Lost Souls [Wicked Basket] [Archive]

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 04:26:51 PM

Serena was having quite a nice day until her cat decided to attack her.

She was in her garden, behind the small cottage she called home, weeding between the herbs when suddenly a black blur flashed in her peripheral vision. Before she could do anything, the tom cat slammed into her shoulder with a shrieking "Rrroow!"

The sudden attack knocked her off balance and she fell into the dirt, paws and tail patting at her face. "What the-?! Sorren!" she shouted, somehow managing to get her hands around the wriggling, furry body and holding him at arm's length. She glowered at him and he stared back with baleful golden eyes, yowling.

"What has gotten in to you?" she demanded, getting to her feet. Though the black tom didn't answer, she felt a nudge at her legs through her skirts and looked down to see Blaze winding around her. The orange tabby blinked up at her and mewed quietly.

"Well there are other ways of getting my attention," she grumbled in response, letting Sorren jump from her arms to the ground. "What's the problem then? Where's Jasmine?"

The two toms meowed and wound around her legs, urging her into the trees. "Alright, alright, I'm coming," she muttered, hiking her skirt up to tuck into her belt so she could move more easily. Satisfied that she was following, her cats set off, slipping easily through the underbrush that she had to clamber over or around.

After a few minutes of walking, Sorren and Blaze suddenly stopped, tails high and ears perked. Serena stopped as well, sniffing the air like an animal.

Blood. She smelled blood. Realizing that her familiars must have fetched her to help some injured animal or another, she bent to pet their heads and moved forward, saying, "Good boys." She moved toward a gap in the trees where the unfortunate creature must be either trapped or too tired to move.

"Mrrow?"

Serena smiled, holding out her arms for the small gray cat to jump into. "Good girl, Jaz," she said quietly, edging between the trees to get closer to her new patient.

Then she actually saw her patient, and her eyebrows shot up. "Oh..."

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 05:58:17 PM

Lukas grumbled to himself as he stumbled through the forest.

"Goddamn demons," he muttered. "Feisty little bastards."

Old habits die hard, and Lukas had a habit of killing demons. While he was allowed to keep his sword, he always kept forgetting that he had lost his angelic form and was no more than a mere man on this earth. So despite being successful, it did not come without a cost. This particular demon had been armed with claws and teeth. Lukas was now sporting four gashes across his midsection and puncture wounds in his left arm from the beast's teeth.

Though he had to look to every single nearby tree for support, his stubbornness made him continue on his journey to nowhere in particular. By now he was covered in a fair amount of his own blood, but that never stopped him before. What did give him pause was the sound of footsteps heading his way.

"Not another one," he groaned.

He leaned up against a tree a placed a bloody hand on the hilt of his sword. He wasn't going down without a fight. Except, it wasn't a demon that emerged, but a young woman. Still, he remained wary. Demons could be quite crafty.

"Who are you," he demanded with as much authority as he could muster in his weakened state.

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 06:08:08 PM

She looked the stranger up and down, mismatched eyes wide. "I'm called Serena," she said on reflex, moving toward the injured man. Sorren and Blaze crept out of the trees so peer around her legs at the newcomer to their woods, keeping close to her heels as she approached him.

"Injured" was putting it lightly. Judging from all that blood, "brutalized" might have been a better word. She frowned, taking another step toward him. Jasmine climbed up to curl around her neck, watching the stranger. "What happened to you?" Serena asked, shaking her head. Then, before he could answer she said, "Here, let me see. I'm a healer, I can help you."

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 06:33:50 PM

"Stop right there," Lukas commanded. "How do I know this isn't some kind of trick?"

She looked innocent enough, but that would just be the perfect disguise wouldn't it? There was never just one demon. It was very rare that they're alone. The fact that she was accompanied by cats didn't help either. What if they were demons too? While it did make him sound paranoid there was no such thing as being to cautious when dealing with the likes of the denizens of the underworld.

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 06:41:59 PM

"Trick?" she repeated, confused. "What kind of trick? Why would I bother tricking you? I don't even know you." She crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow. "Now come on. Show me where you're hurt. I can't do anything if I don't see the trouble."

Normally she would have been standing right next to him by now, maybe even searching for the source of the blood herself. But though she may be scattered, she wasn't stupid; even weakened, she had a feeling he knew how to use that sword.

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 06:48:25 PM

"Because demons are masters of deception," he replied. "For all I know you could just be waiting for the perfect moment to strike, and I think it's pretty obvious where I'm hurt."

Honestly, there was blood everywhere. Still, if she was a demon she probably would have done something by now. Then again she could just be trying to lure him into a false sense of security. He could also be overly paranoid. Damn it all! If he still had his angelic abilities he would be able to simply sense if she were a demon, but without them it was anyone's guess.

"Give me proof. Prove to me that you're sincere. I don't care how you do it."

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 07:09:57 PM

"You think I'm a demon?" Serena asked incredulously. At her feet, Blaze made a chuffing sound that seemed suspiciously like laughter.

She ignored him, mulling over his demand. "Proof," she mused. She didn't have a lot of time for this- he was losing a lot of blood- but if he wouldn't let her help otherwise she had no choice. "Oh!" An idea struck her. It wasn't a great idea, but it was something.

Fishing the small knife she used to cut herbs from its pocket at her belt, she drew it in a sharp line across her palm, blood welling in its wake. She winced and replaced the knife, then held her uninjured hand over the cut and murmured a quick spell under her breath.

Effortlessly, her flesh joined back together, leaving only a thin, silvery scar. She wiped the blood and showed her hand to the stranger. "See? Just a healer, I promise."

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 07:19:06 PM

"You can never be too careful," he told her. "You kill one, you anger the rest."

Despite his best efforts to remain at least somewhat intimidating, the loss of blood began catching up to him and he slumped to his knees. A simple display a magic was not very convincing. Demons could do magic too, but his options seemed very limited. He began losing focus and getting dizzy, but he kept it together. He couldn't even hold his hand to his wounded abdomen anymore. He changed his position and simple sat down on the ground up against the tree. As much as he hated to admit it, he was done. The human body had limits, and he had met his own.

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 07:24:08 PM

Serena swore and rushed to kneel at his side, caution forgotten. "How about this," she offered, hands reaching to lift his shirt before she made the conscious decision to do so, "even if I am a demon- which I'm not- I'll kill you more painlessly than this."

She sucked in a sharp breath as she actually saw the wound, muttering, "Gods." A simple spell wasn't going to cut it. She held her hands over the gashes in his torsos and muttered her chant again- it may not heal him completely, but it would at least hold him together until she could get him back to the cottage and give him some proper care.

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 07:33:34 PM

"I suppose a swift death would be preferable if there were no other option," Lukas said.

The look on her face when she was how bad it really was amused him. He was used to injuries such as this from his time as a soldier, but she most definitely wasn't. It almost made him smile. Almost.

"That bad, huh?"

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 07:40:35 PM

"Nah," Serena said with forced nonchalance. "I've seen worse." None that immediately came to mind, but still.

Tearing her eyes away, she met his gaze and asked, "Can you stand? I've patched you up a bit, but I need to get you back to the cottage to fix you up properly. Here." She moved to pull his uninjured arm over her shoulders. "Lean on me. It's not far."

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 07:49:11 PM

Lukas pulled his arm away, though he regretted doing so a pain shot through it when he did causing him to wince.

"I got it."

Using his good arm he pulled himself to his feet using the tree as support. He took a step forward, but the moment he moved he got lightheaded and fell immediately back to the ground with a groan as pain wracked his ravaged body as he impacted the ground.

"Ok," he relented. "Maybe I don't got it."

He then held out his bloody hand for Serena to take and help him to his feet.

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 07:57:53 PM

Serena muttered something about men and their stubbornness as she pulled him to his feet, trying to be as careful of his wounds as she could.

"This way, then," she said, tucking herself under his arm to take some of his weight. She bit her lip, hoping her hasty spell would hold until she could take care of him better. "What's your name?" she asked as she set off toward the cottage. Sometimes getting an injured patient to focus on mundane things made them easier to deal with. Pain could be mitigated and she could get a feel for the person, forming the bond a healer needed.

Blaze and Sorren kept a few steps ahead of them, and Jasmine had somehow wound up draped half over the stranger's arm, sniffing at him curiously while her tail twitched lazily against Serena's neck.

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 08:05:05 PM

"Lukas," he told her.

He turned his head and looked at the cat that was standing on his arm.

"Get off of me," he told the cat.

DragonSong · November 28, 2015, 08:13:30 PM

"Mow-wow." Jasmine sniffed and jumped to the ground, following after the toms with a swing to her gate and a flick to her tail that said "I'm doing this because I want to, not because you told me to."

"Cats," Serena muttered, shaking her head. The cottage was in sight now, and she let out a quiet sigh of relief. They were most of the way there. "Here," she said as they reached the little blue door and she bumped it open with her hip.

The cottage itself was only three rooms- the largest one where she met with customers, her bedroom, and the workroom. She guided Lukas to her bed and said, "Lay down, I need to get some herbs, and probably a needle and thread..."

Wicked Basket · November 28, 2015, 08:42:08 PM

"Well as long as you don't mind a bloody bed," Lukas commented as he less-than-gracefully laid down on the bed.

It was definitely more comfortable than what he was used to, though that wasn't saying much considering that what he was used to was sleeping on the ground. Hopefully this young woman would turn out to be who she said she was.

DragonSong · November 29, 2015, 05:37:51 AM

Serena bustled around as quickly as she could, gathering several different poultices, a sterile needle, thread, a pair of shears, and a small, clear vial filled with an oily liquid before returning to her patient.

Brushing a curl behind her ear, she handed him the vial, saying, "Drink. It's poppy oil, it will help with the pain." She picked up the gardening shears and warned, "I'm going to have to cut your shirt. I need to get at the gashes but I don't want to more you too much to do it."

Wicked Basket · November 29, 2015, 06:24:00 AM

Lukas took the poppy oil, but had no intention of drinking it. He could stand the pain. Besides, it helped build pain tolerance. When she said she would have to cut his shirt he protested.

"This is my only shirt. Can't I just take it off?"

DragonSong · November 29, 2015, 06:31:08 AM

She looked him up and down and sighed. "Well...I suppose, but it's going to hurt like hell, and you may tear those wounds open further." She placed the shears on the ground and said briskly, "Here, just hold as still as you can." She gently took the hem of his shirt and began to lift it, wincing as she once again saw the gashes across his mid section.

Working the material further off his body, she admonished, "You know, I don't care how tough you are, you should take that oil. I'm going to have to sew you up, and you'll want something to dull your senses." She managed to get the shirt mostly off but was rather stuck at his injured arm. She didn't want him to move it, but she could see a way to get at his wound without doing so.

Wicked Basket · November 29, 2015, 06:42:39 AM

She certainly hadn't been kidding when she said that taking his shirt off would hurt. However, he managed not to utter a sound despite the pain in order to save face. Why he felt he needed to prove himself to this stranger he had no idea.

With the shirt now off, for the most part anyway, she urged him again to take the oil. He would hold onto it, but he had no intention of drinking it unless the pain was absolutely unbearable.

"You asked for my name," Lukas said to change the subject. "But you never gave me yours."