FSE

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Crowds of people buzzed about through the desert city bazaars. Hands and paws exchanged coin and goods at a constant pace and the occasional pickpocket could be seen darting between the crowds with what little coin they could manage to steal. One thief, however, kept his nose clean for once. Clad in long robes of black and white, Farhan ran through the crowd. His sash held the dagger he had earned in his palace conquest and over his shoulder, he bore a bag that held a package for the Sisters at the bath house. Today his meal was coming from a hard day's work rather than pinching the pockets of rich folk, although, since the queen had taken a liking to him he had been finding it just a bit easier to live without needing to steal from others. Not once did he run into another even though he was darting through the crowd as fast as he could manage. Once or twice he caught a pickpocket trying to search through his sash, but he made quick work of them by simply lashing their paws with his tail to let them know he was onto them. When he was finally past the bazaars he found himself traveling down a quiet alley between buildings. With the crowd behind him and his goal nearing, he began to walk rather than run. With his pace slowed, his ear perked up high as he heard something strange coming from the ground. A gust of wind touched his ears along with the subtle whisper of the word, "Help."

Farhan swiveled his head to and fro searching for the source of the wind and voice. Again he felt the wind, but this time without the voice. He looked towards where he felt the wind and saw that it was coming from a hole at the bottom of a building covered by iron bars. With tilted head, he knelt down to satisfy his curiosity. In the darkness, he could see torch lights illuminating what looked like a female fennec chained to a wall with her eyes closed. She opened her mouth and let out a weak breath, but the wind sailed up to where Farhan was and he heard the whisper again, "Help."

With his ears perked up wide, he stood and looked away. It wasn't his business. There had been plenty of people trapped in dungeons before, and well, he had been in one himself for reasons. It wasn't his duty to free every thief and vagabond stuck in a cell, but again he heard that pathetic whimper on the wind. She was using some sort of magic to project her voice on the wind and he couldn't help but feel the desperation in that voice. His ears folded back and he cursed quietly as he took his dagger out from its sheath. He knelt down and began to cut the bars. It would have been impossible without the queen's dagger, but the enchantments on the thing made quick work of the metal. He was an idiot, a sentimental idiot, and he certainly hoped that he wouldn't regret this, but he ducked and dipped into the darkness of the hole. The distance from the opening and the floor wasn't far at all and he soon found himself cutting the fennec free from her chains. She didn't respond, but she fell limp in his arms and felt lighter than any she had any right to be. Farhan did not want to stay to see who had imprisoned her, and so he left with the girl in tow and hurried to the Sisters' bath house.

The Sisters were a sort of religious order. Priestesses that funded themselves by offering the services of their bath house. They were a charitable sort that had often given Farhan simple work for meals when he needed it even though he didn't share their views, and sometimes even special service. A Sister he knew by the name of Ayla had seen him coming with someone wearing tatters in his arms and had immediately taken the girl from his arms without asking a single question. The Sisters worked quickly and they knew a person in need when they saw one.

The bath house itself was dimly lit and the main public bath branched off into several different halls that lead into private rooms and stalls for those who paid and those who needed it. In one of these private baths, Farhan was told a guest awaited him there.

Farhan entered the room and shed himself of his robes before stepping into the water. He stepped around the edge as the Sisters that followed him moved past a curtain covered doorway with the fennec girl he had rescued. Rich chestnut eyes studied him as he sat by the lounging form of the queen of the land, Naima. The lioness laid on her side near the edge of the water with a pipe in paw connected to a jar. She let out a light mist from her nostrils as she opened her mouth to speak, "The Sisters told me you were delivering a package...I did not think it a new girl, or perhaps is that your latest conquest from another man?"

The fennec thief felt a burning in his cheeks that he ignored as he answered her, "No my queen. I uh...I simply seem to find myself with a bleeding heart today."

With quirked brow, Naima sat up and leaned in to place the point of the pipe against his throat, "I have told you, call me by my name and tell me of this bleeding heart of yours. I do love hearing about your adventures."

Farhan looked down at the pipe poking at his neck before Naima gingerly took that pipe and planted it against his lips. With a frown, he took the pipe in his own paw and took in a breath. The mist from the pipe eased his body and when he breathed out and pulled the pipe from his lips he simply said, "I freed her from some dungeon. She was calling for help and your dagger could cut through most metal if not with a bit of sawing, so I uh, I did so."

Naima chuckled, "A bleeding heart indeed, why the sudden interest in being a hero?"

Farhan snorted, "A hero...I have no interest in that, I just...There was a weakness about her I couldn't ignore. She called for help using the wind as well."

That caught Naima's attention, "Oh? Magic? Now I'm curious and perhaps I would have done the same thing, but dear, if a magic user of any sort was in a dungeon, perhaps it was for the best?"

"I thought of that, but...My bleeding heart brought me to this mistake."

Naima sighed, "Poor thing...And yet, I cannot help but be jealous. Here you are rescuing this girl while I am here unattended by my eyes on the streets. Tell me, must the Sisters use the room I bought to tend to this girl?"

Farhan's ears folded back and he snorted, "Please...Don't be that way. We have privacy here and I'd rather have them work quickly to see if anything is wrong with her."

Naima giggled, "I tease...Besides, I'm curious about this girl as well now."

The curtains to the other room opened and out stepped Ayla with her peach fur and rosy eyes. She clasped her paws together and bowed as she approached them. Farhan awaited her word patiently, though his eyes took in the sight of the familiar woman. He had known her for a long time both through hardship and through the sheets occasionally, but more importantly, he knew her as a capable healer. When she spoke, her voice came out soft, "She will be fine...She has awoken and is being fed and watered carefully. If she pleases, she'll be out when she can walk, but for now, she is weak, more so out of spirit than anything else it seems."

Farhan frowned, "So she's in no danger?"

Ayla looked at him with a smile, a smile far too wide for his comfort, "No. She's perfectly fine. The Goddess will surely repay your dead in kind, though, Farhan. I am proud of you."

Farhan waved her off and felt somewhat abash as he turned away, "Oh, hush...I don't even know if she's free of sin so don't bother looking at me like that."

Ayla stepped around the bath and put her paws on his shoulders to lean down and speak in her most motherly tone, "Shhh. You did what you felt was right, what you felt was sympathetic towards the suffering of another...Of course, even if she is not free of sin, the Goddess will understand precious Farhan."

Farhan snorted and shrugged her touch off of his shoulders, though, he did smile just a bit from the compliments. Meanwhile, Naima had grown bored and spoke aloud, "Do we know who the woman is yet? What her name is and her allegiance?"

Ayla rose and turned to address the queen, "We do not know who she is, but we felt some stray magic coming off of her, traces of potent power. We did not feel any corruption or anything that might have marked her as impure, but when she woke she could not even give her name. She seemed, distraught so we did not press."

Naima laid on her side again to lounge, long tail flicking from side to side as the lioness queen absorbed the information, "I see. Do you think she'll be well enough to speak soon enough?"

"Hard to say my Queen, but..."

Their conversation stopped as the curtain's again opened. This time, the fennec fox who had once been in tatters stepped out leaning against the doorway. She stood fully nude and her turquoise eyes open and staring directly at Farhan. She brought herself up from the wall with a shaky breath, Ayla moving to support her. Carefully, Ayla led the girl to sit by the water. Quietly, the girl spoke, "Thank you, Sister."

Ayla's ears perked and she bowed her head politely, "It is no concern dear."

The girl breathed out and looked to Farhan again, "First...Thank you for helping me, second...I am Sabiya of the Windrunners."

Naima was the first to respond, her brow raised as she sat up to pay attention closely, "Oh? You're a fair bit from home darling...And not many would imprison one of your order, why in the world would anyone do so?"

Sabiya looked down, Farhan catching sight of a stray tear that perhaps was meant to be hidden as she spoke in a crestfallen tone, "I was betrayed. The Windrunners were betrayed."

All were quiet. Farhan and surely the other two made note of how she chose her wording. What betrayal would an order of respected desert mages suffer? Why would they lock this woman up? And more importantly, what type of trouble had Farhan gotten himself into by freeing her. Even when he blinked, he could see those hurt eyes of hers staring at him, her expression had been touched with gratitude and something like...expectation. Either way, they would need to hear more of her story.