Flashback I feel so Domineered, Part 3.5

[Ialari Pythone]

Continued From Here...

When she finally awoke, Ialari stretched luxuriously and looked around in hopes of her environment not having changed since she went to bed. The cool, crisp air that she breathed in with a yawn proved that indeed things were still as they were. Ready to begin the new day, she gathered herself and exited her Dominion. Once outside and after her eyes had adjusted to the starkly different setting, she begun her next task of collecting a large number of sticks from the forest floor. When she had a large armful, she returned to the Retreat and began picking out the straightest sticks. When she had a good number of them, she walked over to the ruins that made up the surroundings of the Retreat itself and picked out a couple of the larger stones. She moved them closer to her firepit and set them up roughly a foot and half apart from each other. She then laid out the sticks so that they were supported on each end by the stones. She rested smaller stones on top of the stick ends and formed something of a rudimentary wooden grill. It was suspended roughly 2 feet above the ground. Ialari found the whole process took much longer than she would have originally thought thanks to uncontrollably focusing on the strange connective energy between everything she saw and touched.

She dug a small hole under the wooden grill and placed a bunch of dried grass and leaves and tree bark gathered from nearby trees. She even took several handfuls of dried tea leaves from the shipwreck salvage and laid them out in the hole. With her flint and steel she started a small fire. She worked with the fire a bit to get it to a smoulder and not an open flame. With the smouldering smoke drifting upward through the wooden grill, she placed a couple sea-bird carcasses on the grill and watched. The smoke drifted up and crawled its way around the carcasses. Ialari noticed however that a lot of the smoke was drifting away and being wasted. Gathering some wood from her pile of salvaged scrap, she sunk four pieces into the ground in a square around the stones. She then took some rope and netting and a few more pieces of wood and tied together more of a frame around the stones. She laid out a few boards over the top of the frame and created something of a roof over the stones and wooden grill. This helped to contain some of the smoke. Noticing that there was still some smoke escaping, Ialari tied a few more boards to the frame to create very simple, incomplete walls around the frame. The whole process took a relatively short amount of time but in the end she had built a very rough, much smaller version of the smokehouses she had seen before. Smoke still escaped through the gaps in the wood but a good amount of it was trapped and redirected into and around the bird carcasses. When the primitive smoker was finished, Ialari set to gathering more material to smoulder and smoke her food.

Little did she realize however that her presence in the area combined with the blood from the bird cleaning and the smell of smoking birds had drawn unwanted, dangerous attention. This attention brought something closer and closer to the Retreat where Ialari sat unaware.

[Ialari Pythone]

A few more hours went by as Ialari worked on gathering more material to smoulder in the smoker. She gathered what dried leaves she could find as well as using her dagger to shave off a respectable amount of bark from some of the surrounding trees. The heat of the day was slowly growing bringing with it no small amount of sweat that quickly covered Ialari. The salty taste mixed with dirt and plant debris left her with a foul taste in her mouth as she returned to the Retreat and the site of her rather crude yet somewhat functional smoker. She left a small pile of her gatherings near the smoker while stuffing some of it in the still smoking remains she gathered earlier.

As she checked on the bird carcasses, she noted how they were drying out, slowly yet surely. Peeling a piece of meat off of one, she tasted it, savoring the taste. It was without a doubt smoky and not yet finished yet to her food-deprived stomach it was like something out of a dream.

Leaving the her catchings to continue smoking, Ialari quickly finished much of the remainder of the other food she had gathered. She felt a little guilty yet couldn't help but lay back and relax a bit. So much time and energy had been spent gathering food which left Ialari wondering how anyone could survive for any real length of time in the wilds. She knew it was only a very short matter of time before the immediate area began to thrive once more with wildlife and with that came much greater danger. Combined, the threat of being eaten by something much larger along with trying to find enough food to live was a task she wasn't sure she was ready for. Still, it was not much different than living among the undead of Sahova. There she had to struggle for edible food while avoiding some of the more dangerous people and locales that made up the island.

As the day continued to grow later, Ialari checked one last time on the her handiwork. She noted how the smoker, while still allowing smoke to escape, had performed its job quite nicely. Reaching inside, she pulled forth the now well-dried chunks of bird meat and picked at them to make sure they were done. Although tough and absent of the juices she would otherwise savor, the meat appeared well smoked and likely enough to get her through the rest of her stay. Shaving off a piece with her dagger, she tasted it. It was rather earthy tasting, the leaves and bark she used for fuel evident, but it wasn't too bad. There was even a hint of tea and tobacco leaves mixed in which helped make up for the otherwise "off" taste.

After she gathered the meat, wrapped it in tea leaves and stowed it away, Ialari cleaned up the area around the smoker. When she was finished, the sun was still up though getting lower and lower with each passing moment. Her face, arms and chest were covered in dirt, smoke and other accumulated filth which left her yearning for a bath. Looking up to through the trees and gauging her remaining light, she decided she had just enough time to head for the nearby pond for a bath then return to her Dominion for a bit of communing before bedding down.

Dressed in a haggard skirt and chest wrap, Ialari tucked her dagger in the waist of her skirt and set out for the pond. It had been a good day even if the only thing accomplished was preparing enough food until her date with the ship that would return her to Sahova. Still, not a wasted day.

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari arrived at the pond a short time later. After undressing, she laid her meager clothing on a nearby rock with her dagger sitting on top. She then took a several steps into the water before wading out into the center. She stopped at the large rock near the center of the pond where she often laid on, half submerged, and stretched out. Smiling to herself as she washed the day's filth from her skin, Ialari found herself absently talking out loud. "You're dirty, you're not in the physical shape you should be in, you're alone in the middle of nowhere, your only friend is a ghost and there is a not-so-far-off chance that you'll be dead within the next several days." Ialari paused, still smiling as she ran her fingers over the intricate carvings of Izentor on her metallic arm before looking at the palm of her off-hand to see the scythe-shaped simple of Death. Continuing to nobody in particular, "Yet despite all that, you've accomplished more in a couple of years than most do in an entire lifetime."

Moving to a sitting position on the rock, Ialari put her arms around her knees and laid her head down as she thought back on all that had happened to her. She recalled her encounter with Amir Berliotz and remembered how she felt when Izurdin blessed her with his second mark. She thought of the receiving of Dominion and of her travels through the Ukalas at Dira's side. Further back than that was her arrival in Sahova and her confrontation with Drainira. Her long journey from Sultros and everything that happened after.

As she lost herself to her memories, Ialari slowly drifted off to sleep, still sitting in the center of the pond. Lack of proper food, irregular sleep and constant fatigue closed in around her leaving Ialari to her dreams.

Meanwhile, the sun gradually dropped and finally faded from the sky giving way to darkness. With the darkness came something else. Drawn in by the smell of smoke and all manner of smells on the wind, three pairs of eyes looked down from the surrounding trees upon the solitary figure in the center of the pond. They didn't know what to expect upon arriving there but what they saw gave them pause. Confused, curious with varying types of hunger in their eyes, the three newcomers found themselves a bit uncertain as to how next to act. It wasn't every night they stumbled across a naked girl sitting in the center of a secluded pond far from any humanoid settlement.

Silently folding their wings over their bodies as they hunched down in the thicker branches of the trees, the three zith, all males, speaking to each other in tones inaudible to the human ear, struggled over to how best to handle the situation at hand.

The largest of the three, one with dark red hair on his head, around his elbows and knees, called out to the other two who each perched in different yet close-by trees, "This is not right. What is this girl doing here? It may be a trap. What's with her arm, it is not right." One of the others, a younger zith with deep black hair and a jagged scar across its nose, spoke up, "How is it a trap? No one else around. She looks asleep. Easy pickings." The last of the three, one with long gray hair, called back, "I say we just jump her. Play with her a bit and then maybe eat her. I'm starving!" The three of them continued their odd discussion-gradually-turned-argument for awhile longer before immediately silencing themselves as they all noticed Ialari beginning to stir from her impromptu sleep.

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari awoke from her nap realizing quickly that she had fell asleep in the first place. "Damn fool, you could have drowned." She muttered to herself as she stretched out her legs under the water and leaned back with her arms supporting her from behind. Still in a sitting position, she leaned her head back and looked up at the stars. As much as she delighted in the otherworldly sights of the Ukalas and her Dominion, Ialari admitted to herself that a clear, starry night in the mortal realm wasn't all that bad either.

Wiping the grime from her legs, Ialari ran her fingers up and down each one while pressing into the flesh to help rub the dirt from them. She did the same with her fleshy arm as dirt and filth seemed to have a difficult time sticking to the odd metallic finish of her other arm. She continued bathing in a similar manner around her waist as well as up her belly, breasts, neck and shoulders. Although Ialari was a child of the mountains and earth, she took great pleasure in the water and a nice bath was one of the highlights of her day.

Just around the time she finished her neck and shoulders and was about to wash her face that something finally dawned on her. The normal sounds she heard during a nightly bath were gone. She couldn't hear the frogs or insects or anything really other than a light breeze rustling some leaves. The pond was oddly silent when it should be teaming with noise. Quickly an odd tingling sensation starting at the base of her spine and spiderwebbing up the back of her head and around her ears brought her a chill. She recognized the feeling from Sahova when strolling through the courtyard. She could sense the ghosts looking at her but couldn't see them. She knew they were even if they chose not to reveal themselves. It was that feeling of being watched that brought her a slight pause.

She started washing her shoulders and neck again while turning her head casually around her to see if she could see anything around the outskirts of the pond. Her vision, adapted to the total darkness of underground, still served her rather well above ground. As she tried to survey the nearby area without alerting whatever was out there to the fact that she suspected their presence, she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. Moving to wash her face, Ialari dipped her face in the water before lifting it back out and tilting her head back. She looked into the trees that grew around the pond and noted three distinct shapes perched on some of the larger branches. They stood out as being much larger than an owl or any other bird for that matter. The tingling chill Ialari felt a moment earlier returned with greater intensity as she considered the possibility that she was being stalked by a trio of zith. The winged humanoids had been a plague in her homeland of Sultros. They would attack caravans, stealing supplies and attempting to take captives. The average adult isur was too heavy to be picked up by a zith and their skin was dense enough to help lessen the effectiveness of the zith claws. Though a single isur could easily handle a zith one on one, multiple zith posed a real threat.

Ialari was also not in a position of great defense. She was nude in the middle of a pond with the nearest weapon too far away to be of any use. By the time she reached the shore, they could be on her, perhaps even try to drown her. Of course her arm alone could be considered a weapon but against three zith she was still outmatched. Likely they followed the smaller animals that had started returning in recent days. She considered the situation in her mind. They haven't struck yet so either they are still trying to figure out the best way to take me down or they are surprised to see a lone woman in the middle of nowhere so far from civilization. Either way, I doubt I've got much time. Ialari then realized that even though she was effectively defenseless in the center of the pond, the fact that she was surrounded by water offered some defense in itself. The zith would not have an easy time of striking her when they couldn't land. She could easily duck below the water if they tried to attack from the air. This, in her mind, left them and her at something of an impasse.

Ialari thought about waiting them out. If she sat in the pond long enough, the sun would rise and the zith would likely leave. From what she remembered told to her back home, the zith didn't much care for the light. She wasn't too sure about trusting those stories however. What in Izurdin's name are you going to do then. If you run for the dagger, they will be there before you. If you wait in the water, they may not leave when you think they will and they may actually decide to attack before then. You could try and get them to attack you in the water. That would probably be your best chance. But how do you get the jump on three creatures that are perched above you with a greater field of view? Ialari questioned herself and reviewed her choices as she continued to the charade of bathing.

It was at one point during her mental puzzle-solving that her attention was drawn to the large stone she sat on. She was not without a weapon after all. A plan started to form, one that would hopefully provide her with yet one more option, one more desireable than any of the others she had thought about thus far.

[Ialari Pythone]

Realizing it was only a matter of time before her stalkers decided to act, Ialari set her plan into motion. She only hoped that if indeed they were zith that they would be too focused on what they saw above the water's surface to miss what was going on beneath. So Ialari put on something of a show while she used her off hand to wipe herself down. She arched her back a bit out of the water, revealing her upper torso as she ran her fingers through her hair, down the side of her neck and over her breasts. She made sure to take it very slow and pretend to be enjoying her bath a little more than she probably should. Her hopes were that it would be enough of a distraction while her metallic hand went to work on the stone beneath her.

Under the water, she carefully sunk her metallic fingers into the smooth, slippery surface of the algae covered stone. As her fingers pressed into the stone, she began sliding them around until she had formed a roughly spherical-shaped rock just a little larger than her fist. She pulled the stone ball from the stone slab and cautiously repositioned herself so that it rested to her left on the side of her flesh and bone arm. In the meantime, she continued to bathe and put herself on display for her visitors.

She took a quick, non-focused glance around to make sure they hadn't moved. Although she couldn't get a good look this way, she did notice no extra movement. This gave her enough confidence to continue with the next part of the plan.

In the meantime, the zith watched with growing desire as the woman in the water below revealed even more of herself to them. The more impatient of the three, the one urging the others to just jump her while she was still unaware of their presence, grew more agitated and found greater difficulty in remaining still. The other two began chattering in their inaudible language of the terrible fun they were going to have with the girl once they'd had enough of watching her; something they were already enjoying quite a bit. When Ialari shifted positions, they almost pounced though the larger of the three, the leader, called a quick halt as he realized the woman was simply repositioning to continue her rather enticing bath.

Ialari's next underwater movement was to once again sink her fingers into the stone. This time when she sunk her fingers into the rock, she curled her fingers as if she were holding a staff. Though her fingers did not her thumb, she rotated her hand as she pulled it across the stone. This had the effect of carving out a club of sorts out of the stone. When she was finished, she was left with a crude yet functional stone club. She doubted she would be able to strike more than once before the club broke but she hoped it would be enough.

Now, with a slightly larger than fist sized ball of stone on her left and a stone club on her right, Ialari slowly stopped bathing and knelt down in the water. She took hold of the stone ball in her off hand and leaned her head back as if stretching. As she did she took a better look around the trees until she caught sight of one of the things perched in them. You've only got one chance at this, don't muck it up. She thought to herself as she readied herself. Father, guide my hand. With that she lifted the ball of stone from the water and threw it at the shape she had focused on. It sailed through the air toward its target.

The all-to-eager zith with the long grey hair, watched in surprise as the girl pulled something out of the water and threw it. His surprised turned to horror as he realized all to quick that the object was coming right...CRACK! The stone ball slammed directly in the zith's face, breaking. He lost his grip on the branch he was perched on and fell crashing into the brush below. The zith with the deep black hair and scar launched himself from her perch and immediately dove upon Ialari while the larger of the three held back, intrigued at the fact that girl was able to see them much less launch an attack so quickly.

As the scarred zith dove in on Ialari, she shot up out of the water and before the zith could alter its course, she raised the stone club and swung in a downward motion. The club slammed against the zith where his neck and shoulder met before shattering into pieces. As the club hit, she tried to spin out of the way but wasn't quite successful as the bulk of the zith slammed into her side sending both tumbling into the water.

Ialari struggled to gain her footing on the slippery rocks beneath her while the zith thrashed about in pain and fear as it had no idea how to swim. Ialari finally gained her footing and began running as fast as the water would let her to the pond's edge to where her dagger lie. It took her a moment to get her bearings and move in the right direction but when she did she pushed on as quickly as possible. Although she wasn't seriously hurt by the collision with the zith, she felt the pain of severe bruising where it had barreled into her. In the meantime, the largest of the zith who had held back, continued to watch in total fascination. This naked and initially defenseless appearing girl had already dispatched his two comrades within a few seconds. It's fascination however was short lived as it realized the girl was indeed a threat and not something to be left alive to do more harm to him or his brothers.

Ialari was almost to the pond's edge and to her dagger when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head just in time to see a much larger zith diving toward her from above. This zith did not make the same mistake as the one before it and instead of blindly barreling toward her, it pulled up at the last minute but not before reaching out and pushing her. The zith's momentum was enough that when it pushed her, Ialari was sent tumbling out of the water, past the rock where her dagger rested, and crashed into a nearby tree.

The zith, pleased with the result, wasted little time circling once before landing soundly next to where Ialari had fallen. Ialari was dazed from hitting the tree so hard and had difficulty getting to her feet. The zith reached down and lifted her up while slamming her again against the tree. While it was able to do so, the zith found more than a little difficulty lifting her. Puzzled at how a small girl could weigh so much and seem so enduring, he still took no chances and while holding her by the throat against the tree, he punched her repeatedly in the gut. The wind forced from her lungs, her throat squeezed and her legs several inches from the ground combined with the pain of the beating left Ialari incapacitated as the zith leaned in with its face only inches from hers. He breathed in her scent while nuzzling his face against hers. His free hand began to roam its way over her body, kneading, clawing and pinching. It wasn't until he leaned in closer and bit her hard on the neck that the pain brought Ialari partially back to her senses. It was also at that time that the zith found even more surprise at how tough the girls skin was. He had bit her rather hard, intent on tearing away a bit of flesh. Instead, his teeth sunk in just enough to draw blood and for him to realize that her skin was very dense.

Ialari, her senses starting to return, quickly understood the danger she was in. As the zith tried to bite harder, Ialari's metallic hand reached down to where she imagined the beast's genitals were. She took hold with a vice-like grip and squeezed with all the strength she could manage. The zith immediately released his grip on her throat and pulled his mouth from her neck. Ialari fell to the ground but did not let go of her handful. Instead, her falling to the ground with such a grip separated the zith from its more prized possessions causing it to fall back, crying out in haunting roars of pain. It fell to the ground, writhing about, blinded by pain and unable to do anything else. Throwing the bloody mess in her hand aside, Ialari crawled back to her dagger. Although badly beaten and bruised with blood trickling from the wound in her neck, she was able to finally reach the rock where her cloths and dagger were.

When Ialari finally took hold of the dagger, she looked over to see the zith in the water finally pulling itself to the pond's edge just a few yards from her. Taking the briefest of moments to catch her breath, Ialari tried to run over to it though managed only to stumble instead; her body still suffering from the beating. She fell to her knees next to the zith who had by that time rolled over onto its back. Half-drowned with a broken shoulder and wing, it opened its eyes just in time to see Ialari plunging her dagger into its throat. Ripping the blade out of the zith, Ialari had no time to think about what all had happened as the final zith, the one she had hit with the rock, was standing over her. It's shattered, bloody face was twisted in demonic hatred as swung a clawed hand at her face, drawing four, shallow bloody lines across her eyes, nose and mouth. Ialari fell to her side as the zith pounced. It fell upon her with tooth and claw, scratching and biting yet Ialari's thick flesh only bore superficial damage from it. Still, she was covered in blood, hurt, exhausted and scared. She tried to push and kick the zith off of her but he had her down in a way that was too awkward for her to do much. She tried to cover her face with her metallic hand before finally realizing that she still held her dagger in her off hand. She lashed out with it, making only little contact with fur and flesh before finally feeling the blade hit home. The dagger's blade sunk into the zith's gut causing it to pause in its assault. Ialari rolled the zith over so that she was on top, her dagger still in its gut.

Ialari leaned in so that her face was only a few inches from its own shattered on and whispered, "Tell milady Dira hello for me. You're about to meet her." With that, Ialari took hold of the dagger with her metallic hand, twisted once and pulled it toward the zith's groin drawing awful screams of pain from its shattered mouth. She then pulled the dagger free and slammed it into the zith's skull, cutting short its blood-spitting cries.

[Ialari Pythone]

Allowing herself to fall to the side, she separated herself from the zith. She lay at the edge of the pond for a few moments to catch her breath. It was the sounds of agony that interrupted her, the sounds coming from the largest of the three zith who continued to writhe about on the ground several yards away.

Rolling on to all fours, Ialari slowly and painfully rose to one knee. She reached over and pulled her dagger free from the head of the body next her before pushing herself to her feet. The pain in her abdomen and lower chest caused her breaths to be short and quick while the cuts and bites that covered her body continued to burn. She turned to the last remaining zith and half walked, half staggered her way over to it. As she approached, she found it laying on its side, its hands holding its bloody crotch while it whined in pain; its whimpers punctuated by the occasional tormented howl. Ialari, her dagger at the ready, paused to observe the beast. Until now, she had only heard stories of zith with a few scattered sightings from distance. As she observed the prone creature, she noted how much more humanoid it appeared up close. Although covered in a fine black fur, not unlike a horse, it had long red hair on its head with a long, thick patch of hair around its elbows and knees. Ialari noted the long, sharp talons on its feet and the lithe musculature of its legs, arms and torso. Although she had now seen the faces of two zith up close now, outside the heat of combat, she realized just how un-animal-like this one looked. Aside from tight grimace of pain, the zith's face looked quite humanoid although more angular and exotic than a human. The wings, sprouting from the upper back/lower shoulders, were very bat-like. They looked both fragile yet sturdy at the same time in some weird contradiction of form.

As Ialari stood there looking down upon the creature that had attacked her, she cursed herself for actually feeling some small amount of pity for the beast. Calmly she spoke aloud, "I'm not sure if you understand me, but despite what you've done here this night, you've caught me in a rather unique moment in my life." She paused to wipe blood and sweat from around her eyes. "I should drag you back to my camp and deal untold misery upon you, feeding you your own body one tiny piece at a time. I have to admit, it does sound fun." She knelt down to one knee with her dagger still readied. "However, there's something about you I find...intriguing. So, I'll tell you what. I'm going to offer your life to the gods. If they decide you should live, then so be it. Otherwise, well, let's just say that when I finished, death will be the greatest gift you could ever receive." Ialari felt an odd struggle inside her own mind. She fought to hate and despise the monster who had assaulted her. She wanted to slice away every piece of flesh she could and feed the animal its own body until it had literally eaten itself to death. She wanted to introduce all manner of terrible toxins into its body just to see which hurt more. Yet for some strange reason all of those terrible desires were made secondary to her fascination with the zith. The end result was her decision to leave the creature's fate up to the gods for they, more than her, were in a position stable enough to make a solid decision.

Her eyes not moving from zith, her dagger still at the ready, Ialari offered a prayer to the divine as a whole. "My lords and ladies, I, your faithful servant, offer a prayer not for myself, but for another. This creature before me sought great harm to me yet I am willing to offer it mercy if that be your will. I leave its life in your hands. If you wish it to live, please offer a sign. Otherwise, I will dispatch it appropriately." Ialari then waited. Of course she didn't know how long it may take to receive a sign, if it ever came. However, seeing as how the zith would likely bleed out soon and die anyway, she doubted the gods would take long to answer if they were going to. She continued to wait and watch. From the looks of the zith's movements and sounds, it wouldn't last much longer without aid. Finally, when she felt she could wait no longer for the answer, Ialari gave a single nod. "It would seem we have our answer." With that, she carefully reached for the zith's ankle. She settled on dragging it back to the Retreat and after a little rest of her own and assuming it still lived afterwards, she would begin learning just how much pain a zith could handle before it was ready to meet Dira.

Ialari's metallic hand took hold of the zith's ankle. It's lack of any real response told her that it was likely not much of a threat any longer although she kept her dagger ready to strike if indeed the zith were simply "playing opossum". As she prepared to stand and drag the zith away, something peculiar caught her attention. Leaning in closer, dagger always in front, blade toward the zith, Ialari tried to get a better look at something odd on zith's left buttock. The otherwise fine black fur on its body bore a lighter gray pattern on the creature's hindquarters. As Ialari looked closer, she could see that the off-coloring extended down to the zith's flesh where it was still lighter. The marking resembled the shape of a chain. Ialari loosened her grip on the zith's ankle and almost dropped her dagger. It was likely that the mark had been there before her prayer and she just now noticed it but the mark itself she considered a sign. She wasn't all that familiar with all the details surrounding the mark but she recognized it from some of the stories her mother use to tell her as a child. Her mother, a priestess of Izurdin, spoke often of not only the Divine Father but also of other divine lords and ladies. Ialari recalled her mother speaking of the goddess of slaves and servants, a goddess called Nikali.

"Well, my friend, it seems someone has already vouch for you. So, here's how it'll go. You're marked by the goddess of slaves so in exchange for your life, you are mine." Ialari muttered something to herself about the unpredictability of the divine before again taking hold of the zith's ankle. "Guess we better get you back to the Retreat and see if we can stop that bleeding else I'll have broken my end of the bargain. That would be...unacceptable." Ialari, along with being exhausted, filled with pain, a bit confused and in no small way quite angry, she was also a bit fearful that she would not be able to save the zith and fulfill her end of what she considered a bargain made between her and gods through prayer. An isur never entered a contract they didn't intend to fulfill.

Naked, beaten, bleeding and bruised, Ialari proceeded to drag the zith by the ankle from the pond back to the Retreat. For it's part, the zith went in and out of unconsciousness and put up little to no struggle. When Ialari finally arrived at the Retreat, she pulled the zith close to her firepit and released it. At that point, it was completely blacked-out. She went to her stash of supplies and cut a few narrow strips of sail cloth. She used them to bind the zith's hands together. She also cut free a bit of netting which she carefully draped over the zith's wings. Her hopes were that with tangled wings and bound hands, it would be less of a threat if it were to awaken. Next she pondered how to proceed with the zith's wounds.

[Ialari Pythone]

The zith had been partially bound yet for Ialari, it was not enough. For the moment, the creature was unconscious and gravely wounded but what would happen if it were to recover and awaken? Zith were not known for the immense strength. The danger came from tooth, claw and predatory instinct. Binding all of that would be the key to gaining some foundation in this new direction Ialari had decided to pursue. Digging through the pile of metal fittings and what would otherwise be considered junk, Ialari found a relatively short length of chain. Three-feet in length and covered in a light layer of rust, the chain would be more than effective in forming a sufficient restraint.

Her dagger still at the ready, her fatigue starting to sap the last remaining fragments of energy she had left, Ialari reinforced the zith's leather bindings with chain. With a single iron spike salvaged from her supplies, she drove it through the chain and into a large piece of ruined stone. With her gifted isurian arm, she pushed the stone around the spike and pinched it so that the stone and iron were as merged as they could be; the zith would be going nowhere though if necessary, it had enough range of motion to allow some movement if necessary.

Kneeling next to the firepit, Ialari gave a relieved sigh to see that some of the coals were still warm though the fire had died awhile ago. Tossing a few handfuls of tinder on the pit, she proceeded to blow on the dying embers in hopes of giving a bit more life to them. The first several minutes of effort proved fruitless. That was until Ialari, her frustration growing, broke out her bit of remaining flint and steel and struck up a fire in the tinder. First there was smoke, then a flicker followed by flames. When the fire was restarted, Ialari threw a few more chunks of dried wood and leaves on it. Turning off and on to look at her new arrival, she noted how much slower his breathing was getting and how much blood it seemed he was losing. She had little time left if she was going to save him.

As the fire began to grow in the pit, Ialari turned back to the zith. Its mane of red hair was tangled and matted and its fur, fine and deep black, glistened with the moisture of blood and sweat. Thick red hair sprouted from around its elbows and as Ialari's eyes wandered the beast's prone form, she noted that the same mane of hair was found around it's knees as well. The zith wore a simple tattered loincloth and nothing else. THe cloth was stained with blood as was the fur covering its lower thighs. Ialari leaned in and with one hand lifted the loincloth to reveal the creature's wound while her dagger remained ready in her other hand.

Ialari winced at the sight of the wound though quickly realized that, despite the seriousness of it all, her original grip and strength had held true; the severing of the tissue was for the most part clean though gruesome. Despite the disgust she wanted to feel for the monster, Ialari couldn't help but be drawn to it in a strange, ironic way. This beast had attacked her and hurt her; its intentions were foul to the extreme yet she couldn't help but now feel sympathy for it, she wanted to help it. What the hell is wrong you? This thing could have killed you or maybe worse. Look at him though. He's hurt, dying yet I can feel the primal passion, the cunning intelligence buried beneath the animal instincts. No, your crazy. Your hurt, tired and confused. Unknown to Ialari was the effects that the zith's gnosis was having on her. It had been marked by Nikalai some time ago. A creature of passion, pleasure and lust, the zith had gained the goddess' favor during its life back in the small colony it called home. The mark had saved its life from Ialari yet now it was up to Ialari to make sure it survived.

Pushing away the strange attraction she felt for the creature she would have otherwise reviled, she fought to figure out how to stop the bleeding caused by her destruction of the poor creature's testicles. Her attention was drawn then to the small yet growing flames of the fire next to her. She then looked from the fire to her metallic hand. With that she stuck her hand into the fire and held it there until the black sheen of the hand began to glow dull orange. She remembered a time back when she was younger in the forges of Sultros. A burning ember from the heart of the forge fire burned her flesh. She remembered the feeling, smell and how the skin looked as it burned. The forge master had commented that if ever one were seriously cut while working with sharpened metal, they could quickly seal the cut with the same metal, heated.

Pulling her hand from the flame, she looked back at the zith's wound. "I guarantee this will hurt you more than it will me." With that, Ialari brought her glowing metallic hand to the zith's wound. As her fingers made contact with wounded flesh, the zith awoke immediately and let loose a painful cry that Ialari would remember for quite some time after. Just as quickly as it had awoke, the zith blacked out again from the immeasurable pain that coursed through its groin and spider-webbed throughout the rest of its body. The torn tissue cauterized from the intense heat and the bleeding ceased. Ialari did her best to focus just on the immediate area of the wound which, for her lack of experience with such things, went moderately well. When the zith had awoke, Ialari jumped but maintained her ministering. The whole process took only a few seconds before Ialari pulled her hand back and plunged it in the nearby half-barrel of water. Steam shot out from the water where her heated hand touched it. She then took a moment to examine her work. She found herself fighting back a twisted half-smile as she realized how, endowed, the zith was even though it was no missing two important pieces of its manhood. The wound however was sealed and from what she could see there was little to no fresh blood oozing forth. This brought about a completely different level of concern however in the form of potential infection. Her knowledge of medical issues was slight at best but she did understand the concept of infected wounds and in the wilds, away from proper healers, the zith's life was still in terrible jeopardy.

There was also the fact that Ialari's transport back to Sahova was getting much closer to arrival. If she were to really have a chance at saving the creature before her she would have to find a way to combat any infection and quicken his healing while also making contact with the ship and hopefully convince them to come back a bit later. "My sincere apologies, Lord Nysel, I will not be able to enter your embrace for awhile longer." Ialari turned then to her stash of tea-leaves. She would need a healthy supply of tea to keep her awake and alert long enough to complete her task.

Continued Here...

[Gossamer]

Character: Ialari

Experience: Wilderness Survival: +4, Food Preservation +3 Observation +5, Cleaning +2, Philosophy +3, Planning +3, Carving +1, Brawling: +4, Dagger +3, Bodybuilding +1, Medicine +2

Lore: WS: Building A Makeshift Smoke/Grill, WS: Starting A Fire, Leaving Oneself Open To Attack, Improvising Weapons, WS: Pay Attention To Normal Environmental Sounds verse Abnormal Environmental Sounds, Zith: Like to pick up people and drop them to kill them. Zith: Cautions Before Attacking, Zith: Travel in multiples, Zith: Males are vulnerable if genitals are damaged or threatened, Zith: What they look like up close. Zith Slave: Marked By Nikali, Blacksmithing: Making makeshift chain, Zith Slave: Tethering it Safely, WS: Getting A Fire Started From Coals.
Wounds: Neck wound, badly mangled hand, Medicine: Castration, Medicine: Lancing A Bleeding Wound With Heat, Medicine: Treating Infected Wounds With Heat

Additional Note: This was one of my favorite lines … "Tell milady Dira hello for me. You're about to meet her!" Great thread. There wasn't any dominion in this one but it was a lovely WS survival and zith raid survival thread.