[Flashback] [Stone Garden] Scrolls and Stones (Khiara)

[Rigil Kentaurus]

32nd Summer, 509 AV The night was young. It seemed to share this immature feelings that welled within him while he walked along the cobbled streets of the busy city of Syliras. It was not his first time within the city, for he came and went many times during his previous journeys along the expanse of the lands which fate seemed to find him worthy of. Or was it that he was simply not worthy to be part of the celestial realms from which he had come? These thoughts were not his own however. The human form of Rigil Kentaurus seemed to make his way into the Stone Garden. Green grass dotted the expanse of the garden with the familiar grey stones that were etched along the road. His immaturity fled him and he felt humbled and almost as though he was not ready to enter it. He had never come to this place before, but he had promised he would see it when he last entered the great city. “Syna, where have you gone?” he asked as he closed his eyes, walking along the path. His leather boots seemed to hardly make a sound while his blue cloak brushed along the ground, hiding his rather wiry physique. Nevertheless, it did not stem the observance of his short stature as a human. Finally making his way towards the centre of the garden, he simply stood there, taking in the ethereal emotions which cradled over him. While this world was still healing, some scars would never cease to fade away.

[Khiara]

Khiara liked the evening. It was quieter, and it was still. Night was coming on, but the evening had been a comfort. She'd travelled for days...weeks...passing small towns and villages along the way. There had never been a need, or a desire to stop in and say hello. All that drove her was the constant movement. On and on, southward.

But then it seemed she'd found her supplies running low, and the further away from the snow they travelled, the harder Vsenri found it to go on through the blazing sun. Reluctantly, she'd stopped in Syliras to let him rest. It would only be for a few days, then the vantha would move on again. Memories still chased her, and the pain still burned in her chest. Finding her way to the Stone Garden, the young woman followed her booted feet to the beautiful fountain. Sitting on the side, hidden in darkness, she allowed herself a moment of weakness. Crying quietly, the sudden sound of footsteps caught her by surprise. Standing abruptly, she wiped her cheeks with the palms of her hands.

The stranger stopped in the centre of the garden, eyes closed, face to the sky. Unsure whether he knew she was there or not, the vantha moved toward the hedge leading out of the garden - making to leave the stranger to his peaceful contemplation.

[Rigil Kentaurus]

It hearkened to him. While darkness was an unsettling phenomenon which he truly despised, the light around him and the overtures of the plants and stones seemed to infuse him with a sense of peace that he had lost during his rebirth into this world. So lost in his contemplations, he seemed oblivious to Khiara’s presence nearby. Gradually he opened his eyes and he cast out a sigh of relief, letting it weave around him in a comfortable manner. Flexing his fingers, he then clutched his cloak and parted his lips. “Falling and falling, why do I only see water as foam and air as dirt?” he asked aloud, letting his voice echo within the garden. “Oh Syna, save me, please. Let me find rest and relief and solace that these people have found.” He fell to his knees and closed his eyes, attempting to grasp the stones etched into the ground. Time faded for him and he felt as though he was being strewn across the vastness of the Void. Finally, he managed to regain a modicum of his manners and opened his eyes again. Pushing himself up, he pulled his hood to shroud his face into facial obscurity. As he turned, it was then he noticed Khiara and he paused, blinking in a surprised fashion. He had not meant anyone to have seen him lose control. A hesitant moment seemed to plague him and then he cleared his throat. “ “Forgive me,” he said, bowing his head to her. “I did not mean to intrude. I hope I have not...frightened you.” His lips parted slightly, grimacing slightly while he attempting to maintain a sense of stoic appearance before her.

[Khiara]

Frozen to the spot as the stranger began to talk, Khiara wasn't sure what to do. Was he talking to her? As he fell to the ground, the vantha remembered all to vividly a time when she had done the same thing in sheer unbridled grief. This man felt pain...but from what she had no clue.

As he turned to face her, the young woman looked at him with liquid gold and violet eyes, still hesitiant in exactly what she should respond to. His dramatic release? His strange mumbling? The man spoke to her, before smiling...or grimacing. Turning to face him better, Khiara shook her head.

"Uh, no..no. I was just...thinking." She smiled thinly, unable to think of a better word for 'sobbing pathetically'. Lifting her shoulders slightly, the vantha nodded.

"Its a nice place, good for thinking. Your the first person that's come in here since the sun began to set...well, apart from me."

[Rigil Kentaurus]

It was a flickering moment of indecision that paralysed him in front of Khiara. He grimaced, balling his hands into fists as his human form seemed to waver in his decision to meet her. Perhaps it was more prudent to simply walk on and carry himself away into the maze of Syliras. However, the die had been cast and so he found himself conversing with her. Nodding his head gently to the probing conversation that was starting to stir between them, his gaze flicked to the trees around them. “Thinking...it is a wise thing we do,” he said, noticing her thin smile and he followed it with his own. “Our thoughts are the seeds of our habits. So we must take care of it and be able to nourish them and grow them properly.” He took his time, stretching the silence between them until he cleared his throat and chuckled aloud. “I find comfort in Syna, but it is dark and well...there is only the moon and so that is why I am here,” he explained. Certainly it was a very ambiguous explanation and he hoped she would not probe further. He simply felt as though he needed to provide some excuse. “You are not human...are you...” He paused, looking at her carefully now. His eyes grew cold at the realisation. “A Vantha, from the north...” It was not a question, but a breath of words. Memories seemed to flicker in him and almost he shivered at it.

[Khiara]

Khiara nodded, noticing his reference to the Sun Goddess more and more. Perhaps his religion followed her, unlike her own. The Goddess Morwen created all that is and ever will be, before leaving the vantha to travel the world. That's where Khiara looked for guidance, when the nights were too hard, or the days too hot. If the Goddess could do it, then surely she could.

The sudden realisation that she was not human changed the man, he examined her now, and Khiara felt herself draw back slightly, her clothing brushing the hedge behind her. Swallowing, she turned her shifting golden eyes to the ground. He hadn't scared her before...but now...

"That's right. From Avanthal. Perhaps...perhaps I should go. It's late, and you probably want to be alone." Her heart drummed against her ribs as she wondered what made him look at her like that. Part of her would welcome it if the stranger were to strike her down at this moment, but a lot of her was frightened. Her death was not meant to be at the hands of another.

[Rigil Kentaurus]

There was a rather awkward moment between them as Rigil realised his own mistake. He pursed his lips, attempting to maintain control of the situation. Clearing his throat, he shook his head and raised one hand, waving it side to side. “No, no, I did not meant to be rude,” he quickly said, shaking his head. “It’s just...memories, that’s all. I have not met a Vantha before since well...five years ago.” He paused, narrowing his eyes slightly as he looked off at the trees, a distant manner seemed to take over him. He took in a deep breath and turned to regard Khiara intently, bowing his head to her. “Forgive me for my abrupt words,” he said, this time in that slow, determined manner of his. “You see, I am not as I seem either. I...I was thrown into the waters of Taldera, near the Northwest Point seven years ago. It was as I tried to swim to shore that a boat saved me. He was Vanthan, for sure. He set me unto the shores and so I was able to be set for my travel down south. That is why...when I realised you were a Vantha that I was surprised, is all. It just...brought back cold memories.” He attempted to form a smile upon his face, but it was a strained one, a sense of grimness which seemed to pervade around his aura. “Though if you have to go...then let me not hinder you,” he added, his hand moving down towards the bag he carried, where various scrolls were kept.

[Khiara]

"Oh." It was a short comment, unsure and reserved. But the mention of Northwest Point and being thrown into the waters there caught her curiosity, and perhaps a little homesickness.

"You were thrown into the waters? Any man would freeze to death in those, vantha or not." Moving away from the brush a little, she tucked her hair behind her ear, goose-bumps on her flesh. It was so like Eliac's story. Thrown into the water from his boat. Only this man had survived.

"Why didn't you swim for your boat? Or, did they not come back for you? What threw you?" Khiara knew the ocean there was not as rough as others, and she couldn't see why he'd had to wait for someone to pick him up. In her mind, she saw a whale breeching under his boat, smashing it to pieces. Maybe that's why. Suddenly, she realised she was being rude.

"I don't mean to ask so many questions, please don't answer if you don't want to. I just...I knew a man who..." Swallowing, she cut her story short, not ready to delve into that yet.

"My name is Khiara Snowsong."

[Rigil Kentaurus]

Rigil noted her manners. There was something curious about it, but he maintained his stoic appearance and simply nodded. However, the assailing of questions caught him by surprise and he blinked, looking at her curiously now. “I...err...” He was unsure how to answer her. Was he to reveal who he truly was? Why hide it? He cleared his throat and his eyes roamed towards the stones on the ground. “I was dropped there because I...” he hesitated. Why did he feel so unsure of himself, of not revealing his true self? He grimaced and then cleared his throat. “I go by the name of Rigil Kentaurus. I’m an Ethaefal, Khiara Snowsong,” he said slowly. He dipped his head to her courteously. “In the dimness of night, I appear in the form of my former self. A human, though I do not remember anything else. At least...now as I am now.” He raised his hands, gesturing to his body before letting his arms fall to his side again. He parted his lips slightly, his eyes narrowed when he continued to speak. “And in the grace of Syna, I become what I truly am now. It is something I wish to learn about, the concept of my own race. Finding myself in the shores of that cold sea. To be sure, the man who rescued me he was alone himself, I found that curious. But well, here I am now, lost in my own travels. What brings a Vantha so far south?” He pointedly ignored her remark of losing someone, assumably in the sea. He simply nodded his head to that, definitely not one for prying.

[Khiara]

Khiara listened to his admittance of race with a sort of misunderstanding. An Ethaefal? She'd heard stories of those who changed their appearance with the seasons and the changes of the day...but never did she believe they were real. Part of her laughed - she of all people should have believed them. There was always an ounce of truth even in the most made up of tales. Her curious eyes looked over him more closely now, as she realised what he had said, what he meant. Fallen. There was something about that word that turned her stomach. Why exactly, did they fall? Was it from some great wrong they committed in the afterlife? Were they being punished or rewarded. These were the questions she wanted to ask, but wouldn't. It was not something to be discussed in casual conversation.

His own question reminded her of the things she ran away from like a splash of cold water to the face. Turning her gaze away, she crossed her arms across herself as though she was cold - even though a light sweat covered her skin.

"I needed to get away for a while. There were things happening that I couldn't face. So I left." Looking back at him with shifting eyes, she shrugged.

"Besides, its good to see the world." Tilting her head slightly, the vantha studied him again. He wasn't unattractive, yet the tone of his voice indicated that the...man...disliked what he was.

"Can I ask...when Syna does bless the earth...what do you look like?" In reality, the girl had no idea.