Capítulo 3: The Girl In Blue

It was hard to pinpoint what finally woke the black haired youth up from his unconscious and largely unwanted slumber, the sensation of a cool, wet cloth against his forehead or the feeling of someone casually running a hand through his wild black hair. Regardless of what the cause happened to be, Zetuo found himself slightly confused as to what was going on around him, especially since the last thing he remembered was running through a virtual maze of trees during the middle of an intense downpour. The feeling of being cared for was largely unfamiliar to the young adolescent and, though it wasn't unwelcome, it raised quite a bit of surprise within him as the youth pondered what to do next.

Normal people would have just opened their eyes to see what was going on, but Zetuo decided to wait, preferring to mentally piece things together before revealing to others that he had retrieved some sense of self. There were many more ways to accumulate details and answers that didnt involve the use of vision and Zetuo knew all of them, having had to practice them more times then he would've liked throughout his fifteen years of life.

The sounds coming from an unknown individual, the smells lingering in the air, the touch and gentle brush of the same persons fingers as they traced through his hair. Even the amount of light that hit the outside of his eyelids was taken into account as Zetuo continued to feign his own sleep. Zetuo absorbed as much as he could manage before piecing it together bit by bit like an unfinished jigsaw puzzle.

(("One individual, possibly female. An enclosed place, definitely not outside. No air conditioning but that's fine. No straps on my wrists or ankles. Located on what feels like a bed.")) Zetuo added up his findings carefully, using them to paint a picture of his current predicament and then using that to formulate a plan should the need arise. (("Based on the figures movements and lack of restraints on me, he or she doesn't envision me as being a potential threat. Either they have faith in their ability to subdue me should the situation call for it or they don't perceive me as an enemy. In either scenario, likeliness to be assaulted upon awakening is about 5%, which is as good as I'm gonna get in terms of odds."))

After a full minute of initially regaining consciousness, Zetuo finally opened his eyes, pitch black hues greeting the world once again. Having deemed it safe to do so, the black haired youth let the individual know he was awake, letting out an intentional groan as he moved about on the mattress. He didn't want to rush things, preferring to ease his way into the other persons thought process and allow the person watching him to make their own decision.

At least, that had been the plan.

The individual didn't take Zetuo's awakening as well the youth had hoped, the fingers that were petting his fluffy black hair ceasing its movements entirely. There was brief pause, a moment of silence in which even the breath of the person was held, and then the individual let out a small squeak, a soft feminine squeal that only reinforced Zetuo's earlier assumption. The hands quickly left his head as a crash echoed through the small room, a groan of pain followed close afterwards as the girl rolled on the ground in an attempt to recollect herself.

Zetuo smiled internally as he let out another groan, this time lifting his head up and forcing himself into a sitting position. What had transpired was almost comical, but he pushed aside the urge to laugh as he continued the charade.

The girl picked herself off the ground and made her way forward, right into Zetuo's vision. The female went on to act as if nothing had happened, her back facing the young man as she rummaged through a small wooden cabinet across from the bed. Long, flowing, dark green hair tied in a ponytail, a blue qipao dress, light brown boots, and thighs that were visible through the slits in the sides of the girls outfit; Zetuo took it all in from the corner of his eyes as he removed the wet cloth from his forehead. Every single detail was taken into account as the young man watched each and every move, letting nothing escape his vision.

"Its good to see that you're finally awake," The girl eventually said as she turned around, a small ceramic container in her left hand and a cloth in her right. "You've been out of it for a whole day. I was starting to worry that you wouldn't pull through."

Zetuo didn't respond right away as he took in the girls front half, black hues giving her a brief once over. Bright green eyes almost the same color as her hair, fair skin, a kind expression on her youthful visage, and curves in all the right places. She was definitely a beauty, but Zetuo didnt let that suade him in the least, refusing to be lead on by what was on the surface.

"How did I.....get here?" Zetuo asked softly, putting an intentional pause in between, acting out a sense of confusion and timidity. "Where am I?"

"Well, right now, you're in my home,"the girl replied, handing Zetuo the container and cloth. "I found you unconscious on the Sacae Plains and brought you back here. I wasn't entirely sure on whether or not you had been attacked so I carried you here on horseback just to be safe. No worries, you're safe now so just be sure to rest easy."

(("The plains? Sacae?")) Zetuo frowned as he clutched the ceramic container tightly. (("Where exactly is that? It's not a place that I've ever seen on any type of world map. Is it uncharted?"))

Zetuo let out a breath as he mentally pulled up several images regarding the maps of the world, then using them to conjure up a 3D image of a small globe. However, even despite his execution of the extra steps, the young teen couldn't locate any such place the green haired female had mentioned. While it was possible the young woman was using an alias instead of the actual name, Zetuo had a gut feeling that the actual explanation went a tad deeper then what he was currently thinking.

"I know you have plenty of questions but please, drink the vulnerary first," the green haired girl said, gently placing a finger on the top of the container. "You'll need to get your strength back up."

Zetuo shook his head slightly, pushing aside the details of his location for the time being, his attention now zeroing in on the item he had been handed. There was a sweet smell emanating from within it, one that Zetuo had detected earlier but had been too wrapped in his own thoughts to properly investigate. Some distinct smells stood out to him such as honey and sugar whole others remained a mystery, leaving him only able to guess and speculate about its contents.

A vulnerary, a medicine used in the healing of wounds using herbal remedies. Primarily used in the past when lack of pharmaceuticals was present.

"Alright. Thank you for taking care of me," Zetuo said as he removed the lid on the small container. Beneath the lid, a clear liquid sat, still as can be, waiting for the young man to drink it. "I'll happily accept your offering."

Without hesitation, Zetuo knocked back and down the entire drink in one fell swoop. He hadn't any fear of poison nor any fear of drugs, partially due to his resistance to both, but also because he highly doubted that anyone who went out of their way to help someone would bother to put the victim back into dire straights. His chances of dying from the drink were almost nonexistent and it was because of this that he didnt falter, choosing to trust the stranger as he swallowed every drop.

After he practically inhaled the substance, the youth set the container down and placed the lid back on top.

"Do you mayhaps feel any better?" The girl asked as she retrieved the object. "You will surely have to rest for a minute, but soon you will no doubt have all of your previous vigor restored."

Zetuo mostly ignored what she was saying as he took a look around the room. There wasnt really much to take in seeing as it was nothing but a simple hut, but nevertheless the youth quickly scanned the perimeter before filing it away under useless information. Crates and chests lined walls with two tall vases positioned to the side, large lids covering them. Curtains lined one side of the room, no doubt built to slide over the windows, of which were oddly built, shaped like diamonds in a sort of old timey and old fashioned way. In fact, everything around Zetuo appeared to be rather old fashioned and out dated, the chests, the vases, the floor, and even the bed all had that simplistic feel to it.

"My apologies. I forgot to give you my name." The girl set the container back where she found it, placing the cloth from Zetuo's forehead into a nearby bowl of water. "I am Lyn, of the Lorca Tribe. Who are you? Can you still remember your name?"

(("Lorca tribe? Never heard of them either.")) Zetuo rubbed his head in frustration as he gave the girl a small nod. "I'm.....Zetuo. Zetuo Tetsuya."

"Zetuo Tetsuya? What an odd sounding name." Lyn walked away for a second before seeming to realize that she had spoken aloud. "Of course, pay me no mind. It is a good name. I am merely just surprised to hear such a name as I've never heard such one before today. I usually just here common names such as Maria or Juda and yours stuck out to me as unique."

The green haired girl continued to ramble on, clealry flustered as she tried to explain what she meant. Zetuo hadn't even felt insulted by what she had said and honestly didn't even feel that the matter of his name ran that deep. The only reason he even had such a name was because his parents had been totally into japanese culture, not even realizing that the japanese never really had the "tu" in their names. He was actually in agreement with the green haired female when it came to his own name as it was an unusual one that wasnt often heard. Of course, he didnt say any of that out loud as he cleared his throat, bringing the girl back to her senses.

Lyn blushed a little, embarrassed at her trip up as she turned on the back of her feet and made her way to the door, grabbing her sheathed sword on her way out, the same one that Zetuo had seen leaning up against the side of the chest.

Without another word, she shut the door, leaving the black haired youth alone in the room.