The Spider and The Serpent (Vard)

[Yisanareysin]

50th of Summer, 514 AV It was a hot summer day. Or at least, that's what everyone else had been saying. For Rey, born in the dry desert heat, it was more like a warm, moist, and disgustingly sticky day, and on sticky sticky days, his room became unbearable. Which was how he had ended up in front of the Garden of No Return. Again. That was an idea. Admittedly, his last visit to this place involved overusing magic and being slapped, but still. And at least he (sort of) knew the trick to (maybe) get out. Well, he decided, if all else failed he could survive off eating the idiots who came in until he escaped. Inside, he wandered at random, keeping an eye on the surrounding flowers. Blue one under that tree, red one to the left, half wilted flower at the intersection, flowers flowers everywhere. When he was deep enough in, he stopped. Shucking off his clothes, he stuffed them into his pack then shifted into his dhani form. Ahh, much better. His tongue flicked out, and he let out a contented hiss, savoring the ability to smell properly once more. He found his way to a clearing in the maze, a grassy area with a few flowers (which he made note of again) and a tree shading half the clearing. His pack went into the shade, and he went into the sun, settling down in the warm grass. Shifting into his snake form, he stretched out in the grass, a line of black in a sea of green, his face turned towards the entrance. After all, as someone somewhere said once, "Constant vigilance!" Whatever vigilance meant. It sounded like a type of bird.

[Vard Briar]

Vard finished scrawling the last sentence in his new journal. He exhaled heavily, the heat was crippling even outside the city. He dreaded to think what the heat might feel like inside Alvadas where so much is uncertain. Shoving his wolf book into a saddlebag, he patted Starlight and gave her an apple. "Good girl," he murmured and then he set out. The Symenestra had made sure his horse was safely tethered in a copse of trees that wouldn't allow much sunlight through to bother his mare. The Gaping Maw drawled its saying, even the masonry seemingly exhausted by the heat. "Vard Briar, going into town to do some sightseeing." The Maw opened. Sanity Center far behind him, Vard began to question his own sanity at attempting to navigate the already confusing streets in the stifling heat. Mirages added to the regular illusions, Vard frequently stumbled into a dead end and at last he found himself in a courtyard. He paused and scratched at his cloak to observe the sight. An immense hedge maze lay before him, sprawling out to nearly cover the courtyard in foliage. Some inner conscience shouted inside him that he was in a known location filled with illusions and he insisted on entering a maze. Dehydrated and incoherent in the extreme, Vard mumbled to himself. "Shhhh, be quiet. Itsh rood t' shout at me." He walked forward and knelt to admire some dazzling roses by the entrance. They were especially amazing because so far as he could tell, they were thornless. He smiled at the plants and pushed onward into the maze. Vard was in a dire situation. His mouth felt like it was coated with sand, and his exposed skin felt as though it had been rubbed through with grit, glass and acid. He knew that very soon, he could succumb to his thirst. Crawling on hands and knees, he made his way into a grove. Nigh delirious with ecstasy, he shuffled hastily into the shade and lay back. Once my flesh recovers, I'll be able...to find...water..... Vard, for once in his life having made a mistake, fell unconscious.

[Yisanareysin]

Rey was half asleep, basking in the sunlight when he caught an unusual scent. Flicking his tongue out, he puzzled over this new smell, slithering into a corner and curling up to hide. He heard what sounded like a voice, just before spotting the person at the entrance of the clearing. He... well, simply put, he didn't look too good. The stranger crawled into the shade, and flopped down on the ground, seemingly completely oblivious to Rey's presence. That was probably not a good sign. At least for him. Idly, Rey considered just leaving him there. But he had to grab his pack, which was also in the shade. Past the weird collapsed stranger. Wonderful. Cautiously, Rey slithered over to the man, prodding him with his tail. No response. And that odd scent was coming from him, it seemed. Decisions decisions. On one hand, he really was in the mood to just curl up in the grass and sleep. On the other hand, this man was a mystery, a "weird thing", and investigating "weird things" had never not paid off. Well, except for.. and also.. well, it rarely did not pay off. Decision made, Rey prodded at the man again, studying him closer. His skin was oddly pale, and his body seemed a little off somehow. And what was wrong with his nails? His curiosity piqued, Rey closed his eyes, and sensed. Breathing in, he studied the stranger's aura. Long limbs, pale skin, yes, yes, he could see that. But what was this one? His scales itched. Something crawling creeping scuttling around. And another thing.. something not right... Overheating? If Rey had had the vocal cords for it in snake form he would have laughed. Amateurs. He released his sense, ignoring the fatigue that washed over him. This was nothing compared to the Eyktolian desert. Still, overheating could be dealt with easily enough. Shifting back into his dhani form, Rey slithered over to his pack, pulled out his nearly full waterskin, and promptly emptied half of it onto the stranger's face.

[Vard Briar]

OOC: : Sorry it's so short. I just felt I couldn't leave ya hanging for another day. My weekend's been pretty hairy so I hope this is enough to go on. Vard spluttered and coughed, his mouth greedily drinking in every drop of water. All too soon, he felt the liquid evaporate and he was grasping at the ground in desperation. Chimes passed, and soon his eyes refocused as he came to. He was sitting up in the shade of the glade he remembered falling over in. Vard looked at his clothes in disgust, they were soiled and the pure white of his attire now sported a layer of dust. He attempted to dust himself off while he looked around the clearing. Fear froze his heart in an instant, when he spotted the reptilian being standing beside him holding a waterskin. Vard, fearful though he was, realized that he wasn't already dead. "Who are you? And if you don't mind my asking, what are you? I've never seem your kind before." Then he remembered his manners, and with some effort got to his feet to bow. "You may call me Krovard, I am an Esterian Symenestra of Alvadas and it is my duty to thank you for saving my life." Class, is all about first impressions.

[Yisanareysin]

Huh. That was unexpected. People typically panicked or tried to run away, not bow and introduce themselves so formally. Pity. Rey had kind of been looking forward to scaring the shyke out of someone again. Ah, good times. And a Symenestra... well that certainly explained the scent. And the pale skin. And the creepy aura. Actually that pretty much explained everything. Ah, well, not everything could be a deep mindblowing mystery, he supposed. That would have been nice though. He wasn't sure what an Esterian Symenestra was, but he supposed it was probably a subrace, like the Vipers. "A pleassure to meet you, Krovard." He hissed. Couldn't hurt to be polite, and it wasn't like he had anything else to do. "I'm," Real name or fake? "Reyssin Ekanss. A viper dhani." Krovard's eyes were purple, Rey realized. And when he spoke, Rey thought he could see a glimpse of sharp elongated teeth. Not that Rey could really say anything about that, considering his own fangs. "I'm not ssurprisssed you've never met one of my kind before. Not many of uss live in Kalea. I've never met one of yourss either, at leasst until now." Rey set the waterskin on the ground beside his pack, shifting to the side so he his tail was in the sun. Waaarm. "Quite a dramatic entrancce you made there. Not dealing well with the heat, I take it?"

[Vard Briar]

Vard smiled, as Reysin introduced himself. Others like him existed it seemed, people whose appearances misled as to their actual temperament. This fellow while certainly of a reptilian disposition, had a grasp of etiquette that he appreciated. He recalled having heard something about Dhani before, but he couldn't quite remember. "I'm not ssurprisssed you've never met one of my kind before. Not many of uss live in Kalea. I've never met one of yourss either, at leasst until now." Vard smiled agreeably, and pushed himself to his feet. "Well, if you don't mind my asking, what do you think of me? I admit that I don't usually make stupid mistakes like this. I would have been in a lot of trouble if you weren't here to help me, so thank you so much." While Reysin stretched out, Vard assessed his possessions. He had his clothing, which he noted were mercifully white. He had no idea what might have happened if he was a Symenestra of the sort to don black robes. He also still had his ocarina, though what good that would do, he knew not. And lastly, even in his absentminded and delirious state, Vard had remembered to bring a waterskin. It came as no surprise to him that it was empty. "Quite a dramatic entrancce you made there. Not dealing well with the heat, I take it?" The Symenestra winced in response and lightly brushed the skin on his neck, one of the few places his cloak hadn't covered. He saw dead skin peeling off likes dry leaves in a stiff wind and the burning sensation intensified. "Let's just say that my kind forsook our relationship with the sun a long, long time ago." Vard noticed that Reysin had a vaguely blissful expression on his face and grinned. "You however, seem to relish the hot noonday sun." He slowly made his way to the trunk of the tree they rested under, and gingerly leaned against it. A soft cooling breeze rustled his ashen hair pleasantly. He wasn't dead, and that was classier than some could say. He blinked, the memory uncovering itself like sand shifting over a dusty skeleton. He remembered his father telling him that Dhani had a cultural tradition, regardless of snake species wherein they named their offspring partially after their mothers. That had been what piqued his brain. "Reysin," he called. "I don't suppose that's your full name, is it? What was your mother's full name? If you tell me, I'll tell you my true name." A touch of whimsy, most likely due to his break from reality prompted Vard to test the Dhani's knowledge of Symenestran culture. If he knew of the race's prefixes then he could easily extrapolate Vard's name by removing 'Kro'. This snake definitely intrigued him, that was certain. In order to maintain class, one most definitely pursue intrigue.

[Yisanareysin]

To his surprise, Rey found himself actually interested in this one. He had, as he'd said, never met a Symenestra before (Rey was fairly certain eating someone didn't count as meeting them), but from what he'd heard of the Symenestra, Krovard hardly seemed like a typical member of his race. Then again, no one would think of Rey as a typical Dhani, except, of course, the more intelligent of his prey, and they didn't think for very long. "What I think of you?" Rey simply shrugged. "You sseem polite, but not much ssuited to the outdoorss. Asside from that, I would rather not make assumptions." That tended to lead to Rey being wrong about something, and nothing annoyed Rey like being wrong. "If you mean of your kind, well, I'm ssure you've heard ass many rumorss of my kind as I have of yourss. I try not to put much faith in rumorss." He grinned as the spider mentioned the heat. "Well, my kind prefer the underground as well, but out of neccesssity. The dessert heat will kill anyone caught out in the middle of the day, but dussk and dawn are perfect for ssoaking up the heat. Thiss," he indicated at the midday sun "is jusst a little cooler than a perfect heat, if not nearly ass dry ass I would like." He shifted again in the grass, sunlight warming the small of his back, his head and shoulders in the shade, resting his weight on his elbows. When Krovard asked for his name, he smirked. So, the Symenestra did know something of his kind then. Odd, that he'd know of dhani names, but had never met one before. Either that, or he was not a particularly fantastic liar. Not that it mattered much, he supposed. "Your true name, hm? Ass you wish. My mother was Ayasoyisana. I'm Yisanareysin." Huh. That actually felt good. He hadn't used his true name since he had left home, but still came to him far more naturally than Reysin Ekans did. He said it again, in the Snake-tongue this time, and smiled. "It doess ssound better in ssnake, but I'm afraid you lack the tongue to speak it." He flicked out his forked tongue. "Now, your name?"

[Vard Briar]

Vard nodded agreeably in response to Reysin's answer to his question. He seemed like he was a sensible if extraordinary individual. He had indeed heard many rumours about Dhani but also lots of things he suspected where fact. Such as but not limited to the fact that Dhani named their young after their mothers. Vard gasped in amazement, that Reysin could endure temperatures even higher than this baffled him. Then again, mine is a race of earth-dwellers also. Only we chose the darkness. He contemplated this for a few ticks before realizing that his new acquaintance was speaking once more. "Your true name, hm? Ass you wish. My mother was Ayasoyisana. I'm Yisanareysin." Yisana-Reysin eh? A mouthful to be sure but from some of the Dhani names I've heard, hardly the longest. Reysin continued to speak, but in the hissing speech of a snake. The Symenestra's head swirled with the apparent complexity of the sounds all twisted together into a word. "It doess ssound better in ssnake, but I'm afraid you lack the tongue to speak it." No doubt. "Now, your name?" Vard stared up at the leaves of the tree he rested upon. Scattered specks of light peeked through, increased by the wind rustling each leaf. Drawing up his hands to rest under his neck in a semi-casual pose, he hummed tunelessly to himself. "I, suppose that everyone goes by many names Yisanareysin. Myself, even more so depending on who it is that addresses me. To my parents and myself, I am Vard Briar. My friends call me Pryzavard. My enemies, Dravard. And lastly, I think of myself quite often as The Lonely Gentleman, though the truth of that title may yet be changed. Krovard, the title I use when conversing with strangers, no longer applies to you Yisanareysin. You may call me what you wish." Vard pulled out his ocarina, and watched the light play on its polished surface. He called to mind his song with the ease that a painter's selects his colours from a palette. He wondered whether now was an appropriate time to play it. It had a very certain feeling to it and if played at the improper time he wouldn't do the ballad justice. Reysin seemed very relaxed and Vard didn't want to bother him so he lay back and rested his eyes. Class is about good timing.

[Yisanareysin]

Well, that seemed needlessly complicated. Different titles for each form of relationship? Heh. That was one way of letting someone know exactly what they thought of them. So, it seemed Rey was being granted permission to call this spider friend. His natural instinct was suspicion, of course. They had only just met, after all, and there was no easier way to make someone trust you than to pretend to trust them first. But that was probably just his time in Ahnatep talking, and besides, he had sort of rescued the Symenestra from fainting in the sun. He toyed briefly with the idea of trying to sense Kro- no, Pryzavard's true intentions, but he wasn't sure he'd be able to scent something that complex without passing out. That would be bad. Trust him for now, Rey decided. Reevaluate later. "Vard Briar, hmm? My parentss mosstly called me Reysin-Sstop-Wandering-Off." He grinned sheepishly. "Pryzavard, then, if it pleassess you." He thought for a moment. "That'ss quiet an interessting sysstem. Sso it'ss oness relation to ssomeone, followed by their name?" Idly, he wondered if this frail looking man even had enemies. You never knew, he supposed. A glint of light caught his eye, and he slithered closer for a better look. Pryzavard held in his hand a... something. Vaguely leaf shaped, with a number of holes and a part sticking out of one side, it looked like nothing Rey had ever seen before. "Would it be rude of me to ask what that iss?" Politeness, he was beginning to realize, was the key to this one. The Lonely Gentleman indeed.

[Vard Briar]

"Vard Briar, hmm? My parentss mosstly called me Reysin-Sstop-Wandering-Off." Vard looked up from his ocarina and flashed the Dhani a smile, well-aware that his fangs would probably catch the snake-man's eye. "Pryzavard, then, if it pleassess you." Ahhh, it has been a while since someone's called me that. He returned to idly fiddling with his wind instrument as quite correctly, Reysin described the Symenestra naming system. Vard had only just put his ocarina to his lips when the expected questioning voice asked, "Would it be rude of me to ask what that iss?" Vard scratched at his hair and blinked sleepily. The heat was more soothing now, coupled with a soft breeze and suddenly, the notion of a nap seemed very inviting. He'd better not play a lullaby, but all the same Vard decided that he would withhold the ballad of his until a later time. He began to tap the toes of his boots against each other and taking a breath, he began to play. Vard recalled the slow and mournful melody of only eight days past. This canto however, was hardly slow nor mournful. The humid summer air somewhat hindered Vard's ability but he played the quick notes to the best of his ability and when he finally played the last fiery note, he was satisfied that he'd done the song justice. After catching his breath, he explained, "My instrument is called an ocarina, and that was a canto I was taught by my father. It's meant to be played after earning a victory but I think that meeting someone who has saved my life is victorious enough." The Symenestra had no real need to leave this garden he'd found himself in but something began to tug at the back of his mind. A cold ice sloshed in Vard's stomach when he remembered the fervour with which he had entered the maze and how lucid and dreamlike the whole experience had been. That settles it, I have to leave here. Clearing his throat, he looked to Reysin expectantly. "I don't suppose you know how to get out of here Yisanareysin? While meeting you has been a new experience and one I do not regret, it was not my original intention to lose myself in someone's garden. Also, I appreciate your contribution of water but I myself am somewhat lacking in drink. Is there a fountain nearby?" With a groan, he lifted himself off the ground and leaned on the oak tree. "Of course, I'm terribly sorry for bothering you so if you're not up to it I'll try to find my way out myself." Class is about giving people options.