Lyn and Ssarak Dyreackthanose --- Lyn’s heart clenched deeper into her chest as if someone had squeezed it tightly, inwardly prayed her idiotic actions hadn’t worsened things. If only she had asked Lucilia more about the little vials before the vampire helped smuggle her inside, then maybe, despite the reality, she could’ve braced for the downward spiral. At least grabbed a hold of the wagon’s edge first. Why…why wasn’t she better at this? Lyn inwardly scolded herself. Her drowning eyes peered up, her body still shaking, when she felt Alaira move. The half elf pulled out two strange stones, each marked with a series of sigils and symbols, a blue glowing ink filled the creases, into a complex circular pattern over the flat face. In the center was a star. Both rune looked crude and rather silly, however they held an intermediate’s artist’s pride and soul which to heal several types of wounds. For a moment Lyn’s tears had ceased to look at the item in awe before it was placed upon her forehead. Warmth, followed by a pleasant tingle swirled from where the rune came into contact with her skin. Her skin took on a soft, slight glow that made her outline a bit fuzzy in its check over her. Other than a few bumps and bruises, the rune didn’t find anything life threatening to heal. However, instead of fading back to its original state, the blue ink glowed a slight red in response to something unknown. Something beyond its design to heal as the cause was unknown. It was a brief display, one so short and subtle, that in Alaira’s condition it was reasonable she wouldn’t have paid any thoughts to it. Or noticed it. Lyn had never seen any of Sam’s healing runes do that before, but then again she hadn’t had one used often on her. Usually her mother wanted her to heal naturally, to boost her own immunity, and gain some toughness in her skin from it. Even broken bones, a rarity with everyone’s, namely Alaira and her father, observant eyes and quick actions, had requested to remain for a few days before being mended. It was a lesson well learned though only for a few weeks before she started to climb once again. Once the rune deactivated, Alaira’s words started to peer through her rattled emotions. “I-I’m so sorry Lyn…So sorry…” [i]What did she have to be sorry about?[/i] Lyn wondered, worried her Aunt had done something bad but quickly tossed the notion away. Alaira wouldn’t do anything bad. She was a good person, even if she had her flaws, Lyn’s arms tightened to squeeze what little comfort into her care taker. To say it was going to be alright. However it seemed to help very little while Alaira continued, her throat rattled and blood specks were thrown up from the harsh sound. "Lyn... M-mei's fine, Lyn... Stop crying..." Lyn felt a wave of guilt again edge into her heart. She hated to see Alaira’s state. Gently she felt her hair stroked and gave a forced smile, her hands gripped tightly about the rune placed into her hand. Then slowly she was lifted, listening to each word and growing more tensed with each cough, then placed to the side as Alaira collapsed. Quickly Lyn placed the rune down and tried to shake Alaira. She whimpered, fearful her caregiver wasn’t going to wake. Gently she leaned her head down, her ear strained for any sign of life, rewarded by two glorious things: a heartbeat, faint, but strong followed by shallow breathing. Lyn lifted her head to looked pleadingly to Darius, missing his glare at Alaira earlier, for help yet the man had already turned his back to deal with the driver. It was then, Ssarak’s voice filled with soothing and reassurance. [i]‘Do not worry, little one. Meirin and I are alive, we merely need to find a way back up.’[/i] Lyn nodded, but while the guilt had faded, the worry hadn’t. [i]Please hurry...[/i] Lyn said, using the name she had heard once before used for the young woman. It likely would be rather clear to them Lyn hadn’t had any experience with severe cases of Blood Sickness, even her own was mild compared to Alaira’s action. She didn’t know she was witnessing a severe reaction due to overexertion and past consequences, the latter from a time she was too young to understand. Ssarak could still hear Lyn's voice, her fear, in his mind. He had only caught a glimpse of Alaira before he dove after Meirin, but from the thoughts he could hear from the others, he could tell she was not in a good position. His eyes darted around the landscape until he spotted a section of the hill by the river that seemed just shallow enough for them to climb. "We need to get up to the others; I believe Alaira is in trouble." Ssarak informed Meirin. He did not like moving on without assessing her injuries, but the situation did not afford them the luxury of time. Regardless, he kept a close eye on Meirin and gave help when needed. Given that Alaira was unconscious for much of the trip, she stayed in the wagon while Ssarak carried Lyn. Although she could walk on her own, with what Lyn had been through, Ssarak assumed that she would be exhausted. His outward armored appearance might not suggest it, but Ssarak was surprisingly gentle in handling Lyn. After having gone through raising three children of his own, he knew exactly how to hold her in order to keep her comfortable, despite his armor. Indeed, unless there was something fundamentally different about her that he was not already aware of, then caring for her would be well-within his skill set. Ssarak heard the caravan driver's objections to Lyn's presence, but he mostly remained silent and ignored them. No matter how much he shouted or argued, it would ultimately be up to the guards on how to proceed, as it was they who had the position of strength in this situation. He could not continue on without them, and it would even be dangerous for him to just try and return to the college alone. Despite this, Ssarak did agree at least partially with the caravan master. He did not believe it safe nor wise to complete their mission with Lyn. He was hardly going to abandon her or anything, but he did feel that it would be best just to turn around and head back to the college. They could try making the trip again later, and whatever they would gain by proceeding with the mission could not be worth risking Lyn's life. As they entered the town, there were a fair number of issues to deal with. The caravan master was handling their rooms, and Ssarak did not believe his own injuries serious enough to warrant paying for the physician, but Ssarak was concerned for the health of Meirin and Alaira. Even if she had nearly caused their deaths, he did not wish to see her harmed. After she recovered, however, they would need to confront her about her recklessness. Lyn was someone she cared about deeply, so perhaps hearing how she had nearly caused her death would be enough to force her to listen. Outside the inn, Ssarak walked alongside Meirin as they were leaving the wagon. She had appeared to be shaken up after falling from the bridge, and he, of course, wanted to know if her condition had improved. "How are you feeling, Meirin? Do you think it will be necessary for you to visit a healer?"