Его не звали, но он приперся / They never called, yet he is here: Маленькая слабость

Six days after the finale of Operation Misty.
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Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 07:37

The first thought I could think of when I came out of my feverish delirium was the usual regret for my stupidity. It would have been better for me to stay in the Eternal, to wait out the worst effects of my overstrain, and only then to go away. I wouldn't have had to risk leaving the city, and I wouldn't have had to risk being seen by the guards and the many vigilantes at the same time. Honestly, we'd almost gotten into trouble several times in a row!

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 10:19

Alas, but the eared tyrant of our group, who had taken upon herself the maintenance of all the disguises from all the third eyes and other bullshit, only having found out what exactly I had encountered in that ritual hall, right next to the snow-white altar, immediately drove us away from the capital, and almost with kicks. She would have kicked us too, but the rest of the group obeyed her willingly, and the only one who was against it was in a state of inkickness. A couple of kicks is enough to get me off to Valhalla. If, of course, they take the bedridden sick.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 10:21

The frantic gathering, the rapid wiping of traces, and the minimal participation of my soul chewed up by my efforts proved successful. Fortune itself and His Majesty Random were on our side that evening and morning. The payment for the opportunity to activate the laid schemes and mechanisms of concealing traces, bringing mirror blanks to the desired state, was a sharply worsened condition. They took me out of the Eternal, already lying down, preparing to feed possible interested people a story about a sick relative who wanted to see his hometown before his death. It was not necessary because, despite all the fuss my performance had caused, I managed to get out of the city without any problems.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 11:45

With some reservations, we managed to get a fair distance away from the capital despite the need to keep a relatively low pace. After a couple of weeks, when I had regained the ability to think without the risk of bursting like an overripe tomato, it was decided to stop in Charmkrond, a small town that was perceptibly off the beaten paths of trade and the main roads, but close enough to them that the appearance of strangers would not arouse suspicion. There were a couple of inns, a few inns, a few manufactories to feed the town, and Tia had found a convenient place to put me on my feet.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 11:53

The small estate, owned by a small but wealthy noble House, had been visited by its owners only a handful of times in this century and was a suitcase without a handle. It was guarded by a trio of guards, whose families were servants who kept watch over the house and garden. One topless walk performed by a satisfied dancer was enough to ensure their loyalty and non-interference in our affairs. Then, however, we'd have to fill the pantries with food. There were supplies here, but there were more eaters, and a sudden purchase of food might be a clue no one needed. Not for any of us, I mean.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 11:55

After getting settled into their new place, the team finally got to work on their commander's health.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:20

It was bad but bearable. I was much more worried that this " bearable" would last for two or three months. The help in escaping, minimal participation in hiding the group, and other trifles, otherwise as natural as breathing, hit the body and shell with the force of a war hammer. The alchemical intoxication, barely within the non-life-threatening limits, was preventing me from taking new stimulant compounds, which would speed up my return to normalcy. In fact, right now, I could be slaughtered by a couple or three capital city guards at about level twenty without much trouble.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:22

While the others slept on soft beds after the road, he had to sleep on the hard floor of the attic room, inside a ritual circle that was complicated to the point of headache, with only the name of the circle. An intricate and constantly updated figure, supplemented with new details, the whole complex of rituals was even more sophisticated than the camouflage scheme in the basement. Lying in that construct, especially in this helpless state, was a little unsettling, but if Tia wanted to do me harm, she could do it at any time, with no need for elaborate plans or clever tricks.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:24

"Are you okay now?" Tia asks, reconfiguring my healing ritual. "Any headaches or back pain?"

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:24

A ritualist at work is a funny sight, even if it is an elf. The rolled up sleeves, bare feet, paint-stained shirt, and simple cloth pants borrowed from the local servants, hair tied back in a tight bun. She only lacked glasses to fit the "mad scientist" template. She occasionally used a special enchanted monocle from her stock, though, so the glasses weren't really necessary. According to Tia, she knew how to work the lines of the ritual even without the enhancing glass, checking only the most complicated knots with it. Any good mage could do it, even me, if I ever wanted to learn ritualism at a good level.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:26

"A little tingling in my temples and a weird numbness," I complained, hoping the safety circuits would keep me from being fried in my juices. "It's like it's not my body that's numb. It's my brain. Thinking slower."

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:28

Her ritual had been having similar effects quite often lately. His mind, exhausted by the mirror battle, needs rest but can't get it because of the same mental traumas. That's why the elf tries different approaches to put me into a healing trance. In another situation, I could use such a method myself. Luckily, there is nothing complicated in it, nothing at all. But now I had to rely on outside help because I could injure myself with meditative relaxation. Taria had even offered her tits as help, and the fact Tia hadn't dismissed that option but had begun to make calculations with her gifted skill in mind was more than telling. Hopefully, if I'm going to be hypnotized by Taria's tits, someone will make sure she doesn't get too carried away with me temporarily in her power. Cause I know her too well, yeah.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:53

In spite of my amusement and relaxation, I was a little nervous. It was unusual to find myself so powerless that I needed someone else's help even to meditate. Taria's comments about what she would have done to me if she'd been allowed to participate kept popping into my head.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:55

At some point, I realized that consciousness had completely floated away, just a little more, and even awareness would disappear. The reflexive desire to resist, to break control, to throw off another's will... didn't occur to me. First, I trusted Tia enough, and second, that only works in the movies. In my case, I just hovered at the edge of self-consciousness, and after one eternity, I ceased to exist at all.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:56

It was a strange state. There was no clear moment when I began to realize myself. I realized that I was still sitting in the ritual circle, sitting in a lotus-like posture, and Tia was sitting opposite me in a similar posture. My memory is empty. There are no traces of memories, thoughts, or decisions. And the general feeling is that I can't quite tell if I'm dreaming or awake. And it's me, someone whose class requires me to always keep track of such aspects.

Camrad_RIP 14.10.23 в 15:58