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Mi'ehna gets up, wobbly, nodding. "Skye," she whispers through lips that are suddenly very dry, "I think I need... some water. Would you be so kind?" There isn't time for that. Her knees buckle and give way, and Mi'ehna crumples to the ground. A great deal of heat radiates from within her.

The light that's been hovering around Skye explodes quite suddenly, and he drops to his knees to gather her in his arms.
"I don't suppose there's a healer around?" he asks, desperate.

"For a fleshbag? No way. Not here. Try up in the mountains, bye now." The killbot turns away, and promptly deactivates.

Frantic, Skye scoops up Mi'ehna and carries her out toward the river. Why didn't you ever learn to heal people? he demands of himself. Idiot dalhar... He's quite certain that if something happens to Mi'ehna, he will never forgive himself for it.
Once at the river, he tears a piece of his shirt off and soaks it in the water, wrings it out, and carefully presses it to her forehead. He figures that if he stops every so often to do this, she won't develop a serious fever.
He picks her up again and starts toward the mountains.

Mi's conscious at this point, but the fire behind her skin has just taken her voice over. She doesn't resist being carried, though. It's quite nice, in its way.

There is a fairly obvious trail up into the mountains. A square house sits at the top of a nearby precipice, with blue smoke issuing from the vents at the top.

By this point, Mi'ehna's body is releasing so much heat that her armor is beginning to heat up, too. Her eyes are glazed, but she's very much lucid, and looking at him.

Skye stops several times to dampen her forehead before reaching the house.
He desperately wants to panic, but doubts Mi'ehna needs that at the moment.
"Please, I need help..." he says.

There's a small robot at the door, about the size of a house cat. It looks more like a mantis, though.

"Patients?" it asks, looking at the limp woman in Skye's arms. "Do you have an appointment? Vos is a very busy sort of fellow."

"No..." Skye is finding it hard to resist the temptation to kick the robot. "... but this is urgent."

"No appointment, no visit," the robot chirps, moving on about its business. Mi'ehna looks at the little thing, but doesn't say anything. 

Skye attributes its being difficult to its lack of light.
"Wait..." he puts as much patience as he can muster into his words. "How do I make an appointment?"

The bot beeps. "Trigon. You now have an appointment for eighteen and one half moons from today. In your time, that is one year, six months, and two weeks from today. Goodbye."

Seeing as patience doesn't work, Skye decides to try another method. "Look, I need an appointment now. Either you give me one, or I pull your wires out and chuck you into the river." He taps its front with Silence to emphasize his point.

"Just a second. The killbot will see you now." The mantis beeps, pauses, and beeps twice. "Wait a second. Where did you get that thing?" It asks, its voice suddenly incredulous and distinctly human.


"No appointment, no information," Skye replies tersely.

"You have to tell me. Someone was keeping it, and if you have it... is she dead? Please tell me she is not dead."

Mi'ehna's lips part, but only heat comes out.

"She entrusted it to me... I'm not sure why," Skye answers. "Please, I can explain better once I know she's safe." He looks down at Mi'ehna. "Please."

The bot sighs. Do bots sigh? This one does. The thick door of the home slides open, with a few quick beeps.

"Be quick. He's busy busy."

Holding Mi'ehna close and murmuring a quick prayer, Skye enters, hopeful that he's not too late.

The healer is standing at a countertop, mixing some colorless liquids together. He's not really foofily dressed, exactly, but does look well off and well tended. A very calm, reassuring aura surrounds him.

"Bring her her, boy. Lay her out on the counter. And make her drink this." Without a word of introduction, he hands one of the beakers towards Skye.

Skye puts Mi'ehna down gently and lifts her head with care. "Drink this, Mi'ehna," he says coaxingly, putting the beaker to her lips.

Mi'ehna opens her lips a little, but that's about it.

"I heard you talking through my intercom. Actually... you were talking to me, not a robot. You will have to fill me in on what happened to her, and how you came to have that sword," Vos intones as he mixes up something else. "Can you get that armor off her? I swear, it's like it's sealed to her skin."

Skye frowns a bit. "I wouldn't know how to go about taking it off..." he says, fighting to keep his voice even. "And she's too weak to drink this..." His own light is starting to overwhelm him now, though he manages to keep it under control.

"Pinch her nose, and pour it down her throat. She needs to drink it, it's distilled water and essence of mer. It will keep her organs from cooking." Vos daps droplets of the other stuff on Mi's forehead, watching it dry. "Damn. Hang on." He turns, and rifles through his desks.

"I'm sorry I have to do this, Mi'ehna..." Skye says, giving her the mixture as Vos instructed.

The liquid goes right down her throat without any problems, and the effect is instant. Her body cools almost to normal, and the burnt marks on her face fade measurably.

"Here we go." The healer produces a piece of paper with an ornate mark cut out, and presses it to Mi'ehna's forehead. "Here. It's a stencil. Use it to make this mark right there." Vos hands the other beaker to Skye. "Hurry up, now. I can't touch her."

Skye quickly does as he's told, obviously very confused but not in the position to question at the moment. Mi'ehna's light feels very faint, and it makes him worry all the more.

The mark burns into a warm orange light upon her forehead once it is completed, and almost immediately her light begins to grow into normal. The burns on her face fade into the smoothness of her natural skin, the glaze in her eyes dissipates. Vos breathes a sigh of relief. 

"I'm glad that went well," he mutters, "gambling spells. I guess her luck is good." 

Skye is relieved to feel her light again. "Thank you," he says to Vos. I guess I owe him an explanation, now... "Mi'ehna? How are you feeling?"

Mi looks at him curiously, unsure as to what's going on. She sits up on her elbows, blinking. "I... am alright. I think. Am I lying on a counter...?" 

Vos just chuckles, and leaves this part to Skye.

Skye takes a cautious step back, running a hand through his mud brown hair. "Well... you fainted in the Registration building, so I had to carry you up the river looking for a healer." He gives her a stern look. "The next time you're hurt, we're going to take care of it right away. Even if you think you're fine."

"You... carried me? I do not know what to say, Skye..."

"Gratitude is a good start," Vos intercedes, going back to his beakers. Mi casts him a stern look. 

"Skye. I should say thank you." She sits up, slides off of the counter, wobbling on her feet.

He reaches out a hand to steady her. "You don't have to..." he says quietly. "...I told you that I care about you, Mi'ehna... and when you care about someone you take care of them..." at this point he feels that he might be rambling and immediately cuts off there.

Mi'ehna chuckles a quiet chuckle. "You have such a lordly side, Skye. But you are too tall." She leans against his hand, slowing her breathing until she has her senses, and then reaches up with both hands, snagging his face on either side. She pulls him down, whispers her gratitude, and gives him a very brief, but meaningful, peck on the lips.

Stunned, he just stands there, feeling rather as though the ground has lurched beneath him. He's so full of light, but a sad look crosses his face.
"Please don't do that, Mi'ehna..."

Her head tilts a bit, eyes softening in confusion. "What? Why?" She genuinely wants to know. If he likes her so much, then...

"...because I'm starting to love you..." he admits. It's a bit more complicated than that, actually, but he isn't sure this is the time and place to explain it properly.

Mi'ehna lowers her gaze a bit, nodding. "I see. Forgive me, Skye. I had no right." 

Vos shakes his head, grumbles something about kids. "Are you two going to have an episode right here, or what?"

Skye throws Vos a glare. That's another thing. It would be so much easier if they were alone. "You didn't do anything wrong," he says firmly to Mi'ehna. "You make me very happy... but," he hesitates. "I have things to tell you, when we have more time."

She nods, hurt, but understanding. "We will have time." She looks to Vos, and sighs quietly. "Damn you, Vosviachiraun. Are you incapable of being sensitive?"

Vos laughs. "Yes. Now why did you give this boy that weapon?"

"Because you have no right to it. You would never have used it well, Vos, you are not judicious enough for that." Mi'ehna growls softly in the back of her throat, and turns to Skye to explain. "Vos used to live in my village. He was the one who discovered the rapier in the Air temple... but he wanted to go further. I did not. And so... now we know that the temples connect the villages as well."

"So there's a whole network of villages?" This is interesting. If I ever leave this place I'll have to write a book about it... he muses to himself.

"I'm only aware of two. Parts of the air temple had technology like this, and I'm from a techy planet unlike Mi'ehna here, so... yeah. This place is home sweet prison." Vos grins, extends his hand to Skye. "Vosviachiraun Akhivarose, at your service. So what are you doing here in robo-world?"

Skye hesitates a moment. What a terribly long name... He's a bit envious, really. He takes the man's hand at last. "We're here trying to find things out... questions and curiosities need to be satisfied."

"Yes, I noticed." He winks. "I'm sorry to tell you that there's nothing here worth the trip, except for the robots. And... wait a second. How did you get here, anyway?"

"Through the Malufel's nest," Mi'ehna answers.

"Bull. Really? And this boy-toy carried you out, eh?"

"She was injured coming through... and yes, I carried her." He looks around. "Are you the only human living here?"

"No. There are a few down in the cities, but the robots don't usually like them. Only the very tough and the very nuts live down there. I think you'd both fit in, if you got through there." 

Mi'ehna glares at him. He's one quip away from an ass kicking.

"Whatever you're looking for, we probably don't have it here." Vos nods, and turns back to his work. "This village is the same as the other, like I said. Whatever you need, isn't here. I'll ignore the bill for an old friend, but you'd both better leave." 

Mi'ehna tilts her head a bit. 

Skye looks from Mi'ehna to Vos. The nagging paranoid side of his mind was telling him that if Vos was telling them to leave, then there was obviously something important there. The other side of his mind was telling the former side to shut up.
"Mi'ehna?"

"It... is good to see that you live, Vos." Mi'ehna looks to Skye, jerks her head towards the door, and heads out that way without another word. She doesn't stop walking until she's reached the foot of the mountains, either.

Skye follows, looking back up at the house every so often. He's not too sure what to think of the man, really. But he helped Mi'ehna, so he decides he's not entirely horrible.
"What now?" he asks. "We were given 25 hours permission... maybe 20 now... are we going to leave this place like he said?"

Mi'ehna shakes her head, and sits on a boulder. "Of course not. It was so incredibly obvious that he was hiding something that it was all I could do not to slap him around until he let it out. But it is not right to demand of someone who has helped." She looks at him, grins, and lets out a long breath. "I want to have our talk, Skye. Tell me where you want to go."

Skye grins and sits down on the ground. "I'd like to know more about that fire we found..." he muses.

"So... you wish to return to that hearth chamber?" Mi watches him sit, observing his manner, wondering... about things she doesn't yet want to entertain.

"Maybe..." he frowns a bit. "I want to know what it uses all the light energy for. But mostly..." he sighs "Mostly I want to know what happened to Momo."

Mi nods slowly. She hadn't forgotten Momo, just... yeah. "This is Dothaven, Skye. If she is still alive, we have all the time in the world to find her." She gets up, knocks the dust off her armored butt, and nods. "Come, then. But I would like some answers from you when we get there, Skye. Okay?"

Skye nods. Of course, if she really is gone... then there isn't anything I can do about it... He vaguely wonders what sort of questions he'll have to answer, anyway.

Mi leads him down the way they came, grumbling quietly at the guard drone. She has nothing to say, yet, and intends to go all the way back to the hearth room unless something stops her.

"If the traps in the hall have been activated again, I'll go down first," Skye says.

Mi'ehna shakes her head. "Like hell. But they should not be on, unless they have been reactivated manually."

Fortune favors them, and the traps are still deactivated. Mi hadn't been worried, as only total fools, like them, would have come that way to hit the other button anyway.

"There is the hearth," Mi'ehna points down the hall, her voice shaking a bit. "So. Talk to me."

Skye walks down the hall, toward the hearth. "Where should I start?" he asks hesitantly.

"I have time," Mi'ehna answers him. She lowers herself to the floor, crossing her legs in the lotus position, and gazes upon him, waiting. "Tell me everything that you want me to know. Then, I will beat the rest out of you." She smiles, a cute, mischeivous smile.

Skye sits down, then falls back, arms pillowing his head with his arms. He looks up at her. "I don't remember much of my life beyond five years ago..." he begins.
"When I had fifteen years, my name was taken away. I was exiled from my home and told that if I ever returned, I would be executed." He sits up and pulls at the tear over his right shoulder.
"The nightmare I had... I am in my home, drenched in blood. There are three dead men in front of me, and their stomachs, livers... everything has been torn out." He looks into the fire.
"I don't remember much beyond that. I was branded with this mark, like an animal. Branded with the mark of a murderer... I would have been killed. Executed. But my father insisted I was innocent, so I was exiled instead. My father is dead now."
After a moment he continues again.
"I escaped, nearly drowned, and hit my head crashing into some rocks on the beach of some island. I almost died. When I woke up I could only remember patches of things. I had no idea what the mark was for, and no one would answer my questions.
And then I found out... and the nightmares came more and more frequently. I left the island, left the people who had become my brother and sister... I didn't want to hurt anyone..."
He looks down at his hands.
"Sometimes, I still see blood on my hands. I don't remember if I really killed those men or not... but in my nightmares I do... and because of this unholy mark... I will rot in hell."

Mi listens quietly, and attentively. It is a sad story, and she is deeply moved for him.

"Is that what worries you so much, Skye?" She looks into his eyes, searching them. "It cannot be so. Every man or woman who had ever fought in a war would spend their time in your hell, were such a thing so ironclad. As would I." She looks away again, trying not to think about all the blood that stains her own hands. "I hope that is not why you do not want to love me, Skye. You are your own man now, regardless of any past, or any marks."

He regards her for a moment. "I do want to love you... and I couldn't stop it, anyway." He runs a finger over the mark on his shoulder. "I have already accepted everything that will happen to me... but it bothers me that I cannot remember... if it really was my fault or not."

Mi brightens a bit at that first sentence. "Tell me, Skye," she quietly begins, turning a bit to face him. "Would you think less of me if you knew that I had done some pretty terrible things in my life? Would it hurt your perception of me if you knew that I have taken lives?"

He smiles a bit. "Only if I knew you didn't regret them," he answers.

"But I do, Skye. I do, so badly. I have wished off and on for most of my adult life that I could have died in the deserts of my home, and spared the lives of the poor souls who found themselves on opposite sides from me. Regret is a natural thing, and I would be more concerned about you if you did not care at all." She's shaking a little bit, troubled by what she's telling him. She doesn't want to scare him off. "Do you see?"

He nods. "I do. Someone... someone once told me something similar." Something flickers in his eyes, as though he is remembering the scenes of his nightmares. "Mi'ehna... do you think you could love me, knowing all that?" 

Her cheeks flush a bit. She looks up, and then away, and back again, her eyes seeming unhappy with wherever they stop. At last they settle upon him, gazing in a decidedly thoughtful way. 

"Yes, I could."

As he matches her gaze, his light slowly shows itself, spreading like a pair of skeletal wings over his back, then fading. "Then that's all that matters," he says finally.

Mi chuckles softly. "Not quite all."

"What else is there, Mi'ehna? What do you need from me?"

"Proof," she nods, reaching out to set her hand upon his shoulder. "You have to prove to me that you really do love me." She purses her lips. "Skye. Prove it."

Eleris' words come back to him just then, and smiles. You fish well, boy, and for more than fish by the looks of things. He reaches out and touches her cheek like he did when he first told her that he cared for her and places a gentle kiss on her lips similar to the one she had given him earlier, albeit held a little longer.

Her eyes slide shut, and she parts her lips a bit to return his kiss. Her mind is racing, her heart singing songs that she doesn't even know. Thankfully, he had guessed correctly, and Mi'ehna is in no hurry to get him to stop.

Her light is... wonderful. For once, he lets himself forget everthing that ever hurt him or made him angry. None of that matters now. He's holding and kissing a beautiful woman. I love you, Mi'ehna... Emotion and adrenaline running strong, his light leaps out again in the form of his wings.

She can't reply, except to lean into his embrace. The light is divine, and that combined with her already haywire emotions renders Mi'ehna perfectly speechless. She clings to him, wondering if he has any idea how badly she needs this, how long it's been since anyone showed her such affection. She clings to him, hiding her eyes, but letting her mind tell him how exquisite this feeling is.

He wonders, breifly, what would be like if he lost her. Worse than any hell. He breaks the kiss. Foremost because he needs to breathe, but also because he needs to say something. "Mi... I don't ever want to leave you." A split second later he realizes how stupid it sounds. But he doesn't care.

"Then do not leave me, Skye," she answers, still breathing hard from the kiss, her fingertips gently tracing the line of his cheek. "Stay with me, or take me with you. You... you have me."

"Well... I don't have a home, Mi'ehna... not really. But if I have you, I won't care where I am. Even trapped here in Dothaven." He thinks for a moment. "But if we ever find a way out of here... I'd like you to meet my family."

"Well, I do not want to look that far ahead." The village leader pulls back a bit so that she can get up, tugging on his arm. "There is no need to rush, you know."

Skye grins, getting up. "I know. But it's a nice thought. Shold we go look for Hadone?"

Mi glances down the hallway again, eyes narrowing a bit. "I wish I knew what Vos was hiding. He was a crafty fellow long before he came here, but not a bad one. I cannot imagine that he would be doing anything that might hurt us."

"He was obviously hiding something from us..." Skye says, getting up and tucking his wings away. The thought unsettles him a bit, but he can't imagine what the healer is keeping a secret.

"I suppose," Mi'ehna shrugs, "that I will just have to beat the answer out of him. Come along, Skye. We have plenty of hours left." That said, she heads back down the hallway with some pretty bad intentions... for a good reason, of course.

Skye follows, curious as to weather Vos will speak, but at the same time feeling sorry for the man.

The robots give them no trouble this time, and within a moment Mi'ehna is banging on Vos's door again. It opens without a fight this time.

"What do you want, Mi'ehna? I thought you left." The healer gazes curiously at the both of them, an eyebrow arching.

"We just need to talk to you, is all."

"No. You and your flavor of the month over there need to leave, and leave now."

"Why should we? You said there's nothing here that we're looking for... so what does it matter if we stay here a little longer?" Skye asks.

The healer wastes no time in slamming the door in their faces.

Mi'ehna can't remember the last time she felt so insulted. She looks to Skye. "Would you think less of me if I were to break down this door, Skye?"

He grins. "I think if you let him insult you that way and you didn't break down the door, you wouldn't be behaving like the woman I fell in love with," he says simply.

Mi just smiles at that. It's ironic in a way... he hasn't seen her temperamental side yet. But it's sweet nonetheless. "All right."

The door is pretty solid, but it *is* on a hinge, so Mi'ehna breathes in, raises both hands, and... has a better idea. After giving Skye's hand a squeeze, she walks back about ten paces, then sprints for the door. She springs, tucking her knees and head so that only her back and butt, both heavily armored, will strike the door.

It works beautifully, as all five feet of Mi'ehna slams into the door, snapping the hings with a concussive bang. She stands up, dusting herself off, and ignoring the horrified look on Vos's face.

Skye flinches a bit, but then favors Vos with a look that says Clearly, you underestimate her. "I think you'd be better off doing as she asks," he says.

"Get out of here before I call security." He smirks. "Yeah. We have that in this village."

Skye throws Mi'ehna a worried look. What does he mean, "security"? He passes Silence from his left hand to his right.

"You will not do any such thing, Vos. If it something bad enough that you would see me harmed before you told me, then I really must insist that you do." She shrugs. "Please. Do not make me treat you like your door." 

Vos just growls. "Hell. It had to come to this." He reaches into the pocket of his lab coat, drawing some sort of techy pistol from inside, which he promptly aims at Skye. "I talk, he dies."

Xsa... Skye just stands there, not trusting himself to move. There is obviously something very important being kept from Mi'ehna and himself.

Mi'ehna blinks. This isn't the man she used to know, it can't be. "You were always such an ass, Vos, but... what happened to you?" Her light is changing, though, tinging with violet as she speaks. "If you... hurt him, Vos, I will make you wish life had never visited you."

Skye is begining to understand a little more about Mi'ehna's light. The violet feels different, sharper. "Mi..." he says gently, "I'm not worth hurting someone over... I don't think we'll get any information out of him that way."

"I agree with him on both counts," Vos answers. Mi'ehna growls quietly, her hair and eyes fully violet now. 

"I am sorry to hear that." She closes her eyes tightly, willing that anger away as best she can. "Skye, we should go. Before I kill him, and regret it." She touches his hand, pleading with him. Lead me out, please, Skye, do not let me stay.

Glaring at Vos, Skye takes Mi'ehna's hand. "It isn't your fault he wouldn't listen to reason," he says calmly, leading her toward what used to be the door.

Mi hesitates, but goes with him. She really doesn't want to have to hurt Vos.

Vos, on the other hand, has no such compunction, and as soon as they step back, he aims the laser-type pistol at Skye's left shoulder and fires.

Skye, fortunately, sees the flash out of the corner of his eye and moves so that the attack only grazes his shoulder. It still hurts, though, and he sinks to one knee, gripping his arm in pain.

"Skye!" Mi'ehna doesn't even blink before she turns on Vos, her aura exploding with pure, untainted fury. He fires at her, but the beams dissipate against her armor, and he only has time for one shot before Mi'ehna wrenches his gun arm into an angle no human body can accomodate. She smashes her armored fist into his shoulder once for good measure, again because at this moment she hates him more than anyone, anywhere. 

Skye struggles to stand, trying his best to ignore the pain. "Don't kill him, Mi'ehna..." He's practically begging. "Take advantage of the fact that he is unarmed... and get what you can out of him. But don't kill him."

"I would not. I am going to hurt him, for hurting you...!" Mi pulls him up just long enough to slam him down again. "Talk god damn you!!"

Vos just groans.

"I really think you should just tell her what she wants to know, old man," he says, trying to fight the buring sensation shooting through his arm. "I don't think she's in the mood to go easy on you..." Mi'ehna's light is putting him on edge, in all honesty, but he can't help thinking that it is terribly beautiful, anyway.

Mi'ehna wrenches up on Vos's arm again. "Gah! Call her off! I'll tell you, just get her off me...!"

"I think you've hurt him enough, Mi," Skye insists. His own arm is feeling numb at this point.

Mi gives him one last shove, and pulls herself away from Vos, who pulls himself to a sitting position. She sets her eyes upon Skye, her light calming. She looks at his arm, blinks, looks at him. She had honestly lost consideration of his injury during all of this. "Vos, you're a healer. Where are your bandages?"

"The desk against the wall," he grumbles, cradling his arm. 

"Skye, question him. I will get the supplies to fix you up," Mi'ehna assures him, her smile returning a bit.

"Right." Skye puts his focus on Vos's light. "You were in a hurry to get us out of here, old man. Why is that?" He really does feel sorry for Vos, but if the man had just listened the first time...

"If you're stupid enough to have gone through the Malufel's nest, then you must be looking for the way out of here. Right? You can't get out of here. If you do, you're going to throw off the entire system here." Vos edges to his right a little bit, slowly and subtly making for the alarm switch underneath the terminal in the corner.

Skye staggers a step to him, pointing with Silence. "Don't move..." he warns. "And explain what you mean by the 'entire system'."

The healer freezes, grumbling still. "I should've hit that button first. You've seen the hearth room, right?"

"Of course," Mi'ehna answers, as she gives Skye's sleeve a tug. "Roll this up, or pull it off, so I can treat your wound." 

"The hearth connects to a generator underneath the Malufel's nest. That generator absorbs energy from people in Dothaven, converts it into the sorcerous energy that keeps the place healthy and functioning. Without it, the river wouldn't flow, the ground wouldn't support crops or game, and the air would become stagnant. With every person that enters, the maximum yield goes up and Dothaven starts demanding more power. If you left, there wouldn't be enough for the demand and the system would shut down."

Skye pulls off his shirt, eyeing it with disgust and satisfaction. He has a rare talent for ruining shirts like that. "What a clever trap..." he mutters.

Mi'ehna tends the wound quickly and dutifully, applying some burn ointment underneath the bandage. Her eyes are on Vos, though, and honestly, she wants to beat him more for holding such a thing back.

"So if you're done with me," the healer growls, "get out of here so I can set my arm."

"How did you find all of this out?" Skye asks, wincing a bit as his wound is treated. The feeling in his arm is starting to come back, but painfully. He isn't immortal, after all.

"I can't tell you that. I know you adventuring types, I've patched up dozens of you. I'll tell you where I found out and how, and you'll have to go see it for yourself, and end up doing what I told you you'd do."

Mi'ehna smooths out the bandage, finished with his arm.

Skye frowns a bit. Vos is right. He pulls his shirt back on and glances at Mi'ehna. At any other time he would have turned and walked out of there, intent on finding out one way or another. But he doesn't want to put Mi'ehna in the position to be injured again. Out loud he says, "I think we've gotten everything we can out of him."

"You have never interrogated someone before, have you Skye?" Mi'ehna, her eyes still trained upon Vos, gives her new friend's forearm a squeeze. "We have not even threatened his family yet."

He grins. "No... I don't have much practice at it." He looks to Vos. "And if he has a family, I feel sorry for them." He thinks for a moment. "I'll tell you what, old man. You tell us, and we'll leave. If you don't tell us, Mi'ehna will hold you down and I'll set your arm. And I have no medical training whatsoever."

Mi'ehna snickers.

Vos is aghast. "You're bluffing."

"You shot me, remember?" Skye says. "And you insulted Mi'ehna. I have no time to bluff. Hold him down while I find the things I need, Mi."

"Wait, wait! Fine, alright, I'll tell you!" Vos is practically scrambling now. Being a healer has its downsides too.  "There is a set of twin sisters living in town. Their father is the wizard who created this place. One of them was assaulted by the Malufel and needed my help. They told me everything, so that someone would know in case they didn't survive the next time. Okay?"

Skye grins. "That worked well enough," he says, pleased with himself. "Before I forget... what does that button do, anyway?"

"It's an alarm, you idiot. It calls the sentries from the city," Vos answers as he pulls himself to his feet. "And I'm going to hit it just as soon as you leave."

Mi'ehna sighs a little bit, a bit broken up over all this. He had been her friend, after all.

Skye nods. "I thought as much. What should we do with him, then, Mi?" In truth, he isn't too worried about the sentries, but it would set them back a bit.

"I think that he has had enough, for now. I think if he hits that button when we leave, I may come back for him." She looks at the healer, who really is a snivelling runt despite his greater height than hers. "Hiding something like this from us... you should be ashamed."

"Nonetheless, he helped when you were injured," Skye says. "I thank you for that at least, Vos. And I hope I never see you again."

Vos just smirks. "Get out, then."

"Gladly. Let's go, Mi'ehna," he says, offering his free hand.

She takes it happily, and all but skips out the door, her good humor restored in full. "So," she asks once they're out, "what now? Should we go to see these women?"

He thinks for a moment. "I think that's a good idea. I'm interested to know how they discovered all of this."

Mi nods a bit. "We can go into the city and find out where they live. I am sure that they are not hidden, if he would tell us of them so freely."

"True. I hope they are willing to speak to us."

"I am sure they will." Mi'ehna trots off down the path, turning to glance at Skye every once in a while. "You handled yourself very well in there, Skye. I hope I did not change your perception of me too badly...?"

He laughs, resisting the temptation to kiss her. "Does it really worry you so much that you could do something to change my mind about you?" He is suddenly serious. "You did frighten me a bit, honestly. But it doesn't mean I care for you any less."

She's silent for a bit, mulling this over. "It does worry me, yes. We came to this so quickly, I thought... once you saw my vindictive side, it might..." she blushes, and walks along. "Nevermind. You are right, of course."

He grins. "Besides... I like strong women." He begins to sing a string of song, quietly.

Mi'ehna stops walking quite suddenly, eyes widening a bit. "You sing...? How lovely! Sing louder, Skye!"

He stops, too, looking confused. Obviously he wasn't aware that he was singing. "It's just... a song Trinity used to sing," he explains, he raises his voice a bit, the melody sad but sweet:
"Slaves to our destiny
I recall a melody
Sing of seasons lit with gold
Speak of legends yet untold
You were there"

Mi'ehna practically tackles him at that. "I love singing! None of the men in the village sing that well. You must sing for me, Skye, when we get back to the village, please, please?"

Skye laughs. "I normally only sing when I'm travelling on my own, to pass the time. But if you want me to, I'll sing for you. Only for you..."

She's beaming now, perfectly thrilled to hear this. "Thank you, Skye! I absolutely cannot wait to get you home. And just for that, I will..." she blinks, thinking. "What can I do for you, in return?" Her eyes sparkle with joyful curiosity.

I can think of a few things... he mentally slaps himself for that. Finally, he answers, "Be there... be there when the nightmares come."

She caught a bit of it, though, being empathic and all. "Oh, come on..." she steps towards him, reaches in and sets her hands upon his sides. "There has to be something you like."

"...I think you're getting there..." he tilts her chin upward a bit, looking into her eyes.

Mi'ehna's smile tempers a bit, less overjoyed and more content. "You are sweet. But you are far too tall." She chuckles, and stands on her toes to give him a brief peck. "I think, if that is all you want for your singing, I can afford you." She's all but forgotten about going to see these twins... but she is often that way. When her little heart goes, the rest of her follows... without question.

"True. I am not expensive," he replies. In all honesty, he'd love to stand there all day, singing for her, but of course, there are other things to be done. "Mi... I think the sooner we go speak to these twins, the sooner we can go home." He can't remember how many hours they have left, anyway.

"Yes, you are right. Forgive me," she pats his cheek, "I sometimes lose sight of what I am doing." Turns, then, and goes along the path a little farther. The technological buildings rise up sharply at a certain point, and robots become far more common in what looks more like an urban area than a village.

"Now," she begins once they've reached the edge of it, "we need to ask around. There cannot be that many twin humanoids here, so... how about we split up and search?" Mi'ehna looks around for a moment, and points to a clockface on a tower high above them. "We will meet back here in two hours. Is that alright?"

He frowns a bit, not exactly liking the idea of having to be seperated, but at the same time understanding that it makes more sense that way. "Two hours," he repeats, nodding.

"Yes. Two hours. If I am not back by then, wait for me, and I will do the same for you." She pats his arm gently, smiles at him. "If you get in trouble, flee. We are only scouting, remember."

It takes a moment for Skye to remember and accept the fact that he'd promised to obey her while they were here, but finally it registers and he nods once, looking around to decide which way he'll go.

Power is such a delicious thing. Like cake, only without the fat ass part.

"I will go east," Mi'ehna volunteers, pointing down the road in front of them. "See you in two hours, Skye. Be safe." One more gentle touch, and she starts walking that way.

He watches her for a moment, murmuring a prayer for her safety, and starts walking in the opposite direction, feeling somewhat out of place. "How are you supposed to find two humans in a city such as this?" he wonders out loud.

Robots float about, surveying this and that. Most of them don't speak or look all that intelligent, just... job bots. Cleaners trawl the streets, and a few sentries float around too. It's actually a very serene picture.

At the corner of every street there's a neon board, lit up with buttons, that reads 'directory'.

Skye is just bitterly wishing Buddybot was there with him when he stumbles upon one of the boards. Well... this is helpful, he thinks. Curious, he pushes one of the buttons at random.

The board's lights go out, and a row flashes.

Current location: Central sector Intersection. Please state your destination.

My destination? "...Nearest human dwelling," he says after a moment. If it works, he'll be halfway there. Because after all, if the nearest human dewlling isn't the home of these twins, the humans there should know, right?

The machine clicks and beeps.

Doctor Vosviachiraun Akhivarose, Mountain Sector Grid 1A, .76 miles south.

He nearly kicks the machine for that. "...Nearest human dwelling excluding Mountain Sector Grid 1A," he says.

Again, click and beep.

Magistrate Lameeka Ence, Magistrate Tei Ence, Western Sector Grid 2E, 4.5 miles north.

Farther, yes. But at least it's not Vos's place. He begins to rummage through a random pocket. His pants generally have a lot of pockets, and even though this is a nicer pair, it has five, so it takes a few seconds for him to find what he's looking for. The compass had belonged to his father. Or so he had been told. It's silver, with a delicate chain, and the monogram "EJS" engraved on it. He points it in the desired direction, and starts walking.

Really, there isn't a great deal to see if you're not into robots. A few bigger ones roll down the walk once in a while, and at one point an elephant-sized carrier bot lumbers on spiderlegs just over Skye's head, but really... it's a very basic city-setting. No humans are out, and no one bothers Skye all the way to the house marked 2E.

Skye, feeling a bit weary from the walk - and realizing this is because he hasn't had anything to eat since breakfast - drops the compass in the pocket where he'd found it and looks around for any signs of life.

It's really very much like Vos's house, very unspectacular. There's a door in plain sight, not armored like Vos's, although lots of blinking lights do line the perimeter of the home.

It's a strange sort of dwelling, Skye decides. But then, a dwelling for humans in a city dominated by robots is bound to be a bit strange. There's only the one window, a plain, dark square Skye can't see through at all. He can't tell if there's anyone inside... or if anyone lives there, for that matter. He knocks, though, and presses his ear to the door to listen... for something.

"Just a second!" A woman's voice sounds from inside, followed by the soft patter of light footsteps. The sound of bolts sliding and locks turning, no less than seven in all, crackle and click before the door opens about a half inch and a prettily made up brunette peeps through. "Hi! Whatcha need? Writ?  Zoning permit?"

Skye blinks. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, really. But she wasn't it. That was for sure. "I... was looking for someone." He suddenly feels stupid. Vos didn't even mention the twins' names. "You see... Vosviachiraun Akhivarose told me these twins might be able to help me... do you know any human twins?"

"Well, yes," the bubbly girl chirps, smiling at him. She's tall... taller than Skye, actually, if the position of her face is an indication.  "My sister Lameeka and I are twins. You aren't here on business then?"

"Yes, actually. I heard from Vos that one of you was attacked by the Malfuel some time ago?" He's relieved he's found the right house, anyway. He isn't sure if he woul dhave liked to be sent another however many miles to another house in another part of the city.

"Yes, Lameeka was. Poor thing... she's all better now, though. They had to graft her a new arm, though. Soooo..." the girl blinks a few times, dumbly. "Who are you looking for? Surely they are in the directory." Obviously, she's not all that bright.

Skye chooses to ignore the question. "I'm sorry about your sister, but glad to hear she's well. May I speak to her?"

The girl beams at him. "Sure. She's in the gym." The last latch is released and the door opens, revealing the entirety of the girl. She really is several inches taller than Skye, and quite well toned... honestly, with her fluffy armsleeve things and exotic garb, she looks like a flamenco dancing girl. A freakishly tall one.

The door opens, and she points down the hall to a glass door where shouts and thumps that sound a lot like a sparring routine can be heard now and again.

He smiles at her and walked toward the glass door, wondering what's going on inside. It doesn't sound too pleasant. He raises a hand and taps tentatively on the glass.

There's another woman in there, dark haired and lofty just like the girl at the door, engaged in a torturous looking mixed martial arts routine. There are some training dummies lying on the ground with stuffing spilling out, and now the woman is going through some obvious katas.

"She probably can't hear you," the girl notes, "Lameeka is impervious to sound when she's training. She's hardcore that way."

"I have a friend who is the same way," Skye replies. "But he isn't nearly as..." he can't find a word for it. "His art is calmer." He watches the girl for a moment, wondering if he was wrong about how she was attacked. At first, he thought that it might have been the Malfuel's fault. But now, he can just as easily imagine the girl starting the fight. "Do you think she would be bothered if I went in?" he asks.

The girl smiles at him again. "Knock yourself out. Just don't let Lameeka do it, and if she wants to spar, tell her you've got a bad knee. Okay?"

Skye grins. He wouldn't lie. But he does have his shoulder wound to worry about. It feels better, though he figures he should probably give it a few more hour's rest. He pushes the glass door open and enters with caution.
"Excuse me..."

The sparring Lameeka doesn't even look at Skye, just continues her routine. "Did Tei let you in? Whatever you're selling, we don't need it."

Skye blinks. "I'm not selling anything. I needed to ask you some things." He keeps his gaze focused on her, finding her light vibrant and pulsing.

"Well, okay. Ask away, I'm listening." The woman lifts her right leg, extends it up until it's all but over her head, and holds it there. "Go ahead."

"Why were you attacked by the Malfuel?" Again, he feels like he's giving the beast too much credit.

Quite suddenly, Lameeka drops her heal with a sharp 'hah!'. She stands straight, then looks at Skye. "I was protecting Tei. She wandered into the temples looking for flowers and it assaulted her."

"But it didn't... I mean... you're still here." He turns his focus away from her light. "And Vos... tended to you, yes?"

"That's right." Lameeka approaches him, her features the same bubbly cuteness of Tei, but her manner sharper, more deliberate. "Can I ask you why you want to know all this? It's obvious that you're a new face here, or I'd know you."

"My..." he stops suddenly, unaware of what Mi'ehna is to him at this point. "Mi'ehna was hurt earlier today, and Vos helped her. We'd been scouting about, and we figured out that he'd been keeping something very important from her. Apparently, it was you who told him about it... something about the system of Dothaven."

Lameeka's expression changes at that. "You mean to tell me that rat squealed? Oh, I'm going to pound him a new ear." She reaches out, grabs a towel and drapes it over her shoulders. "Look. It's impossible to leave here without convincing Malufel to let you out. Any other method would bring this place's infrastructure right down. How'd you get him to talk anyway?"

"Well... first Mi'ehna knocked down his door and broke his arm," he said, obviously proud of her. "Then I," and he still thought it had been a stroke of genius, "threatened to set his arm, even though I have no medical experience whatsoever." He feels a bit sorry for Vos again, mostly because Lameeka seems to want to hurt him. "Mi'ehna had the right to know, anyway. She's a villiage leader, and she needs that kind of knowledge."

"Knocked down his... door?" Lameeka laughs at that. "That's a hell of a girl. She must be twice my size to put down that armor he had up."

Skye grins. "Actually... she's shorter than me, but she's very strong." He decides to stop there because a moment longer and he might start mentioning how terribly beautiful she is, and other things that would be of no revalence in this situation.

"No kidding? I have to meet her." Lameeka looks Skye up and down, analyzing his body language, his expression. "Your wife?"

He nearly drops Silence. After a moment in which he mentally chases his voice around in circles, tackles it to the ground, and outs it back where it belongs, he says, "Not quite yet."

Lameeka nods, wondering. "Well. If you don't have any more questions..." she looks purposefully at him, and heads for the door.

"You said that any other method - other than convincing the Malfuel to let you go - would bring down the "infrastructure". Does that mean the Malfuel decides if Dothaven is affected or not?"

Lameeka stops, sighs a bit "Not quite. The beast simply knows how to tune the energy needs of this place. That's why its nest is so close to the generator."

(OOC: You can see the twins at Meepzilla on the bottom)

"But there is a way to convince it to let you go?" if this is true, than it is an interesting bit of information, for sure. Especially since he'd only seen it attack people when they tried to escape.

"If you really want to know how to get out, go to the air temple and talk to Aliema." Lameeka eyes him, looking him up
and down. "How strong are you?"

He quirks an eyebrow. "Strong enough," he answers.

Lameeka smirks at him. "Don't be coy. Strong enough for what?"

He grins. "I wasn't being coy on purpose... strong enough to stay alive, I suppose."

"I'm just trying to save you a trip. See, the only way to get the Malufel to let you out is to fight it and not lose." Lameeka reaches down, turns the handle of the door. "If you aren't strong enough, there's no point in going to see Aliema."

"I see... thank you." I'll have to talk to Mi'ehna about this.

Lameeka's lip curls a bit. "Are we done? I'd like to bathe today."

"Yes, thank you," he nods and heads for the door, hoping he hasn't been gone for more than two hours.

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Dothaven Past VII

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