The Unbidden: A New World (1) (Long Parts)

Chapter 4 (Part 1)

I slowly awoke to the feeling of something pressing against my chest. For a moment, struggled to open my eyes. When they finally cooperated, I saw darkness and the vague shape of something in front of me.

It was warm and when I moved my hand onto it, I found it was soft like skin. My mind was lagging a bit behind my body, but slowly the facts creeped to me. It was then I noticed the shallow rising and falling of a body.

My vision began to adjust to compensate for the little light there was. I wasn't too certain at first, but I knew from touching the soft, silky hair that it was Thea lying beside me on my bed.

It was the middle of the night, or early morning. I couldn't tell. I exhaled deeply, and slowly moved away from her sleeping body and off the bed. I squeezed my eyes shut once more and opened them again, the groggy feeling ever present.

I felt physically drained. I struggled to even stay on my feet without leaning onto the wall or grabbing onto the nearby table. I gingerly made my way out of the room and down to the inn's lobby.

The dimly lit room allowed my eyes to adjust well enough. I noticed a single familiar feminine figure sitting at a table. The room was otherwise empty save the innkeeper's apprentice. I approached the person who looked up from their book toward me.

"Good evening, Xavier," Vel'Nysa spoke, motioning to the chair opposite her.

I sat down, rubbing my eyes with my fingers.

"Why're you here?" I asked groggily.

"I came to check upon you as you did not show up this weekend," she said, sipping water from a glass.

She closed the book and set it in front of her on the table.

"The weekend ... you mean I've been asleep for at least two days?"

"Today is Wednesday," she stated.

"I've been asleep for five days."

A moment of silence passed as the wheels in my head lubed up.

"How did you know I was staying here?" I asked.

"I had you followed by Gho back when you first showed up and left. It was for insurance purposes, really."

"Why bother checking up on me, anyway?"

She took another drink before responding.

"I had some things I wanted to discuss with you."

I pointed to her water, to which she slid toward me. It was like heaven in my mouth as the smooth, flavorless liquid flowed down my throat. It was then I truly felt the effects of dehydration. My head pounded so hard I felt like a jackhammer was going through it.

I guess not drinking for five days really messes you up. This water is the best, I thought, sliding the cup back toward her.

"Is one of them about a magical presence that showed in the city on Friday?"

She nodded.

"We detected a massive presence within the city on Friday. It seemed to have navigated toward this area before vanishing. Do you have any idea what happened?" she asked, leaning in and speaking in a low tone.

"Yea. I fought another mage. His name was Roy and he possessed a Tarboleth."

Vel'Nysa's eyes lit up upon mention of the Tarboleth.

"You know of the Tarboleth?" she asked in what appeared to be excitement.

"Sort of. Can you tell me what you know about them?"