PM to join [The Catholicon] A Hopeful Healing (Veldrys)

[Davor Aveloz]

8th Hour, 32nd of Spring, 515 A.V.
An anxious breath shuddered out of Davor as he carefully walked the edges of the crowd. The towering visage of the Catholicon loomed intimidatingly above the small child, and the hungry shadows cast by the second highest peak in Lhavit consumed the base of the structure with unrepentant avarice. Davor thought it odd that the city's primary place of care was placed so high above its citizens. Perhaps so that their gods can have close watch on their sick? Or so that they are closer to the stars? He wondered to himself, thinking back to the 'discussion' he had with Atticus only a few days prior.

Fear still raced down the Symenestran's spine as he approached the winding staircase which lead to the hospital. To put it plainly, Davor was not a fan of hospitals. To him, it seemed the scent of death haunted every corner of those care centers. He understood it was an unfounded phobia, as from his studies he knew that modern medicine was responsible for saving hundreds of lives in cities, but still he could not shake the gnawing feeling which ate at his courage. Maybe if he had a friend or parent to come with him, he might have felt different. Put on a brave face and soldier forward. Unfortunately, Davor was on his own in the city today. Even if he had the friends or family to accompany him, the youth was unsure he would want their presence today. The issue he sought advice for was, well, personal, and something that Davor was convinced he had to approach on his own.

When he was born in the city of the Symenestra, something had gone wrong. Back in Kalinor, the doctors had said that it was simply a defect. A cruel twist of fate that no amount of medicine or magic could argue with. He would just have to learn to live with it, learn to accept that he would never be able to speak. Learn to be a mute, to be seen a less than whole. As broken. Fractured.

Those doctors, however, had never seen Lhavit. They had never seen what a society could do when magic was not a taboo and the experience of learning was loved for the sake of learning, not for power. Davor had seen so many wonders since his arrival in the crystal city, so many things that defied even his expansive imagination. If there was any chance that his disability could be corrected, he would find it here in Lhavit. In the Catholicon. Somewhere in that building, the Symenestran was sure they could help him speak again. To fix those fractures that held him back.

So, despite how much those encroaching white walls unsettled him, despite the terror that raced through him as he entered the doors of the vaunted hospital, Davor pressed onward until he reached the front desk of the Catholicon. A few other residents of the waiting room shot him suspicious looks as he entered, but no one made any motion to impede his movements. With nervous, slightly jagged handwriting, the youth slid a message to the receptionist.

"Hello. My name is Davor, and I would like to see a doctor please?"

The receptionist, a waifish young woman with large doe eyes, scanned the note briefly before responding.

"Checkups cost a kina, but a full physical evaluation costs 5 kina. Which would you like?" she inquired, handing the paper back to Davor. The Symenestran youth held up two fingers and pulled out 5 kina, thankful that the woman caught on quickly.

"The doctor that will oversee will call your name when he or she is ready. Please take a sear and wait until you hear you name."

Davor nodded before retreating from the desk. He sat down next to a mother and her child, and smiled politely at the two. The woman looked fearfully at the boy's pointed incisors, picked up her child, and hurriedly moved two seats down from him. Davor moved his eyebrow's together in a confused fashion before pulling his knees up into his chair. He sat quietly by himself, sad golden eyes burrowing into the safety of his lap. I hope the doctor calls me quickly. I don't want to scare anyone else.

[Veldrys]

When Veldrys could heal people, the pain went away for a moment. He felt almost normal then, almost accepted. He could pretend that people didn’t stare at him, that they didn’t care about his amethyst eyes, about his hands that ended in claws, that they didn’t notice his sharp teeth, that they didn’t still secretly fear him. Sometimes he almost managed to forget her as well, to pretend that she had never existed, but at night the memories always came back. He had had a bondmate once. He had almost had a child once, but the child had died in the womb, and Lucette had disappeared. He had not seen her in more than two years. He had no idea if she was still alive somewhere or if she had died.

Right after her disappearance he had thought about returning to Kalinor and trying to get his old job at the Purging back, but in the end the city of the Symenestra had been too depressing. His people still abducted women from the surface, the Esterians still almost all died, and the sky above him was still made of stone. He had felt as if he couldn’t breathe there, as if the stone above him would come crashing down any moment and crush him, suffocate him. His family would have loved for him to come back of course, but he could barely bear looking at them. He had vowed that he would only come back when he had found a way to save them, a way that wouldn’t involve condemning innocents to a painful death.

Lhavit seemed the best place for him to continue his research after the destruction of Denval. It was close enough to Kalinor that Symenestra regularly came here, for their gleaning or to pursue a more sinister goal. Symenestra or women that were expecting Symenestra children had been treated here before. The Catholicon was owned by a halfblood who was even more opposed to the Harvest than he was, and the Bharani library likely contained even more useful information. Since he had arrived at the beginning of the season Veldrys had worked tirelessly, to accomplish the one thing he had always been told was impossible.


~~~~

On the 32nd of Spring he had made his way to the Catholicon shortly after the 6th bell, as always. By the time Davor came to the hospital, he had already treated a couple of patients, all of them fortunately with minor problems. Lhavitians were generally healthy people.

The receptionist had given him a list of patients that were waiting for treatment. That list in hand he entered the waiting room and let his gaze sweep across the people that were gathered there. Most of them were human, but next to a mother and her child he could see a young Symenestra, unmistakeable with his golden eyes and his alabaster skin.

He allowed himself to stare for a moment and contemplated walking over to him and talking to him, but after a few moments his professional attitude won out. He had a job to do. He called the next name on his list, „Davor Aveloz please!“

After so many years on the surface Veldrys spoke the Common tongue almost fluently, but an accent remained. It was not unpleasant, but it marked him as a foreigner almost as clearly as his pale skin, his silver hair and the mark of Viratas on his arm, even though he wore human clothes when he worked rather than the jewel colored silks that the people of Kalinor preferred.

[Davor Aveloz]

Davor sighed soundlessly as time ticked by in its slow march towards his appointment. Fidgeting restlessly in his seat, the Symenestran could feel the crawling hand of anxiety once again begin to creep up his spine. His situation was not helped by the fact that he could still feel the gaze of the mother next to him bear down on him. Her glare seemed to burn into him and served as a constant reminder that he was unwanted here. That he was an other, an outsider.

It wouldn't be nearly as bad if the poor boy couldn't hear her whispered warnings to her son.

"Jon, if you ever see someone that looks like him, move as far-away as possible. Do not go with them or talk to them, even if they need help. Just come to mama, and she'll make sure those scary Widowers go away." The mother actually smiled at her son as she spoke to him, as if she wasn't talking about a living, breathing race of people but instead a scary storybook monster.

Davor found that it was times likes these where he wished Rhaus' gift to him didn't include this damnably acute hearing. He was still getting a handle on the divine magic that now seemed inherent in him, and the youth often found himself having trouble pushing out the extra noise. Sometimes the onslaught of sound threatened to overwhelm him, mountains of life's melodies sending avalanche-like anthems against him.

I hope no one she knew got hurt in a Harvest, Davor thought to himself as he tried to block out the rest of her hushed conversation. While the child still carried the trademark naivete of youth, the Symenestran was not so sheltered that he did not know how his race's Harvests affected other people. He himself was at times conflicted on whether or not what his culture did was right, but he figured that if the Queen didn't disbar it than Harvests must be necessary. And while he did not enjoy the looks of mistrust or even fear that were occasionally thrown his way, Davor could understand the reason behind it. The Symenestran reputation was tainted by some of the race's darker actions, but the youth was sure that the citizens of Lhavit would come to realize that what his race did was out of survival and that their kind had more to offer than serving as the monsters in their fairy-tales.

The youth's internal musings where interrupted by the calling of his name. Davor's head shot up at the sound, eyes like molten gold staring out at the source. Dark eyebrows raised slightly in surprise as he saw a Symenestra standing expectedly at the door. His skin was pale like Davor's, but he bore short tresses of silver on top of his head instead of the deep black normal to his race. However, what proved most striking were the pair of purple, gem-like eyes which calmly and coolly beckoned Davor forth with reserved curiosity.

Feeling compelled to approach, the boy lifted himself off his seat, nodded towards what he assumed was to be his doctor, and walked through the door which separated the waiting room from the full expanse of the Catholicon.

[Veldrys]

„You are Davor Aveloz?“ he asked as the boy he had wondered about a few chimes before approached. It was not a name that he was very familiar with. He had heard very little of the Aveloz Web while he had been in Kalinor. They had to be a small Web and not very influential. In the city of the Symenestra he had worked at the Purging under Doctor Hellebore, he had even gone to the Nest to treat the surrogates, but he had had very little contact with Davor’s family in either place. Of course a lot of Webs suffered problems and even disappeared.

He had noticed the way that the other patients had been looking at the boy. They did not dare to stare at him as much because of his position, but their dislike for Davor had been more than obvious. He cast a disapproving glance at the mother and her son and shook his head, but he did not approach them. He knew that it would be pointless. Besides, there was a reason for the racism, at least part of the time. A lot of Symenestra did abduct people. Veldrys was one of the exceptions.

He turned back to Davor and gestured for him to walk beside him, away from the people with their unpleasant stares. „What is it that bothers you, Davor? How can I help you?“ he wanted to know and took a somewhat closer look at him. At a first glance the boy looked comparatively healthy. He did not have any wounds or broken bones, his eyes were clear, and it did not look as if he had a fever. Of course he would have to properly examine him to make sure, but it did not seem to be anything serious. He thanked Viratas for that.

After a moment, he remarked, „You are very young for a harvest or a gleaning. When I went to the surface for the first time, I was nearly eighteen …“ His voice was gentle as he said this, calm. There was an almost soothing quality to his voice. Veldrys sounded as if nothing could truly bother him. Only the look in his eyes betrayed his curiosity. What was Davor Aveloz doing on the surface?

He still remembered the day he had seen the sky for the first time as if it had been yesterday even though at least eight years had passed. He had met a halfblood then, on one of Lhavit’s many peaks. They had become lovers for a while, but the boy’s father had disapproved, and eventually they had parted ways. It seemed as if all of his relationships were destined to end in tragedy.

He shook his head. Nostalgia would not do him any good now. It was over. He opened the door of an examination room and gestured for Davor to enter. Before he followed the boy he let him know, „We can speak Symenos as well if that makes things easier for you. I haven’t forgotten the language of my ancestors yet.“

[Davor Aveloz]

At the doctor's initial inquiry, Davor simply nodded before following the man further into the Catholicon. Nature's hand ensured that the youth wasn't much for conversation, though that wasn't to say that this healer did not intrigue him. He walked with a serious air about himself. Every movement appeared deliberate an carried purpose. The steps themselves marched to a steady beat that Davor thought would be more befitting a soldier than a surgeon. One foot, and then the other; each appendage following in near synchronous patterns. Davor found that it was the music of this man that drew his curiosity the most. He wondered what circumstances created the drumming noise of his steady steps, what duties or vows he set upon himself to birth that sound.

I should stop listening, the boy thought to himself, chastising his wandering mind. Calvino always said it was rude to eavesdrop, even if it was only his body that was speaking.

Davor sighed as the man's questions kept coming. Words seemed to flow freely from his mouth like a river, a veritable babbling brook infected with his Kalinian accent. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate the concern, or even the curiosity, Davor had just hoped to stall the 'conversation' until they had at least reached the examination room. The youth thought it would be much simpler to simply explain his issue in its totality without having to complicate things with small-talk. Shaking his discomfort from his mind, Davor reached into the inner pocket of his deep-blue jacket to retrieve his journal and charcoal pencil. He had come here to seek help after all, and it wouldn't do to have him shy away from the first chance to explain his situation. Besides, a small part of himself enjoyed how invested the doctor seemed to be in his care, even if that was just his job to do so.

"Well, I'm not sure how much you can do, but I've been mute since birth. The doctors in Kalinor said there was nothing they could do about it, but I was hoping the answer in Lhavit would be different," Davor began to scribble down, before realizing that what he was writing could be interpreted as an insult to physicians in his home city. "Not that the doctors in Kalinor are bad!" he hastily added. "It's just that, Lhavit has so much knowledge at its disposal, I thought that maybe you might know something that they didn't."

Just as the youth finished, the doctor followed up with a strange comment. It didn't ring of irregularity by its tone, no, the physician actually seemed in absolute calm of the whole situation. It was just the way he trailed off at the end of the sentence, almost as if he was mired down by memories. The peculiarity of it begged Davor to investigate, to question, to learn...

Davor gritted his teeth in ardent refusal. Recently, his mind seemed to be buzzing in constant movement. His consciousness bounced from one subject to the next in an unending conquest for knowledge. While profitable for his Gleaning, it proved infuriating to the youth that his curiosity had such control over his being.

"I'm not that young!" he responded, his script neat yet indignant. "I'm fourteen years old, and I'm only on my Gleaning. I could have left earlier, but Calvino wanted to make sure I was prepared for the surface-dwellers."

By the time he finished his reply, the two had reached the examination room. The doctor held the door open for Davor, and the youth clutched his book to his chest in an anxious movement. He carefully stepped through the threshold into the doctor's domain, relaxing a fair bit once he was actually inside. Davor still was uncomfortable with hospitals in general, but having a Symenestra for a physician seemed to sap some of the fear from the boy. At the man's offer, the youth simply handed over his journal detailing his delayed discussion.

[Veldrys]

By the time they had reached the examination room, Veldrys had begun to feel a little bad. He had noticed tha the boy had not said a single word, but constantly written into his journal and concluded that Davor Aveloz was mute. He should have realized that earlier. He was just like Sosicly Magnolia, one of his patients in Kalinor. The girl had always been sickly, but despite her handicaps she had went on to become the Moth Queen, from what he had heard. News from Kalinor always travelled slowly.

„I apologize, Versda“, he said as he closed the door behind them so that they would not be interrupted. Davor could see that there were a desk and two chairs and also a place where patients could lie down if that was necessary for the examination. There was also a bit of medical equipment.

It had felt a little strange for Veldrys to utter even a single word in his native language after such a long time, but comforting all the same. He had hated Kalinor while he had been there, he disapproved of the things that his people did, but all those experiences had nevertheless shaped him. He had left Kalinor, but he realized that Kalinor had never really left him. Usually the thought would have made him slightly melancholic at the very least, but for some reason it didn’t bother him now.

„I made a wrong assumption about the reason for your visit and about your age“, he continued. „I hope that you will accept my apology.“ There was a sincereness to his voice now. Veldrys had not just spoken empty words, but really meant what he had said. He genuinely cared, perhaps a bit too much sometimes. "I am Veldrys by the way. Veldrys of the Vervain Web."

He paused for a moment to give Davor the opportunity to write down a reply if he so desired before he continued, „You are right, the doctors in Kalinor are not bad – I trained at the Purging myself – but their experience is severely limited. Few of them travel for any extended amounts of time.“

He doubted that Hellebore and his colleagues had left Kalinor very often in recent years, if they had left the city at all. He on other hand had worked in Denval and in the Spires before he had settled down in Lhavit. He did not tell Davor about his travels though. It seemed that the boy did not appreciate people that talked a lot, perhaps because it was hard for him to follow such a conversation.

There was one thing that he needed to tell him though before they continued any further:

„I cannot promise that I will be able to cure you of her muteness. I may have more experience than many others, but I’m not a miracle worker, and while I bear Viratas‘ mark, I have not been blessed by Rak‘keli. I will try my best though. I’ve treated a mute Symenestra before, but she had other problems besides her muteness. She could not breathe properly. What about you? Do you have any health problems?“

Another pause to give Davor the opportunity to react. „You probably expected me to examine you immediately, but talking to you about your health issues is just as important as the actual eximination. We call that amamnesis.“ He smiled a little, but the smile disappeared again as quickly as it had come.