Closed Of Loss and Lunacy

[Satevis]

50th of Winter, 517 AV

It hadn't taken Satevis long to realize that things in this settlement weren't as simple as they seemed. Only two days after his arrival in Syka, a red tide had rolled in, startling the residents and inundating the Panacea with complaints about upset stomachs and tingling in limbs. Four days after his arrival, the settlement was shaken by an earthquake, and the subsequent flooding also made for a busy day at the Panacea. But even more than that were the things that Satevis had heard happened before his arrival.

Stories about a mysterious body that had been found in the jungle, a humanoid creature who was not at all human. Jansen and Kalum had their notes from the body, but it had been disposed of before Satevis's arrival, and he hadn't had a chance to look through them yet. Dead animals in the jungle, which hadn't been touched by scavengers. Scorch marks on the trees, and lights in the sky. The exact timing of the events was hard to pin down from accounts and rumors, but Satevis had dutifully recorded each one in his journal, trying to establish some sort of timeline. He couldn't think of an explanation, but it was clear that things in Syka were not as they appeared.

And now the snow.

He'd woken up to the snow covered world that morning, which in itself was a feat, as he generally only slept for an hour or so after or around the coming of dawn. Snow, in Syka, when the rest of the world was still waiting for a real winter to come. Snow of all things.

It had startled him and the other residents, but with work at the Panacea picking up due to a wave of cold-related injuries, Satevis hadn't been able to pay it too much thought. He'd been too busy trying to divide his time between greeting patients and studying, trying to learn the signs of hypothermia and frostbite that Kalum Alavarth had seen fit to teach him. When he finally finished with work, he'd been cold, and tired, and with the sun still up, had gone off in search for his bedroll.

Nightfall had woken him, as it always did, bringing with it a surge of energy, a feeling like coming alive. It was now, beneath the moonlight, that Satevis walked the Syka coastline, his gaze on the snow beneath his feet. In the moonlight, he was completely transformed, completely different from how he looked in the day. His hair, the snow white that it took on in midwinter, framed his face, held back by the black horns that swept around to the back of his head. His skin, a pale color, glowed slightly in Leth's light. He would have made quite a sight to anyone looking out at that stretch of coastline, but Satevis didn't care. His gaze was on the snow.

His breath puffed in front of his face as he bent down, holding his hand an inch from the surface. With care, he expelled Res from the tip of his finger, igniting it. A tongue of flame licked out at the snow, leaving water and moisture in its wake. With a frown, Satevis cleared a patch of ground, then expelled more Res from three of his fingers, letting it pool into the hollow. He let the Res transform into water, watching as it drew some of the rivulets from the snow towards it.

So it was just regular snow. He'd been wondering.

Satevis straightened up, using his foot to sweep snow over his experiment. He looked out to sea, at a loss as to what else to try. Or what else to do.

[Anibesa]

"Common" | "Fratava" | "Tukant"

With everything that had happened this season so far, from the lights and the scorch marks on the trees to the even newer red seas and earthquakes, Anibesa had no idea what to expect anymore. Each day seemed to bring something completely new.

When she’d find herself waking up and noticing that it felt cold, it seemed to be even stranger than anything she could have ever thought of in the usually tropical setting.
She had made her way outside to see snow falling all around them, and for a good few minutes she had stared at the sight in pure amazement. Now she doubted everything.

Was the snow linked with the lights in the sky? Maybe the lights in the sky were like the ones in Avanthal after all, and maybe something terrible had happened to start changing Syka to something more and more similar to Avanthal. That’s all she could think of with the sudden change in climate.

She’d finally put her cloak on after a long period of not needing it, and she’d made sure both her sleeves were rolled all the way down, and her pant legs were tucked into her black boots before she’d set out.
Soon she’d managed to make a fire to keep herself warm, although the fire didn’t burn as well as she’d like due to the dampness of everything. Her fire simply seemed to produce more smoke than heat, and she recalled Tiamon once telling her that damp wood didn’t create flames very well.

She spent the rest of the day staving off the cold and envying those that had rented the ranchos and bungalows, having learnt that they had hearths inside.
Instead of keeping warm by a fire, she’d been keeping herself warm in other ways, travelling up and down the beach trying to find ways to keep herself busy, whether that be helping others or gathering wood in the hopes of using it for a fire when it had dried out.

Now it was nighttime and her form had changed into the form she adored. A white haired creature with black and violent horns, skin almost shimmer in the moonlight and her cobalt blue eyes. This form was the most natural to her, leaving her without feelings of hunger as she bathed in the moonlight, allowing it to nourish her.

As she walked along the beach she noticed another one of her kind, a man, and she halted in her tracks, a feeling of sadness washing over her as she remember waking up in the ocean, her life with her god no longer stored within her memory. All she remembered of that was she was happy, and that everything was perfect.

Sighing, she stood for a few moments unsure of what to do before opting to approach the male.

”I thought I was the only one here… You must be new here?” she said calmly, a hint of sadness in her voice as she looked towards the moon. ”What do you make of the weather? It’s unusual to say the least.” she said again, turning her attention back to the fellow Ethaefal, though trying not to pay attention to his horns or his shimmering skin, trying to force herself to see him as just another mortal to push away those feelings of sadness that rose to the surface whenever she was around another Ethaefal. Something about being around someone similar to herself reminded her of everything she’d lost, and she didn’t doubt that they felt the same way.

Inside she wanted to just leave, to head back to her tent and gather wood, try to light another fire and just forget about the other Ethaefal, then not worried about meeting him during the day. She doubted she’d recognise him when the sun rose.
~

[Satevis]

The sound of a voice drew his attention, and also made him painfully aware of how much it had wandered. He would have had to be lost in thought indeed, to not notice the woman that was approaching him now. Pale skin like his and white hair, horns streaked through with black and violet. As tall and stately as he now was. She was beautiful, but watching her walk over to him brought out a sort of sweet sorrow inside of him, a longing that he had scarcely ever been able to suppress.

He found his hand going automatically to where the wooden pendant of his necklace hung beneath his shirt, pressing against the outline of it in the fabric. A wooden bead carved with the moon.

Ten years. Had he really been walking the surface of this world for ten years? It had been a while since he felt the weight of every single one of those years so keenly.

But sorrow, and a thickening of his throat that made it difficult to talk, were no excuse to be rude. Especially not to someone who, present circumstances aside, was a sister in Leth. "Yes," he said, in response to her question. "I am new. I arrived eight days ago, with the Veronica."

He tried for a smile. He hoped that it didn't seem too forced to her as he looked back out at the ocean, at the snow that covered the beach. Speaking to her was easier if he didn't look at her. "It's certainly...strange. I will admit, this is the last place I would have expected this weather, considering winter seems to have missed the rest of the continent. But I've heard that hasn't been the only strange thing to happen in Syka."

He blinked, realizing he didn't even know her name. "Forgive me," he said, turning towards her. "Where are my manners? My name is Satevis." He turned towards her, giving her that same, sorrow-edged smile. "At least...that is the name I have chosen for myself. I am...as you see me." He wondered how long she had been on this earth. How long she had borne this burden.

It would be impolite to ask. At least, not at first meeting.

[Anibesa]

"Common" | "Fratava" | "Tukant"

When the man looked at her, Anibesa felt more and more conscious, aware of how long she had been on Mizahar and aware of how little she’d manage to do. All she’d done so far was survive and rely on other people. She wanted to thrive and leave some sort of mark on the world to make sure her time on Mizahar had actually meant something.

She heard the man confirm that he had been a recent arrival on the Veronica and she saw his smile, and Anibesa nodded in response, unsure of how to continue the conversation but appreciative of the other Ethaefals attempt at friendliness, despite the sorrow that he was probably also feeling.

”Yes. The weather here doesn’t seem like it should be snowing. It should be too warm for snow, but here we are.” she nodded as she spoke, glancing at the snow around them before looking towards the man. ”I’m guessing you haven’t seen the lights in the sky yet? Or the noise that comes with them? The first time I saw it I was scared. Now I just wonder what causes it…” she said calmly before glancing up to the sky and then back to the moon.

The man introduced himself as Satevis, as that was the name he had chosen for himself. Anibesa nodded again, holding a hand out to him as a greeting.
”It’s nice to meet you, Satevis. Anibesa, though most call me Ani. It takes less time to say that.” she said, aware that she likely didn’t make much sense, but as she looked at the moon with the other Ethaefal by her side she could barely make sense of the thoughts in her mind through the overwhelming feeling of sorrow within her.

She didn’t know what to say to the man and for a few moments she stood in silence looking down towards the ground, then up towards the moon. Then she decided to speak.

”So, what do you do?” she asked, the question being mostly superficial and for the sake of talking without pressing into the deeper topics as those likely would be hard to answer for now, especially to another Ethaefal. ”I work at the Tidepool Bar, but I’m hoping to open my own brewery at some point.”
~

[Satevis]

"I haven't seen the lights, but I've heard quite a bit about them," Satevis said. This was good, this topic of conversation. It was something that was weighing heavily on his mind, a problem he was trying to solve, and so it was a bit of an escape, in a way. He couldn't both try to solve the problem of the lights and feel the sorrow associated with his fall. It couldn't be done. He would pay for this later tonight, and he was painfully aware that he was retreating into his head again, but for now, it was all he could do.

It was ridiculous, he thought, this feeling that he was having. He should be happy to have someone there who understood, and he was. Buried underneath all of that, he was happy to have another. But it was a complicated sort of happiness, happiness that cut like a knife. It made him sad for the both of them.

"Could you describe the sound more?" he asked. "I've been trying to put together a timeline of events, you see. I don't think it's quite the same as experiencing it yourself, though."

As she introduced herself, he accepted her hand, his fingers closing lightly around it. Anibesa. Ani. He wondered if he had ever known her before, under a different name. No, he reminded himself. An unproductive line of thinking. Whatever they were in the past, they were here now. If he could just think of her as any other person, as any other being on Mizahar, it would be so much easier.

"Ani, then," he said, releasing her hand. "I'm sorry, I don't have a nickname." The only person to call him by something other than his name had been Tock, and that had been...a while ago. Almost half his mortal life. "I've been apprenticing at the Panacea. I never really thought about learning medicine before coming here, but it's certainly an interesting study. I haven't been to the Tidepool Bar yet," he added. "Perhaps I should drop by sometime..." During the day. It would be easier during the day.

It was interesting that she wanted to open a brewery. Satevis had to admit his own knowledge of alcohol was limited, but it seemed like as good a goal as any. "What sort of drinks would you brew?" he asked, curious. "Ales, I'm assuming, and anything else?"

[Anibesa]

"Common" | "Fratava" | "Tukant"

She heard the man latching onto the lights and the sounds and Anibesa exhaled thankfully, her eyes glancing between him and the sky as she clasped her hands in front of herself and rubbed her thumb over the back of her hand thoughtfully, her thoughts swirling in her head as she focused on the lights and how both beautiful and unnatural they were to her, and then came his question of the sound and she was silent for a moment or two.

”It was deep and low, loud too, so obviously from something big. It doesn’t last too long either, maybe a few breaths.” she said, before smiling slightly. ”When I first saw and heard it, Merevaika and I were in the jungle. We tried to get to the beach and we were running, but it stopped just before we made it.” she said, not sure of how to really describe the noise. ”I can’t think of any way to describe it properly, but I’m sure you’ll get to hear it soon. It would be scarier now if it never happened again.” she said calmly, her eyes focusing out to sea.

Then the man took her hand and she smiled softly at him, the contact with another of her kind saddening her further before they released the greeting and moved onto speaking of how he’d only had one nickname before and that was a long time ago, and she find herself smiling again, this time slightly more genuinely.

”I’m sure you’ll acquire a new nickname sooner or later!” she chuckled slightly, before hearing him mention that he was apprenticing at the Panacea, before saying that he hadn’t been to the Tidepool Bar and she smiled more. ”The Tidepool is a nice place. Plenty of places to relax and lots of nice drinks!” she said calmly, before hearing the man ask her what sort of alcohols she’d brew.

”Yeah, ales would be a given. I’d also like to make a lot of fruit wines, so I’ll probably be spending a lot of time in the jungle gathering the fruits.” she said with a smile. ”I’m going to see if Stuvantis would be willing to teach me a few things I don’t know yet, so I have more options of things to brews. Of course I don’t think I’ll ever be a match for him. He’s got the right attitude too.” she said with a light smile before glancing around briefly, her smile vanishing slightly as she looked at Satevis and found herself wondering how long he’d been on Mizahar again, her curiosity getting the best of her.

She turned to face the jungle, glancing over it as she avoided looking directly at Satevis before speaking again.

”I know you’re likely wondering about this too, and I imagine you wouldn’t want to ask it, so I’ll ask.” she said, inhaling slightly. ”How long have you been here?” she asked, putting the emphasis on the word ‘here’.
~

[Satevis]

Satevis nodded thoughtfully at her description of the sounds, making a mental note to add them to his journal. Sounds coming from the jungle, as though something large were moving? That certainly seemed...ominous, although Satevis was willing to accept that there could be a rational explanation. After all, no one had lived here for years. Anything could be out there.

That...wasn't exactly comforting, now that he was thinking about it. He looked out at the ocean, at the reflection of the moonlight on the waves.

No, he thought, that was definitely not comforting.

Still, he did find himself amused when she mentioned that he would pick up a nickname eventually. "'Satevis' doesn't exactly lend itself well to nicknaming," he said, with the sort of levity that suggested he was partly joking. "Perhaps I should have chosen an easier name." He'd chosen to name himself in Shiber, which was likely part of the problem, but it had seemed right at the time. Had he gone with the Common name for the star he had chosen...

Antares. He would have been named Antares. It was an interesting thought. At the time, he had chosen whatever name came to his mind, at random. Now, though, he found that he was attached to the name he had chosen. He could not picture himself choosing any other.

He listened to Anibesa explaining what ales she would brew. He was embarrassed to admit that he'd never really acquired the taste for ale. "Fruit wines sound nice," he said. "When you set up your brewery, I'll drop by. I don't usually drink, but I can make an exception." Talking to her was easier as the moments went on. It reminded Satevis of being in Lhavit, with the other Ethaefal. At each social occasion, the longer he stayed and spoke to them, the easier it was. But the ease was only temporary. There was a weight that never faded, that hit him hardest when he was alone, not when he was with them, that only grew the longer he spent in their company.

It was why he'd eventually left Lhavit.

His reminiscing almost made him miss her question. He looked back at her, eyes widening slightly as her words came through to him. His expression softened as he understood what she was asking, and he looked back out to sea.

"Ten years," he said. "Or perhaps ten and a half would be more accurate. Some days it feels like it's been the blink of an eye. Other days, it feels a lot longer." Ten years. It was odd. If he were a human, he would still be a child. But he wasn't human. Not anymore, at any rate.

"And yourself?" he asked, because it was only fair.

[Anibesa]

"Common" | "Fratava" | "Tukant"

Anibesa found herself chuckling slightly at Satevis’s mention that his name wasn’t the best for nicknames, and that he should have chosen a simpler name, and Anibesa smiled slightly glancing at him with her smile, almost forgetting her sorrow for a breathe moment.

Calmly she placed her cloak on the snow and sat on her cloak instead of standing, her hands brushing over the snow in front of her as her legs and remained mostly dry and snow free for a little while.
”It’s not that hard. How about Vissy? Or Tevi? Tevi sounds pretty cool, don’t you think?” she suggested with a smile before shrugging and staring at the sky for a few moments as she thought about her own name. It had been Tukant, if she remembered rightly, or maybe it was Fratava. It had been that long ago that she’d chosen the name that she no longer remembered how she’d chosen it. Instead it had just become a part of her and it was something that she had grown very attached to and very fond of.

Then she heard Satevis say that he would come taste her beverages once she’d set up her brewery, and a smile spread across her face.
”You can tell me whether it tastes alright or not, approve things for me maybe. I could give you a discount for that too.” she said calmly, theorising about the future and wondering what was in store for her, and whether she’d manage to ever get enough knowledge and skill to make herself successful.

Then came the answer to her question. It was a hard question and she understood, though as he gave his age, Anibesa found herself smiling slightly. He was young still, and he had a lot more time until he was near her age, and she hoped he would do better than she had so far.

”You’re young still. Do better than me, alright?” she said with an awkward smile before thinking for a moment. ”Fifty? Fifty six?” she shrugged. ”It’s been a while. I know I fell in spring, so it’ll be fifty seven years next season. I’m thinking of throwing a party or something, not for me to celebrate but just to get everyone together, thank everyone for being here with me at least.” she said with a slight smile. ”What do you think?” she asked the man, looking up at him as she changed the topic to something that would be more entertaining and cheerful.

She glanced away from the moon to the sand, her hands gathering the sand and pushing it into a ball shape, before picking it up and examining it, her eyes looking at the small glistening snow crystals in the moonlight, and then compared it to her skin and it’s own shimmery texture, though the snow only glistened white.
”It’s pretty, isn’t it? The snow I mean?” she said with a smile.

[Satevis]

Satevis remained standing for a moment as Anibesa sat down, feeling awkward about standing while she was sitting, but not sure that her sitting down was necessarily an invitation to join her. He floundered for a moment, the awkward glances somewhat at odds with his current, ethereal appearance, then removed his cloak as well, making a seat next to her. He nodded, considering her nicknames.

"I hadn't thought of Tevi," he said, chuckling in amusement. "That one is quite good actually."

Although he didn't think there were very many people who he could convince to call him that. Satevis had been in Syka eight days, and so far, he had a mentor that he respected, and had met a handful of the residents through work at the Panacea. He didn't particularly have any friends. At least, not yet.

He nodded solemnly as Anibesa told him how long she had been here. Half a century was quite some time. Not as long as some of the other Ethaefal that he had met before, but long enough to be a decent portion of a regular human lifetime. From what vague memories he had of his own past life, Satevis mused, he hadn't actually lived that long.

At least, Taras hadn't. The other lives were a little more difficult to define.

"I think that would be a good idea," Satevis said, when Anibesa pointed out that she wanted to bring people together on...well, he supposed it was akin to her birthday. "As long as that is what you want..." He eyed her sidelong as he said that, refraining from comment. He could see why she would be reluctant to acknowledge that day, and he admired her strength for even suggesting it.

He certainly hadn't managed to be that strong, whenever the anniversary of his fall came around.

"Perhaps I should do the same," he said, "when Summer comes around. Although I'll have to make sure I have friends by then."

His smile was somewhat self-deprecating as he looked out at the snow.

"It is beautiful," he said. "Unnatural, but beautiful. In my memories, I don't have much memory of snow."