Night 57: Test of Courage

[nobleman]

[From here.]

When Guy's vision cleared and that bright light had faded away, he found that he was somewhere else entirely. Luckily, it was nothing at all like that coliseum, except for the fact that it once again seemed to have switched to day -- or the illusion of it, at least. Granted, not much of the light from overhead was getting through due to the fact that they were now in a forested area, dense with trees and surprisingly tranquil. Was this somewhere out in the wilderness surrounding the institute, or was this all in their heads, like when they'd thought they'd been back in Baticul?

Guy couldn't help noticing that he was still soaking wet, so transporting hadn't changed that much. He was relieved to see that he was still armed, though. Even if everything seemed calm now, he wasn't going to assume that would last for long.

He saw some ruins up ahead that seemed to be the focus of the area; his instinct was to head there. First, though, he had to check on his friends.

As he turned, he saw Claude was there at his side, just as he'd thought, but... "Where's Anise?"

Comments

[full-score.livejournal.com]

Well, they certainly seemed energetic, Claude thought to himself with a half smile. Then again, they were likely trying not to act too bushed for his sake. When he thought of how things could have turned out, a cold chill settled in the pit of his stomach. Man, they were so lucky to all make it out of that alive. If something terrible had happened to Anise or Guy...

Well, they didn't have to dwell on that, and so they needed to bask in the moment. After slowly reaching for his sword with his right hand, Claude stumbled into the water and dragged the blade behind him. It was shallow enough in some places where he could wade most of the way, though his blood-soaked clothes provided more resistance than he wanted. As tiring as it was, and as much as it aggravated his wounds, the water also felt oddly refreshing now that no one was in danger of drowning.

Funny, how near-death experiences could change someone's perspective in the blink of an idea.

Eventually, he drew close to where Guy and Anise were perched. Heaving in a tight breath, he brought his sword up onto dry ground and began hauling himself up. It hurt, but he just told himself he wouldn't have to move anymore once he settled down with his friends.

[nobleman]

Guy got onto his feet to keep an eye on Claude while he made his way over. The man had to be exhausted after what he'd just been through; while Guy hadn't seen the fight, he couldn't imagine that it had been easy on his friend. That became even more certain when Claude got close enough that Guy could see his torn shirt and the wounds at his side, not to mention his hand.

"Here," he said, drawing forward and grabbing for Claude's good arm to help him up. "I can't believe you took that thing down on your own." He glanced over Claude's shoulder at the monster once more, marveling at the sheer size of it. He would have asked Claude how he'd pulled it off, but all of them were probably too exhausted for a long story like that.

Besides, it wasn't like Claude had come out of it completely unscathed. Once Claude had both feet on the platform, Guy moved back, giving him the space to sit down. "Thanks for dealing with that. If that thing had come after me while I was trying to free Anise, we would have had a serious problem."

[gald_digger]

It was a little worrying to look at the way Claude moved. He looked like he was in serious pain. Once he made his way over, though, Anise had to admit it was a relief to have the three of them together again.

Anise wanted to stand up to meet him too, but she felt sore and weak all over. If she wound up toppling over, it'd just worry everyone. So like a good girl, she remained sitting and waited patiently while Guy helped Claude over.

"That's amazing, Claude!" she chimed in when Guy mentioned the monster's defeat. "You're so cool!" She wanted to hug him too, but his clothes were stained with blood and he looked like he was in bad shape. She didn't want to aggravate any unseen injuries while trying to show her gratitude, so for the time being, she stuck to showering him with praise.

[full-score.livejournal.com]

Claude gave Guy an appreciative smile as he helped him onto the platform. His breath hitched in his throat for a moment from the pain, but it passed, and he gently eased himself onto the ground. "Thanks..."

Everyone looked like they were in fine spirits, even up close, so that was a bit of a comfort. When they both remarked on his fight with the monster, though, it took a moment for their words to register in Claude's fevered state. He turned a bleary-eyed gaze onto the serpent's large corpse, and the tendrils of blood that stained the once-clear water.

He could scarcely believe he'd killed that thing himself, in all honesty. But failure hadn't been an option, and so he'd only done what he had to do. Unsure of how to adequately handle the praise, Claude rubbed at the back of his neck with his uninjured hand.

"Nah, I-I was just lucky," he slowly said after a pause, his ears burning, though his face still managed to light up in such a way that it was easy to tell he appreciated the compliment. It had been a clumsy fight, one that he could have easily lost if that serpent hadn't missed his first strike, but he was happy he'd been able to help his friends. "I'm glad you're both safe. You must be really great at swimming, Guy."