"Well, well... what's a pretty thing from Mornaveil doing in a place like this?"
A slow, cruel smile twisted his lips as he rose from his stool, his sheer size blocking her path. The reek of cheap liquor rolled off him as he moved closer.
He leaned in, his mouth so close to her ear she could feel the heat of his foul, liquor-laced breath as he whispered:
"Don't tell me you ran off."
He pulled back to look her over, his thick cracked hand sliding from her shoulder down her back.
"If you came here to earn a living, it looks like you have what it takes."
The man let out a low, throaty laugh, a sound meant only for her. Fear took hold of her, and an image from her memory flashed in her mind: hiding under a bed in torn clothes.
She took a step back, the bottle in her hand, but the man snatched it from her and opened it. His smile was pure cruelty.
He hooked his fingers into the top of her pants, pulled her close. Before she could even cry out, he poured the whole bottle straight down into her trousers.
He tossed the empty bottle aside, his voice a low sneer that grew into a shout.
"Maybe this will cool down the heat of the shame you live with… you fucking useless thing!"
Vida gasped and stumbled back as his words brought a horrible memory rushing back. The cheap liquor from the bottle soaked the lower part of her body.
Tears of violation and humiliation burned in her eyes.
In that same instant, he kicked her in the stomach. The force sent her flying backward, crashing onto a table. Chairs toppled around her as the impact sent a stray bottle cracking against the side of her head.
The noise from her fall caught everyone's attention, silencing the tavern for a moment. Her friends were on their feet as the drunk bellowed down at the fallen Vida:
"Fuck off, you worthless bitch! Go back where you belong or become one of Valdar's whores… At least make your miserable life useful for once!"
Gord, Hyran, and Zarius turned at the same time. Yulia lowered her book. A few meters away, Vida was lying motionless before their eyes. Blood trickled from her head onto the dirty floor.
Her clothes were soaked with liquor, and her body was tangled in the wreckage of two chairs. Her eyes were barely opened, staring at the dark wooden ceiling, completely empty.
Only a second passed before Gord moved. He rushed forward, bent, and snatched a jagged shard of the bottle that had struck Vida. His face was a mask of calm fury.
He launched himself at the man, who was still laughing, and tackled him to the ground.
Gord dragged the shard across the man's left cheek, brutally tearing it open until the man's jawbone and teeth were exposed.
The man let out an animalistic scream of pain, twisting on the dirty floor. Gord stood on his chest with both feet. The man's eyes turned red. The sound of his ribs cracking was audible.
The man squirmed in agony, but Gord simply stared down at him, his gaze cold and merciless. Across the room, fury flashed in Zarius's eyes.
"You fucking scumbag! I'll rip your guts out of your throat!"
But Hyran's huge furry hand shot out, grabbing his arm.
"Calm down, Zarius," he said, his voice a firm, hoarse rumble.
"Gord is handling it."
Zarius pulled his arm away hard.
"Get your filthy hand off me!"
Ignoring the chaos and the man's screams, Yulia moved. She dropped her book, her only focus on getting to Vida. The world spun as Vida got to her knees. Her head throbbed with pain, and the cold wetness of her clothes made her feel sick and ashamed.
Yulia sat next to her and checked her head with a slightly trembling hand, looking for the wound until she found it. Then she tore a piece from the bottom of her long robe and wrapped it around Vida's head, trying to bandage her wound.
She helped her up, supporting her on her tiny shoulder and trying to shield her from the curious eyes. Zarius looked at Vida as she got closer to them. He hesitated for a moment, then took off his fancy coat and put it on Vida to cover her up.
His jaw was tight with anger as he stared at the man pinned helplessly under Gord's boot. Amidst the chaos, Hyran's gaze swept across the tavern, his posture coiled and ready for the next threat.
Moriana emerged from the back of the tavern. Her eyes took in the scene—Vida leaning heavily on Yulia, the man pinned beneath Gord's boot—and her expression hardened. She walked straight to Gord, placed a hand on his back, and whispered.
"That's enough."
A faint, golden light bloomed from her palm, spreading like a ripple through the tavern's dusty air. Her voice was calm, yet it carried an undeniable power as she spoke a single word.
"Lumiere."
She walked towards Vida and Yulia, her eyes questioning Yulia. She gave Moriana a slight shake of her head—a clear signal to talk later. Moriana gave a subtle nod in understanding.
Then, her gaze softened as she looked at Vida.
"Can I help you with anything, Vida?"
"Thank... you... Yana... I'm fine," Vida replied, with her head down.
The light continued to glow throughout the tavern. Moriana watched its effect with focused eyes.
She noticed the wound on Vida's head closing, but she also noticed her clothes becoming completely dry and her calmness gradually returning.
She glanced at the palm she'd released the Exim from. A frown touched her lips as she slowly clenched and unclenched her fist, as if testing it.
Weird... this isn't Lumiere's doing... But… I can't complain as long as it helps Vida this well.
As the tension between them crackled, a sharp headache struck Moriana like a sting behind her eyes, and the tavern's lights trembled as a wave of dizziness washed over her.
No wonder... I just emptied my stomach.
Moriana's dizziness passed as quickly as it came, and she turned towards the man. The light had stopped the bleeding on his face and his wounds had partially healed, but Gord's attack had been too brutal. The man was left a broken, whimpering mess on the floor.
Just then, two men who looked like the attacker's friends rushed over.
"You idiot!" one of them hissed, as they struggled to lift the crying man.
"What were you thinking... If it weren't for that woman, you'd be dead... She's a Handler, no doubt!"
Moriana turned back to Vida, her expression apologetic.
"Sorry, Vida. His death would get us into trouble with the Helmgard."
Gord returned to the table and sat, his violent work done. Zarius stared at the tabletop, his voice low.
"That's right. We can't get involved in such a thing right now."
Vida gave a small, understanding nod. Things calmed down a little in the tavern, and a low buzz returned to the room. But silence fell over the six of them sitting together at their original table.
Vida broke the silence. She pushed her chair back to stand, looking at Zarius.
"I'm sorry, Zarius… the bottle was spilled. Let me get you another one."
Before she could stand up straight, Zarius grabbed her forearm firmly and pulled her back down.
"Sit the fuck down... damn it."
Yulia slammed back into her chair, her voice sharp with annoyance as she rounded on Zarius.
"You half-breed... this is all your fault. You owe Vida an apo—"
A low growl from Hyran cut Yulia off.
"Yulia!... that's enough!"
Yulia noticed Zarius's expression and his clenched fist on the table. She realized his anger was at his own feeling of helplessness.
Yulia fell silent, but her gaze lingered on Vida. The shy smile on Vida's face seemed as fragile as glass.
Moriana got up from her seat and hugged Vida from behind to comfort her. Vida gave her a grateful smile in return, a tear stuck at the corner of her eye.
Vida's voice was warm as she reassured them.
"Hey… it's alright. I feel fine."
Vida's gaze swept over each of her friends, realizing she wasn't alone. The thought was so powerful it overcame the pain and brought a real, steady smile to her lips. They all gave her a small smile back.
Then, after a brief moment, Hyran turned to Vida, his brow furrowed in confusion.
"What the hell was that about? Did that piece of shit say something bad to you, or was he some random drunk harassing girls?"
He scratched the fur on his head and continued,
"Something about him seemed weird... Why would he put you in danger if it was just harass—"
Zarius cut him off sharply.
"She would've talk if she wanted to. Now shut up and give her time to recover."
A tense silence fell over their table. Gord's hand was tapping on the hilt of his sword. Yulia stared at her book, though she wasn't reading. The only sound was the pointless, repetitive rattle of Hyran's dice.
Around them, the tavern's loud chatter slowly returned to normal, isolating their table in its bubble of silence.
But for Moriana, the noise of the tavern suddenly began to fade, as if her ears were stuffed with cotton. The people around her turned into white shadows.
Strange screams in a twisted language she didn't understand began to pound in her head. The smell of sulfur and rot filled the air.
Her limbs felt heavy as lead, and cold sweat poured on her forehead, chilling her skin.
Her eyes were wide open, unblinking.
Her heart beat fast, like war drums pounding inside her chest.
In a flash, she found herself sitting in a different place. It looked like a vast, old library. Its tall metal shelves reached the ceiling, stacked with thousands of books and scrolls.
She saw two people she didn't know, moving between the shelves and arranging some books.
She turned and saw another girl standing on a wobbly chair, reaching for a book on a high shelf while muttering words Moriana couldn't hear clearly.
As Moriana scanned the library, the screams in her head got louder. The harsh noise made her press her hands against her temples.
She spotted a large mirror with a faded gold frame in a corner of the library. She walked towards it with hesitant steps, her heart pounding hard.
She looked in the mirror and gasped. The face in the reflection wasn't hers.
The woman had long black hair and wore a plain, white garment. Nothing else was clear but her face.
"Wh-who...?!"
She took a step back, shaking her head from side to side with her eyes closed, trying to escape what she was seeing and hearing.
She opened her eyes again, but the vision wasn't gone. Suddenly, a flood of sticky darkness spread across the floor she was standing on.
It covered her feet, then began to rise quickly up her body, its touch was terrifyingly cold.
Moriana squeezed her eyes shut, but it did nothing to block out the noise in her head as it grew into thousands of animal-like screams.
Horrible images flashed before her eyes: people running in fear, their faces twisted in terror; bodies transforming and becoming monstrous; cities collapsing; and strange diseases killing everyone.
Moriana clamped her hands over her ears, a useless gesture against the chaos inside her mind.
"Stop!... My ears!... It hurts!... Help me!"
Her heart beat like a series of explosions until one of her ribs cracked and her gasps grew louder.Then, in an instant, the entire place around her collapsed in a terrifying silence. The horrible scene ended suddenly, leaving Moriana hanging between being awake and passing out.
She could no longer see anything but an endless whiteness.
She could barely hear her friends screaming her name after seeing her features.
Saliva drooled from the corner of her mouth, and hot tears mixed with sweat ran down her cheeks from the pain and fear, a look of horror on her face.
Yulia rushed to her side, slapping her cheek lightly.
"Mori! Mori!… keep your eyes on me!"
Without a response, Vida, who sat beside Moriana, tried to move her. But Moriana collapsed against her thighs, her body slipping slowly.