[FIN] Fresh Air and Freedom (Freedom)

[Nairore]

x x

It was nice to breath fresh air for once. Of course every breath was a struggle, only made worse by the fact that she was breathing rather heavily, but Nairore was never one to let her wounds overcome her. Even with the trained healers of the Medicae working on her, Frostbite had left her somewhat torn up and the healing process would take time. But time caused decay, and Nairore wanted to be at her fittest as soon as possible. So instead of healing up then going through physical therapy Nairore decided she'd fit the two together.

There was a hunt to begin and she wanted to start as soon as possible.

So Nairore was out jogging. It wasn't the most intensive training, but it was a good start. Every step caused a jolt through her body that shocked her senses. She wasn't sure if it was pain; there still wasn't much feeling. Just more of that emptiness. But it was a sense of being alive and it kept Nairore going. One foot in front of the other through the brisk chill of the night air. Of course it was night; the orderlies at the Medicae wouldn't let her out, and they were at their most vigilant during the day. For whatever reason that was. They probably didn't get many people actually trying to sneak out.

But Nairore was the kind of girl who didn't want to just sit around and twiddle her thumbs. Left to her own thoughts she was afraid of what she would wander to. She still blocked out the thoughts of that day, of her seemingly random act of betrayal on top of betrayal . . . shift thoughts, one step, two steps. Keep your breathing steady, don't mind that pain. It will go away. Overcome and ignore it; it's just residue left from the wound. If jogging does anything to make it worse the the healers would just patch it back up.

Nairore's thoughts were stopped dead in their tracks, along with her jog, as she fell to one knee in a coughing fit. One hand grabbed at the wall next to her to stabilize herself as she felt the heaves of the violent cough wrack her body. With a growl she spat out the blood that had collected in her mouth and climbed back to her feet. She wiped her mouth on her arm and kept going. It was nothing that wouldn't heal, but if her body atrophied from sitting around doing nothing then she would take more time to get back to her fit levels.

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[freedom]

x x

In the House in a Heartbeat

Predators did not often dwell in the city,

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[/color] the predator said, as though making an observation about the weather. He caught up to her with a few quick steps, now modifying his pace to keep at her side. He hoped she wouldn't be the sort to spook when she saw a large predator in a city. She certainly didn't seem to be.[/size][/ul][/blockquote]

[Nairore]

x x

Her pace was meager best, but having been stabbed through the stomach with a frost-enchanted sword after already taking two shards of your exploded sword to the arm was draining. Not to mention the mental and emotional trauma that comes with pulling a deeply embedded sword fragment from your forearm and using it to stab the father of your unborn children in the neck with every intent to kill because suddenly you realized you were still loyal to your adopted fat--yeah, Nairore had been through a lot, so she was weak.

But only physically. Ever since that incident Nairore's mind had become callous, some of her thoughts chilling even to her, surprising her as they arrive. When she was talking with Elohim while she had danced on the lines of life and death her casual dismissal of her own children's souls had taken her completely off guard, and even now she could not look back on them with remorse. The thoughts that had occurred to her at that time still held true even now when she reflected. She knew she should feel some concern about why these thoughts were occurring to her, since they wouldn't have before. At least she didn't think they would.

But her mind, just like everything else, felt cold and empty.

So when the predator came out of the shadows and stalked up behind her Nairore wasn't the least bit surprised or concerned. "It took you at least three blocks to figure this out?" she asked with a cock of her eyebrow and a quick glance to the side he walked on. She didn't slow her pace or her jog, just kept going unconcerned. She had caught wind of someone following her three blocks beforehand, which was still too short of notice for her, but she suspected he'd been chasing her for longer than that. It was easy to tell from the way he held himself.

At night, a woman jogging alone and obviously weak, it was the perfect set up for some sort of murder, kidnapping or any other sort of event. This man, or creature, or whatever he was could just reach out and slit her throat. Now she wouldn't make it that easy for him, but he would likely be able to overpower her. Nairore didn't like to feel this weak, yet at the same time she felt no fear, no concern. She had already seen the face of death and played chess with him. "If you're looking for an easy kill move elsewhere, I'm to stubborn to let anyone kill me before my business is done," she said, her voice coming out weaker than she'd like considering her breath was heavy and she refused to stop her jog.

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[freedom]

x x

In the House in a Heartbeat

The predator walked silently,

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[/color] the predator replied, watching a rat scurry out of the way of the two larger forms coming upon it. The predator had a great respect for rats. Infinitely clever, adaptable, and always more resourceful than half the creatures that preyed upon them. A hawk might sit in a tree over a field for years, hoping for rats and rabbits to eat, but a rat would always find food, wherever it was. Rats were some of the most enduring creatures that walked the globe. "Look at me. Look at my muzzle, my nose, my ears. I could tell you were injured from the noise you made. From the smell. It is entirely possible I spoke of another sort of weakness than the one you mean."

When she spoke again he sighed, as though disappointed.

"If I wanted an easy kill, we wouldn't be having this discussion."

The predator fell silent for a long time, watching the other's movement. It was interesting, playing the little guessing game of who or what someone was, judging on the way they moved. One was often wrong, of course, and Freedom was no exception. He knew this. Sometimes you just couldn't tell. But it was still fun to try.

"No, what interests me is that you move as though you are used to having a sword. A sword you no longer possess, unless you have one admirably hidden in those pants of yours," the predator remarked. "A wounded warrior, walking the street at night. One might say you are positively asking for something like me to come along."

He continued to walk.

"In the wild, one quickly learns that there is nothing so dangerous as a wounded predator, walking alone at night. It has nothing to lose, save what's left of its pride. Well, nothing so dangerous as that or a mother with a litter of pups," he acquiesced, sounding amused. "The former, the wounded warrior, has nothing to lose, whereas the latter has everything to lose. Fitting that both should be so troublesome."[/size][/ul][/blockquote]

[Nairore]

x x

Oh, good, a stalking predator with a satisfied appetite and a sage complex. Wisdom beyond his years or something like that. Nairore had encountered similar personalities. Less predatory, mind you, but the sage complex was always the same. They had some sort of advice to offer, because they saw the obvious and figured you were ignorant. It was even worse when they were observant and actually noticed things beyond the obvious, as this one clearly did. He was used to watching people, if he was this quick of a judge. And his words were, irritatingly, spot on.

Nairore just gritted her teeth and kept moving. Out of habit she found this encounter annoying; she had never particularly liked people outside of a select few. However she found she welcomed it as well, as it kept her mind occupied, kept her thoughts focused, as they tended to wander when you were out alone. She opened her mouth to speak and a sound came out, but it was promptly followed by another fit of coughing that made Nairore stop in her tracks. Her hand came to her mouth as she coughed and drew away with flecks of blood across it.

She made no effort to hide it. He already knew, she was sure. Trying to measure her breaths against the pain that wracked her body while keeping her pace quick enough to be beneficial, while trying to carry out a conversation had been too much for her. Things didn't click and her breath had come up short. She had to stop and catch it then, and decided that she didn't want to try that again. The conversation would take place wherever they had stopped, until the predator decided it was time to move on or finally make due with his weakened prey.

"A cornered animal lashes out and all that?" she commented dryly. "I had a sword once upon a time but I didn't treat it right, and I almost had a litter of pups as well. So you're right in everything you said, I suppose. Does that make me the most dangerous of all or none of the above?" It was hard to describe her exact expression, as it was trying to be so many things at once. A cross between a scowl, a smirk and a pout, three clashing emotions over three different thoughts he had dragged up.

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[freedom]

x x

In the House in a Heartbeat

The predator watched the girl,

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[/color] The predator examined its claw. A little blood. Not too much, but it would need to be cleaned soon. He'd been born with an impulse for cleanliness. He knew that it had saved his life, ensured his survival, and kept his teeth and claws strong for years. He did not neglect it. The claw slid back into his paw. "You lack the strength to lash out. And, more to the point, the claw."

He paused for a moment.

"What interests me is the nature of your weakness. You are caught between worlds. A creature of ancient circumstance that would, by ancient custom, no longer exist. An impossibility. No wonder you are physically weak, as well. Such conflict. I couldn't imagine."[/size][/ul][/blockquote]

[Nairore]

x x

Caught between worlds. Always caught between worlds. "Story of my life," she murmured idly at that comment. Born a Gerudo, raised by a Hylian, but never accepted by others. Then she tried to be a Gerudo but she had not accepted that either. And, more extraordinarily, she had quite literally stepped between worlds when she had met Elohim, though he probably wouldn't want her thinking of it as such. Dipped a toe into the other world or something along those lines. She was always caught between worlds, would always be. It was what she was. A world traveler who'd barely left the confides of her own home.

The predator leaping away hadn't phased her at all. He was there, then he was gone, and then he was back. Had he not come back she'd probably have gone on her way, continued her jog, and snuck back into her room in the Medicae as if nothing ever happened. Night sweats, that's all, combined with some nightmare suffered from her trauma that accelerated her heartbeat. She had it all prepared, unless she was caught gone. But few visited her. Word had gotten around quickly of what had happened. Oddly Merik's words before running were hardly remembered.

Of the group of Knights who had been one scene most of them seemed more eager to share the story of Nairore's improvised weapon and failed assassination attempt. She doubted she'd be punching out many Knights once she got back to business and started to seek out Merik. Few had the sheer testicular fortitude required to try and hit on someone who would pulled open a wound like she had just for the chance to strike. Few Knights would hardly do that themselves. But Nairore had the scar to prove it, as nasty as it was, on her forearm.

"Conflict isn't the half of it. That's the past. What matters now is the hunt I have ahead of me," she chimed. She didn't know why she phrased it that way. Well she did, it would pique his interest, but she didn't know why she would aim to pique this random creature's interest. A hunter might be handy when you're hunting, perhaps. "And my prey has a nasty bite," she smirked. Frostbite's sting had been well-tended to. There were no scars there; so much healing magic had been poured over the area it was probably stronger than normal, at least on the outside.

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[freedom]

x x

In the House in a Heartbeat

The predator cast a lazy eye on the wall,

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[/color] he replied casually, as though by memory. He turned as she spoke again, looking at her stomach. All her painful starts and stops indicated that was where most of the pain was. "Not nasty enough. You're still here."

He would've gone for the throat. Always the throat. Or the heart, in his human form. If he could get the pressure, he'd just plunge his hand into the rib-cage, using enough force to shatter it and crush the heart in the chest. But he seldom felt so dramatic. The throat was cleanest, quickest, easiest, though a heavy wound to the stomach would normally kill. She had been lucky to survive. Surrounded by the healing facilities of this city. The predator was, by his nature, not fond of such places.

"But of course, it wasn't meant to kill you, was it? Foolish of me not to see it sooner. It was a killing blow. Nasty indeed. Even I do not kill unborn children in the mother's womb." He thought for a moment. "Well, not on purpose." If you killed the young before they'd grown, you could well run the risk of ruining your own hunting grounds, by depleting them of future generations. Best to kill an older creature, incapable of birthing, or a younger one that was just getting large enough to provide a meal.

"So, you hunt for revenge. You'll get yourself killed that way," the predator said, not really as advice, more like an expert simply expanding upon his area of expertise, as people of the sort were wont to do. "You can't lose focus. You can't care too much. Otherwise, in some small way, you'll always be approaching a target on its terms. Compromise. That will kill you. Does so every time. That's why a pregnant mother is the most dangerous predator, and also the most doomed. She's angry, she's dangerous, she's defensive. But she's compromised, and that will let me kill her each and every time."[/size][/ul][/blockquote]

[Nairore]

x x

"Mine wasn't nasty enough either. Opened his throat with a shard of my own sword and he still got away," she said with a casual shrug. Not too much thought. Keep her focus on the present and on the future. Ignore the past. Keep the lessons but throw away the events. Remember all her training, all her wins and all her loses, and what they accomplished, but there was no need to analyze the emotions involved, the thoughts beyond why they had been the wrong ones for the battle. It wasn't easy, but Nairore had spent a lot of time analyzing past battles and learning what she did wrong. She already had the mindset, it was just a matter of applying it.

"He's used to being hunted, though, he knows his way to get by." She had seen Merik shift his appearance herself. It could be possible she was talking to him right now, though she doubted he'd be brazen enough to try. He was likely still healing, just like her. Surprising parallel, actually, when she imagined that they were both wounded and healing from their last encounter. She considered elaborating on everything else. The opinion of a true hunter would be valuable. But at the same time she wasn't in the mood to feel like an idiot because all her ideas are wrong. She was stubborn like that.

Though his next words did trigger a curious reaction in her. Hunting for revenge, seeking Merik's blood for what he did to her. No, that wasn't it. She shook her head. "Not revenge. I've been stabbed before, nor do I feel anything for the loss of my children," just cold emptiness, "He is a monster under a veil. I saw it in that moment, I saw the monster hidden in there, and I know he's looking to get out. I don't want to see that happen, I don't want to see that darkness unleashed on this world." He was the Gerudo King, born once every hundred years and every single one was harbinger to dark times.

She turned her focus back to her new companion, if such a term could be applied. "My name is Nairore," she said for no real reason. "And I'm guessing whatever name you're going to give me will be fake, if you're the type to hermit in the woods and only return to the city to stalk around at night and ambush women," she said with a dismissive shrug. "So I won't bother asking yours, but I am curious as to why you're in the city. Seems almost too coincidental that I'm about to start a hunt like this and a predator comes by to give me advice."

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[freedom]

x x

In the House in a Heartbeat

The predator watched the cornered beast,

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[/color] the predator opined, perhaps forgetting that he was even talking to her. "That is irrelevant. He is wounded. Weak. The time to strike would be now, if you were able. If you were not ... like this," he said, sounding vaguely displeased. Her next words amused him. An oddly human sound came out of his throat, a sort of amused hnuh. He laughed, and said,

"This world is full of monsters. You are talking to one. Why should any particular one be your target? Because of what he's done. To you. You were fooled and he hurt you, and if there are two things that no thinking creature can allow, it is to be fooled and hurt. Unless, of course, I am wrong. Unless you, uniquely among all the people in Hyrule, have not suffered a wound to your pride, and do not feel the bitter sting of betrayal. Maybe it isn't even anger or hate. Maybe it's just the hole he left. If you did not care, you would not have anything further to do with him. It's certainly very flattering to believe that the one who wounded you is the greatest evil that walks about on two legs. If you were simply overwhelmed with altruistic concern for the rest of Hyrule, you'd be on a crusade to smite down each and every villain you could get your hands on. But somehow I doubt that."

The predator stopped talking, then got to his feet and walked a little closer to the woman, his footfalls silent in the dark. It was bizarre how silently such a huge creature could move.

"I have never seen the use of names. Suffice to say you would know me if you saw me."

When she asked him what he was doing here, he shrugged his shoulders.

"My sisters live nearby, and I thought I might visit. That, and every now and again the mood takes me to dive into one of these cesspools. Call it a morbid curiosity."[/size][/ul][/blockquote]

[Nairore]

x x

Wisdom always came at a price. Namely it usually made the person holding it preachy and annoying. Sure, there were lessons to be learned, but sometimes they liked to dance around it and drag it out much longer than necessary. Nairore found this was quickly seeming the case, that, despite no doubt being a very good hunter himself, Predator wasn't exactly going anywhere with what he was saying. We are all used to being hunted, says he, much like one might say swimming is in our bones and if we need to learn it we would.

Didn't change the fact that people drowned all the time.

Nairore grunted at his words. "Do not pretend to know the full story," she said, somewhat more callously than intended. But then she didn't imagine one of the wild like Predator would care too much for niceties anyway. "If anyone feels the sting of betrayal it would, more than likely, be Merik. I was the one who stabbed him in the throat when his guard was down. Nor do I seek him because he is one of the many monsters that inhabit this world, or that he stabbed me. My pride is nothing in this equation; I'll hunt him because it's my duty as a Hylian Knight," she said, though she didn't have herself entirely convinced of the fact.

Not the fact that she would hunt him. She was pretty vehement about that. Calling herself a Hylian Knight, however, was a different story. Since she had woken up she hadn't spoken with anyone aside from nurses and healers. Granted she had only woken up the day before, and the aforementioned folk didn't think it wise that she even sit up in her bed, but she defied them all just by being out there. The streaks of blood on her arm where she had wiped it away from her mouth defied her defiance, however, and betrayed the truth of her situation.

"My act of betrayal woke something up inside of him. Something deep, dark and dangerous. It's impossible to really describe, but I saw it in my last fleeting moments of consciousness and I won't forget it. It's something I brought into the world and he has the potential to be far more of a threat to the people the Hylian Knights protect then any highwayman or serial killer. He has the resources and the drive to do something far greater, and far worse than rob a few purses. That's what I aim to stop because I unleashed it, whether he stabbed me or not."

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[freedom]

x x

In the House in a Heartbeat

The predator listened,

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[/color] the predator supplied, but he didn't say any more.

Ah. Guilt. Even better.

He sniffed at the air for a bit.

"Hylian? You are no Hylian. Although I hear they take all sorts, I hear the Gerudo are not particularly popular," he commented idly, wrinkling his nose. It was purely his imagination to say that Gerudo smelled like sand, but it was the only way he could describe it. Somehow more coarse than a human, if that made any sense.

"This isn't about duty to some vague idea of Knightly honour. It's about you. The sooner you accept that, the better."

The predator hopped up onto a wall, that connected to the larger wall that surrounded the city. He turned and looked at her, examining her curiously. For a moment, there was a flash of danger in his eyes, but it passed. Maybe firelight just caught his eye at the wrong moment. Or perhaps, for a split second, he had wanted to hunt. But whatever it had been, it passed, and he decided against it. He was curious about this one. Curious enough to deny his natural instinct as a hunter to pursue prey endlessly. He didn't need to eat. And he would enjoy watching what became of this woman.

"If I had to guess, I'd say the reason you are humouring this conversation is that you hope to enlist my facilities as hunter in your noble venture?" The predator asked, laying down on the wall with deceptive laziness. It was barely wide enough to support him.[/size][/ul][/blockquote]

[Nairore]

x x

He was as stubborn as she was. That was a problem, considering she was remarkably stubborn. The hints of a scowl crossed Nairore's face as Predator, since he wouldn't give a name, seemed stuck on the idea of pride. Perhaps it was him relating his own personality to the equation, because quite frankly by the sounds of things he didn't get much interaction with people. "Out in the wilderness all you encounter are other hunters anyway, and they can be a very prideful bunch," she said dismissively.

Of course his keen senses could pick up that she wasn't Hylian. Her red roots were still showing quite vibrantly having not had the chance to dye them, and her eyes were, for whatever reason, locked in the multicolored state. One gold and one blue. The healers had said, idly, that they believed the explosion caused by Naurlambe had altered the enchantment, which had only been working on one eye at the time anyway. It wouldn't take a hunter's honed senses to identify her as a Gerudo at that moment.

"I'm a special exception," she said, making sure he knew that was all the explanation she had to offer. Fortunately one like Predator wouldn't be following the gossip circles, so she doubted he'd be able to piece together who she was. She didn't think it would be wise to announce herself as the Knight-Commander's daughter either, not in her weakened state talking to a stranger who made it quite clear the only reason he hadn't killed her was because he was already full. She settled instead for raising an eyebrow as he leapt up to the wall.

Honestly the thought had occurred to her to seek Predator's help in the hunt. Her list of potential allies was growing by the moment, even before she had woken up. She tried to recall Elohim's chess board, wondering idly what sort of piece a hunter would take. Considering the ghost's arrogance he'd probably just be a pawn. "Actually I'm entertaining this conversation to keep my mind away from darker thoughts I seek to avoid. The Hylian Knights are well equipped with trackers and I'm fairly certain I know exactly where he is right now," she said with a flippant shrug.

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[freedom]

x x

In the House in a Heartbeat

The predator watched from its perch,

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[/color] he commented. He heard somebody, or something, moving towards them. Metallic chinks and clanks echoed through the streets, bouncing off the walls. A patrol, probably. He should leave. He turned around and began to make his way to the city wall.

"If you know where he is, find him and kill him. You can be a hunter or a liar. Not both. Good luck in your hunt. I may watch."

He waved his tail as though in a word of parting, and suddenly a shroud of darkness fell over him, and then there was nothing. Invisible, he stalked into the shadows, leaping silently atop the walls, eventually making his way to the edge of the city. For a moment he turned and looked back, then leapt down off the side, slipping into the forest. That was where he was home.

[EXIT]

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[Nairore]

x x

Poetic for a predator. Nairore listened to his curt few parting words before he disappeared over the wall. The corner of her mouth twitched upward into an almost bemused grin. Such a strange encounter; there had to be some meaning behind it, no? Then again Nairore did not believe in fate, so perhaps this had been nothing but coincidence. In fact, that was exactly what it was: she had been out for a jog and attracted attention, and the predator had done the thing he does naturally and hunted.

The clanking grew closer. To an untrained ear it was all the same, but Nairore recognized the sound of the Hylian Knight armor. The craftsmanship was so fine that the clanking was actually just the shin guard. The rest of the impact caused with each step was absorbed by the armor at each joint, cushioned appropriately. It was entirely possible to be stealthy in full Hylian Knight armor, though few ever saw the need to try, all things considered. A patrol, for example, didn't need stealth.

The two Knights who were walking their patrol rounded the corner and saw Nairore there. She watched them approach, watched carefully as their eyes refused to meet hers. They stiffened up and kept marching, not even acknowledging her. One of them had been sent to the Medicae at least three times by Nairore with broken bones. Now he wouldn't even look at her. Rumors spread fast, though she had to wonder what it was that he feared. What had he heard that made his stiffen up compared to the other Knights, as rumors had a nasty habit of twisting for drama's sake.

The Knights continued on and disappeared from view. Nairore watched until they were gone and then began her jog again, mulling over the bizarre conversation she just had. Then again everything in her life was bizarre these days.

[FIN]

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