What Marvels the Sea Begets [Eorar]

[Avaltri]

Winter 90 of 511 AV The late morning sun was shining brightly over the bay. Although she could easily endure the winter in Zaltiva, Avaltri enjoyed the warming rays. Together with the wind up here, it resulted in a curious mixture of warmth and cold that somehow augmented the feeling of being very far from everything, possibly because almost all of her mind was occupied just with the immediate sensations. Only now and then a vague thought of something crossed her consciousness, too fleeting to be cast in words. Avaltri was sitting on a large rock that protruded from the steep slopes of the mountains towards the sea, sharing it with a solitary, rather small fir that was curiously bent away from the sea. She had hung her bag onto one of its larger, lower boughs. A cloud shifted itself before the sun. The failure of the warming sensation on her skin, and the change of lighting, caused Avaltri's attention to shift suddenly away from tactile sensations to her visual field. She had been looking at the horizon. Now she raised her eyes to look at the mixture of clouds and blue sky above, and then turned down towards the water of the bay at her feet. For a moment, she was almost hypnotized by the movement of the slightly curled surface. Then, quite suddenly, she flung herself forward and off the cliff. For a second or two, she let herself just fall, observing the effortlessness and weightlessness of it, and feeling the air rush past. Then she spread her wings and flapped them forcefully to intercept her fall, redirection it slightly into a horizontal directing it so as to move a little more out on the water. Finally, after coming to a full halt about ten meters above the surface, she inhaled deeply, ceased all motion, and plunged head-first into the sea.

[Warden Thrice]

Eorar was very pleased. Over the past season, his entrapment below the surface of the water had given him ample time to focus on his reef, and it was showing the results proudly. Easily fifteen feet long and half as high, it was encased in brilliant colors, be they steadfast coral, waving anemones, or school of fish. It had grown much faster than he had expected, but with proper upkeep it had grown to be a work of art. The colors interlaced with each other too beautifully for simple happenstance, and even someone who had never heard of the Charodae could see that it someone had to have directed its growth. He had long since stopped counting the residents; there were far too many for that, though he was aware of the more ostentatious ones. It was warm today, as it had been for a recent number of days, but he wasn’t in Zeltiva, and neither did he have any desire to be. The almost nonstop routine of getting lost in the tall gray buildings had drained him, and coupled with his constant use of morphing he was left physically and emotionally exhausted. He had then decided that since classes wouldn’t start until spring, he was allowed to take a day off and simply relax. Tenten was quite happy with the reef, and was floating contentedly in an alcove barely big enough to fit him. The giant seahorse was at ease with the hustle and bustle of the day, and his demeanor calmed his master. Eorar felt… peaceful. Splash. Sighing, Eorar looked up, and had he not been a Charoda his eyes would have widened considerably. His first thought was that it was human, but even an idiot could see that that was not the case. It had a tail, and wings! Eorar’s exasperation washed away as curiosity overtook him. He spurred upwards and hovered a few feet over his reef, eyeing the amazing creature before him. “Well,” he said in Common, “This is a surprise.”

[Avaltri]

As Avaltri entered the water, she was faced with a most unexpected sight. Only a few meters below her, there was a little coral reef, and what was more, there was a creature floating in the water next to it that seemed to be of humanoid shape, but clearly was not human. Instinctively, Avaltri spread her wings, which now functioned as finns, again, to stop the impulse of her fall from carrying her deeper into the water, and turned so that her tail pointed downward. This way, she could propel herself away towards the air quickly. With some anxiety, she observed that the creature immediately looked up in her direction and started to approach her. But it didn't seem to want to leave the reef, as it stopped in a position just a few feet above it. Avaltri, floating a few feet under the surface of the water, was still somewhat apprehensive, although the fact that the other had not approached her further reassured her to a degree. And then, quite unexpectedly, the creature said something. Its voice underwater was low and dark and it sounded slightly muffled. At first, Avaltri didn't understand, but then she realized that what she had heard was in fact words of the common tongue. It was impossible to discern anything like a tone of voice underwater. But from its demeanor, Avaltri tentatively concluded that the creature was indeed just as surprised as her, and giving expression to the fact. Then she realized that as it had spoken, no bubbles of air had risen from it. It must, indeed, have been something native to the water, even though it knew the common tongue. She was unsure if she could make herself equally understood. "Hello..." she made a diffident attempt, which was half drowned in bubbles of air. The creature would have to have good hearing to discriminate the speech sounds.

[Warden Thrice]

Her face twisted in what Eorar thought was fear, and he sank an inch or two to see if it would placate her. Zeltiva had proved to be a strange place filled with people who couldn’t help but fall into the water, but though he had dealt with such things more than once he hadn’t the slightest idea how to react to a being like her. He had thought humans looked odd, but the being before him was so alien she was almost surreal. In his childhood, his home had lacked an major tales of the world above, mostly due to the fact that it could not be visited unless one could breathe underwater. He suddenly wondered if that was something she could do. He tilted his head as bubbles emerged from her mouth in a great stream. As a Charoda, he did not breathe through his mouth and his lungs were not filled with air, so speaking underwater was not a difficulty. But he had long since discovered that it was not the same with aboveworlders, and the roiling in the water drowned out all but the vaguest of vowels. Instead of listening, he watched the movements of her mouth, and within the context of the situation, it wasn’t hard to guess what she had said. “Hello,” he said back. “I am Eorar.” He straightened, then bent at the waist in a small bow. “I don’t thinking I’ve seen you here before.”

[Avaltri]

Seeing the strange creature retreat slightly, and hearing it introduce itself in a perfectly civilized way, Avaltri finally relaxed. She actually felt sorry that she couldn't respond in kind. Her facial expression softened. Still always keeping an eye on Eorar, she wondered if he, in turn, might be unable to speak in the air. All she could do was find out. She pointed at him with her right arm, and then above herself. There was no purpose in waiting whether he would make a gesture of refusal. If he couldn't come to the surface, this acquaintance would sadly be unable to develop any further. So with a few strong strokes of her tail, the Akvatari propelled herself to the surface and out of the water. Quick beats of her wings allowed her to rise and hover no two meters above the sea. Curious, and even a bit excited, she peered at the surface of the ocean, waiting for a head to emerge.

[Warden Thrice]

Her tensed posture eased and he smiled inwardly, triumphant that he had not frightened someone else off. He watched with owlish attentiveness as the gestured at him, then at the Above. He nodded in agreement, but she was already shooting upwards. He couldn’t help but be surprised; he had never seen such speed in water from anyone but other Charoda. Nevertheless, he slipped after her though without anything close to the same speed. His head broke the surface of the water and he gave himself a moment to adjust to the sudden change in temperature before looking up at her. She was flying. Flying! The wings that had shimmered so beautifully underwater now moved so fast that they were a mere blue behind her back, and she hovered in a way that she looked almost still in the air. Forcing himself to rip his eyes away, he looked towards the shore and jerked his head towards it. “Perhaps there would being better for talk?” he suggested. If she could pick the details of his voice out above the roar of the ocean, it was much different above air. It undulated like waves of his own, as if he was still talking underwater.

[Avaltri]

Indeed, after several moments, a bald, greenish head pierced the surface of the water. After a moment, its black eyes looked up at hear. Avaltri couldn't read any expression the face might be showing, but she was quite sure now that the creature was friendly, and so she smiled a little. She was about to thank him for following her, when suddenly the head nodded in the direction of the shore, and asked here if she would prefer that as a place for conversation. Its voice sounded very strange, unlike anything she had heard before; its melody was a bit blurred, swelling and abating, reminiscent of the waves of the ocean. What a curious instance of stylistic coherence on nature's part. At first, Avaltri was no less puzzled by the suggestion of going ashore. But then it occurred to her that there was maybe not so much reason for surprise: the creature did have legs, after all, even if they looked adapted to swimming. It could probably just walk on land. After a moment that it took to process these impressions and thoughts, she finally responded. "Yes, I believe it would be..." She spoke rather slowly; not because she thought it would help the other understand better, but simply because it was her way. She would have had to force herself to speak faster, and for her, there was rarely ever a reason to hurry with a conversation. Avaltri wasn't eager on having to find a place that would suit the other; or one that he could even access, for that matter. "Do choose a place that suits you. I'll be glad follow you," she added softly.

[Warden Thrice]

Her answer was slow, but not overly cautious. Eorar tilted his head in curiosity, but forced himself not to dwell on it as he turned and scanned the shore. “There,” he said after a few moments, raising one hand to gesture. “Seeing that tree, bent over? By the rocks? Let’s meeting there.” He gave her one last glance over his shoulder, then plunged back into the water. Tenten looked up curiously as Eorar sped by, but the Charoda paid him no heed, moving quickly and powerfully to gain as much speed as he could. He had seen the strange creature’s capability in water, and the fact that she could fly was equally intriguing. He wanted to see if he could beat her to their destination. His arms were to his sides, twitching an inch or two to alter direction, while the majority of his movement came from his legs. He kicked them simultaneously in a manner similar to that of a dolphin weaving gently up and down. He had only gone this fast once since arriving in Zeltiva, when he raced that strange Konti. His body had not failed him then, and he wasn’t sure how he would react if it failed him now. He slithered through stones that jutted from the sea, but as the water became shallower he was eventually forced to slow. He slithered onto the sand, breathing hard and gills flared, keeping his movements careful and deliberate. When he had claimed his second wind he rolled onto his back, then to a sitting position, and looked to see if he could spot his strange acquaintance.

[Avaltri]

OOCI'm sorry about letting you wait... Avaltri looked at Eorar's arm as it rose out of the water and observed the turquoise skin and the webs between his fingers in the daylight. Only after a moment did she follow his pointing with her eyes. He was gesturing towards the bent tree that held her belongings. For a moment, she wondered if he would be able to climb up the rocks to that place, but then thought that he must just have picked it out to give a direction because it was easy to recognize. She also noticed, but didn't consciously consider, the fact that his speech exhibited a pattern of errors, which in an ironic way seemed to make him less weird rather than more. She looked back to Eorar, and as soon as she had nodded slightly, and before she could pronounce the word "yes", he had disappeared into the water again. She could make out his silhouette below the surface as he shot off towards the shore. He was unexpectedly quick; to Avaltri, he had looked more built for maneuverability than for speed. The Akvatari noticed it with the mental equivalent of a shrug and rose further into the air before turning towards the designated spot. She hadn't hurried, but was still surprised to see upon her arrival that her new acquaintance was sitting on the sand in the shallow water and looking up at her. She stopped to hang limply in the air for a moment, only sustained by the beating of her wings, before descending besides him. A few drops of water were thrown into his face as she beat her wings a last time close to the surface. Then she lay down on her side a few feet away from him. "You're quick", she observed. "What manner of creature are you?"

[Warden Thrice]

He tilted his head when he caught sight of the strange seal-insect-woman. She was fast approaching, and he couldn’t help but stare at the blurs behind her where her wings were keeping her afloat. She slowed as she got closer, then hovered above him hesitantly before gently placing herself on the sand. He looked down at her remark, doing his best to look embarrassed but obviously pleased. “I am… faster than some others of my kind. I like going fast. We call ourselves Charoda.” He looked up, scanning her with unbridled amazement. Now that she was still, he could see her wings clearly and he let his eyes linger on them for a number of seconds. “What about you?” he asked, gaze flicking to her tail. “I have never seeing anything like you before. What are you?” Understandably, there were very few visitors to Charbosi. Not only was it underwater, it was the southernmost piece of Mizahar, and to get to it required a long time at sea or trekking through the incredibly dangerous jungles of Falyndar. The majority of visitors were Konti who came for trade and learning, but he had heard tales of one that had come on something referred to as a Call. He hadn’t paid attention, though. This creature in front of him was obviously a denizen of the water as much as she was of the air, but he had never seen her kind before, and he would have been lying if he had said he wasn’t curious.