To Save The Queen (Fire Hunter & Nix)

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It was turning out to not be a very good day. First of all, it was raining, second, it had been raining for nearly three days, and finally... They had been attacked. Not by monsters, no that would be normal, by bounty hunters. Adrian hated bounty hunters. They had no morals, no honor, and no mercy. He could honestly say that it was a very good thing Teiri was good at escape plans.

The blond mage sighed a bit, leaning more on his adventuring companion. "Today is not a good day." He closed his brown eyes for a minute, silently cursing the throbbing in his head, that matched the one in his leg. That last hit had gotten him good, he was still pretty dizzy from the strike to his head.

The dark haired woman shook her head. She had fared better than Adrian, simply because she had been scouting when the attack happened. Most of her woulds were on her left arm. "It isn't far now to Havil, Adrian." Her voice was soft, but her eyes darted back and forth, looking for any possibility of more trouble.

"I hate Havil." Adrian muttered, hissing a bit, when he pulled his leg. "It's too small to have much, and we can't really take the time to rest properly." Not to mention, he felt really strange leaning on his smaller friend. He probably had several inches on her. "I still don't understand, why us? There are a lot of teams out looking for this cure."

The ninja shook her head. "Most likely because we were there." Her tone was factual, seemingly unconcerned. "At least, we know to avoid them in the future."

"I'm going to learn some kind of healing spell."

"You say that all the time... but you never do."

A frown crossed his face. "But, I mean it this time. A good healing spell would help a lot right now."

Hiding a smile, Teiri adjusted her hold on Adrian. "You've said that before too."
 
Sighing softly as she watched her cousin Fabian examine the ground, Telsa was about to tell him to stop it so that they could move on when he looked up at her queerly. Immediately intrigued, the girl stepped towards him, but the partially elvish man signaled for her to stay back and ignore it. Frowning, the blond woman was about to crouch down to find out what had alerted her cousin's attention when the tall man's eyebrows furrowed. "I told you, just leave it." He said, an irritable edge in his voice. Tessa simply fixed him with one of her famous stares and placed her hands on her hips in response. While she was far from looking intimidating with her delicate features and soft pink attire, Fabian sighed nevertheless and gave in.

"A few blood marks. The footprints have been washed out by the rain, so I can't tell what happened, but I think it is very recent." The member of the Queen's royal guard looked mildly distressed by the fact that he did not know what had occurred, and the fact that it might spell out danger for his younger cousin put him on edge. Tessa didn't even have to look to know that his right had was hovering near his sword, ready to whip it out at moments notice. However, her attention was elsewhere. The fact that blood meant that somebody was hurt immediately set alarms going in her mind - her basic instincts as a healing mage kicking in with full force. Knowing that Fabian would never allow her to go off hunting for possibly dangerous strangers - regardless if they were wounded or not - Tessa made a show of letting the matter go.

"The rain is letting up, we should probably get a move on." She offered in her quiet voice, gesturing in the direction that they had been walking in. Nodding in agreement, Fabian started moving - his eyes keenly scanning their surroundings, though it was hard to see in the rain; despite the fact that it was, indeed, letting up. The rain also meant that it was hard to hear over it, the constant pattering as it hit the ground overriding many other noises. A few minutes later, however, the rain's patter had resided by a good bit. Now the prominent noise was the sound of Fabian and Tessa's moleskin boots as they trudged through the mud. Fabian's state of high alert had receded a bit, though he was still keenly scanning the horizon and their surroundings - never seeming to tire of the job.

Tessa was walking quietly at his side, knowing that they still had a little way to go before they reached their next town and meal. They had recently run out of food supplies, and Fabian hoped to stock up again at the next town - a small place that went by the name Havril, if their map was correct. Seeming to read her mind, Fabian stopped for a moment and swung his bag off his shoulders; pulling out the map and assessing where they were on it and how much longer it would be until they reached their destination. Walking a few more steps ahead, Tessa thought that she could hear the faint sound of voices from up ahead - and as her concerns for the injured person and the blood came back from earlier she upped her pace to a quick jog. Fabian looked up instantly, and cursed as he scrambled to pack up the map and pursue her.

Coming into an adequate hearing range at precisely the time to hear talk of healing spells, the girl's small hand tightened around the small wooden staff that she used to assist her in spellcasting. Fabian's footsteps could be heard approaching behind her, but Tessa had the advantage of not having a bag to burden her with and being smaller and lighter on her feet. Seeing the pair from ahead, the blond girl slowed down her pace to a walk - not wanting to alarm them. Coughing softly to announce her presence, she hoped that Fabian would have enough tact to not make a complete mess of the situation as he caught up with her. "I'm sorry to intrude, but you spoke of needing healing?" She said in an uncharacteristically loud voice, and she could hear Fabian's audible sigh as he realized what was happening.

Moving forward cautiously, sensing her cousin moving behind her, Tessa smiled at the pair gently - assessing the wounds from afar. Realizing that they were most likely not fatal unless left unattended, her initial fears subsided, but her healer's instinct wanted to see and treat the wounds as quickly as possible.
 
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By this point, Adrian was glaring at Teiri, who was doing an incredible job of completely ignoring him. He was honestly miserable, his hair was sticking to his face, his leg was still bleeding, the throbbing in his head was worse than before, and his partner was completely unsympathetic. "Teiri..for that I'm going to cook next time."

"If you try, I will set your books on fire and turn your hair purple." There was absolutely no way, that she was ever going to allow him to cook again. The one and only time Adrian had cooked, they both were sick for an entire week, which had made them late for a job, that got their pay docked. That had been a much worse day that today.

The small cough, caught both by surprise, granted only Teiri turned her head. The other woman was blond, and petite, with a pleasant smile. The taller man behind her looked a bit more stern. Shifting a bit, she slipped one foot back slightly, moving her injured arm around so that Adrian didn't loose his balance, and managed to get the taller man turned without either of them ending up in the mud. "See... Even the Gods don't want you to cook... they sent you a healer." She kept her voice very low, so only Adrian could hear her.

Ignoring the whispered comment, Adrian instead, offered a wan smile. "That would certainly be welcome." The new arrival had the look of a healer, while her.. bodyguard perhaps, didn't look at all pleased. Still, if she was going to offer to heal them, then Adrian would happily put up with a number of unhappy people. "We were attacked by a group of bounty hunters. So we really appreciate it, Right, Teiri?"

"...Yes... Thank you..." Her voice was soft, almost shy. There was a reason Adrian did nearly all of the talking around people.
 
Eyes widening at the talk of bounty hunters, Tessa upped her pace - realizing that poison could have been used in the wounds if the said bounty hunters had planned to kill these two. Behind her, Fabian stiffened - coming to the conclusion that there might still be danger lurking nearby and that he wanted to get himself and Tessa as far away from this situation and these two strangers as soon as possible. Grabbing onto his younger cousin's arm as she made way to advance towards the pair up ahead of him, his iron-strong grip kept her from moving. However, in an uncharacteristic show of defiance, Tessa tried to pull away from him - though she was much weaker and was unable to do so. "Telsa, listen to me-" Fabian began, but he was cut off when the girl whipped around; her eyes alight with emotion.

"Get off! I've always let you do your job, so now let me do mine." She said sharply in such a tone that it made Fabian blink in surprise and let her go. The two were close; as a child, Fabian had lost his parents and Tessa's family had taken him and raised him like one of their own - meaning that Fabian and Tessa had developed a bond similar to that of a brother and sister. However, when Fabian had been drafted into the military, he had left home and the two had lost contact for many years. Until a few months ago, in fact, when the man - now a royal guard - dropped back by the family home to ask for advice in regards to his new found quest to find the Queen a cure. Tessa's father was one widely versed in folklore dating back through the ages, and had been more than willing to help with information about the fabled fountain of healing.

At around the time when Fabian had planned to depart on his quest, Tessa had persuaded him to allow her to join him, as the bond between them was still strong. However, the time had changed the quiet girl as well, and her training as a healer had both gentled and hardened her to extents that Fabian was still only just discovering. "But Tessa, you don't know who they are." Fabian argued, lowering his voice as he reluctantly trudged after his cousin. Tessa spared a moment to look back at him and smile reassuringly before disregarding his comment completely and quickly made her way towards the pair. Fabian's hand was back to its hovering around his sword again, and his ears had pricked up slightly as they were prone to do when he felt a possible threat nearby.

Tessa, on the other hand, seemed to be completely naive towards the fact that there might be danger from associating with random strangers one found. Walking towards the pair up ahead, her grip on her staff shifted slightly as she started imagining the spells that she would have to cast. Fabian was saying something dark under his breath behind her, but following anyways, keen eyes serving as a constant patrol around the area and the two people ahead of him. Catching up with the pair, Tessa immediately was all business - not asking for names or anything. "I think it might be smart to sit down." She said briefly, assessing all the visible wounds on the pair. From what she could see, the man was more seriously injured, with a hit to the head and multiple wounds on his leg. The woman was not so bad off, though seemed to have wounds on her left arm.

"So, what happened exactly and where are you hurt?" Tessa interrogated, her quiet voice somehow holding a lot of substance to it. Fabian, behind her, was looking at his cousin incredulously - seemingly shocked at the transformation from the shy girl he knew her as to this self-confident young lady. When his cousin knelt by the side of the path near a rock that seemed to have been placed so that somebody could rest their back against it - obviously expecting the pair to sit down with her -, Fabian placed himself standing behind the blond like the bodyguard that he had been trained to be. Multiple questions were flying through his mind, but in letting Tessa deal with the conversation here he had appointed her leader of this specific interaction and wasn't about to butt in. The mark of a member of the royal guard was emblazoned on his collar, leaving the fact that he was in fact a member of the guard projecting very clear.

Looking over her shoulder at her hovering cousin, Tessa sighed slightly, though immediately felt bad for her brash treatment of him. He was just trying to ensure her safety. An edge coming off of her professional demeanor, the girl turned back to the other pair. "And I think that my cousin here would like to know if these bounty hunters of yours are still a threat." She commented, her voice softening and becoming less demanding.

"I would also like to know why the bounty hunters attacked you specifically, and what bounty they are after." The part-elf added from behind her in his customary serious and deep tone, taking that as his que to ask a few of the questions he had in mind.
 
For a moment, the only sound that could be heard was the sound of rain, hitting the leaves. Teiri studied the two carefully, as she did nearly everyone, learning what she could based on what she saw first and could hear next. Related, the slightly similar features and mention of the word 'cousin' a dead giveaway. He was protective of her, easy to distinguish from how they spoke. She, adamant about doing what she felt was her duty, honorable the little healer was, something the ninja could relate to. The man was cautious, something else she could relate to.

While the two had their own little argument, Adrian squinted at his friend. "Do you have my glasses?" The words were hopeful, even if he doubted. He didn't really like them, as he lost them on a regular basis, but he couldn't see much without them, and there wasn't a spell that could just fix poor eyesight. He had one to repair small things, handy for clothes and broken glasses, but nothing that could make a pair appear like sight giving mana from the sky.

"No.. I'm sorry. I didn't see them in the confusion, and I didn't want to leave you alone again to look for them." She had been planning to go back and see what she could salvage for their missing things after they had reached the town and at least tried to patch themselves up. That was still a good idea, but now, she would at least be reassured that they would be in good health when she did so.

All Adrian could do was give a soft sigh. She had an excellent point, and he knew it.

"Come, then. Let her take care of you, answer their questions, and then I will go and see if I can locate your glasses." Slowly and carefully, she helped the mage over to where the healer was kneeling. It took a few minutes, the movement obviously painful on his leg.

"Oh absolutely." Adrian offered the quiet ninja a thankful look after he was settled on the ground. Turning his head toward the guard, he started explaining what he knew. "I honestly couldn't tell you why they attacked us specifically, they probably just went after whomever they could find." One hand came up and rubbed a bit at his forehead, wishing he had his missing glasses so he could see the pair properly. "Teiri had gone ahead to look around and I was trying to plan out our route. The next thing I know, I've been hit, I've got blood in my eyes and I can't see a thing." He didn't feel the need to mention that he had been rather caught up in trying to decide where they were going to search next. "I was on the ground, and one of them.. I think there was three, but it might have been four... I honestly can't see much without my glasses." Adrian offered a small shrug and waved his hand at Teiri.

The dark haired woman had taken a couple steps away, leery of the insignia on the man's collar, as guards where rarely kind to ninja, thinking them similar to assassins. Still, she picked up the story, speaking softly and factually. "There were four men, from Lewin based on their voices and clothing. I believe they attacked us because they wish to eliminate any competition in searching for the Queen's cure. One, rather short, reddish hair, with two missing teeth, and a strange hammer on his shoulder, was boasting about how this would be the third they had gotten rid of." She stood very straight, eyes fixed on her friend. "Two of the others, looked nearly identical, brown hair, tall like you, armed with swords. The last was average height, blond, he had the appearance of a thief, and was kicking Adrian. As they discussed the best way to dispose of him, I threw two of these." She deftly pulled a small bottle from a pouch, raising it slightly. "Nothing special, a simple mixture that causes smoke, and we got away as quickly as possible. He has a cut and rather large knot on his head...."

"You didn't mention the cuts you got on your arm from that dagger..."

"You haven't told her about the gash on your leg either, so hush."

Turning his attention back to the little healer, Adrian continued. "Odds are good, that they are still going to be a lot of trouble for someone, well anyone after the same thing. Still," He brightened a bit, smile a bit wider, and his head turned toward Teiri. "We're not going to let that stop us. We've seen worse, and a couple of greedy bounty hunters barely make the list." The mage turned toward the healer now. "We do appreciate them help though. Anything we can do to return the favor?"
 
The finely pointed elf ears of Fabian perked up at the mention of glasses, and he shifted his weight slightly on his feet. "Ah, I think I might have seen a pair of glasses in the mud when we walked passed." He said, meaning when he and Tessa had been around the bloodstained area. Tessa leaned back on her heels to look at him, an accusing glance in her eyes that read 'Why didn't you pick them up? Or tell me?', but her elder cousin just sighed audibly at her. "Hey, I didn't know that people would be looking for them later. Besides, it could have been the metal glint of a snap trap - I didn't want to take the chance since something had obviously happened around the area." He said defensively, though he paused slightly at the end as if he was wondering why he felt the urge to explain his actions to Tessa. Not picking the meaning behind the pauses up, or perhaps making a point of not doing so, Tessa turned back to the pair in front of her.

Listening attentively as they described their injuries, and completely ignoring the rest of the information as it didn't apply to her, Tessa nodded to herself every now and again but remained silent. However, Fabian perked up again at the mention of the Queen's Cure. "It would seem that we are out here for the same purpose, then." He responded placidly, noting that the woman seemed to be backing away from Tessa and himself - though by logical reason, it would probably make more sense that she was backing away from him. Assessing the her more closely, he wondered if she was perhaps a wanted criminal recognizing him as a guard; though he came to the conclusion that if that was the case, she would have been gone already. Perhaps she had been falsely accused of a crime and harbored resentment towards the guards? Casting the matter aside and looking away as to not give the impression that he was staring, Fabian returned his attention to her words.

A thoughtful expression crossing his features, the part-elf considered the description of the men who had attacked the pair carefully. The description seemed to match one that he had heard of before, and as he tried to place the thought his hand started hovering near his sword again as he sensed that the trio didn't seem to amount to anything he wished to encounter. "Strange hammer." He muttered to himself under his breath, before suddenly snapping to and looking with an unusual intensity at the two. "Tessa," He said, calling his cousin's attention, "Could you check their wounds for betel nut powder? It'll most likely be dissolved." That drew an odd look from the girl, but sensing the urgency in his voice she complied immediately. Shuffling forward, she hovered her hand a few inches away from the man's leg - closing her eyes and humming something to herself; a simple spell that would tell her what was in the wound and most likely have a slight tingling effect on the receiver.

"Something is there." She confirmed after a second, her eyebrow furrowing as she concentrated harder. "Dissolved powder, yes. I can't tell what it is exactly... It's mixed with too much blood... It feels like a natural substance. Most likely some type of nut, yes. But there are other powders there... I think mixed together..." She offered, and Fabian's face drew grim. Tessa's eyes also snapped open as she decided what spells she would have to use to cleanse the wound and heal it. An extra air of concern started to stream from both her and her cousin as she digested what the implications of betel nut powder would mean for the wound, and Fabian thinking of the attackers and how they had just become that much more dangerous. Both of them sunk into a silence as they thought to themselves, but Tessa continuously ran her fingers along her staff as she thought - and Fabian's guard had been raised and his scanning eyes sprung to life.

Jolting herself out of her thoughts, Tessa suddenly smiled at the man in front of her - turning her head to also smile at the lady who was now standing a few paces away. "Well. Betel nut powder is certainly a new development, but nothing I can't fix. Though the hope of healing your wounds completely without scars is slowly diminishing unfortunately, I doubt I'll have enough energy to wrap up the operation now - even with this here." She said, lifting her staff at the end of her words to indicate what she meant by 'this here'. Crossing her legs and seeming to settle down for what looked to be a few minutes of spell-casting, both cousins ignored the fact that these two might not know what the big deal with betel powder was. However, Fabian did seem so inclined to give a bit of backstory as to the attackers.

"I suspect that you came face-to-face with a small criminal band that we refer to as the Rats." He briefed, unconsciously using the term 'we'; meaning that the guards and himself. "They aren't very powerful, or very rich, but they've been associated with countless deaths and other crimes - their trademark style being to lace all of their weapons with betel nut powder which is a lesser poison; but given time can be lethal. That is how they keep getting away - by the time the poison gets to work, they are already long gone." Fabian sighed here, seeming to be slightly frustrated over the fact. "Since your attack seemed to be recent, I'm not that worried, but Tessa?" The man explained slightly, looking to Tessa in encouragement. While betel powder might not work quickly, it was best to get it out of the system as quickly as possible.

"Yeah." Was the female's response, looking up at Fabian with a nod - though no question had really been asked. Turning back to the pair, she looked at the man. "Right, so if you don't mind? I'll start with your head. It shouldn't hurt, but it might feel queer." She said, a business-like tone returning to her voice as she moved forward again; raising a hand tentatively towards the stranger's head, though going slowly as to ask permission to touch him.
 
Both were silent while other two talked and mentioned the powder, granted the mage was pleased that it seemed his glasses were still there. Adrian really couldn't actually wrap his mind around something so underhanded. He was more the openly blow it up type than the underhanded poison type. Teiri, however nodded, the name familiar, even if she, personally, did not use it. "I had wondered if there was something else... it isn't like you to be so... inarticulate, Adrian, but I just thought it was from the hit to your head.." Neither of them were exactly skilled in medicine or healing. Adrian's magic was almost entirely offensive, and Teiri, her skills were best suited for either moving unnoticed or in a fight.

While Adrian was relived that the powder wouldn't be a problem, he also knew that walking around completely drained, would not be pleasant for the girl. "Teiri, nearly all my stuff is back there, do you have any of those little mixtures left? The ones we got from Shilloc?" The two had done some work in that Northern city the year before, and had been very fortunate to have been given half a dozen of a fantastic mixture that they apparently made only there. It helped to restore some of a magic users energy. Adrian knew he had one tucked away in his pack, but he was also betting his partner had one stashed away as well. "Actually... we were headed for Shilloc, hoping someone there might have a good lead for us. We have some connections there." He offered a small smile for the healer.

The ninja, immediately produced a different looking bottle, this one slightly fancy, secured with a ribbon, from a hidden pocket. She moved close enough to pass it over, before returning to her chosen spot, still not to sure about the guard.

He offered the bottle to the healer. "We really do appreciate your help. So take this, it help restore your energy. I've used them myself, they're really amazing." Now he felt a bit better about the help. Adrian hated owing anyone for anything. Now, he felt like he had done something to repay the girl. So, he inclined his head a bit, making it easier for her to heal. Something that the man mentioned earlier finally registered. "Ah, so you are looking for the cure as well. Honestly, good luck." Adrian's reply would have surprised anyone but Teiri. With the reward, every mercenary, adventurer and able bodied person was out looking. Have one wish or desire granted was a huge incentive and little motivated people better than greed. Adrian, though, he didn't really care about that. He cared about the challenge, the adventure. "Speaking of... Teiri. You know..."

"No."

The mage sighed, he had figured that she would be resistant to what he was going to suggest. He didn't necessarily like it either, but it was that or more attacks. "I know you don't like it, but.." Adrian's head definitely felt different, not exactly better, but certainly not worse. He had to admit, queer was an appropriate word.

"No." The ninja didn't budge, either in the conversation or from her place a few steps away, watching carefully. "You should hold still."

Immediately, Adrian turned back to the healer. "Teiri, we are going to need some help, it's just the way it is. Everyone is after this cure, and I think it's the smartest plan." He expected at least one more disagreement before she caved. Not because he actually managed to change her mind, but because of their audience. Teiri hated being the center of attention, and would eventually agree just to stay out of it. That was half the reason he brought it up now.

A scowl, crossed her face, openly and rather visible. "I know what you're doing, and I'll find a way to pay you back later." She crossed her arms, turning her head to study the surrounding area instead. "Do as you like."
 
Blocking out the pair's conversation about bottles and cures, Tessa had started preparing her spells long before she actually began her healing - chanting them in her mind to give the major ones backing and the minors some consolidation. However, she was jerked out of her reverie when the man offered her a bottle; forced to blink as she was jolted back to the present, it took the healer a few moments to process what had been said. A few of the preparations that she had started to make mentally were disrupted by the interruption, but after puzzling through the man's words she determined that it wouldn't matter, as if the potion was as potent at he claimed she wouldn't have to worry much about her energy levels. Smiling brightly after she was sure that she had understood everything that had been said correctly, she took the bottle carefully and tucked it into a pocket in her coat.

While Tessa quickly drifted back into her mental palace, Fabian took it upon himself to provide an answer for her. "Thank you." He tossed at the man, having heard of the mixtures before - the battle mages at the castle bottomed them by the gallon. It was a common joke among the non-magic wielding guards that the battle mages had a higher tolerance for the potions than proper drink - and as beer was often tossed around in the common rooms and at any other occasion possible, that was a class one offense. And it tended to offer a lot of evidence, as the battle mages were usually the more studious and didn't drink much anyway; leading to a lot of spectacles where drunk mages started spouting smoke out of their ears or turning themselves pink. Fabian himself didn't drink that much, since as a royal guard his guidelines were much more strict, but tended to have a rather high tolerance when it came down to parties where he was permitted to let himself go a little bit.

Unable to resist studying the woman who had, after coming forward to give the man the bottle, backed away again. Perplexed, Fabian sighed slightly and looked away again - however he kept part of his attention focused on her as he began to feel the tinglings of suspicion tugging at his instincts. He had already taken in the details of what she looked like, and what her obvious weapons were, and if prompted at a later date would have been able to recite all of the information he had thus gathered about her. He had done the same for the man, though he seemed to be more open. Of course, Fabian knew that could just be a ploy - but he saw no logic in the tactic if that was so the case. If they wanted to harm Tessa, they could have done so before Fabian had reached them the first time; as they couldn't have possibly known that she was a healer and her potential uses until she had said so, and he had arrived. Tempted to spend his time brooding upon the situation, Fabian put his attention back to keeping an eye on their surroundings and potential attackers.

At the mention of the Queen's Cure, Fabian turned an eye on the man. Smiling grimly, the guard shrugged and nodded a thanks simultaneously. "You as well. It sounds like we might need it, with types like the Rats creeping about. But I'm not surprised, frankly." The guard commented shortly, though not in an unfriendly way; giving an unusually large amount of his hand up as he looked to Tessa briefly with concern - obviously worried about any injury coming to her. Listening intently to the conversation that the two were having, and wondering what on earth the man was trying to suggest to the woman, Fabian concealed the fact that he was listening expertly. Standing stiffly behind Tessa, his hand had quit its hovering around his sword hilt - though he was still on high alert and would have been able to react with lightning speed should anything occur. With his suspicions already roused, he was making a conscious effort not to give away his alert with his hand-hovering, and looked otherwise like he was carved of stone.

Meanwhile, Tessa had been humming the foundations of her spell after she had laid her hand on the man's head. She found his movements borderline annoying, but it wasn't anything that she couldn't deal with. At around the point where the woman had refused whatever he was suggesting for the first time, Tessa seemed to find her stride and started chanting softly under her breath. Her eyes were closed, though not pressed tightly together in concentration as she was still high on energy. The head wound started to close up - and the healer decided to afford the extra energy to mend the injury without a scar, feeling the press of the mixture that the man had given her inside her pocket. After a few seconds more of chanting, she removed her hand and opened her eyes to evaluate her work. Leaning back on her heals, she raised her hand again and brushed the spot where the wound had previously been, her gentle hands and long fingers examining the area for a few seconds before she seemed to be content.

Trusting Fabian to keep up with the conversation that seemed to be going on, Tessa shifted her position so that she could face the man's leg. Already forming the mental spells that she needed, Tessa removed the bottle from her pocket and considered it. Eventually shrugging slightly and twisting the cap off, she drank a few drops of the mixture experimentally before putting the cap back on and storing the container back in her pocket. Feeling a slight reprieve to her energy stores, enough to finish off with this wound, Tessa placed her palm on the center of the gash and closed her eyes again. Having adjusted to the mind-state that she needed to heal these specific wounds, and having had most of the spells already placed or ready to use, Tessa finished the man's leg much more quickly than his head. Opening her eyes again as the woman seemed to give into whatever argument that the two had been having, Tessa unslung her bag from her shoulder.

Removing a water canteen, she poured some water onto her hand before beginning to rub off the blood around the area where the wound had previously been. Looking up at the man, she smiled at him. "Does that feel better? Unfortunately I haven't got any spells that can mend tears in clothing." She said, offering him the canteen if he wanted to wash the blood of his head himself. Her hands had emerged from the spell-casting unblooded - as she had cast spells that prevented any of it getting on her. Turning away before she got an answer to her question, she looked to the man's female companion. Drinking a little more of the mixture that she had been given, Tessa tried to catch the woman's attention - as she seemed to be looking away, keeping watch like Fabian did so often. Not paying attention to the fact the the other girl seemed to have distanced herself from the group on purpose, Tessa obviously expected her to come to where she was sitting if she wanted to receive healing.

Fabian didn't fail to pick this small detail up, again wondering at how much his cousin had changed since he had last been with her. Gaining a newfound respect for her, he decided that he had done well in allowing her to accompany him - for even though it added a burden to his hands, and the fact that two were easier to spot and launch an attack on than one rested heavily on his mind, he began to feel safer with her by his side. Shaking his head slightly and returning his attention to his observation of the two strangers and their surroundings, the guard remained silent throughout the exchanges.
 
Adrian was distracted when the healer started her work, as always fascinated by any magic that he personally couldn't do. Healing magic was far different from his own, it came from deep within, and could not be learned by anyone that didn't have an innate talent for it. Adrian, while skilled enough with his own spells, apparently didn't have the deep focus and instinctive empathy that a healer needed. The differences were all subtle ones. Adrian didn't need as much preparation time, instead he spent most of his evenings with his books, learning, creating, and clearing his mind. His chants, almost always invoked one of the elements, were much shorter as well.

Teiri turned slightly, studying the guard. She did not trust him, but that was hardly anything new. She rarely trusted anyone outside of Adrian, despite her partner's friendlier personality. "... I am certain that those men are not the only troubles either of us will have..." Her voice was much softer than when she spoke to Adrian, it was shyer, less certain. Despite having been Adrian's partner for years, and having a relatively clean record, there were few adventurers that actually had no record at all, she was still nervous.

"It feels much better, actually." The mage was paying no attention to either the guard or his own partner, instead accepting the water to work the blood out of his hair. "Don't worry about the clothes, I have just the thing for that." Now that his head wasn't throbbing and the pain was gone, he was in a much better mood, and his smile was more open and a lot friendlier. He moved back a bit, unconcerned with the mud, clothes could be washed after all. Taking a couple of minutes to look over where the wound used to be, he nodded, pleased. "Tei, your turn. Stop glaring and get over here."

Silently, she moved closer, crouching down, and carefully rolling up her sleeve so that the healer would be able to see properly. "How would you know if I was glaring or not? You can't see."

"Oh sure, rub it in." Adrian mock scowled, before muttering a chant under his breath, and slowly moving his hand over the torn clothing, which seemed good as new when he was finished. Standing, a bit shakily, he offered his hand to the guard. "I honestly can't tell you how much we both appreciate this. I'm Adrian Syler and this is Teiri."

The ninja stayed very still, so that the healing could go as smoothly as possible. "You.. have my thanks..." Again the words were soft, spoken so only the healer could hear her.
 
Fabian nodded in agreement when the woman spoke, glancing briefly at her with one eye. Her shyness did not seem to match with her assured posture, and the guard wondered what was up with this quiet one - by looks she appeared to be either an assassin or a ninja or some sort. Those professions both required confidence and a steady hand, and the man wondered how she got by if she were always this timid. Seeing as he didn't know much about her, however, Fabian neglected to judge her and accuse her of anything like perhaps the normal guard would do by evaluating one by their appearance. Instead offering a brief, grim smile in acknowledgement of her words, Fabian looked back to Tessa and the other man. His cousin seemed to have finished up with his wounds, and Fabian nodded mentally to himself, wanting to get away from these strangers as quickly as possible - as even though the pair of strangers seemed nice enough, four was a group too big to miss but too small to appear able to defend itself in the event of an attack; which were facts that Fabian was sure that any lurking enemies would be quick to note.

Tessa, watching as the man washed the blood out of his hair, gazed intently at him as he examined the area where his wound used to be. Satisfied that he seemed to be content, the healer nodded when he said that he had could manage the clothing himself. When the woman moved over and crouched down, rolling up her sleeves, Tessa diverted her attention from the man to her - though she did look back briefly when he started muttering a chant and fixed the rip in his clothing. While she did like listening to other forms of spells, she didn't pay too much attention to it as she had previously tested completely incompatible for any form of magic other than her healing. One would think that if you were good at one type of magery you would be at least able to do other types, and on the most part that was more or less true to at least some extent, but with Tessa her main energy source came from her drive to help others and the only magic that suited that was healing.

Smiling softly as the two had a brief banter, Tessa filtered out the man as he got up and said something to Fabian and concentrated on the woman in front of her. Examining the wound for a few moments and running a fingertip lightly along it, she altered a few of the spells that she had marshaled in order to suit this individual in particular. Drinking a little more of the mixture she had been provided, she began her melodic humming as she moved her hand above the wound, gradually progressing to a soft chant. This wound drew closed more quickly than the man's injuries as Tessa was already warmed up and had a good idea of what she was facing, and besides, this one contained less of the poisonous substance that required more energy to wash out. Despite the easier nature of this particular wound, Tessa had been drawing from the mixture for energy more for that one, and the feeling of her natural energy lacking created an uncomfortable tingling in her chest.

Fabian stepped forward slightly to take the other man, Adrian's, hand when it was proffered, the guard nodded and smiled slightly. "Thank Tessa, not me." He said evenly in his flowing voice that bore a small resemblance to the musical voices of the elves. "I'm Fabian, and this is my cousin Telsa." He added, clasping the other man's hand in his steady grip and shaking it firmly. His steady grip demonstrating the generic strength of a guard, Fabian hoped that he would help stabilize Adrian a bit as he still seemed to be a bit unsteady on his feet.

Shrugging to herself as she removed her hand and smiled at the woman crouching across from her, Tessa nodded to signify that she was finished. Offering her the water canteen that she had offered the man to clean her wound, Tessa drew out the bottle again and took a considerable swig from it. The mildly unnatural feeling of the energy that it provided helped steady her hand that had started to shake slightly nevertheless, and the healer pocketed the potion before getting to her feet, smiling at the woman brightly in response to her thanks. Looking up at her cousin as Fabian released the other man's hand from supposedly a handshake, Tessa moved to his side. Her pace had slowed a bit as she tried to compensate for the energy she had lost through her healing, but otherwise she seemed unaffected. Unaware that they had exchanged introductions as she had been too concentrated on her work, Tessa looked at her cousin questioningly.

Comprehending her gaze, Fabian was about to tell her the other pair's names when his eye suddenly caught a movement in the bush behind his cousin. Falling silent as he cast his attention around the area, he spotted what he judged to be the concealed figures of people hiding among the brush. "Adrian and Teiri I believe." He answered after a moment, his voice steady, but his eyes were on high alert. "I think we've been surrounded." He commented to Adrian quietly. Their attackers weren't too good at hidden movement, but the fact that they had managed to get so close without him noticing before hinted at possible skill. While he was far from pleased that he was suggesting a team up with strangers, Fabian decided that after counting at least six figures hidden in a circle around them that if he wanted to keep Tessa safe taking the risk that he could trust these two would probably be the least risky way.

Seeing Fabian catch onto something, Tessa was tempted to look around and try to spot what he seemed to be signalling to her to look at but figured that the movement would be suspicious should there be danger. Besides, if he had only just noticed it, she doubt that she would be able to spot anything. Thus staying still, Tessa absorbed the two names and turned back to the other girl - Teiri. Crouching back down beside her, the healer smiled. "I think Fabian might have seen something." She said mildly, masking her mounting anxiety well. "Perhaps it'd be best to be on your guard." She added before standing back up, looking around slightly as she stood. As she had expected, her untrained eyes couldn't spot anything, but she didn't have to see something to believe it was there.
 
The mage nodded, not even bothering to look around, knowing it would do him absolutely no good. "I have to say... I am sorely missing my glasses right now." His reply was stated equally softly. "If you and Teiri didn't notice them, then they're probably decent..." Looking almost disappointed, the mage turned slightly, doing a good job of pretending nothing was the matter. "Rotten timing, really.." One hand came up, his brow furrowed, he was rapidly trying to think of some plan to get them all out of this. "Fabian, yes? I'm going to let my friend here go have her fun, if you will allow me, I will look after your cousin for you." Adrian didn't want to use any long range spells, but he could certainly keep people away from himself and Tesla, if he had some warning, unlike last time.

As silently as before, she cleaned her arm, eyes darting from here to there, noting a man there, one high in a tree behind him.. Teiri offered the healer, Tesla, a nod. "Understood." Her tone was different now, very serious. She remained in her crouch, already planning her first couple of moves. She didn't want to leave Adrian's fate in the hands of a guard, but there was Tesla, and the healer had just done them a favor. For now, she could play nicely.

"Hey, Tei?" Adrian kept his voice friendly, with just a hint of steel in his voice. He didn't bother to look at her, instead trying his best to gauge the distance between himself and Tesla, who appeared to be just a fuzzy white blur, as opposed to the dark gray blur that was his friend. "I think two should do it, don't you? Low and high?"

Teiri smirked, hidden behind her mask. "As you like Adrian. Is your preference out or down?" The two had worked together for a long time, and really had their own code for situations like this. Out tended to mean dead, while down usually meant unconscious. Low and high on the other hand, usually meant the leader and someone at the bottom of the food chain. Two for questioning. Simple code really, but it worked for them.

"Down." That was stated firmly. "Go play hide and seek." Almost instantly, Teiri vanished.
 
Nodding as Adrian confirmed his name, Fabian's mouth tightened at the thought of leaving Tessa's safety in the hands of another. Deciding that he would stay close by his cousin unless need be that he be somewhere else, in which case he would have no choice but to trust Adrian, the guard wondered what kind of games were being put into play here. A flicker briefly making an appearance in his eye as Teiri seemed to disappear, the part-elf's attention was attracted to Tessa as her nerves clearly started to mount and she began fidgeting. While she was making a good effort to keep herself from looking around obviously, the fact that she couldn't see what was going on was beginning to get the better of her - which was only to be expected, but it would give them away if it continued nevertheless. A smile appearing on the blonde man's face, Fabian ruffled his cousin's hair. "It is getting close to mealtime, isn't it?" He said cheerily, in a manner that he would never normally speak in - though the bandits or whomever they were wouldn't know that.

Reaching for his pack that was slung over one shoulder, the man made a show of suddenly cursing as he seemed to realize something. "Damn, I forgot the food bag when we stopped to look at the map awhile ago." He said with a heavy sigh which was, surprisingly, genuine as he spotted two archers lurking in the trees a few meters back the way he and Tessa had come. Deciding that it would be best to take them out immediately, as archers were always wildcards and their ability to fight long-range was dangerous in the least - especially when they were targeting a small group, such as one that Fabian currently found himself in. Dropping his pack onto the ground, Fabian clapped Adiran on the shoulder; using the sound to mask his quick muttering of "It'd be best to put up some wards if you have any, I've spotted some archers" before he grinned at Tessa apologetically. "I'll run get it now." He said on the matter of the supposedly missing food pack, taking off in a light jog in the direction that they had just come - which just happened to be the direction in which the archers were laying in wait of some signal to begin loosing arrows.

Tessa blinked as her cousin suddenly started running off in the direction they had come from, unsure of what she should be doing. She was strictly a healer and nothing else. In a battle she was likely to be less than useless. Fixing her gaze on Adrian, she shifted her weight on her feet nervously. Fabian's departure had done nothing to ease her nerves, and she could only manage a timid smile at the running back of her cousin. Trying to keep her cool, Tessa did her best to control her breathing, still looking at Adrian for any hint of what she should be doing.

Taking a mental inventory of the weapons on his person, Fabian sought out the comforting feel of his small set of throwing knives which rested against his ribs - their sheaths lining the small vest that he wore - and content that all the knives were in place by feeling the weight of them started gauging the wind speed and other conditions that might result in a throw flying untrue. As the archers were up in a tree, it would be easier and less dangerous to just land a few well-placed throws to take them out. However, once he started throwing, he would have to work quickly - for that would begin the bandit's attack if nothing else did. Hoping that he wouldn't be interfering with Adiran and Teiri's 'game' by making his move, he supposed it was too late to be double guessing himself at this point as he was nearing the range he would need to aim his knife throws effectively. The knives weren't his primary weapon, but he was quite familiar with them and was confident that he'd be able to make his shot.

Mainly hoping that these two would be the only archers on the scene, Fabian tripped midstride, flying into a stream of curses as he brushed the dirt off of his clothes. However, the movement only disguised the removal of three knives from their scabbards, and with one fluid motion he got back to his feet and threw his first knife. The satisfying thump as a body fell to the floor was a good enough result for the guard, but he was forced to save his second cast as an arrow plummeted towards him. Apparently the bows had already been focused on him as he ran. Rolling to the side quickly, Fabian counted the seconds quietly before a second arrow hissed through the air. Determining that the wielder was using a crossbow, the guard took advantage of the time it would take the user to reload and quickly re-sighted him and threw his second knife. This one didn't create as clean a death as the previous, and the crossbowman started to scream when he was abruptly stopped by a third knife landing in the center of his chest.

While the exchange had taken less than ten seconds, the bandits had already reacted - all those who hadn't seen what was going on alerted by the brief scream issued by the bowman. Scowling at the fact his second hadn't resulted as a clean kill, Fabian started up in a fast-paced jog to make it back to Tessa and Adrian - however he was stopped as a group of three - looking to be two parts bounty-hunter and one part bandit - cut off his route; holding poorly crafted blades in their hands, though the edges glinted slightly as the sunlight bounced off of the poison that they had layered on them. Deciding that he didn't have time for these fun and games, Fabian's pair of twin scimitars came whistling out of their scabbards. They were unnatural weapons for a member of the Queen's guard, however Fabian had picked them up while chaperoning one of the Princesses to attend a foreign wedding. The guard's deadly downcut was suddenly brought back around as he noted with a frown that the bandit was just a boy, and he quickly reversed the hold he had on his blades.

The action opened him to an attack, but the highly trained man had no problem deflecting the blades sent his way. Using the hilt of his left sword to deliver a blow to one of the men's head that would knock him out cold, Fabian used the momentum to pack a kick to the ribs of another - sending the boy sprawling on the ground, likely with more than one broken rib, and spun about to face his last opponent. Focused, he was unable to assess the rest of the situation - blind to what Teiri might be doing, or if anything was happening with Adrian or Tessa.
 
Prudently, the mage moved closer to the little healer, so whatever protection he used would cover her as well. Fabian's suggestion sounded like an extremely reasonable one, and shields were simple. A couple of slight gestures, and a hushed chant was all it took. While Adrian actually preferred to assist more, most likely with fire and other painful things, the fact that he really couldn't see, Fabian and Teiri were already out playing, and his offer to look after Tesla, kept him on the sidelines this time. "Try not to worry too much, everything will turn out."

For her part, and from the moment she vanished from sight, Teiri had placed herself behind two archers that were on the opposite side of the clearing, Once Fabian made his move, so did she, the pommel of one short thin sword landing forcefully against a temple, while, the blade of another was held closely at a throat, with just enough pressure to keep the man still until the ninja knocked him our as well. A bit sloppy, but Adrian had requested down and not out, so she would comply.

With the attackers pouring out of their hiding spots, every second counted. A brief check showed Fabian was holding is own perfectly well, so Teiri went after the men closing in on Tesla and Adrian. There were two, one that was hanging back slightly, and one that was obviously a thief, based on the multitude of little daggers, and the type of clothing. As such, that was the one Teiri went after, rather bluntly. She literally tacked the guy into the bushes.
 
Totally unaware that Teiri was trying to knock the attackers out without killing them, and that Adrian had requested it to be so, Fabian was also unaware of the fact that Tessa might disapprove of all the killing he was doing. Despite it, after a brief look to where his cousin was to ensure that there was no immediate threat to her, he took the time to knock his remaining opponent out with a well-placed knee in the groin then a firm knock on the head with the hilt of one of his heavy blades. Whirling away from where his three opponents laid sprawled out - two unconscious and one in too much pain to get up - and leaving the two dead archers behind, the guard assessed the other bandits and mercenaries quickly. Realizing that the majority of them seemed to be honing in on Adrian and Tessa, that was where he made his way to.

Seeing Teiri tackle a man into the bush from the corner of his eye, Fabian noted that she was quite capable, but quickly turned his attention to the other man who had been hanging back. This one had a hood pulled up over his face, and as the guard assessed whether or not he could throw one of his scimitars effectively to take him down. It would depend if he had any armor under the cloak, and Fabian reluctantly began to reach for his last knife, hoping that he wouldn't prove to have need of the smaller blade later on in the fight. The cloaked figure didn't move once, even though he seemed to be looking right at the guard, and Fabian decided that it would be best to take this one down as quickly as possible - as it was possibly a mage concentrating on spellcasting.

His knife whistling through the air, Fabian blinked once as the weapon seemed to shoot straight through the man - there was no chance of him having missed, but the knife just plummeted through the figure and embedded itself in the ground behind the cloaked man. On high alert, the guard took a tentative step forward; his eyes narrowed as he tried to see past a possible illusion. However, even as he stepped forward, the figure began to fade. On edge but deciding that pursuing the vanished cloaked man would be a waste of time, Fabian spun around; taking the man who had been trying to creep up behind him out with a well-placed elbow to the temple. Seeming to decide not to kill anybody else, the blonde sent the hilt of his left scimitar flying at a man; knocking him over and promptly knocking him out upon arriving at the collapsed body.

Retrieving his blade and looking around, Fabian noted that this bunch's clear downfall was their lack of structure. Every man fought for him or herself, or in very small groups; none seeming to have a clear purpose or connection between them. Their confidence had been in numbers, it seemed, and now that they were thinning out a few had started to disperse. Retreating towards Adrian and Tessa, the guard sent a few more men - and one woman - to the ground, though didn't kill anyone else. It had really only been necessary to ensure that the archers were out, as they were they were the hardest to monitor; even though, as a rule, they were cowardly and had a reputation of running once they tasted a bit of danger.
 
Thanks to the combined efforts of Teiri and Fabian, Adrian had no problems at all staying out of the way with Tesla. Granted, he really hated missing out on a good fight. It wasn't the actual urge to fight with people exactly, it was more a desire to use his magic, something that he always enjoyed no matter what the situation. Despite the fact that the fight was pretty much over, and Fabian had handled the last of the attackers, it had been a few minutes since he had seen Teiri.

The ninja loved bushes. They were perfect for sneaking, ambushing, or for beating up a mouthy man and tying him up. She had two currently bound up like backwards presents, and after a very stealthy and careful check of the area, dragged them both out to the others. "Two, as requested."

It was only the years of working with the quiet girl that Adrian didn't jump when she spoke from behind him. Honestly he hated that habit of hers, but since she didn't complain about him getting lost in some book or spell, he just let it go. "Same group do you think?"

Giving Fabian a polite nod, because she could respect a skilled fighter, the ninja shrugged. "I didn't ask." She could tell Adrian was settling in for a long thinking session. One attack didn't necessarily mean anything, two within two hours that always did. With a small sigh, she started disposing of the attackers weapons.

"Well, now..." One hand came up, and stalled, like he was going to adjust glasses that weren't actually there. "If they were... hmm..."
 
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