In the days following the loss of Wyda, Aislinn had pulled into herself, like a tortoise who retreats back to its shell. She was certainly still present. She was an officer, she still had a job to do. There were still people missing, for one. She'd not leave Crific on his own to handle it all. But she did her job with a blank sort of efficiency.
In a word, Aislinn floundered. Became unapproachable when what she truly needed was comfort, connection, reassurance. But the person who had given that and more was gone. And if that wasn't enough of a blow, someone else was walking around in Wyda's body saying they had it first. Angry, loudmouthed, drunk, glowering, and generally intent on being everything Wyda had never been.
Aislinn needed to get away from Heartwood for a while and jotted off a note for Bertram that said as much. Then she collected her gun, took Barnabas, and went into the Shroud for some target practice.
Bertram had done his best to respect Aislinn’s space while also not bowing completely to any attempts to distance him that might occur. He knew Aislinn well enough to know that she had a tendency to clam up and retreat into herself when things became more than could easily be borne. He wasn't even convinced that it was entirely conscious either, more of an instinct than anything else. It was with a measurable sense of relief that he read the note that let her whereabouts be known. It was a comforting notion, even if Bertram himself was still wrestling with his own sense of guilt over the situation; both for not being there to help Aiswyda and not being there at Aislinn's side. It was a difficult thing to process.
It was no surprise that Bertram was quick to make his way out into the Shroud to find the woman. He didn't rightly like the idea of her being left to stew in her own grief alone for too long. The very least that he could do was be there. Even if it was just to be a silent reminder that she wasn't alone.
Daylight had mellowed to a gold, late afternoon glow that filtered through the forest canopy and Aislinn had found herself a quiet clearing in which to practice. Knowing that the ethereal Elementals that inhabited the dark Shroud might not care for her blasting lead through the wood, she had come prepared.
A small, spherical mechanical node hovered around the clearing, darting this way and that. This was the target. Aislinn's aim swept after the sphere, an intense look of concentration on her face. Her first shot grazed by it, a harmless pulse of blue energy. If this bothered her, she didn't show it, but kept her gun trained on the node. It swiftly halted and spun about to shift direction, she fired, a stun round blasting out the gun's chamber. An arc of blue, crackling energy enveloped the node as it fell out of the sky. It rolled and came to a stop in the grass, points of light around the circumference of the sphere indicating that it was resetting itself. Aislinn let go a breath, lowered her arm and kneaded her free hand against her aching shoulder as she waited. The kickback was jarring but she couldn't deny that it felt good to let her gun speak for her. It was louder than she could ever manage to be.
Bertram’s approach through the wood was intentionally obvious and audible. His usual silence seemed wrong in this current situation given his desire to be present in the moment. Living up to his epithet hardly seemed appropriate.
"Alright, there?" he called out gently from a few paces away.
The node beeped softly and whirled up into the air once more but Aislinn's attention was on Bertram. She stared as if she couldn't possibly know how to answer that question this time. In the end, she dropped her hand from her shoulder, defeated. "No." she said as she turned to look once more at the node as it flitted gamely through the air. "I just. ..needed to get some distance for a bit. Some air."
"I can't exactly blame you for that," he murmured quietly, bowing his head slightly whilst taking in a slow breath, "that's a feeling that I understand all-too-well."
Bertram watched the drone quietly for a moment as he moved to stand beside Aislinn with a thoughtful expression. The particulars of the situation weren't something that he understood in their entirety but the general gist certainly seemed to click with him. It was a situation that seemed all too familiar to him. Almost painfully so. That it was happening to Aislinn -- again -- only seemed to make it all the worse for him.
"Did you design that yourself?" He asked, deciding against prodding Aislinn about Wyda and letting her approach that at her own pace.
She knew what he was doing. But all the same, she welcomed it. In these past weeks when had she last had a conversation about something benign? Not work, not the missing Heartwood members, or a plan of attack, not the grief or how it sometimes seemed so big it shimmered beyond the boundaries of her body. Holstering her gun for the time being, she eyed the node. "Seemed more respectful than coming out here and blasting away at a bullseye nailed to a tree." she said with a single nod of her head. "Plus, it's more of a challenge if it's moving."
The man lets out a quiet laugh as he dips his head in Aislinn's direction; a gesture of concession to her point. She was most certainly not wrong about that. Bertram couldn't pretend to understand the whims and whiles of the Elementals entirely himself, but he knew well enough than to act carelessly under their scrutiny. "I'd say that's a pretty good plan if you asked me," He commented somewhat wryly before turning his attention away from the node and back to Aislinn, "And the rounds? Those are your creation too? Meant to incapacitate if I'm not mistaken."
She tilted her head in his direction. A wordless acceptance of his compliment. To his question, she hesitated. "I saw Haila with them first. But once I did, I realized what a perfect solution they were. It only took a few slight modifications to the gun to be able to fire both kinds of rounds." She paused and gave a harsh exhale. "I'm sorry I'm not my usual, chatty self." she said, facetiously, of course. She had never been known for her chatter.
Bertram simply gave her a 'look' that told her that the apology was the furthest thing from necessary. Aislinn was many things and chatty was not one of them. At least not in the traditional sense. Get her started on a topic of interest then maybe but, otherwise . ..? He let out a quiet chuckle. "And I'm sorry for being so loud," he offered back in an attempt to bring some humor, ". .. your ability to adapt the tech so rapidly is certainly something that I don't think I'll ever really grasp." Another soft laugh as he gently shakes his head.
Her brow furrowed at first. Loud? When had Bertram -ever- been loud? Ahh, but then the light goes off in her head and she gets it. A soft huff escaped her as she gave him a wry glance out of the corner of her eye. She shrugged since it seemed like the only thing to do. "It keeps me busy. I have to stay busy otherwise...." she trailed off, letting a silence fall. And then, "Do you think it's possible for a person to be cursed?" she blurted out, then quickly glanced away. Her jaw tensed as if she was trying to hold down something particularly unappetizing. "It just seems..that everyone that gets close to me..ends up worse off."
Bertram couldn't pretend not to be quietly relieved that she'd broached the subject by her own volition rather than him having to go fishing for the feelings that she was undoubtedly keeping bottled up. It was, perhaps, the way that she and Ren were the most alike. They both hated putting their own problems on others. Perhaps to unhealthy lengths. It was something that he'd grown quite used to in their time as children.
All the same the question caused the highlander's stomach to twist slightly; that her mind was in such a dark place was a painful thought. "Do I believe in curses?" He echoes quietly, turning his attention out toward the forest, "Probably."
There's a pause as he draws in a deep breath. "But do I believe that you're cursed, Lin?" He shakes his head slowly, "No, I don't." He gently places a hand upon his own chest, gesturing to himself as he turned his attention back to Aislinn with as gentle of an expression as he could muster. "I wouldn't be here with my mind as my own if it weren't for you. There's not a single doubt in my mind about that. Both Ren and I are who we are today in part because of you, Lin."
At his assertion that she surely wasn't cursed, she flicked her eyes over to him. They were still troubled but unguarded. "But what you went through, that nightmare. Can you honestly say you're better for that?" she asked with quiet forthrightness.
He wasn't surprised by her follow-up question; he'd practically expected it in truth. Nor could he blame her for asking it. His life couldn't truly be described as easy by any measure. It'd been a long and painful journey to this point, no one could deny that and he wouldn't try to claim otherwise. "Sort of an impossible question, isn't it, Lin?" He asked gently as he held her gaze, "All that I can say for certain is that I'm standing right here with my mind as my own and a real future in front of me."
He looks down at the earth for a moment, an introspective expression upon his face. Could things have been different? Certainly, but how could he possibly account for all the different ways that life could have gone? "For as much as either of us know, my getting taken away and ..." he didn't go into the details of what had been done to him, " .. well, for all we know it saved my life and Ren's as we were both plucked out of the Resistance as a result."
She was silent for a long moment as she considered his words. It was a different perspective, to be sure. Everything that they had gone through had surely made them the people they were today but as to whether those people were better off..that was up for constant debate. And some days, like today, she wasn't so sure. But maybe that was the only way forward. The past was the past, immutable and unmalleable. "Some days it's harder to justify it all." she said. "What was it all for?"
As she finished speaking an odd noise broke the peace of the briar. A metallic, skittering sound that echoed from the great hollowed out trunk that lay at the clearing's opening. A soft, repetitive series of beeps followed in its wake. Almost immediately, trepidation rippled across Aislinn's face, her mouth frozen open in whatever she had been about to say next. She stopped, turning towards the fallen log. "What was that?" she asked, voice low. But she feared she already knew the answer.
Bertram had only just begun to formulate his answer when Aislinn was suddenly moving in response to the foreign sounds that filled the air of the otherwise peaceful clearing. They certainly didn't sound like what he would expect to hear from the depth of the Shroud. His brow furrowed and his fists tightened. He couldn't help but feel his readiness to fight build up to whatever unknown presence had made its way toward them.
"I don't know ..." he nearly whispered, "I didn't think anything was following me."
From the dark hollow three Allagan spiders emerged, spindly dagger-like legs allowing them to cling to the top and sides of the log. The orbs stationed directly in front of the hybrid bioweapons flickered, the series of patterns changing as they paused, having found their quarry. Roughly the size of large dogs, these must be the scouts. Much like the one she and Haila had dissected. Aislinn cursed under her breath and gave a sweeping look around them. Cornered. Her comforting, secluded clearing had become a trap.
She took a cautious step back, flexing her hand and reaching for her gun. "No." she stated. No, she wouldn't let this happen. No, she refused to be the reason more bad news would end up at Heartwood's door. Just no. Without letting her gaze leave the allagan tech, she explained to Bertram. "Those things are what took the other medics. We need to find a way out. Fast. Before more come."
Bertram didn't need to be told twice. If it were just him it might have been a simple matter of disappearing into the wood, but Aislinn was here and he needed to make certain that they both got out of this in one piece. He took a short step forward and began to tap into the aether born of his chakra. He was far from a master Fist, but he's learned enough to defend himself if needs be. He quietly cursed for coming out here unarmed. "How dangerous? Can I distract them?" He left out the loud 'Why' that was pounding in his head. That would be for later.
"I don't know. ..I never -" she stopped and shot her free hand out, gripping his arm tightly in response to his idea that he distract them. The reaction had been immediate, a gut-wrenching 'absolutely not' born out of the fear that she would lose him too. "Dangerous. We never come out ahead in a fight with them." But now she also saw they had no choice. The spiders were covering the exit like they were waiting for something. "Alright." she dropped her hand. "Just..we get an opening, and we're out."
She whistled sharply for Barnabas who stood dozing at the clearing's edge. "Be ready." she nodded to him and raised her weapon. Fortunately, the scouts seemed content to sit. She fired off a round, the electric arc shocking the orb of the nearest one, causing it to drunkenly stumble to one side. That spurred the other two into motion. If their quarry wouldn't wait peacefully, they'd subdue it.
The two remaining spiders raced towards them.
There was no mistaking the message sent by Aislinn's grip. Alright. No distractions. Instead Bertram began to focus his aether into his legs and his feet. A technique of his father's that he'd yet to try out in a live scenario. A slow breath filled his lungs as he eyed the pair of spiders that had started charging toward them.
He spared Aislinn a quick glance out of the corner of his eye before he leaned forward and launched himself forward with all of his strength and aether combined. It resulted in the highlander bolting forward in a near blur to a point just behind one of the spiders. The precision of the movement was uncanny; like a shark darting forward for the kill. He was quick to, then, shift onto one leg and lash out with the other in an attempt to make contact and damage one of the spider's many legs.
The spiders were fast, but Bertrams's aether-boosted speed was beyond them. Before the spider could turn, it's leg crumpled inward at an awkward angle. For Bertram, he would have felt his kick connected with a disconcerting flesh overlay that protected the circuitry within. His impressive display of aether only serves to draw the ire of the remaining spider, who launches itself at him from the side as he is busy with the first.
The spider connected solidly with Bertram, with all its weight behind it. Meanwhile, Aislinn made a run for Barnabas and vaulted herself into the saddle. She knew time was of the essence. These things were nothing compared to what she knew must be coming. There may be some who would be determined to stay and fight this fight. She was not foolish enough to be one of them. Not when so much depended on her walking away from this. Turning the hulking chocobo around, she watched in horror as the spider collided with Bertram and without another thought, raced the bird into the fray.
Bertram grunted and let out a short cry of surprise as the spider slammed up against him. It was alarming just how resilient these . .. things were and that was saying nothing of the power that seemed to be behind them. The highlander gritted his teeth as he was forced down by the spider. He didn't panic though, there was no time for that, and immediately gathered up aether within his hand. The process was immediately followed by a punch to what passed as the creature's thorax.
Bertram's fist echoed against what almost sounded unnervingly like a hollow cavity, surely he had dented it. But it continued on in its assault. The spider's legs begin to curl around him, gripping him tight in a macabre embrace. As Barnabas thundered into the tangle of limbs, spurred on by Aislinn, the ornery chocobo gave a mighty call as he let fly a bone shattering kick to the spider that had toppled Bertram. It was knocked to the side, Its main chassis caved in. Briefly, Bertram could be seen. Aislinn swung down in the saddle, arm outstretched. "Good enough! Grab hold!" she yelled.
The highlander didn't miss a beat. The thunder of Barnabas' feet -- and the prelude to violence that was his wark -- gave Bertram all the time he needed to prepare to act with great haste in the wake of the chocobo's devastating attack. The moment that Bertram felt the spider's grip and weight ripped free from him pushed his foot into the dirt at an angle that caused him to spin around like a top.
It was an act that oriented himself *just-so* that he could grab a hold of Aislinn's arm and yank himself up toward the saddle. He was temporarily something of a saddlebag before he was able to work himself into the seat proper. He was quick to pat Aislinn's arm several times once he was secure. A signal that simultaneously told her he was okay and that she should get them the hell out of there!
She certainly didn't need to be told twice. As she raced Barnabas out of the clearing, the spider she had stunned seemed to have managed to repair itself, hunkering down and steadying itself on all legs momentarily before giving chase, albeit in a swerving, drunken sailor fashion. The second that Bertram had crippled also limped after them, one missing leg slowing it down but certainly not stopping it. However, as Aislinn turned to look behind them as they fled, she saw what she had truly been dreading.
Over the crest of the clearing's rocky walls a much larger spider was clamoring down after them, having been signaled by the scouts. Large enough to hold a person in the depths of its cold, mechanical bowels. "We can't lead them back to Heartwood." she panted as she jerked the reins and turned Barnabas' head deeper in the wood.
Bertram's eye went wide as he beheld the larger spider. There was an uneasy feeling within his stomach as he came to realize just *what* it was that had made Aislinn so eager to split from the three other, smaller spiders. Whatever this thing was, it was a horrifying sight.
She reined Barnabas in briefly at the bridge, weighing their options while trying to simultaneously not give in to the screaming fear that she would follow in G'lewra's and Vanriri's fate. "We can lose them in the Sylphlands. There should be enough aether bouncing around there to throw off their sensors." Trading one problem for another. The Sylphlands were hardly a safe haven. But as she spied the scouts scurrying in their wake, she didn't wait for Bertram's answer, she simply launched Barnabas across the bridge.
No protest or argument would come from Bertram as Aislinn revealed her plan. As far as he was concerned it was the best option at this juncture. He simply braced himself for a bumpy ride and prepared his wits to deal with the myriad of dangers within the deep Shroud. And that was saying nothing of the trickery that they would no doubt have to deal with from the locals. Some of which might yet be malicious. There was truly nothing to be said for it now.
The spiders clicking and whirring at their heels, Aislinn drove Barnabas towards the cliffside at a breakneck pace. With a mighty shove, the chocobo launched himself off the edge and into the air. Barnabas was no slouch. He was a magnificent specimen of a chocobo. But with two full-sized riders, even he could do no more than glide off the edge of the cliffside and slow their descent into the dark gloam below. In the depths of the ominous and strange Sylphlands. After a rough landing in which, Aislinn almost lost control and pitched herself and Bertram to the ground, she pulled Barnabas to a halt and slouched over the neck winded bird. She may have been hugging him. Something Barnabas merely tolerated for the moment.
Bertram didn't waste any time lingering upon the chocobo. He simply slid from Barnabas' back and dropped back down to his feet. He did a quick surface level scan of his body to make certain he'd not sustained any serious wounds before immediately moving a few paces out and growing very still as he listened and watched. He wanted to confirm that those things were not still on their tail.
After collecting herself, Aislinn pulled her face from the chocobo's feathered neck and likewise lowered herself to the ground. She came to stand beside Bertram, peering up at the cliffside from which they had vaulted. "We should hide." she said. "Just to be on the safe side." She had faith in her theory but it was just that, a theory. There was still so much about this allagan weaponry that remained a mystery.
She turned away from the open landscape and stationed herself behind a great stone boulder before sinking to the ground, adrenaline having run its course.
Bertram flicked his gaze over in Aislinn's direction as she moved in beside him. A slow breath filtered through his lungs before he nodded in agreement. He followed behind the woman before leaning back against the same stone and heaving a slow sigh. He couldn't help himself from being on high alert however. There's a length of silence before he comments softly. "Well ... that was exciting."
She paused and gave him one of their shared ‘looks’. But whether due to the lingering excitement or fear, a wavering laugh escaped her though nothing about this was funny. "Still sure I'm not cursed?" she sighed in a bit of black humor.
"Still breathing." He replied back without hesitation, his attention predominately on the sounds immediately around them. It was a reflex that he couldn't help but let take control. "... I have no idea what's going on, Lin, but right now we've got to focus on giving these things the slip so that we can get you back to the safety of Heartwood." He murmured quietly. "You can tell me all about it then."
She nodded. He was right. First, they needed to find their way out of here. Then, she'd unravel the thread of the story for him. "Even so. If my idea holds, we have to wait it out. Give those things a chance to give up and wander off. That's how we'll make it back to Heartwood. I can't make a beeline there and lead them straight to our doorstep." She tipped her head back against the stone as she inhaled a fortifying breath. "But aye, then it seems you're in need of some answers."
The man lowered himself down into a squat and drew in a deep breath as he forced himself to ease up slightly and not hyper-fixate on their potential pursuers. He closed his eyes and measured his breathing; remembering the lessons for his father's crystal. He slowly began to bring himself down from the battle-high.
"That sounds like a good plan to me. They'd be damn crazy to chase out this deep into the Shroud. We're half-mad for coming here ourselves." Another short, quiet chuckle.
"Believe me, this was the better of the options. Any day of the week." Aislinn quietly replied.
