a sea of dreams

"Thank you." That was all I could say on the matter as I tried not to think about my trauma that was now creeping back at the forefront of my mind. I hate that it's so easy to slip back into something that I've spent so much time pushing to the back where I never have to think about it again.

The hand on my shoulder did help and I looked up at Sabine with a small nod. I listened to her speak and frowned, the explanation she gave made me feel a need to comfort her that overtook memories of my past.

"Hey, you are not a monster. You weren't shown how to be a vampire. I wasn't when I got turned." A beat and I had to compose myself before speaking once more about something I swore I'd never tell anyone before now.

"When I was first turned, I found myself completely alone. My maker had left me alone to figure out what happened. A man found me and he wanted to help, but I didn't give him a chance to. Instead I attacked him and he was the first person I ever killed."

I had to pause and force my emotions back because this wasn't about me, it was about Sabine. "You are a good person, Sabine. Nothing about what you did makes you a monster."

sabine let him speak, allowed him the time to tell his story. his story was similar to hers, though he hadn't killed his maker like she had. she'd still been alone, however, having to navigate a whole new world that now saw her as an abomination and an affront to God. sabine had been her first kill as a vampire, and certainly not the last that night. it was nice of salvatore to assure her that she wasn't a monster when he had no idea the acts she had committed that first night as a fledgling.

he had shared his trauma, and so she would share hers. "i don't think others would agree. i was married to a man i thought would love me, but instead all he wanted from me was a son. i was treated as little more than property, a vessel for his heirs and his family were no better."

@fcntasyadvcnturc said: [ steady ] sender grabs receiver's arm to steady them before they fall over - wil

        the archers on the ridge are becoming a real problem. mei realizes this as she throws up yet another shield spell against a hail of darkspawn arrows and the barrier flickers, letting one through to clip her cheek. mei grits her teeth against the sting of the cut opening on her face as she raises both hands, throwing all of her remaining mana into summoning a storm of lightning to rain down on the archers before they can fire off another shot.

        she has to dig deep for it, and she knows as she's casting it that she's pushing too hard, but the spell goes off and several darkspawn archers drop immediately. mei smiles, satisfied, wiping a trickle of blood from under her nose with the back of her hand as she sways on her feet. she won't be able to cast again for at least a few minutes, but she can channel the power in her staff for some basic attacks. it's as she's moving to take aim that she nearly topples over, if not for wil grabbing her with both hands to keep her upright.

it frustrates wil to no end that he isn't able to cast magic as easily as he could back in his own world. this new world, mei's world, has a completely different magic system to where he's from and as a result he now has to relearn everything everything he ever knew about magic. on more than one occasion he's tried to use his elfstones, forgetting that in this new world they're nothing but mere trinkets. and then there's the matter of mei herself. she's the spitting image of mareth and he constantly has to remind himself that the two are completely different people.

he supposes that's why he's always looking out for mei, making sure she's safe and not in danger. he may not be useful in the area of magic, yet, but he can still fight with a sword. seeing the bushes mei points out, wil helps her get to safety, gently helping her down to the ground. "tell me what to do." there had to be something. "i can give you some time, take them on with my sword."