[Opal Clinic] A Meeting of like Minds (Caelum)

[Veldrys]

Summer 30, 511 AV Veldrys had of course heard of Cian Noc. It was impossible not to know about the healer of the Opal Order thad had been brought here by a pirate ship a few years prior when you had resided in Denval for any length of time. There was a certain mystery surrounding him, and although he was only a few years older than the Symenestra he was far more skilled and had already been marked by his goddess several times. There was probably a lot that he could learn from him, knowledge that could be exchanged, things that could be discussed, both regarding medicine and the latest developments in the city. The Symenestra had come to the decision that it was time for a meeting. As he ascended the cliffs and walked towards the clinic, he wondered if Cian had also heard of him, whether he’d heard of the young healer who had taken up residence in the Chapel at the beginning of winter. What did he think of a Symenestra that had left his underground home, decided to dedicate his life to the art of healing and prayed to the god of blood? Did he think it was strange that a man like him tried so hard to be a part of this community? He hesitated in front of the entrance for a moment, and then he raised a slender white hand that ended in black claws and pushed the door open. He stood there for a moment before he asked, „Is anybody here? I’m looking for Cian Noc.“ Whoever answered would find him standing there, dressed in a sombre robe – although an acolyte was by no means required to dress thus on a daily basis - looking around with interest. The Opal Clinic didn’t resmble the Purging where he had been an apprentice and later a healer at all.

[Caelum]

"Hi!" A little girl, seven or thereabouts, greeted Veldrys with cheerful curiosity sparkling in hazel eyes. She had popped around from behind the worn reception desk, braids comming unpinned to dangle against the ties of a plaint splattered apron covering an otherwise unadorned dress. "I'm here," she announced the obvious while taking a robin-hop closer to the fascinating stranger, head craning backwards so she could stare up at him. "You look neat," she decided after a moment with a child's bluntness. "Are you sick? Did you bring Mister Cian some new garden shears? He's been lookin' for new garden shear for almost ever and --" "Hullo," an older, calmer voice interrupted the little girl's happy prattle. The resident physician was standing in the archway to the hall, a bemused smile hooked on a face that might have been plain had it not been so fantastically kissed with the goddess Rak'keli's love. Cian was scrubbing at his hands with a soft worn rag, hip shot and eyebrows risen with his study of the Symenestra. Bunching the rag up in one fist, he stepped forward without hesitation to proffer Veldrys his hand. "Cian Noc. You must be Veldrys. Glad you finally found your way up here. Haddy," he diverted his attention his tiny volunteer and former patient. With one finger he pointed at an imaginary spot amid the colored papers on the desk. "I need more art. Post haste. Chop chop." Haddy flurried with giggles back to the desk and Cian winked at Veldrys before tilting his head in invitation to follow.

[Veldrys]

„Hi“, the Symenestra returned the little girl’s greeting somewhat hesitantly and looked at her curiously. She seemed so cheerful! He couldn’t remember if he had ever been like that when he had been young. His experience with human children was comparatively small, and he didn’t really know what to make of them. Little humans made him uncomfortable and jealous at the same time because he knew that he would only be a father if a woman gave her life for their child – and he wasn’t ready for that. „Are you Cian Noc’s daughter?“ he wanted to know. That seemed to be the most logicial explanation as to why she was here. „Thank you“, he murmurred as he heard her remark and glanced at his robe as if to verify that he did indeed look neat. He involuntarily smiled a little. „And no, I’m not sick. I suppose I’m a little pale, but that’s natural for somebody of my race. And I’m afraid I don’t have any garden shears either, although I could ...“ He stopped abruptly and turned around as he heard the man’s voice, noticing the marks on his face. He instantly knew who he was facing. There was most likely only one man that had been marked in such a way in the entire city. Still, he hesitated a little before he shook the human’s hand. In a way the follower of Viratas still found it strange to be in a city full of humans, although he had left most of his old prejudices behind. „I am indeed Veldrys.“ He inclined his head. „I don’t think there are any Symenestra in this city besides me, so it’s hard to be mistaken.“ He glanced at the little girl again. „Is she yours?“ he wanted to know before he followed the human. He was pleased to notice that Cian hadn’t confronted him with any of the usual, at least partly justified stories of the Harvest.

[Caelum]

“Mine in heart, but not in blood,” the healer confessed. The eyes that followed Veldrys’ glance towards Haddy crinkled at their corners with a softening of his smile. Haddy was humming to herself while she painted with abandon, oblivious to their scrutiny. There was no mention of the Harvest. It was not Cian’s way. He turned into the hall, adjusting his strides automatically so that they might walk side by side down the broad corridor. Slats of sunlight filtered in through a window and an open door to the still room, but he continued past those doors to a set of worn stairs at the hall’s end. “Haddy is a former patient and Elsie’s daughter, who cooks for me sometimes and helps keep me in line,” he went on conversationally, his accent in Common educated and easy with little suggestion toward region of origin. He regretted, suddenly, never having learned Symenos. “You’ve good timing, Veldrys.” A grin was turned on the acolyte as Cian shouldered open a door at the top of the stair, pushing it open to what, somewhere beneath the jumble of books and parchment, vials of ink and bunches of drying plants, must have been an office. “I was just about to take a break.”

[Veldrys]

The Symenestra nodded as he heard Cian’s comment. He felt the same way towards the people of Denval. They were not related by blood – in his case they were not even the same race – but he felt a connection to them nevertheless and would do what he could do help them. They were his people, and there was little difference to how he felt towards the Symenestra. His gaze lingered on the little girl a while longer, and then he pulled it away and followed the human down the corridor to the doors at its end. He could notice a light accent in the healer’s manner of speech. It was enough for him to raise an eyebrow, but he chose not to comment on it. He simply wondered where he had lived before he had become to Denval. Unlike Cian the Symenestra still had a strong accent. Although his speech was fluent, and he had no trouble finding the right words for what he wanted to say anymore, some of his words still were a little hard to understand. „Good timining?“ he repeated and smiled, a light smile that failed to reveal the elongated canines that were hidden behind his lips. „I see.“ His attention was focused on the many books in the office for a moment. His fingers brushed across the back of one of them. „My people value literature greatly“, he murmurred. „Every single one of us can read.“ „I assume you want to know why I’m here?“ he asked as he finally pulled his gaze away from the books and then proceeded to answer the question himself. „I wanted to talk to a fellow healer, to one that is more experienced than I am. My skill is still limited. Besides, you have been in Denval for years. I was hoping you could shed some light on the most recent happenings in the city. I’m afraid I hide in the Chapel too much sometimes.“

[Caelum]

"If you see something you'd care to borrow," Cian invited. "Feel free." A stack of mismatched scrolls was lifted to clear off one of the chairs by the window. The physician looked around before dumping them on an already over burdened shelf. Next came a bucket filled with what appeared to be sea shells, stolen from its position on a table and deposited in the corner on the floor. The office was a disaster zone and it was clear that Cian did not allow anyone to help him clean it up. He claimed that he knew where everything was so it failed to matter. "Eh, sorry about the mess. I should probably clean up sometime..." As if that was going to happen. He scratched at his head while blinking at the mess, probably trying to figure out how it had gotten this way. "Um, right. Sit down," he gestured at the cleared off chair and then ducked behind a wide, battered wooden desk buried beneath a jumbled sea of junk. "Want something to drink? I've got some degtine and some tea in here." There was a tray with a serving set at which he frowned, wondering if that had come from this morning or sooner than that. "It might be cold tea," he amended. "What are you hiding from?" It was not necessarily a polite question, but Cian had a habit of prying. It was part of both who and what he was. He would latch on to seemingly random tangents of conversation. He tapped the edge of the tea kettle, testing for warmth. "I hear Virates spoke to you. That true?"

[Veldrys]

The healer’s office seeemed to be in a state of chaos. No, actually it was worse than just chaotic. The Symenestra watched with slightly widened eyes as Cian removed a few scrolls just so that he, his guest, would have somewhere to sit. How did the human ever find things? How could somebody so ... messy ... be such a good healer? Veldrys was completely different in that regard. His home was very clean, very orderly, and everything had its place. Still, he couldn’t deny that some things in this disaster zone, this aftermath of what seemed to have been a battle, looked interesting. As Cian stated that he should probably clean up sometimes, the Symenestra shrugged his shoulders and gave him an polite and somewhat indifferent look. It probably wouldn’t be a good idea to comment on how much he needed to clean up. In fact whatever he said, would probably end up sounding impolite, and if there was one thing that the Symenestra didn’t want to be, then it was impolite. So he merely sat down on the offered chair, hoping that the scrolls that Cian had removed from it hadn’t been particularly dirty or dusty. „Something to drink would be appreciated“, he replied. „Cold tea is fine. I often drink cold tea, especially in summer.“ As Cian asked him what he was hiding from, the corners of the Symenestra’s mouth rose in an amused little half smile. „Nothing, really“, he replied. „I just dedicate too much time to my religious duties sometimes. Sometimes I spend too much time in meditation. And yes, the god spoke to me.“ He sounded surprised as he said this, as if he still couldn’t believe what had happened, and he touched his arm where Viratas had marked him for a moment. „The things he said to me didn’t make any sense though. He mentioned entropy’s taint and that Denval might fall.“ He lowered his voice, to almost a whisper, as if he were talking to himself rather than the healer. "Ware the butterflies of precious paint Writ large upon the fallen's walls Find the root of entropy's taint Fuse the orbs ere Denval falls." „You are a healer of the Opal Order, Cian, and you have probably seen much more of the world than I have. Do you have any idea what kind of taint it could be?“ The Symenestra looked worried now. Fear still gripped his heart whenever he thought of the ominous prophecy that the god had given to him, and he was no closer to solving the riddle than he had been when he had first heard it.

[Caelum]

Cian went about pouring tea out for his guest. The words Veldrys spoke smeared to his hearing, leaving behind an unsettling residue. The smile faded on his face, evident when he turned back to face the Symentestra with a pair of mismatched china tea cup balanced together in the palm of a hand. “Veldrys,” he met his guest’s chrysanthemum eyes. “Have you heard what was found by the watch this season?” Juggling the cups, one with a delicate, water lily pattern and a very small chip on the rim was set on top of a stack of books that towered nearly as tall as an end table might. It was right within Veldrys’ reach and was followed by a small jar of honey, a tin spoon and a cup of cream. “Words writ in blood,” he went on, the shadow in his eyes like the reflection of a far deeper stain. Whatever this was, it had impacted the healer too deep. “A child’s blood. They found the body just..” he shook his head. “Just the other day. Mihai was his name and the things,” he sucked in a breath and gulped a bit at his own tea cup. “Veldrys, the words were written on the Deval wall,” he stabbed toward the point. “They read there is a devil inside me.”

[Veldrys]

„Thank you“, he murmurred as Cian brought the tea. He didn’t take the cup right away, but ignored it, let it stand there, on the stack of books, as good as forgotten. His mind was elsewhere at the moment. „Do you mean the murder?“ he asked Cian. He had spoken to a guard about it the day before. He had already briefly wondered whether it was in any way connected to the prophecy when he had first heard about it. He had wondered whether it was the beginning, the beginning of whatever dark happenings the god had mentioned. That Cian’s thoughts seemed to go in a similar direction didn’t exactly help to comfort him. „I’ve heard about it“, he confirmed. „A child’s blood ...“ he repeated and shook his head. The involvement of children automatically made any crime worse in his opinion. He came from a culture where children were valuable beyond measure, where their mothers were willing to literally give their life for them to ensure the continued existence of their race. If somebody murdered a child, they were punished in the worst way. There was never any kind of mercy for them. He averted his gaze for a moment as he thought about it. „Cian“, he said as he finally faced the human again. There was a kind of urgency in his voice now. „Did you have a chance to examine the body? Has Mihai already been buried?“ „A devil?“ He arched an eyebrow. „What do you think it could mean? Possession?“ That was the first thing that came to his mind. But then again, it seemed too obvious. Did the person that had written the words carry a disease inside of them? A curse? His gaze went to the cup of tea, as if he were surprised to find it there. He took it, added a bit of honey to it and slowly stirred it.

[Caelum]

"Possession, darkness, disease," the healer was slowly shaking his head while rangy shoulders tilted sideways, abruptly appearing weighed down. It was as if the light in the room itself slanted, allowing the Symenestra a glimpse past Cian Noc's amiable smiles and pleasantly, even cheerfully strange exterior. There were shadows behind his eyes and beneath them, the leftovers of weariness that had more to do with than just the physical. It was as well a stain spread upon him, fresh and ugly, by the blood of the butchered boy Mihai. Damages, cruelty, nightmares rendered on bodies -- both that on a priest of Rak'keli himself as well as those on people within his purview -- very often wounded souls. Most especially on the soul blessed so well by sweet Rak'keli. More, of course, was to be seen by the brave. This itself occurred to the healer as he lowered his cup of cold tea from a deep gulp, green stained fingers folded fast over an elbow. "You bear the notice of Virates, do you not?" He tilted his chin at Veldrys, eyes intent. "The god breathed some of His power on you when delivering you that warning? Veldrys," and he twisted partially around to slide his cup onto a scant inch of clean space on the desk. "I autopsied Mihai. I kept," and the line of his mouth thinned, "Samples for Captain Astrid." He did not want to ask it, did not want to even suggest it. Nobody should see what he had seen, what others had seen in the tortured corpse of a boy who would never know manhood.