Umolka's Quest

[Rabiesbunny]

Er, jeeze! I'm just tossing this up here, with the hopes I could get some friendly advice, and have a place that isn't a wiki to have it to link to. This is the ongoing quest of my Talontar in Forgotten Realms, Umolka Vhirkina of Thay. This was created for our group's website, so the story doesn't give much description of characters at first, simply because all the others know what she looks like.

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Umolka is most obviously Thayan. She bears the shaved eyebrows and head that is common to most living in the country, her skull covered in intricate blue and black tattoos, the most notable being the symbol of Talona between her eyes; her hair is shaved, all but a large braid that extends from the back of her skull, falling down to her waist. Her face is tanned, but drawn in a slightly sickly manner. Though strong in appearance, the general demeanor of illness and weakness seems to surround the woman.

In the cold winter of the Moonsea, she is usually seen covered by several fur cloaks and thick hide armor. When not covered by a glove, her right hand is shown to be hideously disfigured; larger than average, almost diseased in it's blackened appearance. Her nails extend at the least a good four inches, and seem dangerously sharp. She might be attractive symmetrically, but something may easily drive others off, some nagging feeling of death and sickness.

At her side is almost always Pox, her animal companion. A rat nearly the size of a German Shepard, Pox is a disgusting sight, one many druids would consider an abomination. Chitinous plates are scattered across a tattered and oily hide, his eyes glowing a hellish red. Acid drips from his frighteningly large incisors, and where his tail has been lopped off, a scorpion tail seems to have grown in.

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The moon over Zhentil Keep hung pregnant in the cold night's air. A layer of fine snow blanketed the city proper so it seemed to shimmer. Everything was beautiful.


Even the ruins seemed so, albeit momentarily.


No one in their right mind would have entered the ruined city after nightfall. Areas of the "C" sector were deadly enough by day. This did not seem to deter the lithe, lupine form bounding over the snow. Fur black as pitch rolled over tensed and tired muscles, a thick muzzle pulled back in a frustrated snarl. Ice had begun to streak her fur, but she seemed not to care. Trying valiantly to match her pace was a shorter, deformed rat. Acid trailed behind the streak of black on the white canvas that were the druidess and her companion. It was hard to miss them.


A few gnolls, here and there, had taken shots at the pair as they bolted past. The speed with which they ran had proven too much work for the dog-men, and after a few minutes, they had all simply stopped following. This was good news for Umolka. The building she was seeking proved difficult to locate. Pox and herself checked each possible building, and more than a few housed creatures of various sorts seeking shelter from the bitter northern winds. Animals of the smaller sort were easily chased off with a load snarl. The aforementioned gnolls had, however, chased them from more than a few ruined shelters.


What if she couldn't find the building? The very reason she came to this city would be forfeit; the Zhentarim had assigned them to a mission outside the city's ruins. This isn't what she had wanted. It would be a disaster, at least to the Talontar. Frozen paws quickened their pace as she noted the large complex crowning the horizon.


Umolka had never seen a Thayan enclave before, but on seeing the nearly destroyed buildings, she knew she had found it. The reddened stone of the collapsed structures hearkened to her own hometown's lines. Wise brown eyes searched the enclave from outside; it seemed that many portions of the buildings were in decent shape. Other walls had been obliterated. The druidess pulled up into a slow trot and eventually came to a full stop, cold ears back against her head. Flank pressing heavily against the base of an upturned fountain, she pulled in air through her nose. She couldn't smell any gnolls here. Maybe their territory didn't extend this far?


A possibility. Satisfied with the answer, Umolka quietly slipped into what was once a great courtyard. The ornate fountain once in it's center had no doubt been uprooted by one of the giants long ago. At one time, paths would have led the consumer through the peaceful area, to the shop they had wished to peruse. Ears raising, Umolka turned her head to survey where the shops once would have been. The signs were long ago destroyed. and the druidess cursed herself viciously for thinking it would be that easy.


Maybe it wasn't here at all. Maybe some gnoll used it to wipe his ass.


Such pessimistic thoughts were pushed from her head at the sound of Pox's screech. Turning her form toward the noise she could see his tracks leading into one of the buildings. Umolka lept into a full sprint as the rat's screams were matched by those of a pair of howling gnolls. Crossing the threshold, she could now see the three. Purple mist shimmered over her lupine form as she prepared to enter the fray. Pox was viciously latched onto one of the gnoll's shins, his saliva scorching the creature's flesh and sending a rancid smell into the air. The gnoll being attacked seemed incapacitated by the pain the diseased beast inflicted. His companion, however, was just raising his axe for another strike as Umolka rushed from behind.


The shift to her true form took little more than a second, and she was on the creature. She brought her diseased hand down on the gnoll's back, tearing open across it's shoulder blades. With a canid scream, the gnoll dropped it's weapon and dropped a fell forward in shock. Umolka dodged the falling weapon with some degree of ease and took a step back after the dog began to stand.


Somewhere to her right, she could hear more screams. Pox and the other gnoll, now clashing violently. But she couldn't let that worry her now. A prayer found it's way to the front of the druid's mind, all other distractions momentarily blocked out. A muttered string of prayers and praise in Rashemi slipped from between her nearly frostbitten lips. A flickering purple flame came into existence but moments later, growing with intensity until it had formed a mass of flames. Opening her dark eyes, the Thayan let loose a yell and tossed the orb of fire at the wounded gnoll.


She noticed too late that the dog-creature was almost in front of her. The flames exploded against the gnoll's leather armor. A rush of intense heat blasted Umolka's thankfully hairless face. A strangled cry erupted from the gnoll, as his dry pelt burst into flames. Umolka had prayed that the blast might stop his momentum, but the flaming gnoll continued through with his charge. The Talontar was caught off guard. With a shrill scream Umolka fell flat to the stone floor, her desperation cut short as the breath was knocked from her form.


Pain screamed through her left arm. It had clamped it's teeth tightly around her bicep, teeth dug well down into her meager layer of muscles. With tears welling in her eyes, she began to intone another prayer. The pain running through her body made the hand gestures nearly impossible. She was almost there when the gnoll's claws grasped around her waist, seeking the woman's flesh through her dark armor.


This was agony of a different sort than she'd ever known. Wailing openly, she began to try once more for a spell. Every motion with her left hand took amazing effort through the gnoll's grip. Teeth were grinding against the bone now, the beast snarling in anger. Flames still played over the creature's burning flesh but it seemed not to notice in it's blind rage. Screaming out the last of the words, Umolka's free, deformed hand sprouted a vicious array of sharp needles. With what strength she could yet muster she pressed the dripping darts tightly against the back of it's skull. Blackened nails dug into the still burning fur as the creature let loose it's grip in a howl of pain, before falling silent.


Frantically she began to kick the huge form off of her own, the smoldering body falling onto it's side. Tears trailed down the woman's cheeks as she once more forced herself to concentrate. With a flash of purple energy from her right hand, the more serious of the wounds left on her hips and arm were now healed. Still, her left appendage was weakened. She needed to get back to the Inn. With a loud grunt she finally pulled up to her feet. Staring up at her from across the room was Pox, one of the gnoll's organs clutched between his hellish incisors. Umolka couldn't help but laugh.


Limping now, Umolka cautiously loped over to Pox. With another purple light his wounds closed, though it seemed that the gnoll had taken off nearly half her companion's tail. Not that he seemed to notice.


Umolka did notice something other than Pox's wounds. Once beautiful furniture was strewn over the floor as if it were garbage. Whole pieces of tables were missing, assumedly burned for warmth. It seemed to the druidess that perhaps this was only recently inhabited. Of course, odds were more gnolls would be here any moment. Umolka began to loudly turn over downed bookcases and tables, frantically reading the titles of the books that had somehow survived.

And there, among the few books not used for feeding flames, was what she had come seeking. The book she had set out from Thay for. With a frantic laugh she slipped the tome into her bag and once more, her form shimmered purple, to be replaced with the ebon wolf. The travel back to the city was not easy, but in her eyes? It had been worth it.

[Tormsskull]

That's a really awesome story. You seem to be very good at doing descriptions. I'm guessing you were asking for comments and such on it, so here are mine:

"In the cold winter of the Moonsea, she is usually seem covered by several fur cloaks and thick hide "

Minor typo, that "seem" should be "seen".

"At her side is almost always Pox, her animal companion. A rat nearly the size of a German Shepard, Pox is a disgusting sight, one many druids would consider an abomination. Chitinous plates are scattered across a tattered and oily hide, his eyes glowing a hellish red. Acid drips from his frighteningly large incisors, and where his tail has been lopped off, a scorpion tail seems to have grown in."

This is one of those great descriptions I was taking about. It elicited a really great reaction to me. I pictured Pox pretty clearly, and I think he is a very unique choice as an animal companion. It looks like he adds a lot of depth to Umolka.

"With a canid scream, the gnoll dropped it's weapon and dropped a step forward in shock."

This sentense could us a bit of reworking. Using the word "dropped" twice in succession like that is a bit of a distraction. Perhaps replace the second one with "fell" or "stumbled" or another synonom.

"Umolka did notice something else not of the rat."

This sentence if a bit confusing. I'm not sure exactly what you are trying to say, you may want to clarify it.


Overall this was a very enjoyable read & I hope you'll continue this story.

[Rabiesbunny]

Thanks! It's so hard to really notice repetition and typos, no matter how much you proof your own stuff. I appreciate it!

[Rabiesbunny]

A step back in time -- A Strange Start

Flamerule held it's sweltering grip over the generally arid land of Thay. An oppressive heat hung over the city of Tyrtauros, as it did every year, hearkening in the Reeking Heat -- Thay is not known for cleanliness in even it's larger cities. Refuse and offal smoldered in the warmth of the season, the air becoming heavy, and unpleasant to breathe. For this reason, the Vhirkina family has retreated from the city, to a small house in the featureless wastes of the Tharch. The Reeking Heat, however, was not their only reason for retreating.


Within the walls of the adobe dwelling, a small woman sat, wiping sweat from the forehead of a girl. The young mother's lips were drawn back in an expression of worry. The room lacked windows, and it was considerably cooler because of it. The child's skin was grayed, her breathing labored. Eyelids fluttered in a state of restless slumber as the woman rose to her slippered feet and hurried from the room.


"I just don't know what else we can do...", the woman said softly to a man crouched over a small table. Both were bald, though the man was considerably more pale than the woman that was his wife, his head covered in intricate tattoos. The man raised his eyes from the table with a weary smile, motioning the dark skinned woman to sit. With a hesitant sigh she did as beckoned, hands raising to run across the smooth skin on her skull. "She's just not getting any better. Every night, her fever gets worse, and she eats less. I feel useless..."


"The required tithe at any of the temples was just too much for this time of year, dear. It's not our fault." The man broke a piece of bread in half. With a tentative smile, he offered the chunk to the woman. "All we can do is pray to the Gods she makes it." His wife wrinkled her nose and brushed away the proffered food, her hairless brows furrowed in anger.


"That doesn't -work-!", she spit out in rage. "Every night, I pray. Less and less, though, do I find myself praying for Talona to spare her from the illness." Licking her lips, the woman raised her hands to her eyes, taking in a deep breath. "...I find myself praying for Cyric to take her soul quickly to his realm, and get it over with."


The husband's lips drew back in a stern frown as he reached out, his fingertips touching her slender chin. "The day we give up is the day we kill her. Stop being so sentimental, we're doing everything we can." Though his touch was gentle, the voice he addressed his wife with was black with anger and disgust. "You can love her, and still accept the inevitable with grace."


Painted eyes fluttered shut as the woman heaved a sigh. "...inevitable."

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Umolka's sleep was fitful. As her parents slumbered, the perspiring girl thrashed in her small, sweat-drenched cot. Dark shapes plagued the girl's fevered dreams; spined lizards thrashed at her as she ran in the distorted world, wings flapping, the beasts squealing and roaring. She would wail and cover her head as she ran. Occasionally, she would stumble over some disgusting creature. Lumps of green and black flesh, acid and bile oozing from their mouths, would peer up at her and cackle. The moment she would take to right herself would be enough time for the beasts to descend on her, the events replaying again.


The girl felt herself being pulled from the dream world swiftly, her eyes shooting open. Though young yet, Umolka realized something was wrong. She had not woken up this easily since illness had beset her, and that face disturbed the girl. Tugging wet hair from her face she sat up, stray drops of perspiration falling on the girl's bare thighs. Her vision was fuzzy and dark as she glanced across the room to her parents, sleeping quietly in their own thin bed. Cautiously she lowered her feet to the sandy floor and moved to stand.


As she stood, Umolka's knees buckled, her breath catching in her throat. With a helpless gasp she crumpled to the ground noiselessly. The child's perceptions jarred as she caught her breath, her muscles falling lax as she stood once more. This time, the naked girl managed to stay on her feet. It was at this time she realized she was seeing herself walk, as if she were outside of her own body. This didn't alarm the Thayan child, for she had dreamt of far stranger things in the past moon. Slowly her body began to move, bare feet scraping against the sand as she made her way for the door.


A rush of warm night air woke Umolka's mother. She stirred lethargically at first, turning onto her side and opening her eyes. She found it strange that there was a breeze making it's way into the hut, but it was not until she noticed her daughter's empty bed that she thought anything of it. With a panicked whine she stumbled out of bed, shaking her husband's shoulders.

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The four year old's greyed skin crawled under Selune's light, and the chill it's wind brought to her damp form. When first the child's small feet began carrying her, it had been kind of new. But now that she had exited the hut and began towards the wilds of the desert, things did not seem so innocent and adventurous. Inwardly the child began to panic, mind screaming against the force commanding her body, and it seemed to have an effect. The girl did come to a stop, though relief did not last for long.


Her feet had brought her to a halt in the path of a snake.


The large brown serpent hissed, it's form coiling up and over it's own body innumerable times. Slowly it rose into the air and swayed toward the girl's position, crimson tongue tasting the desert air. To her parents, who rushed out of the hut at this moment, Umolka seemed serene, her face carrying a smile. The girl's mind, however, was paralyzed with fear. Beyond her own control, her body stepped forward, her right hand balling into a fist.

The snake's strike was clean and instant, and before her mother and father could react, the serpent had disappeared into the moonlit sands. Umolka felt the pain suddenly then, as the force left her thin form and allowed her to reenter. The child swooned and crumpled into the sands, unconscious.

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"Momma, Poppa..."


The woman awoke with a start at the high-pitched voice addressing her. Dried tears made the effort of blinking difficult, but she did so within a matter of moments and reached out toward the girl. Here they had hauled her to die, both holding onto her small body in a tight hug, falling asleep to the sound of one another's sobbing, and their daughter's failing breath. She felt, under her palm, a cool face drawn up in a smile.


"Momma, I feel good now, can I have some bread?"

Vision clearing, she could see the child's brightly tanned face. She didn't seem to be sick, and certainly, she didn't seem to have a fever. Struck speechless, the mother grabbed Umolka in a fierce hug, beginning to sob. Her husband grumbled and shook his head, confused as he came to. Tears clouded his eyes after the realization, his arms wrapping around the two females, holding them close.


Oblivious and unremembering of last night's ordeal, Umolka giggled between her parents. The illness that had nearly claimed the child's life was now a distant memory. All she had to show for it was a set of scars on her right wrist, they would later found out. Oddly enough, it seemed the snake had an extra tooth. Never, however, did the parents mention to one another that it appeared similar to the holy symbol of a goddess. A goddess they never wished to visit them again.

[Rabiesbunny]

A step back in time -- Becoming

The girl's toes curled as she stretched out leisurely. Lathander's rays were just cresting the rough rock and sand that layered the earth in this part of Tyrtauros, the summer's air quickly warming. A loud yawn escaped her mouth as she stood -- Umolka was no older than thirteen passings of Summertide, her tanned body unmarred by the tattoos and scars of her future, almost untouched even by her coming womanhood.

Dark hair shimmered around her form as she sat, recently donned blue robes settling around a sledner form. She was alone in the adobe hut. Sometimes, during the scorching moons, her parents would allow her to come here. The city would always grow unbearable, and she would moan and complain until Mother gave in. More and more now, they sent her there without her prompting. Though she was lanky now, she was soon to be noticed by boys and men alike, and within the next few years, to be married. Probably to one of her father's business associates.

It was not as if she was denied other choices -- Thay was one of the few areas on Faerun where men and women were afforded equal opportunities. What you could accomplish in life depended on your heritage, not your sex. Had Umolka the drive, her parents could have sent her to an academy, where she could be further educated, and perhaps one day, start her own business.

But she lacked the need to advance herself in such ways. Merchant or wife of a merchant? It just didn't matter. The girl broke off a piece of bread, brushing it with a light layer of honey. She washed it down with warmed water from the indoor well, taking all the time in the world to finish her breakfast. She liked it out here because the air was silent. Between the towns and cities in these wastes, there was little to distract you.

On finishing her meager meal, the girl stood, bowing her thin form in a stretch. Fingers ran through her thick hair. Her mother had been on her for years to have it shaved bare. Being of Rashemi descent, Umolka had many an official ask for her citizenship pass. With such long hair, she was often mistaken for a slave. To combat this, she began to wear her hair up in an elaborate wrap, as she had seen foreign travelers do in this warmth. But when in private, the girl preferred to wear it down, no matter the temperature. Eventually, she would need to shave her head. But she was young yet.

Umolka peered out one of the small ventilation openings in the hut, tapping her fingers against the clay. It was hours from Highsun yet, her favorite time of the day. Drawing up the heavy blue hood, Umolka opened the door carefully. A light breeze rose to greet her as she stepped, barefoot, into the warming sand. It rustled her robes as she moved to close the door behind her, the warm wind pleasant as it stirred the area between her skin and her clothing. Eyes aimed at the clearing sky above her, she began to wander.
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The time always passed quickly for Umolka in the wastes, but today was different. Each step began to feel like an eternity. She could almost hear each grain of sand as it dropped from her foot, and was displaced as she stepped down onto it. A comforting heaviness took residence in her temple, something vaguely familiar. It was around Highsun that she became exhausted, and called her body to a stop. Umolka laid herself out in a shallow pile of sand as she panted and heaved. Last she remembered, she was not so out of shape. She shouldn't be this tired. But she was. Head tilted to the sun, her eyes fluttered shut.

She had not shut her eyes but a moment -- at least, this was something she was sure of. What she came to realize would prove to be quite different. Here she was, walking. Where had her robes gone? Why was she wearing nothing? Umolka was gripped by dread fear. She was going to die of heat exhaustion at this rate! Frantically willing herself to turn back, toward the hut that she could no longer see, she realized something far more confusing. In the heat-warped air, she was not seeing through her own eyes. She was seeing herself walking from outside her own body. And she could do nothing to stop herself.

Dear gods, make it stop! Beshaba, please turn your eyes elsewhere...!

After an uncertain amount of time, she ceased her struggling against whatever force held her body in check. She could see now, if she concentrated, bloated black and green forms hobbling along in the distance, warped and twisted by the heat dancing off the ground. Something far larger was just beyond sight, a towering brown mass against the tan background of the desert. Alarms began to sound within Umolka's detached mind. This was something she shouldn't be near, something horrible. Desperately she began to strain at the invisible cord keeping her tethered to her burning body.

Her blistered feet carried her closer to the creature. She could see what frightened her so now, and it only caused her mind to rebel loudly. The massive spiked hide of the Wyvern rose and fell with each breath. It's maw was pulled back in a snarl, revealing it's sharp teeth. What was more unnerving was the state of decay this creature was in. Patches of it's frightening hide were loose and rotting, the smell of rancid flesh assailing the girl's nostrils, even as she could do nothing to move. Inwardly, she began to cry, as her form stepped closer and closer to the monster.

Please, stop, I don't want to die!

As she came to a stop, the Wyvern moved it's hulking form, wings spreading as it raised the tail. Viscous liquid pulsed from the tip of the stinger housed on the wicked appendage. The tail swayed a moment or two before curling around the beast, stinger raised only a foot, perhaps two, from the girl's face. Her right hand began to extend toward the venomous stinger, arm raising as she took a step forward.

Stop! No, what's going on? I don't want this, this is a dream, it's just a dream.

As if able to hear her pleas, the wyvern's head lowered on it's thick neck, a green fire lighting behind it's amber eyes. Umolka's ears did not understand what the creature said, in a series of snarls and draconic growls, but it reverberated deep within her fevered form.

~~Seal the pact, Blightling.~~

No, stop! She cried out inwardly as her body moved without her control, her right palm pressing down with earth-shattering pain on the barb. Her mind lurched in confusion as it was pulled back into her form, her left hand grasping desperately at her wrist. Black liquid began to pour from her upturned palm, where once blood would have. Eyes bulging, she stumbled backward into the sand and landed on her end as she watched the change overcoming her limb.

The bite scars she had since childhood were buried under the dark fluid, which began to encase her forearm as well, the flesh bubbling outward. Her nails took on the fluid, beginning to harden and extend to sharp points, her hand spasming as the skin burst under the desert sun. The fevered girl let out no more than a soft whimper as she collapsed into a heap in the sand, her nude form heaving with shallow breaths.
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The sky was dark once she awoke. She could smell the sickly sweet smell of bile in the sand beside her, and turned her head with an anguished groan. To this side, she could see large imprints in the sand, suggesting of the wyvern's existence. An exhausted moan, and she pushed herself upward to her knees. She was back at the hut, not dead. A glance to her right hand, blackened and deformed, confirmed that it had not been a dream. Something unique had just happened.

But by the gods, she wished it hadn't.

[Rabiesbunny]

Spurned


Umolka had been fighting this for years. Now, on the cusp of her sixteenth summer, she came to realize she could no longer delay it. And so she had come to this place today, dragging her feet over the cobblestones to the spa she now sat in.


"Did you have to remove my eyebrows as well?" The young Thayan let loose a heavy sigh as she peered down at the locks of ebony hair littering the floor. The woman over her snapped a pair of thin fingers to gain the attention of a bedraggled slave standing in the corner. At her beckon, the emaciated man began to sweep up the hair.


"Of course, young one. DO you wish to look like a balding slave man?" The lean woman handed Umolka a large mirror -- instinctively, the teenager recoiled. The Umolka who stares out at her from the glass seemed a different person entirely. Gone were the feet of dark hair, hair she had thought beautiful, hair she had thought beautiful, though her kinsmen did not. Hair she had fought against her parents tooth and nail to protect. With the distracting mane now reduced to a single braid at the back of her scalp, the girl's flaws shone through all the brighter. Her face was awfully long, she could see that now -- not unlike a horse, she mused to herself. Though sporting a deep tan like many Thayans, the realization came to her that she was naturally more pale than most, as the crown of milky skin atop her head showed. Add to this the dark circles under her eyes, and the skin once vibrant girl seemed sickly and old. The self conscious young woman set the mirror down and slipped her fingers into the coin pouch resting at her belt.


"How much do I owe?"

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Umolka pulled down the hood attached to her greyed robes, dark eyes peering out from their shadowed depths. This time of the year Tyrtauros was filled with travelers crossing through the Tharch, and often they would stop in the city hailed as the crossroads of Thay, and the best slave market in the country. Here, not only could humans be obtained for less price than elsewhere, but also members of every exotic race one could imagine: drow, minotaur, wemic, even the large loxo. Currently as she slipped past the slave market, an extremely broken sun elf was being auctioned off. The six foot tall creature was frail, dull and nearly lifeless eyes indicating his shattered will. There was no doubt in her mind that the missing tips of his pointed ears had something to do with that. Turning her attention from the proceedings, she continued on.


Her destination, the church of Kossuth, was soon before her. The everlit braziers on either side of the door were accompanied by two Thayan knights, their tattooed heads glistening in the heat. She nodded politely to the two guards and passed through the two large doors. Being the primary church in the country may have, in any other city, made this the largest building. However the Tharchion of Tyrauros had converted to the recently resurrected Lord of Tyranny, bringing an iron fist down on the once corrupt region. Though the Kossuthian temple paled in comparison to the Banite temple being erected, it was still impressive.


At the far end of the ground room lay the altar, cut from onyx and glistening with unknown enchantments. The incense set to burn atop of layered the temple in a shroud of light smoke. In the pews before her many bald and ornate heads were bowed in prayers, looks of piety (be they forced or fervently true) locked onto the faces of every man and woman.


And though Umolka's past had shown her the way of disease as her path in life, she closed her eyes and leaned back against a wall as she offered her prayer to the patron deity of Thay. The clergy present today -- three priests -- milled about within the room seeking those who required guidance. Any in red robes received immediate attention, as could be expected. Tending the the carious needs of the temple were several acolytes, one of whom Umolka was focused on.


She had known the man since she could remember. Song of the high priest, he had once been a friend of hers, a childhood playmate until his induction into the clergy some eight years prior. Since that time he had grown far more removed from their friendship, burying himself deep in the ways of the Flamelord. And so she would come down to the temple many times a tenday and offer prayers, all the while quietly fawning over Maxi.


Umolka finally managed to catch his eyes, a bright smile crossing her face as her left hand raised in greeting. She could have sworn the cold look in his eyes warmed ever so slightly, and it felt as if her heart leaped into her throat at his approach. Maxi was nearly a head taller than her and exceedingly handsome -- the Mulan man was slim and tanned, his bare skull covered in an array of designs depicting black and red flamers. His dull orange robes were immaculately clean despite their dragging along the cool marble floor, which was itself scuffed and dirty. Dark brown eyes carried the stern quality of a born and raised Thayan: cold and bitter, ready to criticize anything.


"Back so soon the Flamelord's home, Umolka?" The Rashemi blooded girl seemed not to notice the man's slightly mocking tone. "You would never know your faith lay with another deity."


"Only three times in the last tenday." She almost chirped, her deformed right hand reassuringly grasping at the holy symbol under her robes. "Beside, I know where my faith lies."


"As do I." His voice leveled to quite a serious tone. The gravity of his tone made the few years of age difference between the two very obvious. "Why did you come this time, girl?"


The smile on Umolka's face faltered ever so slightly as the condescending tone registered. "I joust thought you might like to see that I removed my hair as you suggested."


"Nn..." He grunted in some form of frustration, weaving his long fingers together and pressing them our in a languid stretch. "Well, it certainly did help." An awkward pause held for longer than he expected, and when it became obvious Umolka was not going to speak, he folded his arms across his chest. "I've had quite enough of this Umolka." The girls face fell, her charcoal lined eyes widening considerably.


"Enough of what?"


"Your foolish obsession with me." The Kossuthian's baleful gaze fell back to the young woman. As he stared down at her, she could feel the sting of tears. The obvious pain Maxi was causing the Talontar seemed to only spur him on, voice raising to a harsh tone. "Do you know the inconvenience you cause me, girl? While I could be tending to laymen, you come in far too many times a tenday and take up my time." He leaned forward and stooped over her. "And you come here feigning reverence, even though we all know the pathetic goddess you claim fealty to."


That said, Umolka raised her gloved hand to her face, trying to desperately hide the tears -- both of sorrow and of rage -- that slipped down her cheeks. Maxi snorted in derision.


"You show me your true weakness even now. Your family should be ashamed of you. What, in the name of Baator, could your possibly do to further your family?" The predator in the man quickly came to form, towering over her as he began to slowly chip away at her mental armor. "Why do you even bother spending so much time here? Don't y- oh, that's right. Not many people enjoy being around you. Perhaps," he prodded, "the stench of your diseased paw keeps them away."


"Well, I, you know..."


With a soft laugh, Maxi raised back to his full height, feet shuffling against the marble floor. "You do NOT know, and that is the issue at hand. You are obsessive, and not only are you interfering with my upcoming priesthood study, your presence is upsetting some of the worshipers."


"Maxi, please, I haven't done anything like that."


"Though we may have been friends once, I desire no more from you." The young woman turned her face up toward him pleadingly, her charcoal stained cheeks scrunched up in sorrow. "Get out of my sight and out of the church. I'm sick of seeing you."

____________________

"Vhirkina."


Umolka flinched and looked toward the closed door. Sprawled out on her belly across a good feather bed, she lay in the darkness of the sparse bedroom. Laying her head in her arms once more, she let our a muffled reply. Light from the magical scones in the hall flooded the room as a woman entered and carefully shut the door behind her.


"You're shirking your responsibilities now, then?" The words were familiar, the woman's voice carrying the warbling tone of a slightly elderly person.


"No, I'm not shirking anything." Umolka raised her face from the comforter, offering the woman before her a shaking smile. "I just wasn't feeling up to it today."


"Not feeling up to it? You don't get to decide if you are 'up' for faith." The fifty-something woman stepped toward the bed, her black eyes boring into Umolka accusingly. On her head she wore a dark purple wrap accented with silver. Light purple robes of the same material accented with silvered roses hung loosely from her small form. "Faith is not something you do when you feel like it, Vhirkina." A stern quality seized her voice. "Get up."


She stood up quickly at the woman's command, head hanging. "Of course, Sveta. I'm sorry."


"'Sorry' will not please Talona if you have earned her disfavor. You have a reason for neglecting to show at the allotted time?"


"Not any good reason, no." As she turned her head up to await a reprimand, it became obvious the elderly druid was still awaiting a reason. "...a man. A stupid man. I was stupid enough to think I even had a chance." She tugged self consciously at the lone braid atop her skull, her voice breaking. "I'm so stupid!"


"Tell me, Vhirkina," the old woman queried, "if you were to be struck dead this day and taken to Talona's realm, would you or she be satisfied by your service?"


The question hit Umolka like a bulette. A sob escaped the young Thayan's throat as her blackened and deformed hand grasped at her holy symbol. No coherent response was given to the question as she degraded into tears. Gently, Sveta pressed a bony hand into the small of Umolka's back.


"That won't solve anything." Gently nudging her forward, the older woman motioned toward the robes she had discarded in favor of her undergarments in the cool, dark room. "You get dressed, and meet me outside as usual. We've things to speak on."


The door was open and shut moments later, once more leaving her alone in the dark room.