Walking into the church was like taking steps into a new, different world. The air felt lighter, the sounds of the busy streets outside were almost perfectly muffled by the expertly built walls and arcs of the sanctuary. It was a peaceful new land, lit by the beautiful light that filtered through many painted glass windows on the sides of the main chamber. As soon as they entered a nun hurriedly walked towards them, her tiny steps making little tapping echoes in the whole building.
“Welcome, my sisters. Please, rest at ease, for you are safe in the embrace of the Saints.” She greeted them both in the most sanctimonious way possible, as it was tradition, even bowing to them for a moment. “Do you seek an audience with the Father? Or are you perhaps looking for our healing hand?”
“A-Ah, you are correct ma’am!” Lucrece took the word and cleared her throat lightly. “We wish to submit ourselves to the mercy of the Saints and receive their healing gift, if it is possible.”
“Of course. Please follow me.”
Gabrielle observed in awe, comparing every little detail of that magnificent building to the humble, shabby little chapel she had grown in all of her life. The scale was simply beyond anything the redhead had ever seen before, with very nice smelling incense, gigantic stained glass pictures of the most popular Saints, and even wooden sculptures that glimmered as if they had just been waxed! This level of opulence felt excessive to the girl, uncomfortable even if she thought about it too much.
But, she restrained herself, and instead decided to ask:
“Do you have images of Saint Martha in this sanctuary, Sister?”
“Oh my dear child, I am afraid we don’t. There aren’t many soldiers or dragon slayers that follow her creed in Rennos.” The nun tried not to giggle when saying this. “You will have better luck in towns with a bigger militia, my child.”
Their steps took them to a smaller room on the side of the church: the clinic. There were many beds with people quietly resting, sleeping, sometimes groaning as they moved in the uncomfortable covers. Churches doubled as places of healing when the situation allowed it, and this at least earned them a nod of approval from the stoic Gabi, who thought to herself: “At least they are not neglecting their duties.”
Gabrielle would have loved to learn the ways of a Healer in her chapel, but sadly their building was too small to accommodate that sort of service, and besides, none of the Sisters seemed gifted enough to bless the waters…
Holy Water, the Gift, the Saints’ Dew. Its preparation was a secret jealously guarded by nuns and Fathers all around Jericho, a miracle of the Age of Silence that could heal any physical wounds as long as it was applied in time… and of course, within reason.
Applying holy water to a cut hand would only heal the stump, there would be no way to regenerate entire chunks of meat like that.
Or at least, that’s what Lucrece was thinking about as she sat on one of the beds and uncovered herself, exposing the many wounds those rats have left as memories from last night. Regenerating was not possible even with a sanctioned, fully-acknowledged-by-the-church miracle, and yet that scrappy redhead had gotten right up after being opened like a can of spam.
Just what was this Witch?
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“This may sting, my child. Please do not move, each drop of the Saints’s Dew is precious.” The nun waited for Lucrece to be fully ready before raising a beautiful flask of pristine Holy Water, making sure the light of the window sparkled on its surface. “May the mercy of the Saints heal your wounds and reinvigorate your spirit!”
“Amen.” Gabrielle bowed her head in respect for the healer, which certainly did help inflate the nun’s ego as she softly sparkled and rubbed the liquid on Luci’s skin.
The effect would be instant, as little lines of vapor escaped the wounds as they healed, scar tissue growing quickly and sealing up. The lancer sighed, relieved, and stretched her arms slowly just to feel how her tendons tugged and moved into place. Everything was right back where it belonged, and Luci couldn’t be happier about it.
“Ah, thank you Sister.” She turned to look at the nun while putting her clothes back on. “How could I ever repay you?”
“Our fee is a golden empire per usage of our dew.”
Both Gabrielle and Lucrece choked for a second there, their eyes darted to the smiling nun who refused to elaborate any further. It was clearly not a joke, was it? None of them were laughing at all. Indignation grew on Gabrielle’s heart, while Lucrece furrowed her brow and, with a growing pain in her chest, gave away the shiny coin from the pouch on her neck.
“Thank you for your patronage. The Saints smile upon you, no doubt.”
“This is outrageous…” Gabrielle whispered, her fists balling.
“Thank you for your kind service.” Luci was quick to get right on her feet and begin pushing Gabi out of the room. “May the Will push you onwards!”
“And to you as well.” The nun continued smiling, unaware or simply uncaring of the girls’ aggravation.
Both girls moved quickly out of the beautiful building, Lucrece made sure to push Gabrielle as far away as possible, until they reached a fountain in the plaza. They quickly grabbed some water to clean the impression off and away of their faces, and it really was a relief for both of them. Gabi was about to implode in her own anger… and honestly, she still was on the fence about turning right around and yelling a few truths to that nun.
“Saint Kristina said that virtue comes in frugality, this is an insult to everything so many Saints stood for…!”
“I guess they need to eat or something! But, a whole golden empire!?” Luci soon abandoned all attempts to justify that woman. “She scammed us, she scammed us and we couldn’t do a thing!”
“I am going back there and beating that nun up this instant.”
“What!? No, no, no beating up nuns! They are off limits!” The lancer was quite desperate to de-escalate, moving her hands quickly in front of Gabrielle as she explained. “We are trying to avoid trouble with the Church, remember? There’s nothing uglier than hitting a nun!”
“Yes there are uglier things, like scamming someone in the house of the Saints.” Despite her usual lack of expression, the anger was such that one could easily see it in the witch’s face. “She deserves it.”
“Let’s, let’s go to the park! That will be good right? Let’s go to the park and relax for the few hours we have before descending into the sewers!”
Gabrielle agreed but only begrudgingly, grumbling as she was pulled by the arm and walked further away from the church. This whole experience had not only made her grumpy but also quite… nostalgic. She often wondered what had been of all the girls she had left behind in the chapel, but now she couldn’t help but ask.
What happened with Sister Arianna?
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The boat moved from side to side, slowly, as it tried to navigate through the stormy canal that separated Doggenbandr from the rest of Jericho. The ferry was expensive, unreliable and uncomfortable, but the young nun had taken it anyway for it was the only way to travel anywhere in the main continent.
Arianna kept herself away from the rest of the passengers in the main room of the ferry, sitting on a corner and keeping her eyes closed as she deeply meditated about her next moves.
The list was clear in her mind: get to Caen, look for clues about Gabrielle going around, find her trail and catch up to her. It was a very vague list with many, many openings, and the woman hated herself for jumping straight into action without a better plan in mind.
She had simply jumped right into the fray, begging for things to go her way, what was she thinking!?
Well, she knew exactly what she was thinking: that little girl, alone and scared in a world she couldn’t possibly comprehend, all because of Ari’s own irresponsibility. She blamed herself for everything that happened that night, from the death of so many children to the loss of Gabrielle herself. She would never forget herself for that.
But she could still make up for her failures.
“To hell with it all, this list will do…” The woman whispered under her breath. “I will find her, no matter how long it takes me this time… Gabi. I will take you home.”