Investigations [Open]

Jeremy was disappointed after his failed shrine visit, which compounded his earlier boredom into an absolute slog. He wanted to be doing something to help, not just sit and cower in a pub, but the monsters outside seemed completely powerful over them. There was a healer in the pub who could heal with just her hands and mind, which made his paltry soldier medicine useless. ..Or did it? He'd heard the infirmary doctor had gone missing, presumed dead (for all who went missing on Longnight were presumed dead). If she had an actual room for her work he thought she must have had supplies, tools; things he could use that didn't only need a magic mind. He entered the infirmary intending to see what was available here, how advanced this world was in terms of health. For the hundredth time that day he wished Diana was with him, this time because she would have been able to tell him so much more about the things around him than he could guess by holding them and staring. He wished he had paid more attention when she had shown him her office. Picking up a roll of bandages, he sat on the edge of a bed and sighed. He had felt useless back in Oxford when he had only been teaching. Now? He was doing nothing. He was far too young for retirement, he'd would have liked to have thought. But what use was a philosophy teacher with a rudimentary knowledge of wrapping wounds here? Jeremy It's obvious my angry adolescent days are done And I'm happy and I'm settled in the person I've become But that doesn't mean I'm settled up and sitting out the game Time may change a lot but some things may stay the same

There was glimpse of white as somewhone moved past the entrance, paused in hesitation, and then doubled back. Maea stole a glance into the room, and when she noticed the man inside she hovered indecisively for a while before a few cautious steps brought her inside. Pale eyes darted over the empty cots, the shelves lined with supplies and eventually came to rest on the man. She had a thoughtful purse to her mouth as she regarded him, but whatever went on inside her mind would not show on the young womans face.

"Are you a healer?" she eventually asked. "There is something I need help with..."

This had not strictly been her intention, but praying had calmed her enough that the idea of sharing her troubles with someone didn't seem as preposterous as usual. What harm could it do to ask? And maybe, just maybe, if the gods saw her trying to solve her own problems, they might become more inclined to lend a hand.

He was taken from his sad stupor by the voice of a young woman. Jeremy looked up and raised his eyebrows at the sight of the girl as pale as a ghost and just as quiet. But he had been raised not to stare, so he quickly smiled and looked at her eyes. Was he a healer? Well, wasn't that the question of the hour. "...Well, of sorts." He ventured, hoping the non-commital answer would not raise her hopes so much. He could help with some things, dislocations or cuts or breaks... but with more complex issues, disease or infection, he would be hopeless. "What is it you need?" Jeremy It's obvious my angry adolescent days are done And I'm happy and I'm settled in the person I've become But that doesn't mean I'm settled up and sitting out the game Time may change a lot but some things may stay the same

What kind of answer was that? Either your were something or you were not, right? Maea raised a brow and studied the man more closely, the wary distance she maintained like a wall of skepticism. He seemed far too old to be an apprentice, not old enough to be retired, not arrogant enough for a specialist... But perhaps there was more to him than she could discern from a superficial glance.

"I need someone to take a look at my eyes" she offered, as there was no real point in backing off now. "I want to know if they can be fixed."

He could have spared himself the effort of not oogling. Maea was so used to the stares that she hardly noticed it anymore, accustomed to the look of surprise or unease on the faces of others. Indeed, she showed no such restraints herself as she squinted at the stranger. It was the first time she ever spoke to an outlander like this. After a lifetime of seeing nothing but the same old people, coming across a new face was... intriguing. Maea wondered where he had come from, what kind of life he'd lived before now.

"Your eyes...?" Oh Lord. Jeremy immediately knew this problem was far beyond his ability or experience. He had never had to fix someone's long term eye problem in the trenches. And from what he'd seen of this place, of it's rudimentary technology...she had a better chance asking a mage than she did asking a medic. It was time to come clean. "I'm...not all that experienced in things like that, I'm afraid. Sorry. I'm...I was hoping to help with the more emergency kinda things that're happening right now. Broken arms and cuts. Stuff like that." He looked her up and down. Was she blind? It was possible, but she didn't seem to have a cane with her and had looked right at him. "You might be better off speaking to someone with magic...you from around here? It still seems fucking stupid for me to be saying that. But that's how it is." At first he had been apologising for swearing in front of people here, but now he was too tired to bother. Sides, no one seemed to mind. This place was a far reach from the places of academic prestige he was used to roaming, where one had to mind their Ps and Qs in front of rich parents of students and Deans with grants. Jeremy It's obvious my angry adolescent days are done And I'm happy and I'm settled in the person I've become But that doesn't mean I'm settled up and sitting out the game Time may change a lot but some things may stay the same

Hope. It was such a feeble thing, and so very fickle. Easily born and just as easily dead again, like a spark of light in the deepest dark. There, then gone. Maea nodded, no surprise crossing her face at the reply. Though the ashes of hope settled like cold ash in her gut she was not actually surprised, only disappointed. Finding someone who had the potential to remedy her affliction would be difficult, take up time and effort she could not spare. Not to mention what the price might be, if there was a cure. Not likely one she could pay... then again, nothing was free or cheap in the Hollow. It was always a matter of choosing ones priorities.

"I see." And for a while longer she would. "Thanks anyway."

The girl turned to leave, but paused after a few steps and looked back. "Do you happen to know someone like that?" Small chance, but perhaps her luck had not run completely dry yet.

"..That's alright. Sorry I can't help." This conversation was really not helping with Jeremy's newfound sense of uselessness in the bubble. Without the trappings of a civilised society that needed universities and theories he was just a tired old soldier with some rusty skills, more of a burden than an asset. He was content to just mope and let her leave but she asked him if he knew any magic users. Jeremy considered this. Did he? He'd seen a woman doing magical healing down in the bar but he'd heard she was pregnant and she had to be tired by now. Sending someone to her who didn't need immediate help was probably a bad move at the current time. "Uh...no, not really. Maybe you could ask around to see if anyone can do magic. But..I dunno how it works. So I can't help you there either." Jeremy It's obvious my angry adolescent days are done And I'm happy and I'm settled in the person I've become But that doesn't mean I'm settled up and sitting out the game Time may change a lot but some things may stay the same

She nodded, solemn and unsmiling in her quiet acceptance of a fate she never really counted on escaping. Not to be overly dramatic, but miracles didn't really happen a lot around these parts, and as she was not one of the gods favored, it was all a matter of ones own luck and persistance, or at least the hand me down marvels other people might agree to share with others.

With that settled, she did not really have any more business there, Maea tilted her head a little, curious despite herself about something he'd said.

"There was no magic, where you come from?" she asked. The notion was strange to her, almost as fantastic as the idea that the Spire might fall over or the barrier disappear.

Perhaps if she had known how bad the man felt about not being able to make himself useful the could have sympathised, but... she was a telekinetic, not an empath. Reading thoughts was not a skill she possessed.

"Hm? Oh, uh, no." Jeremy had expected to have been left alone once his uselessness had been proved, so he was surprised to be asked a further question. "It was a thing from kid's stories and old legends. Not...a real thing. I'm still having a time trying to come to terms to it here, to be honest." He'd seen people use magic but was still trying to rationalise it in his head as tricks, was finding it hard to accept it as simply sorcery. He considered the woman before him. She looked like someone who would know magic, somehow. Like a mystic from a fantasy novel. Was that rude...? He didn't know. "Can...you do it? The magic stuff? Did you learn or...was it taught?" Jeremy wondered if magic schools were a thing here or if the magic users were chosen ones of a sort, destined to be powerful. Jeremy It's obvious my angry adolescent days are done And I'm happy and I'm settled in the person I've become But that doesn't mean I'm settled up and sitting out the game Time may change a lot but some things may stay the same

There was a twitch to her lips, a hint of amusement as he mirrored her thoughts. The idea of fairy tales coming true was as strange to her as it must be for him, and somehow that notion made Maea relax a little. Enough to reply to his curiosity with a nod. Turning herself back towards him she inched a bit closer, and focusing on the roll of bandages in his hand she tugged at it with her will to lift it over to her own outstretched palm.

"It's something we are born into" she said, not quite looking at him as she fingered the cloth. "Some call it a gift, others say it is a curse because the gods will never favor anyone who does not need them to create miracles."

Glancing down at the bandages she let it rise up to hover a few inches above her hand. Once the effort would have made her pant and sweat after a mere few seconds, but these days it was as simple as breathing. With a flick of a finger Maea sent it flying back towards the man, to catch or not as he pleased.

"I just find it convenient. Not that I'm very good at it..."

She shrugged, hovering somewhat awkwardly as she sought for somethibg else to say. Talking to others had never been something she was good at, but it was... nice.