Solo New Moon Rising

[Satevis]

42nd of Winter, 517 AV

"The University of Zeltiva, hmm?"

Satevis nodded, feeling the sand shift beneath his booted feet. It was a different shift from the pitch and roll of the ship that had brought him here, but one that felt oddly familiar to him. His body remembered the trick of adjusting his weight to sand beneath his feet, even if his mind hardly did.

"Did you come directly from there?" The man in front of him was Mathias Okavik, one of the three founders of Syka, and the man, Satevis had been told while on the ship, that would ultimately be responsible for deciding if he could stay here. He felt oddly nervous about that, and tried not to let it show on his face.

"No, sir," Satevis said. "I left my studies there roughly two years ago. I was in Syliras when I heard about the settlement." And the rumors therein. Rumors about ancient artifacts, hidden somewhere in the jungle. That, more than anything, had drawn Satevis out of his seclusion. "I came here from Riverfall."

"Traveled far," Mathias said, with a nod at him.

Satevis wondered if the man knew just how true that was. He likely did. He had a sharp look, like he expected to be followed. Although it was the full light of day, and Satevis looked like nothing more than a Benshira man, he doubted that no one had informed this man that he was an Ethaefal of Leth. Not that it was a secret.

"I was a student at the University myself," Mathias said, with the air of someone making casual conversation. "What did you study there, Satevis?"

"Anthropology," Satevis said, automatically. At Mathias's expectant glance, Satevis gave him a sheepish smile. "Glyphing," he added. "Reimancy."

"Well, don't go burning anything down," Mathias said, with a smile that suggested that might be the end of that topic. "Anthropology...you'll be interested in the Maw, then? The artifacts?"

Satevis nodded, and hoped that his eagerness didn't show on his face.

"I can't really blame you," Mathias said. "But you know, it's not a matter of walking into the woods and finding them. If you wander off without the right sort of skills, you're likely to get yourself killed."

"I understand," Satevis said. "I won't do anything stupid."

The look Mathias gave him, faintly amused, suggested that the man didn't fully believe him. Satevis supposed that that was fair. He let his weight shift, boots digging into the sand as he waited for the verdict. At length, Mathias nodded.

"Well," he said. "I can sympathize with a seeker of knowledge. But this isn't the sort of place where you can be a scholar and nothing else. There's a lot to be done. If you want to stay here, you have to contribute in some way."

"I understand that," said Satevis, nodding. "I believe I was told I could assist at the infirmary."

"The Panacea," said Mathias. Satevis filed that word away in his memory. 'Panacea'. It wasn't one of the Common words he knew. Mathias gave Satevis a searching look. "You have much medical training?"

"No," Satevis admitted. "But I have abilities that might be useful, and I'm willing to learn."

"Head over to the Panacea and talk to Jansen Alavarth," Mathias said. "That's the Akalak working there. If he'll take you on as apprentice, you can stay. Come find me, and we'll set you up with the five acres every new resident gets. If he says no..." Mathias shrugged. "The Veronica will make another run eventually."

"I'll do that," Satevis said, "I'll see you soon."

Mathias nodded, his expression seeming to suggest that Satevis would. One way or another. With an internal prayer to Leth for good fortune, Satevis turned to depart.

[Satevis]

Satevis walked along the beach for some time, observing the activity there, listening to the steady rush of water. He'd been told that the beach would be the easiest way to reach his destination, although there were cleared paths through the jungle outskirts that would accomplish more of the same thing. He didn't mind the walk, although he did find himself tugging at the collar of his shirt more than once, feeling the heat. Elsewhere in the world, it was winter, or at least it was supposed to be, but it was still warm here.

He was used to heat on some level. His body remembered heat. The humidity, however, was another story. If this was how it was in winter, he wondered how summer would feel. Satevis understood why some of the men who passed him by were shirtless. He averted his eyes quickly as he realized that some of the women were as well, warmth rising to his face. That would certainly take getting used to, if that were the custom here. Satevis mused on whether or not he should take off his own shirt as well. It would certainly be more comfortable physically, and he would look like less of a foreigner. He decided against it. Ultimately, it would make him uncomfortable, and he wanted to be comfortable if he was supposed to convince this Alavarth to take him on as an apprentice.

Still, as he walked, he allowed himself to consider living here, truly living here, and not just as a means to an end. It was certainly beautiful. There was a beauty and peace to walking along the beach that he had hardly seen before, at least in the mortal realm. He was certain that living here represented hard work, but he didn't fear hard work in the end.

Promise.

That was what this place represented. The promise of growth, of change. At the end of the day, this could be a place of learning for him. But it could also be a place of so much more.

Perhaps, he thought, his fingers closing briefly around the pendant that hang around his neck, a wooden bead carved with the moon, perhaps he would find what he was looking for here. Perhaps here, he would find his purpose.

He could feel people eyeing him as he walked, but Satevis was used to the stares. A Benshira man carrying a scimitar was out of place in most settlements outside of the Burning Sands, and at night, the stares were even more common, and even more intense. He walked through them, offering the occasional smile to those who met his eyes, flushing if the person he addressed turned out to be a woman half-clothed. The women seemed to find his embarrassment amusing. More than once, he heard a giggle or a laugh follow him as he looked away.

Customs, he reminded himself. Different worlds, different customs.

Still, he was almost relieved when he finally reached the Panacea, walking up the path towards the open air building.

[Satevis]

The sound of a scream, a pained cry coming from a ragged throat, drew Satevis's attention immediately. His eyes widened, and he ran the last few steps, the backpack carrying most of his things clanging uncomfortably against his back as he hurried up the steps of the raised structure and into the lab. When he arrived, Satevis drew to a stop, blinking at the scene in front of him.

A boy, human from the looks of him, was lying on an examination table. He had the wiry build of a young, athletic teenager, his hair a messy dark blond and his skin tanned from the ever present sun. Like most of the people that Satevis had seen on his way here, he was shirtless, a necklace with a seashell at the end of it hanging from his neck. He was also writhing on the table, trying to get away from the Akalak, also shirtless, who was trying to get his hands on the boy's leg. The leg, Satevis now saw, had been broken quite badly, a sharp fragment of bone protruding from the skin. The Akalak must be trying to set it, Satevis thought, but with the way the boy was thrashing, it seemed like he wasn't having much luck.

"Um..." Satevis said, uncertain if he should leave or come back later. The Akalak's head shot up, eyes moving over to him.

"Perfect timing!" he said. "Hold him down!"

Satevis blinked, but hurried to do what he was told, shucking his backpack off and leaving it in a heap on the floor as he ran over to the table. He placed his hands on the boy's shoulders (which was no mean feat, the boy actually tried to bite him), and pressed him down onto the table.

"There," the Akalak said, "Nice and easy..."

The boy looked up, meeting Satevis's eyes. His eyes were a surprising shade of blue--Satevis wondered if he had Svefra ancestry in him--but they were also pained and scared. Satevis tried for a reassuring smile.

"Hush, now," he said. "Let the doctor work. It will be alright."

"I'm going to realign the bone now," the Akalak said. "Keep him steady."

Satevis nodded, bracing himself as the Akalak pulled on the leg, sliding the bone back into place. The boy screamed and nearly came off the table, but Satevis threw his weight on top of him, holding fast. There was a sickening snap, and then it was over, the only sound being the boy's ragged breaths and quiet sobs.

Satevis hesitated, then removed his hands from the boy's shoulders. By his place near the broken leg, the Akalak looked up at him, giving him a grateful nod. Satevis returned the nod, taking a step back.

He expected the Akalak to reach for a splint, or perhaps some bandages. Instead, the man took a deep breath, holding his hand over the injury. Satevis watched with fascination as a glow began to spread over the leg, noticing for the first time the swirling marks that adorned the Akalak's body. As the glow spread over the injury, the boy's breathing evened out, his pained face relaxing in a look of relief.

When the Akalak removed his hand, the injury was gone.

~*~

"It needed the bone straightened out first," the Akalak said when all was said and done, drying his hands on a towel after washing them. The injured boy had left the Panacea under his own power. "I gave him something for the pain, but from the sound of it, you'd think he was being murdered. I think it was mostly the shock that got him."

"What hurt him?" Satevis asked.

"Youth," said the Akalak, with a wry smile. "He tried to go cliff-diving without checking the depth of the water first. He'll learn." He set the towel aside, turning towards Satevis. "So. How can I help you?"

"Jansen Alavarth, I presume?"

"For now," said Jansen. "And you are...far from home. Benshira?"

Satevis smiled. "For now."

Jansen inclined his head like a fencer acknowledging a touch, gesturing at one of the seats. Satevis took it, accepting the cup of water that Jansen gave him gratefully. Jansen poured a cup of water for himself, taking the seat next to Satevis.

"My other half is named Kalum," he said, taking a sip. "If you stay around here, you'll meet him eventually." He gave Satevis an expectant look, and Satevis nodded, taking a sip of water.

"I'm an Ethaefal of Leth. My name is Satevis."

Jansen didn't look entirely surprised at that. A little surprised, of course, and intrigued, but not as surprised as Satevis would have expected. He wondered if the Akalak had met an Ethaefal before.

"And?" Jansen asked after a moment, as if Satevis hadn't said anything. "What does an Ethaefal of Leth need at the Panacea? You don't seem injured, and as far as I'm aware, you don't get sick."

"Well," said Satevis, finishing the rest of his water. He glanced meaningfully at the empty examination table. "Truth be told, I was rather hoping you might give me a job."

[Satevis]

With the treatment done, Jansen moved them both out of the lab and back into the open air. It was significantly cooler outside, with the roof keeping off most of the sunlight and a breeze blowing in from the beach. Satevis tugged at his already sweat-soaked shirt, sorely tempted to just remove it and be done with it. Later, he told himself. Later. He turned his gaze back out towards the beach. Through the trees, he could see a hint of the ocean shimmering in the sunlight.

"Are you hungry, Satevis?" Jansen asked, taking out a basket of some sort of yellow fruit.

"How long is it until sunset?" Satevis replied offhandedly, his eyes on the ocean.

"Should it matter?"

"I don't need to eat in my other form," Satevis responded, looking back at Jansen. "If it isn't that much farther, you shouldn't waste resources on me."

Jansen blinked at him for a second, before understanding spread across his face, accompanied, oddly, by a smile. "Oh, there's no need to worry about that," he said. "We might be a pioneering town, but there's plenty of food here if nothing else. The locals bring food to the Panacea all the time. Here."

He handed him half of one of the yellow fruit, along with a small spoon. Satevis noticed that the inside of the fruit was soft, soft enough to carve out with the spoon. He followed Jansen's lead, taking a bite, and his eyes widened in surprise. The fruit had a sweet, tangy flavor that exploded in his mouth. He hadn't tasted anything like it before.

"They're called mangoes," Jansen said. "Common here. Do you like it?"

Satevis nodded. "I honestly can't remember eating anything like it." Granted, he was only ten years old. Even his few scattered memories of the past didn't give him much experience to draw from.

"There are a lot of fruits like it around here," Jansen said. "No seasons either, not really. No need to worry about running out of food in the winter."

"That sounds...well, honestly, it sounds better than I expected."

"It does, doesn't it?" said Jansen. His expression darkened a little, his gaze traveling past Satevis to the trees that surrounded them. "But there's another side to that. Everything grows well here. Everything. Including poisonous plants, snakes, insects. And disease."

"The Panacea must be busy then," Satevis said, sensing where the conversation was going. "Even for a healer."

"There's only one of us," Jansen said, nodding. "We can't heal everything. And we're always looking for apprentices. Settlements very rarely fail because of a surplus of healers."

"I would do my best," Satevis said.

"Do you have any training in medicine at all?"

"Not much," Satevis admitted. "I know a few things. I can dress a wound, a small scrape, that sort of thing. I can age a wound by a single day to make it heal faster, but only at night." His mind flashed back to the University of Zeltiva, to the last time he had had to use that ability on someone. Tock, with her red hair. Minerva. She'd had a broken leg too. He drew himself out of memory, forcing a smile. "Although that might not be useful, given what you can do."

"You never know," said Jansen. "And knowing how to care for a wound is a start." He frowned, as if thinking it through. "You're calm, you listen to instructions quickly, and, again, you don't get sick. Which will be useful if anything contagious springs up, Rak'keli grant that it won't. We'll be willing to teach you, if you're willing to learn."

"I am," Satevis said. "Where do I start?"

"Nowhere today," said Jansen. "Go back to the Founders. Tell them I said you could stay. Get settled in for the night. We'll see you here tomorrow morning. You can start then."

Satevis nodded, rising to his feet. He felt oddly triumphant as he reached out, clasping Jansen's hand. "I'll see you then."

[Gossamer]

Satevis

Experience: Socialization +1, Observation +2, Medicine +1

Lores: Mathias: studied in Zeltiva, Panacea: Location, Panacea: Holding An Apprenticeship There, Medicine: Setting a Broken Leg, Fruit: Mango,

Note: We have a very limited number of people in Syka… so if you do utilize an NPC, use one from the list in the Paradise Rediscovered Forum… don’t make up random boys/teens because we won’t have them in Syka! Thanks!