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Post by Nyr on Dec 19, 2022 19:41:13 GMT -5
There were many things that Nyr was afraid of, many, many things. He abhorred warlocks, for instance, demons even more so. He was not a fan of thunderstorms, and the ocean was frankly a little too vast and a little too deep for his taste. He did not like small rooms, and he was not a fan of rats.
Nyr was also afraid of being alone.
But something he was not afraid of was the undead. It was sort of hard to be afraid of such things when he was raised by the boney hands of thralls. The only teacher he had ever known, and the kindest man in his life, had been Nafr the Ghost. Skeletons had changed his diapers and tucked him into bed all his life.
So when he hears of ghosts haunting the marshes outside of a small town he just happened to be passing through, it is the young tiefling’s curiosity that is piqued, not his fear. Ghosts always lingered in the material world for a reason, after all. Either they had some sort of unfinished business, or there was a bit of necromancy involved.
If it was a necromancer, Nyr would… likely not be able to help out with that. Bit out of his wheelhouse, really. But if it was just a lingering ghost, trapped in this world by their regrets? Well, maybe he could do something about that.
That was how he found himself carefully rowing out into the darkness of the marsh on a low, shallow canoe. The darkness isn’t really an issue for Nyr1, but the murky water still feels treacherous. Nyr isn’t quite sure what he expects to find out here.
He certainly isn’t expecting to see another person out in the marshes tonight.
1. Night Sight
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Post by Gwendolyn on Dec 21, 2022 3:43:38 GMT -5
It had take weeks for Gwendolyn to trek out here without stopping in any towns for fear of being recognized. It would be incredibly embarrassing if her family had found out she was wandering around a marsh in her spare time. She missed her servants however, at least they would have set up camp and cooked for her while she was in this dreadful place. She had been following a rumour that gave her hope to redeem herself in the eyes of her family, but had only found dead trees and mud. "Useless" She grunted in frustration, kicking at a rotten stump, stubbing her toe. Her howl of pain echoed throughout the forest in an eerie fashion, as such forests tended to do.
This whole trip had been a disaster. There had even been a child that had seen her after a particularly rough day. She had tripped over a log into a mud puddle, only to look up to him standing in fear. As she had reached for him to pull her up, the child ran off, screaming something about "Swamp Ghosts" and not to eat him. There was nothing out here to clean off with, only muddy water and already soiled clothes. She wished only for someone to take her out of here.
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Post by Nyr on Dec 22, 2022 13:56:44 GMT -5
When a scream rings out through the dim of the marsh, Nyr’s head snaps up to look in the direction it came from. It was a ghastly noise that filled the quiet of the forest with it’s haunting screech. But Nyr knew nearly immediately that that was not a ghostly wail.
He knew, intimately, the kind of sounds the dead made. Theirs was a scream that would sink into your bones and leave you feeling hollowed out and cold for days on end. Like all the warmth in your blood had been scooped out from your chest.
The scream he had just heard, while suitably ghastly, was more like the scream of an animal in pain. Not a specter wailing over their eternal torment.
Nyr heads towards the source of the noise anyway, gently steering his low boat in that direction. If it wasn’t a ghost, that could have been someone in need of help. And Nyr would not be a very good future doctor if he ignored someone’s call of distress.
“Hello?” He calls into the mists when he feels he is closer to the source of that noise. It is getting harder to find paths for his boat here, as the mud and earth starts to take up more space than the murky waters. He finds a safe place to gently crash into the shore and tie his boat off on a nearby tree jutting up from the detritus. Then, with slightly shaky legs, he steps off, still calling out all the while. “Is anyone out there? Are you hurt?”
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Post by Gwendolyn on Dec 23, 2022 3:32:09 GMT -5
Was that...someones voice? Someone had answered her wish to retrieve her from this mudpit of a region? Did she have more wishes? No matter, she excitedly put her foot down and began sloshing towards the sound coming from the tall reeds. Only when she approached, Gwendolyn caught a glimpse of the state of her dressings. Dirty, wet, unpolished armour. It was unbecoming to be rescued in this sorry state of affairs. Peeking through the reeds to see where the voice had came from, She could see standing near a sorry rowboat a pale grey tiefling with black horns. God's, he actually looked civilized and not one of the backwater villagers that had seen her earlier, this really would not do. To make matters worse, he blocked the only source of semi clean water that she had come across this entire trip.
That settled it, She would have to scare him away and hope someone else came along after she had a chance to wash up. Gripping her maul, it sputtered softly with the ambient moisture wicking at the embers inside. She willed the spirit of her patron to bring a part of the Myst here. The dense heavy fog seeped from Redolence's head, creeping out from the reeds and covering the majority of the nearby creek. If this were just some bookworm doing research it should be no problem to get him to turn tail and run. With her best ghastly voice, she croaked out,
"Leeeaavveee thiiisss plaaaccceeee"Bog Fog 30s: By channeling magic into the environment, you cause a thick cloud of fog to form over a 100 foot area, clouding the area in white mist. This fog will last for 3 post and is extremely hard to see through, making it difficult to navigate or fight in. Not only is it good at concealing things, but it is also extremely thick and heavy, preventing wind from blowing it or redirecting it away. Has a two post cool down in between uses.
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Post by Nyr on Dec 23, 2022 14:23:27 GMT -5
"Leeeaavveee thiiisss plaaaccceeee"
A ghastly croaking voice leaves Nyr blinking, a bit bewildered, in his little row boat. What, exactly, was that all about? A sudden blanket of fog coating the land in it’s gentle mists prevents him from spotting the source of the creaking voice. And yet, even hearing such an unearthly thing in this thick coating of fog does not scare him.
“...Are you sure you want me to leave?” He asks, his voice genuinely curious and a touch concerned. “I mean, I can if you want me to, but it sounded like you were in pain earlier. I think that was your scream, right…?”
The Tiefling knew, innately, that this was no ghost he was dealing with. He knew the voice of the dead very well, and there was an unearthly, haunting quality to them that was missing from the voice he just heard. Which meant it was some mortal spirit trying to scare him off, for whatever reason.
“If someone is hurt out here, I can help. At least a little bit.” Nyr tacks on after a silent pause. “I’m- Well, I’m not a doctor yet, but I am training to be one. I have some healing potions with me if you’re in need of them.”
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Post by Gwendolyn on Dec 25, 2022 2:53:26 GMT -5
By Alvinas Mane this man was persistent. Her toe did quite ache however, and the temptation of an apprentice healer rowing her home seemed more appealing than hobbling back with a limp through the muck... No. Mother always said a noble's appearances must always be maintained, at all costs. What if this healer had connections and spoke of her unbecoming presentation out here in the backwaters. It would be an underhanded move... but it may be her only way both out of here, and out of sight of the inquisitive scholar. Gwendolyn picked up a rock, tossing it up before catching it once more to get a feel for its weight, and hefted it in the direction she recalled to be a bit further up the beach.
Bereft of any actual indication that the man had been distracted, she made a run for the boat. It had only been around thirty feet from her position before she unleased the fog, so finding it should be a sinch. "My apologies, scholar! Circumstances forbid you laying eyes on me at the moment, and I'm afraid-" Her explanation was cut short, stumbling slightly on her toe and tripping on what felt like a root sticking out of the ground. Better eyesight and less fog would have told her that she had missed the mark by a 30 degree margin, but she didn't need glasses to see the mud rushing towards her face as she fell forward.
Bog Fog (2/3)
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Post by Nyr on Dec 29, 2022 17:11:26 GMT -5
There's a series of loud noises and movements that Nyr can detect in the fog, of which he has trouble following. But there is one noise in particular that Nyr can identify immediately.
‘Splat!’
Nyr does not need to be able to see what likely just occurred. The sound of a body hitting mud is very different from the sound of one falling into snow, but it's easily recognizable. There’s a sickly sort of thick quality to the noise, a squelching that brings a cringe to Nyr’s face.
At first he’s not sure what to say. He’s fairly certain at this point that whoever is out there in the fog had likely been trying to distract him and run from him- All in vain, clearly. But there had to be a reason they would go to such lengths to get away from him seeing them…
Would the polite thing be to leave, at this point? To give this stranger the privacy they so clearly desired? The tiefling wasn’t sure. Maybe that would be the courteous course of action, but the budding medic in Nyr refused to leave someone who was potentially injured alone in the mud.
“A-Are you alright..?” He finally asks in a hesitant voice. “I swear I mean you no harm, if you don’t want me to see you, I could…. I could blindfold myself? But that sounded like a nasty fall, so I implore you, even if you do not allow me to look directly at you, please allow me at least to check your wounds.” He sounds pathetic and unsure even to his own ears, but that would not stop him from at least trying to render aid.
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Post by Gwendolyn on Jan 3, 2023 4:58:23 GMT -5
Gods above, this could not be a worse situation if someone had written a terrible play and forced her to enact the sick script. Gwen pulled her face from the muck with a wet squelch, and sat back in defeat. That was it, her life was over. The man offered to blindfold himself however, and had indeed stated a seemingly genuine desire to help... A deep inhale followed by a dejected sigh audibly signaled her surrender to the universe. Were this to get back to her family, a noblewoman in such a sorry state on the other side of the world, She would be cut off for good.
"...Fine, Blindfold yourself, and I shall allow your assistance. Once you have it on, I shall lift the fog." Her ankle was throbbing from the trip, and it was not as though she had packed particularly well for this journey to begin with. Her stomach also growled in protest, having eaten naught but dried jerky for the last several days. At least her servants would have hunted and cooked. Gods, if he had actually left, what would she have eaten? A frog? Are those edible? She shuddered imagining the slimy creature in her hands. She shook her head back to reality, and realizing it had probably been enough time to allow the man to blind himself, dispelled the dense fog with a wave.
"I...I am Lady Gwendolyn, and you have caught me in quite the poor situation."
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Post by Nyr on Jan 30, 2023 19:55:53 GMT -5
Nyr had not exactly been expecting his offer to blindfold himself to be taken seriously, but he is far from a liar. “Right! Um- Just a moment, then, I think I have- um- Bandages… Bandages… Where are they…? Ah!”1
It’s a bit awkward trying to tie bandages around his own head, a task made all the more uncomfortable by his horns. But if this patient wanted privacy, then Nyr would do his best to accommodate. It might make it a bit awkward to treat her but… He’d figure out a way to manage. He always did, somehow.
There is a shift in the air after a moment, and though he cannot see it, Nyr realizes that the thick fog from before must be gone by now. Ah, he likely should have told her that he had blinded himself, but it didn’t matter much now. Of course, being blindfolded meant that he wouldn’t be able to help her into the boat, but hopefully, she’d be able to make her way over to him while he waited in his little raft patiently.
“It’s… Well, I would say it’s nice to see you, Lady Gwendolyn, but I really can’t, so... It’s a pleasure to meet you. Are you quite alright…? It sounded like you took a nasty fall. If you’re injured in any way, I swear I will do my best to treat you. I… Ah... Um. I may not be able to help you board the boat, though. Are you able to make your way over here…?”
1. Med Kit
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Post by Gwendolyn on Jan 31, 2023 4:51:20 GMT -5
Well, a gentleman and a scholar it would seem. Men this honest with their intentions were few and far between, and Gwendolyn was certainly grateful now that it had been he to happen upon her unfortunate swampy situation. Her misery was belayed by the kindness she was being shown. Gripping the shaft of her maul, she pulled herself to her feet.
"Ah, yes...I can manage easy to the boat at least, thank you." A few moments of hobbling towards the Tiefling found her close enough to the edge of the boat to kind of fall in. She put a hip up, and after a few moments of rocking kicked her legs up and over, tumbling gracelessly aboard. The mess of mud and debris splattered a bit, but after several awkward adjustments she found herself sitting opposite the young healer.
A few quick wipes and a shake of her veil took the majority of the muck from her face, and she realized she would actually have to tell him whats going on... "I...I'm Lady Gwendolyn as I said. And if you speak to ANYONE about this secret I WILL have your head!" She snarled, before sighing once more and relaxing a bit. "Sorry, I don't mean that. It's been a long day... You can take the blindfold off if you'd like." Undoing the strap to her boot and sliding it off with a soggy squelch, she caressed her ankle. Her feet were in awful shape regardless, several days of walking through swampland will do that to a woman, but at the moment only her ankle had bothered her enough to complain about.
"I can't see that well. When I was running out, I think I tripped on a society root and twisted my ankle... I know it's nothing terrible but it is quite painful. I don't know if I could have made it out of the swamp were it not for your boat."
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Post by Nyr on Feb 15, 2023 16:13:15 GMT -5
Nyr gripped the edge of the boat as the young Lady, Lady Gwendolyn, pulled herself aboard so that he was not unseated by its rocking. Even with the blindfold over his eyes, it is easy to see the way his eyebrows knit together with worry.
He hesitates when she offers to let him take the blindfold off. She had seemed quite adamant about not being seen, but it would be much easier to treat her if he could see what he was doing… He ruminates on the matter for a moment before he reaches up to undo the bandages until dark eyes blink and look back at Gwendolyn with easily evident concern.
“You have my word, Lady Gwendolyn. I won’t tell a soul about this. I wouldn’t anyway; every patient deserves confidential care from their doctor.” The young tiefling man gives her what he hopes is a reassuring smile. With deft fingers, he digs through his supplies, getting out a roll of bandages, a wooden dowel to use as a brace, and a small vial of a reddish liquid1.
“Do you mind if I take a look?” He asks, making eye contact with Lady Gwendolyn before he begins the process of checking over her ankle, prodding it gently here and there. It certainly wasn’t broken, which was quite lucky, but a sprain like this would have made the journey out of the swamp on her own more than just a little dangerous. It only takes a few moments of humming to himself for Nyr to come up with a treatment plan, and he offers her the small vial.
“Drink this; it will help ease the bruising and the pain. I’ll wrap this ankle, but you should still be careful putting weight on it for a few days. I’d recommend icing it if you have access to that and sleeping with it propped up on a pillow above your chest level for the next few days to ease the swelling.” His voice is steady and gentle as he explains; all the while, he carefully cleans her foot of any dirt or mud with a spare rag before he wraps it snuggly in bandages2 to keep it in a comfortable position.
“There, all done. I can row you back somewhere safe now. Would that be alright with you, Lady Gwendolyn?” Nyr asks with a kind, warm smile.
1. Minor Healing Potion 2. Med Kit
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Post by Gwendolyn on Feb 15, 2023 19:25:00 GMT -5
Truly, this was quite fortunate. The red liquid took away almost all the pain she had experienced and turned it into a barely noticeable throb. The gentle touch of the doctor brought the rest of the discomfort about the whole situation to a stall.
"I, really must thank you. Please, get us out of this dreadful place, and you will have my deepest gratitude. I simply must have your name." The journey outwards was significantly more pleasant than the journey in, more reminiscent of a vacation than the trek it had been. The water lapped out at the sides of the boat as the croaks of frogs made the small talk more bearable. She hated asking for help, mostly because people in her circles were always looking for an advantage to take. But this scholar, seemed to genuinely wish to help. It was a nice change of pace.
"Once we return to the civilized world, I must retrieve some sort of payment. If you have an address? It would take a few weeks however, my families manor is in the Frost Gale. In the meantime, I may offer a favor? If you find yourself in a bind similar to my own, stranded with no one to help, please, call out to me and I will assist however I can."
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Post by Nyr on Feb 15, 2023 23:13:10 GMT -5
“There’s no need to thank me so profusely,” Nyr speaks in that same kind tone of voice with a small smile. “I’m merely happy to do my duty as a medic and provide aid where it’s needed. And I’m glad I was here to help you. If you want my name, though, I can give that easily. I am Nyr, Lady Gwendolyn, and it’s my pleasure to meet you.”
He gives Lady Gwendolyn a moment to settle in the boat before he takes hold of the oars and begins the slow push back the way he came. Gentle water sloshes against the sides of the boat, and while it is not a particularly quick journey due to the murky and sometimes muddy waters, it is a much more pleasant one than it had been when he had been alone.
“The Frost Gale, huh…?” Just hearing that place’s name leaves a tinge of bitterness in him, but he will not let those rotten memories sour this new meeting. “There’s no need to compensate me, truly… But I will accept your favor if I ever need it, in the name of friendship, perhaps? And if you truly feel the need to reward me in some way… Well, there’s an Apothecary in the Oasis of Zeinav called the Desert Rose and a doctor there who taught me everything I know… If you or your family are ever in need of a good doctor, the one there taught me everything I know. I would be grateful if you could keep him in mind.”
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