Scalton

[Deleted]

Aranya fed the baby milk every day, the infant sucking the milk from her finger. It was a long and slow process. A month had passed in the Neck, and Perra and Fallon were getting anxious, but Aranya was determined not to leave. She scouted everyday for signs of the crannogmen, but they were impossible to find. Aranya persisted, guilt gnawing at her. She had to find Tech, somehow.

[Deleted]

Aranya put one hand on her hip and glared around. In her other arm she supported the baby.

"Tech!" Aranya yelled. "I know you can see me - you, or your folk! I didn't kill Maila, and I have her son safe! If I had killed her, would I have waited in this dead village for one month, like a sitting duck? What would I have gained from that? She died in childbirth, Tech! I'm innocent of it! You betrayed her! But I did wrong too, and I know it now! After what I've been through, I was suspicious of everyone. But I realize my folly, and I want to talk to you. Now come out!"

She knew they wouldn't come out, but it was somehow satisfying to have let that off her chest.

[Deleted]

Aranya fed the baby milk and washed it by drawing water from the village well. Guilt and anger both consumed her.

They had laid Maila in a coffin Fallon and Aranya had put together, but they hadn't nailed the lid shut yet. Now they had to deal with the putrid smell of Maila's body, which only added to Aranya's guilt. She reflected resentfully that if they had dumped some swamp over Maila, she would have been perfectly preserved.

[The Smith]

A man steps from the shadows, he holds a long sliver spear, and is wearing mail and a goldenmask covers his face. He says nothing but watches Aranya feed the baby milk.

[Deleted]

The falcon was the first to spy the man, and screeched a warning. "Aranya," Fallon said warningly.

Aranya turned, and gazed at the man, still feeding the baby. Her own stomach had the gentlest swell, now that she was nearing her third month.

"Are you Lance Sands?" she asked quietly.

Terrified, Perra ran and brought back Aranya's weapons, but Fallon held her back from actually giving them to Aranya.

[The Smith]

"I am." standing a defensive fighting stance, his spear idly twirled about his hands.

[Deleted]

"I think you know who I am," Aranya studied him coolly, despite the fact she was covered in swamp muck. She cradled the baby , her heart aching a little for Maila. "But before we have any more misunderstandings, I must speak.

"I don't know who you are anymore, Lance Sands, but I've nursed a hatred for you for a long time, believing you to be responsible for the death of my husband and countless others. I came here seeking vengeance, and in my blind rage and grief I disregarded offers of peace the crannogmen gave to me. Finally, Tech Reed betrayed Lady Maila to me, for reasons only he knows, and I carried her away, thinking to lure you out of hiding. She died in childbirth, despite all that we did to save her. Do not think I killed your woman, Lance Sands. I came here for you and only you.

"This baby here in my arms is yours. I have camped out in these swamps for months, mulling over Maila and waiting to meet you. In this time, I have been wondering who exactly you truly are, and if I have been lied to...if someone else is actually responsible for my grief. And now here you are."

She paused, staring at him. "We have preserved your lady as best we could, and your son has thrived." She wanted to say more, but the memory of Selwyn and the shamans made her hold her tongue. This man was still a mystery to her.

OOC: I'll have to go in five minutes.

[The Smith]

Stabbing his spear into the ground, Sands walked over and thurst out his arms offering to take the child.

[Deleted]

Aranya looked at him with keen eyes, and then handed the infant over to him carefully.

"I don't know if you have questions for me, but I have some for you."

"Remove your mask."

[The Smith]

Sands took his son, and walked away holding the boy infront of him, "I have nothing to say to you at all."

[Deleted]

Aranya walked after him, quietly determined. "Do you blame me for your wife's death? I never meant to hurt her."

[The Smith]

Sands pulled his spear from the ground and continued to move away, "Why would I heal your wounds. If I ever see you again, I may kill you."

[Deleted]

"I'm not asking for your pity," Aranya kept her voice calm and quiet. "I have questions, I said." She was following him quietly, but fearlessly. "Did you send those shamans and the eyeless man into the Mountains of the Moon? Answer me that."

[The Smith]

He continues to walk away silently.

[Deleted]

Aranya followed him. Her longsword was at her hip, but it was sheathed. "I told you earlier that I don't know who you truly are," she said in a clear voice. "That does not mean you can merely walk away from me as if you are an innocent. You have much to answer for Lance Sands - at the very least, you owe us an explanation. You owe me an explanation."