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Onward the torture went. All Railen could do was cry out against everything he was being shown. Was all of this real? Was it an illusion? The elf couldn’t tell anymore. His eyes became wide with disbelief and fear, staring at his village engulfed in flames. Why didn’t he move? Why didn’t he do anything to stop it? This horrid reality was starting to become more and more real to Railen, and he even started to forget where he truly was. Instead the burning homes were there. The dying people were there. The flames and the smoke were there. He had finally gotten back to his feet and looked around again. “Mother,” he whispered. “Where’s Mother?” He started towards the house down the road, the house that he and Rainen and their mother had shared for so many years. He didn’t make it far, though... The High Elf stopped dead in his tracks, staring up towards one house that had never been there before, flames licking around the upper window. A small boy was reaching out of it towards him, yelling something. As Railen tried to concentrate more and more, the noises around him began to fade out. Who was the child? Then another surprise was offered... Gwendolyne suddenly came up behind the boy in the window, screaming out to Railen just as the child had. One last thing could be heard coming from the little Elven boy before the flames fully engulfed the house... "Father!" Eyes went wide and new tears trekked down Railen’s face. Was that what should have happened? The two young lovers together... a family? The images were fading faster now and the High Elf tried to run towards them. “NO! Don’t go! I’ll save you! Please, don’t go! PLEASE!” And then everything was gone. Railen was left in silence and blackness again, fallen to his knees and sobbing. The only thing that broke the silence this time was laughter. Stunned, Railen jerked his head up and was amazed to see a completely different setting than before. There was a stage there before them, Railen sitting in a crowd of people. He had never been here before... what was this place? All of his questions were answered when a woman stepped out onto the stage. “Allysa.” He remembered her from his home. She had lived there as a child and left when she decided to be a performer. It seemed she had succeeded. They were very close before she left... and they could have had a more involved relationship at one point in time. He looked on her more of a sister, now. The realization faded quicker, this time. Railen immediately forgot that the things he was seeing weren’t real. Instead he put on a grin and sat back in the chair, ready to see how well Allysa could do. Of course he overlooked that he was in a rather... human establishment.
An'Thaya really hated rhyme... she really did. An overwhelming urge to snap the little not-faes neck was only kept at bay by the fact that it seemed willing to help. She barely had time to wonder why her hand felt so at home in Galain's, she hardly new him, yet it seemed she had done this for hundreds of years.... Shaking her head she concentrated on Elyen. There was Railen to consider as well, and soon enough they found the pit in which the High Elf was trapped. "Railen?" The only answer was a strangled cry... it seemed the little creature was right, his sanity was on the lamb. "Do you have a rope?" she looked up at Galain hopefully, she hadn't thought to bring one... then again, she hadn't though to be trapped in a Sith Temple either.
It was some time before anything important happened. Railen was watching her dance. She seemed like an angel, gliding across the floor. Yet in this dark place, nothing was as it seemed. Bright flash. Soaking darkness. Blood. There's always so much blood... why won't it go away? Why won't the blood just go away? Then he was left in the dark again, a freezing chill working its way through his body, seeping into his bones. Railen... It hurt to hear it. It pained him to want back the reality he once had. The sound was like someone piercing his heart over and over, the voice echoing against whatever black walls might be casing him. Railen... Railen... Railen... Railen... Railen... Railen... Railen... He wanted to run away from it.... to bury himself deeper within the darkness that was all ready enveloping him. Could he fall any further? He felt others near.... So near... Everyone that was near to him somehow got hurt. He didn't want anymore blood on his hands... The blood. It's back. I thought I washed it away? So much blood...
Galain had wondered too when his hand grasped An'Thaya's. It felt rather natural... He shook off that odd feeling and tried to concentrate on the annoying creature before them. At least it led them true and in time they stood at the edge of something that seemed to yawn depthlessly below them. "Railen?" Galain called down with An'Thaya. He had to be down there and the noises they heard seemed to corroborate that. "I have rope. Sort of." He fished into his vest until he pulled out the twine he always kept on hand for various mischievous purposes. He fished into his vest and pulled out something small that looked like an ordinary seed bean. It was a wishing bean he'd received centuries ago for his one hundredth birthday. Galain concentrated and in a few seconds the twine became strong rope that coiled out of his hands and slipped down the hole. Galain gazed at An'Thaya. "M'lady. Perhaps if you climb down and either convince Railen to climb up or else tie the other to him and I'll pull him up. Hold a moment." Without embarrassment the elf removed his clothes and laid them in a neat pile by the edge of the hole. Then he attached the rope loosely around his waist and concentrated a moment. Where a golden elf had stood there was now a golden dragon. "Tighten this for me, please?" The dragon said quite clearly in Common to the Amazon. "Then climb on down. We'll find Shadow next."
An'Thaya stared openly as Galain stripped off his clothes... for some reason it didn't bother her. He was pleasant enough to look at for one... and two.. she could have sworn she had seen everything before. Although... there was something missing... Her eyes traveled to the gold patch of scales on his abdomen. Perhaps something new as well. She nearly jumped out her skin when he went dragon, but stood her ground and did as he asked, tightening the rope before moving to the edge. "I think its best if I go down and knock him out," she grinned, "Railen is hard to handle at the best of times." With that she jumped, repelling down the smooth edge of the dark chasm without so much as a blink. Perhaps he should have warned her before he'd changed. It was so natural for him now, ’Lain mused to himself now. He was almost a separate entity when dragon... the elf and his appetites were there, but severely suppressed. In his place a nine-year old juvenile took dominion -- though he was a large enough juvenile... He held the rope easily as the Amazon's slight weight replaced the slackness of the rope. In time it was replaced with a slightly heavier weight after a few moments of exclamations and a loud THWOK. The dragon began to pull rather easily. Railen was always much easier to handle when unconscious in An’Thaya’s opinion. Perhaps she took alittle to much pleasure in thwoking him over the head. Tying him to the rope she wrapped herself around him... quite glad he had gone nite nite for this particular moment... and hung on while the Galain dragon pulled them upwards. When they reached the top she scrabbled out and turned around to pull Railen onto firmer ground. Untying him she sat down next to him and patted him on the face. "Still in there sleeping beauty?" Apparently she had smecked him real good... he was still dead to the world. "He was ranting pretty good down there," she muttered, "My therapy skills are limited." OK, so her idea of therapy was beating sense into the offending party.. so sue her.
’Lain gazed at the unconscious Railen and nudged him slightly. Yep, he was out cold. He gave the Amazon an approving look before he shifted back to his Elven form and gathered up his clothes. "I guess we need to find Shadow next. Maybe when Railen comes to he can give us a hint." Galain brushed a hand through his hair. "As for therapy I think we're all going to need it if we ever get out of here."
The first thing Railen felt next was a stinging on the side of his face. He didn't want to open his eyes, though. What if what he saw next was even worse than everything he'd seen before? He started to drift back into darkness when he felt another stinging slap. "Ow... don't do that..." Slowly he tried to sit up and open his eyes, one hand wandering to a sore spot on the back of his head. After a moment of wondering where it came from he noticed who was around him. "Galain? An'Thaya? No...." The elf scrambled backwards and pressed himself against the wall. He didn't want to see anyone else he knew hurt. Then he did what was quite expected of someone in that situation. He began to mumble to himself. "No more blood... no more blood... no more blood..."
An'Thaya shared a worried glance with Galain, they didn't have time to spare, and Railen was in no condition to travel, never mind fight in this condition. Something had to be done, and quickly, before they tried to move on. "Give me a moment," she murmured to the Elen, he was busy enough dressing himself, giving her the time she needed. "Don't take this the wrong way," the comment was meant for Railen who was eyeing her nervously, still babbling on about blood. Moving fast she placed her hands on his temples, holding his head firmly against the wall and sliding him down so he was at almost at eye level with her. Using her body to pin him she placed her lips against his, gathering the Aethyr and weaving the ties for a light bond that glided into the High Elf’s mind. ~Railen... ~ She broke off the kiss, but maintained her hold on him as he struggled against her. ~Railen listen to me.... the blood has washed away... there is nothing to fear.... ~ Releasing the magic into his mind she spoke of comfort and light, driving the demon out as she gathered the elf’s spirit from its huddled corner in his thoughts.
He didn't move. Anyone watching would've probably figured that he went totally into shock. His eyes were directed towards An'Thaya, but it seemed more like he looked past her... as if he was blind. What had happened in his mind would've gone untouched until he willed his own death... but as the Amazon wove her way through there was a new sense of hope. The darkness was replaced by the light and things slowly came back into focus. "Oh gods," he whispered as he clenched his eyes shut. A single tear trickled down his face. What had just happened? How long had he been like this? He let his head lean back against the wall, still taking in the comforting thoughts from the whisper of a bond.
There came a moment where she actually felt Railen return to sanity, his body relaxed against the way with an audible sigh... one that echoed in his mind. When his eyes left hers she allowed herself the luxury of blinking, her hands slipping away as he leaned his head back. Glancing back towards the opening in the floor she wondered what had been down there... and a shudder rippled down her spine.. she had been close to whatever it was... why had she been spared? Turning back to Railen she wiped away a tear that had trickled down onto his cheek. "Are you ok?" It was kind of a silly question to ask... she knew exactly how he was... but there seemed to be a lack of words.
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