[cont./@roadthrived ]
Molly hadn’t been talking for long. He didn’t know exactly how many weeks he’d spent traveling with the carnival before he’d spoken a word, but once he did, it had been like breaking a spell. Suddenly, he was alive again, breathing fresh air instead of thick fog, and even if it was still hard to find the words at times, he couldn’t imagine returning to his silence.
But here he stood, before a woman, broken and bloodied, lying face-down in the dirt and he found himself unable to make a sound. He froze in place, vague hints of memory circling in his mostly empty head. He’d seen bodies before. Was that why he wasn’t running away? Or was it the overwhelming desire to help that kept him there? If she was dead already, there was little he could do, but...
A tremble wracked her body as she took in a shuddering breath. Still alive.
The tiefling dropped his stack of carnival flyers, sending the papers scattering forgotten into the wind as he rushed forward to the woman’s side. “Easy now,” He soothed, turning her over carefully and cradling her upper half in his arms. “I got you.”
Getting her up was a challenge. She had quite a bit of height on him and he really didn’t want to cause her any more pain, but he had to get her to the others. Gustav or Orna, either of them might know what to do. He couldn’t just leave her here.
“It’s okay. I’m gonna get you help, yeah? They’ll fix you right up.”