novelraw Chapter 812 812: Get by with a Little Help from Friends
Chapter 812 812: Get by with a Little Help from Friends
'I need to hurry,' Noble didn't want to miss the closing of the gates.
The men on the walls would probably overlook her if she tried to breach Ravenheart, but it was better not to find out. So the floating woman rushed at a speed that would rival some of the fastest Saints.
'I forgot a Soul Shard!'
The mother suddenly remembered her promise to her younger son. Blaze had made progress on his energy project, and he needed a shard to complete it. However, at the restaurant, Noble had told Rain to keep her shard for herself.
'I need a replacement.'
The area closest to Ravenheart was generally clear of the most dangerous monsters thanks to the watchful eye of the Queen and her adopted daughters. Still, smaller creatures were often ignored unless they got up against the wall.
Expanding her range, Noble searched for any sign of a Nightmare Creature that might fit her particular needs. Unfortunately, no corrupted being was around just waiting for her to kill it. With a sigh, Noble headed to the city. Barely making it into the city on time, Noble set out in search of a particular home next to her favorite bakery.
Sarai opened the door to her house just as the sun was setting.
"Noble! I don't know anything about...Oh!"
The red-haired woman watched as Noble lowered the scarf, which had been draped around her neck to avoid questions at the gate.
The Saint winced. "I need a little help."
Sarai ushered her inside. "You need a healer."
Noble unwrapped her scarf and laid it across her arm. "I will be fine. I was hoping I could make use of a couple of your Memories in the meantime, and possibly borrow a little makeup?"
Her friend chuckled as she shut the door. "You ladies are going to owe me some new makeup between the two of you."
"Two of us?" Noble remembered the first words Sarai had spoken when opening the door. Her mind clicked. "Rain's already been here today, hasn't she?"
Her friend nodded. "She left not half an hour ago. She was more banged up than you, which I would expect since she's mundane. Though your wounds are more concerning. Perhaps I should transfer the Memories to you so you two can have some quality time together."
"You'd never give them up." Noble shook her head slightly. "Anyway, you like our unexpected visits, and you know it."
"I will admit you make my life interesting. Now sit right here in the light and…are those nail marks?! Did someone try to kill you?"
"Slow down, Sarai. It wasn't like that. I had a run-in with a Skinwalker in the Cinder Sea." Noble felt the other woman's emotions as they erupted.
"YOU WHAT?!"
'I guess this is good practice for when I tell Fort.'
Noble took a deep breath. "Don't worry, I came in through the main gate. You can ask me any question you like to prove I'm me."
"I'm not worried about whether you were taken over. You would never have come here asking for my Memories if you were that monster. I want to know what the blazes you were doing out in the Cinder Sea to 'run into' a Skinwalker in the first place?!" Sarai summoned two Memories: a familiar vial and a tub of cream.
She passed the vial over to Noble for her to take a sip. While it was unlikely that she had been poisoned, the vial also helped encourage essence circulation to expedite healing. Plus, Noble was thirsty.
She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and returned the bottle to its owner.
The floating woman smacked her lips.
"You know the Hermit?"
"The legend that everyone blames for any unexplained event?" Sarai was slightly confused by the change in topic until she realized it hadn't changed at all. "You went out looking for them?"
"Him. And I found him. You remember that creature that left marks behind when dropping off the package for Rain. It turns out that squ—sugar glider belongs to him." Noble started to nod and immediately regretted it. The creature's nails must have been infected. Perhaps they had retained some corrosive material from another one of their kills.
Sarai opened the small glass tub and dipped her finger into the cream inside.
She gently touched the first spot.
"So, who was so bold to track you down with a soul shard for Rain?"
"Chip."
Fireshing's emotions spiked, and her finger became intolerably warm. The cream evaporated instantly, and the skin beneath gained a sunburn.
"Oh! I'm sorry." The redhead pulled her hand away, blowing smoke from her fingers.
Noble instinctively offered her calm. "Don't worry. I'm fine. It's my own fault."
"I should say so! That's a mean trick to play on me. I know I mentioned that under other circumstances I would think it was him, but there is no need to tease me about it."
Sarai dipped her finger for another dab of cream when Noble caught her wrist. While the fire hadn't been the most painful thing she had experienced that day, she had no desire to repeat the event.
"I wasn't joking, Sarai. The Hermit is Chip." The woman's eyes swirled, the vibrant blue showing her own elation.
"Chip… is alive?! How? Th-there was a funeral and…" Sarai found herself at a loss for words.
"He found a way out and decided a life of solitude suited him better." Noble could understand his reasoning, even if she didn't fully agree.
"I need to go see him!" Sarai looked at the door, already beginning to stand.
Noble held on to her friend's arm. "I don't think that is a good idea just now. The gates will be closing for the night soon, and one of us was already attacked by a Skinwalker today."
The baker sat down. "Tell me everything."
While Sarai tended to other woman's wounds, Noble laid out the events of the day in detail.
"So Chip's a Saint now?" Sarai still didn't want to believe it.
"He and Matilda seem pretty happy out there on their own. He seemed far more stable than the last time I saw him...even before he tried to die while saving me." Noble nodded, already feeling relief from Sarai's handiwork.
"I still want to see him." The redhead had taken the loss harder than her friend had realized.
Losing any Awakened was rough. They were the hope of humanity, and each loss dimmed some of that light. To get one back was truly something special.
"I will see if we can arrange it soon. Just promise me you won't go out there alone." Noble could fly from most danger...and she was a Saint now.
Sarai could not and was not. It would be better if they went together.
"I won't as long as you don't get scrappy with another Skinwalker without me." The redhead nodded firmly.
"I have no plans to take on another vessel any time soon…or ever," Noble promised. She had too many run-ins with that blasted monster. If she never saw it again, it would be too soon.
Sarai patted the last spot with a tone matching Noble's natural skin. She eyed her handiwork.
"Well, then, in that case, it looks like you are good to go. Let me get you a mirror so you can…"
"No!"