The Price of Honor

• The Beginning of the Weave
• Judgement
• Unraveled

Note: for the lead-in to this story, explaining how Spyke became involved with the Spiritwalkers, and how he saved Ru's soul from destruction, read the Darkness Falls storyline on the Spiritwalkers website.

The Beginning of the Weave

by Sanu

From across the campfire, the voice of the Storyteller begins. His voice, melodic and magical, begins the Weaving of a Tale. His voice reaches all within hearing, snaring them as the Weaving gains strength. The fire crackles and within the smoke images form.

"Listen well as we journey back in time to visit the one known as Sanu Spiritwalker. Listen as we speak a tale of trouble, of woe, of doubt," the Storyteller began.

"Listen as we speak of a journey to find oneself."

"Listen now as I Weave a tale of Norrath and one Shaman of the Tribunal and her family."

His voice dropped lower, "Listen as I Weave a tale of the Spiritwalkers."

People gathered closely as the smoke of the fire gathered together at the Storyteller's urging. For long moments, the smoke swirled and coalesced and then colors appeared, brightening and solidifying to reveal the green Mountains of Rathe. The scene shifted to focus in on one Shaman of the 34th Rank, newly appointed after braving her trials. The people relaxed as the Weaving took them to another world.



Sanu rested for the moment, leaning back against the tree, letting her mind wander slightly as she recovered from the rigors of slaying one of the Giant Undead that constantly plagued that area. Beside her, her spirit companion waited. She could not keep from smiling at the honor bestowed upon her now that the spirits thought her worthy enough to send one of their own to help her in her duties.

Her eyes closed as she meditated, confident that her companion would warn her of any danger that approached. While her companion had not given a name, the name "Rex" had popped to mind when she thought of him and was appropriate somehow. He had not shown displeasure when she had called him that and she had been fairly certain there was a glint of amusement in those wolf eyes of his.

Her mind roamed as she sought the mana flows of the world to recharge her own. Calling on the Spirits for their help was tiring though not in the same manner as that of a warrior. It was in that semi-trance state that she heard the call of the spirit world.

She stood up and faced north, still attuned to the call. There was no urgency to the call, just an insistence that she answer it. Yes, she thought, I will answer it from my beloved home. With a ruffling of his fur, she said goodbye to Rex and told him he could leave, thanking him for his help. He licked her face before disappearing back into the spirit world. Sanu had to smile as she gathered the spirits to aid in her journey back home.

She closed her eyes and envisioned her destination, the Stone Bridge in North Karana. The trip by foot the rest of the way would give her the time she needed to ready herself for her trip to the spirit world. The spirits gathered around her, things went black, and then she was there, standing on the firm rock of the bridge.

With a wave to the Captain of the Guard, she set out for home. At least some of the Guards of Qeynos were friendly to her Clan once you had overcome their suspicion. There were others, however, that were in need of a hefty dose of Justice in her opinion. But that was a matter for another day and a matter for the Clan as well.

Her journey was uneventful and she soon found herself in the Frozen North, Everfrost. As always, the sight of her majestic beauty took her breath away. The ice cliffs never failed to fill her heart with beauty and love. This was home to her, this is where her heart lay.

Sanu found a quiet spot on the tundra, summoning her spirit companion to guard her mortal form while she traveled to the Spirit World. Rex smiled that wolf grin at her as she settled down. One by one, she forced the thoughts of the mortal world from her mind. And then, when the moment was right, she loosened her hold on the mortal realm and slipped into the Spirit World.

It took her a few moments to orient herself as a wave of freshness greeted her. Everfrost as seen from the Spirit World took her breath away. The colors were sharper, fresher and the air seemed even more alive. Sanu looked around, invigorated by the sense of life.

Out of the mist came a wolf, similar to her companion Rex and Sanu knew to follow him. Silently she followed into the mists, keeping the spirit within sight. Was this the spirit's true form? Or did it take that form because that is what she expected? Questions she had heard the elder Shaman discussing in the Hall. She had paid little mind to their answers, thinking them unimportant to the everyday duties of a Shaman. Now she wished she had listened a bit harder for there might have been a bit of wisdom that would prove useful on this journey.

Her prior journey to the Spirit World had been an emergency measure and the Spirit World surrounding the Arena had not been friendly. By instinct, Sanu had conducted her hunt, forcing her will upon the Spirit World to take her where she wanted. And when her will had not been sufficient, she had gathered the will of her Clan and succeeded.

Though she found Ruldari's soul, Sanu shivered still at the memory of the chill. It was Lord Spyke who had brought them back. Every now and then, Sanu wondered if she had missed something in her training that would have enabled her to bring them both back.

Alone with her spirit guide and her thoughts, Sanu journeyed deeper into the mists. The mists swirled about her and if one looked closely, one could discern shapes. This was one of the dangers of the Spirit World, summoning that which you are not looking for. She remembered the fierce eyes of her teacher when she drilled into her head, "When you are in the Spirit World, keep your mind on what you are there for or keep it blank. One or the other. Anything else and you will never return."

Yes, Sanu thought to herself, this is definitely the case. The Spirit World was ever changing. Though the mists she saw different sceneries and often caught glimpses of other people, of animals moving about. But she did not stay from the trail her spirit guide created through the mists. She still had many things to do before coming to the Spirit World permanently.

Suddenly out of the mists a form erupted. Sanu had to stifle a giggle at the large white rabbit in a waist coat. The rabbit stopped in front of her and took out a large pocket watch to glance at the time. "Zoinks!" the rabbit exclaimed, "Late again! She'll have my head for sure!"

He stopped, as if seeing Sanu for the first time and looked at her, "Mighty things will be a happenin' soon, lady. Ya better git while you ken." And before Sanu had a chance to question or respond, the rabbit had scampered off into the mists.

Her guide waited ahead. With a shrug, she motioned for him to continue. The spirits had something they wanted to show her, otherwise they would not have called her. She wasn't about to waste their time by leaving now.

Sanu continued walking and slowly the mists thinned until they were gone. And Sanu stopped in her tracks at what she saw. Before her, great basalt walls reached for the sky. Never had she seen a construction like this one, not even in dreams... or nightmares. While the sheer, black walls seemed to go up forever, she could somehow make out the tops and the battlements. Lights seemed to flicker on the wall, but she could see no movement.

She dropped her gaze to the large gates before her. That they would dwarf a giant she was sure. They looked to be made of wood, but had an unearthly glow about them. In stillness, she realized where she was, the boundary between the Void and the Spirit World. A quick glance around revealed that her spirit guide had slipped away, leaving her to her own decision.

The spirit guide had shown her the way to Lord Spyke's domain, that of the Void. They were calling her bluff on her debt. The debt she was not even sure Lord Spyke would acknowledge as a debt. A debt she truly had no idea how to go about repaying. If she entered the Void, her powers would be those limited to any mortal. The Void was his domain and his will ruled.

An idle question crossed her mind of what the Ruler of the Void must do for entertainment. For beyond the walls there was nothing. Sanu trembled as the importance of what she was seeing impacted her. Nothing. No light. No dark. Just... nothing.

With a sudden burst of will, she tore her gaze away to stare at the gates before her. She reminded herself of her decision to be unimpressed with such things. Her decision, easy to make back in the mortal realm, was not as easy when staring at the reality of the Void.

For a second... an eternity... it was impossible to say, Sanu stood before the gates, thoughts running chaotically though her head, trying to make a decision, to step forward to the gates, or to step back into the Spirit World and then back to the mortal realm. And as she stood, those gates remained closed and silent, as if mocking her.

She had heard no stories of a Shaman going into the Void willingly. There existed no lore concerning one Great Lord of the Void, Lord Spyke Pha'al. It was fitting, Sanu thought. Most concentrated on what was real, what they could touch, see, hear and taste. And yet, the universe was created with balance in mind. For every "something" there had to be a "nothing". She had heard such arguments before, but none had named the "nothing" or assigned a ruler to it.

She was on her own, the decision was hers. To enter? And perhaps get lost in the Void, powerless to return. To enter? And be destroyed by Lord Spyke for entering without an invitation. To enter? And be welcomed. Or, to leave? And lose a chance to repay her debt. Sanu took her debts seriously and knew that if she died and entered the Spirit World with debts, that peace would not be hers until they were paid.

As she thought and tried to come up with a plan of action, she suddenly became aware of a change. A new tension was in the air. One that seemed to radiate over the walls. A tension of power. The power of creation and destruction. Her eyes were drawn to the top of the wall and there she saw a glow. And with a glow, there came a voice. A voice that rang with unstoppable force.

Sanu froze as the voice flowed over her, stilling her thoughts, the sudden fear of a child about to be caught eavesdropping seizing her.

"Pha'al! You have overstepped your bounds too far this time. Your facination with the mortals has clouded your mind."

Sanu froze even more as a small part of her mind worked figuring out who or what the voice had to belong to. The Tribunal had asked Lord Spyke to deliver its Judgement to Unkle. This voice was taking Lord Spyke to task. Before she could put a label to the voice, she suddenly knew. Knew what power could silence the Spirit World. Like a frozen rabbit, her mind screamed to run before she was detected. But she was unable to move, caught by the power that radiated over the walls.

There was a pause in which she assumed Lord Spyke was answering, but she heard nothing.

"Silence, Void Master! You know that I am not here about that. The Tribunal did as its wont with those that worshiped it. You were simply acting as their Voice in the situation. You tipped the scales out of balance with what you did outside of acting as their Voice."

The walls trembled with the command, and had Sanu been able to shrink herself then and there, she would have. But somehow, she knew that flight was impossible now. Where she to move, she would be destroyed.

Again, a pause and then the voice sounded, "I shall enjoy this today. You have always been one to cause me the most trouble. No, you fool! I am speaking of your action of spirit linking with a mortal! Raising the others was an abuse of power, but that was FAR worse."

"You have tipped the scales so far out of balance, that if Innouuk or Cazic wanted to leave their home planes, and head to Norrath. NOT in Avatar form... They could!"

With even wider eyes, Sanu watched as the great walls of basalt started to shake. She could see the solid gates start to quiver, like cloth in the wind. Looking up, she could see the glowing clouds of power start to gather above the castle.

"To correct your error, and to balance the scales again. I shall now make judgement."

Even though she knew the judgement was not directed at her, her soul quailed and she tried to shrink in on herself.

The voice grew in intensity, to bore through her mind, to be heard by every fiber of her being.

"To all those in the Realms that can hear me, listen to my decree..."

She fell to her knees, hands clasped over her ears did nothing to deaden the sound. The volume increased as she saw cracks appear in the wall before her. The Nameless was destroying the Castle before her as he proclaimed his judgement.

"I give judgement to the one known as Spyke Pha'al, Lord of the Void!"

"A fraction of your Spirit be linked with a mortal. So shall the rest of you be!"

And with that, the roar and rumble let loose and the walls started to crumble before her very eyes. Chunks of basalt, harder than any rock she had ever seen, started to fall from the top. The earth shattered as they fell. The great gates before her blew asunder, knocking her over with their blast.

"May you find what likened you to the mortals now, Pha'al."

Sanu scrambled to her hands and knees, feeling something tugging at her tunic. Looking down she saw her spirit guide, urging her to follow him. Awkwardly, she scrabbled to her feet, glancing back to see the walls begin to collapse into piles of rubble. What of Lord Sypke? None could have withstood the Nameless' power. As the walls collapsed, she thought she heard... no felt... a scream of something being ripped away. And then she had to flee or be destroyed, for the ruins were being consumed and if she remained, she would be consumed with them.

Fleeing as quickly as she could, she fled , running until she finally dropped from exhaustion, her face dirty, clothes ripped and torn. Unsuccessfully she tried to get her breathing under control, tried to wrestle with the implications of what she had just seen. The border between the Void and the Spirit World had been destroyed, now there was no divider. Would another be appointed as Lord of the Void?

But her mind refused to deal with it. She was still in shock. And then, a call penetrated her stupor. Someone was in trouble in Everfrost near where her body lay in rest. Her duties returned to her, protect the Clan and even the Southerners who were brave enough to test their spirits in Everfrost. It took a slight bit longer than usual, but soon she had calmed her mind enough to rejoin her mortal form.

It was a spiritually drained Shaman whose eyes awoke to the trouble around her. Rex let her know from where the trouble came. Grasping her staff, she trotted towards a well-known grove just over the hill. Just beyond that grove, her parents had been killed.

Her grip tightened on the staff, drawing strength from that old feud with the orcs. Her mind cleared as if spider webs were being brushed away. If the orcs thought to take another there, they would be sadly mistaken. If there was one thing Sanu had learned over the years, it was to fight orcs.

As she neared the edge of the grove, she saw a group of orcs surrounding a limp body. Smallish in form, but then, most of Norrath's races Sanu thought of as small, and exotically dressed, her first impression was that of an elf.

One of the orc mountaineers drew a knife to the raucous laughter and encouragement of his fellows. That was enough for Sanu. She charged the group of 5 orcs, swirling her staff above her head as she wielded the frost power of the spirits. Her command had grown and the spirits struck with much force. Within minutes, the orcs were either dead or fleeing. Sanu knew they would return in greater numbers, perhaps even more than she could handle.

Therefore it was imperative that she and whoever she had rescued leave this place immediately. She froze in astonishment as she gently turned the still form on the ground over. Lord Spyke! With a practiced eye, she looked for any physical damage, directing the spirits in its healing when she found it. But still, he did not awake.

Fragments of what she had witnessed in the Spirit World returned to her and she gasped with shock as she realized the extent of The Nameless' judgement. Lord Spyke was now mortal, stripped of his powers of the Void. And what of his reaction when he awoke? When he realizes the magnitude of the price he has paid for his actions.

Sanu's brain thought furiously, who best for him to see when he awoke? For she would not allow him to awaken alone and she could not leave him on the frozen tundra. Tense moments passed, moments she knew the orcs would be regrouping, if nothing else to reclaim their dead. And then it came to her, Ruldari.

Gathering Spyke's unconscious form in her arms, she was amazed at the lightness. She mourned the loss of his immortality and wondered if he would ever learn the ways of mortals. Her own debt took on new dimensions now, perhaps becoming an even bigger debt that the whole Clan owed.

For the sake of the Clan, Lord Spyke had risked his being to recover Ruldari from the Spirit World. To fulfill an oath he had given to mortals. And now, he had paid the price of his choice and been thrown down to join those very mortals. The Spiritwalker Clan takes care of its own, and unknowingly, Lord Spyke had become a member. It was now time for the Clan to take up its duties.

But first, he must be nursed back to health. Slowly she stood, cradling his still form. He did not move nor make a sound. She feared the return to consciousness would be slow, his fall had been a mighty one, from the Great Lord of the Void to a mortal. While she was certain he would still have great power, it would not be beyond the scope of mortals any longer. She gathered the spirits and bade them take her to Ruldari. Ruldari was the first step, the first step to being a mortal and hopefully the first step to healing a wounded soul.

The Storyteller's voice grew silent as the smoke started to blur the image of a tall Shaman cradling a smaller form she held as a child as the spirits gathered to whisk her away. For a long stretch of time, the only sounds to be heard were those of the fire crackling and the wind blowing through the leaves of autumn. As always, the children were the first to ask for more, wanting to know what became of Spyke Pha'al, the Great Lord of the Void, now that he was mortal. And as always, with a pleased but weary grin, the Storyteller promised more next time it was right to Weave a Story. Thoughtful adults left the campfire to seek their own shelters, leaving the Storyteller gazing into the flames, each thinking of the lessons the story offered. The Storyteller grinned to himself. Yes, he thought, stories of real people were often just as exciting at those invented on the spur of the moment. With an irreverent grin that would have shocked the other Elders of the Tribe, he wondered if Sanu's people told stories of him, thinking them fiction. Dismissing his thought with a chuckle, he too retired, leaving the fire to burn on its own, knowing the fire would answer his call when the time was right. He, too, was interested in seeing how the saga turned out.

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Judgement

by Spyke

The entity known to those on Norrath as Spyke, Lord of the Void, sat on his Throne. Something had been bothering him as of late, but he could not put his finger on it. He sat on his Throne when he had heavy choices to ponder, its obsidian face was unforgiving and very cold. Just as he was supposed to be. His gaze went out towards the border of the two realms that his castle straddled. From his Throne, he could peer into both the Realm of the Void and the Realm of the Spirits equally.

Of the two Realms, the Void was his and his alone to control. It was an expansion of complete nothingness. No sound, color nor shape could be discerned there. For whenever you have a Universal equation that contains something, there always needs to be its opposite, nothing. Without his realm, the natural order of life would not work properly. Plants and creatures would never die. There would never be decay. One half of the wheel, that is required for things to grow, to live, would simply not be. He pondered on how many a mortal would relish the thought of not being able to die, but he simply knew, that eventually they would find out what a curse it would be.

His gaze shifted slightly to look on the other side of the border. Of the Realm of Spirits his knowledge was also absolute, but his power was minimal. It also was a needed place. Without it, the spirits, of those enlightened enough to have them, would have no place to go for their final rest. As his Realm is one of never changing attributes, the Spirit Realm is its polar opposite, a constantly changing quagmire of sound, and color, and shape. It had a certain beauty to its chaoticness, he thought.

He sat up a bit more in his throne. "There it is again," he said out loud. The concept of beauty was one that, until recently, he had never pondered. He never had a reason to. It was simply something that did not matter. He was sure that it was due to the link that he had now with the mortal known as "Ruldari".

He shifted his sight into a range that no moral creature could ever see, nor would they be able to understand what they were seeing, even if they could. His gaze fell across the border and the two Realms again. His perception had shifted to allow him to see the tendrils that represented the links between all living creatures and the Spirit Realm. He sat and watched as some of them went from being linked to the Realm of Mortals to his Realm and then to stop in the Realm of Spirits once and for all. He focused on one Link in particular, the one that went from himself through the Spirit Realm into the Realm of the Mortals.

Before he had a chance to continue his thought, he felt that someone was there, in his throne room, with him. There was but one entity that could enter his domain without his knowledge... The Nameless, the One above All. He simply waited, still seated on his Throne, as he knew what this visit was about.

"Pha'al! You have overstepped your bounds too far this time. Your fascination with the mortals has clouded your mind."

He did not bother to look around, as he knew that he would not see anything. The Nameless had never taken a form in all of time, he would not now. "If you are speaking of my charging a mortal with his penance, that was a task requested of me by The Tribunal themselves. Speak to them about your grievances."

"Silence, Void Master! You know that I am not here about that. The Tribunal did as its wont with those that worship it. You were simply acting as their Voice in the situation. You tipped the scales out of balance with your actions outside of acting as their Voice."

"You are speaking of my actions to resurrect those of the mortals that had died at the Demon's hands?" He took a deep breath. One such as he never needed to breath, but he felt that it helped him think clearer when he did. He could perceive a growing thickness in the environment around him. This was not a good sign.

"I shall enjoy this today. You have always been one to cause me the most trouble. No, you fool! I am speaking of your action of spirit linking with a mortal! Raising the others was an abuse of power, but that was FAR worse."

He noticed his castle begin to shake as The Nameless's disembodied voice grew in volume and power. He also realized that now was not a time to speak.

"You have tipped the scales so far out of balance, that if Innoruuk or Cazic wanted to leave their home planes and head to Norrath.. NOT in Avatar form... they could!"

He noticed that the violence his castle was feeling was growing in intensity. He was almost thrown from his Throne as if to be force to stand.

"To correct your error and to balance the scales again, I shall now make judgement."

He actually felt fear.

"To all those in the Realms that can hear me, listen to my decree...."

The Nameless' voice had risen to such a volume, that the Throne was beginning to fracture.

"I give judgement to the one known as Spyke Pha'al, Lord of the Void!"

He felt eyes burrow into him, even though there were none.

"A fraction of your Spirit be linked with a mortal. So shall the rest of you be!"

With that, he heard an immense cracking sound, as the floor under he feet began to shatter. He noticed his castle was being destroyed around him as he started to feel the slight tugging force. He began to fight against it.

"May you find what likened you to the mortals now, Pha'al."

With that, the tugging force grew in power and strength. The last thought that he had before his head snapped to one side forcing him unconscious, was that he was correct in not liking this at all.

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Unraveled

by Ruldari

Ruldari was wallowing in self-pity. Perhaps this would have been a common occurrence when she was a child, being told repeatedly how useless she was by her drunken mother, but it was not at all common anymore. Not since she was accepted into the Spiritwalkers. Not since she met Joril.

Yet, here she was, stomping through snowdrifts in Everfrost, muttering to herself in a most un-Ru-like manner, and feeling quite sorry for herself.

It seemed that everything had been unraveling and going awry lately, and she'd just about reached her limits. If something didn't happen soon, she felt like she was going to explode from it all.

As a ranger, she knew she'd chosen a difficult path, as a not-quite fighter and a mediocre at best spellcaster. Her tracking and foraging skills were unrivaled, but it seemed lately that her other skills were not enough to keep her skin intact in situations where folks several trainings her junior could breeze right through. To add insult to injury, no matter how much she was positive she'd progressed enough to please her trainers, they refused to teach her new spells -- spells that a druid a third of her training could easily master. Did they think she liked sitting at her 29th rank of training forever? Did they think she wasn't trying hard enough? She certainly had the wounds to prove otherwise.

Then there was her fletching. For some reason, she was more fumblefingered than usual lately. Not only were theoretically simple arrows being botched on a regular basis, but instead of attaining the coveted rank of "master fletcher", she feared her trainers were going to downgrade her to "rank apprentice" if she didn't start showing some improvement.

Her debt to the Lord of the Void also weighed heavily on her mind, the moreso because she seemed unable to repay that debt. She'd gone on an extended journey to try to speak with him and repay her debt, but had been unable to find him. Ru, tracker extraordinaire, had gotten herself hopelessly lost in the realms leading to Spyke's home in the Void, and had to return home with nothing to show for her efforts but a wasted month of fruitless searching. You would think that after he had sacrificed part of his soul to save her soul from total destruction by a demon, that she'd be able to track him anywhere, but she was blocked at every turn and the way was lost to her.

If that wasn't enough, there was trouble awating her when she returned home. The Spiritwalkers had been family to her, giving her the love and support her unlamented mother had not seen fit to shower upon her. Recently, however, the clan had grown too much, too quickly, and personality clashes and differences of opinion degenerated into outright nastiness.

Many had left the clan for varying reasons, unable or unwilling to handle the strife. Her beloved Joril had also left, feeling the need to prove himself on his own, unsheltered by his loving family.

Ru was torn, but so far had stayed firm by Unkle's side. She owed and loved him too much to let anyone think she was "deserting" him while the clan was so beleaugured from within. But soon the time would come for her to leave, as her place was truly at her husband's side. Joril had been supportive of her decision, but still, it tore at them both.

So, here she was, the tips of her upswept ears half-frozen from the biting wind, returning from yet another fruitless visit to Surefall Glade.

"Refuse to train me, will they? Not ready, am I? Too dependent on others? Hah! Well how on earth am I supposed to improve if they won't give me the skills I so badly need if I am going to hunt solo at all?!"

Her litany of grumbling stopped short as a gray streak leapt over a nearby snowbank and into her path. She peered at the wolf, recognizing it as Sanu's companion spirit, Rex. "What is it, boy? Does Sanu need me?"

Rex yipped once, and turned to face Halas, looking over his furry shoulder to be sure that she was following.

"Aye, Fuzzface, I'll follow you. I'm warning you, though, I'm not going to be very good company for you or for Sanu right now." Ru's voice was tiredly apologetic, as if to take any sting out of the words.

When Rex responded with a low growling whine, Ru's violet eyes narrowed, even as she broke into a run. Whatever was going on, it wasn't a social call. Her mind a-whirl with worry that something drastic had happened to Joril or Unkle, she pushed her tired legs to their limit as she followed Rex, wishing once again she was able to enhance her travel speed as her sister-in-law Sanu could.

When Rex stopped in front of Ru and Joril's Halas home, Ru burst through the door in a flurry of snow and concern. "Sanu, what is ... " All thought fled for a moment as she took in the scene before her. Lying in a pile of sleeping furs was a very battered high elf that looked amazingly like the Lord of the Void.

A worried looking Sanu turned to face her, one hand resting on Rex's ruff. The shamaness, often one of very few words, seemed even more terse than usual: "Yes, it is Spyke, yes, he is mortal, sorry, duty calls me elsewhere, I have stayed too long." With a muttered phrase and a quick gesture, Sanu and Rex were gone, gated to goodness-knows where.

Ru's silver-white eyebrows rose in startlement as her mouth dropped open. Numbly, still covered in snow, Ru sat on the floor beside the sleeping pallet and took a closer look at the one lying there.

He looked like he'd been run over by a whole pack of orcs .. riding wooly mammoths ... with snow leopards as their honor guard. Given the extent of the injuries, Ru would guess that he'd been almost dead before Sanu treated the worst of his wounds and brought him here.

Mortal. Blessed Karana, please let it not be because of the sacrifice he made for her. Best not to dwell on that much, else she'd run gibbering into the night, and be unable to repay the great debt she owed him.

His physical healing would only be the first step in a very difficult journey for him, and Ru was momentarily overwhelmed at all the things he'd need to learn about. Eating and drinking. Sleeping. Self-defense. Emotions of any sort. The list went on and on. Of course, until he woke up or Sanu returned to explain what had happened, she didn't know if the change was permanent, but she'd better plan for the worst.

For the first little while she could nurse him along on her own, but then he was going to have to learn to interact with others on a mortal-to-mortal basis, instead of his normal avatar aloofness. And, oh, what aloofness it was. Momentarily, she considered mobilizing all of the Spiritwalkers, but then came to the stunning realization that it would not be good to dump him into the middle of them right off. He would be too overwhelmed by the close sense of "family" that was normally felt among the Spiritwalkers, and the current fueding would only confuse him more. Best to deal only with a few select friends first, especially ones who had dealings with him in the past.

Keeping a close eye on her "patient", Ru started making a list of friends who could help give Spyke lessons on being mortal. A wry grin twisted her lips momentarily. There was nothing like a now-mortal avatar lying in your bed to make you realize that perhaps your life wasn't so unraveled after all, compared to the plight of others ...

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