What's wrong with being (over)confident...

[Artigas]

‘Don’t worry… Anxiety isn’t good for health’ Klara’s words brought a quiet chuckle from the boy and he noticed the smile on her face. She was obviously trying to lighten the mood; it was ridiculous that she would comment on his anxiety in their current situation. It wasn’t unusual to feel anxious when in a life or death situation and Klara knew this. “There are a lot of things that aren’t good for your health in this situation” he muttered in response, but a smile still appeared on his face as he continued to peer out from their hiding place to see if the Azgeda warriors took the bait.

He saw that the warriors’ attention instantly flickered in the direction of the noise that was caused by the pebbles that he’d thrown and Artigas waited anxiously to see if they would fall for their trick. After only a moment’s hesitation, the warriors ran off to check out the noise and Artigas let out the breath that he hadn’t realised he’d been holding. “It worked” he muttered as he turned back to Klara and helped her to stand upright once again “Do you think you can run over to the tunnel, or do I have to carry you?” he asked as he eyed the tunnel that they would have to run to, to avoid detection. Klara looked weak and he wasn’t sure if she still had the strength to run, even for just a short while.

Klara

[Klara]

Klara was happy to see that Artigas chuckled at her words because it meant that she had managed to lighten the mood which was a good thing to do sometimes in this kind of stressful situation so she smiled at her companion and when he said that there were loads of things that weren't good for her health in this situation, she kept smiling because she felt lucky to have accepted that he came with her for this mission, if he hadn't been here, she will probably aleady be dead. And she watched him peering out from their hiding place once again to see what the Azgeda warriors were doing.

When Artigas came back next to her, Klara noticed that he was relieved so she already knew that her crazy plan worked but she waited for him to confirm it before rejoicing. Once he told her that it worked, he helped her to stand and asked her if she will be able to run over to the tunnel but everything began to blur around her and she wasn't even sure of being able to stay up right now and "I don't think so..." was all she had time to answer before feeling too weak to stand.

Tag: Artigas

[Artigas]

Artigas was surprised when Klara began to sway as if she wasn't going to be able to stand for much longer and without thinking about it he gripped her tighter, to support her weight. His brow furrowed in concern as he realised that the task of escape had just gotten much more challenging, especially now that Klara couldn't stand upright properly. "Okay, I'm going to have to carry you" the boy explained to his companion after trying to think of another solution and being unable to think of one. He gripped Klara firmly and heaved her up into his arms with a grunt of effort, Artigas was only young, he wasn't as strong as most of the older warriors in their clan, but Klara was light enough for him to carry without much complaint.

"Sorry, it's not gonna be a pleasant ride for you" he muttered an apology, aware that with every step he took, it could jolt Klara and he really didn't want her to be sick because of the uneven movements, especially as he didn't want to end up covered in puke for the majority of the journey back. Peeking out from their hiding place, he checked to see if the coast was clear and when he noticed that the Azgeda warriors hadn't returned, he repositioned his hold on Klara to make sure that he didn't drop her before moving at a fast jog towards the tunnel. He didn't allow himself to relax, even after they'd reached the relative safety of the tunnel and he began to travel down it.

Klara

[Klara]

Just before her legs couldn't support her weight anymore, everything around Klara became blurred and before she could understand what was going on, she felt Artigas gripping her tighter. Then when he talked to her, his words sounded so far but they were resonating in her painful head. Klara made a huge effort to concentrate so she could answer him "I... I'm sorry..." that's all she was able to say, she had never felt that weak before, of course it wasn't the first time she got injured but she had never lost as much blood as she already had right now. Her words were true, she was so sorry, she was supposed to be responsible for Artigas, to make sure he didn't get wounded but instead, it was Artigas who took care of her and who was taking risks to try to save her.

As Artigas heaved her up into his arms, Klara barely heard his grunt of effort but it made her feel guiltier to make him endure this. When he apologised, Klara would have answered that he didn't need to, that she was thankful for what he already did to help her but she didn't have the strength for that. As she felt slightly jolted, she understood that Artigas was crossing the aisle to reach the tunnel. As soon as they entered in the tunnel, Klara felt the fresh air bringing a bit of chilliness which was more than welcome, she was so warm.

Tag: Artigas

[Artigas]

Artigas really didn't want Klara to fall asleep, he was worried that if she slept then he'd be unable to wake her up later. He'd heard that could happen if a persons body started to shut down "sorry? Why are you sorry?" he questioned her, as he picked up the pace a little in an attempt to get Klara to safety sooner. "You don't have to be sorry, it's not your fault that you got hurt" it couldn't have been avoided. He had been the one to blow their cover in the first place, he should've been more careful, if he hadn't attempted to take on that warrior single handed then she wouldn't have even gotten hurt. "I don't mind carrying you, you're not heavy and it's the least I can do" he wasn't going to abandon her, he'd gotten her into this trouble and he was determined to get her out of it.

"You just need ton stay awake" he told her, repositioning his hold on her as he felt himself beginning to lose his grip, he made sure to shake her slightly in an attempt to keep her awake and maybe even force her to open her eyes. He knew that he'd feel much better if she could keep her eyes open, that way he'd know for sure that she was still awake and hadn't fallen asleep. "You have family back in Tondc? Friends?" the boy asked her, it was a poor attempt to keep her talking, at that moment he didn't care much for learning about her personal life, all that mattered in his mind was getting her back to Tondc alive.

Klara

[Klara]

Klara was aware that she couldn't fall asleep even if she felt very weak. She needed to stay awake because if she didn't, maybe she will never woke up again but also because she needed to KEEP an eye on Artigas no matter how weak she was, she still was responsible of him. As he asked her why she was sorry, Klara answered "Because I- I was supposed to keep an eye on you... to make sure nothing happen to you... But at the end... it's you who need to take care of me...", she felt so useless at this moment that she even felt à little tear running down her cheek. Artigas was a good person, Klara was sure he was going to be a great warrior ready to do anything for his people.

As Artigas told her that she needed to stay awake, Klara understood how worry he was for her so she opened her eyes and forced herself to keep them open as long as she could like she wanted to let him know that she was wide awake to reassure him. Then her companion asked her about her friends and family in TonDC, Klara was aware that he probably didn't really care about the answer and that he didn’t want to make her feel sad. How could he knew she was an orphan? "I'm an orphan... My few friends... and the other orphans... are my family..." she answered taking deep breaths between some words. She had felt Artigas accelerating but even with that, she wasn't sure she will be able to stay conscious until they got to TonDC, she wasn't even sure she will see her village again.

Artigas

[Artigas]

Artigas listened as the young woman spoke to him about how she was sorry that she couldn’t keep an eye on him and that she’d failed to take care of him “I’m not a child, I can look after myself” he answered her, knowing that although she was responsible for him, he wasn’t entirely dependent on her for protection. “We look after each other, that’s how things work, if a warrior falls then somebody else picks them up and makes them keep fighting” he told her knowing that leaving her behind was not an option for him, he didn’t think that he could live with himself if he’d abandoned her to die. “As long as your heart's still beating and there is still air in your lungs then as far as I’m concerned, your fight is not over” and she wasn’t allowed to give up, because she was trikru and trikru didn’t give up.

When Klara told him that she was an orphan and had no family, Artigas couldn’t help but feel sorry for the woman, especially when he had parents back in Tondc that loved him and made sure that he was safe. “Well… I’m your friend, so I guess that makes us family” he told her in an effort to cheer her up, he wasn’t sure if she was going to survive her injuries. She’d lost a lot of blood and from what he knew, blood was only useful when it stayed inside your body, it was already clear that she was struggling to stay conscious. Artigas didn’t know what he’d do if she died, he knew that getting her back to Tondc would increase her chances of survival but even healers had a limit on what they could save.

Klara

[Klara]

Klara appreciated that Artigas tried to make her feel better but she was still sorry and nothing that the warrior could say would make her less sorry. She listened to him as he said that he wasn't a child, that he could look after himself, Klara could see that by herself, she didn't doubt of that and it didn't change how she felt. What he said then touched her more, she was now more than certain he was going to be a very great warrior, he had such values. She let him finish before telling him "You know what... I'm glad you... were with me today... because now... I can say that... I know one of... our future best warriors... Because with such values... I'm certain that you're going to be... such an amazing warrior Artigas..." If they had more warriors like him their people should be more than safe.

Klara could feel that Artigas was sorry to have asked about her family back in TonDC. "It's okay... You couldn't know..." she said trying to make him feel better like he did before. Then when he told her that he was her friend so that made them family, a smile appeared on Klara's face "I guess so... So how should... I call you now?... Strik bro?" she chuckled. She was just trying to let Artigas know that she wasn't going to give up and she also wanted to clear the atmosphere a little bit even if it was a hard thing to do when your life is at stake but if it could help both of them relaxing a little Klara was ready to make some jokes. However she also kept something in mind: the orphans. She still wasn't sure if she will make it to TonDC but she had to make sure that they would be safe whatever happened. So after taking a more serious air Klara asked Artigas "I know that... you have already done a lot for me... and I'm grateful for that but... I have a favor to ask you..." she stopped there wanting to make sure he agreed to honor her favor in case she didn't get to TonDC alive.

Artigas