Day 5 of Summer 515AV
A new day, the fifth of the new season, actually. A new season that –if things continued this way- might just prove to be disastrous. After the many tremors of last season, a landslide had eventually blocked the gate, locking everyone without wings or sublime wall-scaling skills into the city. Even Brandon couldn’t get out; he hadn’t shifted ever since having completely recovered from his injuries sustained on the trip to the volcanic city. But that did not matter, he didn’t have time for flying around, or that was what he told himself anyway.
But today was a day of work, not teaching however. It was one of the random jobs he’d do for a couple days before moving on to another. For the next few days he’d be stationed at the Dreaming Lady, some sort of spa. A relaxation center he knew Dru liked to visit. Of course, the list posted had already informed the bat of what he’d be doing specifically; massage. It didn’t sound very interesting, but then again, that was probably because Brandon did not really know what massage was supposed to mean. Sure, he’d heard the term here and there, but what exactly was it? Brandon’s curiosity did make him feel a little excited, though he feared he’d be severely disappointed.
The bat weaved through the crowd and the warrens, until he found himself in a rather bright room, with three ways to go. He frowned and tried to determine just which way he was supposed to go. Fortunately though, there were a couple of people walking about who looked like staff, and the thief decided to ask one of them for directions. As it would seem, the brightest room was his destination, and without hesitation the bat headed that way, his eyes narrowing slightly against the light.
What he found were more rooms though, and none of them appeared to be occupied. Brandon frowned, stepping into one of the rooms to inspect it. It was small, though large enough for about four persons to walk around in without being packed together like bats in a cave. In the middle were two strange looking tables. Upon closer examination though, the bat determined they were beds or benches, and not tables. They were padded and soft, they appeared quite comfortable, really. On one side there was a hole with extra padding, though the Kelvic had no idea what that was for.
Footsteps approached then, and the bat turned around quickly, spotting a woman walking into the first room, heading his way when she noticed him. “Hello,” she said in Common, probably because of Brandon’s non-Inarta appearance, “what can I do for you?” she smiled a professional smile.
“Ah, ehm, I’m here for the massage..?” Brandon replied, not really sure he was in the right place.
“Massage, yes of course,” the woman spoke brightly, “Please make yourself comfortable on the massage table. Have you experienced this before?”
Brandon frowned lightly, a little confused at the instructions he was given. What was the point of this? “No… This is a first for me.”
“Ah well, allow me to explain. Massage is the art of making the customer relax. It is a way to relax muscles and alleviate cramps and the like.”
That explanation earned a frown from the bat, a full-fledged frown. Was such a thing possible? The woman noticed and just waved to the strange bed. “Just take your clothes off and go lay yourself on the table,” she sighed, “place your face in the hole.”
Curious, Brandon simply complied, taking off his boots, then his bryda, and unbuckled the straps binding the daggers to his legs. After placing his belongings on a pile, he lied down as instructed, placing his face in the hole. At least now he knew what that was for. “That’s a nasty scar on your back,”the woman commented, “I’ve never seen such a huge claw mark… what’s it from?”
“An owl.”
“Must have been a gigantic owl then.”
“Yeah, about five times as large as I am, I think. Something like that.”
“You’re lucky you made it out alive,” Brandon could hear from her voice she was smiling.
“Perhaps. Or maybe Dira just decided it wasn’t my time yet.” Brandon smiled too.
And then the woman started doing her thing. The massage. It felt wonderful. She worked on his muscles, almost as if his body was a clay statue she was refining. She pressed, and rubbed and twisted, and Brandon felt himself relax, his body going almost limp, his mind overflowing with a sensation he knew was bliss. And yet, how was this supposed to be his job for the day? There was no way he was just supposed to lie here all day, relaxing, that was not how Wind Reach worked. “So ehm, I think there has been a misunderstanding… I’m not a customer, I’m here to work, actually.”
“I’m aware, I just thought that to understand what you are supposed to do you have to experience it first. Massage is more complex than you would think, it’s not just rubbing. So I believe an experience can tell more than any explanation.”
“In that case, I have no complaints.”
A new day, the fifth of the new season, actually. A new season that –if things continued this way- might just prove to be disastrous. After the many tremors of last season, a landslide had eventually blocked the gate, locking everyone without wings or sublime wall-scaling skills into the city. Even Brandon couldn’t get out; he hadn’t shifted ever since having completely recovered from his injuries sustained on the trip to the volcanic city. But that did not matter, he didn’t have time for flying around, or that was what he told himself anyway.
But today was a day of work, not teaching however. It was one of the random jobs he’d do for a couple days before moving on to another. For the next few days he’d be stationed at the Dreaming Lady, some sort of spa. A relaxation center he knew Dru liked to visit. Of course, the list posted had already informed the bat of what he’d be doing specifically; massage. It didn’t sound very interesting, but then again, that was probably because Brandon did not really know what massage was supposed to mean. Sure, he’d heard the term here and there, but what exactly was it? Brandon’s curiosity did make him feel a little excited, though he feared he’d be severely disappointed.
The bat weaved through the crowd and the warrens, until he found himself in a rather bright room, with three ways to go. He frowned and tried to determine just which way he was supposed to go. Fortunately though, there were a couple of people walking about who looked like staff, and the thief decided to ask one of them for directions. As it would seem, the brightest room was his destination, and without hesitation the bat headed that way, his eyes narrowing slightly against the light.
What he found were more rooms though, and none of them appeared to be occupied. Brandon frowned, stepping into one of the rooms to inspect it. It was small, though large enough for about four persons to walk around in without being packed together like bats in a cave. In the middle were two strange looking tables. Upon closer examination though, the bat determined they were beds or benches, and not tables. They were padded and soft, they appeared quite comfortable, really. On one side there was a hole with extra padding, though the Kelvic had no idea what that was for.
Footsteps approached then, and the bat turned around quickly, spotting a woman walking into the first room, heading his way when she noticed him. “Hello,” she said in Common, probably because of Brandon’s non-Inarta appearance, “what can I do for you?” she smiled a professional smile.
“Ah, ehm, I’m here for the massage..?” Brandon replied, not really sure he was in the right place.
“Massage, yes of course,” the woman spoke brightly, “Please make yourself comfortable on the massage table. Have you experienced this before?”
Brandon frowned lightly, a little confused at the instructions he was given. What was the point of this? “No… This is a first for me.”
“Ah well, allow me to explain. Massage is the art of making the customer relax. It is a way to relax muscles and alleviate cramps and the like.”
That explanation earned a frown from the bat, a full-fledged frown. Was such a thing possible? The woman noticed and just waved to the strange bed. “Just take your clothes off and go lay yourself on the table,” she sighed, “place your face in the hole.”
Curious, Brandon simply complied, taking off his boots, then his bryda, and unbuckled the straps binding the daggers to his legs. After placing his belongings on a pile, he lied down as instructed, placing his face in the hole. At least now he knew what that was for. “That’s a nasty scar on your back,”the woman commented, “I’ve never seen such a huge claw mark… what’s it from?”
“An owl.”
“Must have been a gigantic owl then.”
“Yeah, about five times as large as I am, I think. Something like that.”
“You’re lucky you made it out alive,” Brandon could hear from her voice she was smiling.
“Perhaps. Or maybe Dira just decided it wasn’t my time yet.” Brandon smiled too.
And then the woman started doing her thing. The massage. It felt wonderful. She worked on his muscles, almost as if his body was a clay statue she was refining. She pressed, and rubbed and twisted, and Brandon felt himself relax, his body going almost limp, his mind overflowing with a sensation he knew was bliss. And yet, how was this supposed to be his job for the day? There was no way he was just supposed to lie here all day, relaxing, that was not how Wind Reach worked. “So ehm, I think there has been a misunderstanding… I’m not a customer, I’m here to work, actually.”
“I’m aware, I just thought that to understand what you are supposed to do you have to experience it first. Massage is more complex than you would think, it’s not just rubbing. So I believe an experience can tell more than any explanation.”
“In that case, I have no complaints.”
credit goes to Estrellir Konrath