RP:Paranoia
Part of the Surface Tension Arc
Synopsis: Returning home from experimenting with potions with Lydrain, Skylei pauses due to a fit of nausea at the gorge between Kelay and Cenril. Approached by a cloaked figure wearing drow skin gloves, Skylei assumes she is under attack from the drow that inhabit Sage, and promptly defends herself. These assumptions, although wrong, are legitimised due to the skirmish that had occurred on Kelay Way a few days early, leaving several drow dead. However, her 'assailant' turns out to be Emilia. Frustrated and angry, Skylei's plans of vengeance are reinvigorated.
Overlooking Gorge
Skylei is heading in the direction of Cenril, travelling on her way back to the city from Xalious. She’s still somewhat nauseous from the effects of potions ingested a day previous at the behest of Lydrain. Though she had expected the effects of the potions to wear of quickly, it is apparent that allowing two complete novices to mix their own poisons and then test them on themselves is utterly ridiculous and has catastrophic results. And thus, with her coat wrapped tightly around her, in spite of the spate of warm weather that they had been experiencing recently, a rather white looking Skylei makes her way to the edge of the of the bridge. That first look into the chasmic dip in the earth always makes Skylei feel ill and today it sends her over the edge as she empties the contents of her stomach into the abyssal gorge. Queasy and dizzy, Skylei chooses to linger on the Kelay side of the bridge for a little longer.
Emilia let out a small sigh of relief as black leather boots hit the ground of the familiar path. The blonde had spent the previous night down within the city of the underdark. It was a silly thing for anyone to do, especially one in her present condition. The blonde was cloaked in long flowing black fabric with a hood drawn up over her head to the point it hung just past her nose concealing her freckled face. It was interesting to walk the land without being recognized and stopped within her travel. Almost relaxing were it not for the deep gash that she’d sustained on her way out of the drow world that ran up the length of her thigh. Inhaling a slow breath the blonde remained where she was for a moment as the smell of something hit her nose. Pregnant she could swear her smelling had increased ten-fold. Hidden bright blue eyes snapped in the direction of the familiar half-elf as she vomited into the abyss below. Silent steps carried the blonde from the northern entrance over to the pale white queasy woman. A hand gloved with the flesh of a drow that fit like a second skin over the farmers arm up to her elbow reached out to lightly rest on the shoulder of the other woman. Cloaked figure and a drow skinned hand. “Steady.” The voice a half whisper of that familiar country twang.
Skylei might recognise that voice but, when she looks over her shoulder and finds only dark skin and a cloak, familiarity goes out of the window. Emilia is seen to be an enemy, an attacker and an adversary. Most importantly, she is seen to be a drow. Nauseous she might be, but Skylei isn’t going to let some drow bitch touch her, and certainly she’s not going to let her throw her down the abyss after the contents of her stomach. What was it her father had taught her? When it comes to drow, you punch first and ask questions later. First comes an elbow aimed to punch squarely at the stomach, then a backwards fist to the face as she spits, attempting to cleanse the bitter taste of vomit from her mouth. First contact hopefully made, Skylei spins and tears the bow from her back, loading and lighting an arrow within seconds. Whilst she chooses not to fire just yet, hoping that the suspected drow will choose to leave her in peace. Normally, Skylei would have no issue with spilling drow blood but there are bigger forces at play and Skylei cannot risk interrupting what is to come by sullying her name with tales of drow deaths.
Emilia had forgotten that she’d put on those gloves as another part of the guise she used when traveling down within the lightless city. Skylei’s elbow would come directly into the arm of the other woman that was hidden beneath the cloak holding a large book against her body. The blonde had little time to react before the first attached to that elbow smacked her square in the nose. A small shriek of pain that came with the faint sound of a crack as the half elf broke the farmer’s nose. The book that had been held against her was instantly dropped to the ground making a thud of its own. The title, if Sky glanced at it, was something about sunless farming. Odd. Both gloved hands were up in the air. One went for the bleeding nose trying to stop the flow of the crimson liquid. The other was held up as if a sign of surrender to the woman with her bow. Moving to take a few small steps back the clumsy human tripped on the folds of the cloak, knocking herself backwards flat onto her hear a few feet from the armed half-elf. As Emi hit the ground the hood fell from the top of her head revealing blonde curls braided against the scalp turned into loose braids falling to the ground. Bright blue eyes blinked a few times as still rather stunned the farm girl stared up at Sky with her loaded bow aimed her way. That gloved hand still held under her nose soaked in blood as it spewed from the busted nose. “Don’t kill me.” Came muffled words from behind that hand.
As the human falls to the floor, and that pale skin and blonde hair is revealed, Skylei is hit with a sudden wave of shock. The paranoia that has been brewing within her about the drow that lived in Sage is starting to get the better of her. Skylei needs to act soon, save she become embroiled in madness. Letting out an irritate cry of rage as she spots the fresh blood from Emilia’s nose on her fist, Skylei is lost for what to do. Apologise? But for what? Defending herself from someone dressed like the enemy of her people? No. Skylei is too proud for that. Instead, with the talents of one who’s been shooting for as long as she can remember, Skylei lets the arrow loose, shooting it into the ground and into Emilia’s cloak, pinning her to the floor, lest the human move quickly enough. It’s a sign of her irritation and frustration. She has no desire to actually hurt Emilia any more that she had done already (okay, that’s a lie. But she has the goodness of heart not to actually hurt her). She’d at least had the decency to quell the flame that had been lit on the end of the projectile before shooting it at the human. “Then don’t dress like a drow bitch.” Skylei snarls. That said, and her nausea returning, Skylei turns to leave the human bleeding on the path. She’s only minutes from Kelay after all.
Emilia wouldn’t expect one such as Skylei to understand the reasoning as to why the blonde had been dressed like a drow when she herself cannot stand the very creatures. She also couldn’t exactly be mad at the half-elf woman either for busting her nose with a first. It was after all odd and not expected that someone you know be wearing gloves that changed the appearance of their hands. Hard lesson learned to take off your gloves once back on the surface. Wide eyed the blonde let out a bit of a shriek as she removed her hand from her nose, blood spilling freely down her face, to join her other hand in blocking herself when the half-elf let loose the arrow from the bow. Indeed more than just part of the human expected Sky to actually be aiming to hit her with it. When it sunk into the ground pinning the black fabric of the cloak down the human slowly lowered her hands from the air. One moving swiftly back to her nose. A moment she almost retorted her to not shoot first, but that was an utterly stupid statement. Reaching with her other hand the blonde attempted to yank the fabric free from the arrow, even if that meant ripping the cloak. “I think you best go lay down before whatever it is that has you ill makes you more mental and paranoid.” Belated words.
Skylei can only assume that, from those gloves, Emilia has been fraternising with drow. Fraternising with drow makes Emilia the enemy (again – somehow Emilia is always the enemy). Letting out a high-pitched forced, bark-like laugh at the suggestion that she might be suffering from psychosis, Skyei turns back to look at Emilia with a single eyebrow raised, “Paranoid?! I think you’d best open your eyes and look around you Emilia. Have you not seen the news? Drow attacks on Kelay Way. Imbecile.” Oh, Skylei’s paranoid alright, but she’ll be damned if she admits it. Spitting once more into the gorge, the taste of vomit still souring her breath, Skylei turns around once more and begins to make her way across the fragile bridge and back towards her home in Cenril. No matter what Emilia says, she will not be provoked into reacting. She has things to do; things that she has been putting off for far too long.
Emilia had not read the news lately. Maybe now she should read the news or just go back into being a hermit down at her farm in Venturil away from the drow attacks. She’d nothing else to say to the half-elf really. More important things to tend to now. Like her bleeding nose. Skylei would vanish off toward Cenril and the blonde would get up from the ground. After gathering her book again she was off to Kelay to find the healer.