Stopping The Addiction

[*DarkArc]

"Silvanus save me," Khari muttered, shocked. She rushed over to help the woman, trying to remove the tubes hooked into her. (heal 27)

[*Selebius]

The woman is barely conscious, staring at Khari with her remaining eye, drooling blood and saliva over her ruined chest.

The tubes are warm, feel almost like fleshy beings, like some kind of maggots or worms, seem unwilling to leave their host.. or victim. Still Khari succeeds to pull them all out and to stop the flowing blood, stabilize the woman. But the damage done to her body and mind is tremendous.

"...Durwin won't like to see this. Not at all." Eman whispers, his voice refelecting his emotions- his companion running out to vomit on the street.

[*DarkArc]

"I know," Khari untied the woman, telling her softly not to move or speak. She took a great amount of care with her, not knowing the full extent of her torment. "Tell him we found her, but tell him to be ready."

Khari used her knowledge of herbalism to ease the woman's suffering, treating her more severe wounds.

[*Selebius]

Eman nods and leaves her alone with the woman.

While her wounds are treated easily her mind is still heavily samaged and even her body is weak from the addiction, the torture and whatever that machine did to her.

When Durwin enters he is not ashamed to cry, cradling her close, carrying her out of this gruesome place.

[*DarkArc]

Khari looked at the monstrous contraption before leaving the room. Knowing the nature of the device, the ranger tossed a vial of alchemist's fire at it, intent on letting it burn. She then had a few Hivers help her seal off the well, using a few spell scrolls she had on her to demolish the inside of the well and cave in it.

Once they were finished, Khari passed the word for the horde to regroup at the Slags. As for Duwin, she let him take care of his wife and told him to let her know if he needed anything of her.

[*DarkArc]

Khari took an indirect path back to the hideout. Once they arrived, she did a sweep around the area to ensure they were not followed. Inside the hideout, she had the captive bound to the chair and removed the gag.

"Let's start with your name," she said to the blindfolded woman. "And then the location of any more of these pain pits your employers have within the Hive."

[*Selebius]

The Slag is a good place if you want to stay hidden and Khari makes it even harder for those who want to follow her to find them.

The woman clears her throat at the questions, swallows a few times, the gag made her mouth dry.

"Seja. And I have no idea."

[*DarkArc]

"Well Seja, you must know something. Tell me everything you know about the operation of your employers. Their names, whereabouts, the location of any of their hideouts and gathering spots. Every detail you know."

[*Selebius]

Durwin leaves the group, leading his wife home. The woman clings to him, following silently.

Demolishing the hut and well goes well and soon the Hive has one ruin more- the spells and the fire destroying what remains of this horrible place.

The fire sometimes burns with a strange greenish flame and some say they heard screams as the machine was devoured by it- but perhaps it was just their imagination.

"What about the captives?",Eman asks as the Hivers regroup and get ready to retreat to the slags- two of his friends holding the guard, the two addicts cowering against the wall of a nearby hut.

[*DarkArc]

Khari considered the captives for a moment. "Bind and blindfold the guard. We'll question her when we get back to the hideout." The young ranger then thought of what to do with the addicts. Their hideout in the Slags wasn't large enough to accommodate three prisoners but she also didn't want the addicts to run off and continue their destructive behavior.

"Any ideas where we can hold these two?" she asked Eman. "They are going to need a detox and constant looking after. The withdrawal of Agony is violent."