42 SPRING 515 AV
There were times the Drykas woman questioned why she had ever thought to leave the freedom of Endrykas behind for a congested and contained city like Syliras. Feeling herself jostled around by the throng of bodies that lurched to and fro within the busy Bazaar, that question certainly came to mind. She felt trapped in a way, stuck as if lost at sea and unable to swim, forced to follow the way the mass moved as if being swept along on a current.
The Bazaar was an odd place for one who had grown up so accustomed to life on the Sea of Grass. It existed beneath the ground, deep within the belly of the fortress, tucked away from Syna's warm glow and Zulrav's caress. Naturally, this felt wrong to one so accustomed to always having the open sky above her head yet, despite this, she found a part of it oddly comforting, albeit in the strangest and most twisted of ways. Perhaps it was the buzz she felt from the energy that came from being at this depth, surrounded by so many bustling forms, but she felt as if it gave her life.
In a way, it also vividly reminded her of her past. There had been a time when she had lived beneath the ground with her people. A fair few of the Drykas had sought The Underground – an ancient warren of underground tunnels that snaked all the way throughout the Sea of Grass – during the Djed storm of 512, tipped off by Riverfall and the messages found in the web. It was not a pleasant thing to reflect on and her skin prickled with goosebumps as she looked around, seeing bits of The Underground around her here in the Bazaar.
It had been a miserable experience for all involved, being stuck in those dank, dark caverns, deaf and blind to the world above after the storm ripped through, causing severe damage to the web. There had been so much death and suffering, especially amongst the animals her people had brought with them, but it had been a necessary means to an end. There had been so much Djed pushed into the world after Ivak's release, the people of the open plains and fragile tent cities had no defense against such ravaging destruction. Certainly all would have perished if such actions had not been taken.
But the lower levels of the Fortress City did not have that same sad feel to it, that feeling of fear and pain and desolation, and that momentary wave of nostalgia passed as swiftly as it had come. She had spent very little time within the enclosed areas of the fortress city and even less time down here in deep pit of the city, preferring to keep the sky above her whenever possible, yet she felt a tug of curiosity as she looked about the busy sprawl before her. There was a need, a desire to poke and prod around, to see where paths led and what she might find at their ends. But then she reminded herself her reason for being down within the Bazaar, of her purpose for the day, and smiled broadly. Today she was twenty five.
Although the number sounded far older than she felt, she still embraced it, feeling it necessary to celebrate in her own way. It had been a while since she had had any cause to celebrate and today seemed like a good enough day than any. With this in mind, she had decided that today she would do something she usually never would have thought to do. Today she would challenge herself in the most absurd way: today she'd purchase something completely unnecessary and superfluous to her existence. Whereas The Underground had been a place of starvation and strife, the Bazaar was one of plenty and she wanted to take full advantage of this and rid her mind of any further connection with that horrible time. However, as a practical person, it wasn't like her to spend precious mizas on something that served no purpose and so she knew the task she set for herself would not be an easy one. She simply reminded herself to try and listen to her heart rather than her head.
The Bazaar was an odd place for one who had grown up so accustomed to life on the Sea of Grass. It existed beneath the ground, deep within the belly of the fortress, tucked away from Syna's warm glow and Zulrav's caress. Naturally, this felt wrong to one so accustomed to always having the open sky above her head yet, despite this, she found a part of it oddly comforting, albeit in the strangest and most twisted of ways. Perhaps it was the buzz she felt from the energy that came from being at this depth, surrounded by so many bustling forms, but she felt as if it gave her life.
In a way, it also vividly reminded her of her past. There had been a time when she had lived beneath the ground with her people. A fair few of the Drykas had sought The Underground – an ancient warren of underground tunnels that snaked all the way throughout the Sea of Grass – during the Djed storm of 512, tipped off by Riverfall and the messages found in the web. It was not a pleasant thing to reflect on and her skin prickled with goosebumps as she looked around, seeing bits of The Underground around her here in the Bazaar.
It had been a miserable experience for all involved, being stuck in those dank, dark caverns, deaf and blind to the world above after the storm ripped through, causing severe damage to the web. There had been so much death and suffering, especially amongst the animals her people had brought with them, but it had been a necessary means to an end. There had been so much Djed pushed into the world after Ivak's release, the people of the open plains and fragile tent cities had no defense against such ravaging destruction. Certainly all would have perished if such actions had not been taken.
But the lower levels of the Fortress City did not have that same sad feel to it, that feeling of fear and pain and desolation, and that momentary wave of nostalgia passed as swiftly as it had come. She had spent very little time within the enclosed areas of the fortress city and even less time down here in deep pit of the city, preferring to keep the sky above her whenever possible, yet she felt a tug of curiosity as she looked about the busy sprawl before her. There was a need, a desire to poke and prod around, to see where paths led and what she might find at their ends. But then she reminded herself her reason for being down within the Bazaar, of her purpose for the day, and smiled broadly. Today she was twenty five.
Although the number sounded far older than she felt, she still embraced it, feeling it necessary to celebrate in her own way. It had been a while since she had had any cause to celebrate and today seemed like a good enough day than any. With this in mind, she had decided that today she would do something she usually never would have thought to do. Today she would challenge herself in the most absurd way: today she'd purchase something completely unnecessary and superfluous to her existence. Whereas The Underground had been a place of starvation and strife, the Bazaar was one of plenty and she wanted to take full advantage of this and rid her mind of any further connection with that horrible time. However, as a practical person, it wasn't like her to spend precious mizas on something that served no purpose and so she knew the task she set for herself would not be an easy one. She simply reminded herself to try and listen to her heart rather than her head.
Pavi • Grass-sign • Common • Tukant • Others |
