vaichii opened her eyes. It was not dark, and instead, pale sunlight filtered through the branches above. She shifted her uncomfortable position against a tree, checking her pockets to make sure nothing had been stolen.
All clear. Eva yawned, stretching her arms out and extending her claws. She reached into a pouch to grab a few pears, when the peace of the forest was loudly interrupted.
"Arggghhh! DIE! Stupid spiders, ddiiiieeee!"
Eva was hopping around, slashing at spiders that had seemingly come from the pouch. It was really a comical sight, if you think about it... A lion Rakshasa, supposedly immune to fear, prancing around whilst shuddering and hissing.
She flung the last spider off and stood for a minute, panting and shuddering. She glared at the spiders in the grass, who glared right back at her. There was a bit of silence, and then the spiders began creeping towards her again. Eva squeaked, grabbed her bags, and ran as fast as she could from the nasty things.
Soon, she had arrived at the ever-busy lands of Minath. A crowd of player-killers was gathered outside, as always. A popular place for death. Evaichii adjusted the pouch, and walked towards the guards. She walked past, carefully watching them. No reaction? Good. Nobody suspected her for causing the mass butterfly deaths yet...
As soon as she was walking down the path, she broke into a run, not stopping until she reached the tall walls and gates of Minath Elion. The guards seemed to regard her suspiciously but then again - guards weren't supposed to have feelings, were they? Evaichii tugged the small pomegranate charm on her necklace to show the guards. They simultaneously nodded, and the gates opened to reveal the grand city.
At either side, stood tall and imposing towers for the guards. Directly in front of her lay the 'main road,' with sturdy oaks planted alongside it at regular intervals. To the left of the road, a large fountain stood. However, unlike most cities' fountains, this one was lonely and abandoned by the citizens.
To the left of Evaichii, a different road ran to the harbor, where a lone ship was docked. On the docks stood the majestic Paladins Guild, as well as a tavern from with a raucous singing could be heard.
The road continued to the right of Eva. At the corner of the 'side road,' and a road that led to the forest-surrounded church, stood the Inn. People went in and out, exchanging greetings occasionally and often offering to buy or sell items. Many people came from the church, as well, probably due to their death from a player-killer.
Further along that road lay many houses, mainly elves, as well as the Department of Transportation, jail, and bank. All were beginning to show signs of wearing out, for a constant traffic of people was present.
Eva blinked.
This place hadn't changed a bit since last time she'd been here! Feeling comforted, she padded along the right-going road to the inn. She pushed the door open, and stepped inside. The marble floor felt cool to her weary paws, and she closed her eyes briefly to savour the pleasant change from the heat outside.
"May I help you, friend?"
Opening her eyes, Eva turned to see a high elf smiling pleasantly.
"Would you like a room?"
"Hai," Eva confirmed as she collected a few platinum coins from the often-used pouch. The high elf gave her a key and Eva thanked her, checking the number on the key.
109...
Eva blinked. Such a familiar sense of déjà vu. Dark figures and ...pirates?
"Eva, you're an idiot," she mumbled to herself. Of course she'd remember dark figures and pirates.. She'd probably been in the room with her fellow pirates before. Nodding to herself, she pushed open the door.
Stepping inside, she screamed. Spiders! Frantically, she slammed the door shut and all but ran back to the desk. She hurriedly returned the key to the high elf, ignoring the stares she was receiving from other customers.
"The room you gave me is filled with spiders!" she snapped at the elf. She stared at Eva blankly.
Eva glared at her. "Refund, now!" she demanded. The elf slid the platinum back to Eva and sighed in relief as the lion Rakshasa stormed away.
Eva shuddered as she escaped the inn. Spiders... Shuddering again, she began making her way to the tavern. As she neared, the raucous singing was beginning to really annoy her... Stomping through the doorway, she was about to snap and tell them to be quiet, when she saw the tavern's condition.
Sure, the tables were still standing, as well as the chairs and bar, but pirates were everywhere! And these weren't the organized kind of pirates that made up Eva's clan, but rough and messy. There was beer and ale spilled on the tavern floor, and shards of broken glass.
Eva blinked for a few seconds, and then twitched an ear. She stared at the pirates, and they stared right back. Suddenly...
"Stupid stupid things~ DIE DIE DIE!" she shouted as she ran towards them, her claws extended. Jumping in much of a ninja-ish way, she took down most of them rather easily. The rest were already drunk to the point where they just lay on the ground, not comprehending much. She kicked a few, and made her way to the counter, scowling.
"A few crates of rum, please," she grumbled, dumping platinum on the bar. The barmaids nodded and scurried off - large orders of liquor from Rakshasa weren't unusual in the least.
Eva rapped her claws against the bar while she waited. Minath might not have changed, but the bar sure had� She remembered the days when she and her sisters would sit here with others and party all night long, drinking rum and laughing... Speaking of sisters.. Eva blinked. She hadn't seen her sisters in ages eithe.r.. Especially her... Choosing necromancy over family... Hah.
"I wonder if she's still a gypsy," Eva murmured, staring at the ceiling idly.
"Madam?"
Eva looked back at the bar. A barmaid had placed 4 crates on the bar, and looked exhausted. Eva nodded. "Thanks."
Grabbing the crates, Eva walked to the door, which she barely managed to push open. As soon as she was outside, however, she realized that she had no place to put the crates. She wasn't planning on carrying them around with her all the time, either... Nor did she plan to go back to the inn.
"Brilliant," Eva muttered. She glanced around, sighing. However, she spotted a few crates lying around near the ship. Looking around to make sure nobody saw, she stacked all but one crate in what she called a "ship arrangement."
Checking the area again, Eva slowly crept away, hoping her rum would still be there when she came back. She strode once again to the gates. She passed through confidently, follow the road until it veered to her right. Turning, she soon saw a sign: Tsukane. Grinning, Eva broke into a run, bursting through the small group of trees to see the ever-familiar gypsy carts and tents.
She exhaled, and smiled at the sky. It was good to be home.
Chapter 2, "Venir Maison," will be appearing soon (hopefully). Probably in a few weeks, due to the author's extreme laziness at the wrong times. Hah.. There was also part of a dream sequence at the beginning, but it has been edited out due to the mood not quite fitting the chapter, and also because I find that it make much more sense later.. It's not like people'll remember it later, and they'll need to understand later parts of the plot. Or maybe they're psychic and would know anyway... -Eva.