The pair arrived in ragged form outside a town gate, desperately seeking shelter from the cold and sometimes damp nights. Neither she or Rynn had eaten in a few days, their frames slightly shrinking from the lack of nutrition. Their clothes were wet from the morning dew - and from last night's shower. They were too exhausted: thinking that they could reach the town that they know stood in front of before night had fallen, they had travelled the entire night and had collapsed under a tree a few hours before. They awoke to the curiosity of a squirrel, its nose poking their own, as another squirrel viewed the events from above. Loraiel jumped at the cold touch, causing the squirrel to jump back as well. It thought about its actions for but a moment as it leapt back onto the tree and rushed back to the canopy, its friend quickly on her heels.
Rravka's pack had long sepereated from the pair, instead choosing to head in a northeasternly direction that would take them to the mountains beyond. The path this way was not as clear as the path that Rynn and Loraiel followed, but Rravka knew that it would save them much time and grief to choose this way later on in their journey - it was not his first travels to the mountains north.
The guards quickly allowed them no entrance, instead questioning their intentions in their fair town that morning. The pair was met with mistrust, with an intent to ridicule; the guards laughed at the two and began to throw various objects. Rocks, sticks, and broken arrows fell at the feet of the two women, making them question their initial intentions about ever coming to this town in the first place. They were about to turn back, the gaurds still mocking the pair, when a man in a plumed helmet silenced the parade of jesters.
"Are you denying them shelter and protection?" he questioned one of the gatekeepers. He was tapping his foot impatiently, awaiting a response from the stuttering gaurd.
"Well, uh, sir," he began, cautiously, trying to find the right words as to not anger his superior. "We were thinkin' that..."
"That's correct, you thought. You didn't know. So why turn them away?" He was becoming a little angry, his face turning a little redder with each passing word.
"Well, we've been knowing that there have been bandits runnin' amok near here, and we thought that these two just might be..." The other guard offered a suitable, yet unstable defense in favor of his friend and his actions.
"You mean the group of travelling bandts that are clothed in black robes who carry swords and kill guards like you on sight? If these two were part of that band, the main group would already be in town and you would already be lying dead!"
The two gaurds exchanged glances, trying to find a way out of the situation they had created for themselves. The first one quickly spoke: "We were about to let them in, sir..." He moved to the gate and pulled out his key, awaiting an agreeing motion from his captain.
His captain merely waited for him to continue an action that should have been completed long ago. He unlocked the small door beside the gate that allowed the pair passage into their protected town, his superior still breathing down his back. He turned around after the two had entered the shack within the wall and his face met the opened helmet of his captain.
"If this ever happens again," he warned, "I will have someone's head. This type of action is not in accordance with how a guard should act." The two could merely nod in answer, never having incurred a wrath like this from this officer. It was as if he knew the two strangers, although they both knew that the ragged pair had never been near this area ever before. With a nod, the two guards were dismissed as they quickly hustled out of the small room. The gate slammed behind them into the next room as the plumed helmet came off the man's head, revealing a face worn with time and scarred by battle. His face was wrought by weariness, even in his relaxed yet altered state. His red hair was an item of note, their short strands seemingly uncombed for a few days. His nose seemed one size too big for his mouth, but it did not take away from the strangest thing upon the man's face: his grey eyes showed a wisdom beyond his years, but themselves did not show their age.
His shoulders were broad and most likely very strong, something apparent even in the hindrance of the armor that he wore. His muscular arms were visible from the lack of armor he wore on his arms, and his thick legs hinted that you could not run from this man, even in the armor her wore. He donned no gauntlets or arm plates, but instead had on bracers; the chain beneath his plate mail showed their sleeves on his upper arms as his plate mail continued down near his waist and pelvis, covering the most vital areas. There was nothing significant about his boots, although the pair could feel that they had some sort of enchantment within them, but for what, they did not know.
He wielded the weapons of a ranger, a bow across has back under an emblemed shield, of a fire-breathing dragon. The bow was made of a fine yew that could be stretched far without ever breaking. His quiver contained many colored plumes, some black, others white, and still there were red and some were yellow. An ordinary sheath lay hanging at his waist, revealing only a leather-strapped handle above the ruby-jeweled pommel. A dagger lay neatly tucked away under his belt of wool, another common place item among common place people.
"I offer my apologies for those two who just left the room. They're too old for this job, but we don't have enough willing helpers, so they almost fit the bill. They're pretty mistrusting of outsiders, so set in their ways they are. And yes, we have been having problems with a group of travelling bandits, but you two don't even look to be a part of that group. Oh, I haven't even introduced myself yet. I am Amendir Desend, captain of the guard of this fair town of Ferala. Now, I believe it is only fair that I should know your names, if you do not mind." He leaned against the table after setting his helmet upon it, putting his weight on one foot as he shifted into a more relaxed position.
"I am Loraiel Ra'Tyria, a priestess, trained also in art of self defense.." She gave a slight bow of her head, greeted with a smile from the man that stood across from her.
"And I am called Rynn, without a family name to call my own." Her katars jingled at her side, battered and in very poor condition from the battles of previous days. She offered no greeting other than her words to the man, who merely nodded in reply.
"Well, then since we are all introduced, I should introduce you to your other two welcomers, shouldn't I?" He moved over to the door and slid over a wooden panel so that he may shout through the opening. "Hey you two blockheads, get in here on the double!" Loraiel and Rynn nearly had to cover their ears due to the extreme volume at which the man had shouted the words, magnified by the small space of the room. Confused and baffled movement could be heard as the two men ran into one another in the room beside them, among others objects, knocking over chairs, buckets, and even a table before they both reached the door, trying to squeeze their armored beings through all at one time.
"Well," Amendir began, "the one on the left, the one further through the door, and with the grey beard down to the base of his neck is Rirhat. His good friend, Garmd, is the one beating him - the one without any hair - attempting to get here first. As you can see..." His voice trailed off as the two men fell through the door and onto their faces, drawing a giggle from the priestess and a sigh from the mercenary. "As you can see, they're not exactly the brightest of the bunch, but they do their job just as well as we need them to." Amendir grinned as the two looked up at him in confusion, their bodies still trying to rise from the floor.
"Thank ya'!" replied Garmd, a little confused by Amendir's words. he receieved a blow to the back of his friend, who fully realized that the man's latest comment was an uncleverly disguised insult.
"Ya' fool, he just made fun 'o us!" Rirhat started to draw his hand back to strike another blow, but a voice interrupted his actions.
"That's enough you two." His smile was apparent to the four others in the room. "I just wanted to introduce you two Loraiel and Rynn, our two newest visitors." The two ladies gave a bow when their name was said, replied with a nod from both men in return. They were no longer mocking the pair.
"Nice to meet'cha; sorry about what happened back there. I mean, we do need to be careful and all..." Rirhat scratched his head.
"Aw you fool," Garmd jokingly said. "You know you're only saying that 'cause you think the two are cute!" Rirhat answered with another slap, all in good humor.
"But first, these two need rest before they can endure any more banter from you old idiots." He grinned wildly, drawing a scowl from both of the older men. "If you would kindly follow me, I can-"
He never finished his sentence, as two helmets made their way towards the man. He ducked out of the way and out the back door, running off into the town, and away from his two pursuers who would never be able to catch him.
~~~~~~~~~~
"Patahri and Katahri were my mentors when I was growing up." Rynn's eyes were wide in amazement. She didn't know exactly what had spurred her friend Loraiel's story, but whatever it was, she didn't inted to stop her dear friend's monologue. It was simply too fascinating to her; all of these tales from about the land that they were standing on now, but during a different pair of eyes and a different time, were strange yet at the same time fascinating. Hearing of so many different things - some new, some not so new - only made her want to hear more.
"They too were a travelling pair, wanderers in their time. Patahri was a healer; I learned much of what I know today from her. Her sister, Katahri, was a well-known martial artist, good with any weapon with a blade or a blunt side, and even better with her bare hands and feet. They said they found me in the middle of their campsite one morning. The strange thing was, they told me that they were in the midst of a great and dense forest at the time as they sought a cure for a man in a town nearby; keep in mind, nearby meant anywhere within a tenday's journey."
Rynn gave a look of disbelief. "Near was a tenday's journey? That's... Ridiculous! Near for me would consist of a few hours - at most!"
Loraiel laughed at her friend. "Yes, a tenday's journey, on foot, without any other mode of transportation, magical or otherwise. Back to my story, shall we?"
Rynn settled down and allowerd her friend to continue. "Sorry," she offered in apology, "I didn't mean to interrupt."
"Well, the cloth that I was wrapped in also kept safe the plant that was needed to save the man's life, so the sisters believed that it was enough of an incentive to take me along with them; it seems they had already been scouring the forest for nearly nine days and had found not even traces of this certain plant. After taking me into their care, they returned to the town and procured the cure to cure the man's ailment. Afterwards, they went on their way again, turning down generous offers for permanent residence within the small village. They didn't like to stay in one place for too long, so they never stayed in one place for any length of time at all. They did what they believed they had to do, and promptly left afterward, not accepting any kind of payment for their actions.
"When I turned the age of six, they began to teach me their kind and caring ways. I learned simple healing spells, such as how to stop bleeding, close small wounds, deal with insect bites and non-fatal poisons; I basically became an apprentice healer. Whenever Patahri was not teaching me the ways of a priest, Katahri was allowing me to expend my seemingly infinite energy by learning how to defend myself from wild animals, and even how to catch objects that were being thrown at me. I came away with many bruises on some occasions, but it only helped me to learn how to heal them more; I was able to restore myself if ever needed, even inbetween Kat's lessons, much to her dismay. This was pretty much how the rest of my days went with them, with me learning new things and helping out with small tasks. But for some reason, it never got dull or boring.
"When I turned 12, we had a small celebration at the edge of a town, where they purchased foodstuffs and other various items in preparation for a party. Only thing is, a group of wild oxen were driven from their grazing fields nearby and were into a mad stampede through the town. Katahri returned to see that I was unhurt and took me back with her to help the sick and wounded. By this time, I could patch larger wounds, and even heal the some of the most serious ones, even though I was young. I was still uneducated in the arts of resurrection: that was too near the lines of necromancy for me to handle at that age. Patahri did not think that I could handle it, and I certainly did not want to find out the hard way.
"I used my restorative powers while Patahri rested inbetween resurrections, as it drew very much from her physical and mental reserves. It was not an easy thing to bring back the dead, nor was it something you could do every few moments, but somehow Patahri survived and did not faulter in her duties. She seemed very weary most of the time, but I was also able to remove her fatigue as well. We were busy for the next week, healing wounds and bringing townsfolk back to life who were wrongfully killed in the strange accident.
"But then on the ninth morning of our duties, the band that had been poaching and scaring the oxen appeared at the entrance of the town, demanding that the townpeople pay them for completing their 'duties.' Naturally, the people declined them of their 'payment,' and the bandits became angry. Pat was in the middle of ressurecting an elderly man when one of the more elderly men threw a knife at her. I saw that Kat was far away from Pat, so I stood in the way of the knife and Pat. Much to the bandit's dismay, seeing my leap of faith and assuming that I had taken the projectile for the healer, I stood up and held the weapon tauntingly before me, just before I dropped it to the ground. 'You'll pay for that!' the man said as he came rushing toward me, not even making it halfway before he received a kick to his back from a flying Katahri.
"So that is where the battle began, the five remaining bandits against Katahri, the other one laying on the ground. Needless to say, she barely broke a sweat against the undisciplined rogues. They thought that surrounding her would bring a quick victory for them, but it only made Kat's job only easier. She would strike forward, only to draw back and strike behind her with a foot so fast it was practically invisible. Moments after knocking the man to the ground, she had already chosen her next victim, and after that, her next. In at most a few minutes, all six men were lying flat on their face, begging for their lives before their solitary advesary. And also needless to say, their lives were spared. After a lengthy speech from both sisters, they became dedicated members to the town in only a few days. Even the town believed that they had fully turned their lives around, and it was amazing they had. We left shortly after, with no intention to return there again, as we had never returned to a place we had travelled; but as the fates would have it, Nature had driven us to seek shelter from her pouring rains and harsh twilight temperature. The nearest town, though nearly a tenday away and about ten years later, was the town of Helderal; the same village we helped to recover from the stampede.
"The journey to this walled city was long and difficult. We were met with the harsh winds of the terrible storms and the cold nights brought by the uncommon frosts. It was a strage time for Nature; it usually did not rain like that during the day nor did it ever freeze that far south. As we travelled north, we encountered many rabid animals, although their numbers decreased as the weather became more normal the farther north we travelled. We had fierce skirmishes with bears and other woodland creatures, almost having to slay a doe driven to madness. We met badgers who would not leave us be, and even squirrels who would not keep to their own business, sometimes even throwing their precious acorns at our group, their motives unknown to us.
"We travelled through jungles deep and cliffs so steep as to make a fall a very final one. The rivers we crossed were as equally treacherous; some flowed so fast that we had to travel far upstream before we set our raft out to cross the river in one piece. There were no paths to follow in the wilderness so wild, so we made our own way using the mountains far, the movements of the moon and sun, and the stars when we travelled at night. We lived on what we could, foraging for edible plants. I even got sick one time when I ate some poisonous berries; to this day I swear they looked exactly like the sweetberries. We hunted little, only when we had to: the bear that attacked us made it through most of our nearly fifteen day journey. It was only a meant to be a tenday, but many setbacks lengthened our travel time. When we arrived, little did we know the small town of Helderal had grown so big, and under the guidance of the very same, although now older and wiser rogue that had thrown the dagger those ma ny years ago.
"They had built a small monastery in honor of the sisters Pat and Kat, traning young boys and girls in the ways of healing and the art of self defense. There were nearly 15 young children studying there, and that number nearly doubled with the arrival of the honorees of the temple. By this time, the travelling sisters were now feeling their age and knew that the time would near that they would be able to travel no more, so they decided to help run the temple, offering their teachings and their wisdom to anyone willing to go listen and learn. We were only there a few months before Patahri passed away into the hands of the gods, with Katahri following shortly after. The leadership of the temple was then left to me, their nearest successors, and only a few weeks after did you, Rynn, arrive with your cargo. Fill in the events that have happened between then and now, and that brings us to this present moment."
Rynn had been silent the entire time, save the two sentences that she spoke earlier in the tale. Her mouth was hanging open and she was drooling a little. Finally noticing her friend had finished her tale, her sleve of her tunic promtply went to the side of her mouth, almost removing all evidence of the embarassing thing, drawing a giggle from the woman sitting across from her. "What? Your tale was so, so mesmerizing, I b-b-barely knew what I was doing." She was stammering her words a little.
"I understand, Rynn," consoling her friend, "but now it's time for rest. I'll put out the candles and then we can go to sleep." Cupping her hand behind the flame, she blew gently, although with enough force to put out the flame. The puff of smoke floated out of the door's window, snaking its way towards the cloudy night sky, where only a few stars could shine their light upon the earth where the clouds were broken and few. The forests were quiet that night, with only the occasional hoot of the owl and the cry of the wolf.
A pair of red glowing orbs peered over the gates, seeing what defenses might be in store. Silently cackling to itself, it scaled over and down the wall and proceeded to scour the town for information, as well as to gain intelligence on the place. As the moon began to set, the same pair of eyes were scaling the wall once more, towards the graveyard far outside of town. It didn't care that it was almost day, but only that its mission was complete. A guard caught sight of the disgusting being as it moved away from his position in the growing light, a lean mass of bare muscle, deftly picking its way through the dense foliage and trees. The sentry shook his head and went back to sleep, his duties slumbering as well.