in an instant, holding her hand. "Trust her, like you always have. Get some rest, all of you."
My 'bed' I discovered, was actually a perfectly dug pit. Shaped exactly for me, the dungeon was already starting to fill in the gap I had just managed to crawl out of. Almost like someone had tried to hide me while I rested. Or maybe... No, that was too crazy to think about. Shaking my head to try and clear it, I almost fell over again with a sudden wave of dizziness. I wasn't sure how long I'd been here, but my last meal was probably breakfast before we went to the nineteenth...
I started to sweat suddenly, my body reacting as if I'd just stepped into a sauna. Memories rolled through my head, a strobe light recollection of what had gone on before I willingly lost control.
Then nothing, again. It was like a brick wall was between my defiant stand and now. I must have been delirious from hunger. And thirst. Leaning against a tree, and focusing on the slowly closing gap my body had just left, I waited until my balance returned, and looked for some water.
Following my nose, more than anything else, I managed to sniff out one of the crystal clear ponds. Trying my best not to step on anything sharp as I walked, I looked around quickly for any signs of life, then broke the treeline and flopped onto my belly, face almost bouncing off the water in my haste to drink. The almost cold water rolled through my chest like a wave, and I nearly drown myself with my body's sudden need for water. I only stopped when my lungs started burning and my stomach began to protest. As I lifted my face and body up away from the water, and fighting off a brief wave of nausea, I took a good look at my reflection in the water.
I could almost imagine the bored face of who I used to be reflected back at me, until the ripples calmed and the slightly leaner than I remembered face of a black haired fox girl looked back at me. Golden cat slit eyes blinking back at me as I ran a hand over my cheeks, through my hair, catching the feather as it came loose. I flopped over onto my back, hair in the water, as I twirled the feather between my thumb and forefinger, admiring just how green it was, even in the red glow of 'nighttime' on the eighteenth floor.
Sitting up and giving my hair a quick shake to help it dry, I tucked the feather back into place and got to my feet again. I gave myself one last look, made sure my tail was still attached, and started walking towards the massive tree. I only hoped I wouldn't have to deal with too many people before I could find a towel or something.
As I got to the bottom of the cliff that Riviera was resting on, I became aware of something following me. At first, I figured it was my imagination. That lasted about a half second as I remembered I was in the dungeon, and passing things off as your imagination could get you killed. So, I took the last few steps to the cliff face as quickly as I dared without suddenly exhausting myself, turned, and focused all my attention on the treeline. Not seeing anything at first, or hearing anything out of the ordinary, I was just starting to relax...
When I noticed a pair of red eyes looking at me from about ankle level. With this, a few monsters went through my mind as possible owners, as well as one human. I felt homesick suddenly, and hoped that what ever time I managed to buy them let them escape.
The two of us watched each other a moment. My understanding of monster mentality and the small list of monsters this might be, meant that unless this pair of eyes had lots of friends, I'd be fine. So, I ignored it.
Except, as I started to walk along the bottom of the cliff, towards the ramp leading up to the town itself, it followed me. Twice I stopped and found it just inside the red shadows of the treeline watching me carefully, unblinking.
"Look... I'm not going to just fall over and die." I said to it, pinching my hip to make sure I was still feeling pain, and not suddenly going numb from lack of food or something. "So unless you want to come home with me or something, go away." I made a 'shoo' motion with my hand, the leaves over the pair of eyes rustling slightly, before settling again.
And suddenly, it hopped out of the darkness. It was a needle rabbit. Not to be confused with the killer rabbits, with their more human like arms and legs, capable of wielding stone clubs picked up from the dungeon floor and walls. It looked like a cross between a rabbit and a unicorn, with a fluffy rabbit body and a pointy spiral horn jutting out from the centre of its forehead.
This one was tiny though. Most of the ones I'd fought back in my early days were a respectable dog size. This one was... Kitten sized.
"Oh. Well, umm..." Unsure of what to do as it hopped closer, and hearing nothing else nearby that might be following it, I did what I'd normally do when a small animal came close to me.
I knelt down, put out a hand, and tried to make friends.
And was rewarded with a rather adorable attempt to nibble off my fingertip. "No, I'm not food." Using my other hand, I poked the tip of its still tiny horn and pushed it away to stop it from trying to bite my finger. "Not food." I repeated.
By the time I'd convinced the mini rabbit that I was inedible, and managed to walk into town, the 'sky' was just starting to brighten. Never having hunted for my own meat before, I was starting to think of the mechanics of it by the time I'd found the massively overpriced inn, and got the owner's attention from outside a side window.
"Hey!" I 'loud whispered' into the room as I heard the first yawn of someone coming downstairs. "Excuse me!"
The owner, a stocky dwarf with an impressive grey and orange beard and a serious case of helmet head squinted at me as I looked at him with only my head peeking into the room. Rubbing his eyes as if to make sure I was real, he blinked a few times and shuffled over. "What... Wait... Aren't you... You are! What happened to you? You've been missing a week now! Why are you crouching down like that?"
A week? Explained why I was so hungry... "Well... I don't know? And I'm naked."
We looked at each other for a very awkward moment, before he blushed furiously through his beard, and coughed, "Well, um, yes, let me find something."
A short time later he returned with what was probably his spare set of clothing. Considering he was only about two thirds my height, the drab brown pants and faded white shirt looked rather silly on me. But I felt much better being less breezy. "I'll return them next time I come down. And pay for this." I motioned to the modest breakfast he had dropped in front of me. Simple salad, yesterday's bread, fresh tea. For my new friend, he gave it a raised eyebrow, a stern look, and a half of an not-apple.
"Lass... You're Familia has been down here almost every day looking for you." He said, sipping what smelled like this world's coffee equivalent, (that I still didn't like the taste of), "Each time they come down, they look worse. More tired, more worn."
I cringed, "After a week... I'm surprised they haven't given up... Actually, no, I'm not surprised at all." I sighed, feeling my eyes get hot. "But a week? I don't even remember what happened."
He stopped in mid-sip, and looked at me, "Ya don't remember?" He put his cup down, and put a big hand over mine, "Lass... What we found in that room... No. If you can't remember, it's best left like that. You won, suffice to say, but when we got there, you were gone."
I tried to ask, but he simply closed his eyes and shook his head, refusing to speak more of it.
"If the pattern holds, your Familia will be down here soon. You can wait, or start up now, but without any equipment, I'm not sure that would be wise." He said after I'd finished a third helping of breakfast.
"I think I will stay until mid day then." I gave my belly a pat, and looked at the rabbit, who was napping by my ankle. "And if you wish, I'll accept a personal quest to bring you some supplies, considering I probably just ate a quarter of your available food."
"If you'd be so kind." He replied, clearing my plate and mug away. "I'll write a list for ya."
As the crystal 'sun' brightened to its fullest, I watched the cave that lead up to the seventeenth floor. I'd noticed, as I myself was noticed throughout the little town, that people were looking at me... Strangely. It was hard to pin down, but it was like I was being... Not avoided, but... Given more space. The good dwarf said I'd won. That if I didn't remember, it was for the best. What had I done? How had I done it? I held the side of my head with one hand, the other cradling the rabbit, and tried to recall something.
But nothing would appear. It was just a big blank spot. Standing before that monstrous Amazon, and... waking up in the forest, a single green feather in my hand.
"Maybe they did give up?" I looked down at the ball of fluff on my arm as I got to my feet and dusted off my rear with my free hand. "Forget waiting. I'm going back up."
I wasn't used to solo exploration at all. Not one bit. It was strange. Every time I encountered a group of monsters, I would turn my head and expect to see the rest of them, my Familia, there, looking back at me. We all knew the usual tactics. We all knew our jobs. We all knew each other.
Yet, they weren't there at all. It was like phantom limb for my Familia.
Instead, since I had no protective gear at all, nor potions, or even a pair of gloves, I waited for them to pass, or ambushed them as quietly as possible, running away when it wasn't. It took far longer than it would have if the rest of my friends were there and we had fought them all, but I couldn't risk it.
Besides, I had a passenger, and rather liked the idea of taking it home with me. Maybe it could distract Lady Hestia from making me sleep on the lawn for being away for so long.
Peeking down my overlarge shirt, I looked at the bunny, "The first thing I'm going to teach you, is the difference between 'friend', and 'food'." Red eyes looking up at me, the critter rubbed a paw over its nose and sneezed quietly in response. "I'm serious you. If you mix them up, I'll have to bring you back down where I found you."
"Who are you talking to?" A quiet voice asked, nearly making me stumble as my feet froze in mid step.
It took me a moment to remember the voice, and both I and the little rabbit looked towards it, the latter sticking its head out between the gap of two of the buttons. "Ais?"
"Yes. Oh, Miss Kodori. You are well." We approached each other, though she was looking at the little rabbit head peeking out from my shirt. "Why do you have a needle rabbit?"
"I think it adopted me." I replied, reaching into my shirt and fishing the critter out. It rested comfortably on my palm, hunched down and twitching its nose at Ais. "Friend." I said to it, pointing at Ais and holding it out to her.
Obviously with nothing to fear from such a low level monster, and a baby one at that, Ais offered her hand to the critter and let it sniff at her. It made no motion to do anything to her, and she ran a finger over its head lightly. "Very soft." She said with her tiny little smile. "Mr. Bell has been looking for you. Why have you been away?"
So I told her. About our trip past the eighteenth floor. The fight with the bugs, the other fight with the bugs, and then encountering the Amazon Phyrne. She stayed silent until the end, the two of us walking back towards the way she had come. "And then I woke up in a very well hidden spot just out of sight of Riviera. I don't remember anything between standing in front of that freak Amazon, and then."
Her face was hard to read, but something had changed slightly about her. I could tell she was being thoughtful, "And that feather?"
I plucked the feather from my hair, and rolled it between my fingertips, admiring the colour, "I was holding it when I woke. But I have no idea what its from."
Without stopping, she leaned towards me a little, looking at the feather. "Harpy." She said firmly. "Did you mean to do that?"
"Do... oh, sorry..." My tail had wandered over to her as she got close enough. "Some one told me my tail is very honest." I tugged my tail away from her, the length of it sliding away from her opposite hip, then tucked the feather back into my hair.
"Phryne... She and I have fought several times." I had to stop my tail from wandering over again as she spoke. "Three times."
"I suppose you won all three times?" I gave up on my tail, though Ais held out her arm and let it wrap over it helpfully. "Stupid tail..."
"Yes." She smiled her little smile as she ran her hand over the end of my tail.
"You know." I started, trying to focus on my words, and not her hand as it played with my tail, "I've been wondering. Why is Loki so protective of you? You would think she'd be pleased you were enjoying yourself."
"What do you mean?" She responded, tilting her head slightly.
"When you were dancing with Bell, at the Apollo gala." I said, "You are the only person he's danced with, aside from Lady Hestia, and you both seemed to be having a good time."
Aha. I'd hit the mark. Her marble features coloured slightly with a blush, though she seemed unaware of it, "Ah. Well. Most Familia stay with the Familia. Almost no relations are allowed outside of it."
"Seems silly. It makes sense that if you have a large enough Familia, and you found some one to love in it... But restricting it?"
"Loki also seems to like girls." She deadpanned, either not realizing what that meant, or not caring. Given her cold demeanour, I assumed the former. "And most often, when a relationship happens between two Familia, there is usually a conflict over where the members will go."
I thought about it for a moment, then shrugged, "Children should be innocent of their parents crimes." She looked at me curiously so I clarified, "You've met Lilly, our supporter." She nodded, "She was born into Soma Familia, and basically ended up owned by it, like an object. No choice, no say in the matter. And because of it, she grew up miserable." I shrugged, "One of the things the Gods were supposed to have given us, is free will. So if one of us finds happiness outside of the Familia, it should be our choice."
Her face was thoughtful, the deepest expression I'd ever seen on her in the limited time I'd known her, "And I know that Bell was certainly happy dancing with you, even if Lady Hestia and Loki weren't."
We walked a while in silence, her face still thoughtful, her free hand idly playing with the fur on my tail. Then something occurred to me, "Why are you down here anyhow? Alone no less?"
"I wanted to help Bell." She said simply, "Is that okay?"
"I don't mind." I smiled, trying not to laugh. If Bell was 'shy', and Hestia was 'innocent', then Ais would be 'clueless.' "I'm sure, actually, no. I will make sure he thanks you."
"You don't have to." She let my tail go as she stepped ahead, "One moment."
I heard a small group of monsters ahead, the sound of cracking walls heralding more. I walked behind her just a little ways, and as we entered the room they were in, she started, and finished, very quickly. I was able to keep up with her motions, if only just, and it made me a little jealous. She had a perfect fencer's form, and treated even these low level monsters with the same respect as a high level one. No hesitation, no quarter.
"I know I don't have to." I said a little breathlessly, her display of skill making me forget to breathe. "But, as the big sister, I must make sure he does."
She looked puzzled, but didn't comment, and after sheathing her sword she put her arm out again. Before I could stop it, my tail swished over to her, curling around her wrist and open palm.
"Stupid tail..." I mumbled.
My return to the surface was met with... Nothing. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was simply one more person out of dozens in the main entryway. Oddly dressed, sure, but with the huge variation on personal style that adventurers seemed to have, that mattered little.
"What should I do about this one?" I asked Ais, pointing to the tiny rabbit head sticking out of my shirt.
"Oh... Talk to a guild representative. I don't know past that." She replied, "I will leave you here, I didn't tell anyone where I would be today."
"You're a big girl, you should be fine out by yourself." I said, holding out my hand, "Thank you, and be sure to stop by our home some time."
She shook my hand after a moment, then nodded, "Yes, I will." And with that, she turned, and left.
Strange girl. I had to wonder what it took to make some one who probably wasn't even twenty years old so damned amazing with a sword. Falna or not, it was something my long adjusted logical mind had to question.
So, with micro-bunny out of my shirt, in hand, and cuddled (carefully) under my bust, I walked out of the tower to the building nearest, the Guild hall. It was early evening, with the sun going down over the wall. And I just had to stop and admire the view. The sun on my face felt almost like it was my first time outside after a long winter, refreshing and invigorating.
The little ball of fur in my hand seemed to not care much for it, curling itself tightly against me.
"Don't worry." My tail flicked over and around, over the little white bundle and blocking it from view of the sun. "You'll get used to it."
I entered the Guild building shortly after, and spotted a very distracted looking Eina. My favourite Guild employee was simply shuffling paper around on her desk. There were almost no adventurers here, considering the time it was, so all of the ladies working the front desk had almost nothing to do. So, I walked up to Eina's spot.
Of all the reactions I expected, when I she noticed me standing there, 'running around from behind the desk and hugging' was rather low on the list. Surprising all her co-workers, she did exactly that.
The two other girls, a cat girl and human, looked at me with an 'I'm sorry for the inconvenience' look as I had to move the poor rabbit out of the way and use my other arm to hug the sniffling adviser. "Um. I missed you too?"
She stiffened suddenly, realizing exactly what she'd done, and pushed herself away from me. With her usual 'ahem' of per-lecture, ruined slightly by her scrubbing a forearm over her eyes, she composed herself and looked at the clock. "We have to talk. This way please."
Again the two behind the counter gave me that look, and I allowed myself to be lead to one of the consultation rooms.
After getting seated, and me putting the bunny down on the desk, we simply looked at each other a moment. I could see she was having trouble finding a place to start, so I took the initiative.
"I'd like to register a monster as a pet, how do I go about it?" I motioned to the pet in question, who cleaned its face with a paw, then closed its eyes.
Her training kicking in, she opened the desk and found a bit of paper. "You have to fill this out, and commission a special collar for it from Ganesha Familia." She paused, looking at me, then sighed, "You did that on purpose didn't you?"
"I did." I said with a smile, "You were having trouble figuring out where to start, so, I did." I accepted the paper and picked up the nearest ink pot and quill.
"You can be so..." She sighed, "You and Bell both. But... I'd like to know what happened. I've heard from Bell, and several others, but I need to hear your side as well."
"About what happened... I'll tell you what I remember."
The story didn't take very long, though, she was thoughtful enough to offer me tea and a cookie before I started. A bit of my cookie went to the rabbit, who put a paw over it and nibbled at it quietly. After I was done, she nodded her head and gave one of her long sighs, "Okay. If you remember anything else, please, let me know. Though she no longer had a Familia, she was a high level adventurer, and we have to at least make note of her death. What, or who, killed her. Notify next of kin if any, talk to... Are you alright?"
I wasn't. Not at all. Again my mind tried to see into the gap in my memory, and again there was nothing. Dead? How? Was I even strong enough? Even with my magic, and my loss of control, was it even possible? Was that why the dwarf wouldn't tell me what he saw? Was it that horrible?
"What... Have I done? How..." I was shivering now, "I stood in the way... I made my choice..." I was starting to babble. Trying to justify what I'd done. I felt Eina's hand on my back, almost burning on my suddenly cold body.
"Please calm down." I heard her, but it sounded distant. "Please? Kodori?"
"I killed some one..." I mumbled, "And I don't even remember..." The hand on my back tipped me over a little, and I found myself leaning on Eina, "I... What..."
It took a while, but I finally managed to get some sort of control over myself again. I'd done the unthinkable. Eina had tried to console me, telling me that it happened, not often, but enough that the Guild had to allow it in some cases, just to keep the peace between some Familia. In simple terms, the incident would be written off as a case of 'in defence of Familia against some one who wouldn't back down'. I had to get her to repeat that, and explain, just to be sure I understood. If she had a Familia, they could have filed suit against me, charging me for the loss of an 'asset'. But since Ishtar had been banished, and Phryne hadn't enlisted with another Familia, I didn't have to fear for that. Small mercy, as I suspected a level five would come with a very heavy penalty.
"Look... Go home. I'll take care of your paperwork, and send some one from the Ganesha Familia over soon." She picked up the sleeping rabbit and handed it to me, the critter not even trying to nibble at her. "They miss you."
"Yeah... I'll... Yeah." I mumbled, feeling more tired than anything. "Maybe Lady Hestia won't make me sleep on the lawn."
We shared a tired chuckle, and I stood to leave.
Well folks, I'll stop this one here.
I'm actually wondering how some people -would- react to this sort of thing. Like waking up and being told you'd done something horrible. Or realizing you'd done it, and being told 'it's not all that big a deal'.
One of the big challenges of this story, is trying to pit modern thinking (our hero) against the fantasy one. How does some one who was basically brought up in a pacifist society deal with all the extra rough edges and different laws of a feudal one?
Anyhow. Enough rambling. Read, enjoy, comment. :)