The doors of the records room broke open, throwing white light into the yellow room and making the stale air move with the outside breeze. A miqo'te man hopped into the room as though he expected to suddenly be center of attention, arms high in the air. "We're back! I hope you all behaved while we were..." D'edy Nunh dropped his arms and slapped his side, fuzzy ears standing straight up and thin tail fluffing up pathetically. "Hey! Hey, stop it! Everyone stop what you're doing!"
The huntresses were not deaf, to D'edy's entrance, pausing in their assault. Lamandu was well in-hand, by then, so they turned their attention away from the Lalafel long enough to look at D'edy. Their ears fell flat at their head and they withdrew their lances when they saw the figure that loomed behind him, a hyur man in shining silver armor. They cowed away from the captain, then, and one of them actually muttered, "D'themia told us to..."
"Stop it!" D'edy yelled into the room again, glaring at D'themia. Then he snapped forward, bare feet slapping the ground. He jumped up onto a desk, then leapt to the next one, and then to the next. "I said knock it off!"
Finally, D'themia Nunh glanced up. "What!"
D'edy jump one more time and slammed knees-first against D'themia's craggy face, knocking the man hard to the side, causing him pinwheel on his heel and then fall hard to the ground. Landing on his face next to him, D'edy Nunh spat, "Ass!"
Bayard Learner stepped forward, casting a larger shadow into the room. "Someone explain this!" He delayed only an instant before his sights settled on Lamandu and he began to march in the direction. The huntresses took one look at D'edy, one look at learner, and retreated far from the Captain.
Antimony's toes curled at the electric jolts of pain that shot up her spine when D'themia yanked on her tail. Then very suddenly the pain was gone, as was the pressure on the back of her head, and she dropped to the floor behind the desk, onto her knees. Her hands moved to her face, felt warm blood dribbling from her nose down to her lips, though her nose and cheeks remained numb. Twisting, she saw both nunhs sprawled on the floor behind her, then heard the authoritative bark of Bayard Learner on the other side of the desk.
Reaching up with one hand, she pulled herself to her feet, her other hand still clutching her face as she spoke in a somewhat nasally voice, "Unprovoked assault, Mister... ah, Sultansworn." Her eyes widened when she spotted Captain Tyremandu and followed up with a startled, "He needs medical attention!"
The sword fell to the ground with a dull thud as Lamandu had let it go to clutch at his sides that borne the worst of the stabbings. His breaths were labored as he heard the booming voice of the Sultansworn above him, "Assault and Obstruction... Learner." His whole body felt like it was a pincushion. Many of the wounds were shallow things, but all told his armor, more ornamental than anything wasn't meant absorb much.
As the Sultansworn approached Lamandu, healing magic was already alive in his hands, throwing the pseudo-conjury of Paladin healing at the Lalafel. He turned and barked at the huntresses, "Get out of here! You will be called to answer later!" He dropped to a knee beside Lamandu to offer the man aid. "Let me close these holes and then we'll get you to a proper healer."
The huntresses appeared unsure, looking over to the Nunh who were both standing up. D'themia opened his mouth and began to shot something, but D'edy popped suddenly off the ground and placed his knee right against D'themia's teeth, making the other man snap back and fall again, blood splattering on the floor. As D'themia clutched his face and shifted about in prone fury, D'edy Nunh brushed the blood from his knee. "Ow. Why are your teeth so sharp?" He looked to the huntresses, "Yeah, you guys might be under arrest later. Go take a shower and have a nap or something. Bye bye."
One of the women lifted her ears. "But... D'themia said..."
"I'm the big Nunh now!" D'edy pointed at himself with both thumbs, tail flicking back and forth behind him. "Or something. Just move your tails before Learner beats you. I bet he reeeeally wants to." The thin man's fuzzy ears popped up in surprise as he noticed he was standing on papers. He hopped back, but the sheet stuck to his feet, so he hopped on a foot trying to pluck it off. "Dammit, D'themia. Why do you always have to make such a mess?"
From where he knelt beside Lamandu, the Sultansworn said, "He won't be making much of a mess in a cell."
D'edy pulled the piece of paper from his foot, looked at it front and back in curiously. "Oh, this doesn't look very good!" He walked over and put it down in front of Antimony. "This is yours, I think? I don't think I should be looking at it."
Antimony turned to blink at D'edy, watching him set the paper down on the desk - one of the many that still littered the floor about her feet. A ringing in her ears drowned out his words and she drooped, leaning against the desk. "Yes... Thank you," she mumbled out around her bloody hand and lowered her gaze to the other papers. Silently she dropped back to the floor and began to fumble with one hand to gather them all up again.
Lamandu could feel his skin begin to knit itself back together, it hurt worse than the actual lances piercing his skin. He looked up at Learner crouched next to him, "You just had to come in and play the hero didn't you?" He asked, bitterly and out of breath. Looking away he pulled a hand from his side to put up on the Paladin's shoulder, leaving a bloody handprint. "Thanks for saving my sorry hide anyway," he groused, the adrenaline leaving its system, blood-flow stymying. At least he'd live to see another day, and it looked like it wouldn't be from a jail cell, after all.
"It's just the shiny armor," Learner said. "Sparkly things scare cats. Brass, not so much."
D'edy pulled his sash from his robe. It was still stained with and smelling of wine, but it had dried. He dropped it on Antimony's lap. "Here. push that against your nose and try to stop bleeding. Let me help you with those papers. I promise not to look at any of them!"
Just as D'edy was crouching down to start collecting loose papers, D'themia Nunh surged to his feet, shouting around the blood in his mouth. "D'edy! You did this!" He extended one finger in accusation. "There should be nothing illegal in our ledgers unless you were doing it behind your back! And you brought the Sultansworn here knowing I would take the fall!"
"Uhhhm." D'edy stood, bouncing his head at D'themia. "Nobody told you to stab the Lalafel, Themia. You did that aaaaall on your own."
Bayard Learner's hand clamped over D'themia's extended wrist suddenly and firmly, yanking him hard to one side. "It appears I do get to arrest someone today!" He spun the Nunh around, ignoring his protests, taking both hands and shoving them high up his back. He looked around him to Lamandu. "Unless you felt up to doing the honors, Captain."
Antimony accepted the cloth gratefully, though with a twinge of guilt for sullying something not her own as she wadded it up against her face. Pressing the cloth against her nose made the whole front of her face throb, leaving no question in her mind that it had been broken. With a wince, she continued to gather up the papers, ears sticking out low to either side of her head. She listened to Learner as he moved in on D'themia with some hidden satisfaction.
Barely standing, Lamandu shook his head vehemently, "I still have a reputation to uphold, Learner. Plus... I do far too much paperwork already. Glory is all yours to take." He had already taken far too much of a necessary risk, getting involved already. While such a high profile case might earn him accolades with people like Learner, it would turn many more of the wrong eyes towards him. If word got out that he was the one who arrested D'themia, he'd be done for in a whole 'nother way. Out of the frying and and into the fire. It was a metaphor for this whole damned day.
"Then I guess I'll take it." The Sultansworn slammed the struggling, cursing Nunh down face-first onto a table, binding his arms behind him.
"Oh, Themia!" D'edy Nunh called out, lifting a hand briefly. "Since I'm the big Nunh in charge now, I'm going to schedule a fight between you and D'hein for the role of Nunh tomorrow. I sure hope you can make it. Remember, a no-show is a forfeit!"
D'themia Nunh barked such a dense set of curses that it sounded like a bestial, maddened roar.
D'edy pulled his thin wrist back to his body. "Oh, well, you know a Nunh in prison is useless to the tribe. Just do your best to be there, okay?" He then crouched down beside Antimony to help collect the errant pages. "I can offer the tribe's healers free of charge, if you want, but I'll forgive if you just want to scuttle on away from the Commune."
Antimony swallowed, then regretted it when she tasted blood that had trickled down the back of her throat, and dragged the last of the papers into a sadly thoroughly disorganized pile. Green eyes glanced up towards D'edy, and she tried for a weak smile around the cloth against her face.
"Thank you. I... Someone to set my nose would be appreciated. Ah, some things you just can't do for yourself..." Scooping up the papers in one hand, she dropped them into her satchel that still sat nearby and then stood carefully. Her brow furrowed as she half turned towards Lamandu. "Captain... I am so deeply sorry for... you are alright...?"
The Captain's long hair stuck against the sides of his face from the sweat that he'd exuded, while blood was dotted and streaked around his light armor. But he was standing thanks to Learner's first healing pass. He pushed himself off from the cabinet that he'd become all to acquainted with. "Yes, yes." He started to walk slowly, limply towards the door, before he stopped and looked her straight in the eye. "Just remember what we talked of before all this," he said, voice steady and deadly serious. He then broke his gaze from hers and looked back at the Sultansworn. "I'm sure you'll want my statement, Learner. You know where to find me."
"Expect me in the near future," Learner said, much of his energy being consumed by keeping D'themia restrained. He took a moment to whisper a threat into the man's ear, and it was likely a very terrible one, as the Nunh ceased his struggles a moment later. The Sultansworn then lifted his gaze to Lamandu once more. "Captain, while you are quite imposed upon already, I would ask that you escort Antimony out of here. Given recent events, I'd rather she not be alone in the commune."
"Oh," D'edy looked up, ears standing high, "I can take good care of her."
"I also rather do not trust this tribe's Nunhs."
"Oh." D'edy's ears dropped. He seemed to consider making further reply befor turning to Antimony and grabbing her head with one hand, his other reaching for her face. "Let me. I can set it. Noses are super easy."
Antimony had enough time to utter a confused, "What?" while her ears pressed back in surprise, and then she let out an involuntary yelp as D'edy's grip on her face tightened very suddenly, followed by a dull crack. Her hands moved up to her face, swatting D'edy's away, and touched her nose gingerly. The nunh she gave an annoyed, if grateful, sideways stare.
Watching Antimony's nose get set against her will, Lamandu just let out a tired sigh. He gestured towards the woman to follow him, "Let's go then, Antimony. There's an appointment with a healer that I need to keep."
"Pop!" D'edy proclaimed, as Antimony's nose snapped into place. "That was a really good crack! Thanks a lot." He then stepped back, smiling broadly and gestured towards the door. "You should get going. Oh! There'll be a big party tomorrow night because I say so. If you want to come by I'll make everyone give you things and say they're sorry! Then there's going to... not be a fight. But D'hein will get up in the middle but we'll all cheer and clap and pretend he did a good job. You can bring a guest!"
The Sultansworn stood D'themia up. "I'm going to wait until you two are gone to haul this guy out so you don't have to look at his tail the whole way."
Antimony wasn't quite sure how to take D'edy's words, recognizing the familiarity of the ritual he described but not quite sure how seriously he intended it - or the invitation. Still, she licked her lips and bowed her head, managing a faint, "Thank you. I appreciate the... offer." Then she gathered up her satchel and turned to walk over to Lamandu.
Lama merely sniffed in derision, though he stowed the knowledge away for later as D'edy had shown an excellent penchant for the sort of recreation that he enjoyed when he was able to. Vaguely aware that Antimony followed him, he slowly led them out of the tower. They only got lost a few times before finally exiting the tower.
The huntresses were not deaf, to D'edy's entrance, pausing in their assault. Lamandu was well in-hand, by then, so they turned their attention away from the Lalafel long enough to look at D'edy. Their ears fell flat at their head and they withdrew their lances when they saw the figure that loomed behind him, a hyur man in shining silver armor. They cowed away from the captain, then, and one of them actually muttered, "D'themia told us to..."
"Stop it!" D'edy yelled into the room again, glaring at D'themia. Then he snapped forward, bare feet slapping the ground. He jumped up onto a desk, then leapt to the next one, and then to the next. "I said knock it off!"
Finally, D'themia Nunh glanced up. "What!"
D'edy jump one more time and slammed knees-first against D'themia's craggy face, knocking the man hard to the side, causing him pinwheel on his heel and then fall hard to the ground. Landing on his face next to him, D'edy Nunh spat, "Ass!"
Bayard Learner stepped forward, casting a larger shadow into the room. "Someone explain this!" He delayed only an instant before his sights settled on Lamandu and he began to march in the direction. The huntresses took one look at D'edy, one look at learner, and retreated far from the Captain.
Antimony's toes curled at the electric jolts of pain that shot up her spine when D'themia yanked on her tail. Then very suddenly the pain was gone, as was the pressure on the back of her head, and she dropped to the floor behind the desk, onto her knees. Her hands moved to her face, felt warm blood dribbling from her nose down to her lips, though her nose and cheeks remained numb. Twisting, she saw both nunhs sprawled on the floor behind her, then heard the authoritative bark of Bayard Learner on the other side of the desk.
Reaching up with one hand, she pulled herself to her feet, her other hand still clutching her face as she spoke in a somewhat nasally voice, "Unprovoked assault, Mister... ah, Sultansworn." Her eyes widened when she spotted Captain Tyremandu and followed up with a startled, "He needs medical attention!"
The sword fell to the ground with a dull thud as Lamandu had let it go to clutch at his sides that borne the worst of the stabbings. His breaths were labored as he heard the booming voice of the Sultansworn above him, "Assault and Obstruction... Learner." His whole body felt like it was a pincushion. Many of the wounds were shallow things, but all told his armor, more ornamental than anything wasn't meant absorb much.
As the Sultansworn approached Lamandu, healing magic was already alive in his hands, throwing the pseudo-conjury of Paladin healing at the Lalafel. He turned and barked at the huntresses, "Get out of here! You will be called to answer later!" He dropped to a knee beside Lamandu to offer the man aid. "Let me close these holes and then we'll get you to a proper healer."
The huntresses appeared unsure, looking over to the Nunh who were both standing up. D'themia opened his mouth and began to shot something, but D'edy popped suddenly off the ground and placed his knee right against D'themia's teeth, making the other man snap back and fall again, blood splattering on the floor. As D'themia clutched his face and shifted about in prone fury, D'edy Nunh brushed the blood from his knee. "Ow. Why are your teeth so sharp?" He looked to the huntresses, "Yeah, you guys might be under arrest later. Go take a shower and have a nap or something. Bye bye."
One of the women lifted her ears. "But... D'themia said..."
"I'm the big Nunh now!" D'edy pointed at himself with both thumbs, tail flicking back and forth behind him. "Or something. Just move your tails before Learner beats you. I bet he reeeeally wants to." The thin man's fuzzy ears popped up in surprise as he noticed he was standing on papers. He hopped back, but the sheet stuck to his feet, so he hopped on a foot trying to pluck it off. "Dammit, D'themia. Why do you always have to make such a mess?"
From where he knelt beside Lamandu, the Sultansworn said, "He won't be making much of a mess in a cell."
D'edy pulled the piece of paper from his foot, looked at it front and back in curiously. "Oh, this doesn't look very good!" He walked over and put it down in front of Antimony. "This is yours, I think? I don't think I should be looking at it."
Antimony turned to blink at D'edy, watching him set the paper down on the desk - one of the many that still littered the floor about her feet. A ringing in her ears drowned out his words and she drooped, leaning against the desk. "Yes... Thank you," she mumbled out around her bloody hand and lowered her gaze to the other papers. Silently she dropped back to the floor and began to fumble with one hand to gather them all up again.
Lamandu could feel his skin begin to knit itself back together, it hurt worse than the actual lances piercing his skin. He looked up at Learner crouched next to him, "You just had to come in and play the hero didn't you?" He asked, bitterly and out of breath. Looking away he pulled a hand from his side to put up on the Paladin's shoulder, leaving a bloody handprint. "Thanks for saving my sorry hide anyway," he groused, the adrenaline leaving its system, blood-flow stymying. At least he'd live to see another day, and it looked like it wouldn't be from a jail cell, after all.
"It's just the shiny armor," Learner said. "Sparkly things scare cats. Brass, not so much."
D'edy pulled his sash from his robe. It was still stained with and smelling of wine, but it had dried. He dropped it on Antimony's lap. "Here. push that against your nose and try to stop bleeding. Let me help you with those papers. I promise not to look at any of them!"
Just as D'edy was crouching down to start collecting loose papers, D'themia Nunh surged to his feet, shouting around the blood in his mouth. "D'edy! You did this!" He extended one finger in accusation. "There should be nothing illegal in our ledgers unless you were doing it behind your back! And you brought the Sultansworn here knowing I would take the fall!"
"Uhhhm." D'edy stood, bouncing his head at D'themia. "Nobody told you to stab the Lalafel, Themia. You did that aaaaall on your own."
Bayard Learner's hand clamped over D'themia's extended wrist suddenly and firmly, yanking him hard to one side. "It appears I do get to arrest someone today!" He spun the Nunh around, ignoring his protests, taking both hands and shoving them high up his back. He looked around him to Lamandu. "Unless you felt up to doing the honors, Captain."
Antimony accepted the cloth gratefully, though with a twinge of guilt for sullying something not her own as she wadded it up against her face. Pressing the cloth against her nose made the whole front of her face throb, leaving no question in her mind that it had been broken. With a wince, she continued to gather up the papers, ears sticking out low to either side of her head. She listened to Learner as he moved in on D'themia with some hidden satisfaction.
Barely standing, Lamandu shook his head vehemently, "I still have a reputation to uphold, Learner. Plus... I do far too much paperwork already. Glory is all yours to take." He had already taken far too much of a necessary risk, getting involved already. While such a high profile case might earn him accolades with people like Learner, it would turn many more of the wrong eyes towards him. If word got out that he was the one who arrested D'themia, he'd be done for in a whole 'nother way. Out of the frying and and into the fire. It was a metaphor for this whole damned day.
"Then I guess I'll take it." The Sultansworn slammed the struggling, cursing Nunh down face-first onto a table, binding his arms behind him.
"Oh, Themia!" D'edy Nunh called out, lifting a hand briefly. "Since I'm the big Nunh in charge now, I'm going to schedule a fight between you and D'hein for the role of Nunh tomorrow. I sure hope you can make it. Remember, a no-show is a forfeit!"
D'themia Nunh barked such a dense set of curses that it sounded like a bestial, maddened roar.
D'edy pulled his thin wrist back to his body. "Oh, well, you know a Nunh in prison is useless to the tribe. Just do your best to be there, okay?" He then crouched down beside Antimony to help collect the errant pages. "I can offer the tribe's healers free of charge, if you want, but I'll forgive if you just want to scuttle on away from the Commune."
Antimony swallowed, then regretted it when she tasted blood that had trickled down the back of her throat, and dragged the last of the papers into a sadly thoroughly disorganized pile. Green eyes glanced up towards D'edy, and she tried for a weak smile around the cloth against her face.
"Thank you. I... Someone to set my nose would be appreciated. Ah, some things you just can't do for yourself..." Scooping up the papers in one hand, she dropped them into her satchel that still sat nearby and then stood carefully. Her brow furrowed as she half turned towards Lamandu. "Captain... I am so deeply sorry for... you are alright...?"
The Captain's long hair stuck against the sides of his face from the sweat that he'd exuded, while blood was dotted and streaked around his light armor. But he was standing thanks to Learner's first healing pass. He pushed himself off from the cabinet that he'd become all to acquainted with. "Yes, yes." He started to walk slowly, limply towards the door, before he stopped and looked her straight in the eye. "Just remember what we talked of before all this," he said, voice steady and deadly serious. He then broke his gaze from hers and looked back at the Sultansworn. "I'm sure you'll want my statement, Learner. You know where to find me."
"Expect me in the near future," Learner said, much of his energy being consumed by keeping D'themia restrained. He took a moment to whisper a threat into the man's ear, and it was likely a very terrible one, as the Nunh ceased his struggles a moment later. The Sultansworn then lifted his gaze to Lamandu once more. "Captain, while you are quite imposed upon already, I would ask that you escort Antimony out of here. Given recent events, I'd rather she not be alone in the commune."
"Oh," D'edy looked up, ears standing high, "I can take good care of her."
"I also rather do not trust this tribe's Nunhs."
"Oh." D'edy's ears dropped. He seemed to consider making further reply befor turning to Antimony and grabbing her head with one hand, his other reaching for her face. "Let me. I can set it. Noses are super easy."
Antimony had enough time to utter a confused, "What?" while her ears pressed back in surprise, and then she let out an involuntary yelp as D'edy's grip on her face tightened very suddenly, followed by a dull crack. Her hands moved up to her face, swatting D'edy's away, and touched her nose gingerly. The nunh she gave an annoyed, if grateful, sideways stare.
Watching Antimony's nose get set against her will, Lamandu just let out a tired sigh. He gestured towards the woman to follow him, "Let's go then, Antimony. There's an appointment with a healer that I need to keep."
"Pop!" D'edy proclaimed, as Antimony's nose snapped into place. "That was a really good crack! Thanks a lot." He then stepped back, smiling broadly and gestured towards the door. "You should get going. Oh! There'll be a big party tomorrow night because I say so. If you want to come by I'll make everyone give you things and say they're sorry! Then there's going to... not be a fight. But D'hein will get up in the middle but we'll all cheer and clap and pretend he did a good job. You can bring a guest!"
The Sultansworn stood D'themia up. "I'm going to wait until you two are gone to haul this guy out so you don't have to look at his tail the whole way."
Antimony wasn't quite sure how to take D'edy's words, recognizing the familiarity of the ritual he described but not quite sure how seriously he intended it - or the invitation. Still, she licked her lips and bowed her head, managing a faint, "Thank you. I appreciate the... offer." Then she gathered up her satchel and turned to walk over to Lamandu.
Lama merely sniffed in derision, though he stowed the knowledge away for later as D'edy had shown an excellent penchant for the sort of recreation that he enjoyed when he was able to. Vaguely aware that Antimony followed him, he slowly led them out of the tower. They only got lost a few times before finally exiting the tower.