Closed I like beautiful colors... (Ra'ema)

[Zanne]

Summer, Day 46th, 514

After passing through the gates, the man fumbled his way through the streets of Syliras. As far as first impressions go, it seemed to look more decent than Sunberth. Actually, anywhere was better than the horrid pit of Sunberth. But Syliras reminded the man of his home in Zeltiva. It was safe. Or at least it was supposed to be. Looking over your shoulder at every moment, the fear of suddenly being ambushed, and the constant threat of your purse suddenly disappearing was implanted in Zane's mind. It wouldn't go away lightly. After spending years living in a den of thieves and murderers, even the "protection" of Syliras Knights sounded like a fiction.

Zane's teeth clattered together as he walked. There were several people passing him by, and none of them were Shiress. What if she doesn't even remember me? Or worse. She could remember how I failed to rescue her. She might have become disfigured or had a tragic accident since then. No Zane. Think. Positive. This is your sister. The one that...that... All of the memories were riddling the man's brain. He needed his fix. If only to divert his attention away for a short while. I just need enough to get my bearings together. Just wait for me. A little while longer. I'll find you. I'll save you this time.

Zane's addiction overpowered him, slowly weakening his mental state. But this was Syliras. Where would he go? Sure there were many shops. But which one, was the right one? Zane walked, and read the signs as he did so. None of them were a clear indicator of which would be the supplier of the items that he so desired. That being the case, desperation took over and the man found himself gazing at the flowers through the window of The Flower Stand. But he couldn't actually bring himself to walk inside. This seemed like the right place to go to, after all the luminescent products seemed to already induce the effects that he had intended to experience, though it was only via sight and lacked the actual feeling.

"Ugh! It looks soooo good! Oh I'm sure that once I get it inside of me, everything would be okay again. It would be simply magnificent. Everything would make sense again and I wouldn't feel so...empty! All I have to do is indulge! But in the off chance that this is not it, what if it's even worse? It could be a did. A fake. A phony. False products are the worst! Separating me from my...my...p..."

His knees buckled under his weight, causing the man to fall in front of the display window. He grabbed at his head and began rolling on the ground. It had been too long and the symptoms of withdrawal was beginning to take its toll. At this point, there was nothing he could do but to wait it out.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! Zane you are pathetic for thinking that you could have saved your sister. You can't even save yourself. You, I, WE deserve this punishment. We know that begging for punishment won't save us.

OOCThe weird inconsistencies portrayed in Zane's thoughts and speech are used to show his mind playing tricks on him. This can be attributed to the negative effects of the drugs he used combined with withdrawal symptoms.

[Ra'ema]

Ra'ema's day had been rather uneventful...She had visited the docks as she did everyday, craving the cold water against her skin. She often brought Mar'lis with her during these visits, but today she had decided to leave her in the care of a kind man who owned a few stables. She was a bit worried that Mar'lis would cause trouble, but she hoped that the man would know how much of a jokester gildlings could be. With the hope that Mar'lis would be obedient and listen to her request to be kind she left to the docks. Once there she noticed that there was a cool breeze coming in from the west. She stood on the edge of the dock letting the breeze tickle her skin as she looked out across the lake. She closed her eyes the soft scent of dewy grass made it's way to her nose. She took a step off the dock and into the water, the water now the only thing surrounding her. She let her body sink to the bottom of the lake as her mind drifted off to nowhere. She stayed this way for a few minutes before swimming back to the surface. Her head poked out of the water, she looked straight to the other end of the lake finding it a fairly far distance. Despite it looking so far away she decided to challenge herself to see how long it would take her to get there. Hours had passed and it was already midday. She hadn't noticed that so much time had passed until she felt the rumbling of her stomach reminding her to eat. She got out of the lake and took a few minutes to dry off on the dock. She had changed into a new set of clothes, but her hair was still damp. She figured that it wouldn't matter too much so she set off back into the city. She walked down the street looking around at all the shops and other buildings of the city. She was looking for something to satisfy her hunger with, she noticed a kind looking old lady who who stood besides a small wooden cart. She walked up the cart and noticed that the lady sold bread and various berries. She purchased a few berries and a slice of bread knowing this would be enough to reduce her hunger. She thanked the lady and went on off eating while she continued to walk the streets. As she finished up her last couple of berries she noticed you off in the distance. She felt a bit disturbed by how you stared into the shop window. She had planed to go inside and look around but after seeing you there she was worried you'd cause trouble. She told herself that she'd just ignore you as she passed you. However just as she was approaching you, you had fallen onto the floor. She saw you fall onto your knees and then roll to the floor. She quickly went towards you and knelt down beside you. She held a worried hand to your cheek her healer instincts taking over. She knew she couldn't ignore you now, her having the gnosis mark of a healer she couldn't allow it. "Are you alright? Can you hear me sir?" she called out to you checking if you had regained any conciseness. OOC: Again sorry for crappy reply.

[Zanne]

Zane's eyes opened, and became briefly stunned by the sight. A woman was glowing before him. It was as if her body were clad in jewelry and they reflected light into his eyes. But such a thing was impossible unless he was hallucinating? And the only reason he would be hallucinating would be if he had taken something. It was only but a chime ago where his body had lost control of itself because he didn't take anything. Come to think of it, since the girl placed her hand on his cheek, Zane wasn't in so much pain anymore. Does this mean that she had slipped him something? But how could she have known what it was that plagued him? Was it that obvious?

"The gods may have forsaken me in Sunberth, but they seem to have shielded you here in Syliras. Literally. What did you use? I feel somewhat better, but not as well as Love Dust. I'd like go know what I'm dealing with here, especially when the other effects kick in."

Zane stared at the woman as he waited for an answer. Upon further examination of the woman's features, Zane discovered that the jewels he saw earlier were actually scales. Whatever it was that the woman had gave him, had made him slightly afraid. It was pure sight change with little to no effect on the rest of his body. To his knowledge, there wasnt a drug in existence with that type of minor high. For all he knew, this could be a sign of the end.

"You...did you...poison me? Am I going to die? Please, spare me! I just wanted to find my sister. But if that's not possible, can I at least die with some Love Dust in my system? I don't want to be alone..."

Just the mere thought of the man dying alone was enough to push him over the edge and beg for an alternative fate. If he had any dignity left from his constant drug abuse, it disappeared when he said "please". It was like Sunberth all over again. Zane had no control. But this time was worse. Last time he was forced into submission. This time was somewhat of his own volition.

[Ra'ema]

She scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion as she heard him ask if she had poisoned him. She stared into his eyes and saw that he was actually frightened. In hearing that he wanted drugs this cleared her confusion. Oh drugs...That explains why this happened to him. He must be going through withdrawals. "I have not poisoned you. I have cured you of your headache...Do you not feel better?" She pressed her hand to his clammy forehead, checking to see if his fever was going down. "I will not hurt you, you have my word. I only wish to help you." She meant this sincerely, even if he was a druggy she couldn't simply leave him here.

[Zanne]

"What the petch..." he muttered under his breath. The woman claimed to have not poisoned him nor did she desire to harbor him ill will. Ah. She must be a mother. Mothers were a funny thing. In Zane's experience, if a woman knew how to heal another being, it was due to the fact that she was a mother. The woman was young in the face, perhaps even younger than his sister. But this did nothing to void the logic that had become so deeply imbedded within him over the seasons. If there was another thing that he knew about mothers, it's that it was not wise to make them angry. Otherwise, they really would poison you.

The more that she healed him, the more better that he felt. The side effects had dwindled to where they were no longer an immediate threat to the man's health. But the woman's strange appearance remained. The colors continued to radiate off of the scales that were aligned on her body. Zane had expected the view to disappear along with the symptoms, but apparently this wasn't the case. The earlier comment that he made about the woman being blessed by the gods was only meant to be snarky, though now Zane was beginning to believe that there was some truth to it. Almost enough, to rouse his jealousy. So, the gods really do exist. But I guess they pick and choose their favorites. Well, that's just fine and dandy!

He slowly raised himself up to his feet, and noted the immense height difference between he and the woman. Her weight also left some to be desired. He wondered if she had partaken in some pleasure of her own. If so, then perhaps he could convince her to share some with him. After all, he had found that it is best to do in the company of others. It makes it easier to hide from the guilt and to conceal his pain of being alone. He would be provided a façade in which he could use to pretend that he had real friends. He did have friends, once a upon a time. But seasons of isolation, tainted by false realities have given Zane a "new" perspective.

"Thanks for your help. I'm Zane. Zane Underhill. Tell me, what do you know about this place?" He gestured towards the window display of flowers. "The colors are strange, no? Is this where one would go to receive a fix? I'm sure at least one or two of them have what I, or rather, we want." Whether the woman wanted to or not, she had been inexplicably drawn into Zane's plot.