Mending

Jp with Lorem, Cindy and Bandorchu
Ostiarium forest sacrificial grounds

Gonyaul saw two boots near him and tilted his head up to see Wim. He smiled lazily, it was good Wim had succeeded in getting reinforcements. Wim was the real hero. Him bringing Voah and Hunter, not to mention Wim’s on contributions, to the fight is the only reason all the other feats of bravery were able to end victoriously.

He ignored the bottle of alcohol that was placed near him within reach. He had never drank before and saw no appeal in the popular beverage.

He decided it was time to get back on his feet. It felt like anchors were holding him down as he moved, but he was able to groggily sit up into a seated position. He leaned back on his elbows, the world was moving slightly still even though he was not.

From this new position he could see more. Apparently they had already been starting the process of cleaning and clearing the site. He saw Islana understandably crying and Alexis comforting her. Hunter was hugging a dead body from earlier, it must have been someone dear to him. Voah was currently thinking about something that seemed serious. Wim was partaking in liquid courage. It was then he noticed the food and other festive arrangements. If not for the crazy bloodbath and religious ritual, it was set up for a celebration.

Islana looked around again it was then she took a better look not focusing on the bodies though noticing they were being removed by some large man she didn't recognize. Or at least he didn't register in her current state.

She spotted Wim by Gonyaul. There was another woman who her mind knew looked familiar but she couldn't place at the moment.

She then looked at Alexis again, wiped tears, that seemed to not stop flowing, from her eyes.

She was alive but how? And why? Wasn't this all her fault for finding out about the cult? For continuing the investigation, even after she could have stopped.

In the quiet of the moment, her voice, broken, soft and hoarse from the crying spoke quietly, "I'm sorry. I caused this. I shouldn't have kept the investigation going. Jiyn would still be alive, Hendrick would still be alive. You wouldn't have had to risk yourself to save me." Looking around at the others, "They wouldn't have had to risk themselves."

In that moment of emotional upheaval, Islana gave Alexis access to her emotions in a way she never did. The young woman couldn't stop herself from saying it, she was too raw in the moment to hold it in.

Alexis was stunned for a moment, hardly able to believe her ears.

“Islana. Look at me.”

She urged her.

“What do you think would have happened if you had not investigated? Would this cult have sat idle? No, they wouldn’t have. They would have gone and killed either way. Maybe different souls would have gone to Zin. Maybe another child would have had to lie on this very stone tonight. And for that child, no one would have come. Because no one would have known.
And it would have happened again, next year. Because no one would have cared to look.
Would you have been alright with that, Islana? With just looking away and letting it happen? Because from what I have learned about you so far, I can’t imagine it would.”

Again, very carefully, very slowly she reached out with her other hand, ever so gently wiping away some of the distressed girl’s tears.

“So tell me, piuthar bheag. When you chose to see this investigation through, what were your reasons?”

Islana looked at Alexis and heard her words. What the older woman said was true. Islana knew it. As bad as the young woman felt right now; it would have been much worse had she done nothing.

Alexis calling her "little sister" meant a great deal to Islana. More than she could express in the moment.

"I wanted to stop a child from being sacrificed." That was Islana's main reason. It had always been her main reason. "I wanted to stop anyone else from dying at the hands of the cult. I wanted to find Hendrick."

She had stopped one of those things. The other two, well, she had stopped the cult from sacrificing others not involved in the investigation. Still, her mind went to Jiyn and Hendrick and the people that had been excuted.

“Those seem like very good reasons to me. So one more question. Are you a seer? Can you see the future?”

"No," Islana responded. She had ,never once, had been able to predict the future.

“So if you can’t - what more do you expect of yourself, than try and do what your heart tells you is right?”

Islana took a breath, wiped a few more tears from her eyes and, for maybe the first time, considered how much her guilt had been clouded by her past.

"It was the right thing to do." Spoken as it was, a realization. "I just wish the cost hadn't been so high."

Alexis could relate. Very much so.

“Yeah. But in that, we often do not get a say. And you, at least… you care. Many don’t.”

The mercenary had both her hands rest on Islana‘s shoulders.

“May you never rue to carry a beautiful heart.”

Islana wasn't just listening but really hearing what Alexis was saying to her. The younger woman had stopped shaking and was trying to pull herself together. At least enough to maybe try to stand.

It might be a while, a long time before she could fully deal with what had happened tonight and with the investigation but she had stopped
a child from being sacrificed, the Preacher was dead, the cult dispersed or dead. In the end it had been the better option to keep it going.

Alexis could see the young woman had calmed, if only a bit. She was strong. She would get back on her feet, both literally and figuratively.
With the literally part at least, the merc could offer some assistance.

Alexis rose to her feet and held out her hand to Islana.

Islana took a deep breath, reached out for the hand of the mercenary and was helped to standing by Alexis. Islana still felt a little weak, and the bump on her head, which she figured was now a deep shade of bruised, could definitely be felt but she was standing and then to walking. Taking one step at a time, slowly.