Mahtan grew tired despite his wounds being healed, as the pace it took to keep up with the Nobleman was too much for the Elf's battered mental state. It seemed like the whole world was weighing down upon him, beckoning him to sleep with every step he took. Whenever he felt like quitting, he would hear the voice in his head pleading for his help, pressing him to continue onward. This would cause his strength to be renewed for a short time longer, but once more he would need a pick-me-up. The relief that rushed down his spine as he realized Seth was coming to a halt was unmatchable, but soon was overcome by a sense of exhaustion when the Nobleman kept walking. With a hint of blackness to his emerald eyes, Mahtan observed the house at which Seth had paused for a moment, only to see a ruin that must have been burned down many years ago. He simply shook his head to revive his senses and kept creeping through the underbrush, agile frame pushed as low into a crouching position as he gear would allow him.
There were many things going on inside the Elf's tainted mind, including thoughts of what would happen once he reacquired Susanna. Even he didn't fully understand why he was being called to her, or why he felt that he needed to hide from Seth. Only the whispers in his ears knew, and they seemed to know quite a lot about him. They knew why he left the Reach, the number of people he'd killed, and what he had felt for Arya. It was almost like it was part of him, or had been there throughout his entire life. Thinking back on his past, he realized that there was always some lingering feeling to his life, as if some power was watching over him.
Getting caught up in his thought, Mahtan tripped over an upturned root in the ground and quickly caught himself, immediately halting his breathing to listen for Seth. He head the clink of armor and a small grunt from Susanna as the man turned, his proud eyes looking into the forest. Mahtan's arms trembled slightly as they struggled to hold his body in a push-up position, the armor on his frame packing more of a weight than he was used to. Normally this would be easy for an Elf, but Mahtan was indeed going through some changes that were taking a heavy toll on his body. Not only that, but his 'Mark' -as he called it- was spreading to the skin around his eyes, giving him the look of a raccoon. He had noticed this in the reflection of a small puddle some time ago while he was following Seth, and he believed it gave his angular features even more definition. If anything, it suited him well, gave him a much more experienced and high-ranking appearance.
As the rustle of armor signified Seth was moving once more, Mahtan sprung to his feet and made an all out dash for the nearest tree, then raped his pale face around it to peer at the man. He had stopped to read what appeared to be a sign, and as Seth headed towards the direction it was pointing, Mahtan's sharp eyesight could spot a small town up ahead. The sky was filled with white smoke as the industry was hard at work, and as the Elf grew closer, he could hear voices. He noticed a large crowd taking notice in Seth, and watched with a somewhat amused grin upon his face. That's when the sickness hit him. The sight of Seth caused Mahtan to cover his mouth and double over somewhat, and as beads of sweat began forming upon his bro, the Elf cursed in his native tongue. What was this? The man that had saved his life somewhat caused this reaction? No, it couldn't be, there must be some sort of foul smell in the air. Posssibly even the sight of his love's blood upon the savior's clothes.
Mahtan corrected himself and looked up once more, only to see Seth moving towards a small wooden house with Susanna still on his back. Now that he was farther away, the sight of Seth only cause Mahtan a small headache, and the sickness in his stomach disappeared. Using the townspeople's amazement in Seth as a distraction, Mahtan sprinted through the back side of the town and got himself closer to the hut where Susanna was being taken. By the time he was in clear view, the only movement he saw was Seth parting from the building, waving goodbye to the inhabitants as he made his way. The voice penetrated Mahtan's head once more; "My, such behavior is expected of a Nobleman. How come you never practice such things, Mahtan my Prince?"
Mahtan simply scrunched his nose and looked up through the trees, and spoke a simple word; "Rain."
With a flow of his silver hair and the rustling of branches, Mahtan was out of the forest in a single bound. As his boots his the soft earth just outside of the tree line, he kicked his muscles into overdrive and aimed himself at the house. It wasn't long before someone would notice him, so he would have to hurry. As expected, somebody did notice him just as he reached the house, but it wasn't anyone from the town. Instead, it was a woman who was just entering with an armful of blankets pressed to her chest. She was red-cheeked and somewhat in a hurry, but she noticed the slender man without much of a problem. She took one look at his eyes, then his ears, and simply smiled.
"Ah, an Elf. This is a pleasure indeed. Is there something I may help you with, Sir?" was her greeting, and Mahtan bent at the waist ever so slightly, his eyes darting towards the door of the house. He remained silent however, as a lump was forming in his throat. He was so close to what the voice was telling him, and he could feel a heartbeat raging in his ears, drowning out everything else. The woman saw his cheeks flush with color, and she giggled, pushing open the front door. "Well, I'll assume you're here for this young lady. She's in quite the condition...though, I think you should get her out of here quickly. There's some problems concerning what we were told..."
The Elf's noble form shifted slightly as he looked towards the town and saw a large fire in the square despite the rain, and could see many torches in the dying light. As the torches neared, he saw that there were many people holding all sorts of different ropes and tools, and his ears detected a chant of 'Burn her!' arriving with them. As he turned around, the woman looked even more flustered as she reacted to Susanna being awake, and relayed the same news that Mahtan had just heard. With that, the Elf pushed through the door and presented himself as proudly as he could, and despite the blood and holes in his armor managed to look somewhat presentable. "Susanna..." he said, trailing off in a hesitant way. "We need to get out of here, now. Are you okay to walk?"
Susanna's face simply looked back at his own, and she furrowed her brow slightly, signifying that she was confident in the fact that she could move on her own. "Good, then we need to go. Here, let me help you.."
Mahtan moved forward and grabbed Susanna's staff, then thrusted it into her hands before removing the sheets from her body and pulling her into a sitting position. Outside, the mob was growing closer, and the Elf wrapped Susanna's left arm around his shoulder, his height meaning she wouldn't have to put all that much work into walking properly. When he made sure she had all of her items, he wrapped a hand around her waist and jogged to the door, where he gripped tighter on Susanna before moving into a full sprint. As soon as their bodies crossed the opening he swung to the right and darted off down the road, opposite the way Seth had left. Close behind them sticks and other various objects were being tossed from the mob. Doing his best to dodge the projectiles, Mahtan lifted Susanna clean off the ground and scooped her against his chest before leaving the well-worn road and sprinting into the ditch. Underneath his leather boots he could feel his feet getting sucked into the mud, but it didn't seem to slow his agile body down as he kept running, his strength and stamina seeming to return almost immediately. His emerald eyes fixed on what was ahead, he shifted his direction accordingly to avoid obstacles.
After running for what seemed like nearly an hour, the cries behind him died down and Mahtan slowed to a halt. By now he was once again back on the road, and up ahead he could see the light of a town. The sign to his left told him that it was Veiron, and his heart sank in his chest. He was back where it all began, or rather, was at one of the small town's that now surrounded the outskirts of the giant city. Looking farther to the south, Mahtan could see the giant white walls of the city stretching across the horizon, and his body seemed to grow cold. With a small sigh he let Susanna down to a standing position and brushed some dried mud from her clothes. He grunted as he cracked his back, then looked at the woman standing before him. For the first time since they began their escape, Mahtan spoke;
"Well...what now?" and immediately was met with a quick slap across the face from Susanna's tiny hand.