Do You Walk in the Shadow of Men...

[redlightgreenlight]

Characters: Valdis and open
Date: The Month of May
Location: Throughout Keeliai
Situation: Various
Warnings/Rating: In Headers


Moving out of the hotel didn’t take long. Valdis hired a few kedan to help her move her things to the small house near the former palace gardens. It was a comfortable enough space, moreso because Wan had built it. She wasn’t entirely certain why she had waited so long to move here, but perhaps she had just needed time to let go of Anton. The house needed a bit of work after having sat empty for so long, but not much and nothing she wasn’t willing to do. Valdis was capable of creating things, not just destroying them.

The KPD hasn’t let up on patrols and she’s renewed the watches on the water sources. She now had thirty-seven officers and the support of the Justice Guild, a far cry from where she had started almost a year ago. The addition of four Kirin to the KPD resources had been a bright spot, but now Valdis had to find a caretaker for them. She hoped that the four mounts could help reduce response times to crisis as well as aid in crowd control should something arise. Allying with the Guild of Justice and Arbitration had been a wise move as it seemed to calm things down a bit and give both parties a more stabilizing structure. Now she could hunt...

Comments

[redlightgreenlight]

Every single muscle in Valdis body tensed in anticipation of a fight, she wasn't going to let anyone put her in a cage.

"No."

Her tone was too high pitched to be properly menacing and she hated that. In addition she was suddenly less certain of being able to break free from Kratos. If she shifted he wouldn't be able to pin her, but she couldn't maneuver in these hallways as a Hound. She couldn't panic, but the thought was far too brief to actually prevent the ensuing reaction.

She flung her head back, aiming to strike his face with her skull.

[simulsimul]

"Be st--" Kratos's sharp reprimand was cut off when he turned his head to take the brunt of Valdis's headbutt against his cheek instead of against his nose. He didn't feel anything from it, his pain being turned off somewhere along the line; but he felt the grind when he moved his jaw, even though it didn't stop him from reacting in turn.

His grip tightened around Valdis's waist to keep her arms pinned against him; the arm around her shoulders moved up to compress the blood-flow through her neck, holding it until she stopped struggling.

[ruinsprofessor]

Damn it, Raine had thought Valdis understood-- especially when the woman had come to her before, preferring death over being used as someone else's tool--

No matter. She whirled, staff in hand, an arte half-formed; but anything she could do with light would cause far more serious damage than wanted. With an effort of will Raine let that arte fall away, trusting to Kratos to handle things. Instead she watched, poised to act one way or another, and waited to see how it went. Kratos was likely injured, but she couldn't tell from here, and wasn't going to risk the efforts to render Valdis unconscious.

[redlightgreenlight]

Well, something broke, Valdis could tell by the impact and the sound of cracking that it was his face and not her skull, but his grip didn't loosen. She breathed in sharply, jamming her elbow back into his stomach, but he didn't seem to even feel it as his grip tightened. The new pressure against her neck made her panic, especially as her vision started to go dark and she fought to stay conscious, but such a thing was impossible and the lack of oxygen to her brain caused her struggles to grow weaker. A few moments later, she relaxed completely.

[simulsimul]

Kratos held on, shifting only to account for the elbows in his ribs and Valdis's weight as she tried to tear herself loose. It was something of a relief to find that the move worked, on the being Valdis was; it wasn't long before she went limp, and Kratos relieved the pressure on her neck.

"She'll -- ngh." The grind in his face made it difficult to talk; he broadcast instead. 'She won't be unconscious for long.'

He moved as he spoke, shifting her in his arms to carry her properly and rising from the ground. Ribs ground painlessly in his chest; that was a nuisance. He'd fix it in a minute. 'We'd better call all three warders and choose whoever picks up first; but begin with your suggestions.'

They didn't have the time for anything else, and he had no inclination to fight Valdis a third time.

[ruinsprofessor]

That Raine could see had hurt Kratos. Or at least damaged -- she suspected he had turned off several of his sensations, if not all of them. She scowled briefly at him, to cover the faint peculiarity of having his voice in her head. "Fine. I suppose you're going to ask me to wait until you can set her down before I heal you?"

Her tone carried all she had to say about that idea. It was not complimentary. "What's broken?"

[simulsimul]

Kratos was already striding toward the room Raine had indicated, and so didn't bother to answer that first question. If she wanted to heal him while he was walking, that was up to her.

'Cheekbone. Ribs.' Nothing major, and he could at least breathe, since he hadn't felt anything gurgle when he tried to speak earlier. After he'd set Valdis down might be another matter, but that too would be easily healed.

He strode into the empty room to lay Valdis down on the bed, checking her quickly. He'd held the choke longer than strictly wise, trusting in the presence of a healer and Valdis's own obvious sturdiness to mitigate effects.

[ruinsprofessor]

Raine clicked her tongue in disapproval, but followed Kratos anyway. At least it wasn't his jaw.

But she waited until he'd laid Valdis down, and -- trusting Kratos to check her over, since Kratos had ample experience -- she cast at him, instead. "Heal. Honestly, Kratos. Did you find anything?" She bent over Valdis now, double-checking pulse and breathing, absently looking over her with mana as well.

[simulsimul]

Kratos put a hand to his check, checking his bones with a movement of his jaw, and then his ribs with a palm on his side. All healed. "No. Zatanna and Gene, you said?"

He stored most of his equipment when he was on duty, but not his radio; so while Raine was checking Valdis, Kratos stepped back to make some calls, patiently, one after another. Neither Zatanna nor Gene picked up; so, with an unhappy draw on his mouth, Kratos called Devin last.

[ruinsprofessor]

"Yes, that's correct." Raine nodded, looking down over Valdis. "Both are powerful mages in their own rights."

When she was satisfied that Valdis was, if not conscious, at least stable enough to be left unattended for the moment, Raine stood back and looked to Kratos, resting the butt of her staff on the floor, expectant and waiting for some conclusion to be drawn. "Re-enable your senses and tell me if I missed anything."

[simulsimul]

Kratos held up a hand while he spoke to Devin, and then closed the feed to look at her with an impassive gaze. "With Heal? Doubtful."

Nevertheless, he did as she asked, and was startled by the raw feeling in his chest. It felt a bit like it did when one had inhaled sand in a storm; but when he raised his hand to press it against his chest with a frown, he couldn't detect any physical injury.

But it was where Valdis had touched him, when her Void sought to take his soul. Hmh.

"... Nothing you can heal, I suspect. Devin will be here soon."

[ruinsprofessor]

"...I've spent a while healing people without exspheres." Raine frowned faintly at his impassive look; then again, further, at his gesture. "So you were unable to contact any of the others. Hm. Well, I've spoken to Devin before. He seems... reliable, if not often prone to doing as he's asked."

Then again, she had been meeting him very close to his appearance in this world.

"Nothing I can heal? What is it?" Even if she couldn't do anything, she still wanted to know.

[simulsimul]

"I have also. I doubt anything that might occur will be due to negligence on his part." No, Kratos was more concerned that, Valdis having prior experience with Devin's warding given her house, the entity might know a way around the wards. He'd raise the risk with Devin when he arrived.

Kratos was also slightly concerned that Raine might have overheard any of that conversation on Devin's end, but thus far, she at least did not seem inclined to bring it up. Perhaps the pain was a boon, after all.

He shook his head. "It's just a raw feeling, where she touched me when her Void attempted to take my soul. There's no physical damage."

It just felt strange, and brought to mind those few moments, and made him wonder --

No. No wondering. Not yet; later, he'd let himself wonder.

[ruinsprofessor]

She favored Kratos with a suspicious look. "Let me know if it gets worse. I'm willing to let it be for now, since it will likely heal naturally, but nevertheless this isn't something to be taken lightly." Between her studies and Solomon's, she might be able to help if it transpired there was a genuine and lingering soul injury; for now, Raine would let Kratos be on his own recognizance.

With another quiet sigh Raine glanced between Valdis and Kratos. "If you're certain. I'm curious about his warding methods, in any case."

[simulsimul]

"Certain enough." She hadn't specified if that was in relation to Devin or to the burn in his chest. The answer was the same, regardless.

Right now, Kratos pulled a chair up beside the door and sat down, watching Valdis in the event she awoke. Perhaps her lingering injuries would be helpful here, if they kept her under until the windowless room was warded.

[annihilist]

As entertaining as it was to trade banter with Kratos, the fact that he'd been called a) to the Healers Guild, and b) in a rush meant that Devin didn't linger. Navigating the city was easy enough now that he'd been here a little while, and doing so at high speed was only a moderate challenge. He was barely breathing hard by the time he reached the Guild, and didn't waste time asking where Kratos could be found. A few people made loud noises of protest as he blurred by them, but none were knocked down.

The vampire zipped to a halt in the doorway, casually leaning against the frame with arms folded and a smug upturn of his mouth. He took in Kratos, and Raine - and Valdis apparently unconscious on the bed. His expression didn't change.

"I've been told I'm needed."

[ruinsprofessor]

That was-- exceptionally fast. Raine turned toward the doorway, looking Devin over. "Ah-- yes. Valdis spoke well of your warding abilities. We were hoping to get your assistance in warding this room to contain her, at least for the time being. She's possessed by something that, although intermittent, is making her act out of character. For now, we need to ensure no one else gets hurt." She wasn't just asking Devin to imprison someone out of hand.

[simulsimul]

Kratos rose as he felt Devin's mana approaching, turning toward the door to find Devin already there. He staunchly ignored Devin's choice of words. "She mentioned that you warded her house," he said. "The fact that the entity might be familiar with your warding methods is a -- concern. If you can make them substantially different, that would be helpful."

He kept an eye on Valdis as he spoke. "She's proven resistant to the idea of being imprisoned, however. Speed is of the essence. How long might it take to ward the room?"

Before she wakes up, and Kratos has to fight her. Again.

[annihilist]

"Oh, good. Possession. My favorite. And here I thought you'd called me for something..." Devin ran his eyes up and down Kratos."...fun. She's familiar with the existence of the method, but not the language. It's not something she'd know how to undo," he replied, any concerns he might have belied by his continued casual demeanor. "Keeping someone contained is a different construction than keeping others out, in any case."

He straightened and stepped into the room, examining the size of the space, and in particular the walls, identifying any other possible weak points beside the door. The vampire reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a utility knife.

"Longer than the time until she wakes up, most likely, but I can at least keep her from getting out the door by then. I'm afraid I'm going to have to mark up your walls," he told Raine, returning to the door frame. Without waiting for permission, he flipped the blade out and started carving small symbols into the edge of the frame. "What classifies as 'out of character'?"

[ruinsprofessor]

What was that.

Raine was not oblivious to innuendo, nor what it looked like when one person sized another up in a more carnal method. She was simply not at all expecting it around Kratos. For a moment she stared at Devin for reasons that had nothing to do with the marks he was making in her walls; then she shook herself, and glanced at Kratos to see what he made of that, before returning to business.

"Attempts at murder," Raine clarified flatly. A brief pause. "Unprovoked and unwarranted attempts at murder, using a specific magical asset which she endeavors not to use for such things. What else was there, Kratos?"

Since he'd actually seen something. Raine moved a bit closer to get a look at precisely what Devin was doing, studying the symbols. "Proof specifically against Valdis, or against anyone?"

[simulsimul]

Kratos wasn't expecting it at all around Kratos. His neutral expression slid more toward neutrally bemused, and also trying very hard to ignore that Devin had looked at him at all.

"Those, yes," he said after a moment, confirming Raine's explanation. Surely Zelos hadn't been right? Surely not.

He debated, for some seconds, whether or not he could justifiably keep to himself what else. But, reluctantly, he had to admit that innocuous things left unmentioned had a habit of coming back as a difficulty. "Flirting with me." He managed to keep himself impressively stoic while saying this. "The attempted murder only occurred when I made it plain I wasn't going to accept the ... offer."

[annihilist]

It was a good thing Devin had careful control of his outward expression, or he'd have trouble not grinning at the pair of reactions. This was far too entertaining for the seriousness of the situation.

"Against Valdis, and what she is. I'm aware of her nasty little 'magical asset', as you call it," he informed Raine, carefully twisting the knife around.

And then Kratos added that tidbit. The vampire paused, turning to look at him with a raised eyebrow. Deadpan: "She flirted with you. Really." Devin tsked in Valdis' direction. "Bad hound. My mercenary. I'll have to have a chat with you about that later," he said, as if neither Raine nor Kratos were in the room to hear. The wink he gave Kratos before returning his attention to the wards was pointed.

"I can safely finish these even if she wakes up, but you two may not want to stay in the room if she's in a snacking mood still."

[ruinsprofessor]

Raine... didn't know what to do with this, mostly because it was Kratos. As much as she could see an aesthetic appeal from an objective standpoint, the thought of anyone hitting on or otherwise flirting with Kratos simply didn't compute.

It took her a moment of speechlessness before she shook her head again. Foolish to get distracted by such matters while Valdis's restraint was a time-sensitive matter. "Very well," Raine said, with a sharp nod. "I'd like to speak to you later, about your methods-- but for now, Kratos and I can retreat to a safer distance while you finish up."

[simulsimul]

Kratos's mouth opened to air an objection, but words failed him while his cheeks went hot. With a mental curse he turned off all his sensations, but it was too late; he'd blushed. In public. Even with his complexion generally lending itself to hiding that fact, there was no way either of them had missed it, and simply turning off his sensations wasn't going to make it vanish until it had faded on its own.

Damn it.

He cleared his throat and chose to move on, right now. "I'll stay. I'm immune to her 'magical asset', and safely or not you will no doubt work faster without having to contain her while you do so."

[annihilist]

Getting a glimpse of the blush on Kratos' cheeks was well worth the momentary delay in implementing the wards. Devin can count that as a win for the day, and something to look forward to eliciting again in the future. The smirk on his face won't be going away any time soon.

"I'd be happy to expound upon them further when you're no longer in danger of having your soul eaten," he told Raine pleasantly. Kratos' apparent immunity piqued his interest, but he didn't turn away from the wards. "If you're going to insist on staying to protect me, by all means, play knight in shining armor. It suits your complexion," the vampire teased. Just because Kratos was choosing to move on didn't mean Devin would.