The brain check turned out not to be so bad.
Well, except for the part where Captain Rayden had to put her hands on my temples. That took a lot of self-control on my part. However, the whole process was quite pleasant. Rather quickly, she erased the “back door” the bitch had actually left in my mind, made sure the runes behind my ears were genuine, and that I wasn’t faking my status as Lost - even if unknowingly. Only after all that did she issue me the paper, certifying that I was eligible for Sahal citizenship.
“Hold on, Grey.” Rayden stopped me as I rose from my stool, more than eager to leave. The windowless room still gave me the creeps; it reminded me too much of the cellar. “With all that mind mage shit, I almost forgot: there are some basic questions I need to go over with you, like your reasons for asking for citizenship, your plans about living here... and maybe a little more about your beast form. For the lack of a better word, I need to make sure you don’t pose a danger to the people of Castiana and the Empire. Do you understand?”
Not hiding my dismay, I nodded and sat back down. “Yes, I do.”
“On a brighter note, if you’d like, my healers could check you out and see if they could do anything about... what are you calling the... you know?” she asked, hinting not so subtly at my body and all its beastly parts.
“M-mutations?”
“Yes, those. My healers are some of the best in the Empire, and that’s not just some empty puff. Of course, I’m not forcing you. It’s up to you, but the consequences of not doing so will fall squarely on your head.”
‘What consequences? Like going wild in my beast form?’
“Is... is that something you offer to all refugees and newcomers?”
“Basically. Better to have everyone in the city healthy than dealing with an out-of-control lice outbreak every other week. So please, spare me the headache and yourself a hefty debt, and at least get your fur checked out. Now, with that out of the way, let’s get down to the boring part... ”
─◇─◇─◇─
There were quite a few questions to answer, some expected, others quite personal. Understandably, though, what interested Captain Rayden more than my non-existent plans to find a job, were my mutations. She even asked me if I could turn or shape-shift in front of her, which I didn’t, of course. Firstly, I had no idea how, and secondly, the thought of it terrified me.
Mercifully, she didn’t press me about it, and instead, when I promised her, in all honesty, that I didn’t intend to rip anyone apart, she gave me a broad smile. “That’s good enough for me. The city has its fair share of oddballs already, so I think you’ll fit right in, Grey. WELCOME to Castiana.”
Of course, she didn’t let me go just like that, not without a few reminders. Such as not leaving Castiana for the time being, better not to mention what we talked about here and to be prepared to be called in for further questioning.
To be honest, that part gave me shivers and made me question the decision to stay here. On the other hand, the general attitude of the city guards, though sometimes rough, gave me confidence that this might not actually be such a bad place to live, just as Scoresby claimed.
And so, with that in my mind, I walked out of the room into the now empty hallway. No Warrant Officer Pinescar or bull-guy there. A bit of a shame; I wanted to wish the man the best of luck in his endeavor to join the Castiana City Guard.
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‘Perhaps some other time,’ I thought to myself while my heart danced. There was no one in the hallway to escort me, either. I was on my own - FREE to do whatever I wanted.
Or so it might seem.
Regardless of who knows how far away from Earth, like any somewhat developed civilization, this one seemed to be plagued by bureaucracy just the same. At one door, they verified your identity; at another, they issued you a card; at another, they did the check-up, and so on.
Quite nerve-wracking, at least to a gal for whom it wasn’t her cup of tea long before she ended up isolated from civilization. When approaching the guy who was supposed to issue me the card, I once again questioned whether all this was worth it, and as I walked to the infirmary, I came damn close to tucking my tail between my legs, turning on my heel, and running away.
Good thing I didn’t, though.
“Hello. My name is Becca Hill, the senior healer assigned to your examination,” the short woman said as she entered the small space separated from the rest of the large room of the infirmary by a mere white curtain. “Just a general physical examination for any visible signs of sickness and parasites, is that correct?”
[Healer: ₪ sigils]
A healer with at least 48 sigils on me - a shudder ran through my body at the thought of what she could do to me. Sure, the woman was a healer, but what did I know what healers here were capable of? For all I knew, she might not have been much different from that deranged asshole.
‘I know, not really fair of me - couldn’t help it, though.’
If there was anything that made my blood boil more than that asshole, it was hospitals. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that I spent more time in them than in the cellar. Not because I was sick or anything, but because I wanted to be close to my mom, who was. Good old-fashioned cancer.
‘She may have lost her fight, but what she taught me was not to give up.’
Most likely the reason why I clung to life so stubbornly all this time.
Well, be that as it may, the only thing that kept me from running away like a coward was the fact that I was in the barracks and not in the cellar. That and the threat of falling into debt. And so, not wishing to get the collar back on my neck just because of some critters in my fur, I swallowed the dread and nodded. “Y-yes, just the general check-up.”
“Alright, then, please take off your clothes.”
Taking a glance at the stool and the stationary coat rack in the corner the healer gestured to, I bit down on my lower lip and, after a fair share of hesitation, pulled the wings off my chest and unwrapped Sage from my waist.
‘Oh my... s-shit, that hurts!’
The moment I moved the limbs I had held still for so long close to my body, the tension, cramp and stiffness bit into them so hard it took my breath away. And taken back by my spasming limbs, the healer woman didn’t seem to be much better off. But unlike me, she got her shit back together in no time.
“You got me there. Well, I won’t need to touch you, but I’ll get close, you understand?” the woman asked, and after giving her a nod, she continued. “My hands will glow faintly, and you will feel a slight warmth on your skin. Now - let me see your hands.”
The entire check-up went as Senior Healer Hill had described, without any discomfort whatsoever - unless you count the sheer embarrassment of being told how filthy you were, that there were fungi growing here and there, or that your fur was infested with ticks.
“Alright, that did it,” she said after casting some parasite-removing spell and confirming that my feathers and fur were now completely tick-free. “I don’t know where you caught them, but I’d avoid that place if I were you.”
“W-well, I don’t see myself going back there anytime soon.” I stammered out as the only place with a possible tick infestation that came to my mind was Esulmor.
“Good. Those suckers can be pretty nasty. Anyway, I’m gonna file a report that you’ve passed your general physical examination, and that you’re clear of disease and parasites. Good? Good. You’re free to go, but if I may, I’d STRONGLY recommend a proper bath.”
‘If only I could take one,’ I thought to myself wistfully, watching the woman leave me alone behind the white screen. All I had on me was the Citizen Card in my hand and nothing else, no clothes, no money, no nothing. I might have become a citizen of Sahal, an officially FREE person, something I had strived for for so long, but the sheer joy of it got overshadowed by new worries and concerns of the life now lying ahead of me.