Flickering Excellent Claw's Bath
Flickering Excellent Claw's Bath
The demesne had been capped entirely by a cleverly arranged series of baths, each heated by the essence that gathered in the place. It was designed by Silken Elder, and in fact it was his place of power.
Even so, the most notable of the events that occurred in his time there had little to do with him, but rather, the arrival of Flickering Excellent Claw and her Prince.
They had come to him after the Dragonblooded betrayal--the man bled in a dozen places, and the woman on his back seemed wounded within an inch of death. Her body clung to the man as if it had been firmly strapped there; even incapacitated, she would allow nothing to move her except her bearer.
Claw and the prince had come, and Silken Elder had decided to shelter them only as long as it took for them to recover from their wounds--not such a long time, considering the hardiness of the Lawgivers. So he welcomed them, and watched as the prince bore Claw to a bath and, gingerly stripping her of her beloved dress, washed her. Calloused hands caressed dark skin; blood and dirt made the water around them murky before it was carried away by the manse.
Even after Claw was recovered enough to care for herself, they continued this ritual. Within days, Silken Elder blushed to notice that the ritual had begun to be accompanied by the Twilight sorceress' delighted shrieks and giggles. Elder wished the two would be more discrete, but in the end chose not to say anything, because in this way, the two Solars were able to forget the doom that hung over them for a very short time.
For the Hunt was on, and they would die.
--
The Behemoth of Thorns had fallen, and it had made quite a mess in the process. Among those covered in grime were none other than Shadow and Ladarius--and the investigator especially so, after his attempts to slow his fall and to distract attacks by tearing at the rotting flesh of Juggernaught.
But the ghostly army freed by Yan had prepared an excellent bath for them, and the Circle had wasted little time in setting to it.
It was Dari who suggested that Shadow wash his back--the investigator usually was the one to shamelessly spout such ideas. But for once, Shadow had accepted without the usual sarcasm. Dari turned his back to Shadow, settling deeper into the warm water, relaxing as he felt a hand touch his shoulder.
And then he gave a surprised shriek as Shadow took a firm grip and began with his other hand to scrub roughly at the frail Twilight's skin. Shadow continued scrubbing with abandon, but he didn't ignore his friend's protests--rather, they spurred him on.
"If y'don't like it, mebbe next time y'll think before standin' about watchin' a giant spider skitter over t'gut ya! And what was the deal wit' throwin' rottin' bits o' zombie at a Dragonblooded, eh?! Ain't ya supposed to be the smart one?"
The demesne had been capped entirely by a cleverly arranged series of baths, each heated by the essence that gathered in the place. It was designed by Silken Elder, and in fact it was his place of power.
Even so, the most notable of the events that occurred in his time there had little to do with him, but rather, the arrival of Flickering Excellent Claw and her Prince.
They had come to him after the Dragonblooded betrayal--the man bled in a dozen places, and the woman on his back seemed wounded within an inch of death. Her body clung to the man as if it had been firmly strapped there; even incapacitated, she would allow nothing to move her except her bearer.
Claw and the prince had come, and Silken Elder had decided to shelter them only as long as it took for them to recover from their wounds--not such a long time, considering the hardiness of the Lawgivers. So he welcomed them, and watched as the prince bore Claw to a bath and, gingerly stripping her of her beloved dress, washed her. Calloused hands caressed dark skin; blood and dirt made the water around them murky before it was carried away by the manse.
Even after Claw was recovered enough to care for herself, they continued this ritual. Within days, Silken Elder blushed to notice that the ritual had begun to be accompanied by the Twilight sorceress' delighted shrieks and giggles. Elder wished the two would be more discrete, but in the end chose not to say anything, because in this way, the two Solars were able to forget the doom that hung over them for a very short time.
For the Hunt was on, and they would die.
--
The Behemoth of Thorns had fallen, and it had made quite a mess in the process. Among those covered in grime were none other than Shadow and Ladarius--and the investigator especially so, after his attempts to slow his fall and to distract attacks by tearing at the rotting flesh of Juggernaught.
But the ghostly army freed by Yan had prepared an excellent bath for them, and the Circle had wasted little time in setting to it.
It was Dari who suggested that Shadow wash his back--the investigator usually was the one to shamelessly spout such ideas. But for once, Shadow had accepted without the usual sarcasm. Dari turned his back to Shadow, settling deeper into the warm water, relaxing as he felt a hand touch his shoulder.
And then he gave a surprised shriek as Shadow took a firm grip and began with his other hand to scrub roughly at the frail Twilight's skin. Shadow continued scrubbing with abandon, but he didn't ignore his friend's protests--rather, they spurred him on.
"If y'don't like it, mebbe next time y'll think before standin' about watchin' a giant spider skitter over t'gut ya! And what was the deal wit' throwin' rottin' bits o' zombie at a Dragonblooded, eh?! Ain't ya supposed to be the smart one?"