nightmare medx

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

Layers, layers, layers, always best to do things in layers, waterproof things on top. The set had been an expensive purchase, but it was much quieter and easier to move in than what she had had before. Kari slipped her arms into a dark blue coat, zipping it up to her neck. She pulled similar pants up over what she was already wearing and hefted on her pack.

Her shoes would be fine. She never wore shoes that weren’t waterproof, not after Raul-

Muffled yelling made its way to her ears, no words distinguishable. What in the world was going on outside? She made her way over to the window to peer out onto the street.

Raul.

For a split second she was confused, wondering why he had followed her, why he was screaming at her house (presumably trying to get her attention), but her eyes were caught by another figure. Lightning coming from her hands. He was yelling at the woman, not her.

She watched as he moved- he made combat look like art, she had discovered soon after meeting him, and it fascinated her. She was graceful enough, but not when fighting, not like he was.

What to do, what to do...

She made her way down the stairs. She could at least hear better from there. Raul never liked her getting into the thick of things, and to be honest, she had never liked it either. Sometimes it had been necessary.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

Her mouth was open, about to respond, reassure him that she knew the drill, but his sudden shout startled her into taking a few steps back. She turned and ran as directed, knowing better than to ask questions.

He found her in a room down the hall, or rather, she opened a door when she saw that it was just him. It was hidden at the end of the hallway, the seams disguised by the panels on the wall. "Prob- probably home," she said, eyes wide, throat so dry she could barely manage a whisper. She pointed out the back door. "Go straight to the edge, then turn right. Should be on the right. She says it... it's like a miniature house, looks out of place."

---

The wooden stairs creaked as she made her way up. She was going to have to reinforce them soon. Maybe destroy them entirely and build new ones. They led to an empty room, the space on the opposite side of the joint running along the floor a scattered mess of things, most of them not functional just yet. The difference between that side and the other was sudden, her gear and tools neatly placed at the end of her cot. That was probably the most personal touch in the place; she couldn't be bothered to decorate. Gave her too much time to think.

She pulled her pack up into the bed, making sure everything was in order. There was a flash of lightning, a crack of thunder- maybe she shouldn't go.

"Probably going to die in a cave one day anyway," she huffed to the empty room.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

The woman nodded and murmured a thank you, tucking the shins into a pocket of her apron. "Indeed it can be. I think difficulty will follow anywhere, though. A lot of people are here to escape that."

There was a pause before she answered his question. "Her, no. I don't think she could ever stay still enough for anything like that. She helps with odd jobs when she's around, but mostly she comes and goes. Usually comes back to town covered in dirt with something new to fiddle with. Keeps a lot to herself, like everyone else around here."

She paused again, longer this time. "You knew each other before she came here, didn't you?" It was more a statement than a question. She hadn't missed his stare, far longer than someone just curious about what she could be doing up on that ladder, nor the look on Kari's face when she had left.

---

She should go back, ask him why he left, why he hadn't just said something. Maybe ask him how he was doing, if he was happier now that he had left her.

No, confrontation was not something Kari was interested in. Besides- he had made his choice clear. He knew how much she hated puzzles without answers; maybe it was his turn, if he had even noticed it was her.

Back to her dwelling it was.

She didn't live far from the inn, just by the edge of town in what looked like an oversized doll house. She was fairly certain it was- it had seams where it could be pushed open had she not taken measures to prevent that, two levels with two narrow rooms each, each half designed for a different purpose. She just fit the low ceilings with a few inches to spare.

It wasn't much, but it was hers. No one else had wanted it- it had been in dire need of repairs when she had arrived and supposedly was haunted by the ghost of its previous owner.

She threw herself on the cushions lined up on the floor when she got in. She didn't feel like heading all the way upstairs to the bed, and it was just as comfortable here, anyways. A part of her wanted to sleep, but she was too restless, too fidgety.

Raul. Why were you here? Why did you go?

She got up abruptly. She had spent enough time tossing and turning over him. She was going to the caves, storm be damned.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

Sounds good! Looking forward to it.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

No worries! Life happens, and I have done the whole dropped off the face of the earth for a month thing too. In the words of a wise old GM of mine, "Take care of yourself. Your spot at the table is secure."

I would love to continue whenever you're ready.

Ideas Galore!

Bump.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

She knew that voice, even though he was trying so hard to disguise it.

Raul.

Her hands froze for a split second before continuing on with the last of the work she had to do, willing them not to shake until she was finished and his footsteps had faded to silence. She thought she had forgiven him, thought she had let go of all the anger and confusion and hurt but there it was all over again, settling in to the pit of her stomach.

“All done,” she announced tersely to Alandi, as if the woman couldn’t see the light shining again. Her jaw was clenched as she made her way back down the ladder, the metal snapping shut a perhaps a bit more loudly than she intended. “Might see you tomorrow, might not.”

“Have a good night, Kari,” the woman said gently, pressing a hand to her shoulder as she left. She knew it was not the time to pry, not when Kari was looking like one of the storm clouds above, maybe about to send a bolt of lightning down, maybe about to open the floodgates and drench the ground.

She prepared a tray for him: food, water, the works, and headed down the hall, rapping softly on the door. “I know you only wanted water, but it’s on the house tonight, if you’d like. I won’t be offended if you’re not hungry, either.”

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

She finished eating in her own time, pushing the dish back across the counter before heading to the back room where she knew there was a ladder. She threw her hair up as she walked, the green clip she always had on hand clashing with her copper coloured hair.

"Does everyone else just let you walk in and do what you want?"

"More or less if I'm fixing something," Kari replied, the old and worn metal screeching when she opened the ladder up. She gave it a push sideways, watching it tip, then right itself as the stabilizers kicked in. All good for her to go up.

She climbed up, sitting right on the top of it, pulling the light panel out of the ceiling and onto her lap. It was some artifact that had been here when they bought the inn, Alandi had told her. It didn't usually have problems but every once in a while...

Her fingers traced along the lines inside, trying to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it. There was a broken connection and there was an oil mark right next to it- the oil had probably heated the line up too much until it disintegrated into drit. She buffed the spot out first before pulling out her tools.

She heard the door open but paid it no mind- it was very precise work, if she didn't want to burn herself. After a few moments Alandi was back, having heard the door chime.

The woman came into the room with a chuckle. "Well, hello there. Miss Karidhi, you have an admirer," she teased.

"It's curiosity. Everyone wants to know what I’m doing when I'm up on a ladder. Hello," she said, still not looking, eyes focused on the work in front of her.

"What can I do for you, stranger?"

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

No rush!

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

It was one of the last villages before the Beyond. The people who lived here were the kind of people who wanted to be left alone, but not so alone.

Karidhi was lying to herself if she said that hadn’t been one of the reasons she came here. The other reason was that everyone here mostly kept to themselves, didn’t go poking around- which meant plenty of things for her to find. There were the caves that she wanted to go to: they weren’t natural, someone had dug them into the ground and built a metal framework for them, long ago; surely there must be something interesting in there.

Today, however, was not a day to be out and about, much less climbing through caves. Rain and wind, a lightning strike here or there- but none to the lightning tower. So instead she found herself at the local inn; she couldn’t be bothered to cook for herself. Lively music came from an oddity in the corner. You could put shins in to change the kind of music playing, but usually it was only the owner, Alandi, who did.

One of the lights burnt out as she ate her stew. “I’ll fix it for you,” Karidhi said with a wave of her free hand in between bites of food. She could recognize frustration when she saw it.

“Thank you, it’s just... you’d think he’d want to help fix his home, his livelihood,” the other woman sighed, resting her head on her hands. “You know we’re all glad here to have you around.”