Healing Hands; The Early Bird - Jygust 30th-early MT (open)

[Shylah Boyd]

Healing Hands is located in the Baron Estates. It is owned and operated by Shylah Boyd, an up and coming healer.
The house was modest, easily merging with its neighbors. It was several down from Kaelara's Corner shop, on the other side of the street. One could easily see the other from their doorways. A small sign was posted outside the door. On it, written in a gold letters, 'Healing Hands'. Around it were various pictures depicting herbs and one of a person dressed in a green healer's tabard, to help those who did not read human or anything for that matter know what sort of shop it was. Hanging beside the door was a small lamp that would shine on the sign in the evening.
Inside, the front room was set up with several mismatched chairs, a small cot and several shelves with pots and jars and bandages dotting the space. Several bunches of herbs were hung around the place, drying and a small fireplace burned off to the side of the shelves, a pot hanging over it. From the pot, a delicate aroma of lavender seemed to infuse the air with calm. A small table was in the middle of the room was covered with dried herbs as well as a mortar and pestle, one which had some ground herbs in it. Several open jars dotted the table as well.
The front windows had modest curtains made of emerald satin (a dress cut down in the name of business), tied back with matching ribbons. It was neat, orderly, practical. What one might expect of a healer’s domain.
A hallway off to the left, led to an small exam room where two more cots were, along with several shelves with more jars and bandages. There isn't a door for this room, only a green curtain hung in its place. However, it gives enough privacy for the business conducted within.
Further down the hallway is another room, Shylah's living quarters. This is typically a bright room, with a very happy feel. A small cot nestled comfortably in a far corner of the room, which was always made nice and neat. A candle sat next to a small writing tablet, and nearby were a few bags which contained some of the young woman's belongings.

Pulling a white, long-sleeved chemise over her fiery head, Shylah knew that she was running a little behind this morningtide. Furious with herself for staying up so late in putting the final touches to her living space, she only hoped that she had time to start up a pot of tea before beginning her activities for the day. With the steady increase of patients over the last several weeks, the achadhiel healer didn't expect today to be as slow as she had hoped. Tension was running high throughout the city, and it only fueled the fidgety behavior Shylah started to embody over the course of a week. Perhaps the leading cause to this behavior was for that fact that after writing numerous letters to her parents, she has yet to receive any response. At first, Shylah shrugged it off that perhaps her family had grown very busy with their bakery, but after weeks of hearing nothing, she knew something had to be wrong. Knowing very well that she couldn't just take off for several days and see for herself what the delay was, Shylah forced herself to not think about it and continue with her duties in Pax.

Quickly tying her hair into one long, loose braid, Shylah hurried out of her room and into the dimly-lit hallway. It was still very early and the sun was just starting to rise. Quietly she passed the exam room, where Trajan normally slept after hours, and out into the front room where the curtains were closed tightly, forbidding any rays of sunlight to soak through. Fumbling around one of the shelves, Shylah picked up a small jar of tea leaves, and a large water-filled waterskin. Next, she made her way to the fireplace, setting the jar on the floor nearby and then grabbing the kettle from its resting place. After a few flickers, she managed to get a proper fire going and immediately filled the pot with water, before placing it on a large hook, which held the pot up over the fire. It was clear she had enough to time for this, and while she waited for the water to boil, she made herself comfortable in a rickety chair nearby, opening up a book on treating insect bites. All was quiet and that was one of Shylah's favorite things about waking so early in the day.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Shylah’s pleasant early morning read was interrupted by a sharp rap on her shop door, followed by a loud bump. If she opened the door she would find that the source of both the knock and bump was a young achadhiel boy who had collapsed on the ground outside her front door. The boy was pale and moaned loudly. Standing beside him was a small, blond-haired little girl, also an achadhiel. Both achadhiel were dressed in tattered clothes.

“Can you help my brother", she whispered in a frightened voice, “He’s very ill. I’m scared he is going to die.”

[Shylah Boyd]

Startled by the loud bump at her door, Shylah dropped her book and stared wide-eyed at the door before jumping out of her chair. Not bothering to pick the book up off of the ground, she made her way to the door and unlocked it. Once the door was opened, Shylah saw two achadhiel children at her doorstep, one who looked very frightened and the other collapsed at her doorstep. Immediately, the gray-eyed woman stooped down next to the boy and tried pulling him into her arms. With children, Shylah always had an immediate soft spot for, and her motherly mode always kicked into high gear when one was in danger.

“You have come to the right place,” Shylah said, looking at the little girl with a warm smile, “I will do my best to help your brother. Please, go ahead inside and have a seat near the fire. I will carry him inside.”

Shylah looked at the little boy's face and smiled sadly, “I'm going to carry you inside. Are you ready?”

[Trajan Constantine Aeneas]

Trajan Aeneas had been having the most pleasant of dreams. Though upon being awoken by one of the coughing fits that had plagued him since the encounter at the emerald falls he couldn’t recall it. The fit was relatively short, but the young man found it impossible to get back to sleep once he was awake because he could hear voices and movement in the front room, though they were indistinct.

Since his sleep was already ruined, and seeing as that it was technically day, Trajan got out of bed and pulled on some breeches before exiting the room where he slept. Immediately upon entering the exam room, he was confronted by the image of an achadheil child, a girl, sitting by the fire place. He stopped in the door way and looked for Shylah, who he found easily enough kneeling in the doorway which lead to the street.

“... Are you ready?” He had heard her say, and after glancing once more in the little girls direction, he crossed through the waiting room to the doorway to see who Shylah was talking to and what assistance he could offer.

“Is there anything I can do to be of assistance?” He asked softly as he approached, not wanting to startle either Shylah or whomever it was she was speaking to, not yet knowing what the order of the day might be. He stopped within arms length of the door and waited for further instruction one way or the other.

[Guido Cercatoro]

The little girl smiled gratefully and went to take a seat by the fire; the boy nodded weakly and raised his arms slightly to grasp Shylah. He was small and thin, perhaps even undernourished and it would be easy for the healer to carry him inside. As she knelt besides the boy, Trajan arrived and offered assistance.

[Shylah Boyd]

Finding it rather easy and disturbing all at once, in picking the boy up, Shylah smiled warmly and looked to Trajan with a worried expression. These children were obviously very poor and the achadhiel woman immediately felt sorry for them. In a way it angered Shylah that the boy was sick like this because her thoughts first went to the fact that he was malnourished, and that was the cause of this. Wondering where these childrens' parents were, she smiled sadly at the boy's sister, “Would you like something to eat?”

“Trajan, I have some warm water over there over the fire,” Shylah stated nodding her head in the direction of the fireplace, “Could you fix a few cups of tea and grab some fruit out of the bowl on the top shelf? I'm sure these children could use some kind of nourishment.”

“I'm going to head on back to the exam room and check him out. If you can, try to get some information from this child's sister as to what could be the reasoning behind his sickness and report back to me,” she smiled sadly, “Oh, and thank you for your assistance.”

Saying everything she needed to say, Shylah disappeared into the hallway and back to the exam room. Hoping that this small child could be saved, she prayed silently and laid him upon the exam table. Not sure where to begin, she grabbed a blanket from the closet and laid it over his tiny body, and placed her small hand upon his forehead.

“I am Shylah,” she stated with a smile, “Can you tell me what your name is?”

[Trajan Constantine Aeneas]

As Shylah directed him, Trajan made tea and fetched fruit from the top shelf for the little girl. It took only a few burns to put the meager repast together, a cup of tea an apple and two pears on a separate plate. He set the offerings on the hearth near where she was seated and pulled a seat for himself over so he was facing her, but not looming. She seemed nervous and Trajan could well understand it based on her appearance. Her clothes were badly tattered and she was waifish and dirty.

“Go ahead.” He prompted her when she didn’t immediately make a move for the food. “We aren’t going to hurt you. Shylah is going to help your brother and you and I are going to have a little chat ok?” He waited for the girl to eat, or at least drink the tea before he continued.

“My name is Trajan.” He said with a slight nod of satisfaction if the girl went for the breakfast he had offered. “What’s yours? And what’s wrong with your brother?” He waited for the girl to answer, watching her intently without staring and noting everything which might be of consequence.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Shylah carried the boy into the examination room and set him down on her table. Placing her hand on his brow indicated that the boy had some sort of fever and he moaned periodically. He looked so young, so fragile. Unlike his sister he was dark-haired but his face was pale and his lips had a trace of blue in them.

“I am Shylah,” she stated with a smile, “Can you tell me what your name is?”

The boy didn’t respond but he thrashed around a little as if the fever was making him delirious.

“Don’t make me eat more,” he murmured, “it hurts.”

Trajan made a quick meal for the little girl and sat down beside her close to the fire. She was a pretty, fair-haired achadhiel. The girl held her hands tightly clasped on her lap gazing towards the door of the examination room, obviously concerned for her brother. Despite her anxiety, she needed little prompting to devour the food; she was clearly ravenous.

My name is Trajan.” He said with a slight nod of satisfaction if the girl went for the breakfast he had offered. “What’s yours? And what’s wrong with your brother?”

“My name is Arianne,” she replied. “I do not know what is wrong with him. He went to meet someone who promised him food and banners, for we have none.” Her eyes dropped towards the floor and a tear rolled down her cheek. “When he returned he looked dreadful and complained of pains in his stomach. He said that he had run away from the man as he had found out he was a bad man.”

[Shylah Boyd]

Many things could have been wrong with the little boy, but only one thing stood out as the likely possibility. He was obviously poisoned. She feared that someone was behind this innocent child's illness, as she thought back to what he had said, Don't make me eat more. The thought alone of someone harming a child, angered the achadhiel healer more than anything else.

However, thinking back to his fever, she knew that the thing that would help with that the most, would be a tea made from Achillea millefolium, but at this moment she couldn't pull herself away from him, in fear of leaving him unattended in his current condition. Biting her lip, the tiny woman's eyes scanned a shelf nearby. For a few flickers, it didn't occur to her once her eyes fell upon a tiny vile of purple potion, but the Echinacea Purper potion would have to work for now. After all, she had used it many times on patients who required immediate attention such as this, and was confident that it would tidy the small boy over until she was able to get to the tea.

Stepping a few paces away from the table, Shylah reached up on the shelf and grasped the vial. While she was there she took a small, blue box down as well. The box contained tablets of Althea, which would help with the stomach pains, if that was where the pain was. Taking the box down was just an extra precaution anyway, and should the pain be elsewhere then Shylah would have to rely on her god. She would have to pray and hope that Dominicus would answer her prayers. Her only other thought right now was what was going on in the other room. She hoped that Trajan was getting some of clue as to why the boy was so ill. The boy's sister would be the key to solving this crisis, shedding a light into the darkness.

“Can you give me an idea of where the pain is?” Shylah asked in a calm tone as she returned to the boy's side. Taking the cork off of the vial, she looked at the boy with great concern, placing a gentle hand behind his head, and titling it upwards to meet with that of the vial in her other.

“This is medicine, it is going to help relieve some of the pain you are experiencing. So, I need you to swallow.”

[Trajan Constantine Aeneas]

“My name is Arianne,” the young achadheil replied. Trajan listened intently as she continued, speaking between bites of food. Her story pulled his heart in many different directions, but it definitely went out to her and her brother. But Trajan had no doubt that Shylah would do her best, whether that proved to be enough or not was ultimately out of her hands of course…

“And this bad man your brother ran from, do you know where he is Arianne?” Trajans gaze was on the little girl, and he tried not to let the boiling cauldron of emotions inside him show, but he couldn’t be sure how successfully he was managing it. “Could you take me too him? It would help your brother if we knew what the bad man had done, specifically.” As he waited for Arianne’s response, Trajan was already formulating what he would do to the man in question when he caught him, and what he and Shylah would do with Arianne and her brother when this was over.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Shylah retrieved the Echinacea and Althea from her shelves. The boy continued to mumble incoherently, tossing his head as if the fever were getting worse. “Stomach hurts…head hurts…,” he blurted out in response to the healer’s query.

As the healer tried to adminster the medicine, her patient thrashed his head from side to side trying to avoid the vial. “No…it hurts,” he shouted. Shylah found it impossible to get him to take the potion, despite her reassurances.

**************************************************************************************************

Arianne shrugged in response to Trajan’s question. “I don’t know exactly. Somewhere in the refugee camp close to the mountains, I think. My brother can tell you if he recovers.” Tears began to well-up in the girl’s eyes.

“No…it hurts,”

The sound of her brother’s cry startled the small girl. Before Trajan could intervene, she ran into the examination room. “What are you doing to him?” She spoke in a frightened voice to the healer.

[Shylah Boyd]

Shylah nearly dropped the purple potion as the boy thrashed his head from side to side. This was going to be difficult, alright. Trying to hush the small boy, Shylah placed a small hand upon his chest, “Please, I’m not going to hurt you. This potion is going to help ease your pain, but it won’t work if you refuse to take it.”

It was after Shylah finished speaking to the achadhiel boy, that his sister entered the exam room, demanding an explanation. Turning her head to the small girl, Shylah eyes reflected only concern and compassion for the child. Underneath her exterior, the fiery-haired healer was fuming with frustration, although she hid it quite well.

“I’m trying to help him,” Shylah replied softly, looking to the doorway for any sign of Trajan. It would have been better if the small girl had some sort of an explanation, but at this moment, Shylah wasn’t the one who could give it to her, as she was busy trying to administer potion to a refusing patient.

“Trajan,” Shylah called out, hoping he was within earshot, “Could you explain to this dear girl that I am not harming her brother? I may also require some assistance in administering this potion. His life may very well depend on it.”

[Trajan Constantine Aeneas]

When Ariannes brothers cry of negation reached the waiting room, and his and her ears, she darted from the room immediately. Forsaking conversation and food to rush to her brothers’ side. Trajan was struck momentarily still by the speed at which the young achadheil moved, and it was nearly a burn before he moved to follow her consequently. By the time he was getting after her, Shylah was calling on him to explain to the girl, and perhaps help tend the brother who was apparently resisting treatment.

When he caught up to the young girl, she was standing, defiantly watching Shylah as if she could differentiate between the antidote her brother needed and any further poisons designed to finish him off. Trajan knelt smoothly next to the girl and wrapped his hands around her too small shoulders.

“Arianne,” he said softly, “look at me.” If she failed to heed him he repeated himself up to twice more before physically turning her face to his with the fingers of one hand. “Shylah and I are only trying to help your brother.” He explained quietly but rapidly, “He needs to take the medicine Shylah is trying to give him or he is going to die do you understand? We’ll do everything we can but if neither he or you cooperate then there is no hope.” He watched the girl for her reaction and if she seemed to understand he stood and took one of her diminutive hands in his.

“Come on.” He said. “Lets help your brother together shall we?” If Arianne seemed amenable he walked her over to the exam table and instructed her to hold one of her brothers hands and speak to him quietly. If she asked for a topic, he would tell her that anything would suffice, just so long as he could hear her voice. Trajan then looked at Shylah, leaving the little girl holding her brother and speaking to him about whatever and asked what he could do to be of assistance. All that said, he waited silently for further direction.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Shylah’s words did little to calm the boy. He continued to thrash around in a delirious manner, small drops of spittle foaming from the corner of his mouth. One hand moved to his stomach as if that was the main source of his pain. His sister looked on, clearly horrified by the condition of her brother.

Trajan entered, knelt by the girl and put a comforting arm around her shoulders. She responded to his voice and he was soon head to head with a small, frightened little face. Mutely, Arianne listed to his words She gulped nervously but nodded slowly as if she accepted Trajan’s explanation of what was occuring. However, her attempt to grasp her brother’s hand met with no more success than Shylah’s attempt. The boy was oblivious to those present, his face creased in pain and his head tossing around violently. His breathing became more rapid and one thrash of his hand caught Arianne on the side of her face. She cried out in pain blurting out what was presumably his name: “Aralan…”

[Torc Blackfoot]

Torc had finally finished his conversation with Mara and had decided to check up on the enlargement of storage space at Kaelara’s Corner. He had made the habit of not talking to Kaelara, feeling that his brief break in sanity was a bit too uncomfortable for the lady, and there had been little time after watching over the refugee’s these past few months. So Torc had decided to at least look in on the woman who had organized the festival.

As Torc was walking by he noticed the new Healer shop. It seemed funny to refer to things as new in a town that was less then a yarhen old. Especially since it was built on the remains of a long lost city and had its soul had sent visions to him of days long past. Still it was welcoming to have another healer around, for it would remove some of the demands of his time. As well as, provide a place for people to go when he left Selderine.

The smell of lavender invaded his senses as Torc approached the door. Feeling that a proper greeting and welcome to town, not to mention perhaps replacing his own supply of healing herbs, was in order Torc knocked on the wooden door, the knock sounded loud to his ears, and he felt sheepish for not controlling his own strength. Torc awaited feeling foolish for deciding to stop on such a nice day, but then a friendly conversation with another healer might do him some good.

As Torc stood in his dirty brown pants and sweat stained shirt and he silent reviewed his conversation with Mara. His long brown hair had been put back into a pony tail, allowing his half adhiel heritage to be displayed.

[Raevyn D`Altamooriana]

One of Raevyn's more peculiar habits was that she like many of her kind, was quite the curious one. Especially about things she knew little of. All in all curiosity wasn't that far fetch for adhiel's in general. yet it wasn't something one would come to expect from someone that carried herself in the manner that Raevyn did.

Far fetched as it may seem, the follower of Anasati happened upon Shylah's shop. Poisoning was the dark priestess' forte, so there was not much need for healing on her part. Yet she still couldn't resist the urge to see what the place was all about.

The first thing that she noticed upon entering was the commotion. There was a boy that was obviously very sick surrounded by a small group of people. Perhaps her timing was not the best, but now didn't seem to be the right time to just browse about.

[Shylah Boyd]

Things looked bleak as the young boy, whose name was now obvious, thrashed around even more violently than before. As the corners of his mouth foamed, Shylah's eyes widened in fear. She was going to lose this child if she didn't figure out what to do, and quick. With an eye cast in Trajan's direction, she nodded towards the chair in the corner of the room, “If she will not leave, please have her sit in that chair and help me hold him down.”

It was after the achadhiel woman had said this, that she heard a faint knocking at the door. Alarmed, Shylah dropped the purple potion on the ground, as the glass that held it, shattered at her feet. With a sigh of desperation, she placed a tiny hand upon the boy's stomach and closed her eyes. She had to block out everything around her. She had to concentrate.

Darkness engulfed Shylah and she started to tune out the sounds around her, focusing all of her energy on her breathing. A deep breath in and release, and then another... Aralan's helpless face came into view, and then all thoughts turned to Dominicus. This was in her god's hands now, and it was time to see if all of her training from the the priest, Ceronis Adamis, had paid off.

Shylah pictured a dove, as white as snow, in her mind as she started her prayer.....

Please, hear my prayer.... Shylah began in a shaky voice. She knew that all eyes were probably upon her now, but it didn't matter... No, nothing else mattered but the small boy's life.

I come to you in a time of great desperation and need. I know that you can see the events that are currently taking place. Aralan needs your help. I need your help. Please help this innocent child. I ask for your wisdom and for your strength, humbly. Show me how to help this child and let your will be done.


Keeping her eyes closed, Shylah waited. It was the most terrifying wait the young woman had ever endured. She had to keep her confidence in her god. Faith was the key thing here. If Dominicus failed...no, she couldn't even think about that scenario. It was too painful to even imagine.

[Trajan Constantine Aeneas]

Things had been going routinely, or at least as routinely as they could considering that neither Trajan nor as best he knew Shylah had ever dealt with the intentional poisoning of a youth before, when suddenly the all of the Nether broke loose. The unfortunate youth, whose name was apparently Aralan, in his delirious thrashing struck his sister Arianne in the face, and she fell with a cry, which was how his name was learned. Almost simultaneously there was a loud knock at the door, which surprised Shylah so much that she dropped the vile she was holding, and it shattered on the floor.

Trajan moved to catch Arianne, and if he managed it, carried her to the chair Shylah indicated while offering her a few comforting words, such as he had to hand but he couldn’t later recall what he had said. He then left her sitting there and crossed the room back to the door onto the hallway.

“If you need assistance,” He called, “Come in and into the exam room, otherwise wait in the front and we’ll be along presently.” He then ducked back into the room and returned to the table, Shylah had one hand on the youths stomach, which seemed to be the cause of most of the trouble, and she was in an attitude which was all to familiar to the fallen paladin novitiate of the One. She was praying.

Trajan felt his skin crawl at the idea that the One was being called upon in earnest in the room, and he wondered if his presence might not somehow be jeopardizing her chances of success. The hole which he had felt in his life since the loss of his faith ached terribly as the flickers passed and Shylah continued her prayer, and after a burn or two had elapsed tears ran freely down the fallen man’s cheeks, though the pain in his chest was so intense he could pay no attention to them.

Even though Shylahs prayers had doubtlessly ended, a sudden and intense fit of coughing wracked Trajans frame and he was pushed almost to his knees by it. Between the physical torments he was enduring due to the coughing fit and the spiritual privation he was suffering due to the prayer he could not partake in, the young man was in considerable torment. However, Shylah had asked him to help with the boy, who still struggled, and so he maintained his hold, even when it meant that his tears landed on the boys face. It was then, in this instant, that the image of the little girl from his vision returned, and Trajan wished most fervently to hear her soothing voice again, even though he couldn’t assume she had any power to help him now.

It was taking everything in him and no small amount of what resolve he had gained in the legion to not run weeping from the room and escape the Eye of the One and his own failures, but his love for Shylah and his sense of righteous indignation over this boys unjust poisoning kept Trajan strong and resolute as the agonizing burns slowly passed.

[Raevyn D`Altamooriana]

Interesting

It didn't take the dark adhiel long to figure out what this place was. A place of healing most likely, a place where the sick came in hopes of getting better. A slight smirk parted her lips as she thought of the irony that her presence her was. Raevyn didn't belong here, yet for some reason unknown to her, here she was.

A human voice called at, she could tell by way of his accent, that he was most definitely human. Her skin crawled, yet at the same time a sudden sense of twisted excitement welled up inside her. Perhaps the same excitement that predatory animals felt instinctely as they stalked their weakened prey.

There was commotion. A scared girl it sounded like, and the sound of glass breaking. It tempted her curiosity even further. The dark priestess sniffed at the air to see if there was anything that she could notice that didn't seem right. Well not right for the others, but not quite so for her. Raevyn needed no assistance whatsoever. This she knew, but the curiosity to see what was going on soon gave way to the temptation of finding out for herself. Be that as it may, Raevyn took the human's advise and walked in through the door.[/i]

[Guido Cercatoro]

Torc stopped outside the healer’s shop and gave a polite knock on the door, soaking up the pleasant early morning sunshine. His quiet reverie was interrupted by a second new arrival who swept past the hedge-mage and opened the door as if she owned the place. Entering the shop, Raevyn found herself in a room set up with several mismatched chairs, a small cot and several shelves with pots and jars and bandages dotting the space.

From his vantage point on the doorstep, Torc could see that the newcomer was a strikingly attractive dark-skinned adhiel. Both the mage and dark adhiel could hear a moaning sound coming from an open doorway in the left hand side of the room although they could not see the source of the moaning.

**********************************************************************************

Under Trajan’s guidance Arianne meekly sat in the chair. The poor girl was now frozen with terror as she looked upon her apparently worsening brother. However, she jumped with startled fight as the knock on the door caused Shylah to drop the potion on the floor. The glass shattered sending a cascade of small droplets of glass across the floor. Arianne put her hands to her head, clearly aware that the lost potion had been intended to assist her brother.

Trajan moved to call down the hallway as he heard the door to the shop opening following the knocking.

“If you need assistance,” He called, “Come in and into the exam room, otherwise wait in the front and we’ll be along presently.”

The former legionnaire did not wait for an answer but returned to the examination room. As he saw Shylah try to invoke the One to assist the boy, all the doubts that had assailed him since he had lost his faith returned to haunt him as did the damage his lungs had suffered from the dark, magical smoke he had inhaled at the emerald waterfall. An intense coughing fit shook his entire body and he could no longer concentrate upon the scene in front of him. Yet through the mist that descended over his eyes, he sought to cling on to the vision he had had of the smiling little girl. He had no further vision but the thought comforted him and assuaged his pain.

************************************************************************************

Ceronis had been a good teacher but Shylah’s skills in praying to her God were still limited and she struggled to form the picture of the dove under the stress that she felt. Yet, after a period of calming herself, she began to focus on the bird and then formulated her prayer.

The dove turned in the air, its wings flapping slowly as if it had heard her prayer, or was part of the prayer…

She felt a heat within her hand, felt her hand stretching as if her fingers were entering the boy’s stomach, somehow flowing beneath the flesh…

And she felt the pain – it felt as if a hard, dark mass of writhing serpents were twisted around the boy’s stomach – and were now twisting around her hand..

She felt the dove’s wings blowing cooling air against her hand……


********************************************************************************

Torc and Raevyn heard Trajan’s words; they heard the moans continue. If either entered the examination room, they would see four figures within the room. A small achadhiel girl sitting motionless in a chair, her face white and pale; a broad-shoulder human coughing and spluttering by the door; a moaning young boy thrashing about on a table, clutching at his stomach, his lips blue and eyes shut tight, and, a red-haired achadhiel woman, eyes closed with one hand placed gently on the boy’s stomach.

[Torc Blackfoot]

Torc entered the healers shop after the Dark Adhiel. He almost spoke to the woman about manners, but once he heard the moans coming from a child, he moved beyond the dark skinned woman into the room.

Without words Torc grabbed the boys legs, holding him against the thrashing that his boy was undergoing. The touch provided Torc a connection to the boys energy field, and with battlefield urgance he sought the aether.

He knew that the poor boy was dying and that it was likely poison, and that was dangerous enough. Poison was hard to cure and even harder to handle when you know what you were dealing with. Still, Torc would do his best, like always his magick was for the people never for him.

So as Torc assumed the form of a tree in the aether, he focused on the boys energy's. Most healing had to do with using the person energy to offset Torc's own lost, and if it was posion then Torc would need as much help as possible. Torc entered the healers shop after the Dark Adhiel. He almost spoke to the woman about manners, but once he heard the moans coming from a child, he moved beyond the dark skinned woman into the room.

Without words Torc grabbed the boys legs, holding him against the thrashing that his boy was undergoing. The touch provided Torc a connection to the boys energy field, and with battlefield urgency he sought the aether.

He knew that the poor boy was dying and that it was likely poison, and that was dangerous enough. Poison was hard to cure and even harder to handle when you know what you were dealing with. Still, Torc would do his best, like always his magick was for the people never for him.

So as Torc assumed the form of a tree in the aether, he focused on the boys energy's. Most healing had to do with using the person energy to offset Torc's own lost, and if it was poison then Torc would need as much help as possible.

Torc began to chant a calming weave, hoping to at least settle the boy down.

[Shylah Boyd]

Shylah could feel the invisible serpents twisting around her hand. So this was the cause of this child’s pain. As sympathy coursed its way throughout the healer’s tiny frame, she could feel cool air from the dove’s winds upon her hand as well. This phenomenon calmed the woman where she started to feel dismay. Deep in prayer, she didn’t even notice the presence of Torc nearby.

Gently, Shylah closed her hand upon these serpents as she started to raise her hand upwards and hopefully, the snakes along with her hand. With her eyes still shut, she struggled to watch the dove as her prayer continued:

Please, free this child from his pain, so that he may be reunited with his sister….

[Talanwei Fortisse]

Talanwei had taken his time this morningtide even though it was still early. There were a few things that required the follower of Illuminatus’ attentions that morningtide. Ulder was planning to meet with Savarak and to lend aid the Captain he would make himself available at Tuirdhiel’s. Following this, he would also need to visit the tent that the worshippers of Illuminatus. Before he visited the tavern however, the Achadhiel decided to pay a visit to Trajan and Shylah. He regarded them both quite fondly and even if he had no other aim than to drop in to say hello it would not be time wasted. This morningtide however was different as he approached the building. Opening the door as he was normally inclined, being more than an acquaintance, Talanwei was surprised to see as many gathered as there were. The moaning of the boy brought the follower of Illuminatus to a sharp clarity. Walking swiftly, he made his way to the examination room. Raevyn he had seen at the gate but not much after this point. She was a striking young woman and her visit to Shylah’s shop made Talanwei curious. Torc was touching the boy’s ankles and with an eye used to magick and prayer, it was easy to understand the nature of what he was doing. The Achadhiel had orchestrated developments for Pax, things that benefited many. To see him at the Healing Hands was another thing that piqued the young swordsman’s interests. For the time being, these things had to wait. Shylah’s hands were on the boy’s stomach and she was locked deep in prayer.

Nodding to Trajan, Talanwei shrugged off his cloak and pulled the sleeves to his tunic up around his elbows as he entered the room. A light hand he placed on the healers shoulder and his left on her hands she had placed. Talanwei slowed his breathing, focused on the stillness of a lake and aligned his mind with this to make the connection with his god. A calm spirit and thoughts were the canvas upon to paint a successful connection to a deity. He was trying to feel the energies that made up Shylah’s supplication so that any assistance he provided could mesh with what she was using. The structure of her attempt would not be overly complex with Shylah’s current skills but Talanwei wanted to make sure that he was not ‘shoving her out of the way’ so to speak in his haste.

"You are doing well Shylah. The keys are concentration, control, and above all the faith that your god will provide you what is needed," he said in a low voice to the woman, "Now, I am going to align my energies with your own so that we can save this young boys life. One thing I have learned, is that what you do once the power is given is entirely up to you. The god's will lead you to the spring, but they cannot make you drink. Once we have the energies, what we use them for is to inspect. The more knowledge we can gather the better we can handle whatever obstacle we encounter. Now it his stomach ailing him, does anyone know anything he has eaten recently that may have caused this?"

Looking to the young girl, Talanwei sent his own prayer to his god.

Illuminatus, your son beseeches you. I ask for just a small measure of your power for I know that through you, all is possible. Such a young life, ailing, dying before us. Allow me the energy to find what ails him and pull apart whatever poison real or magical that threatens him. Let his light endure and may we guide him from this darkened path.

If she was coherent, hopefully the sister would be able to provide him with more information. He would weave the energy into a pliable shape, let it permeate the boy’s abdomen, weave and mingle with any energy Shylah produced and lead it along. Assuming Talanwei could see the snaking energies as she could, he would try to glean the nature of them. Would he need to pull apart, rend, neutralize or contain them? Were they from a swallowed poison or any enchantments that were wreaking havoc on his insides? Talanwei knew that to affect the ailment he would first need to understand it and this was exactly what the Achadhiel was trying to do.

"If anyone here knows of poisons, I would greatly appreciate any knowledge you may have," said Talanwei as he pulled his energies together.

[Raevyn D`Altamooriana]

If anyone here knows of poisons, I would greatly appreciate any knowledge you may have. Talanwei's words caught the priestess' attention and she immediately moved closer to see what she could make of the situation. Not that she intended to help or anything of that sort. If this was a new poison, she wanted to know of it's effects.

Also Raevyn was curious to see if this praying that the people were doing was actually going to help. After all she did know a good amount about poisoning and such. She also knew a fair amount about their remedies. Yet praying as a remedy was something that was completely new to her. As far as Raevyn knew, poison couldn't be treated that way. It was something that Anasati would look upon in folly. The priestess doubted that Anasati would let her work be undone by other gods.

Raevyn would look for anything she found remotely familiar with her own poisonings firsthand. She wanted to see if the boys symptoms were similar to the one's from the spiders not too long ago or something new altogether.

"What did he eat," she found herself asking the girl without so much as turning her head to face her. "Or was he bitten by anything?" Questions again that Raevyn wanted for her own benefit more than that of the dying boy's.

Unlike the others present, Raevyn wasn't going to try to save his life. That was the farthest thing from the killer's mind. The reputation of a curer of poisons was the last thing she wanted to have. She also did not or would not go against what was obviously the workings of her own goddess.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Torc had used his magic for healing purposes before and as he touched the boy’s body, he searched for the tree which he used as his focus. He had no problem in entering the aether but as the branches of the tree bowed towards the boy’s energies, he encountered the source of the problem: writhing serpents wound their dark bodies around the branches. They clearly represented some form of poison – a harsh, evil thing. And yet, the hedge-mage felt a flicker of recognition – there was a hint of the energies he had felt anchored in the past when he had healed Angelo and also a hint of the poison he had sensed when healing those infected by the spider bites on the Day of the Dark. Yet, the poison was different as if the spider venom had been changed in some manner…

Shylah struggled to hold on to her vision of the dove and prayer; as she reached out towards the snakes, they darted their fangs in her direction, as if the poison were seeking to leap from the boy’s body into her own. She scarcely moved out of their way in time. And then, she sensed someone joining her in the aether, sensed the solidity of something planted firmly in the ground; she sensed someone joining her in the fight and that something attracted the attention of the snakes as if they somehow sensed a greater enemy…

And a third healer joined the scene as Talanwei entered the examination room, placing hands on Shylah’s shoulder and her hands that were on the boy’s stomach. He made a tentative connection with his God but then sensed a barrier as he tried to make contact with Shylah. Of course, he had known Shylah long enough to know that she was of Dominicus and perhaps her God was reluctant to let others intervene. Still, he felt that if he pushed at the barrier, it would not prevent him for intervening: the question was, would this assist or hinder the healing attempts of the other two healers? He felt the power of Illuminatus begin to flow into his body….

“I’ve already said all I know,” screeched the young girl as she fended off the questions from Raevyn and Talanwei. “My brother went to meet someone in the camp who promised him food. When he returned he felt ill with stomach pains. I have no idea what he ate but he did not complain of being bitten.”

It was clear to someone as experienced in poison as Raevyn, that the boy was affected with some venomous poison. And she also instinctively sensed the hand of her Goddess at work……