Morn of the 13th Day of Summer, 514 AV
Palsa Hydrasa, Sahovan Citadel
Same gray stone, same gray dawn. Edreina woke alone, an unfamiliar sensation but a welcome one. Annalisa had been summoned to perform some nameless and doubtlessly abhorrent task by the same woman the Svefra was preparing to begin an unsavory apprenticeship to.
As she did each morning, Edreina practiced her Reimancy. Very slowly, but very surely, her abilities were growing and she dared to try new things; testing her abilities and seeing them expand by leaps and bounds was the only thing that gave the redhead any semblance of joy, these days. The artificial exhilaration that came with casting had the addictive properties of a drug; the only thing that kept the miserable woman from casting herself into Overgiving oblivion was her fear of what would happen to her corpse.
Using Reimancy, she cast a small amount of water into the washbowl Annalisa kept in her Quarters and cleansed her face and arms of the night's filth. The rest would have to wait until Annalisa returned or she herself learned to cast enough water to clean all of herself. The prospect of going so long without being entirely clean unnerved the Svefra, but she was growing used to it; one was never truly able to wash himself or herself of the grime that coated Sahova's halls and the pungent aromas that pervaded its corridors.
As she started the journey to the Nuit's office, the redhead briefly wondered over the difference between a hall and a corridor. Little things such as these kept her sane. The past held pain and the near future a promise of it, both were toxic to the mind if dwelt upon; only the far future with Yahal's promise of freedom before fall and the present moment were left to her.
No longer did the moaning and whispering of those inhabiting the Courtyard bother her; the screams of the living that suffered in the Dungeon haunted her sleep.
The Palsa Hydrasa loomed, as it always did, grand and inviting; it was a ripe apple in a poison-coated thorny bush. There was always something about Amaryllis and the Nuit's office that never sat quite right with Edreina, despite the fact that she had been instrumental in the Svefra's continued existence. Perhaps it was a residual effect of spending so much time with Ignotus, a sense of waiting for the price that any sort of assistance should come with and the little double meanings that cloyed about their honeyed words. Not all Svefra are alike... The same surely goes for Nuits... she was always reminding herself. Nonetheless, she could not shake a subtly malicious air clinding to the very concept of Amaryllis, and Nuits in general.
Taking a deep breath, Edreina pulled open the door and stepped across the precipice of the Palsa Hydrasa. It was a short walk through the ornate interior to her destination, but time seemed to slow and Edreina was aware of each slap her bare feet made against the smooth marble floor, an effect of the trepidation creeping into her veins.
In the past, Edreina had walked with her head high, chin raised to any one who stood in her way as she moved to accomplish even the most meaningless task. She had been a creature of pride and a subtle vanity, living in the throes of her curiosity. And now? Her head did not hang quite like one born into slavery, but one still adjusting to it, clinging to the last vestiges of their identity, but it was lower. Blue eyes only moved from the floor only to make sure that there was no one in her way as she advanced, and then to be sure Amaryllis was in her office once she entered.
The Nuit was resplendent in robes of emerald and turquoise, trimmed in silver with faint designs in the fabric she could not quite make out. With a thud, the fine-featured woman closed the tome she always seemed to be pouring over and pushed it into a desk drawer. "Right on time, Test Subject-..." There was a brief tenseness in her brow, showing she did not remember the number and letter following the name given to Edreina by Annalisa, but the rate at which it disappeared proved how little she cared.
Edreina inclined her head slightly, allowing her greasy red hair to sway lazily. "What is it you required of me, M-" Annalisa's words, explaining that this Nuit did not prefer honorary titles, held her tongue.
By way of answering, the Nuit rose and strode silkily across the room, past Edreina, to the door. "You and I are going to take a walk and have a brief chat... After that, you'll be free." And, just like that, the Nuit continued on her way, leaving Edreina standing with an open mouth and a spinning head. At this point, it did not even cross Edreina's mind that free could mean anything other than permission to return to her cold, dark, gray room.
Palsa Hydrasa, Sahovan Citadel
Same gray stone, same gray dawn. Edreina woke alone, an unfamiliar sensation but a welcome one. Annalisa had been summoned to perform some nameless and doubtlessly abhorrent task by the same woman the Svefra was preparing to begin an unsavory apprenticeship to.
As she did each morning, Edreina practiced her Reimancy. Very slowly, but very surely, her abilities were growing and she dared to try new things; testing her abilities and seeing them expand by leaps and bounds was the only thing that gave the redhead any semblance of joy, these days. The artificial exhilaration that came with casting had the addictive properties of a drug; the only thing that kept the miserable woman from casting herself into Overgiving oblivion was her fear of what would happen to her corpse.
Using Reimancy, she cast a small amount of water into the washbowl Annalisa kept in her Quarters and cleansed her face and arms of the night's filth. The rest would have to wait until Annalisa returned or she herself learned to cast enough water to clean all of herself. The prospect of going so long without being entirely clean unnerved the Svefra, but she was growing used to it; one was never truly able to wash himself or herself of the grime that coated Sahova's halls and the pungent aromas that pervaded its corridors.
As she started the journey to the Nuit's office, the redhead briefly wondered over the difference between a hall and a corridor. Little things such as these kept her sane. The past held pain and the near future a promise of it, both were toxic to the mind if dwelt upon; only the far future with Yahal's promise of freedom before fall and the present moment were left to her.
No longer did the moaning and whispering of those inhabiting the Courtyard bother her; the screams of the living that suffered in the Dungeon haunted her sleep.
The Palsa Hydrasa loomed, as it always did, grand and inviting; it was a ripe apple in a poison-coated thorny bush. There was always something about Amaryllis and the Nuit's office that never sat quite right with Edreina, despite the fact that she had been instrumental in the Svefra's continued existence. Perhaps it was a residual effect of spending so much time with Ignotus, a sense of waiting for the price that any sort of assistance should come with and the little double meanings that cloyed about their honeyed words. Not all Svefra are alike... The same surely goes for Nuits... she was always reminding herself. Nonetheless, she could not shake a subtly malicious air clinding to the very concept of Amaryllis, and Nuits in general.
Taking a deep breath, Edreina pulled open the door and stepped across the precipice of the Palsa Hydrasa. It was a short walk through the ornate interior to her destination, but time seemed to slow and Edreina was aware of each slap her bare feet made against the smooth marble floor, an effect of the trepidation creeping into her veins.
In the past, Edreina had walked with her head high, chin raised to any one who stood in her way as she moved to accomplish even the most meaningless task. She had been a creature of pride and a subtle vanity, living in the throes of her curiosity. And now? Her head did not hang quite like one born into slavery, but one still adjusting to it, clinging to the last vestiges of their identity, but it was lower. Blue eyes only moved from the floor only to make sure that there was no one in her way as she advanced, and then to be sure Amaryllis was in her office once she entered.
The Nuit was resplendent in robes of emerald and turquoise, trimmed in silver with faint designs in the fabric she could not quite make out. With a thud, the fine-featured woman closed the tome she always seemed to be pouring over and pushed it into a desk drawer. "Right on time, Test Subject-..." There was a brief tenseness in her brow, showing she did not remember the number and letter following the name given to Edreina by Annalisa, but the rate at which it disappeared proved how little she cared.
Edreina inclined her head slightly, allowing her greasy red hair to sway lazily. "What is it you required of me, M-" Annalisa's words, explaining that this Nuit did not prefer honorary titles, held her tongue.
By way of answering, the Nuit rose and strode silkily across the room, past Edreina, to the door. "You and I are going to take a walk and have a brief chat... After that, you'll be free." And, just like that, the Nuit continued on her way, leaving Edreina standing with an open mouth and a spinning head. At this point, it did not even cross Edreina's mind that free could mean anything other than permission to return to her cold, dark, gray room.
(c) Wanda Endust