Down Into the Dirt [Open]

[Laktan Vladmir]

"Humans, nay, men will do many stupid things when their pride is threatened and their minds are loosed by the drink. Their embarrassment will be spread to their commanders by rumor or their own tales. There is no need to report them." Laktan said, staring at his door. It had not been an especially beautiful door and had held no special attachment but it had been his. It would cost money to repair.

Bending down, Laktan lifted the splintered door up against the hole that had served as a doorway. At least it would block some of the night air out. He surveyed the damage. Their blades had done little damage to anything other than the door. A plant or two outside had been trampled in their quick escape, but other than that he was fine. He turned to Nya and looker her up and down to check for injury. She seemed fine.

"I'm sorry for that. My actions brought this down upon me, and upon you. My hospitality has been violated. My house, my blade, and the arm to hold it is yours until you do not need it anymore. I have brought danger upon you, and the debt must be payed." Laktan said, taking a slight bow.

The Akalak were a people known for their warrior ways and their steadfast dedication to honor. When they made an oath, they kept it. When they set themselves to a cause, they died fighting for it. The sacred rights of hospitality were very important to many of them, and they took matters of honor with a deadly seriousness.

[Nya Winters]

Nya nodded, looking at the mess of the door thoughtfully. It seemed strange to her that men would violate the privacy of others and break in doorways. It was destructive to be so violent with such craftsmanship. To her, even simple hewed wood was a mysterious and almost arcanic artform since she had no clue how wood was harvested, cut, and shaped. "I am sorry for your doorway. It did not deserve such rough treatment... neither did your garden. It looks as if they have trampled one or two plants." Nya said mournfully as she gazed out the doorway moments before the Akalak leaned the door right back up against the door frame.

At the Akalak's speech, Nya looked startled. "How did your actions bring this on? They attacked you. You did not attack them." She said softly, tilting her head in confusion. Nya wasn't sure what Laktan's oath meant, but she was quick to reassure him. "I am fine. There is no debt. But thank you for your pledge. It is not necessary though. No one was hurt and they left with just... a show of your blade. I have never seen a blade like that before. What is it? I did not know a dagger could cut through chainmail like that." She said, wide-eyed remembering about the lakan cutting the armor like it was butter.

Nya was starting to feel uncomfortable, uncertain of what just happened. She looked confused, and didn't know if Laktan's oath was going to cause a problem. Nya didn't want anyone to feel indebted, and in her mind standing there letting someone else defend you while you fought against risking everything - including your bondmate's place in society - was nothing that merited a debt.

"I... it is getting late. Should I not be leaving? Before they interupted, you looked as if you were excusing me. I would like, though, to come back sometime and learn about your plants... and your garden more. You said you would tell me something of them." Nya reminded him, though it was less important now after all that had happened.

[Laktan Vladmir]

Laktan nodded as he straightened from his bow. He was surprised at her denial of the debt, but who could expect one so young and outside of his culture to know the exact extent of a debt of honor. The Akalak as a people had a strong sense of honor and duty; a race that lives for half a century in a close knit community tends to develop such cultural values. Honor varies from Akalak to Akalak with a few universal truths, but some most definitely take it as a much more serious business. Laktan, an Akalak out of Riverfell, had always let honor rule his life. It kept him alive.

"I understand Nya. This blade," Laktan said, drawing his Lakan, "Is the weapon of the Akalak people. It is said that a little bit of an Akalak's soul is embedded into his blade. We are all trained to be deadly warriors with both the Lakan and our body. Few though bother to compliment one style with the other. That is part of my traveling studies, to learn to make the body and the Lakan one weapon."

"You are always welcome here. You may come and go as you please. I simply did not wish to offend your dignity by asking you to stay. I get company so rarely." Laktan said with an almost forlorn look. The more Nya stayed, and the more they talked, the more he realized how lonely the last half a century had really been for him. Traveling from land to land he had learned a lot about different plants, fighting styles, and people but never had he stopped to become interested in the persons there.

"And there are many plants that can serve your purpose. I have a few, though a mixture would have to be made and then dried before it would be best for ingestion. Morning would be the best time for that." Laktan said.

[Nya Winters]

The Kelvic mind held only a driving responsibility to serve unless it had been abused or neglected. If it was cherished, the need to serve indulged, then the kelvic tended to flower and even develop a very human-like intelligence and a keen curiosity about the world around them. Nya had never had a finger lifted in anger against her, and both her parents and current bondmate were some of the better sorts in the world... so Laktan's concept of debt had very little meaning for her - for it served none. But it did make her curious. She tossed her mane of brindled hair, and watched him with interested eyes. But she was interested in the fact he felt there was one, rather than the possibility of there actually being one. Nya wondered, if in the world they both lived in, if she owed either her folks or Abashai a debt. Nya smiled softly, and suspected they would both answer as she did. No.

And she certainly didn't need someone to take care of her. Well... for the most part. Slowly the Kelvic was learning the value of friendship and the strength of bonds - all types, not just the kind her and Abashai shared. And even if her world was organized differently than she had always imagined, the girl was slowly settling into it and finding a new sort of freedom through it. And the forest cat was adapting as well, whether she liked it or not.

She thought about the Akalak's words, examined his lakan when he produced it, and glanced at the door understanding it was open to her. "Thank you. I will visit often, because I like speaking with you as well. You are the first... to... understand me, I think, so quickly..." Nya said softly, reaching over to bump her head against the Akalak's arm, affectionately. "And if you need someone to care for your garden when you travel, I can if you would like me too. I am watchful and good at doing such things." Nya said softly, meaning that she would carefully guard his things if he ever traveled and needed someone to water the flowers or slay the weeds. All the Akalak would need to do was carefully explain to the Kelvic what needed to be done, and that would be it. She'd do it faithfully.

"I am often... wandering, looking for company or something interesting to do. The green in our yard drew me. The city is stone and sometimes it does not please my wilder side. And she, the big cat, cannot come out to play here, until we are safe away in the woods where humans would not notice or care about our size." Nya said, purring softly. But Laktan was in trouble. The invite would be taken seriously, and he'd often find a kelvic on his porch now. He'd most likely find offerings of fresh meat as well, for Nya hunted for pleasure at times too if there were more people she could feed than just Abashai and herself.

Nya nodded when he finally answered her question about the herbs. "I can come back then. I would like to bring my bondmate too. He should know about you, and that I come here sometimes... but the herbs would be difficult to explain. He does not understand very well about the Kelvics. I do not think his people, the Benshira, know my people like perhaps your people do. We... are not as mates. Bare skin makes him uncomfortable and he demands no pleasure from me, so if the herbs my mother gave me run out, it will be very awkward and difficult. I do not want him to... know. But I do... need them." It was difficult to speak of, for sure, but she didn't want the Akalak to think badly of her bondmate too. "He is... just very private in many things. I think he has a hesitation inside of women and being close to them. He follows Yahal very seriously. I know nothing at all about Yahal, but I do know the god is very strict. I follow Zulrav. Abashai does not know how much I care for Zulrav. He kills many of the Benshira with storms of sand in the south, and would not understand." The kelvic said, finding herself simply rambling to the Akalak, saying things she perhaps shouldn't.

And she made no move to leave. Somewhere along the dialog she'd gotten up, prowled, and had acquired fruit - a pair of apples - and had returned to sprawl out beside the Akalak companionably. She began carefully peeling one with a knife she retrieved from her belt pouch and handed it to him before peeling one for herself. She ate both apples peelings as she peeled them, serving the big warrior even as she spoke. Already she was taking his word for the freedom he had granted her in his own home, though she'd bring food to replace what she took easily.

"Why are you here? In Syliras? I see so few of your kind. You seem unusual. Will you tell me more about your people since you already know so much about mine?" She asked, reaching out to scrub at his arm with her tongue for a moment, curiously... her human tongue rougher than most. He realized, in just a moment, that she was trying to scrub the black pigment on his skin off... to see if it would free itself.