Post by seraaches on Mar 20, 2009 1:21:01 GMT -5
There were voices echoing around him and pain that didn’t dance through his body; it stabbed him, cutting deeply. It was the most pain he could ever remember being in and he was a hair away from trying to block it for at least a short amount of time when the voices formed words and the words made sense.
“Queen Shinrai, it is Elyse, Ader's daughter. Rest easy and do not try to move too much, please. You are safe now at the Club Court.”
His thoughts had swirled, lost in confusion and tinged in pain. His chest. His shoulder. His leg. Why would he be at the Club—
” –stabbed in the range of his heart by a dagger from Se, though instead of killing him as everyone was led to believe—“
He didn’t hear the rest of it, not when the agony that struck him now was far worse than his physical injuries could ever be. There was a distant sound, of despair and horror, but he didn’t connect that with himself. He couldn’t find himself; his mind was swirling in an abyss.
The voices continued around him, something landed on his shoulder and he numbly heard El apologizing about something. He couldn’t concentrate on the words, though. He needed to be alone, he needed—
He tried to cover his face and discovered his arm felt. . . strange. He opened his eyes and stared at what should have been his bone hand. He had a stub. It stared back. The man shivered.
He must have spoken because they were filing out of the room. It was a relief even as there was a faint stab of guilt that he would drive off those who so obviously cared about him. It faded away, though as he stared through his fingers at the unfamiliar ceiling. Se. The Court.
He was a failure.
He closed his eyes again and wished he had died. A trail of wetness suddenly slid down his cheek. He didn’t move to brush it away; they were his shame, his penance.
Whip woke suddenly, still exhausted, but at least now a numbness lurked in his heart rather than the deep, aching pain that had nearly killed him yet again. Enyo stood guiltily by the door.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.” Her voice was low and husky.
The man stared at the unfamiliar woman, though the voice made the connection for him. “Enyo.” It was a statement and not a question, said dully with no real inflection.
The zorse nodded in relief that he recognized her and slowly walked towards him. The stallion tried to push himself upright, wincing slightly when he put weight on his left stump. As the woman approached she saw annoyance then confusion crossing the man’s features.
“What’s wrong?” the weapon asked softly as she drew near.
“My legs,” Whip said as his brow furrowed. “They’re not moving.”
Enyo tilted her head and reached out to gently run her fingers across his thigh. “Do they hurt?”
“No. . .” His voice sounded hollow.
“Then what?” Enyo asked, concern growing exponentially. She gently massaged the man’s leg, but it didn’t seem to be helping. If anything, the Queen paled.
“Nothing,” he answered, sounding further and further away. The zorse didn’t understand and her expression said as much. His vision blackened around the edges and he heard a distant roaring in his ears.
“What? Rai? What’s wrong?” Enyo had ahold of his shoulder and shook him, trying to get his attention.
“I can’t feel my legs.” The world swayed and he distantly heard a woman screaming someone’s name.
Enyo shook out the cloth and managed to elicit a sneeze from behind the boxes. The zorse’s large ears cupped up and forward as she turned to look in that direction. “Are you all right?” the weapon asked though her mind was more on what she was uncovering than the answer.
“Yep!” The midget mouse chimed up cheerfully.
There was a crash further in the attic, but a young, male voice quickly called out, “I’m fine. Don’t come back here.”
Enyo nodded absently, and barely noticed when the girl wandered back around. The woman made a sound of triumph and she leaned over to brush some of the dust off the seat. The small, red girl jumped up and sneezed again. “Be careful, Zehen,” Enyo warned, but the midget seemed fine from there.
Enyo tugged and prodded at the contraption and finally decided that it was still sound. With a nod of satisfaction, she called out to the other Raider, “Vic, we’re heading back down now.”
“Just go ahead,” he sounded snappish; hardly surprising. “I’ll be down in a bit.
Enyo took him at his word and grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and turned it around to head for the staircase.
By the time she got it carefully down the stairs, Zehen had figured out just how much fun the device could be.
“Go faster, Mamma Enyo! Go faster!”
The zorse put back her ears, as a dark smile slipped across her features. “Hold on, Zehen!” she ordered and waited only a second before rushing suddenly forward. A happy squeal sounded from the seat of the wheelchair as the equine sped swiftly up. Enyo’s stride lengthened out into a quick trot and the girl’s laughter served as a warning as they barreled down the hallways.
They didn’t run too terribly long; Enyo was well aware of the fact that she held a royal daughter in her care and that she didn’t have the best of control on the rickety wheelchair. Nevertheless, she slowed them back down without incident, despite Zehen’s protestation for them to continue.
“Now, now,” Enyo rebuked the girl mildly, her mind only half on it. “We need to get this cleaned up and in good repair for your Papa.”
“Daddy!” Zehen chirped cheerfully and the whip nodded in reply. The girl continued, “He won’t like the squeak. It’s fun, though; it sounds like me.”
“No,” Enyo agreed softly and her face grew distant as her thoughts wondered down that path. The paralyzed Queen would not be pleased with a squeak. The man wasn’t pleased about many things in his new life. The whip sighed and belatedly realized that the tiny mouse was staring up at her as though she could read the weapon’s facial expressions. Sometimes it was easy to forget that the little girl was a person and not just an amazing little doll. She smiled quickly, and though it was a bit forced, it would hopefully be real enough to convince the child. “Come on, let’s go find someone who can fix this up for us.”
Because she feared his reaction, Enyo had convinced Zehen after a great deal of arguing that it would be much better if her Papa got the wheelchair whilst she wasn’t there. Not in those words, of course. The whip was fairly certain she had done something along the lines of ‘let’s hide it in his room and wait for him to discover it; think how wonderful that will be?’
Zehen was in bed now, and Enyo pushed the now silent and clean wheelchair towards Rai’s suite of rooms. Her tail swished slowly behind her, the action a nervous swaying in answer to her internal anxieties. She knocked lightly on his door and paused only for a moment before turning the knob. She knew he wouldn’t answer. He wouldn’t even move.
She pushed open the door and pushed the wheelchair inside, then paused to close the door behind her. Her ears twitched backwards then forward. She moved towards his bedroom, hidden back from the little parlour that was the entryway. “Rai?”
He was lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. As always.
“Hello, Rai,” she said softly, trying to draw his attention.
His lips moved and she tilted her head slightly and moved closer. “What did you say, Rai?”
“That’s not. My name.” The words were grating and low.
Enyo rolled her eyes, ears flipping sideways in annoyance. “Oh, you’re fine.” She came over to sit on his bed and he very carefully continued to ignore her. She watched him as he studiously stared at the ceiling. “I brought you a present,” she said in a normal voice.
No reaction.
“Zehen helped me with it.”
The green eyes slipped briefly to the weapon’s face and then back to the ceiling again. She sighed and rose to go fetch it. She quickly rolled the wheelchair into his room. She was relieved to see that the man was watching, though he didn’t move any part of his body. He inspected it critically for a long minute, and then his eyes returned to the ceiling.
Enyo fought the urge to hit her master and turned it so he could get a good view of it easily. “Well!” she announced, brushing off her hands. “I’m going to go to bed now. Let me know if you need anything.” She didn’t wait for a response, simply curling up the bed near his good hand and shifted back into her weapon form.
Whip reached out to touch the handle gently and run his fingers over the leather. His gaze returned to the wheelchair. He couldn’t use a wheelchair. He only had one good arm. The man closed his eyes and then looked back up at the ceiling tiredly.
Go to sleep, Rai. Her voice was an affectionate caress in the back of his mind.
“That’s not my name anymore,” he answered aloud, voice soft, but he knew she wasn’t listening. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered now.
“Queen Shinrai, it is Elyse, Ader's daughter. Rest easy and do not try to move too much, please. You are safe now at the Club Court.”
His thoughts had swirled, lost in confusion and tinged in pain. His chest. His shoulder. His leg. Why would he be at the Club—
” –stabbed in the range of his heart by a dagger from Se, though instead of killing him as everyone was led to believe—“
He didn’t hear the rest of it, not when the agony that struck him now was far worse than his physical injuries could ever be. There was a distant sound, of despair and horror, but he didn’t connect that with himself. He couldn’t find himself; his mind was swirling in an abyss.
The voices continued around him, something landed on his shoulder and he numbly heard El apologizing about something. He couldn’t concentrate on the words, though. He needed to be alone, he needed—
He tried to cover his face and discovered his arm felt. . . strange. He opened his eyes and stared at what should have been his bone hand. He had a stub. It stared back. The man shivered.
He must have spoken because they were filing out of the room. It was a relief even as there was a faint stab of guilt that he would drive off those who so obviously cared about him. It faded away, though as he stared through his fingers at the unfamiliar ceiling. Se. The Court.
He was a failure.
He closed his eyes again and wished he had died. A trail of wetness suddenly slid down his cheek. He didn’t move to brush it away; they were his shame, his penance.
-----
Whip woke suddenly, still exhausted, but at least now a numbness lurked in his heart rather than the deep, aching pain that had nearly killed him yet again. Enyo stood guiltily by the door.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.” Her voice was low and husky.
The man stared at the unfamiliar woman, though the voice made the connection for him. “Enyo.” It was a statement and not a question, said dully with no real inflection.
The zorse nodded in relief that he recognized her and slowly walked towards him. The stallion tried to push himself upright, wincing slightly when he put weight on his left stump. As the woman approached she saw annoyance then confusion crossing the man’s features.
“What’s wrong?” the weapon asked softly as she drew near.
“My legs,” Whip said as his brow furrowed. “They’re not moving.”
Enyo tilted her head and reached out to gently run her fingers across his thigh. “Do they hurt?”
“No. . .” His voice sounded hollow.
“Then what?” Enyo asked, concern growing exponentially. She gently massaged the man’s leg, but it didn’t seem to be helping. If anything, the Queen paled.
“Nothing,” he answered, sounding further and further away. The zorse didn’t understand and her expression said as much. His vision blackened around the edges and he heard a distant roaring in his ears.
“What? Rai? What’s wrong?” Enyo had ahold of his shoulder and shook him, trying to get his attention.
“I can’t feel my legs.” The world swayed and he distantly heard a woman screaming someone’s name.
-----
Enyo shook out the cloth and managed to elicit a sneeze from behind the boxes. The zorse’s large ears cupped up and forward as she turned to look in that direction. “Are you all right?” the weapon asked though her mind was more on what she was uncovering than the answer.
“Yep!” The midget mouse chimed up cheerfully.
There was a crash further in the attic, but a young, male voice quickly called out, “I’m fine. Don’t come back here.”
Enyo nodded absently, and barely noticed when the girl wandered back around. The woman made a sound of triumph and she leaned over to brush some of the dust off the seat. The small, red girl jumped up and sneezed again. “Be careful, Zehen,” Enyo warned, but the midget seemed fine from there.
Enyo tugged and prodded at the contraption and finally decided that it was still sound. With a nod of satisfaction, she called out to the other Raider, “Vic, we’re heading back down now.”
“Just go ahead,” he sounded snappish; hardly surprising. “I’ll be down in a bit.
Enyo took him at his word and grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and turned it around to head for the staircase.
By the time she got it carefully down the stairs, Zehen had figured out just how much fun the device could be.
“Go faster, Mamma Enyo! Go faster!”
The zorse put back her ears, as a dark smile slipped across her features. “Hold on, Zehen!” she ordered and waited only a second before rushing suddenly forward. A happy squeal sounded from the seat of the wheelchair as the equine sped swiftly up. Enyo’s stride lengthened out into a quick trot and the girl’s laughter served as a warning as they barreled down the hallways.
They didn’t run too terribly long; Enyo was well aware of the fact that she held a royal daughter in her care and that she didn’t have the best of control on the rickety wheelchair. Nevertheless, she slowed them back down without incident, despite Zehen’s protestation for them to continue.
“Now, now,” Enyo rebuked the girl mildly, her mind only half on it. “We need to get this cleaned up and in good repair for your Papa.”
“Daddy!” Zehen chirped cheerfully and the whip nodded in reply. The girl continued, “He won’t like the squeak. It’s fun, though; it sounds like me.”
“No,” Enyo agreed softly and her face grew distant as her thoughts wondered down that path. The paralyzed Queen would not be pleased with a squeak. The man wasn’t pleased about many things in his new life. The whip sighed and belatedly realized that the tiny mouse was staring up at her as though she could read the weapon’s facial expressions. Sometimes it was easy to forget that the little girl was a person and not just an amazing little doll. She smiled quickly, and though it was a bit forced, it would hopefully be real enough to convince the child. “Come on, let’s go find someone who can fix this up for us.”
-----
Because she feared his reaction, Enyo had convinced Zehen after a great deal of arguing that it would be much better if her Papa got the wheelchair whilst she wasn’t there. Not in those words, of course. The whip was fairly certain she had done something along the lines of ‘let’s hide it in his room and wait for him to discover it; think how wonderful that will be?’
Zehen was in bed now, and Enyo pushed the now silent and clean wheelchair towards Rai’s suite of rooms. Her tail swished slowly behind her, the action a nervous swaying in answer to her internal anxieties. She knocked lightly on his door and paused only for a moment before turning the knob. She knew he wouldn’t answer. He wouldn’t even move.
She pushed open the door and pushed the wheelchair inside, then paused to close the door behind her. Her ears twitched backwards then forward. She moved towards his bedroom, hidden back from the little parlour that was the entryway. “Rai?”
He was lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. As always.
“Hello, Rai,” she said softly, trying to draw his attention.
His lips moved and she tilted her head slightly and moved closer. “What did you say, Rai?”
“That’s not. My name.” The words were grating and low.
Enyo rolled her eyes, ears flipping sideways in annoyance. “Oh, you’re fine.” She came over to sit on his bed and he very carefully continued to ignore her. She watched him as he studiously stared at the ceiling. “I brought you a present,” she said in a normal voice.
No reaction.
“Zehen helped me with it.”
The green eyes slipped briefly to the weapon’s face and then back to the ceiling again. She sighed and rose to go fetch it. She quickly rolled the wheelchair into his room. She was relieved to see that the man was watching, though he didn’t move any part of his body. He inspected it critically for a long minute, and then his eyes returned to the ceiling.
Enyo fought the urge to hit her master and turned it so he could get a good view of it easily. “Well!” she announced, brushing off her hands. “I’m going to go to bed now. Let me know if you need anything.” She didn’t wait for a response, simply curling up the bed near his good hand and shifted back into her weapon form.
Whip reached out to touch the handle gently and run his fingers over the leather. His gaze returned to the wheelchair. He couldn’t use a wheelchair. He only had one good arm. The man closed his eyes and then looked back up at the ceiling tiredly.
Go to sleep, Rai. Her voice was an affectionate caress in the back of his mind.
“That’s not my name anymore,” he answered aloud, voice soft, but he knew she wasn’t listening. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered now.
Also--Zehen is so freakin' adorable, omg. x3
