Closed Swamped in Problems (Tanith)

[Wikus]

48th of Spring 516AV
Swamp Survey Services – Oarth Island
12th Bell

Wikus needed more strength in his shoulders. They were still sore, two days after meeting Konrad and whipping that slave. The weight of his whip made it a challenge to control it and use it for long periods of time. Even after a few cracks the felt the need to rest, and when he rested his opponent could easily claim his life. That was unacceptable, now that he had seen all the dangers that dwelled in this city. Despite Wikus’ pride, he had to admit that there were some flaws in his combat techniques he had to fix. The day was as hot as usual, and the humidity was unbearable. In truth, Wikus wanted to escape this place as soon as possible, as him and water did not mix. His fear for the element made it a challenge to walk in the mornings, when the rain fell from the skies. There was so much water that even walking through the city was almost impossible for him, for the humidity damped his flesh and triggered that irrational fear. However, he had Konrad around, and Wikus felt inclined to leech from his knowledge until Konrad rotted in the ground.

There was always something new to learn, just as he tried right now. Behind the cottage that served as the quarters for his employment, he had yet to head into the swamps for the first time. He almost wished he didn’t have to, for he knew the amount of water he’d find inside. Plus, he didn’t know what kinds of dangers to expect within, as it was an environment he had no knowledge of. Thus, he wanted to be ready. Using the grass below his hands as padding, Wikus attempted once again to perform a handstand without anything to support himself with. Exhaling slowly, trying to not sound as if he was sighing due to his current lack of success, he tried again. Waiting on his fours, he used his feet to propel his legs into the air, while keeping his arms as rigid as possible, fully extended so that his weight did not crush them. It all went well during the propulsion itself, face trying to remain as parallel to the ground as possible, yet the moment his legs reached the top, his control over his balance was lost. Unable to maintain the handstand for more than those short two ticks, his legs landed on the lawn once more.

“Bend your arms, simpleton!” Someone yelled, Wikus’ head immediately looking up and around in attempts of finding the source of the voice. The voice came from afar, and so the only possibility was Blade Island, which was visible from his current spot. Squinting to try and see whoever said that, he remained still for a couple of ticks before he saw it. In the distance, directly on the other side of the shore, was a building with three floors, with terraces in each of them. In the second floor, he could see a rather bulky man, fat by the looks of it, pointing towards him as he spoke some other individuals – all of them facing him from their seats. Their voices were muffled by the sounds of the city itself, and so he couldn’t make up for what they were talking about. However, he was pretty sure they were laughing at him. Grunting, he’d try his best to ignore such irrefutable fact, and instead returned to his training. He wasn’t above hurling his own shyke towards that terrace, and he most certainly would now that he knew where they were.

Returning to his fruitless attempts, he’d hurl his legs into the air once more, arms locked as previously done. He felt his balance break once his legs were at the top, yet he refused to let himself fall. The purpose of this was to do a shoulder press, and if he couldn’t do a single one of them, he wouldn’t get any strength in his weak shoulders. So instead of letting his legs down, he unlocked his arms and slowly let himself down. At least, that was the intention. The moment he started lowering himself, his balance shifted greatly and he felt his body falling forward. Unable to do anything, he prepared for impact, and just as he expected, he fell on his back on the lawn. A soft thud was the sound he made when he landed, yet he didn’t felt hurt at all. The lawn, or the grass in general, had made his landing rather soft, as he felt no other pain that the one in his ego. He’d make sure to train on grass next time. However, he wouldn’t train on this lawn, as in the distance he heard the hysteric laughter of the gathered Dynasts, pointing and laughing towards him from the distant balcony.

Ashamed of himself, Wikus stood up and wiped off the remains of grass from his bare chest, which he couldn’t dress due to the heat of this damned city. “Wikus!” Called Hoalus from inside the cottage, to which Wikus found an excuse to finally leave the humiliating scene. “One of your associates has befallen to illness. He was excused from labor on this day, yet his appointment with a customer has yet to be fulfilled. Thus, you are to fulfill said task in wake of these circumstances. The meeting position is located on the East Bank of our beloved city, and so you must traverse it at once to honor our customer’s demands. ” Said Hoalus, whom had intercepted the gigantic Drykas in the door. Wikus, ignorant about the language, simply raised his eyebrows and stared. Hoalus sighed, and repeated with his kind tone. “Go work.” He then pointed towards the East, and so Wikus nodded and went on his way. Without any idea as to whom he was to meet, or what that customer looked like, Wikus was pretty much going on a blind adventure. Hopefully, he wouldn’t get fired. Walking with quick, barefoot steps, the laughter of the balcony was crawling on his nerves, eager to already cross the bridge and forget about them. He’d have his vengeance.

Thanks to Gossamer for this amazing template!

[Tanith Sitai]

Tanith had made plans for an exhibition of sorts, out into the swamps on the outskirts of the city, in search of various plants and herbs that she could incorporate into the salves and tinctures she made. As was the norm when Tanith had plans for a day, Astrid was in charge of the shop. There was truly no one Tanith could trust more, and nothing worth more to her that she could entrust another being with, and so Tanith was entirely satisfied that The Raven's Rose was in safe hands for the day.

Tanith generally relied either on trade, or her own small garden for the supplies she used in her store, but lately she had become unsatisfied with the range of plants she had access too, as well as the price. The day's foray into the swamps was one of many trips she had planned, as Tanith was determined to travel the length of Cyphrus in order to satisfy her needs and fill her garden. It was a more economic option for the young Dynast, though Tanith also appreciated the slight opportunity for a bit of adventure and exploring. She was nowhere near skilled herself however, despite what she wished with the little dagger strapped to her belt, and it was that fact that brought her to the Swamp Survey Service.

Her guide was late, by a good 15 chimes at least, and Tanith was less than pleased. Her status as a Dynast usually gained her better services than this, and even a few chimes late was too long by her book. She had marched all the way from the assigned meeting place on the East bank, over the various bridges, following each winding path, all the way to Oath Island where the Swamp Survey Office was located.

She had forgone her usual dress, and instead wore a rather plain pair of leather trousers and an airy white blouse. On her feet were tall, leather boots, rubbed down with wax to help repel any water from seeping into the skin. Her plain garb did nothing to disguise the importance with which she strode, her head high and eyes blazing with irritation. Her thick brown locks had been wound up into plaits and pinned to the back of her head, though escaping wisps framed her face and stuck to her sweat sheened skin.

Tanith marched up the narrow walkway to the cottage like building, readying herself to demand what the petch was causing such a delay, and she only paused as a large man passed her on his way out, walking back the way Tanith had come. The young Dynast paused and looked after the large man curiously, adjusting her bag on her shoulder, before turning fully and calling out to catch his attention.

"Are you my guide?" She asked, her tone blunt and clear, as she made her way over to him. In comparison to Tanith's small frame, the man before her was a veritable giant, his imposing aura only heightened by the large array of tattoos covering his bare torso, and the thick beard covering the lower half of his face. "Because you're late." She continued, not waiting for his reply, as she stood expectantly, her hands set at her hips.

[Wikus]

A voice behind stopped him in his tracks, the barefoot male glancing over his shoulder and his glorious height as if about to murder a rat. However, he was greeted with the sight of a young woman, clean and beautiful despite her rather simplistic outfit. Still somewhat affected by the laughter of those Dynasts, Wikus turned around and forced himself to lose as much as he could of his frown, as this woman had nothing to do with his pathetic attempts of acrobatics. He took a moment to inspect her straight on, blue eyes running down her frame to confirm she was indeed part of one of the Dynasties. He had learned to distinguish them from the Freeborns, not only by the lack of a Freeborn mark burned into their palm. Her beauty was not entirely composed of good genetics, although she was blessed in that sense. A big part of it was made through proper hygiene, of skin care, of clean clothes that did not reek of extensive use. She cared for the details in her, and thus her beauty shined with full force.

Unlike her, Wikus’ beauty was not composed of meticulous care. He was plain healthy, to such an extent in which no imperfections were drawn on his flesh. Those details that would’ve been unattractive were boosted to unnatural amounts of beauty, and through the collective perfection they composed his own charismatic and drawing presence. His tattoos seemed made specifically for him, complimenting him in such an appropriate way that it would almost seem as if they would be dishonored if they were on someone else’s flesh. On top of that, the large man emanated of presence of strength, which almost made him seem as if not even a blade could desecrate his flesh, as if disease and death were something he’d never experience. That was the end of his perfection, however. His tense facial expression, the frown that still lingered, and the clearly outdated harem pants all worked against him. Especially the latter, as they barely hid the shape of his legs, and on top of that the thin fabric was tainted with stains and damp due to Kenash’ high humidity.

“Your guide be dead.” He said bluntly, in his heavily accented and with the improper use of the Common language. Although the guide was not death, he believed that once someone around him fell ill they did not recover. “I guide you now, woman. What you need in swamp?” His tone was loud, easily heard yet somewhat hindered by his lowish voice. Standing aside and partially turning, he’d use a hand to gesture towards the road behind him, signaling for her to begin her pace towards their destination. He might be the guide, but only when the cobblestone below them ended and instead the damp soil took over. His expression, plain as usual, did not say anything else. If she were to move, he’d follow her, standing more or less beside her yet falling a bit back to give her the air of superiority she craved. It was that what most Dynast wanted, he thought, and so he’d try to satisfy her needs as best as he could. After all, he worked for her satisfaction, as Hoalus would say. “We go and leave haste. Swamp full of danger. I saw man eaten by beast in water.” He didn’t mention the detail that he was the one that hurled a man into that beast’s jaws, or that those screams still haunt him at night.

Wikus couldn’t help but glance every once in a while down to her, running his eyes down her frame from his height. Aside from Hoalus, the owner of the Swamp Survey Services, he hadn’t interacted much with a Dynast salve the occasional spit they spat towards him, and the constant stares of disapproval. If he lacked his Freeborn mark and instead had a collar around his neck, they wouldn’t even bother to look at him. Hypocrites. It was sad to think that this woman was in the same basket as the rest, that it would only be a few years before her fair expression changed into that of disapproval, before her full lips thinned into a line and her brow wrinkled in a frown. “White look good on you, woman.”

They walked together through the bridge, through the congested cobblestone pavement, passing the crowds of Dynasts, Freeborns and mostly slaves whom really walked without direction, fish trapped in the net that was the swamp. The buildings rose around then, kind in height yet egoistical in their narcissistic decorations, trying their hardest to capture the eye and draw customers the further away they were from the city itself. Once the swamp was more visible than the pretentious building at the edge of it, and the couple surrounded that building, the putrid swamp was revealed before them. The vegetation had been trimmed, at least at first, yet there were no walls nor anything to stop anything entering or leaving. In the distance, Wikus could see the untamed nature roaring in all her terrifying glory, and couldn’t help but to swallow the saliva before he looked down at the female. “Name?”

Thanks to Gossamer for this amazing template!

[Tanith Sitai]

Tanith raised a surprised brow as the large man spoke, startled by his poor use of the Common Tongue. Almost everyone she knew in Kenash was fluent in the language, and it was quite surprising to see someone struggle with a language that was as easy as breathing for the Dynast. "I'm sorry to hear that." She responded, more out of courtesy rather than any real feeling of regret. People had a habit of dropping like flies in Kenash, and it would take a lot more than an unknown freeborn's demise to pluck Tanith's heartstrings.

The man's accent seemed awfully familiar though, and after a few moments of searching her memory, Tanith realised the man must be of the Drykas. I'm surprised I hadn't realised sooner. Tanith thought, her eyes sliding over his heavily tattooed chest. She knew a handful of Pavi, nothing more than simple words and phrases she had learnt over the years from the Paille family, and the few Drykas that visited Kenash on occasion. For a moment Tanith was struck by the desire to greet the man in Pavi, but after a pause she refrained, too worried that her words or pronunciation might be off.

The man referred to her as 'woman', which irritated Tanith, though she would grudgingly allow it for the time being, though only after considering his poor common. She had slapped others for less, but Tanith reasoned that the man probably knew little better with his inexperience in the language. "I'm searching for certain plants and seeds." She replied, moving past the man to lead the way back through the city. "For healing." Tanith glanced over her shoulder to look up the man, looking for any indication that he could understand what she needed. She made an effort to keep her words simple, and to speak clearly, at a slower pace. Tanith was not usually so courteous to freeborns, but since this man would soon have her life in his hands, she thought she'd better make an effort.

"Do you mean a Granidile? Tanith questioned, picturing the large beasts, generally used to guard the plantations. The Bloodflower itself had a few, though Tanith had been warned since childhood never to approach the dangerous animal. She had heard of slaves falling victim to the animals on occasion, though it never seemed to really bother the slave masters; a field slave was roughly the cost of feeding a Granidile anyway.

His complement took Tanith by surprise, and the young woman felt her face heat with a blush almost instantly. "Thank you." She replied as levelly as she could, keeping her gaze straight ahead of them as they walked so he couldn't see her face. She could hardly help the reaction, her guide was far different to the men she was used to interacting with, and Tanith was beginning to feel quite like a fish out of water, unsure of what to say or do. It seemed that those around them were unsure of how to react to the man as well, as they were drawing a number of curious glances, and in some cases, outright stares. Tanith wasn't sure if it was the image the two gave, or the fact they were currently walking directly into the swamp, but she did her best to ignore it. She could feel the rumour mill beginning to churn already.

Tanith feels the first signs of nervousness and anxiety twisting in her gut as the cobblestone path falls away and a dirt track takes its place. The swamp surges to meet them all too soon, and Tanith realises that the only other being that knows of her whereabouts is Astrid. She had avoided informing her family, as she knew it would only gain her ridicule and lectures about the dangers of the swamp. Coming to a stop, Tanith reigned in her nerves, and turned to face her guide. He asks for her name, and she replies, "Tanith Sitai.", before asking him his own. She doubted he would care much for her family names, but she was a woman raised with manners, and so would introduce herself as such.

Taking a breath, Tanith cast an uncertain glance towards the swamp, and took a small step to the side. Glancing back to the Drykas, she used her limited knowledge of Grassland Sign, and formed the words you and first with her slender hands, waiting for him to precede her into the dense scrub.