Nathial! The name rang in her ears as Kitya spiraled backwards. She had been given a strange gift, a servant delivering the box to her in her private changing area within the tavern, and since Kitya thought it was from him the Yaeli had simply opened the box. Perhaps it was a necklace or something like a new fan for her performances? She never expected any of the staff here to lie about their deliveries and who would want to swap something all the way here when it was supposed to be a safe space? When a strong scent of incense hit her, the smoke emerging from the box once the lid released it into the air, the dancer found herself stumbling backwards from how pungent and strong it was. What was this? Kitya closed her eyes against the sudden stabbing pain in her head, the Yaeli gasping for air as she tried to gather herself. Dammit, dammit! Someone had nearly gotten her months ago with a contaminated drink and now this? Who? Kitya’s vision blurred as she clutched at the table, trying to find a way to move as the servant came back into the room. “You…” She managed weakly, her magic flashing for a moment before being dampened again and shoved back into the recess of her mind as darkness swallowed her whole.

When she woke up tied to a chair in some abandoned warehouse along the ports, the Yaeli snarled at her captor. “Really?” She made a face as she looked around the place. “This is so cliche, you know.” She managed as she tried to compose herself despite her racing heart. Stay calm and steady. They won’t ever be able to shake you. She repeated to herself as she stared down the Oban woman that removed her hood. At first glance she had looked like Isha, her personal maid within the tavern, but now Kitya could see that she had an altered appearance with wax applied beneath layers of makeup to alter her nose shape and give her the appearance of similar cheek crystals that her maid had. Tricky. She had to give it to her that it was a fairly decent disguise, something that she hadn’t seen thanks to the shadowed room of the tavern. “At least put me in a nicer room if you’re going to hold me hostage. Or is this an interrogation?” Kitya tried to lean forward against her restraints, a flirtatious smile curving up her painted lips. “You know there’s much more pleasant ways to get information. I could show you, if you’d like.”

“As much as I would love to see what you could do, this isn’t about you.” The Oban replied as she walked forward, a sharp fingernail pressing carefully into Kitya’s cheek as she trailed a pattern down from there towards her neck. “This is about your employer and you appeared to be his favorite little information bug.”

“He has much more important matters than worrying over me.” Kitya replied, her expression not shifting even as the nail pierced into her skin and drew a faint line of blood. If anything her heart only tightened as she worried about Nathial, but she refused to show it. “You sure that we can’t have a chat? I could show you some good shopping spots in Oba if that’s what you’re interested in or there’s a great way to get discounts in the market if you haggle with a certain vendor…”

“Cute, but you really do talk a bit too much.” Kitya winced as she was shoved back into the chair and the Oban woman retreated for what was probably a couple of hours. She tried to wiggle her wrists free from the constraints but whatever they gave her still made her body groggy and her magic simply wouldn’t rise to the surface. But her kidnappers hadn’t thought things through enough. What they had given her was simply a sedative, not a permanent hindrance. Eventually Kitya could feel her body starting to come back to terms with its existence and even though every fiber of her being screamed in agony, the very thought of Nathial being injured because of her pushed the wild mage through. She wasn’t simply just some pretty dancer as many presumed, after all, and shame on them for not realizing it. Kitya’s silver gaze flashed with fury as she pushed through the haze, her ropes catching fire and scorching her wrists slightly even as she broke through them and kicked the chair across the warehouse. Time to see who I can catch here before Nathial gets through to them. If she got there first then they would probably be in for a bit of pain, but if he got to them…well, those screams already told her enough. Kitya winced as she started to move forward so that she could stop him before it was too late. “Nathial, I’m fine!” She yelled despite how reckless it was, her desperation to keep him from doing anything too dangerous pushing her forward into his arms.

[875 wc]