Dark And Empty

Raewyn sat in the lounge of the luxurious Castan Hotel and lifted another glass to her lips.
You came all the way to the Darksun Carnival to drink.
"Yes.." Raewyn murmured unsteadily.
You could have drunk at home.
"I don't have any Kylmiri icewine at home." She took another draught.
Rarer by the plague eh? Since we're here, why don't you go and have some fun? Wasn't that your plan?
"Nothing like alcohol..." Raewyn's eyes were glazed and unfocused.
Don't tell me I have to metabolise it for you again.
"No.. Don't.. I'll sleep it off.."
You're turning into an alcoholic.
"I feel less sick when I drink..."
Libys forced Raewyn up, controlling her body and steering her back into her room.

Feeling better yet?
"Yes. Better. Thanks. I'm... sorry, Libys."
That's a first. You've never apologised to me before.
"Yes, well, no need to further crush my dignity."
So now you're going to go out and relax.
"That's the plan." Raewyn agreed.
Of course. Where then, do you- Raewyn. Don't bring it along.
"It makes me feel better. I feel less ill." She ignored him and put a flask into one of the pockets of her cloak.
You're not helping yourself.
"If I feel better, I can operate better."
You'll get drunk.
"It's a carnival."
So?
"Just shut up."
She headed out and turned away from the main street into a small alley. She heard a small commotion just past the turn ahead.
"Odd. The main part of the city's further than that."
Carnival. It's a carnival.
"It's a city. A carnival in name."
As she turned around, she saw the source of the disturbance. It seemed like a classic robbery scene. There were three people with their lower face covered, two holding guns and one holding a katara in one hand with another sheathed on his belt. The katara was a blade that was held in a position which favoured punching, street slang giving it the famous name of 'punch dagger'. It was widely recognised by its distinctive 'H'-shaped handle, three feet long on average. These looked as if they were of a high worksmanship, with its plain, yet exquisite obsidian handle and a blade of what looked like amethyst streaked through with lines of ruby and sapphire. Expensive. And likely deadly. They were facing a group of teenagers, probably around their eighteens or so. There were eight of them, four of each gender and a pseudodragon perched on one of their heads, the tallest guy there. The robbers were smart and were standing a short distance away from them, just out of their range save for the one with the kataras. As she watched, one of the females placed a small bag on the ground. She made to kick it to the robbers and at that moment when all eyes were on her, one of the teenagers quickly stepped forward and tried to punch the robber. The katara-wielder sidestepped and, without hesitation, stabbed his shoulder. He managed to parry and the blow went wide, but before he could do anything else, the robber kicked the teen's shin and rapidly followed up with another blow to the back of his leg. He fell to the floor and Raewyn heard a cry from one of the females. Evidently a girlfriend. Raewyn heard the person say, in a metallic voice, "Anyone else?". He was using a device to change his voice then.
Raewyn, stop, don't! It's not your fight!
Raewyn unsheathed Aida as she sprinted forward, not using her chain-morningstar for the first time. The two gunners saw nothing as she masked her presence from them. The one with the blades, however, has narrowed his eyes and sniffed. He turned and stabbed towards her just as she dodged to the side. To everyone else, it had seemed that he had overreacted and attacked thin air. Another of the teens, a dimunitive female, crouched down and concentrated. The two gunners quickly turned their guns on her while the third sniffed the air once more, seeming to able to sense Raewyn. He drew his second katara and looked directly at Raewyn.
He can see through your glamour!
Raewyn quickly took stock of the situation. The two gunners weren't shooting at the smaller girl yet, but they might at any moment. Raewyn ignored the man as he charged at her and she quickly ran towards the other two gunners.
"Hey boss, where ya' going?" was all the man managed just before the smaller girl leaped at him, teeth bared in an extremely primitive, savage and utterly unsettling way. But it wasn't the smaller girl, was it? She was still crouching there. But then this barbaric lookalike, who was she? The girl, no, her cruel mirror image, bit through the first gunner's throat. The second gunner was shot at her but his shots went straight through. He quickly aimed at the still crouching girl and fired. The bullet connected not with the short girl but rather, with the tallest guy, the one who still had the pseudodragon clinging on to him tightly. He fell, blood spurting out from the wound in his chest.
Raewyn saw all this and turned around. She was vaguely aware of the other teens yelling and running to aid the guy. A second shot sounded. A shriek of pain. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the feral version of the girl pounce upon the last gunner. Directly in front of her, the last robber raised an eyebrow and stabbed with lightning speed. Raewyn's response was just as fast and she raised Aida to block.
Ah, a battle, finally!
Raewyn did not share her enthusiasm as much and quickly attacked. He matched her blow for blow and his eyes flashed. She quickly jumped backwards, something the man didn't expect and she quickly intoned several syllables. Several iridiscent bolts flew from her free hand towards the man and he stumbled backwards as they flew through his face, blinding him temporarily. Her glamour dissipating with the spell, Raewyn pressed her advantage and attacked. He laughed and somehow managed to block her strike and followed up with a counterattack.
How did he see you? He couldn't see anything!
His smell! He relies on his sense of smell!
Raewyn let loose another spell, this one punching several bloody holes in his chest. He stumbled backwards and pulled down his mask, spitting out bloody saliva. He snarled, seemingly no less feral than the girl and turned and ran. Raewyn picked up a gun and started firing at his retreating figure but she missed every shot and threw the gun down in disgust. She walked over to the teens, who were tending to their friend.
"Are you kids okay?"
"Phlegyas isn't. He was shot in the heart, Archon curse it!"
"He's dead." The girl's voice was hollow.
"Are... you sure, Styx?"
"Yes." She slumped down beside the aforementioned Phlegyas and started crying. The rest of her friends looked equally shattered. Suddenly, Styx stopped crying and reached over to the dead kid, Phlegyas.
"Phlegyas? Phlegyas? You're alive!"
He stirred and reached for his heart.
"Ugh... My chest is itching."
Tears rolling down her cheek, Styx hugged him fiercely.
"Woah, Styxie, not so tight, can't breathe." He seemed somewhat confused.
The others stared, as did Raewyn.
"Hells, Phlegyas, you took a bullet to your heart! You died!"
"I feel better now." One of the teens, a Cain, tore open his shirt.
"Hey, Acherus, why'd you rip my shirt!" Phlegyas' voice was indignant and Raewyn could only stare.
His chest was bare. There was no sign at all of the fatal wound he had just received.
"Are you sure I got shot? It don't look like that to me."
Raewyn looked at each of them in turn. "How the hells did he manage to heal instantly from a fatal wound?"
Their attention was back on her.
"I... don't know ma'am, but we are grateful for your help. If not for your intervention, we could not have escaped relatively unscathed. Compared to them." Styx gestured towards the dead gunners.
"And you." Raewyn continued as if Styx had not spoken. "There were two of you. But the other you was savage. Feral. Barbaric. Primitive. What in the Archon's name did you two do?"
"Nothing."
Come on, Rae, do you really expect them to reveal their secrets about themselves to a complete stranger?
"Alright. Never mind. You kids watch yourself, okay? Wait, what happened to the pseudodragon?"
"Grei!" They looked about and saw the frightened guide lay on a pipe at the side. The Cain went closer first.
"Grei? Are you okay?"
The pipe was stained with an odd fluid. As Acherus touched the liquid, a horrible realisation dawned upon him.
"Grei! Grei!"
He quickly channeled small amounts of energy at her, unsure as to where her wounds were located. The guide moved her head slightly.
"Grei! Are you okay?" Acherus lifted his hand up and touched her face.
Impressions flooded him, darkness, pain, despair, fear.
"It's okay now, Grei. It's okay now. They're gone now."
She spoke suddenly, rapidly, so fast that he had trouble understanding her.
"Slow down, I can't understand you. Speak slowly, Grei. Relax."
Her tone was desperate and urgent. "What time is it? Is it night time already? How long have I been unconscious?"
"No, Grei, it wasn't very long, just maybe, fifteen minutes at most."
She started frantically clawing everything within her reach, scrabbling about.
"Woah, Grei, what're you doing?"
"I can't see! I can't see anything! It's all dark! Save me, I can't see! I'm blind! I can't see! Dark and empty! It's all cold and dark and I can't see anything! They shot my eyes! I can't see, I can't see!" She shrieked pitifully in rapid-fire Draconian.
Kestrel put her hands to her mouth. Acherus quickly examined her eyes and slowly shook his head.
"Nothing I can do. We need to get her to a doctor. Now." His voice shook slightly and he took several deep breaths.
"Take this. Use it for any bills. I should have been faster. I could have prevented all this." Raewyn held her hands to her face in guilt.
"It wasn't your fault either ma'am."
"Hells yes, it was. Your friend was the one who killed the two gunmen. I couldn't even kill that third guy. I could have been faster, I could have-" She coughed violently.
"With all due respect ma'am, you did what you could. And you don't look too good either." Cocytus said.
"Don't call me ma'am, I'm not that much older than you guys. And how's that shoulder holding up? It looked like one hell of a stab. I'm Raewyn."
They introduced themselves.
"No wonder you two looked so familiar. The two scions of the Terra family. I'm a noble myself."
"Really?"
"House Aesiflay. Glad to be of assistance."
"You're the Aesiflay? Raewyn Aesiflay? Sole inheritor of the entire Aesiflay fortune? The one who disappeared from public view?"
"Yes."
"You... You apprenticed under Karasondrias, right?"
"Hey, how do you know that? The press never said no nothing."
"Parents. Kara teaches us History."
"I think we'll chat later. We have to get Grei to the doctor." She had slowly kept quiet, withdrawing into herself, not responding to their words. But they could see her shaking. With fear, with anger, they did not know. As they put her onto Phlegyas' shoulder, they could hear her mumbling, "Dark, all dark. Blind forever. I'm blind. It's so cold. Dark and empty. Eyes gone. I can't see anything."
"Archon, my heart really goes out to her. She's blind all because I... just because I wanted to take a damned shortcut. Grei... I'm so sorry." Styx said, head buried in her hands.
"Styx, nobody could have known we would have gotten mugged. It isn't your fault."
"You jumped in front of me to protect me."
"And that bullet hit me."
"He fired again. It hit Grei instead. It's all my fault. Now she's blind."
"It's not your fault, Styx, relax."
"She's fucking blind! How the hells do I relax! She's blind all because of me!" Styx shouted.
"Don't be so arrogant as to claim all the blame. I could have moved faster. I could have. But I didn't. It's over now. I can't do anything about it except move on." Raewyn said quietly. "Calmed down? Good. Now, which hotel do you guys stay at?"
Phlegyas spoke up, "Grei wanted to bring us to the Castan Hotel. We don't know how to get there."
"That's where I've got a room. I'll take all of you guys later after the doctors treat her."