From Here to There

[Raydo]

Jalik's Crossing - Early Morning​

Relin has been woken up early by his father. The priest was not actually his father, but had raised the young man and he viewed him as such. He was told quickly of rumors that he had received in the night of a sickness that was spreading in a village a week's journey away.

Ralik's Crossing was in a remote area of the forest and they had been the nearest clerics of Pelor by a long ways so they had been dispatched to look into it. His father was elderly and too old for the journey. So it was time for Relin to be sent off on his own. This would be the furthest he had been away from home alone in his life.

He quickly gathered his things in the darkness of early morning. He would be traveling with a caravan that was going in that direction. Given their remote location, thieves and natural predators were common in these woods.

Still groggy from his sudden waking, he walked outside into the cold morning air. It was late fall, the first snow could come at any time. He saddled and climbed on top of his horse, an all-white beast named Lady. She was a good horse and the two had bonded over the years.

 

[EmilyHuene]

The caravan was not what any passerby would come to expect. One might typically think a caravan would have maybe two to three carriages, each led by a horse or two depending on the weight and size of the cargo. Yet, this one had almost six carriages in total! A dozen or two knights -also on horseback- had come to accompany them. The first two sections were simply supplied and such all going to the castle. The third and fourth were carrying crates of what would later be identified as weapons. The fifth carriage was a large bundle of hay and wheat. Then the last, that was the most surprising.

The final carriage being pulled was smaller than all the rest and only needed a single horse to pull the weight. Aside from the driver there was not much else to see save for the large prison bars making up a cage. Inside the cage, curled up along small piles of scattered hay was a young girl. Her hair was black, matching her long gown that covered her shoulders down to her ankles. She was barefoot and her feet were dirty and covered in dried mud. Her hands were bound by a wooden block cut in the shape of a stockade; her hands clamped in the holes so she couldn't pull them free. Upon closer inspection magic runes were etched into the wood, but were otherwise not terribly visible.

The girl was clearly sulking in the corner of the cage as far away from the driver as she could be. She only looked up once she saw Relin walking up toward the caravan. At first she was only looking to see who was walking by but as soon as she saw the person her eyes lit up. Suddenly she was on her feet and banging on the bars trying to get his attention. Relin would see that aside from the dirt and grime she otherwise appeared in perfect health, but also that the girl was very young. She couldn't have been more than fifteen or sixteen. And her eyes, they were as white and beautiful as the moon.

"Help! Please! Please, Sir! You have to help me! These idiots are going to kill me! They think I'm some sort of demon! Please you have to talk some sense into them!"

@Raydo ​

 

[Raydo]

He rubbed at his eye as he approached the rear of the caravan. He wasn't sure what was being transported but knew it was guarded somewhat heavily, which Relin didn't mind at all. He heard from the someone in the tavern the night before that this group was headed for the capital which was probably a month or two journey still. He was glad his trip would only be about a week.

He was lost in his own thoughts when the sudden movement surprised him and caused his him to almost fall off his horse...almost. Thank Pelor he caught himself quickly and calmed his horse down before anyone really noticed him. He would have never lived it down if he had managed to embarrass himself before they even left the village.

He eyed the girl. She didn't look much like a demon, though he had never actually seen a demon he had heard stories from more experienced clerics and paladins that had passed through to know they were usually a bit more dangerous looking. He eyed the one guard who was atop his own horse. "Aye lad. You best be careful or she will eat your soul right out of your body." he said grin on his face. He likely didn't believe in whatever she had been accused of but was being paid none the less.

"I don't know how much good me talking to someone be, and besides I don't know you that you didn't do the things you have been accused of." he said pausing a second before unhooking his water skin and passing it through the bars. "but I suppose I can offer this for now." he said. It was likely that she had not been fed enough or given enough water. He wasn't sure he could or even wanted to do anything about her being captive but he had promised to Pelor himself to take care of those he could, even those who were prisoners.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Aye lad. You best be careful or she will eat your soul right out of your body."

"What!?" she shrieked and glared at the man. "That's ridiculous! Demons don't eat souls. They eat meat. Like anything else." The girl wasn't sure why she felt that would be any better. Now they probably thought of her even more a monster that she might try to take a bite out of them instead. But it was important enough of a distinction that she had to set the record straight.

"I don't know how much good me talking to someone be, and besides I don't know you that you didn't do the things you have been accused of, but I suppose I can offer this for now."

The girl eyed him suspiciously for a moment. He was offering her...a drink? That was random, but also incredibly kind. She slowly reached for it, then once it was in her hand yanked it back to make sure he couldn't try to take back his offer. She continued to eye him like he'd change his mind at any moment. Her eyes then looked carefully over him. A priest. Was this some sort of test? What was in the jug? Holy water? How ridiculous. She knew she wasn't a demon, and she knew he couldn't poison her. Well...she assumed he couldn't. She'd never been poisoned to really know.

Figuring there could be no harm in taking what was in his water skin she tipped it back and took a decent-sized gulp. Although none of them had in fact given her water, she really wasn't thirsty. She assumed that was because of her nature, not that she ever really thought about the truth of it. She was who she was; she didn't know any different.

Giving him back the water she would add, "Thank you. My name's Evelyn."