Breakdown (Aleksi)

[Tebridiar]

Day 89, Autumn, Year 510AV.

Twilight.

It was a calming time for her, but she felt anything but calm. Tebridiar was about to be uprooted again.

Soon, so soon.

Her thoughts were actually beginning to hurt. Like a headache that wouldn't go away.

Time had passed so quickly, almost half a season ago she had arrived in this nomadic city. She had left her master, and been rescued by Kayiri, the drykas man. She had met a lot of friendly people. But how was she to know it would be the same in Syliras? What if they weren't accepting of Kelvics there? There wouldn't be any going back... How awful.

The sky was purple, little tendrils of grey and black mixing in swirls in the sky. The stars twinkled brightly. They were so beautiful... It was easy to get lost just looking up into it. You did get a bit of a sore kneck mind, but it was worth it, just to escape for a few moments. Anything was possible up there, stars and galaxies away, more being formed every second... Tebridiar was for now, glad that she was well-read, or she wouldn't be able to understand what was going on miles and miles above her head. She was nothing but a speck, a stain on the ground, that would pass away in no time, and no one would notice.

And she was alone in the street. She should be asleep, everyone else was. Every so often a drykas guard would flit by on horseback, but that was it.

Yet again, she was alone. She had friends now, but in the end of the day, she was sure they were only there out of convenience. What would anyone do if a girl had narrowly escaped rape, and ran up to you in the street begging to be saved? What, just walk away?

But Kayiri had provided her with stability, housing... everything she had was because of him...

But this wasn't what a Kelvic was supposed to be... werent they meant to live in servitude? Tebridiar didn't like this idea. She didn't know what she was, where she belonged.

A little tear dribbled down her cheek. She didn't bother to rub it away. No one could see, could they?

[Aleksi]

Aleksi slowly moved her fingers under Luc's necklace, pulling him closer to her as she noticed a young woman in the streets.

It was a beautiful and a quiet twilight. One of those where Aleksi would get up and head to the forest, finding a lake and taking a relaxing bath while Luc was keeping guard. This was one of the reasons why she didn't want to get married... but... what if... what if her husband...

Shaking her head quietly, she snapped out of her silly thoughts and tilted her head as she started walking towards the woman. It was quite unusual for anyone but the guards to be awake at this time, so she carefully stepped towards the woman
You know, it's not safe for you to be out here alone..., she added, looking down at Luc as he started growling
There, there my boy... she is not a threat to the Drykas people

[Tebridiar]

What if's began to circle like a flock of ravens in Tebridiars head.

"What if my parents were still alive?"
"What if my master had treated me better?"
"What if I had never met my master?"
"What if I hadn't met Kayiri?"
"What if my Master had..."

She was torn from her gloomy thoughts by a woman, who seemed to be talking to her.

She took a look at the lady. She was obviously drykas, you could just tell. Something about them was just a little bit different. More exotic than your average human, perhaps. She was quite young, still a teenager probably. She was beautiful, but very strange looking. Tebridiar had never seen a woman with ink all over her body... it was actually very striking, the little illustrations all over her. She wasn't wearing very much, and Tebridiar tried not to stare at all the little stories that covered the girl.

But she was set on edge as their was a... a predator sitting next to the girl, growling...

She instantly sat up, straightening her back and intaking breath. She was ready to bolt.

"You know, it's not safe for you to be out here alone..." She said. despite her unique appearance, she had a lovely voice. Soothing to the ears, like bells. The woman then said something to the panther.

"Ah... I know. I shouldn't be out here. Its just... I needed to clear my head. My life has never been better right now but it just seems like... hmmn. I cant explain it. Just... I constantly feel... hmmn." Tebridiar paused for a second. "Anyway, if it's not safe to be out here, what are you doing out and about? I take it your a Drykas?"

[Aleksi]

Aleksi smiled as the girl looked along her body. She never liked males staring at her, but if a woman did that she felt flattered. Sometimes it seemed Aleksi loved women more then men.... but as always, she shook that thought out of her head and added
Yes, I'm a Drykas.... and unlike most women I'm both a warrior and a hunter, so it's quite safe for me to be wherever I want to at any time I want to...

Tilting her head lightly again, she whispered to Luc Come boy, let's take this girl for a walk, shall we and with a warm smile, she moved her eyes back to the girl, then behind her, a bit more far away from the camp
Guards will not tolerate you being here unguarded for much longer... Drykas men do not take no for an answer, you do know that, right?

She lived with them, she WAS one of them, so she knew how they act, even though none of them ever treated her that way, and yet, a part of her deep down inside wanted them to
Another one of those thoughts she had to shake out of her head
Come take a walk with me and don't let Luc worry you... he's a good boy... he's just not used to anyone but our people around....

Gentle fingers moved across the girl's shoulder as she stepped forward, being quite sure the girl has seen those fresh scars on her right arm
I've seen you looking at my ink marks..... what do you see in them?

[Tebridiar]

A female warrior? Tebridiar was envious. This girl certainly knew how to stand up for herself. No one would dare mess with her... but as well as being tough, the girl seemed nice and appeared to have a gentle side. She loved it... she was full of contrasts. She could walk the streets at night without fear.

Exciting...

Tebridiar felt excited to be going for a walk, which was strange. She'd never really seen eye to eye with a predator before, usually she ran away. But the cat seemed tamer than a wild creature, he didn't seem to be in a hostile stance... so she wasn't constantly on edge. Tebridiar trusted this inked woman. She rarely felt this way towards people on a first meeting.

As Tebridiar walked forward to get a closer look at the cat (and possibly steal another glance at the Drykas girl's body) the Drykas touched her shoulder. Her hands were surprisingly soft and gentle... it felt nice. Tebridiar closed her eyes for a moment, then quickly opened them again. She didn't want to scare this possible new friend away... She noticed cuts on the arm of this warrior woman, they looked rather fresh... what had she been doing?

"Ha, well, I haven't even met a female Drykas before, nevermind one who's a warrior, and a hunter... to be perfectly honest, I’ve never met anyone, well... like you." She paused, trying to catch up with the questions she had been asked, thinking for a moment. "Well, I know what you mean about the Drykas men... they can be very assertive. I try to keep out of their way at night, mostly... I don't usually come out at this time. Mind you, I have met a very kind Drykas man, his name is Kayiri... he's different to the rest." Tebridiar smiled. "It surprises me to say this, but your cat, he doesn't worry me! Which is strange... predators, they set me on edge. He probably senses something animalistic in me..."

Tebridiar wondered how strange that must sound. For a kelvic, she didn't look very feral, compared to the others. They were all running around as tigers and leopards and wolves, but she loved being a horse. They could outrun them all, and connect with people.

And then she turned to the last question. The ink.

"Your ink?" Tebridiar took a few moments to look. It was captivating... each piece told a little story, forever painted on. She didn't think body art like this was beautiful, untill now. It twisted around her figure, perfect in every detail. "Its amazing... it tells a story doesn't it? If only I could sit down and read the story etched on your skin... I see you in those stories, I think." Tebridiar didn't feel embarrassed staring anymore. Lots of questions buzzed around her head, but the most urgent had to be taken care of first.

"Anyway, my name's Tebridiar... What’s yours?"

[Aleksi]

Aleksi smiled as she listened to the girl talk about Drykas... It felt strangely good to be unique... to be something the other person has never seen in their life.

Yea, it's quite hard to keep up with the guys... But hey, I managed... now they don't even look at me as a woman anymore, she added with a small frown followed by a giggle as she let Luc's necklace go

He's ok now... Luc's just very protective of me.. oh and, the name is Aleksi.... and yes, I have a male name as well... shaking her head lightly, she whispered
I think you can guess my father wanted a son, turning around she winked at the girl and slowly stopped at the favorite place, gently kneeling down and patting the spot right in front of her

Yes, Tebridar, the ink all over my body tells a story... a story of my life..... all of these little pictures are covering one or more scars earned in battles, just like another set will cover the fresh ones you've just seen... , her soft fingers, the same ones that went over the girl's shoulder a second ago moved to the necklace around her, and then around Luc's neck
And so are these things..... can you guess what are they? Like, this one?, taking the tooth she took from a panther just 2 days ago with her two fingers and moving it closer to Tebridar

[Tebridiar]

Aleksi... it suited her perfectly.

Tebridiar was surprised that people thought of her as a man. Aleksi seemed, somehow, very feminine. She had wonderful curves that Tebridiar could only dream of, as she had quite a wiry figure. Her body looked about fourteen years old, though she felt older. Kelvic psychology did tend to mess with the head a bit.

It seemed strange that a father would want a son, when he could have a girl like this. She was every bit as strong as a male warrior, she had obviously been brought up that way. It must be hard keeping in touch with her feminine side if she was constantly being thought of as male...

Did she lead a bit of a double life?

The story of Aleksi's ink was intriguing. She was obviously very battle worn, the amount of tattoes she had. It was hard to notice the scars, but now that Tebridiar looked, they were there, although hard to see under the pictures. She wouldn't have noticed them if she hadn't been told.

The Drykas fingered the necklace she wore, and then moved on to her cat, Luc's. Tebridiar had no idea what these meant... were they the animals she had hunted?

"Aleksi, I have no idea what they are... would you care to tell me?" Tebridiar whispered. There was no need to talk loudly, as everyone was asleep and the only noise were the quiet tread of feet, the soft chatter of the wind and crickets chirping. "And, well, what was it like? Your father wishing you were someone else?"

[Aleksi]

Aleksi smiled as the girl looked along her body. It was indeed quite a story for a woman her age, but then again, it was not much of a story. It was all based on one fact. She was a warrior, bound to the blade as it's eternal worshiper and only lover.

I'm quite amazed with how many scars I have on my body... this fresh one was made just two days ago... by a panther.... from which I took the teeth you see on mine and Luc's necklace

She smiled brightly, moving her finger over the pearly white teeth on both necklaces before whispering again
It was quite a bit of a struggle... but it was worth it... I got it's skin, Luc got a pretty big meal and we both got a trophy to remember the battle by..., looking down at the tooth, she added
We, the Drykas people and especially myself are somewhat like animals Tebridar..... We're too proud to hide when we're being hunted down... and our strength is visible to others only by how many scars we have on our body...

[Tebridiar]

A panther gouged that scar out of her arm? And she allowed one to walk beside her? Mind you, she kept the token's of the kill... and quite rightly so, the teeth were quite a sight to behold. As much as she disliked predators, she did feel a pang knowing that an animal had died at the hands of the huntress... but it had probably attacked first.

She is very brave. But a panther is probably nothing to some of the foes she's faced... But it must have hurt like hell. It set Tebridiar's heart racing with just the mention of it. She even found herself looking behind her to check there wasn't a crazed wildcat pelting towards them. She slowly calmed down...

Tebridiar understood what Aleksi meant about the Drykas. Kayiri was only truly happy around his horse, and was delighted when he got the chance to see Tebridiar in her horse form.

Even though Aleksi was brave, Tebridiar hoped that she wouldn't be to proud to run away if the fight got too much. And if strength was measured in scars, Aleksi was probably one of the strongest people in Endrykas right now.

"Well, if your a little bit like animals, you might be able to relate to me a bit better. I don't really belong anywhere." Tebridiar leant in close to Aleksi's ear. "I'm a kelvic, I can turn into a horse. Its why I'm a little bit... flighty. Ive had quite a strange life too. Im an orphan, and I was enslaved for a while. But I was nearly raped by my Master, I ran away from him, Kayiri sort of saved me. And Ive been here, free, for a few months. But it does start to ache. I don't have a partner anymore." She lingered on old memories of her lovely parents, they made an excellent group. She even thought of her master. She hated him, but Kelvics were meant to have masters, so it made sense, even though she didn't want it to. Her hands clenched into fists.

"I can show you what I look like, if you want, or if you have time..."

[Aleksi]

Aleksi laughed as she saw the girl turning back. It was amusing how some creatures thought they could do something to save themselves if they took a look at what's coming towards them

If a panther was coming your way, my dear, you'd be in pieced by the time you turned around.... so don't worry, Luc'll prevent that from happening, winking, she slowly scratched over the cat's head, making it purr in it's own, unique way, which sounded more like a growl then anything else.

You're a Kelvic.... How interesting.... I've seen a couple, but never got in contact with any of them.... I heard interesting stories though, she smiled, warmly leaning back into the grass
And your animal form is a horse.... that must be a huge plus with a Drykas man.... have you thought of.... how do you call that.... bonding with him?

She then shook her head lightly, sighing I'm sorry if I was too bald up there... it is none of my business.... but yes, I'd love to see you as a horse... those are beautiful animals