Chương 17: Battered

She collapsed before Lara's door. This time, she was certain it was the real one. If not, well, she was done for. With what strength she had left, she knocked. The moon was her only source of light. After a few seconds, the door creaked open. Therion looked down at her from the doorway, a frown on his face.

"Alexandra? What took you so long? Wait, your hair…" Alexandra smiled weakly.

"Hey."

"Alexandra!" Lara came running and kneeled beside her.

"What happened? Goblins again?" She shook her head.

"Plants." Therion's frown deepened.

"I'm going to find Bamir. And Marick, he'll want to know about that." Lara shooed him away.

"Hurry. Bamir first." As her husband ran toward the healer's house, she helped Alexandra up and brought her inside. As soon as they were sitting, she spoke.

"I was so worried. You left for two days and I only gave you enough supplies for a few hours!" Alexandra winced. She should have known better. Of course magically augmented people could cross long distances faster. She had to be careful not to blow her cover.

"I'm sorry," she started.

"I ran into a few too many plant monsters." Lara flinched.

"Verdant beasts. I… should have warned you. They're most active in spring, and especially so this year." Alexandra shook her head.

"Don't worry about it. I made it through."

"What about your hair?" Lara asked, her eyes scanning her guest.

"Your finger! Alexandra!" She shrugged.

"Those things are nasty."

"Did you run into a Mimethys?"

"I don't know. The monster who took my finger was a large mass of moss and roots that cast illusions—" Lara interrupted her.

"A Perub?!"

"I guess? What's a Mimethys, then?"

"A plant monster that lures its prey with orange flowers. Unranked. Sometimes Iron."

"Ah, I also met one." Lara paused, and sighed.

"It's impressive you were able to escape. I was worried that after your goblin encounter…"

"Escape?" Alexandra asked.

"I didn't escape. I killed them." Lara blinked.

"What?" Alexandra grinned.

"Not gonna sacrifice a finger for nothing." Her friend wasn't smiling. The door swung open, revealing Bamir. The priest had deep black circles under his eyes, and his head was leaning to the side. His eyes locked onto Alexandra. In an instant, she could see him take in her hair, her missing finger. He rubbed his eyebrows.

"Good grief." Lara stood up.

"Bamir, can you do something about her finger." The priest stepped inside, and took Alexandra's hand. He barely looked at the finger, his eyes instead boring into hers.

"I'm afraid not. You'd need someone thrice my level to do that. Even then, on this type of injury…" He let his words hang in the air. After a long pause, he let go of her hand.

"What about her hair?" Lara asked. She turned to Alexandra.

"Why did they turn white?" Alexandra shrugged.

"No clue. I only noticed after killing the Perub. Must have happened sometime during the fight."

"A Perub?!" Bamir asked.

"What are you doing fighting Perubs? Do you have a death wish?"

"A Mimethys too…" Lara grumbled. Bamir's face fell.

"Can I take a seat?" Lara pointed to her chair.

"Please do." Elbows on the table, Bamir rubbed his eyebrows. Then, he raised his head, and stared right at Alexandra who was sitting across from him.

"Miss Alexandra, your life is precious. Don't throw it away."

"I didn't choose to get ambushed. Had I known these things existed, I wouldn't have—" Lara interrupted her.

"Would you? Does that mean you won't go out of Lanterne now?" Alexandra winced.

"Erm, well, sometimes I need to."

"I thought so." Silence. Bamir coughed.

"Concerning your hair. I would need to talk to you in private." Neither woman had a problem with that, so Alexandra and the priest walked to the sleeping area and closed the door behind them. Alexandra sat on the bed while Bamir stood. He was rubbing his eyebrows again.

"I feel like I've aged ten years in a few days," he grumbled before raising his head.

"Miss Alexandra, I can't restore your hair either. Recovering your lost lifeforce might help, but it also might not." Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. She stared at him.

"Can I recover it?" Bamir nodded.

"There are methods. None easy to access. Much harder than the scar removal procedure we talked about. Much, much harder. That said, I suggest you look for them, as lifeforce is directly tied to your lifespan. It's more than just cosmetic."

"Lifespan? What?" She looked left and right.

"No. That can't be."

"While it sounds alarming, it is not that different from a regular injury," Bamir said, raising his hands in a calming gesture.

"Life is a fragile thing. Simply living consumes it so fast. As I said, recovering lost lifeforce is possible." Alexandra nodded slowly.

"Any lead?" The healer shook his head.

"High level members of the Hand can help, but getting to them will be a challenge." He paused.

"Not impossible, though. Otherwise, treasures even the richest merchants would struggle to afford." She grimaced.

"Guess it will have to wait." It was just one more task to add to the list. She'd only been here four days…

"Furthermore…" Bamir continued.

"What?"

"Your looks are a problem."

"Pardon me?" Alexandra stared. Bamir nodded.

"White hair, missing finger, you look like a demonic cultist." He raised his hands.

"Don't worry. I know you're not. Ugh, I can… sense it."

"Oh, yes. Haha. A demon cultist, that'd be crazy." Alexandra looked away. Bamir healed the wounds he could. This time, she got away with a few minor scars on her arms and legs. Nothing horrible, excluding the obvious absence on her right hand.

"It's not one thing, but your overall appearance that's a problem. Hiding your hair will be difficult, but you should try nonetheless. Wear a hood, a hat, dyes are expensive, but cut them short if necessary. Use a glove to hide your missing finger. Here, people won't know, but in cities many will, and if you have the misfortune of attracting the attention of an Arbiter of Licaniel, they will arrest you."

"Even if I'm innocent?" He tiled his head.

"They'd probably release you. Probably."

"Thank you. I appreciate the warning."

"It's only natural, Miss Alexandra," Bamir bowed his head.

"You remember the Arbiters, do you?" Alexandra stared at him.

"I…" Bamir leaned forward and smiled.

"Hopefully, I was able to jog your memory a little." They returned to the main room, where Lara was waiting for them.

"All settled?" She asked.

"I did what I could," Bamir answered.

"She's in no danger." Alexandra clasped her hands together as she remembered something.

"Right, Lara! You'll never guess who showed up in the Perub's illusions!" Lara perked up.

"Who?"

"You!"

"Me?" Lara pointed at herself.

"Yes." Alexandra laughed.

"I guess I was really hungry. The fake you couldn't stop talking about soup."

"Soup?" Bamir was rubbing his eyebrows again.

"Miss Alexandra, I believe this conversation isn't necessary."

"No," Lara said.

"Go on."

"Yeah, Bamir, don't be a downer. Anyway, the illusion led me to this house, and caught me. Then it recreated you, but don't worry, I managed to kill it. You pack a punch, by the way." Bamir sighed.

"Do I?" Lara asked.

"Well, the fake you does," Alexandra said. Lara raised a finger, and opened her mouth to respond, when the door swung open again. Therion, followed by Marick. She dropped her hand, and greeted the village chief. Marick's frame barely fit through the door. He had to duck his head to avoid bumping it. His eyes locked onto Alexandra, then onto Bamir who was already rubbing his eyebrows.

"What's the meaning of this, Bamir?"

"I'll explain later." Marick stepped closer to the priest.

"You already owe me an answer today."

"Things have changed. Later." Marick stared at him for a moment.

"Fine." He turned to Alexandra.

"You. What's with the hair? Are you trying to rally everyone in Lanterne against you? If so, you didn't need to go that far.

""Marick!" Lara protested. The man raised his arm.

"You know how they are, Lara." Therion nodded in agreement.

"But it's late," Marick continued.

"Let's talk about the plants. The rest can wait." Marick prompted Alexandra to explain what she encountered. The Mimethys, the Perub, the other patches of orange flowers she'd spotted.

"You killed two of them?" Marick gave her a double take.

"Truly? I'm tempted to call you a liar, but the behaviors you describe having observed are correct for those beasts." Alexandra shrugged.

"Believe what you want." Marick smiled with his mouth. His eyes didn't.

"I'm starting to believe you suffer from more than amnesia. Be careful with your attitude." She looked down. Marick glanced at Bamir.

"A Perub this close to the village is bad news," he continued.

"Means more verdant beasts will come. We might need to call the Wardens." Bamir snapped to attention. Marick shrugged.

"You know we can't deal with everything ourselves."

"I can petition the Hands. They will listen." Marick scoffed.

"Will they? I remember you saying the opposite just a few months ago."

"I… made some interesting headways with the local branch," Bamir tried.

"We'll talk later." He turned back to Alexandra.

"As for you, try to talk to the others in the village. I'll spread the news of your kills. It should help a little, but if you don't make the effort, they'll never warm up to you."

"Okay." Alexandra was aware of her shortcomings. It wasn't anything new, and she wasn't confident she could fix them. Were she more sociable, she probably wouldn't have spent ten years grinding her streak in Lone World Online. Marick left shortly after, Therion showing him to the door. The house felt larger without him in it. Lara set a bowl of soup in front of her without being asked.

"Soup," she said.

"Mine isn't bad, or so it seems." Alexandra smiled, and started eating.

"How did you do it?" Therion asked. He'd taken a seat at the table.

"The monsters?"

"The sickle," she said. Lara sat down across from her.

"That's it?"

"Mostly." Alexandra ate a spoonful.

"I'm figuring it out as I go. The hook is useful. You can redirect things, catch limbs. It's especially good at cutting plants." She shrugged.

"You didn't know how to use a sickle a week ago," Therion said. It wasn't a question.

"I didn't know how to do much a week ago." Therion leaned back.

"The amnesia," Lara said.

"The amnesia," Alexandra confirmed. Lara folded her hands on the table.

"And it's coming back? Your memory of how to fight?"

"Slowly." Alexandra ate another spoonful.

"It feels like remembering something you learned a long time ago. The body knows before the mind does." Bamir was rubbing his eyebrows. The fire crackled. Outside, the wind had picked up. She finished the bowl and set it down. Lara reached for it automatically, her hand already on the ladle and reaching for the pot.

"Oh," Alexandra said.

"One more thing. I ran out of food on the first day, so I ate some wild Aetherveil on the way back. Just so you know." The ladle stopped moving.

"Raw?" Lara asked.

"Yes."

"How much?" Alexandra considered.

"A few handfuls. Over the course of the day. I tested a small amount first and waited to see if anything happened, so—""Alexandra." Lara set the bowl down carefully. Alexandra lowered her hands.

"What?" Therion shook his head. Bamir pressed both elbows onto the table and put his face in his hands.

"Fanon, give me strength."