The tale of a travel fantastic, part 1

[rabcaz]

(For prelude, please read here.)



Voices ? Were there voices around her now ? Where was she and who was it that
she heard in front of her.

".. Drakfot. It was quite a surprise to see you at this early time of the
morning. And that you would come here." The blurry woman in front of her said.

"I am sorry that it be a rather short noted visit, but I have something to ask
you my friend." Was this her voice ? It felt liked she knew it so well but could
not really determine if it was hers or not.

"Then please come inside Drakfot." The lady were clearer now and she could
almost tell who she was. But where was she, why was she knocking on this door at
this time, in this place ?

"Do you need help with the basket ?" The lady said as she held the door open.

Suddenly she looked at the basket that had been standing next to her, inside it
were four small little Yubos sleeping calmly. Then she knew.

This was a memory from just a few days ago, she started to recall bit by bit as
she entered the great hallway of the Guild Hall. The lady! It was her friend
Trixie and she had come to visit her early in the morning to ask her a favour.
It all started to come clear for her now.

"Thank you my friend, I do hope that I do not disturb you at this hour." Drakfot
said to Trixie whom answered with a smile.

"Not at all my friend, it was just the surprise that caught me a little off
hand. Please come in, since we are awake why not share breakfast together." She
said with a gesture towards a grand table standing in a room not far away.

Later on as they sat and ate, the others from the Sirens had also joined them
after being reassured by Trixie that Drakfot was more then welcome, when Trixie
asked :

"What was it you wished to ask me Drakfot? You mentioned something at the door."

"Aye, my friend it seems as I have to embark onto a journey to travel some of
the outskirts of the lands and I am afraid that it could take some time. And I
would not wish for the little ones to be held for too long in the apartment,
alone. It would tear my heart, so this is why I have come here to ask you my
friend; Could you tend for them while I am away?" Drakfot said with a serious
and at the same time, pleading face. "I know that it be much to ask for, but it
was a sudden call and I had nowhere else to turn."

Trixie looked at Drakfot, then cast a glimpse at the little basket where the
little ones were still sleeping calmly, sometimes kicking as they dreamt, and
then back at Drakfot. Suddenly a big smile came onto her face as she said :

"Of course I will my friend. It would be a pleasure and a joy to have them here
while you are away. I do not think that any of the sisters would object to
this." She said and smiled.

The others who sat a bit away looked the best they could at the basket as they
had not seen it until it was mentioned and when they saw the little Yubo puppies
they nodded and smiled.

"Thank you my friend." Drakfot said..

But why ? Why would she suddenly recall this memory, what had really happened to
her. She tried to remember what the last thing she could recall was, but all
that came to mind was a big black shadow and then suddenly the side of her hurt
so much that it all turned black again.

She did not know how much time that had passed, if any at all had, when she
started hearing the voices again. But this time it was different ones, so many
more voices around her. Was she still alive or was this a dream of a confused
mind? She tried to move but it seemed impossible and instead she tried to open
her eyes, not knowing what it was she would see. If she was still able to see at
all, she was so confused that she did not know what to do, suddenly she
remembered how short memories had come to her, but why ?
She opened her eyes a little but the light was so strong that it sent a piercing
sensation into her head and it was as if it was to explode in pain but it seemed
as it triggered something as she was able to give out a little moan.

"Quickly, see to her, make her go back to sleep again." Was the last thing she
heard before she faded away again.

Once more time seemed to have passed along, but she could not say how long. But
it seems as she was still alive, was she ? It seemed as it was nightfall as the
wind now was colder and she could hear the sounds of nocturnal animals in the
distant. It came to her that she had been improving, at first she could only see
a memory in her mind. The second time she was able to hear voices others from
the ones of her memory. And now, the third time, she was able to sense the air
on her face and hear things further away. What could this be a sign of, passing
on ? Or revival ?
She also remembered the pain and her head was still hurting since the had tried
to open her eyes. Would she dare to try and open them again, if it was night
then perhaps she would be able to see at least a glimpse of her surroundings,
but would her head hurt again. She decided to try and have a look no matter
what. She slowly opened her eyes carefully and it seemed as she was right in
that it was darker as it did not sting as it had done previously. But what was
it that she saw ? It was so blurry.

"... worry, please relax. No one will hurt you.." The face said to her as she
tried to focus on it. It was hard and very blurry but after a moment she
recognized the look of it, it had the same characteristics as a face of the same
race as he was. She was looking at a Zoraï, a female.

She tried to open her mouth to ask who she was, where she was and what had
happened but it was impossible for her, there was no strength and it seemed as
even the though would end up in pain. She closed her eyes and in her mind she
made a terrible face of pain while she knew that her face was unchanged except
for her eyes were closed hard.

"Please, be calm. Do not try to strain yourself. You are still in a bad, no a
horrible shape, please drink this and sleep." The voice from the lady near her
said as she felt something pouring between her lips down into her throat. It
was a warm and sweet sensation that filled her mouth and went further down into
her stomach. She reacted with doing a small swallowing movement, even if it hurt
it was worth it as just seconds later she felt warm inside and fell back to
sleep.

Once more there were noises that she heard, it seemed as she had woken up again.
What was that sparkling sound from, it felt warm not far from her too. It must
be from a camp fire nearby she thought. She did not open her eyes at once but
she tried to listen to the things around her. She could once more hear several
voices and now she recognized one of them coming from the lady she had seen
before she fell to sleep again. She wondered what they were talking about, but
she could not focus well enough to hear them. Given the fact that she had been
sleeping she somehow felt a little rested but still it was as if there were just
energy enough for her to be merely awake and listen.
She made a little mumble to see if she was able to talk, but only small sounds
came from her mouth but it was enough to call the attention of the Zoraï lady as
she could soon hear someone sitting down next to her and something touched her
forehead.

"There, there. You have a very high fever. You need to rest even more." She
said and another sip went down her throat, but this time it was a little more
the the previous one.

No dreams, no memories. Just darkness as she slept.

".. I don't know. It seems as she would be recovering. But I cannot understand
how she was able to sustain so much, not after how her body had been beaten."
There was the voice of the lady again.

"So, why do we have to drag her along, its slowing us down!" Another voice, a
male one exclaimed.

"Stop talking nonsense Ba'Naer. You know very well that we are not supposed to
leave any Homin that is within our care alone." The lady said.

"Yes, we all know that you are the practical one of us, but this time we must
let our task wait. She needs our help and we are the only ones to give it to
her." Another female voice said.

"Bah, I know you're right. Its just that I am eager to get there and get things
started that's all." The male voice said again.

"Yes, we know how you are Ba'Naer. Don't worry." A female said. "How is she by
the way?"

"I am not sure. It is beyond my skills of heal but somehow it is as if she is
walking a edge, compared to the damage she had when we found her she should be
long past away. But for some reason it is as if her body will not give in, that
she do not want to loose this battle." It was the Zoraïan lady again.

"I see, is there anything we can do that will help?" The other female said.

"Time I think, only time will tell if she will stay with us or if she will walk
on." The lady Zoraïan said.

"I think she is awake, I thought I saw her move her head a little." The other
voice said.

"You are quite troublesome aren't you. I told you to rest as much as you could.
You have had a very high fever for several days now, please rest." She said as
she placed her hand on her forehead again.

Suddenly she remembered something; some time ago when she had been lying in her
bed in her apartment, crying as she had been missing someone, she had suddenly
felt something warm behind her. As she had hoped that it was him, she rolled
over but it was not him. Instead it was her pet Yubo, the mother who had taken
place next to her. She lifted her head and tilted it a little as she looked back
at Drakfot before she gave off a low "yiesch" and put the head down and fallen
to sleep. Drakfot looked at her with eyes red from crying and smiled, perhaps he
was gone but she was far from alone. She hugged Eldsjäl and fell asleep with her in
her arms.

The little ones, they were still at her friends The Sirens from her memory. They
were safe there, she knew. But she would not wish to never see them again, she
needed to get back to them and her friends as soon as she could. The memory of
holding Eldsjäl stayed in her mind as she fell back into a heavy sleep.

She was awaken by some commotion around her as she heard all the voices again
and many other sounds. It seemed as they were all busy with preparing something
but she did not open her eyes to look, the warmth told her that it would be too
bright for her eyes again. Suddenly she felt someone sitting down next to her
and a third female voice spoke to her.

"Hey there, are you awake ? Sorry to wake you if not, but we need to continue
our travel soon so we are preparing for it. But there is something I need to ask
you. We have a cart and we have agreed to place you on it, but for that we need
to move you and it will probably hurt, a lot. So be prepared, sorry." She said
before she got up and walked away.

Drakfot lied on the ground and thought about what she had just heard, she hoped
that she had not interfered with their tasks and almost felt guilt for causing
so much trouble. She came to the conclusion that if they were kind to care for
her and even went as far as agreeing on taking her with them she could not
dishonour their kindness by rejecting such kind offer. That and that she wanted
to see her friends and the little ones again made it all an easy decision. She
felt how her body shook, probably due to the fever, before she fell asleep
again.

A little later, somehow it felt as she had only been asleep for a few hours at
most, she was awaken by the Zoraï's voice again.

"I am sorry, I hope that Be'Ledacan spoke to you earlier about that we have to
move you. Do not worry about your mount he will be tied to the back of the cart
while we travel and he is doing fine. But now we have to move you onto the cart
and it will likely hurt very much. I am sorry but it is all we can do for now."
She said with a calm and kind voice as she gave Drakfot another sip of the sweet
fluid.

After a few minutes when it had taken effect Drakfot felt how someone carefully
grabbed her in order to move her. As they lifted her the pain struck intensely
throughout her entire body and as it reached its top she suddenly relaxed and
fainted.

She did not know how long has passed since she had fainted but as she awoke
again she recalled to have dreamt about something but she could not recall what
it really was about. Perhaps it was small glimpses of memories that she had
seen. She listened and heard the sound of wooden wheels slowly moving and she
felt how she herself moved in a rhythmic motion, she was moving. She then
recalled what had happened just before she had woken up; the pain when they had
moved her. That was why she heard the wheels and moved like this, they had
started to travel somewhere.
Drakfot made a slow attempt to open her eyes to look around and found it to be
rather successful. Her head did not hurt as much now neither did her eyes as she
looked around the little she could as it was still hard for her to move her
head. She stared at the sky for a moment, looking at the clouds slowly moving
around, the planets were still there and so was the roots. She felt glad to be
able to see them again. Then she felt how dry her throat was and that she really
needed something to water it with. She opened her mouth slowly

"th..er...nee.. d.. wa..t..er.." She said with a low voice. Even if it was low
it was progress as it was the first time she had spoken since.. since that
shadow.

"Aah, so you are awake now. And quite the talker too I see. I'll fetch Geie
she'll know what to give you. You lie still now, hehe." It was the female voice
that had told her that they needed to move her.

"Ah, Be'Ledacan told me that you were awake again and talking. Seems as you
have become a little stronger too, your face has a little more colour now. But
that is to be expected from someone that have been asleep for three whole days.
We thought that the cart would keep you awake all the time, I am glad that we
were wrong." The Zoraïan lady said as she placed a bottle on Drakfot's lips
allowing her to have several small sips from it. "If you continue like this you
will be up and walking in no time. Besides we are not far away from our
destination too so it will be easier for you to rest once we get there."
The fluid filled Drakfot with warmth and comfort as it started its effect and
just before she fell back into sleep she looked at the Zoraïan lady and tried
her best to smile towards her. She was met with another smile from her before it
became black again.

Unknowing how much time that had passed since she had seen the face and smile of
the Zoraïan lady and the sound from the wheels of the cart as it moved across
the Atysian lands, Drakfot woke up once more by the ruckus of voices and things
moving around her. Her throat felt much better now and it was not as dry as it
had been when she last was awake. She tried to look around but did not notice
much more then most of the things on the cart, except the boxes placed as a bed
for her, was unloaded. When she focused more she could hear the sound of water
slowly going forward and back as the wind changed direction. Soon the sun was
covered in a shadow and someone spoke to her.

"We have set up a small tent for you and a fire to keep you warm during the
night. But we have to move you once more." It was the Zoraï lady again.

Drakfot looked at her and tried to speak

"I... am... tha..kfu..l" Was all she managed to say before her lungs burned
again. But it was still progress as it was the most clear she had said since she
had awoken the first time.

"Do not worry, please have a big sip of this and we will try and move you as
gentle as we possibly can." The tall blue lady said as she once more placed the
flash to Drakfot's lips.

The more she drank now the better she felt and as the potion started to spread
throughout her body, making it feel relaxed and a little numb, removing the
pressure of the constant pain from her mind, Drakfot fell aslumber once more but
this time before they started to move her so she did not feel the pain she had
experienced the last time. She seemed to have slept rather comfortably as she
did not have any odd dreams nor memories haunting her and she woke up at the
evening hearing the sparkles of a fire and someone opening a bag.

The Zoraï lady was unpacking some fresh bandages and lotions placing them on the
blanket near Drakfot. When she noticed that her patient was awake she once more
smiled and just the good intent of the smile relieved some pain.

"Have I introduced myself yet? I am Geie, descendant of Zoraï. I will tend to
your wounds and bandages as they need replacement." She said as she removed the
first set of bandages covering a big gash on Drakfot's right side.

"N...ic.. eet... you.. I ...D..ak.ft.." It was hard to talk again, both the
lungs and the throat was hurting too much, perhaps the effect of the potion had
finally stopped now.

"Drakfot, yes I had guessed so. The rumour precedes you, still I did not figure
it out until moments ago when I found some of your notes, by accident. Your
mount was still tied to the cart and it seemed as he preferred to have a bath
instead of standing still here so he tugged himself loose and lost the packing
in the process." She said with a calm voice.

"Ki..." Drakfot suddenly said remembering that she had been travelling with him.

"Do not worry, he is safe and sound. And probably still wet from the bath.
Though he didn't like to be tied up again but ran away as soon as we approached
him with the leash. But he seems to stay close." Geie said as she removed a
compress covering the wound. "Hmm, this looks to have healed rather well indeed,
it almost surprise me how fast you have recovered."

Drakfot made an attempt to move her head to catch a glimpse of it, but a sting
of pain and her stiff neck actively stopped her from looking, Geie noticed this
and calmed her down by telling her that they had not had the possibility to
fully care for her up until now. But that after having the bandages replaced and
applying some of her lotions it would make a significant improvement of the
regeneration. Drakfot accepted this, as there was not much else for her to do,
and tried her best not to feel too much pain as Geie carefully and gently
replaced one bandage after another.
It took some time but finally Drakfot was all changed and the places where the
lotion was applied felt warm and relaxed.

"Now sleep as much as you can, these lotions will help you improve the sap flow
of the outside of your body. Just as the fluid you have been drinking improves
the inner flow. It is time for your own body to take over the healing process
now." She said as she stood up and picked her things together. "Rest until the
morning and I am sure that you will feel much better. We are not far away from
here and we will keep an eye out for you now and then so you can rest calmly
Drakfot."

"Ge..ie.." Drakfot said with what strength she could muster.

"Yes, what is it Drakfot ?" Geie asked her a bit worried.

"Tha...k y..ou" Drakfot said and smiled before she closed her eyes and fell
asleep again.