[Sanctuary] For All Need Their Privacy

[Kavala]

Timestamp: 60th of Summer, 512 AV.

The Bath was done but the other private rooms were awaiting construction. They had only two in the set of six really complete and Serrif and one of the kelvics had taken up residence in those. Kavala knew she'd have staff and visitors milling around in the common area on straw pallets for rest if she didn't get these private quarters done. Six total probably wouldn't be enough, but there was more on blueprints planned.

Once The Within was totally completed, there'd be at least twelve private quarters and those quarters were big enough for a couple to share if need be. If families moved to Sanctuary, Kavala would have to arrange suites for them, building on beneath the ground. Until then, she was content with nice little starter rooms that housed everything a person needed and shared a privy and sink with another.

The privies were small rooms not on the blueprints that opened up on the backside nestled between the set of rooms. They consisted of a long chute of removed stone that dropped into a room that was going to be accessed by another side tunnel that would compost the waste of the people housing the rooms which could then be added to the plants and gardens around Sanctuary to fertilize food and medicine. This compost room was accessible from the cave which was necessary because a cart had to be able to get to it to haul the compost upwards. A chute from the kitchen would also drop kitchen wastes into the chamber as well.

Vent shafts would have to be added, as they would have to be added to each room providing fresh air and making sure the chambers beneath ground never grew stagnant and stale. That was one of the benefits to being in a solid stone cliff. Fresh air was accessible without too much issue.

So the hallway from the Library to the Bath was cut and two rooms already completed. Kavala had to only start the other four. She'd do them one at a time, hollowing out the room's dimension by turning stone to sand and carting away the sand. Once her Reimancy was higher she could turn the stone to air and that would mean she'd never have to haul sand again. It was a stage Kavala was anticipating. But until then she'd have to do things the old fashioned way. Standing back a bit, Kavala began to work carving foot deep sections of stone to sand in front of her and then pausing to scoop up the sand, load it in a wheelbarrow, and once the barrel became full.

She worked quickly, used to the process, and let her mind drift on how she was going to decorate the individual rooms to give them character and individuality once she was done.

[Serrif Von Chatlyn]

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[Kavala]

NoteTired of waiting for a reply so moving on!

Bodybuilding. That's exactly what it was. Kavala decided she didn't have to continue her morning beach runs or anything else as long as she had a shovel and could move sand. And it was a lot of sand, that much was for certain. AS she ran her hands over the stone, coating it with Res and changing its nature to sand, it fell to the ground in a soft earthen rain. Kavala kept her mouth and nose covered though there wasn't too much she could do. Her gleaming white skin became the brown of earth and she became part of it in a way that was hard to describe. Despite the bandana, she breathed it in, tasted it, and even cried tears of mud when she grew too tired and thought she'd never get the rooms hollowed out. When the sand got knee deep, she would rest her magic and pick up the shovel, filling buckets of the stuff, two at a time, and then would carry them down the ramp and out onto the beach where she could dump them. Along the way she'd hold them buckets out, lifting them with each arm, halfway up, down, out straight, down, behind her, down until her arms were liquid like the ocean and could not take the strain anymore.

By that time she'd be where the sand went, would then get the buckets empty and jog back up the ramp working on her endurance. Cardiovascular work upwards, body building downwards. The Konti then got to rest her physical form as her spiritual body took over, producing res and turning solid stone to sand. There was something meditative about it. She moved her webbed fingers over the stone, caressing it, learning it, loving it and then it slipped through her fingers, tiny, smaller, transformed by her will. Kavala could see why the wizards of old got their egos inflated and helped destroy the world. Nothing was like the power flowing in her fingers. Nothing was like shaping stone to live in. Everything below ground was her doing, her will, her need answered and manifested by the Gods through gifts they had granted the people of Mizahar.

Kavala was reverent in her work.

And as the room emptied out, first one, then another, then another, her body grew stronger. She could carry heavier buckets until finally they were full and Aweston got her larger ones. She could sprint up the ramp faster, making it back to her last ending place without being winded. It was a slow transformation, her body hardening and her soul softening. She even sometimes smiled a secret smile to herself and talked to the stone as if it had a soul as well.

And she paid attention to detail. The area where a bed would set got recessed places for nightstands (ones that had been picked out and preordered from the carpenter) so the room would not be crowded. Bookcases got built into place, carved precisely from stone, so that whomever used the room would have places to store the things that meant the most to them. Each room got a built in desk, recessed of course, and a closet they could walk into and tuck their clothing away out of site. Kavala wanted the people that lived in The Within to be comfortable, to have amenities, and be thankful for what the Gods had provided.

Instead of wooden beds, she raised stone platforms that a perfectly stuffed feather mattress could rest on. Bedding and down pillows would come when the rooms had furniture delivered. All she had to do was test out the color scheme, decorate the walls, ceiling and floor, then furnish.

And Kavala worked on them all at the same pace so that no one room would get done before the others She wanted them all finished within just a short span of time. This way, she planned, Kavala would be forced to do them all and not just one as people appeared and needed them. She wanted them done done done, and this way she'd have to make progress all the way or none at all.

[Serrif Von Chatlyn]

Serrif knew what his place in all this construction was; He brought a wheelbarrow down to the within along with several smaller buckets, two shovels, a large broom, a small broom and a dustpan. He was going to help clean up all the sand that Kavala would produce. He too had seen the need for all the expansion of the Sanctuaries core. The process was grueling on both of them, but Serrif knew the work had to be done. Usually Serrif would try and hide his body; but such things were useless with Kavala. The Konti already knew what he looked like so in a way there was no reason to hide with her.

He was down with her, and well she worked at a remarkable pace turning the earthen stone into deep dark sand. It coated her, and he had taken to wearing a bandanna over his mouth just like she had. However there were times it did him little good. He could taste the work being done, and in a way he had gotten used to it; but he knew Kavala had it much worse. He would shovel behind her, but she worked at such a rapid pace he couldn’t keep up. And every now and then as a break he would catch her running up the ramp with a few buckets of her own. Physical labor was a good break from spiritual labor.

Using the shovel he would scoop up as much sand as was available to him, then deposit it into the wheelbarrow one shovel full at a time. One hand forward on the shovel and the other near the end of the wooden handle. He would stoop down a little and get a shovel full of the material. Then lift with his legs as well as his back. The shovel would tilt over and spill out inside the wheelbarrow. He had to watch the weight of it or else it would be a real chore to get up the ramp by himself. He made several trips throughout the entire process. His hands planted firmly on the wooden handles of the wheelbarrow he would run up the ramp. The second he hit that incline he would feel the stain on his body. But he would continue.

Every step was a challenge as he neared the top, but when he got tipside he felt a certain level of relief knowing he had carried another load up from the within. He found where Kavala had been dumping her sand and he joined suite. Maybe he could make a sand pit for the dogs to play in…would they enjoy such a thing? The cool breeze above felt good on his bare chest. He found that when working this hard wearing a shirt was strictly optional. It helped his skin breathe to go without one; and it also helped him dissipate heat.

On the way back down the ramp he would keep a steady pace and fight the urge to just run down the ramp. He was fighting gravity here and it used a slightly different set of muscles on his legs. He could feel his shins burn as he did so. And well there was plenty more of this to come. There again Kavala was cutting reverently through the earth to make rooms, bookshelves, desks, bed platforms. It was remarkable; and it was indeed something he could see himself learning one way or another. He wanted to participate in the building of this place, just like Kavala was. To lighten her load and help her carry it because he knew if she carried this alone it would kill her.

They went room by room clearing through the heart of the earth to fill out rooms. Several trips were made as would be expected; and sweat turned to mud on his skin as he continued to work alongside her. He wouldn’t let her do all this alone; although there were times when he thought she didn’t even see him here; she was lost in focus. However he pressed on doing whatever he could. The warm muddy sweat rolling down his body, face and such. He would need a bath after this; which was good because the room had just been finished not that long ago.

He bent down and loaded up another shovel full of sand pouring it into the wheelbarrow. His arms burned, and his lower back ached but he continued. Anything worth doing seemed to always involve a good investment of sweat labor. But that told him that it was well worth doing.

“It is amazing still seeing you do this Kavala.” he said between breaths from behind that bandanna. His voice would only be muffled some as he continued to clean up the sand.

It was possible that she wasn’t in a talking mood, but that was fine. He just wanted his thoughts to be heard. Sometimes they just slipped out past his mouth; he was guilty of that on more than one occasion. They moved into the rooms and while she was doing the fine tuned stuff he would take a broom and try and sweep up some of the finer sand that got missed with the shovel. He would sweep it up into a small pile on the floor then get a dustpan and sweep it into the pan; which would get emptied into the wheelbarrow.

He wasn’t sure how long all this would go on, but he would be here to assist her until they stopped. It was obvious however how much work this was for Kavala. He could see her body and spirit tire as she worked. But he also knew she wouldn’t take a break until what she had set out to do was done. She was stubborn that way…no…driven…driven was a better word for it.

[Kavala]

NoteWrote this last night. Didn't post. Didn't expect you to join the thread after it sat for months which is why you weren't mentioned in the post.

Kavala was glad for Serrif's help, but didn't talk much as her mind was on the next step to the process was one that most people didn't think about.

There was nothing glamorous about digging out latrines, or in this case latrine shafts that lead to a chamber beneath the private quarters where feces could be collected from the humans and mixed into the feces of animals and then turned into garden compost. Kavala was glad she had a book outlining the whole thing because the process was somewhat complicated.

First, she'd made a shaft from the Within to the surface just large enough for her to crawl through. This involved turning stone to sand one more time, though she wanted no shafts leading into the Within that were people sized. So when it was completely linked from the outside to the inside in just the place she wanted for ideal ventilation and access to dump debris down, she backed out of it slowly, back into the Within. At the surface, she grilled the space with a fine mesh cage of stone that let air circulate, but prevented such creatures like opossums or rats from getting inside. Then she solidified stone all around her as she retreated back inside, making the crawl space into more like a shaft for ventilation. Once she was done with that work, she began carefully crafting stone bins four feet by four feet in the subbasement below the living quarters.

She stocked the room with shovels, pitchforks and brooms that were only used for the purpose of moving human waste. Then created catch basins below each privy accessed by a long corridor so the waste could all be moved to a central location. Someone would have the very nasty job, probably Kavala herself, of coming down here every few days and moving everyone's waste to the compost bins.

The book she'd had copied at the library talked about such things, so she knew what she had to do. Chutes from the outside were also created to feed leaves, animal dung, and clippings from the garden down to the compost within. She made an access chute as well for kitchen waste such as potato peelings and leftovers. Reading the book, she learned quite a few things.

"Sentient waste mixed with green clippings and composted is called Nightsoil. Nightsoil is absolutely dangerous, even deadly, to use in gardens unless it is composted well and properly so that the factors within it that make people sick are reversed. Everyone comes from the earth and eventually everyone returns to the earth. Even waste can be made safely back into earth which in turn can nourish the plants that grow within it. Nightsoil can be one of the best soil enhancers and fertilizers. It can act as a mulcher, can loosen hard clays, and aerate the soil. Well laced soil mixed with nightsoil can retain its moisture and grow more lush vibrant plants."

That's what she wanted alright. Kavala wanted to solve the waste issue at The Sanctuary and put it back to work for them and the other animals in the compound. But she had to make it safe to use, and that's what the literature was for. She'd talked to people in Riverfall, of course, but the subject matter was delicate and often no one was really forthcoming. They'd all told her to check the library. So she'd gladly gone there. Flipping through the book, she came to the section that told her exactly how to make all the nightsoil safe.

The best temperature range for rapid decomposition and safety is between 90ºF to 140ºF. If the internal pile temperature drops below 90ºF then the normal decomposition process slows down significantly. If the temperature rises above 140ºF then the entire pile will "die" and the decomposition process will stop. "Cooking" the pile between 131ºF to 140ºF or slightly higher will render the compost safe. The pile should be "turned" if its internal temperature exceeds 140ºF.

After the final batch of nightsoil has been added to the compost pile and the pile is approximately 3 feet in diameter and 3 feet high, then pile temperature management becomes extremely important. If the temperature inside the compost pile can be kept at 131ºF or above for at least three consecutive days then the compost will be 'cured' and safe to use as garden additive. However, the outside of the pile needs to be cured too, so the pile must then be turned over with a shovel so the outside of the pile is now on the inside of the pile, and a minimum internal pile temperature of 131ºF must be maintained for at least three more days.

Once the pile is determined to be safe - cooking three days and three nights - then cooking another three days and three nights turned - the pile temperature can be allowed to fluctuate anywhere in the range between 90ºF to 140ºF and the pile will continue to decompose properly and sit in easy storage for when its needed, just getting better and better over time.
.

Okay, perfect, Kavala thought reading the little book. Acquisition of a thermometer she'd keep down here just for this purpose was not a problem. Now all she needed to do was review what was needed to create the compost in the first place. The Konti suspected that other things needed to be added, but she wasn't quite sure what was best and what wasn't. That's why she'd made the chutes in the kitchen and the garden areas. Materials needed to be added to the waste. But what? Flipping through the book, Kavala got her answer.

"After transferring the contents of a latrine to your predetermined compost pile, immediately cover the sentient waste on the compost pile with a layer of dried leaves, or shredded brown pine straw, or dried grass clippings, or kitchen waste. Whatever materials used, one should use approximately the same amount of covering material as the amount included in the waste. This one to one ratio will keep the odor bearable and it will help keep the heat trapped inside the compost pile.

Then, as the pile grows, on can add crushed egg shells, fruit and vegetable peels, spent tea, kitchen scraps, apple cores, fireplace ashes, garden weeds, and the shredded vines and chopped up stalks from garden plants after harvesting the vegetables. Things like corn stalks, bean vines, and tomato vines are perfect. Always chop or shred any large items into smaller pieces. Farm animal manure from horses, goats, pigs, sheep, and cows is also good if it is at least one-week old.

What one does not want to add to the pile is bones, meat, cheeses, cooking grease, cat or dog droppings, walnut leaves, diseased plants, or poisonous plants (poison ivy) to your compost pile."

All that was good to know. No dog droppings! Once she had the latrine area set up, leaving the hauling of the sand away from the chutes to Serrif, Kavala knew the system would work for the Sanctuary. And once it was in function a reality, she'd set about adjusting her setup to make it more conducive to what she wanted and needed.

Bathrooms completed, Kavala only had to go back and decorate and order furniture for the suites.

[Serrif Von Chatlyn]

Kavala went about doing her things and left Serrif to do the final marking cleanup for the interior rooms they had just completed. He nodded and went around the interior rooms with a large broom to get up all the finer particulates that were sometimes difficult if not impossible to get up by use of a shovel. He made several piles all about the room of the dark earthen sand before he would sweep each pile into a dustpan and into the wheelbarrow. Kavala didn’t ask for this assistance, but if she had to then he would’ve considered himself a failure. He was part of this place, and he was available to toil for it with Kavala. And honestly some good physical labor was a welcome break from the usual labor he conducted.

She came back and started work on the waste management system, he again followed behind with a shovel as she produced the fine dark sand behind her. They were both covered in it now. And the sweat mixed with it forming a kind of mud mask all over their bodies. But this was labor, and if it were enjoyable by itself everyone would be doing it. Every shovel full tested his arms shoulders and back. They were aching yes but it was a good ache; a welcome ache, he felt invested in this place. Sweat equity…something he could easily give to this place.

Kavala made bins and such chutes; it seemed she had done a good amount of research on this subject. However he had not; and he wasn’t about to let Kavala put one more thing on her list just simply because she believed he wouldn’t do it. If he had the time to understand this he could do it or in the very least assist her.

“So how is all this going to work?” He asked as he wiped some of the sweat from above his brow, it was stinging his eyes especially with the mud mixed in.

He set the blade of the shovel down on the ground and leaned against the handle some for some support. He was physically tired but ready for more if she was. And he knew Kavala wouldn’t quit anytime soon. And he would likely have to struggle to keep up with her. But that was how things got done here…sweat equity. He would usually run his hands through is hair as a sort of nervous tick but that would likely only make the mud on his body even worse. So he just let it all be and decided that instead he would just leave it alone.

“It does look rather elaborate.” He added looking at what was to be. He didn’t know what she had planned but he would indeed like to know.

[Kavala]

Kavala nodded. She looked thoughtfully at Serrif and simply shrugged. "Well, we have to do something with all the waste here. I mean, from the people, not just the horses. We have a large compost pile at the back of each paddock for the animal manure, but what do we do with our own waste? Many places just dump it in the sea. But I swim there and don't want a steady stream of contamination exiting The Sanctuary into the ocean. It would not make Laviku happy." Kavala said, with a certainty.

They moved the composted manure out, spreading it in the fringe forest to help fertilize the trees there. It was a much needed shot in the arm to an otherwise thin soil that often didn't have a lot of nutrients due to erosion on the coast. The forest around The Sanctuary showed the care too, with lush undergrowth and better grazing for Kavala's horses.

"What we are doing down here is making nightsoil. Nightsoil is sentient waste that has been composted. But you need to kill all the things in it that will make people sick, so in order to do that you layer it with leaves and brush and kitchen scraps in equal parts and then turn it once a day until its hot and stays hot for days on end. Then its safe and can be moved into a permanent pile where we will move it out into the garden to grow our food with when its ready and we need it. We have a lot of storage down here for it, ventilation, which is what I was doing, and shafts from the kitchen, the privy, and all the privies in the private rooms that lead down here. I'm going to make more room for storage too, dividing it out. But for right now, we're dealing with the waste from the new rooms. You won't have to go outside in the middle of the night or in a storm and we won't have to use outhouses any more. We have the privy in the clinic and the patient quarters coming down here too." Kavala said, assuring him of what shes doing.

"And once its more functional down here and I see what kind of waste ten people produce, we'll perhaps redesign it for the person doing most of the bad work down here to be comfortable and move it less. I even have a shaft from the gardens we can throw leaves and debris down. Less hauling with a wheelbarrow." Kavala added, pleased that her plan was coming together.

Kavala knew being clean and keeping things neat was important. She thought long and hard about the waste dilemma, and having read the material she acquired from the library and then planned in her mind how to set up the waste disposal. It was a great deal of planning, engineering, and architecture to make this underground chamber, but she'd did it. Thanks to Serrif and his wheelbarrow help.

"Thanks for all your help. That's one thing I don't mind dumping on the beach - sand." She added, glad he was around to help with the heavy lifting.

"So what kind of sanitation does the Opal Temple have in Mura? Do they even worry about it?" Kavala asked, curious.

[Serrif Von Chatlyn]

“Ah…I see I always wondered where the dark rich soil that the gardeners used came from. They called it nightsoil as well, deep dark and very rich. When mixed in with relatively barren soil you could grow almost anything.” He recalled the deep almost black soil that was spread around the gardens after winter had finished. Some of the plants were tilled under and their soil plots turned in with good quantities of this nightsoil. Now he knew where it came from.

This got his mind jogging as to what the system at the clinics had to be. He remembered bathrooms much like the ones Kavala was constructing now only he didn’t know the purpose of them then. And now that he did there was a sudden epiphany as to what the purpose was. And here in the Sanctuary it would serve a very important purpose allowing them to have lush and fertile gardens. This would be important to their survival allowing them a good harvest for the winter months when they weren’t tending to the gardens themselves.

“The system I imagine was very similar to the one you have here. They had rooms separate from everything else that were dedicated to relieving oneself. These rooms were isolated as much as possible from clinical rooms as well as any other rooms were contamination would be disastrous; and to prevent the smell from traveling to patients.” He was recalling memories now little by little realizing the intricacies in the design. He had never thought of how important waste management was before now. And with proper management it could benefit the Sanctuary with lush gardens and a very hearty growing season.

He nodded some to Kavala. “Guess I never really thought about the smaller things that one needs to worry about with a clinic. I never really noticed how it was setup until we started doing this together.” He thought some more on the subject then shrugged a little.

“Always glad to be of help Kavala.”He liked feeling invested and aching muscles as well as a strained back made him feel like he had indeed done good work today with her.

Were they done now? Likely not so he queried her a little. “So, what next?” He had learned always to ask what was next, not if there was work to be done…because there always was it was only a matter of what they were to do next.

His body ached but he had learned that meant he was doing well. That he was pushing; and there were times like this that he would much rather be shoveling sand with Kavala than sitting in the lab making mixtures. Here he felt like he was accomplishing something, little by little building this place from the earth. Claiming rooms and such. Even if his part was small he didn’t mind playing it; because he was one small gear in the inner workings of this place.

[Kavala]

"We're done here. There's nothing more I can do until the system starts functioning and problems arise that need correcting. I'll have to see it all working to finish it and see what needs adjusting." She said, glancing around. It wasn't a large space, but deep in the cold mountain it wouldn't stink in the summer nor would their nightsoil freeze in the winter. And The Sanctuary would be safer. No waste would run from streams into waterways. They would reclaim what they used and move onwards. Kavala sighed, tired, and looked around.

"Now, back to the rooms. I'm going to coat their walls with decorative stone and decide on furniture." Kavala said. She lead Serrif upwards, not sure what role he wanted to play in the decorating. Kavala had more need of reimancy for it. But she'd already decided to randomly pick room colors. She started with Serrifs. Pulling a little velvet bag from her belt, Kavala mixed up the stones inside her bag and pulled out a random gemstone. She kept it on her palm and studied it. Glancing up at Serrif, she smiled. "Rainstone. I'll use it for the inspiration for the colorscheme in your room. Whites with blues and greys as highlights and accent colors. I'll coat the walls with this and make the floor a dark deep blue." She added.

"You can help by starting a list of the furnishing s you need and where you want them placed. We'll have to get an inventory to the furniture maker soon, and then send messages to any linen and rugmakers we need. Each room is budgeted so we cant go over budget, but we can do our best to make sure they are comfortable and luxurious." Kavala said, looking thoughtful. She paced the newly made length and width of Serrif's room, not minding his things being there, and started on the floor. She picked out the deepest color of blue in the rainstone and began coating the floor with res. In her mind she worked out a herringbone pattern of stone in various dark medium and light shades of blue and infused the res into that pattern slowly coating the floor with a luminous cheerful deep blue floor. She was on her hands and knees for most of it, spreading res and making adjustments to how she formed her stone pattern. In the early days of the Common's she'd always do a pattern with a template. But now that she was better at laying stone. She laid it down like a stonemason would, forming one brick at a time, interlocking them with each other, and filling the spaces between with sand that acted like grout.

It was a beautiful pattern, deep, dark, and intimate when she was finished. It lead the viewers eye to dance all over the room and to not miss any corner or recessed shelf.

Speaking of which, she went back, before working on the walls and ceilings, and added nooks and crannies to the wall, recessed, where Serrif could store things - little treasures, books, personal artifacts. She also made a walk-in closet so a wardrobe wouldn't be needed, making him wheelbarrow all the sand out. She decided where the bed placement was going to be and recessed where nightstands could go, giving him book nooks on either side of where he slept so he could take and keep his reading books, journals, and other projects right by his bedside.

Then, finally, she took the rainstone in her hand, studied it, and seemed to meditate on its properties, looking deep inside the stone. She did this settled on the floor at the foot of where his bed would be. Breathing deeply she studied every aspect of it, the inclusions, the flecks of blue color, and how the stone looked a little tourmalinated and rutilated. After she'd grown confident in understanding the pattern, Kavala stood up and began around the doorway. She coated res on the walls and then manipulated the design so that clear stone formed beneath her hands, infused with bubbles and bursts of color.

It was difficult work, not that she had to touch every inch. But it was difficult in that she had to concentrate on the stone growing clear, infusing, and being like the sample she had in her hand. The design of the stone caught the light and seemed to glow from within as most quartz did. It refracted light a thousand times bouncing it around inside itself and off its inclusions before releasing it making the walls have a decidedly defuse glow. She coated everything with it, growing more bold on the formation of the patterning as she went. Where the stone met the blue of the floor, the two gems blended so the floor seemed to be pulled up into the walls. The overall effect looked like the blue bursts of color throughout the rainstone had fallen down onto the floor and had puddled there, making water rise up. It was a striking effect and one Kavala was proud of as she moved through Serrifs chamber. The ceiling she left dark, coating it with black quarts tinted with hints of blue and grey. She shot it through with rutilated quartz in a lightening pattern periodically.

It wasn't visible from just standing in Serrif's room. But laying on his bed, with candlelight flickering, one would be able to see the lightening patterns light up as candlelight in the room danced around with Sanctuary's odd inner air currents.

When she was done, Kavala thought the overall effect stunning and hoped it was something Serrif really would enjoy. She sat down on a crate, looked like she could use a rest, and looked expectantly at him. "Well, what sort of furniture do you have on your list? Decorations too?" She said, raising an eyebrow.

[Serrif Von Chatlyn]

He nodded thoughtfully as she spoke about there eventually being problems to correct. He was sure that like almost everything else the two of them would likely have to fix issues down here eventually. But as of now everything looked together. They would have to run the process for awhile then see what happened when they started putting it under some real stress; possibly when they had full occupancy above. That would test the system…and provide wonderful rich soil for the gardens that would doubtlessly be booming at that point.

He followed Kavala up to the upper rooms and watched her as she cycled through several different gemstones in her hand. He knew what would come next…and he wanted to watch her work. He remembered how almost awe inspiring it was to see her work in the bathroom making the bathing area. And he really wanted to see her work again here doing the decorative work. His body and chest were still covered in the byproducts of her labor. The wet mud like substance starting to harden on his skin some. Nevertheless he would keep working. And he would bring the shovel, broom, and wheelbarrow with him; one knew the work around here was never really done.

’Rainstone’ it was a beautiful stone. And to him it looked like it belonged in Mura. It was a wonderful white and ivory mixed in were flecks of blue…that reminded him of the ocean. It would indeed be a wonderful room once decorated by the careful hands of Kavala. He couldn’t have picked a better stone himself to use as an inspiration for the rest of the room. She laid out the plans and he nodded the entire time looking around at the walls and such trying to visualize what it would look like…ornate…peaceful…it would remind him of Mura.

“Yes that sounds wonderful.” A peaceful serene smile came across his face and his shoulders slumped some. Seemed just thinking about Mura brought a very steady serenity over him.

She then spoke about furniture. He really didn’t know what he wanted. He never had a room to his knowledge and well the only one he had a layout of was Tizack’s…but he had different tastes than that man did. As he thought in his mind he began to visualize what he wanted where as Kavala pieced the room together. A deep blue herringbone pattern came across the floor as she made stone out of seemingly nothing. The blues ranged some but all of them were dark and he almost imagined that he was floating on water the deep blues of the floor soothing him.

Serrif watched her work and would’ve done whatever he could to help her only he didn’t have the skill she had to make stone out of Res. He watched her work like a master stone mason as he still began to put his room together in his mind. He would want a few chairs…maybe a small sofa at the foot of his bed? This all seemed foreign to him and he would need some inspiration if he was to do this right…which he was lacking at the moment.

Kavala got up and he noticed she was starting to cut through stone again. Without missing a beat he gripped a shovel and began scooping up the sand she created in her wake. She appeared to be making all kinds of little storage areas. She was making recessed storage areas straight into the stone walls which would be perfect for him to store things in, like books and other things that he was bound to collect. She also made a walk in closet which was wonderful, this way he could store his cloaks and other things…even if he didn’t own a whole lot of clothing. Cleaning up this area didn’t take nearly as much time as it did in the previous areas. He did detail cleaning inside the shelves and such brushing away the sand with a broom and emptying into the wheelbarrow.

Then, Kavala did something he didn’t even believe was possible. She walked to the doorway and made clear stone…infused with little air bubbles that she then poured color into. How…how could someone do such a thing? And she continued past that carrying it through the rest of the room. It looked wonderful and was truly amazing to him that someone could create such a pattern. He watched more and noticed Kavala was concentrating deeply every now and then he had to move something out of her path or else he feared she would trip over it.

The ceiling was dark, wonderful like staring up into the midnight sky. Just like he did when he was laying on the beach in Mura all those nights. He could almost hear the rolling of the waves crashing against the pale warm sands right now. A very content smile came across his features and he looked about, taking it all in little by little. There was so much detail…so much. He was sure that he would find more detailing that he missed by the day. It was like…like he had come home.

She queried what kind of furniture he could sue and he was still looking about when she asked. Still stunned at what she had done.

“Two chairs, maybe a couch at the foot of the bed and a storage chest.” That was literally everything he could think of right now. “I’m going to have to send for that painting now that I have a home.” He said with a laugh thinking about the Konti who promised when he got a home he could have the painting she made of him fishing.

“I’m new at decorating, but this room is….more than I could ask for or even really put together with my own mind.” What she just did to these blank walls was beyond his comprehension. It was breath taking and brought a very steady feeling of peace over him. One that could easily be seen washing over his features.

“Thank you.” But that wasn’t what he felt, no; this was the nicest thing anyone had ever done for him. She gave him a wonderful room. One that he would never want to leave and would love falling asleep in staring up at the ornate ceiling.

He conjured up his feelings and looked at Kavala "This is the nicest thing anyone has done for me." He asid knowing well that even if it was just a room he felt like it was his room, and Kavala had provided it for him. Carving it from nothing and making it something wonderful.