It was a quiet night, only disturbed by the light rustling of the leaves. Despite the silence, a lone man wandered the dark forest. He was draped in all black leather from head to toe, only a small tuft of white hair poking from the hooded cloak. Two yellow eyes stared out ahead of him. If it weren't for those two features, the man would have faded into the blackness of night. Well, if it wasn't for the red that was trailing him with every step.

A hand clutched his bleeding side tightly as he steadily moved forward. He had to be getting close to the village of the forest elves. He had barely made it this far from the caves that he once called home. He wouldn't last if it was much further. He was growing weaker, though, as the blood dripped from him. The two blades at his side, both sheathed in similar black leather, were weighing on him. It was becoming gradually harder for him to move on through the forest.

With a final gasp of pain, he felt his legs give. His knee crashed to the earth, the first sound the man had made during his journey. He had to be close. He could see the plant life was more diverse here. It would be an ample place to gather herbs, something the elder had told him the forest elves were prone to do.

Struggling to get to his feet, he only served to prove his own weakness with the wounds still plaguing him. He collapsed fully, falling face first into the ground. A groan escaped him as he looked up. The clearing was lightening ever so slowly. He had almost made it to morning. Not that it really mattered now. In his condition, he would be lucky to make it a few hours. His vision began to blur, the blood loss truly taking a toll on him just as the light began to steadily shine through the leaves above. He glanced up towards the light, marveling at the sunlight he had never seen before. If he was going to die, at least he had managed to make it to the surface. He wouldn't have wanted to let such a beautiful sight leave him.

Those were his last thoughts before everything went black, descending once more into darkness.

Mel paused in her stride as a pained groan reached her sensitive ears. The sound took her by surprise; it was barely morning, there were very few other elves around so early, who could have made such a sound? Notching an arrow to her bow string as a defensive precaution, she advanced forwards in the direction that the sound had come from. Before long she came to the section of the forest where the majority of their healing herbs grew, and that was when she saw him.

The figure had collapsed in the center of the clearing, face first in the dirt. Judging by the vast red stains that smattered the ground behind him, he was badly wounded. For a moment she hesitated, she didn't recognise him. Of course, it was entirely possible that they just hadn't met before. It was a large kingdom, she surely didn't know every face in the army. Likely he had been wounded by a wandering party of Drow before the sun came up. He was very lucky to have made it back this far.

Returning the arrow to her quiver, she strung her bow over her back once again to keep it from encumbering her ability to work on the soldier's wounds, she gathered a few of the herbs she knew would prevent infection and speed up the healing process, before slowly approaching him.
"...Can you hear me?" she asked slowly, unsure of whether he was still conscious. He did not answer, confirming that was not the case. Sighing softly, the she-elf crouched beside him and began to peel back the fabric which had stuck to the open wound.

Now that she looked at him more closely, she realised he was dressed rather strangely to be a soldier of this realm, they did not favor dark colored clothing, generally sticking to browns and greens. As she looked him over once again, as if to make sure she wasn't imagining things, she spotted the tuft of ashen white hair that stuck out from beneath his cloak, and flinched backwards in surprise. A Drow! What would a Drow be doing out here?

She felt torn. According to the teachings that she had been given, she should simply just leave him there to die. But morally, she wasn't sure if she could do it. He was badly wounded, it was in her nature to help those who were injured if she could. Another sigh passed her lips as she muttered quietly under her breath.
"...Father is going to murder me if he finds out about this."
But her mind had been made up. She had to staunch the bleeding and do what she could to bring him back around, no matter who he was. Thankfully she kept a small medicine pouch at her belt with her, with a meagre supply of clean bandages.

Retrieving some water from a nearby stream, she used one of these to begin cleaning away the old, dried blood from the outside of the wound, so that she could better see where it would need to be wrapped. Crushing up the herbs she had collected, she applied them to the wound as well, somewhat thankful that the Drow was unconscious, at least he would not feel the stinging as the herbs began to work. Over this she then bound the remaining bandages she had taughtly over the wound, applying pressure until the bleeding finally abated. Sitting back she had to simply wait and pray, hoping that he would improve, and that he had not lost too much blood to be beyond saving.

There was of course, also the matter of what she would do with him once he did come around. She couldn't very well take him back with her, that would be a death wish for them both.
"Well, I'll just have to find somewhere else for him to lay low." she concluded to herself as she waited and watched over him. "Just until he's recovered, then he can go his own way."

Hours passed. The man didn't stir until the sun was well up in the sky. Another groan escaped his lips as consciousness slowly returned. The searing pain was the first thing he registered. Well...that was good, he suppose. Pain meant feeling. He was still alive. For how long, though...he couldn't rightly guess. His wounds had been pretty bad.

Slowly, his eyes fluttered open, golden pupils staring out at the clearing again. This time, though, he was not alone. A rather beautiful blond sat before him, golden hair let down just past her shoulders. She wore green and brown attire that was unfamiliar to the young drow. Of course, anything other than his blackened leather would be new to him, given his heritage. The thin blade at her side proved that she knew how to defend herself, as did the bow slung over her back. At length, his golden eyes met her icy blue, his expression clearly pained as he felt another surge from the wound in his side.

A rough cough and his eyes averted, hand slowly trailing to his side. It had been packed and softened with herbs. The leather tunic had been pulled up to bandage his wound. “Seems I owe you for being among the living,” he commented. “I should probably thank you for not killing me on sight as well.” He let out a small chuckle that quickly turned into a groan as the light movement irritated his wound. “Agh...fuck, that hurts.”

He didn't know how the forest elves' mannerisms worked exactly, but he figured there was no sense in hiding his nature. If the woman hadn't slit his throat yet, it was unlikely she would.

"Sit still then!" the she-elf quipped at him irritably. "I didn't wrap that up for you to tear it off in five seconds. You're lucky to be alive, indeed." she confirmed, still eyeing him warily. Her gaze flitted frantically towards the path she had come down. There could be others nearby, the patrols would have started by now, now that the sun was up.
"You need to be quiet, if anyone finds you here it'll be both our heads, understand?" she still wasn't sure if this was a good idea, but it seemed her better nature and morals had gotten the better of her yet again. It's not for long, she reminded herself. you'll tend him till he recovers and then he can get lost.

His language confirmed her earlier suspicions, this was indeed a Drow from the underworld. She had never seen one come this close to their borders before, and as she considered this for a moment an uneasy feeling stirred in her gut. She should leave him to rest, but her curiosity got the better of her and she knew she would not let it be until she had asked, so she might as well get it over with.
"What's a Drow doing on the surface world, at any rate?" she arched one slender eyebrow at him quizically as she rose to her feet and returned to the stream to wash his blood off her hands.

The drow glanced up at her, heeding her words as he stopped moving, content to lay still in the grass. He thought over his answer to her question for a few moments. Was it wise to tell one of the elves about his goal? About what had caused his wounds? He wasn't quite sure, but he figured no truths would harm this situation far worse than anything else he could hope to tell them. Besides, the fact that he still breathed was definitely a plus in this whole thing. She likely wouldn't kill him at least.

At length, a small exhale of breath came from his lips as he slowly reached up to pull his mask down, revealing the blackened skin of his people. Not like his outfit would hide his race any further. "Would you believe me if I said it was to talk to your people?" he asked. He moved to sit up, hissing in pain from the movement. However, he managed to sit up, his hand reaching to his side to hold his wound lightly. "I'm somewhat of a researcher. I was hoping to talk to your people before I went and injured myself." He winced again as a stinging pain pulsed from his wounds. He bowed his head lightly to her. "I do not wish to trouble you any further. If you could point me in the direction of your village, I would be most grateful."

Glancing over her shoulder at him as she scrubbed her hands together vigorously under the water, the forest elf scoffed, her eyes rolling. "Talk to my people? Do I need to give you a list of reasons why that is an extremely foolish idea? For your own safety I'd suggest you go the other way as soon as you can support your own weight."
For a moment she wondered whether he was toying with her, but looking into his yellowed eyes she saw nothing in them that suggested he was attempting any sort of mind game with her. He was completely serious.

Shaking her head, partially to herself, as she rose back to her feet once more, she plucked another few herbs from the nearest bush to refill her medicine pouch.
"They'd sooner kill you than listen to anything that you have to say." she reminded him. "At any rate you won't be fit to travel for another day or so at least, I would estimate. You should stay here until then, it's probably the safest and easiest place you could hide here without being seen."

The young drow listened to her words silently before shrugging. "Well...that's the problem, isn't it?" he asked. "My people are the same way if you approached our caves. Maybe I'm a bit foolish, but I think we can do better." He grinned stupidly at that, not seeming to recognize the danger he would face by continuing forward. It wasn't that he didn't recognize it. He just didn't care. If no one made the attempt to improve, they'd stay in the same position forever. That was something he didn't want, even if he had to walk into the capital of the people who hated him most. Above all else, he needed to know how people truly acted out here. Were they vicious monsters his brothers made them out to be? Judging from the beauty in front of him, he highly doubted that.

Scratching the back of his head with a free hand, he leaned back to watch her collect her herbs. "Besides...you saved me, didn't you?" he asked. "You could have left me here to die. Why didn't you?" The yellow eyes had an inquisitive look to them as he cocked his head to the side slightly.

The she-elf's shoulders twitched in another shrug and she raked a hand through her hair nervously.
"I couldn't just watch you die." it was a poor answer, but trying to explain it to him any more made her even more anxious. Perhaps because she wasn't entirely sure of her intentions herself. "I wasn't thinking clearly, it's a nasty habit of mine." she admitted at length, rolling her eyes towards herself for her own foolishness. "My father is going to be furious."

Dropping the collected herbs back into her medicine pouch, she sat back on her haunches for a while as she tried to consider how best to cover this whole endeavour up from her kin. She couldn't very well try and divert anyone who came here, like her they would have need for the healing herbs. And no doubt it would raise more suspicions than it would prevent if she presented with such odd behaviour. They might think she'd gone mad.

Nathe watched as the woman turned uncertain. She clearly acted out of the kindness of her heart, but it seemed her people would be just as harsh with her. He couldn't ignore that. She shouldn't be punished simply for keeping him alive. It's what any decent person should strive towards, as far as he was concerned. Especially in their situation. His estranged brothers and sisters just hadn't realized how similar the drow really are to their fair skinned counterparts.

With that thought in mind, he made his mind up. Letting out another hiss of pain as he readjusted himself to sit cross legged in front of his savior, he closed his eyes, a small frown coming to his face. "I see you put yourself under a lot of risk just to care for me," he stated, bowing his head in thanks once more. "I truly am grateful for that. I shall return the favor." He pointed to the sword at her side. "Claim that you injured me and drag me to your village as a prisoner. My wound was treated, but only so you could have me questioned." As a sign of good faith, his hands reached down to his blades, unlatching them from his belt and placing them on the ground at either side of him. He then pulled his bow's string over his head, removing that and placing it alongside his blades. A knife was discarded from his leather boots, followed by his quiver of arrows. Each piece of equipment showed the difference between their races. The metal was finely made, having more minerals and forges below the surface, but the woodworking of his bow and arrows were shoddy at best, some of the tips made of solid stone instead of the steel that would normally be seen.

"I present myself before your mercy, miss. Do with me as you please," he declared, folding his hands behind his back. He was clearly expecting her to take his offer. It worked best for both of them. He got into the village and she was released of any blame for his presence.

Her pale gaze met his as she considered the proposal. It was a long shot, but perhaps it was well worth the try. He risked being discovered and executed anyway if she simply left him out here...and he wanted to go to the capitol at any rate.
"...Alright." she agreed hesitantly. "But only because I have no better idea, I still think you're out of your mind."

She swept the weapons out of his reach in one fluid movement before he could change his mind, her gaze travelling to the bandaged wound at his side. Each little movement seemed to cause him great pain, and the she-elf was doubtful that he would manage the walk back.
"Can you stand?" she asked quickly, trying to calculate when the next patrol would come past so they could time it correctly.

The drow wasn't surprised she accepted. It was the best choice for her right now. If she continued helping him, she'd be seen as a traitor, just as he was already. After all her kindness, he wanted to prevent that.

A hand reached back to his side, holding the wound as he slowly tried to push himself up. He grunted in pain from the movement, but he managed to get to his feet. He clearly favored his left foot, the wound in to his right preventing much pressure from being put on it. However, he could stand without assistance. "I...should be fine," he mumbled. "It's not far from your village, right?" He paused a moment as he looked down at his weapons. "If...you don't mind, could you bring my weapons? I doubt I'll convince you guys to trust me with them, but I don't want them to just rust away out in the woods. You can bind my hands so I can't do anything tricky." Hesitantly, he removed the hand cradling his wound, bringing both behind his back for her to tie together, should she choose to. He was very compliant for one of the 'violent' drow that the forest elves knew of.

Mel nodded in confirmation, gathering up his weapons at his request. She couldn't resist examining a few of them more closely as she plucked them off the ground, running her hand lightly over the crudely carved wood of the bow. She wondered how he managed to shoot with it, if it was so notched, she couldn't imagine having a bow that hadn't been sanded down to perfect smoothness. Shrugging the thoughts off, she decided for appearances sake that binding his hands would be a good course of action.

"Just don't fall flat on your face." she warned as she tied his wrists together. "It's not far; I'll try and make sure to warn you so you don't trip on anything." On the path up ahead she heard faintly the crunch of a twig beneath a soldier's boot, signalling the approach of one of the forest elves' border patrols. "They're here."

Nathe let her bind his hands, staying quiet as she spoke. When he heard the snap of the twig, he offered a small nod. "Then, I guess you should present me," he suggested, already expecting the rough treatment from the soldiers. Despite her kindness, the woman had a clear disdain for his kind. He couldn't rightly blame her. The drow were uncouth and violent compared to the isolationists in the forest. If what the elder said was true, they abhorred violence, but would be rather fierce if their livelihood was threatened. His presence threatened that, he was sure.

Bowing his head, he let her lead him forward, stumbling slightly from his wound, unable to put his full weight on his right leg. He looked the proper prisoner, despite it being his plan. He needed it to be believable. He didn't want suspicion cast upon the only soul who showed him any sort of kindness.

"Freeze, Drow!" bellowed another voice as the patrol intercepted them halfway up the path.
"It's alright, he's bound!" Mel assured her bretheren as they stepped closer, all with arrows notched to their bows, which were pointed directly at Nathe. "I found him skulking around in the herb garden."
"Where are the others?" spoke the same elf, obviously the leader (or at least the elf with the most authority) in the patrol group.

Mel shook her head, waving a hand dismissively in response.
"There are none, he was alone." this caused a few murmurs to ripple through the other forest elves as they exchanged wary glances.
"Drow do not travel alone." The she-elf scoffed in mild annoyance as she approached her fellow soldiers.
"This one does. I kept him alive for a reason, Eriex. Strange behaviour for a Drow, I thought we could take him back and question him."

The forest elves muttered amongst themselves for a while as they considered the suggestion, while Mel held her breath and tried to keep her stance and expression as composed and 'normal' as possible. Would they agree to it? It seemed like an entire age had passed by before Eriex finally nodded his head in their direction.
"Very well, I suppose there would be no harm in bringing him back unarmed."

Nathe listened to the conversation between the two for a short while. He snorted as the comment about the drow, but didn't return with his own comment until they had agreed to take him. "Don't speak like you know us, elf," he stated. His demeanor had entirely changed from when he was talking to Mel, becoming more arrogant and demeaning as he gazed at the patrol leader. "We don't need strength of numbers to survive, unlike some..." He glanced over the other elves before letting out a sigh. He had been peaceful with Mel one-on-one, but he knew he'd get no where with the soldiers. They were trained to hate the drow. He would have sooner been shot in the head than allowed to come back if the woman hadn't spoken up. He may as well play the part of these hateful drow.

Once he got them to sit down and talk with him, he could continue more complacently.

"Evidently." the other forest elf grunted in response, raising an eyebrow in Mel's direction. "In future, don't waste your bandages on the enemy."
Remaining silent, the she-elf simply brushed past him and began to head back in the direction of their village. The other members of the patrol brought up the rear, taking extra caution to encircle the Drow that they now held captive, to prevent any chance of his escape.

As they spent much of their lives in the forest, it was no surprise to find that many of the forest elves' dwellings were in fact high up in the treetops. Without considerable agility and a penchant for climbing, one would have found it tricky at best to navigate their way to them. Such a lifestyle choice not only allowed them to see far off into the distance, giving them ample warning of any incoming hostiles, but also ensured that they could work around the natural structure of the trees and thus inflict much less damage to the environment that they so cherished.

Nathe couldn't hide the interest from his eyes as he looked upon their homes. The drow had managed to convert the stone caves into homes just as well, creating catacombs of buildings beneath the earth, very similar to the way the dwarves set themselves up. This, though...it required an artistry that the drow simply did not possess. He looked up at the houses perched among the trees, seeing figures flit between branches from time to time. It seldom happened with the current entourage, but once was enough to paint an idea of how the elves traveled among their tree dwellings. It was rather interesting to think about.

However, noticing that this was the majority of their buildings, the drow hesitated before speaking out. "I hope your taking me somewhere on solid ground," he commented. "No way I'd be able to climb that like this." Not only was his hands tied behind his back, but his wound would make it difficult for him to take part in such a rigorous activity.

"Don't worry yourself. No-one would expect you to climb like that." Eriex smirked, shaking his head. "You will be going to see our leader, there he'll decide what is to be done with you."
Already Mel began to wonder whether this was a good idea. She could only hope they would give him fair chance to speak, he didn't seem much like the other Drow she had encountered. Those had been savage, more willing to fight than to talk, perhaps if their leader was willing to talk with this strange newcomer, it could be the beginning of mending the differences between their two tribes.

Nathe thought about that, but then smiled. "Ah, good then," he replied, acting as if he wasn't currently a prisoner. "I look forward to it. I do hope that your leader is more reasonable than your patrols." He knew it was an underhanded jab at the man currently taking him into custody, but he needed to see the restraint. Drow would typically not put up with this attitude from their prisoners. So far, despite being an unpleasant fellow, the leader hadn't laid a finger on him. Most prisoners presented to the drow leader was more than just incapacitated. He'd be bruised and beaten, needing to be nursed back to consciousness. "So, where is this leader of your's? Do you only hide yourselves up in the trees or do you have some buildings down here as well?"

The patrol leader did little more than shoot the Drow prisoner an unsavoury glare, his fist clenching at his side indicating that the jab had hit a nerve; and yet he made no move towards inflicting any sort of injury on Nathe.
"We build very little on the ground." Mel answered his question when it became apparent that none of the others were going to. "It interferes with the balance of the forest. Though we have had to have a few buildings grounded for practicality's sake: the infirmary, the meeting room and the armoury, for instance."

It was one such building that the prisoner was escorted to, standing very near the middle of the village. The door guards halted the patrol as they approached, their weapons crossing to block the door as they queried their motives for seeking audience with the leader. After exchanging explanations (and a few other quips at the Drow's expense), the guards stepped to the side and allowed them to enter the room ahead as the doors swung open.

The room was largely empty, save for the table at its center with what looked to be a map spread across it. Around the table were a few high-seated chairs arranged so that when necessary, every elf who gathered around would have an unobstructed view of the markers placed on the parchment. Now, however, the room was empty of personnel, save for the lone forest elf who stood at the far end near the ceiling-height window, hands folded neatly behind his back.
"Eriex, you're late." he commented smoothly without turning to face the patrol. "The patrol before yours went further out and still arrived back first. They reported a large amount of blood found on the main path, I should hope that it doesn't belong to any of our soldiers?"
"No sir." the patrol leader shook his head in confirmation. "However, we do have explanation for it. The blood belongs to this Drow." Stepping aside so that Nathe would be within the leader's eyeline as the elf turned to look upon hearing mention of their dark-skinned rivals. "He wandered as far in as the herb garden, we thought you might like to question him, sir. Find out exactly why he's here, and what he wants."