Seed Of Speed

Despite being carried by the collar of his robes, Diego could not really complain as Celita rocketed out of Rozama's hollow and through the air which seemed to upset the reptilian-woman more with each passing moment. After they landed gracefully on one of the hanging bridges below the hollow, she continued to carry him at her side like luggage, letting his feet drag and hit every wooden plank. Instead of doing anything to try and help her or right himself, Diego just relaxed like dead-weight, so even his fingertips scr.a.p.ed the wood.

Although Celita was loved and respected by the village as their most loyal protector for over a thousand years, her temper was just as well-known. Seeing her dragging a human round with a snarl on her face was more than enough to prevent even the most curious of residents from coming close for a better look. It did not even matter if there were others on the same bridge as they would either go the opposition direction or, in case of those who could, simply flying off the bridge entirely.

As curious as Diego was to explore the hanging city, he was confident he would be able to once Zedava came to see him. Until then, he would enjoy the view… and irritating the woman dragging him along. He did not know what it was about her that made him want to draw her ire so badly. Normally, he would treat any woman respect, but with her… maybe because of the multiple times she tried to kill him, he could not help but draw an evil satisfaction from angering her without her having the ability to take it out on him.

Celita swung her arm and sent Diego flying throw the air until he hit the woven branch wall of one of the sphere-buildings that made up the village. They were on the outer edge of the village with only a single bridge connecting them back to the network, showing just how isolated they were. With the building also being undecorated with the colorful moss, Diego figured this would be his new home until Celita got bored of watching him.

As he stood up, Diego also took the chance to smooth out his clothes which almost made Celita smile until he gave her a cheeky grin and said, "Ladies, first!"

"I truly want to break every bone in your body," Celita growled as she shoved him through the hanging vines that acted as a door.

Diego stumbled through the hidden entrance into a pitch-black room, but with a simple spell, {Dark Sight}, he could see just fine. While he had already guessed the room would be under furnished by his standards, it still felt surprisingly lived-in. There were no tables or chairs to speak of, but there were piles of pillows and folded furs scattered throughout the large room. On the walls, there were different types of fangs and claws hanging like trophies which made him realize this was not some kind of guest house.

"I hope you aren't waiting for a lamp," Celita said as she pushed passed Diego and walked into the room.

She made her way towards the largest pile of pillows and threw herself down with a loud sigh. Diego smiled to himself as he navigated the pitch-black room and examined the trophies closer. Each one seemed to be from a different beast as no two teeth were exactly the same. Some were jagged and razor sharp while others were long and thin; the most threatening one was a fang that was long than his arm, making him wonder just how big the beast had been.

Eventually, Diego made his way around, back to Celita who might have been asleep with how still she was. He pulled out a handful of tiny, hummingbird golems and his sect token, after transferring everything inside to the storage ring Swordflash had gifted, then passed them to Celita.

"There is everything I have that I could use as a means of communication," Diego said as he sat down across from her.

"You don't really think I'm just going to believe you?" Celita asked with a tired tone to her voice.

"Nope, but by actually telling the truth, I'll look a hell of a lot better," Diego replied as he reclined back with his hands behind his head. "So, no grand tour of the house?"

"What you see is what you get, brat. Living space is here, washing and other needs can be addressed in the room below. There, you've been 'toured'."

"Charming," Diego said dryly.

He let out a deep sigh since, for the first time in a long time, he did not know what to do with himself. A moment of peace had been so rare to find back in the sect since Swordflash would train him for hours, he would practice magic with his senior-disciple sisters or be off hunting in the Catacomb with Tovao and Stormblade. Even when he was on the boat, he would drown himself in his practice with the spear after he had finished off most of his liquor.

Suddenly remembering an earlier find, a glass bottle appeared in his hands filled with a deep blue liquid. It had been a gift from Kang after their first expedition. When they were a day's journey from returning to the sect, all of the men in the group decided to have a drinking contest that night. Due to regenerative properties of the Seed of Speed, Diego's body could metabolize the alcohol nearly as fast as he could drink it, so it was no surprise that Kang and he were the last two standing. Kang dared him to drink some of his special liquor, and with a bit of drunken goading from the others, he tried it. The Seed still filtered out the d.e.s.i.r.ed effect quickly, but it lasted longer than anything else he had drunk.

Diego rubbed the bottle with his thumb a few times as he thought about the past then pulled out the cork with his teeth. Although he kept putting up a strong front, he had barely slept in nearly a month since he kept reliving the day every time he closed his eyes. He was not close to them like Tovao, but the faces of Peyni and Jastrab would often haunt his thought. If he had just pushed them harder to join the sect, they would likely still be alive... but he did not even know if Tovao had managed to escape. He just felt useless.

Celita noticed Diego starting to drink and raised an eyebrow. She could easily smell the alcohol and the face he made as he drank spoke of sadness, but she was not going to be fooled by his actions. She had met all types of humans in her time, and while most were like sheep, wanting to follow the herd in peace, there were always wolves among them, nipping at their heels to direct the ignorant fools. Even if this boy was just some unlucky traveler who washed up on their shores, he still represented the danger that his kind brought.

While Diego lost himself in the bottle, Celita reached behind her to the small c.h.e.s.t against the wall and pulled out a beautifully carved pipe made of bone. This was one of many she had made throughout the centuries, and she always made them from one of her kills that she enjoyed. Holding one would remind her of the fight and stir her blood while the idea of it all made her chuckle when she smoked out of it.

She pulled out a petal of her Quiro Flower and tore it up then stuffed it into the pipe. For the rest of the night, the two sat in relative silence before Diego sobered up and began meditating off to the side.