Fantasy Chronicles of Cre' Est

[Mothman]

As he promised, Shadow arrived before long, despite the pouring rain all around them. She stood up as she saw the man and approached, glad to hear him speaking up so she could hear him over the rain.

Though, his request for the day made her look at him with a slacked jaw and widened eyes. Climb the entire mountain, in this godawful weather? By sundown!?

"You must be joking...!" Whimsey moved a hand to her mouth and bit at her thumbnail, as she often did when nervous. Despite the grueling training Shadow had been putting her through, none of it had been truly life threatening as of yet. This, though, was something else entirely. She'd no experience mountain climbing, or even hiking for that matter.

Despite the want to try and weasel her way out of his ludicrous request, she knew arguing with him wouldn't get her anywhere. "This is gonna be the end of me..." She muttered under her breath, running a hand over her face and trying to think rationally. "You'd throw all this training at me with the possibility of me ending up dead in a ditch by the end of the day?"

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Shadow paused mid-stride as a powerful gust of wind blew over their position. His hair flickered violently under its whirlwind force, as did his jacket. But his body remained perfectly still. Immovable against the horrendous gusts as he turned halfway to look at her out of the corner of his eye.

"I told you last night! By the end of the day today, you'll know exactly where you are versus where I know you can be!" He shouted above the winds.

And with that, he turned and resumed his march down into the forested lands below.

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

"Sounds like you think I can't be more than a corpse in the dirt..." Whimsey mumbled to herself as Shadow walked off, turning to face the rest of the mountain that she would need to scale and frowning. Food was an issue she would have to tackle, at least eventually. Likely best to get it out of the way now, so that she could climb without being on an empty stomach.

While it didn't take her too awfully long to find something to hunt down, getting a fire started to properly cook it was a bit harder. It took a while, but she eventually managed to find a small cave, likely being lived in by some animals or something of the sort, and managed to find some wood dry enough to get a fire started after enough searching. With a meal in her and an hour or two worth of time gone, she made her way back up to where she started to actually tackle her task for the day.

"This is gonna be hell..." A hand moved up to massage at her still sore shoulder, before she decided to take a quick lap around the mountain base to find anything that might prove even slightly easier than simply scaling up it the hard way.

---

"My, my, that's quite a storm out there..." As he was getting the apothecary ready for business, he noted that the rain from earlier in the day had yet to subside, and had only grown more and more torrential. They'd likely see next to no business today, if the weather kept up...

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Linde stood against the wall sipping a cup of coffee, given that nobody was in the clinic today.

"Indeed. When we get weather like this almost nobody comes in since the city more or less shuts down."

Jessica was also sipping some tea.

"True. Hopefully my husband isn't too worn out looking after our two daughters by himself. We usually have a nanny for that. But today he can't work with the weather like this. So he's staying home with the rambunctious little toddlers." She chuckled.

Linde chuckled as well.

"They're almost three now, right?"

"Yep! Still in their "terrible two's" stage. Poor dear."

The two women shared a good laugh.

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

Her lap around the mountainside had proved less than helpful. Shadow was right; there was no path up, and nowhere that wasn't slick thanks to the storm. As much as she would have loved to have done this climb with rope and tools, but it seemed like this was yet another test of using her 'body' to overcome her obstacles. While she did have her knife, she didn't have the same raw strength as Shadow to penetrate solid stone with it.

Her attempt began with just trying to find the smallest ledges to ascend up with. While it took a running start and a couple tries to get a solid leap and grip on the ledge, she eventually managed to use that same tactic to get up at least a bit. Even when she made it up a fair bit, she would barely have the foot room to make much else of a movement. "Son of a..." She mumbled as she shimmied across a skinny ledge with unstable footing, running the risk of falling back downwards and losing both her progress and her motivation.

As she got higher and higher, leaps on their own weren't going to cut it. She started to have to resort to raw climbing, which was much easier said than done. The higher she got, the less she found herself able to breathe. Her hands slipped on just about every surface she found, and she had wreaked havoc on her fingertips and fingernails trying to keep her grip on the surfaces.

A fair ways up the mountain, when she would likely have been a fair bit past her halfway point, she was faced with a long stretch of uphill climbing, with barely anywhere to stop and catch her breath. While she got a good ways up the face of it without any trouble, she eventually did lose her grip amidst the pouring rain, and as she moved her foot to try and compensate for the mistake, it slipped as well. A shout escaped her as she gripped for anything, but unfortunately, she found herself falling a fair bit back down. While it wasn't a fatal fall, she lost a good amount of her progress, and just barely managed to catch herself from likely breaking a leg by catching herself on a piece of rock jutting out from the mountainside.

"Dammit...!" She was near certain one or two of her ribs had cracked, if not broken, from her brief tumble down the mountainside, and the sudden stop as she caught herself with her right arm hurt like hell. She was lucky the arm wasn't dislocated afterwards. Finally finding a spot she could properly sit down, even if it was just a large ledge above the rest of the mountain, that if she slipped off of it, would likely lead to death, she took a moment to catch her breath and reevaluate her progress.

"...No way in hell do I make it up there by sundown..." Bringing a hand up to her face, she let out a deep sigh at just how against the wall she was. Her muscles were all aching by now, her ribs hurt like hell, and her right arm could barely support all of her weight after the injury. "Another fall like that, and I'm screwed..." Shaking her head, she hopped up again and tried to ignore the fact she had lost enough progress in her climb that she wasn't even halfway up, before resuming her climb.

---

"Ah, Doctor Almna, Miss Jessica. I hate to intrude." His hands moved up above his head as he stretched them out, letting out a yawn as he walked in. "How are the both of you holding up? I suppose I'm desperate for some conversation, what with just how undesirably busy we are." The sarcastic comment aside, he moved to take a seat on a bench near the wall, glancing over towards the window again. "I feel terrible for the guards that have to be out patrolling the streets in this weather."

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Linde and Jessica giggled at Maretu's remark.

"Oh, I agree Maretu. The sheer volume of customers is just appalling!" Jessica said with a wave of her arm.

Linde chuckled softly and shook her head.

"Really, Doctor. I don't know how we do this day in and day out. My hands and feet are going to fall off!" She continued with a dramatic gesture of her hand lazily dangling as if it was not properly attached to her wrist.

"I quite agree. I'm so tired I have to lean on this medical bed for support." Linde said with an exaggerated sigh.

A few chuckles later, Linde stood up straight.

"On the serious side, though. Don't worry about the guards. They know what they're doing and safety is a top concern for their Captain. He puts together short waves of patrols to give them just enough time to check the city out before returning to the barracks to dry off and warm up to stay healthy. I think since I opened this clinic around three or four years ago I've only seen a handful of them get sick during this weather."

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

While she wasn't exactly sure of the time, Whimsey was certain it was getting near sundown. The rain, as Shadow predicted, was slowly but surely starting to lessen. That didn't make her climb much easier, though, the damage had already been done. The stones were all slick with rain and mud, and any dirt walkways that would have been a simple trek were now solely mud to trek through. "Some... Training...!" She muttered to herself as she forced herself up another steep surface, hoping to make it just a bit higher to find another spot to catch her breath.

Glancing up for a brief moment, Whimsey let out a loud shout as she spotted a few rocks large enough to knock her unconscious with ease tumbling down towards her. With a quick breath to prepare her body for the maneuver, she threw herself to the side, trying to spot any new spot for her to get a real grip on. While she lost a bit of height from doing so, she did barely manage to get her fingers onto another piece of stone, though felt another jolt of pain in her right arm as she got back to pulling herself up.

With her multiple falls and failed attempts, the woman wasn't nearly as far up the mountain as she would have liked. At her pace right now, she doubted she would be able to make it all the way up. Maybe three fourths of the way, if she was lucky, but the top? It just... Didn't seem possible.

With another hour of making her way upwards slowly, her body wasn't able to keep up. If she had the energy to keep it up, and maybe another hour to continue onwards, and there was a chance... She was frustrated, more than anything, and knew that Shadow was going to be frustrated with her. Despite her fatigue, she tried to get climbing up the next surface, but felt her strength slipping from her fingertips. The girl fell back and hit the ground below her with a thud, and while she was still conscious, she couldn't move her body if she wanted to.

---

"Huh..." Maretu blinked a few times at Linde, before nodding. At first, he was surprised how much she knew about their process, but after thinking about it, it made enough sense. She likely spent a fair amount of time with Knights in the clinic, since they probably ended up being injured here quite a lot. "I suppose that's a relief to hear. I wonder what Tsubaar's doing right now..."

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Linde nodded.

"Indeed. I wonder what he's doing as well... Perhaps he's still on the search for Ms Right?" She teased with a wink.

Jessica scoffed, and Myra, standing nearby, shook her head.

"Doctor. You're more of a flirt than any man could be."

Linde chuckled.

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

The storm eventually subsided before Whimsey could find the energy to fight through her fatigue and pain to move any further, and it was past sundown by the time she pushed herself up from the mud. "He's gonna be furious..." Bringing a hand to her head, she glanced up towards the mountaintop, frowning as she simply stared at it for a minute. Her breathing was heavy, even after having been laying in the mud for quite some time now. "I suppose I could at the very least get up there... Can't be that much further."

And so she did, slowly but surely, with less regard to meeting any sort of time restaint, make her way upwards. It took her at least another thirty or fourty minutes, the lack of sunlight not making her life any easier. But, sure enough, she eventually got herself up to the peak, letting out a long huff and tilting her head back for a moment. "Good lord... At least I finished it..." A hand moved to her stomach as she felt a bit more at her ribs, near certain that she had some lasting damage down there... Not that Shadow would likely care.

---

Maretu couldn't help but chuckle at Linde being called a flirt, looking over at the woman with a smile. "Ah, so that wasn't just an act to get him off of my case?" Tilting his head at the idea of it, he leaned forward with a curious look on his face. "I take it you haven't found your Mister RIght then either, have you, Doctor Almna?"

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Linde choked on her tea, spilling it on the ground in front of herself, and entered a coughing fit as Jessica smacked her back to help her clear her airway. Once she was okay, she turned to Maretu with a slight flush in her cheeks.

"Admittedly no, I haven't found him." She said with a bit of a hoarse rasp in her voice from all the coughing. "I'm afraid my standards are... Quite high. And-"

"She's had literally hundreds of suitors from across the continent attempt to gain her hand over the years."

"Myra!" She coughed.

"Now, now, Doctor. It's no secret. And you were going to tell him anyway, right?"

"I was going to say that I've had my fair share of suitors, but I can't find anyone who fits my needs yet."

"Well, Doctor, with all due respect, you may need to lower your standards a bit. You're not getting any younger, after all."

"Yeah, yeah." Linde said with a wave of her hand.

In Cre' Itian culture, women who were above the age of 25 were believed to be "past their prime," meaning it would be harder for them to find men who were interested in them. And Linde, being 24, was closing in fast on that cultural deadline.

---------------------------------------​

In the hours of the fading sun as the sky grew darker and darker, the skies began to clear and the first stars twinkled overhead. And as Whimsey stood atop the mountain, a pair of glowing red eyes appeared from out of the haze just beside her. The glow illuminated his face and the upper edge of his clavicle and chest.

Without a word spoken, he walked right up to Whimsey and looked down at where her hand had been over her ribs. His eyes slid up to meet hers, illuminating the contours of her face and reflecting in her eyes like mirrors. Looking over to the side, Shadow saw a flatter section of rock and jerked his head in its direction.

"Sit." He said rather calmly.

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

He couldn't help but awkwardly chuckle as Linde spat out her own tea before speaking, feeling a bit bad at prompting that sort of reaction. If Maretu had been drinking anything as Myra mentioned her literal hundreds of suitors, he likely would have spat it out in surprise. A baffled sort of mumble still escaped him as he blinked a few times at Linde. "H-Hundreds? Goodness, Doctor Almna, I can tell as much as any other man that you're quite a wonderful woman, but that number still surprises even me."

"Tsubaar's stanards are awfully high as well. He has plenty of women interested in him, despite not being anything more than a handsome and charismatic bartender, though Tsubaar has said none of them have ever clicked with him." He shrugged before rubbing at his neck nervously.

"Love is a fickle thing, after all..."

---

Shadow appearing at her side startled her a tad, but she was starting to get used to the man's odd way of showing up. As he stared at her, she simply stayed still as she could manage, unsure of what to say to the man. She had failed in her test, after all, and knew Shadow wouldn't be pleased that she had gotten herself hurt in the process.

At his command to sit down, she nodded and shakily stood up, legs threatening to give out as she made the few steps over to the flat area. Practically collapsing down to her knees, she turned and got in a more comfortable position before turning back to Shadow. Nothing more than a sigh escaped her as she waited for Shadow to speak.

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Jessia beamed as Maretu marveled at Linde's suitor count.

"Well. She is the Angel of Cre' Est, you know. It's only natural for men around the continent who are hungry for the ultimate trophy wife to come seeking the hand of one so fair and accomplished."

Linde rolled her eyes and sipped at a new cup of tea.

"True. I'm almost envious. But if I had to deal with that many men coming to my workplace or home asking for my hand in marriage I think I'd relocate and change my name." Myra added with a chuckle.

"I've considered it." Linde said with a laugh.

As Maretu spoke about Tsubaar, Linde smiled.

"I understand Tsubaar's position, as it's largely the same with me. Many of my suitors seemed to be good men, but I felt nothing for them beyond the initial impression they gave. There just wasn't any kind of... Uh..."

"Spark?" Jessica asked.

Linde snapped her fingers.

"Yes."

"I know what you mean, Doctor. However, maybe you should give each one a bit more time? Believe it or not, my husband didn't click with me when we first met. It took almost 2 years of knowing one another before we finally realized there was something more building between us, and another year after that before we realized we were in love."

"Mmm." Linde mumbled as she sipped her tea.

"Love is fickle, indeed." Myra added.

-----------------------------------------------​

As Whimsey sat down, Shadow knelt down in front of her staring intently at her stomach where her hand had been. Without speaking, his hand reached out and flattened out gently over the affected area. It might have given Whimsey a bit of a twinge, but Shadow applied no significant pressure. Just enough to be felt. His hand remained there for approximately twenty full seconds before it shifted slightly and he applied a bit more pressure with the meat of his thumb just below where her hand had been. That would almost certainly send a twinge as well. But he needed to confirm what had happened.

About ten seconds later, he lifted his hand away.

"You've broken two ribs and cracked a third." He said as he looked up at her.

"Lie flat on the rock. We need to reset the broken ones."

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

"She's got a point, Doctor Almna. I'm sure you get plenty of men coming here for... Less than ideal reasons, but I'm sure that some of them have honest intentions." He didn't really know from experience; he never saw what kind of suitors the woman got. It didn't hurt to have a little faith in people in general, to him. "I'm sure you'll find someone for you eventually, Doctor Almna." Giving a warm smile to the woman, a hand moved to his neck, tugging at a simple silver necklace around it.

"Fickle it may be... But it brings a lot of people together." The words were oddly dour despite how positive they were, and his eyes moved down to his lap.

---

Whimsey flinched a bit as Shadow pressed a hand to her stomach, fiddling with her sleeve that was practically stuck to her arm thanks to being soaked and covered in mud, as were the rest of her clothes.

"Just... Wonderful." A sigh left her lips as Shadow told her to lay flat. She complied and laid back, taking in a deep breath, practically ready to fall asleep and pass out at a moment's notice. "I... might've damaged my right arm, too..." While she was unsure if there was any last injury with it akin to her ribs, but it had been giving her trouble since her first fall. It wouldn't have surprised her if she had damaged a bone in her shoulder.

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Linde smiled back at Maretu, and walked over to give him a pat on the shoulder.

"That it does, mister Arjun." She said cheerfully. "Think ahead." She added.

She then decided to go to the office, but when Eileen appeared from the Lobby door talking about a child being brought in by her parents after 'something' went wrong, Linde put her tea down and all sense of happiness flew out the window.

"Bring her in, Eileen."

"Yes, Doctor!"

Eileen ushered the parents in who were carrying their little girl, no more than four years old, in their arms. They set the girl down on a medical bed and tried to explain the situation. They had just gotten into town and a small group of bandits had taken advantage of the storm and tried to take the gate. Their cart managed to escape, but just barely. Something had happened with a bandit jumping on board, and a scuffle with another friend of theirs resulted in the girl getting hurt somehow. They couldn't see her injuries externally, but they were adamant that something was wrong.

The little girl was shrieking and crying her head off the whole time as Linde gently set her down on the medical bed and helped adjust it so she could sit upright.

"W-w-we don't know w-what happened! We were up front in the cart driving and w-w-we heard shouting in the back!" The husband said.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Linde asked calmly.

"W-we don't know!!" The wife shouted. "That's what we're trying to-"

Linde put a hand up, silencing the woman, and gave her a rather harsh glare over her shoulder.

"I wasn't asking you, ma'am." She said sternly before looking back at the girl, who was still a shrieking and crying mess.

"Sweetheart? Can you hear me?" She cooed as she stroked the girl's hair.

The girl opened one of her eyes, rubbing at both with the backs of her hands as she continued sobbing.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Linde asked again.

"She can't answer you! She's in pain! Can't you see that?!" The father yelled, taking a few steps forward.

Linde ignored the man and gently sat down beside the girl on the edge of the bed. Reaching out with both hands, she gently scooped the girl up and helped her sit on her lap. The girl continued rubbing her eyes and sobbing uncontrollably as Linde adjusted her position. Carefully feeling out the length of the girl's leg, she moved it to the open side so the girl straddled her. And with that done, she used one hand to support the girl's bum and hips, and the other held her back between the shoulders as Linde stood up with the girl in her arms. Almost as if she herself were the girl's mother.

Linde calmly walked away from the parents towards the far side of the room and began humming a tune for the girl while rubbing her back and very softly bouncing the girl by bending her knees and straightening them again, almost as if they were dancing.

The parents tried to move closer, the Jessica, Eileen, and Myra stepped into their path and barred them from interfering while assuring them Linde knew what she was doing.

Linde's humming, back rubs, and gentle bouncing continued. And in just under a minute the girl's cries had died away and were replaced by little more than soft sobs as she gripped Linde's coat and buried her face into the woman's chest. Linde walked back towards the medical bed as the girl quieted down, and sat on the edge. The girl refused to let go, so Linde didn't force the issue. She continued holding the girl until she backed up and looked up at Linde on her own.

"Hi sweetheart. I'm Doctor Almna." She cooed while using her thumb to rub the girl's cheek to help clean some of her tears. "Can you tell me what happened?"

The girl sniffled, wiping her nose with her sleeve, before shakily relaying the story of how a bandit jumped into the back of the cart where she and a family friend were trying to shelter from the weather. The bandit had landed on the edge of the box she was sitting on, causing her to fly into the air a little and fall down into the wooden crates of food and other supplies. Her right elbow had been the first thing to make contact, and Linde was able to coax out the information that her arm had gone numb and was still tingling and in pain even now.

"Sweetheart, I'm going to lay you down, okay? Just try to relax, and let the Doctor work her magic."

The girl sniffled. "Are you really magic?"

"I am indeed. Watch. I'll make all that pain and tingling go away. And when I'm done, I'll give you something special. Okay?" She asked, giving the girl's nose a soft poke.

The girl chuckled through her sobs and nodded her head. Linde got to work laying the girl's bed down flat and turning her onto her side. With the right arm elevated, she began giving a gentle massage using her fingertips starting at the girl's fingertips and working her way up the hand to the wrist, the elbow, and all the way up to the shoulder.

"Do you need to go that high? She said it was the elbow, right?" The mom asked.

"Yes, that's true. However, just because that's where the impact happened doesn't mean that nothing has gone wrong elsewhere. So I need to be sure."

The woman was silent and stayed huddled under her husband's arm who tried to calmly reassure her that it would be all right.

After several minutes of gentle massaging and a little tickle at the end to help the girl smile and giggle, Linde helped her sit up on the edge of the bed.

"Feeling better?"

The girl nodded.

"Good. And for being so brave... Jessica? If you please?"

"Certainly. I'll be right back." She replied.

Jessica left for the Lobby, and returned a minute later with a beautiful abalone charm necklace which she handed to Linde.

"I found this abalone on a walk along the beaches in Triveila a few years back. And I've been waiting to give it to someone special. So what do you think? Do you like it?"

The girl was starstruck, and reached out to cup the charm in her palms as she stared wide-eyed at it. Linde smiled, and let go of the necklace chain. The girl looked at it for several moments longer, and then put it around her neck, looking up at Linde for approval.

"It looks beautiful on you, sweetheart. Come on. Come show mommy and daddy." She said as she reached out to hold the girl's hand.

The girl took Linde's hand and hopped off the bed to walk over to her parents who were just as dumbfounded as the girl had been.

"I-is it really okay to give her that? It looks so expensive!" The wife whispered.

Linde chuckled.

"It's really no big deal. I found it on the beach and turned it into a charm necklace for fun. I'm happy to part with it for such a little trooper as this one." Linde said as she fluffed the girl's hair which made her giggle with delight.

After thanking Linde profusely for her help, the parents left the clinic with their daughter, and her new charm, in toe. The Lobby doors closed, and Jessica gave an audible "Phew" before returning to the clinic where Linde had warmed up her tea and was again taking casual sips as if nothing had just happened.

------------------------------------------​

Shadow knelt down on one knee beside Whimsey and placed both hands flat against her stomach. His fingertips were pointed towards one another, and followed the position of her ribs. Once he felt where the first break was, he looked down at her.

"Deep breath. You'll need it."

He gave Whimsey a few seconds to get a nice deep breath of air, and once her lungs were at full capacity he used the sides of his fingers to hold one rib steady, and the other fingers to push down on the other rib to help separate the broken segments before quickly realigning them and allowing them to set back into proper position.

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

As much as Maretu wanted to aid Linde and the others in caring for the girl, he knew the woman had it covered. She would ask for help if she so needed it. So, he opted simply to watch the woman work, though did aid the other nurses in keeping the worried parents back, and mumbled a few words of reassurance to hopefully get them to calm down.

The gesture of the necklace to the woman warmed his heart a fair bit, as did watching Linde make the girl giggle and smile like nothing had been wrong in the first place. Almost as fast as the problem had presented itself, it had ended as well. With the family gone and the clinic back to being a ghost town, Maretu couldn't help but laugh at how casually Linde went back to sipping her tea.

"I've said it before, and I've said it again... You're full of surprises, Doctor Almna." He returned to his seat and sat with a small exhale, glancing to the window once again to evaluate the weather. Sure enough, it was still like a damned monsoon out there. "As much as I quite enjoy sitting around... I can't deny feeling a bit restless. Is there anything you need done for you, Doctor Almna? Even just something simple to put my hands to work would be nice, not that I mind chatting with you ladies. I suppose I just don't share the same sense of familiarity you all do; which isn't necessarily a bad thing." He didn't mind being the 'new guy' in a sense, though he was surprised the women didn't seem much for prodding at who he was, where he was from, and things of that sort. Where he was from, nearly everyone started a conversation with some sort of polite, yet borderline-intrusive question.

"Don't say that..." Whimsey groaned as she knew she'd have to endure even more pain because of this climb. A small exhale left her, before she took in as deep of a breath as she could manage, trying to ignore the pain in her stomach.

As just about anyone would, she flinched and nearly exhaled all the air she had just taken in, though bit at her cheek to keep herself from doing so. Before long, Shadow had finished realigning the bones, and once he finished, she let her head fall backwards and stare up at the sky. "Ugh... I've gotta get back down, too, don't I..." Without a meal and in the sorry state she was in, it frankly sounded like hell to try and make the climb back down.

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Linde and the others giggled a bit.

"Well, why not take the time to get familiar?" Jessica asked, holding up her own cup of warm tea.

"Yeah. It's not like we bite or anything." Myra added with a chuckle.

Eileen remained calm and quiet, standing off to the side leaning on the wall and gazing out the window.

"Nothing really needs to be done, mister Arjun. The clinic is closing soon anyway, so you're free to end the day early if you'd like." She said, setting the now empty tea cup down. "In the meantime, I think I'll head to my office for a few minutes before I leave. Jessica, you have the floor."

"Yes ma'am." Jessica replied with a thumbs up.

Linde walked out of the clinic to the Lobby, and then to her office, saying "goodnight" to Cheyanne along the way.

"So! Anything you wanna know, Maretu?" Jessica asked.

---------------------------------------​

Shadow helped steady her against the urge to move when the bones reset. And as she grumbled about climbing down, Shadow stood up.

"My assessment is over, and I've seen what I needed to see." He began in a low, cold voice. "Your determination to succeed is strong. But your body can't keep up with it yet. Still, albeit a bit worse for wear, you made it up here in one piece which counts for something."

He held out his hand, offering a hand up.

"But know this... If you take my hand now, you can't back out of what's to come next. I know what I need to do in order to properly train you. Your final task for the evening is to answer this simple question: Are you ready?"

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

Maretu should have been ready for interaction and questions from the ladies when he brought up the topic, though couldn't help but rub at his head and glance off to the side. "I suppose now is as good of a time as any..." Maretu chuckled nervously as Linde mentioned there wasn't anything that needed doing.

He didn't really realize it was almost time for them to close all the same, and seemed a bit surprised as Linde walked off to her office.

"Goodness, I mean..." Maretu folded his hands in his lap as Jessica asked, before looking up to the women. "...I suppose I'd love to hear anything. How did you all come to work here at the Clinic? Friends of Doctor Almna, I take it?"

---

"If I was having doubts, I wouldn't have climbed all the way up this damn mountain..." Rolling her eyes at at Shadow before reaching her left arm up and seizing Shadow's hand without a second thought, before pulling herself up to her feet with his aid. A pained inhale left her as she got up to her feet. "Do I get to know what's 'coming next', or is that another secret you're gonna keep from me, Shadow?"

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Jessica giggled.

"Well, I actually used to be Linde's nanny." She laughed. "I received my medical training from Linde's mother at around the same time Linde took her first interest in it as a kid. But I was in my teens while Linde was, what, six? Maybe seven? And I'll tell you this, Maretu. You think watching the woman work her magic now is amazing. You should have seen pre-teen Linde soaking up all of her mother's knowledge like a starving sponge. By Peur'tia's grace, her mom ran out of things to teach her by the time Linde was only fourteen! Linde spent the next three or four years working in the clinic her mother used to work for, and when she was eighteen she went to Dvarli on an accelerated program where she graduated with honors and the top of her class in only two years."

Myra nodded. "Yeah. That's unheard of, even for Dvarli alumni," she said.

"Anyway, I just realized I went totally off topic." Jessica laughed apologetically. "After she graduated and opened this clinic, Linde sent me a letter asking if I'd work for her. And how could I refuse? Given that I used to be her nanny, and I'm really close with her and her family, it seemed the perfect job for me. So here I am!"

Myra chuckled.

"I joined this clinic not long after it opened. I grew up in Veilbrand, actually. And when I came to Cre' Est looking for work this clinic was referred to me by a family friend. At the time, it was still new and Linde didn't have the nickname "Angel of Cre' Est" yet. But even so, the moment I walked in and met Linde for the first time, all young and bright-eyed, I knew there was something special about this place. And I haven't regretted my decision to stay."

Eileen had cautiously and slowly walked over during the discussion to chime in.

"Um... I was working as a nurse a few towns over about six months ago. Our resident Doctor was struck down by an illness and bedridden rather suddenly. And Linde volunteered to come help us out."

"Ah, I remember that!" Jessica interrupted. "Doctor Kellam, right? He got some kind of flu or something from one of the patients?"

Eileen nodded. "Yep. That's him."

Jessica waved her hand. "Anyway, sorry for interrupting Eileen. Please, go on."

Eileen nodded again.

"Well, Linde showed up and, for me at least, it was kind of scary. Myself and the other nurses knew she was beautiful and gaining a reputation. But when she walked in wearing street clothes and carrying her Doctor's coat over her shoulder, talking to us like any other woman, none of us quite knew what to make of her. A few of the others gave her trouble for being too casual, but Linde just smiled at them and told them "Just be ready to put that energy towards helping the patients." And... I have to admit, it was kind of cool to see her shut them down with such a simple phrase. Neither of them knew what to say to that. Linde put on her coat, we opened the doors, and well, you know how Linde is by now. It was typical of her, and she completely took over the clinic in a matter of minutes and, by the end of the day, everyone was following her around like a line of ducklings asking where she learned how to do what she did and how she could stay so calm and yet command so much compliance from all of us."

Myra nodded. "That's our Linde, all right." She chuckled.

Eileen smiled, nodding subtly.

"Yeah. As we closed the clinic for the day and I was about to leave, Linde stopped me and asked if I'd like to work at her clinic in the capital. I didn't really know what to say at the time since I was, and still am, really, kind of new to the profession. I only graduated from nursing school last year. So why she asked me to come here was beyond me. Still, after seeing her in action, I couldn't really refuse. It was a chance to learn from someone who was light years ahead of where I am. And even though she kind of scares me sometimes when she gets really serious, she always smiles for me and gives me kind words at the end of the day which... You know... I kind of need."

Myra gave an "Mmm" sound. "You mind telling him, Eileen? Or would you like us to share?"

Eileen looked away with a bit of a blush and nodded to Myra, who then looked at Maretu.

"Eileen suffers from PTSD which is why she can appear really timid. It developed when she was young, and it was, regrettably, her mother's fault. The woman was an alcoholic, and a Bounty Hunter. So you can imagine how well those two things mixed when Eileen was a kid. Her mom regularly shouted at her, broke things, and fought physically with her father. Growing up in a violent household with a loud, forceful, and dare I say obnoxious woman such as that for a mom would have an effect on just about anyone. You know? And ever since then, loud, forceful women have always had an effect on poor Eileen. And Linde can get quite loud and forceful when she has to. Especially during emergency situations, as I'm sure you've seen by now."

Eileen was quick to take a step back towards the conversation.

"B-b-but it's okay! Even if she kind of scares me sometimes, like I said she never stays that way. She always is so kind afterwards. And it's really helpful for me to see that because it's... It's what I didn't see as a kid." She said rather meekly.

------------------------------------------------​

Shadow watched Whimsey out of the corner of his eye as she stood.

"Even when certain of your course, doubts can and do arise." He said simply.

He took a step away from her and stopped just short of the ledge leading down the mountain. "If you try denying those doubts, you'll only bring further ruin upon yourself." He said in a shockingly soft and almost apologetic tone as he brought his hand up to his heart.

Looking over his shoulder with those glowing eyes, and a hard edge returning to his voice, he gestured to his back.

"You're not climbing down this mountain with broken ribs. So hop on."

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

Maretu listened intently to each woman's separate story. While he believed Linde that the rest of the staff had nothing to do with Shadow or Te'i Sai in the slightest, it was almost reassuring to hear that they had come from all over Cre' Est to eventually make it here. If he wore his heart more on his sleeve, he would likely take far more kindly to the company of three wonderful, interesting, and kind women. Tsubaar would kill him if he knew he was working in an almost exclusively woman-staffed clinic.

It wasn't until Eileen's PTSD was being addressed that he did more than simply nod and mutter an occasional 'I see' to the women. "I'm awfully sorry to hear it, Eileen... Nobody deserves anything like that." Eileen was the perfect example of the kind of person he wanted to help. A woman who was burdened with a psychological pain that she would likely be dealing with for her entire life... And as much as he would have loved to ask Eileen more, the last thing he wanted to do was bring up uncomfortable events from the past. "...I hope you at least had some good memories with her." Giving a short nod, he glanced over towards Linde's office for a short moment.

"Well, I really do appreciate all of you entertaining me with your stories. I'm afraid mine's nowhere near as interesting. I'm a researcher by trade, though have a fair bit of medical knowledge from some misspent time as a knight. We shared a few thrilling conversations about the human mind, and one thing led to another..." He wanted to keep things mostly vague, as he obviously couldn't just bring up the Shadow situation. "...And now I'm here. I look forward to working with all of you." Combing a hand through his hair, he stood up and adjusted his collar just a tad. "That reminds me... That younger girl... Whimsey, was it? Do we know where she hails from?" While he had yet to say more than a few passing words to the girl, he knew she was aware of Shadow and Te'i Sai, if Linde had allowed her to be present for their conversation.

---

Whimsey didn't seem too awfully interested in Shadow's pep talk, though was a bit surprised at the oddly calm and apologetic tone that Shadow's voice adopted. "...Oddly philosophical, Shadow." Letting out a short exhale, she walked over to him and climbed up onto the man's back.

"You... You're really gonna carry me down this mountain?" While she knew Shadow was strong as hell, a feat such as that surprised her more than a little. He was right, though, there was no way she was getting back down the mountain without breaking a few more bones in her current condition.

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

The girls smiled to one another.

"Thanks Maretu." Eileen said shyly.

"I think you'll fit in well here. Just remember. Don't hit on Linde. Cause if you do, there'll be Hell to pay." Jessica said with a wink and a finger gun aimed at him.

Myra just shook her head and laughed.

"As for Whimsey. I'm not too sure. We didn't get much of a chance to get to know the girl before she left." Jessica added.

"Yeah... Something about that girl seemed off to me. Not in a negative way, per se. But just... I don't know. Off." Myra agreed.

----------------------------------------------​

Shadow ignored Whimsey's question, and simply gripped her legs beneath the knees to help keep them in place. Her hands around his neck and shoulders would have to hold fast, because he was true to his word.

There was no turning back from what was about to come.

"Hang on."

Shadow leaped forward towards the mountain edge, and thanks to the slickness of the rain he was able to more or less surf down the mountainside. Directly ahead came a sudden drop off, and Shadow shifted his weight sideways as he turned his ankles and dug the sides of his boots into the rock. It slowed them down just enough that they stopped right before the drop, and Shadow hopped off the ledge, whipped his right hand up to his dagger, drew it, and slammed it into the side of the mountain to slow their descent until his boots hit the next level down. Pulling his dagger free, he sheathed it and gripped Whimsey's leg again, lifting her a bit to keep her steady on his back and glanced over his shoulder.

"If you need to piss yourself, kindly wait until we reach the valley floor." He said over his shoulder.

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

"I... I can assure you, I don't plan on it." The words were oddly bitter for someone as positive and relaxed as him. He quickly blinked a few times before putting a smile back on and rubbing the back of his neck. "T-That is to say, someone as aloof and inexperienced as me wouldn't have a chance with her, anyways."

He quickly moved on to the topic of Whimsey, hoping the girls wouldn't harp on his words. "I suppose she is quite odd... Seems quite different than the rest of us. Perhaps she just needs a friend." The girl seemed awfully standoffish when they spoke before. "Wait, she left...? I hadn't seen her recently, but I didn't realize she up and disappeared."

---

"Yessir..." Whimsey wasn't all that confident that even Shadow could pull off such a feat, but soon enough, the man was running towards the sloped mountainside, and practically skating down it with little effort, or at least visible effort. Whimsey mouth went slightly agape in awe, and while it wasn't the most comfortable ride on his back, it was awe-inspiring all the same.

Though, she didn't speak a word until Shadow had leapt off of the cliff face and used one of his massive knives to slow their descent. A small chuckle escaped her as it feet touched ground, and she seemed oddly relaxed for a maneuver so extreme. She was more amazed at the feat than anything else. "See? A tiny knife like mine wouldn't keep strong down a whole cliff." Chuckling quietly, she jokingly pat the man's shoulder before rolling her eyes at his comment. "I'll be fine. Gimme a little credit. Though, that was amazing, Shadow...! Didn't think you had skills like that in you."

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Jessica was quick to retort.

"Someone as "aloof and inexperienced" as you not having a chance with her, eh?" She chuckled. "Ahh... It's almost sad to see young men so talented waste themselves on ideas like "I'm not good enough."" She chided, wagging her finger disapprovingly. "You need to have more confidence in yourself, Maretu."

Myra nodded. "Linde definitely has high standards. But it's not like the average man isn't capable of meeting them," she said.

"Yep! She's told me a few times that she just wants a man who's confident, humble, isn't afraid to chase his dreams, and who has a heart capable of sharing compassion with others even at their own expense. She's met a few guys who checked the boxes. But they had other issues which drove her to say "no." So it can be done. And hopefully someone does, soon. She's only got about six months left before she hits that dreaded deadline." Jessica added.

"Yeah. Poor girl." Myra agreed.

Eileen remained silent, watching and listening while twirling her thumbs in circles around each other.

-------------------------------------------​

At Whimsey's remark about not knowing that Shadow could do these kinds of things, he looked over his shoulder rather indignantly.

"Hmph."

Looking ahead, Shadow continued his descent down the mountain. Sliding and skidding all the way, stopping only to set himself up for the same dagger-descent down the more sheer faces of the mountainside, they reached the valley floor within the hour with one final "thud" as Shadow's boots hit dirt and grass at long last. However, rather than set Whimsey down, Shadow continued holding her knees as he started walking into the woods of this small valley.

"Your ribs still in tact?" He asked in a low voice.

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

"I..." Clearing his throat, he looked to Jessica with a small exhale. "I can assure you it isn't an issue of confidence, Jessica." While it was a vague and slightly odd coming from him, he clicked his lips a few times and glanced down at his feet. Once again swinging back to a more positive tone of voice, he spoke again.

"Perhaps she would enjoy Tsubaar's company more than I thought. He can be a bit headstrong, but he's a sincere, kind man." He paused for a moment. "Though, 'humble' might not be the right word for him..." He shrugged.

"What about you three? How's your love life, if you're so interested in Linde's?"

---

Whimsey continued to quietly grip onto Shadow, letting out occasional oohs and ahs as they continued to descend. Once they were finally back on solid ground, she took a deep breath, before realizing that Shadow didn't seem like he was about to set her down. "I... I dunno. I think so..." While she did have a pretty harsh pain in her stomach, she assumed it was thanks to the pain from riding on Shadow, and not the issue of the ribs. "I'm beat... We making camp soon, boss...?"

GojiBean​

 

[GojiBean]

Jessica beamed, tapping her chest.

"Happily married now for four years with a pair of twin bundles of joy, who are almost three. Much to my husband's dismay." She chuckled.

Myra rolled her eyes.

"I'm engaged to be married next Spring. My fiance's family is away in Shaharan for the next several months for business. But when they come back the wedding will be held proper here in Cre' Est."

Eileen continued spinning her thumbs, glancing away with a slight blush.

"I uh... I don't have anyone." She whispered.

"Yet." Jessica added emphatically. "Who could resist such a little cutie like you?" She asked.

Eileen blushed a bit more and looked further away.

------------------------------------​

Shadow paused mid-stride, turning to look at Whimsey over his shoulder again.

"... Don't call me "boss.""

While his voice was calm, there was a subtle hint of venom to it. However, he looked ahead and continued walking. And his tone returned to normal.

"What I am to you now is a guide. Nothing more. One who's job it is to help you realize your physical potential. But your life is yours, and yours alone. Giving someone a title of authority, even in jest, invites them to think they have power over you. And as I've learned the hard way, when you give them even a sliver of daylight to believe such a thing, most will take advantage at first opportunity... So don't give anyone any such opportunities. Even me."

Up ahead, through the trees, there was a faint silhouette of a building. Like a cabin or something similar.

"First lesson, Whimsey." He began as he finally stopped and set her down to walk on her own two feet again. "True self defense begins in the mind, and permeates all other aspects of your existence. So if you're not prepared to defend yourself here-" he said while pointing at her forehead. "-you haven't a chance to defend yourself against the real world. A lesson I'm certain you've learned from your time with your mother. Before you ask, Linde told me your story. And the fact is that during that time of your life you were unprepared and unfit to defend yourself against your mother's controlling nature. It wasn't your fault. But you did become a victim all the same."

Continuing on, Shadow led her towards the cabin which became clearer the more they walked.

"Linde told me you were like me. Someone born into a world of slavery, and led to believe it was the only life they were lucky to have. I was loathe to admit it before, but the parallels between you and I are rather striking. The only major difference is the who behind our lives in bondage."

Finally, the cabin came into view as Shadow pushed a low-hanging tree branch out of the way.

"Other than that detail... You and I are the same. And that's why I knew you'd make it to the top of that mountain." He said calmly, keeping his eyes on the cabin instead of Whimsey.

Leading her inside, he threw some dry logs on the fireplace and used a flint and steel to spark a fire. With that done, he put the fire screen up and tossed Whimsey some new clothes.

"They're probably a bit big for you, but they'll help you warm up. So get changed and stay close to the fire. I'm going hunting."

Mothman

 

[Mothman]

"That's wonderful news, both of you." A smile crept onto his face as the two women discussed their wonderful families, though was just a tad bit jealous. "And Eileen, I'm certain you'll find someone to sweep you off of your feet." Chuckling, he glanced over to the door to the apothecary. He didn't want to overload Eileen and make her flustered with his praises.

---

"...Sorry." Whimsey muttered the words gently as Shadow reprimanded her. The words that followed in regards to his reasoning made her nod with a small sigh of understanding. While he did have a point, she still wished to properly show the respect she had for the man without coming out and just saying it.

She supposed she would just have to be honest. "Just wanted to show some appreciation. But... You've got a point." Her eyes went to the building in the distance, blinking a few times in surprise.

As Shadow set her down, she seemed unsteady on her feet for a short moment. It wasn't until Shadow was about halfway through his 'lesson' that she got the feeling back in her legs and quickly caught up with him. There was a small hitch in her breath as Shadow brought up her mother, but she supposed she didn't mind him knowing. It was bound to come up eventually.

"I get what you're saying." A nod followed her word.

"Can I be honest, Shadow...?" Crossing her arms as they continued to walk through the forest, she spoke again. "I'd kill her if I ever saw her again. In a heartbeat. I... I've never been able to get past everything I did. So many people... So many innocents..."

"But I'm not sold on revenge. It just... The damage has been done. I've taken too many lives. I want to do some good for once in my damned life..." She nervously bet at her thumbnail before glancing over to Shadow, eyes going a bit wide at the idea of them being similar. He had a point, after all. It made her laugh, in truth, the idea of them being so similar. Not to mention Shadow's reassuring words about her making it to the top did a lot to make her feel a bit better.

As she stepped into the cabin, she let out one more small giggle before looking over to Shadow. "My, my, Shadow... You're quite an interesting one." Smirking as she sat down, she let out a short groan as she let her muscles relax for the first time in hours. "...But I appreciate it. More than you could know... You have my word that I'll take those words to heart." Trailing off, she watched the man hurl some clothes her way. "Ah, thanks..." Nodding, she stood up and waited for Shadow to leave before going ahead and changing. As Shadow had said, they were a bit big on her, but they were dry, and that was all she cared about. She took a seat in front of the fire with a small huff of satisfaction.

GojiBean

​