Splinter Angel Chapter 27 (Patreon)

Hello! I've decided to actually add some achievements to this, and they give Advancement Points! One consequence of that is I need to update chapters 23 and 24, where Ana gets the achievements Party Delve I and Hunting Party II, worth 2 and 5 AP respectively.  This also means that Ana has some spare AP to boost her Dexterity and Agility when she spends her points in chapter 23.

Thanks for reading!

//AB

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Petra was the first to carefully wade over to… Tellak, Ana thought. She was pretty sure that was her name. “Hey, Tel?” Petra said softly. “How are you doing, girl?”

Tellak didn’t reply. She didn’t look at Petra, or give any kind of indication that she’d heard. She just sat, hugging her knees, blankly studying the steam rising from the water.

Getting closer, Petra asked, “Did you see Jay?”

There was the tiniest of nods from Tellak, her black hair rippling slightly as it floated around her. “Tracked her in,” she finally croaked, still staring at nothing. “Found her at Touanne’s. You know?”

“We found her,” Petra said gently, indicating the team. “All of us. We were coming back from a Delve.”

“Oh. Thank you,” Tellak whispered.

Petra visibly hesitated, then asked, her voice trembling, “Where’s Med?”

Even through the steam Ana could see Tellak’s eyes shudder and grow heavy with tears. Then her whole face twitched once, twice, and she pulled her knees up, burying her face and beginning to shudder silently.

No one spoke. There was no need.

*****

They all left. Petra, who stayed with Tellak, shooed away anyone who attempted to insert herself, and after rinsing again and getting dressed everyone just kind of drifted away. Kaira just promised to come to the inn after sunset, and even Messy only gave Ana a sad wave as she walked off towards the square.

Med, the… Sharpshooter, Ana thought, was dead. There was no doubt. Ana had no idea what grief felt like, but something deeply unpleasant had radiated off Tellak, and the mages of the group hadn’t been able to get out of the baths fast enough. Her Connection must be very high, Ana thought. That was interesting. She’d thought that a Bulwark would be some kind of melee fighter, especially with how muscular Tellak was. Perhaps it was both melee and magic? That would make sense.

While she had never felt grief, and was convinced that she lacked the requisite emotions to ever do so, Ana was fairly sure that she understood it. The best she could tell, it was an extreme sense of loss, a feeling that the universe itself had taken something indescribably precious from you, and that there was nothing you could do to make yourself whole. And that, she could imagine. She’d faced loss. She’d been robbed of her possessions, her dignity, and her pride. Take that pain, scale it up, and that was grief. Probably.

Ana felt vaguely guilty about her inability to really empathise, but she was who and how she was. And it wasn’t like she could have done anything to help the woman. Lacking experience with grief, she had no idea how to help someone going through it. Better to leave it to someone like Petra, who knew the women in the Living Daylights well enough to be on a nick-name basis.

She went back to the inn, collecting her dirty clothes from the Delve and taking them to the laundry she’d been using. Messila, the woman running the place, gave her a friendly smile and a discount, “for coming by so often.” Apparently getting your clothes washed wasn’t a very high priority for people here.

The woman was a Laundress (16), and looked like she might be 35 or 36 years old. That got Ana thinking and Classes and levels. Mostly as a way to distract herself from the situation with Messy and what was going on with Jancia and Tellak, but the subject did genuinely interest her. She slowly made her way back to the square, bought some kind of pastry filled with peppery stewed mushrooms at a stand, and sat down to eat it with her back to the Waystone.

This much she had gathered: First, there seemed to be Classes for everything. Laundresses, Custodians, Jewelers, Clerks and Administrators. Smiths and Tailors and Leatherworkers. If there was a craft or a profession, there was an associated Class. People started out as Apprentices or something like that, and either just stuck with it or switched once they qualified – through having the right Skills, Ana thought – or reset their Class to level 0 to start over. Starting over meant that you’d be behind everyone else of your age, but you’d gain levels in your new Class more easily thanks to your higher Skills and Attributes, though you wouldn’t gain any new Advancement Points until you exceeded your old level. Switching meant that gaining each level in your new Class was slower, since experience cost depended on your total level, but you kept all your levels and Abilities from your old Class. Not an obvious choice, though you’d probably now have a better Class, since not all Classes were created equal. Ana’s own Guardian Angel Class being a prime example.

Most people Ana saw, who didn’t have obvious combat classes, had similar age- and level-ranges. Teenagers would be level 7 or 8, tops. People in their twenties might get to level 15, and people above that might get to and beyond level 20. But without the extra Crystals from killing demons – or other things. People gave Crystals as well, as Ana well knew – or from raiding Delves, non-combatants were restricted to ‘natural’ Crystals, which you just… got, Crystals from increasing their Skills, and anything they might be able to afford to buy with the profit from their labour. They’d tend towards lower levels than combat Classes… probably.

For Combat classes, on the other hand, the only limit was how much risk you were willing to take. If Ana had been able to find and clear the Delve on her own she would have ended up with almost seven times as many Crystals, almost seven times the experience.

That would have gotten her, what? She tried to think back. Level 4 had cost her 800, level 5, 1250, and level 6 1800. She needed 2450 to reach level 7. There was some kind of pattern there.

Acuity came to the rescue. The difference in cost increased by 100. So level 8 would cost her… 3200 experience, she was pretty sure.

She had eaten Crystals worth about 3000 points, and had another 2150 points worth left over. Bonus Crystals messed things up and she didn’t remember what came from where, but maybe the whole delve would have been worth something like 25000 points if she’d done it on her own. She couldn’t have. She wouldn’t have found it, and she’d be dead several times over, but if she could have…

She sat with the last corner of her pastry in hand and focused. Fuck doing math in her head. Ah… she could have reached level 11, maybe? Something like that. A whole 4 more levels, taking her past Omda after only a week in this new, crazy world.

Impossible, but worth thinking about. How far could she go on her own? Maybe a Huntress or a Ranger to back her up and find targets for her?

Rayni had already shown some interest.

Definitely worth thinking about.

As she thought about that, Ana felt something like a mix of amusement and approval wash over her, radiating from the Waystone, and she remembered where she was, jerking forward and standing up. Had that ‘goddess’ been listening to her thoughts? Did that count as a prayer to the Wayfarer?

She reached out and touched the thing. “Stay out of my head, would you?” she muttered, though her tone didn’t reflect how offended she felt at the possible intrusion. “I’ll let you know if I have anything I want you to hear.”

In response, Ana got a sense of silent laughter. Guess she’s listening, she thought. By the doors of the temple the same woman as earlier that day was looking at her with a smile of approval. If she knew what Ana had just said to her goddess, she probably wouldn’t look so pleased. But if the goddess didn’t mind, who cared?

Goddess. Ana had been an atheist her whole life, half out of conviction and half out of spite. And now she was seriously considering that a goddess might be real, and might have a personal interest in her.

If it wasn’t for all the other unreal shit around her she’d be worrying about a brain tumour.

Enough about that. She could worry about what was real and what wasn’t until she gave herself an ulcer, or she could try to do something productive. Without a watch she didn't know exactly what time it was, but she’d spent enough time off grid to know there were a couple of hours left until sunset.

Without really deciding on it, she made her way to Touanne’s. She tried ringing the bell, then stepped inside when she got no answer but found the door unlocked.

“Touanne?” she called, but no one answered. The front was empty, but the door to the back was open and she walked over without stepping through. Going in there without being invited might be too familiar, she knew, no matter how friendly the Healer was.

“Touanne, it’s Ana. The door was open,” she called again, waiting for an answer.

She was starting to think that Touanne must have stepped out, and was turning to leave, when she heard an odd, choking sound from the back.

“Touanne! Are you okay?” Ana called, but again there was no answer, just that weird, shuddering, choking sound.

There was no way that she was letting that go. Touanne was important. She was important to the community that Ana was trying to become a part of, and she has made herself important to Ana as a confidante, a source of information and, she could admit to herself, of kindness and comfort.

She liked Touanne, and Touanne was in distress. That was unacceptable.

“I’m coming back there!” she warned, and sped through the door. She checked the laboratory. Empty. Then she went to the small room where they’d left Jancia. The Lumimancer was where they’d left her, in a bed by a window, sleeping peacefully by the look of it.

Touanne was sitting in a corner, on the floor with her legs hugged to her chest, looking at Ana with utter despair.

“I’m sorry,” Touanne choked out, a heaving sob shaking her, and a sense of helplessness rolled off her, strong enough that it made Ana stagger back a step and lean against the doorframe.

“I… I didn’t want to be a burden,” the Healer managed. “I’m sorry.”

There was no threat. No one was hurt in a way that Ana could help with. There were just two women, one sick, injured and recovering – hopefully – and the other paralysed with her own sense of impotence. And Ana didn’t know what to do.

Ana took a step towards Touanne. It was hard, that first step. The pain coming off the Healer was something that Ana could feel, a cloying thickness in the air that made her want to stop, back up, leave the room, flee the clinic entirely. She was sure now that she had indeed felt Touanne's pain when they had first brought the Healer to see Jancia outside the walls. And while that and the grief that Ana had felt from Tellak in the baths had been unpleasant, this was something else entirely.

It made sense, a detached part of Ana knew. Tellak was some kind of melee fighter, she was sure of that, so she wouldn’t have put as much into increasing her Connection as Touanne. Touanne was a Healer, first and foremost. She had some skill with alchemy, and Ana assumed that she needed some level of Acuity and Dexterity for that, and perhaps other Attributes as well, but Connection was more important than anything. That, more than anything, let Touanne help others, and she was nothing if not a helper.

Ana took another careful step, doing her best to ignore Touannes anguish, and the Healer shook her head. “Don’t,” Touanne pleaded. “I can’t control it. I can see that it’s hurting you and–”

“And it’s killing you to hurt me,” Ana finished for her, coming closer. She knew Touanne well enough to know that. “I can take it. This is nothing.”

It wasn't entirely true. It was fucking awful. She hated the hopelessness, and had to constantly remind herself that it was Touanne’s pain, that it was something she was aware of, not something that she was feeling. But she could take it. She had survived far worse.

“Please,” Touanne whispered as Ana knelt beside her, but she didn’t resist when Ana stuck one arm under her knees, the other around her waist and unceremoniously picked her up, Touanne’s arms almost reflexively going around Ana’s neck.

Being around Jancia didn’t help, Ana was sure of that. It didn’t help Jancia, and it certainly didn’t help Touanne. But Touanne was a martyr by nature, and there was no way that she’d abandon her patient. So, the first step, Ana decided, was simple.

She carried Touanne into the front room and deposited her in one of the two chairs by the table. Or rather, she tried to. She let go of Touanne, but it took a long minute before Touanne let go of her. The Healer’s arms stayed where they were as she silently wept into Ana’s tunic, until she took a few long, shuddering breaths and let go.

“I’m sorry,” Touanne whispered again, as Ana brought the other chair around and sat down facing her.

“Don’t apologise,” Ana said. “It’s not your fault that you can’t help that woman, or that my Connection is strong enough for you to affect me. I could've left. Anything I feel now is on me.”

“No!” Touanne insisted. “I should be able to control myself! I’m not some untrained child. I’ve had a Connection over 20 for decades. I shouldn't be…” she waved her hand helplessly. “And now I’m making you listen to my whining.”

“Again, I can leave whenever I want. So talk!” Ana tried to be firm but kind. “What’s wrong? Did something happen? I know that it’s about Jancia but you were nowhere near this bad when we left you.”

Touanne bit her lips, looking away. She looked so very fragile, Ana thought. Like the slightest shock, the wrong word, could break her.

“Tellak,” Touanne squeaked out. “She came by.”

Ana went completely flat. Tellak looked like a physically powerful woman. A fighter.

“Did she hurt you?” Ana asked, and her voice was a promise of barely restrained violence.

Touanne's head whipped around, her hair swirling into her face before bouncing back. “No! No, nothing like that!” she said, grabbing Ana’s hands like she wanted to forcibly keep her from leaving to do something terrible. “She’s my friend. Her and Jancia and… and Medecilia.”

Ah, Ana thought. The missing member.

“She was… not well,” Touanne went on, wiping at the fresh tears that ran from her eyes. “Med… Telly had to burn her. That’s how it is. Seven years together and… and then she came here. And Jancia is alive but…”

Touanne shuddered, and a fresh wave of despair rolled off her. “She left, Ana. She was so broken, and she left. And I couldn’t help her. I couldn't leave. I can’t help Jay, and I can't help Telly, and I’m so fucking useless.”

“You’re not useless,” Ana sneered, and Touanne looked at her, surprised at her tone. “I’ve been here all of a week and even I know that. You healed my ribs the first time we met, and asked nothing for it. You fixed up my hands after Tor made me work them raw. And the last few days I’ve seen your potions save three lives, one of them my own. Don’t you dare call yourself useless!”

“I couldn't help them!” Touanne cried, her eyes willing Ana to understand.

“No,” Ana said, a little more gently. “You couldn't. But you can't save everyone. This can't be the first time. How old are you, Touanne? 30, 40, 50? I’m sorry, but I honestly can’t tell. This can’t be the first time that you failed.”

“It’s not,” Touanne said, slumping in defeat.

“Do you always blame yourself?”

“Who else is there to blame? If I can’t help, what good am I?”

“Again, you’ve saved at least three lives in the few days that I’ve known you. You weren't there, but it’s thanks to you that Messy, Petra, and I are alive. Your failures are nothing compared to the good you’ve done. Even Jancia – no, shut up and listen!” Ana said as Touanne began to protest. “She’s alive, isn’t she? She looked peaceful, from what I saw. Your magic didn’t do anything, but did your potions?”

“She’s… the wounds are gone, yes. She’s recovering. But the crystals are still there, coming out of her skin. I can feel them inside her, too, invading her. On her heart, her lungs, her arteries… and there’s nothing I can do.”

“There’s nothing you can do now. She’s alive. You have time.” Ana smiled wryly. “Where there's life, there’s hope, right?”

Touanne sniffed. “Yes. Maybe. I guess. But Tellak–”

“We left Tellak with Petra. She came to the baths while we were there. I won’t lie, she looked pretty rough. But Petra seems to think that she knows what she’s doing.”

“If you want,” Ana added after a pause, “I can ask her to come here. I think the two of you should talk.”

“I… yes. That would be good,” Touanne said, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “And it would be good for Jay if Telly’s here when she wakes up. They’ll need each other.”

“I’ll go find her, then. Can you promise me to stay out of Jancia’s room unless absolutely necessary?”

“... fine. Yes.”

“Alright.” Ana hesitated, then gave Touanne an awkward hug, which the elfin woman returned fiercely.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Ana said as she left, then headed out.