Closed Dark Wings (Stygian & Aranta)

[Sayana]

Spring 65th 516 AV – Aylasa Caves, Sunset

Sayana gritted her teeth as she tried for the third time to get the black thread through the small hole of the needle. It was almost as bad as the arrow wound that had prompted her to buy the basic sewing kit. However, it wasn’t the wound she was sewing up. That had already been tended to and was healing well. It was the hole in her zith wings. At last she succeeded in threading the needle and promptly pulled the thread through and tied a knot.

As she took out the damaged zith wings, she carefully felt along the smooth silky membrane to find the small tear. It was big enough to fit a couple of fingers through and could only get bigger if she didn’t tend to it. It was slow work, but fortunately there wasn’t much to sew up. She dipped the needle in and out of the wing membrane, trying to keep the stitches tight and small. Several were a bit lopsided and uneven but it just meant that she did a few additional stitches to make up for it. At last she tied a final knot and cut the string with one of her daggers.

There, now for the fun part.

She packed away the sewing implements and donned the pair of zith wings. Gripping the handholds with her low hands, she did a couple of practice flaps as she walked around the clearing outside the Aylasa Caves. The sewing threadwork seemed to hold, and she was glad to have thought of using black thread.

There were two careful tears in the black robe she wore to allow for the movement of her low arms while at the same time wearing the robe. Before her stood the large entrance to the caves. Sayana climbed up along the edges of the rock entrance, using both her high and mid arms to find hand holds. After she got several feet up, she turned around on something resembling a platform. Then, spreading her zith wings she leapt with a sudden whoosh of air. She landed hard, but bent her knees deeply to absorb the impact.

Again.

With a determined grin, she clambered up the rocky entrance once more and prepared for her leap. This time she managed to get a couple of flaps in before landing upon the ground once more. Changing her tactic a little, she tried a running leap up onto the rocky slope, spreading the wings once more. She stumbled on her footing and only barely managed to cling to the rocks with her hands. Wincing, she realized he knee was bleeding and she leapt down once more. She dabbed at it with her cloak then briefly glanced about the clearing with the assumption that she was alone. Already Syna was beginning to set. If she wasn’t careful it would be dark and she only had a few rudimentary survival tools in her backpack.

Receipt18 GM for sewing kit

[Aranta]

Aranta holds himself as still as possible, gaze fixed on the creature below his perch in the tree. It's currently darting about the ground, hopping and falling, and Aranta waits for the perfect moment to make his move, waits for it to tire itself out. Almost, the Zith cautions himself, adjusting his grip on his hunting knife just slightly. He much preferred using his claws, but for a creature like this, a knife would be a much more suitable weapon. Aranta carefully adjusts his stance, wings flaring slightly to help with his balance, and when the creature comes close enough, exhaustion evident in its slowing movements, he pushes himself out of the tree, wings snapping open to break his descent just enough to prevent any broken bones. The creature squeals in surprise, the sound cut off as Aranta brings the knife in close in one swift movement, going through the ribs to pierce the heart, killing it nearly instantly. Aranta straightens, the rabbit held in one hand as he wipes his knife clean on the fur inside his elbow - the fur itself is naturally red, shaded enough that the blood blends in easily enough. As he walks for the game bag he uses to carry his catches, the Zith notes the setting sun; it will soon be time to retire to Syliras and hand in his haul for the night, only to return and do it all again the next day. As he walks, the tip of the Zith's wings brush the ground, rustling slightly in the leaves, and Aranta has just finished putting away the rabbit when he hears crashing. The Zith is immediately on high alert, straightening and using every bit of his hearing to attempt to pinpoint the sound and, more importantly, determine if the sound heralded the approach of a dangerous creature. After several long moments - and a few more crashes - Aranta deduces that the sound is not dangerous, and decides to investigate. Slinging the game bag over one shoulder and shrugging into the harness that will hold it in place, the Zith crouches for a moment, wings spread, before he pushes himself off the ground, wings descending in a downstroke designed to add lift, to get him to the upper branches of the trees. These trees are just close enough together that Aranta doesn't feel comfortable flying between them, and instead he glides; he finds a good branch to land on, and jumps from the current branch onto the next, wings spread open to catch the air and keep him stable. It's a form of movement he perfected when he was younger, perfect for adding stealth to a hunt. It takes only a few chimes to locate the source of the noise, and Aranta stays in the tree on the edge of the clearing for a few moments, observing. He sees a woman in a robe, with Zith wings - but something about the image is off. Her physique is too humanoid to be truly Zith, and Aranta frowns in confusion. The wings clearly belong to one of Aranta's people, but how did this woman come to be in possession of them? After ascertaining that they were alone, at least for the moment, Aranta pushes off from the branch, jumping forward and throwing his wings open, using them to nearly glide to the earth; he lands hard, knees bending to lessen the impact of his heavy frame hitting the ground. "Who are you?" he demands as he straightens, staring at the woman intently. "Where did you get those wings?"

[Sayana]

She was about to return to the cave entrance for one last climb, when her eyes flickered towards a hint of movement. The bit of movement soon turned to something much more in the evening light as the grey creature swooped down from the treeline. In an instant Sayana had two medium sized daggers in her mid hands, but she held them low and not directly poised for attack. She also twisted her wrists of her low hands to angle the wings inwards, thus hiding the sewn in handles and her low hands. Her high hands were probably most visible, as they actually used the sleeves in her black robe. She held them relaxed but ready to yank open her robe in case she needed to use her mids.

Of course, all this was just her automatic precautions. When the zith in front of her spoke, he didn’t seem particularly threatening.

“My name is Venom,” she replied as she grasped at the first female zith name she could think of. That is, other than the name of the zith she had taken the wings from. At his second question, she gave a slight smirk. “I borrowed these from a friend of mine.” Both the words ‘borrowed’ and ‘friend’ were taken very loosely in term of their meaning.

However, even as she spoke the words she suddenly realized that it was not actually her intention to intimidate the zith. She had done her worst against the race and she had also lived among them and trusted them to a degree, for a time. It was odd, but she no longer felt that long held hatred against them. And here he was in front of her, being characteristically curious. So instead she changed her tact.

Opening a wing gently as if to show him, she added further explanation. “They aren’t actually real. I got them in Alvadas. They are just illusioned to look real. And here… Here’s the handhold to prove it.” She revealed the small leather strap attached to the inside of the wing where her hand was.

“They don’t call it the city of illusions for nothing. It’s almost impossible to tell the difference. Except when it glimmers for a split tick.” She gave an encouraging smile as she told her tale. “I’m trying to figure out how you fly, and how I might fly. Or at least look like I’m flying.”

[Aranta]

Aranta's eyes widen when he notices that the woman before him appears to have six arms - he'd never heard of any race having more than two. However, the wide-eyed expression disappears in favor of narrowed eyes and bared teeth when he catches sight of the weapons; if this woman wants to intimidate him, she'll need to do a bit more than just brandish some weapons at him; most weapons aren't terribly effective against a creature who can take to the sky at will. After a moment, though, Aranta realizes that her posture is a touch too slouched to be properly termed 'intimidating', and he relaxes in turn, wings dropping into a more relaxed, resting position as he listens to the woman's words. She claims that her name is 'Venom' - a respectable enough Zith name, though she clearly is not a Zith - and that she is 'borrowing' the wings. That comment makes Aranta's upper lip curl. "You cannot 'borrow' a Zith's wings without - " he snaps, but is interrupted by her explanation that the wings aren't actually real. He blinks, caught off guard, and actually rocks back on his heels a bit. "An... illusion?" he asks, voice careful as he studies the woman in front of him. When she shows off the wings, he can indeed see the glimmer she speaks of, as well as the handhold she puts on display. His brow furrows, and he takes a few steps forward, angling himself to get a better look at these odd cloth and leather contraptions she has strapped to herself. "These do not look strong," he says doubtfully. "Cannot be as strong as Zith wings." The Zith points to one of Venom's higher pairs of arms. "Why do you have six arms? Don't humans only have two? Why do you want to fly?" Now that he's determined that Venom is not a threat, his curiosity has returned in full force. "I am Aranta," the Zith says, a bit belated; he'd nearly forgotten that it's generally considered the right thing to do, return someone else's name with your own. "Where are you from?"

[Sayana]

“Yes, an illusion,” she spoke softly at his moment of doubt. He had good reason to doubt her. She had spoken a blatant lie. But with the sun setting and the rays of light reflecting off the silky fur of the zith wings, one might be convinced to see a glimmer when there wasn’t anything at all.

He certainly seemed to be curious, and his next array of questions confirmed such. A twitch of a smile formed on her face as she watched his deep red eyes dart from the straps on the wings to her additional arms. She also noticed that he had relaxed somewhat, and she took a moment to sheath her two daggers. At one point in her life she would have been afraid and fought viciously against such a creature. Now, however, there was an air of confidence about her. She had a certain understanding of the race, and more importantly an understanding that she could best the majority in a fight.

“They are not as strong as zith wings. They are made of fabric, but illusioned to look like them.” Sayana explained. She gave a gentle flap with one wing in demonstration. “As for my arms? Where I am from it is not uncommon to have more than two arms. Six arms show the true glory of the vast desert to the south, where I am from.”

The Eypharian opened her robe more prominently to display her mid arms from within as well as her high arms utilizing the robe’s sleeves. Then of course, her low arms still held the straps of the wings she was using.

“Tell me how you fly,” Sayana spoke abruptly. “I want to know how you bend your wings, how you land, how you take off, and how you avoid branches.” It was a rather sudden and forceful request, but she realized that for all her time with the illusion of a zith cast upon her, she had never taken the time to understand how the other zith flew. All she knew was that she could not. Like a distant memory she could still hear the words of Malice haunting her. You could have reached the stars.

“Show me how you fly Aranta, and I’ll try to catch up with you wherever you land. Then you can take a closer look at my arms.” She gave a sly smile knowing that if the zith was like any other he would surely be curious about her other arms.

[Aranta]

Aranta nodded in satisfaction when Venom confirmed that her wings were not as strong as true Zith wings; few wings were, for the Zith wings had to be strong to lift large weights, such as the actual Zith and their prey, whether the prey was human or otherwise. The Zith listened to Venom's explanation that she was from the far south, in a desert, and Aranta frowned. "'Desert'?" he questioned. "What is a desert?" If it was in the south, Aranta imagined that it would be very hot, and probably uncomfortable. He had heard of places further south than Kalinor - and he could see, when he lived there, that there was plainly land further to the south, but he had never had any desire to go any further south than the city of the Symenestra. Perhaps he would go there one day, if this... 'desert' place sounded interesting enough, and if he tired of Syliras. Aranta studied the arms that Venom presented, and blinked when she made her demand - Tell me how you fly. Venom's challenge was intriguing, and Aranta nodded in agreement, though he doubted that she would be able to catch up to him if he flew any true amount of distance, based on the fumblings he had witnessed earlier. "You will not fly far, if you cannot fly now," he warns. "Takes much strength. Maybe use your top arms, instead of your bottom ones? I do not know how you will fly using just your arms; my wings attach to my back, and have their own muscles to fly. Takes Zith fledglings many times to learn to fly far." Aranta bent his knees, demonstrating how he lifted off - one powerful downstroke of the wings, timed with a jump upwards, and then as he reaches the arc of his lift, just before he starts to fall down, his wings take over, beating against the air to lift him up and then keep him in the air as he waited to see what Venom would do.

[Sayana]

“Desert, like vast sands… hot scorching days, cold dark nights… and being able to see for miles.” Sayana explained in answer to his question. When he started explaining flying and perhaps changing which arms she used, Sayana paused and decided to give it a shot. She adjusted her zith wings to her high arms but shortly found that it was only her highs that could make use of the sleeves in the robe. So instead she adjusted the robe to open it wider to free her mid arms from within.

The Eypharian watched as the zith bent down with his knees before lifting off. He beat once then several times more as he flapped into the air. She knew she couldn’t do it exactly like him, but his demonstration was enough to give her a good idea of how to mimic it.

Instead, Sayana ran full on across the clearing. She angled the wings to be as streamline as possible with her high arms, but still she felt the drag with them. Just as she was nearing the edge of the clearing, she bent low then lunged high into the air. To her credit, she managed two and a half flaps with her wings before thudding hard upon the ground once more. With a skip and a jump she slowed to a stop and glanced over to Aranta.

“See that ledge?” She called out to him and pointed to a rocky outcrop about a hundred yards off. It was rather high up but it wasn’t a sheer cliff either. The terrain was a smattering of rocks and steep slopes in which the cave was formed out of.

“Race you there!”

Without pausing for a response, she dashed off in the direction of the ledge. There were logs and low rocks which she leapt over. For just a tick she thought she had snagged her wing on a branch, but with a good yank she managed to slip it free. However instead of just running, she tried to make larger leaps and spread her wings in the clear spots. At one point she stumbled on a wobbly rock, but soon she had jumped into the air once more.

The climb up towards the ledge was less intuitive. As she found a couple of firm foot holds she propelled herself upwards and managed to catch a nick in the rock with her right mid hand. Her left found something smaller, but with the momentum she was able to find two new foot holds. Sayana pushed up with her low hands and swung her legs over another large boulder. Her heart beat rapidly. She was nearly at the top. With another scramble and an awkward flap, her mid hands reached the ledge and she pulled upwards, straining against her own weight. She found a momentary foothold and pushed off before finally getting up and over the ledge.

Even as she panted heavily, she could see the view above the tree tops. “Is this what’s it’s like to fly?” She spoke and gestured to the view with a wing tip.

[Konrad Venger]

Sayana XP: Sewing - 1 Persuasion - 2 Subterfuge - 1 Climbing - 1 Lore: The Zith: No Longer Feared, or Hated The Benefit of Multiple Limbs: Drawing Hidden Daggers in case of a Fight Aranta: Curious Zith Additional: -18gm for the Sewing Kit Aranta XP: Hunting - 1 Observation - 2 Stealth - 1 Socialization - 1 Lore: Hunting: Wait for your Prey to Exhaust itself Sayana: Multi-Armed Human "Desert": Sounds Hot and Uncomfortable Additional: Click Me! : A shame this one tapered off before it could be anything more than an intro, but this was still fun to read. I couldn't help but smile at the picture of Sayana jumping around with her pretend wings like a kid. Like I said, fun read and well-planned. Hope to see more from you both. Oh, and please make sure you go back and edit your post in the Request Thread to reflect the fact this one is now done and dusted. PM me with any questions and later 'tater!