Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Living Danger [1x1]

Rahime listened to her, paying careful attention to not just her words, but her habits. It all made sense, of course. "All power gives a rush. You suddenly find yourself stronger than you were before; some may think it terrifying, but it's also thrilling at the same time." He leaned forward, watching her when she laid down from her pacing. "My wounds will heal." he replied casually, brushing off completely the fact that she hurt him. He expected it from day one, really. "Some do remain changed. I have seen it. They lose themselves so entirely that even when they turn into a human-esque form, they are still monster. There is nothing human about them anymore. Some become feral completely. Most do, actually. Which is why I hunt them. But some hold on to their sanity, losing it thread by thread." He lifted a brow slightly. "You've lost the first thread of your sanity. Each change pulls one away. Still...you aren't much worse for wear. I think you might be able to last for a little while at least. We need to keep moving tomorrow, to find a good place to settle down for a few days and train."

The girl nodded, understanding most of it, and resolving not to seek out her father. If he hadn't completely lost it, or been killed by now, he would have found her.

"So training...will just be keeping myself from changing?" She didn't want to steadily lose her mind, but she wondered how much she might crave the change if it happened again. That night in the tavern, a battle was born inside of her...she would likely never feel normal again, but now she would never be able to embrace this new part of her without giving up on her humanity.

Before emotion could overtake her, slumber did its job as she mumbled a goodnight to him.

"Not quite." Rahime answered, watching her carefully. "That will be part of it. The main part will be control, unchanged and changed." He watched as she started to fall asleep. "..Goodnight, Bryzain." He pulled the covers up over her and went to his own bed, laying down to get some rest as well. It was going to be hard, figuring out how to control her bloodlust. But once they got that under control...anything could be possible.

Few dreams stuck in her mind that night, but the following morning Bryzain awoke feeling incredibly pleasant and well rested, if out of place. Initially she felt very much at home, stretching into the warmth she would have felt waking in her own bed. Then her hands gripped a knit blanket instead of her treasured furs. When she opened her eyes, she felt rather silly, though no dismay permeated her smile upon seeing Rahime still slumbering in the morning light.

The rumble in her tummy distracted her from the mess of her hair, bringing a touch of worry to her morning. Hunger had become a sinister thing. Not wanting to wake him, she dug through her rations and nibbled on some disappointingly stale bread. The grumble persisted in complaint, and she considered making her way downstairs to see if the kitchen had opened, but didn't want him to worry. Reaching over, she wiggled his foot and whispered.

"Rahime," she murmured as she shook. "Hey. Wake up, I'm hungry! Rahime."

Rahime's reaction was probably a lot more than he expected. He bolted upright in a moment, sitting straight and holding a knife in his hand, ready for a fight. He let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding as he saw that it was just Bryzain. He slid the dagger back under his pillow and sighed. "You don't know any better way to wake someone?"

He stood up nonetheless and gave a stretch. "Alright, alright." He picked up his coin purse. "Let's go get something to eat." He went downstairs with her, and ordered her meal for her. Bacon and eggs, extra bacon. He was testing to see if he could control the hunger in her with cooked meat, instead of raw meat.

The knife made her eyes bug out as she ducked against the foot of the bed, but she let herself giggle at his disgruntled and groggy words when she lightly apologized. She beat him to the base of the stairs, far too chipper for how hungry she was but still fueled by waking up in a good mood.

The bacon was actually well cooked (at least she thought so) and she used it to break the yolk of the first egg before she moved on to some fresher bread. Since there were others in the tavern, she did what she could not to scarf it all down at once, though she still finished before Rahime. Though she'd eaten three pieces, the fourth still poking from her mouth, she eyed his plate as he finished and assessed her satiation. Once she had washed it all down with some milk, she smiled at him and nodded, then let loose a belch that surprised even her.

Rahime sat down with her and ate, watching as she scared everything down. He just continued to eat his own meal, raising a brow when she belched like she did. Sigh. Manners were going to need to be re-taught. "Do you want some more to eat, Bryzain?" he asked calmly, still working on his own meal. He was in no hurry, and if she wanted more then he would simply order her more.

At his expression, she blushed and said, "excuse me." But at the offer of more food, she shook her head and tried to forget what happened yesterday that kept her from being as ravenous today. It didn't work, all the same she tried to remain cheerful. Even as thoughts stewed over how she might feel tomorrow, or next week; how often she might feel the urge to kill, and how she might not be able to suppress it.

"What shall we be doing today?" She asked him, avoiding any inkling of what tacit things had crossed her mind.

Rahime gave a slight shrug, then at the question he finished eating and stood up. "Traveling. Maybe we'll shop through the marketplace first." He waited until she was ready before he headed back up to get their things ready. "Is there anything specific you would want to do?"
He made sure everything was packed up before he headed out into the market with her, unless she said she wanted to do something else first.

"No," she shook her head. She found herself eager to leave town anyway, as they wandered the shops. The people gave her funny looks, and even if it were only because of her newness, it made her uncomfortable. Part of her wondered whether a bigger city would help her disappear into a crowd, or if she would only pose a larger threat. After they'd resupplied and begun to make their way out of town, she tucked her hair behind her ear and asked something she'd wondered about.

"The other day, when I lost control and you...made me change back," she shook her head at the fuzzy memory. "How much magic are you capable of?" She glanced to him to hear his answer.

Rahime stocked up on supplies and then headed out of town with her, noticing her nerves at being around people. When she suddenly spoke up, he looked over to her carefully. "More than you'll ever have to see, hopefully." He looked at his hand for a few moments, flexing it, but he still kept walking.
Perhaps it was time to tell her a little more about himself. "When I was attacked by a werewolf, I dedicated the rest of my life to learning magic. It's the only thing that stands a chance against them."

"Really?" She grew thoughtful. "Who taught you?" She tried to tread lightly, now that he'd opened up. As trusting as she'd been she didn't actually know too much about him or his past, and with her having an energetic day she enjoyed the chance at conversation.

"We didn't see many magic users in the mountains," she explained.

Rahime rubbed at his palm slightly as he walked, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. "I taught myself, mostly. I started with a couple street magicians and performers who used bits of real magic for their tricks. From there, I discovered much of it on my own and through written texts."
He nodded as she mentioned the lack of magic users in the mountains. "I've found they are a solitary kind. If they are in the mountains they are contently in hiding, preferring to test out their skills on local wildlife instead of among other people."

She noticed his nervous habit but said nothing of it at first, merely nodding as he spoke of magicians and sorcery. There had always been stories, and more often than not some were passed around as truth. But she had never met anyone before who proved them to be real, and she wasn't really sure what to think.

"If I may, why are you rubbing your hand?"

Rahime glanced at her as she brought up his hand. He looked down at it for a moment, frowning in though as he tried to decide whether he wanted to tell her or not. Finally, he would slow his pace a little to be right beside her, and showed her his palm. There was a burned scar on it, definitely some sort of spell circle. "Being a magic user is complicated. Sometimes you have to take vows, pass tests. Not just anyone is allowed to use magic, after all. If that was the case, the whole world would be plunged into chaos." He pointed to where there was a scar slicing through the spell circle. "I was cast out from the society of magic users. But that doesn't stop the fact that I can use magic. They thought it did, but my magical abilities were beyond what they had assumed."

When he showed her his palm, she looked on kindly. It wasn't until he mentioned banishment that she felt a degree of alarm. Her eyes widened in surprise and she tried to stay mellow. If he were as powerful as all that, she didn't want to end up on his bad side, or see what spells might fly if he were that upset.

"What did you do?" She asked softly. "What I mean to say is, what did they cast you out about?"

Rahime smiled slightly. "They cast me out because of what I'm doing with you right now, Bryzain. A 'human experiment', as they called it. Not just a human experiment, but a living human at that. Only very important magical tasks can be allowed a living human experiment. Mine is a 'personal endeavor', as they described it. Now that I had the magic to protect myself from werewolves, I wanted to find out if there was a way to cure them. To keep their humanity inside of them despite whatever physical changes might come. For that, I was cast out."
After a moment, he gave a slight shrug. "I may also have killed one of their members in a duel." Maybe.

A nervous giggle escaped her, relieved it hadn't been as horrid an explanation as some of the darker tales she'd been told. His idea of human experimentation at least had good intent, and was something she hoped she could help with.

"Was it...a sanctioned duel? Or did he try to...eliminate you?"

Rahime considered the question. "It was a mutual challenge. He didn't accept that I was ever a true magic-user, and I never accepted that he should have been in the order in the first place. So we finally challenged each other, and I won." He smirked slightly. "Served him right. He always doubted my skill. The others never knew what I was capable of. They underestimated a farmboy from the west." He chuckled slightly and just kept walking.

"How far west?" She hadn't taken him for a farmhand, chuckled a bit at his story. She'd seen fights like that before, and they usually did deserve it. Keeping pace with him, she pulled down the loose shoulder of her dress and underlying tunic, to reveal the marks on her upper arm.

"This is...why I am the way I am." After she ran a finger over the raised skin, she slid her sleeve back into place and remained quiet for a moment. "Do you think you can really help me...stay me?"