Closed Survival of the Fittest (Ray)

[Anibesa]

9th Summer, 518AV
"Common" | "Fratava" | "Tukant"

It was a hot day and Anibesa began to hate the length of her hair. Strands of it managed to stick itself to her skin wherever she had sweat and her skin had a constant sheen to it, feeling oilier and more uncomfortable than she was used to. Sighing she’d pulled all of her clothes on and laced up her boots, before combing her hair back to try and keep it out her face.
Today the redhead knew that she needed to gather more food, though she didn’t like the idea of venturing into the jungle on her own.

First she slung her backpack filled with a waterskin and a compass, and then set off from her tent and walked along the sand, her feet sinking into it, as she made her way to the Mercantile. The walk was harder than usual, since usually she wouldn’t be wearing as much and definitely wouldn’t be wearing her boots, though once she reached the Mercantile she breathed a sigh of relief and entered seeing Juli. The human woman looked nervous and Anibesa nodded at her as a greeting.

“What can I get you today?” the woman asked and Anibesa glanced around before opening her mouth to speak. “Mornin', I wasn’t sure if you’d have any weapons yet? I was needing something good for hunting, but not too big?” she asked and Juli started rummaging around behind the counter before she retrieved something that looked almost exactly what Anibesa was looking for.

It was curved, and a decent length though it didn’t look unmanageable, and it appeared that the sharp part of the blade was along the inside.

“Sounds like this might be what you’re looking for. A kukri?” the woman said and Anibesa nodded at it. “Yeah, this looks perfect!” she said calmly, looking it over before looking up at the woman. “How much is it?”

“Eight gold, so it’s not the most expensive. Practical and easier to use than others. Great for use in the jungle!” the woman said and Anibesa smiled.

“No need to try to sell it to me, I’m already more than interested!” Anibesa smiled again before counting out 8 gold miza and handing it to the woman, before the woman handed the weapon to her carefully, and Anibesa took the handle carefully.

“Take a few practice swings before going anywhere too dangerous, on a wine or the underbush or something similar to that?” Juli said and Anibesa nodded thoughtfully.

“Thank you, I’d best be off to practice now though.” she said with a smile and a nod before she turned to leave the Mercantile, her eyes lingering over what was kept within the building before she exited the wooden building in time to see someone approaching. It was a man she’d never seen before and she tilted her head to look at him for a moment before calling out to him.

”Hey, you’re new here aren’t you?” the freckled redhead called out in a warm tone, watching the man as she did so.

[Raymond Rhythorn]

9th Of Summer 518 AV

Ray found himself approaching the mercantile for the third time now. It has been a few days since he arrived and has yet to venture into the wilds of Syka. But every craftsman needs tools and for today he'll definitely need his. The wilds of Syka are rumoured to be a dangerous place, a very unpredictable and wild place. Ray walked through the bungalows under the burning sun. The scorching heat was killing him and he wanted nothing but to get out of his leather boots but there was no choice. His new job introduced him to Ashta. A different kind of elephant which was fascinating to him. It had bigger ears but the animal itself was smaller than the usual. It has a reputation to be a very smart animal. It took an awful amount of hard work training one for the sawmill. Lars catched it for him but now Ray wanted to catch a wild one for himself. Syka was not what it seemed at the first glance. Everyday it had a new surprise for him. He was grateful and to him it felt like he finally found what he came for. Somewhere to belong.

In the near distance, Ray's eyes gazed upon a tall girl looking at him from the mercantile. She was a slender redhead. Ray didn't like the attention. He sees himself as a criminal and anyone from Syliras might be looking for him right now. She continued her curious gaze. Ray looked the other way trying to avoid eye contact.

“Hey you're new here aren't you?” asked the redhead.

Ray turned his head. It was the the first time he saw her face, she had beautiful blue eyes and freckled skin. Her elegant shape suggested that she was in her mid 20s

“Ye...aah….Yeah” Ray stammered “I am new here...umm excuse me I have to go buy some things” Ray stepped away from her quickly and went inside the mercantile.


The store looked more empty today then before. Perhaps there has been a lot of sales, he thought to himself. Juli was at her usual post, selling items and chatting up her customers. The dark haired girl gave a gentle smile upon seeing Ray

“And what can I do for you today…. umm… I'm sorry I never got your name” she asked curiously.

“It's Ray and you are Juli I believe”

She nodded

“so what weapons do you have here?” Ray asked

“Well we currently have Kukris and Machetes in stock, we sometimes have more options but if you want something bigger like a sword you'll have to order it in advance” Juli replied.

The Kukri was a small dagger with an inwardly curved blade and a simple handle. It looked useful enough. He picked it up. It was light and the handle was comfortable enough. It reminded him of his old dagger he used to wield during his squire days.

“The Kukri should be fine, how much for one?”

“8 gold mizas” she answered “Going to the jungle?.....be careful! It's very dangerous out there”

“So I've heard! And also one pound sugar please."

Ray paid the girl, took the items and went outside. To his surprise the redhead was still there

“How can I help you?” Ray asked with a curious voice.

Code made by Anibesa for Rhythorn

[Anibesa]

"Common" | "Fratava" | "Tukant"

As the man spoke, Anibesa smiled, though her smile soon dropped as he excused himself and disappeared into the Mercantile, all the while her eyes following him and watching him as he stood in the Mercantile talking to Juli, though she was not able to hear any of what either of the two were saying.

To Anibesa, the man seemed very unusual in his behavior, especially when compared to a lot of the people that had came to Syka. The others all seemed talkative and nowhere near as awkward or shy as this man, especially when they were new as they likely knew that they would need help or that they understood that with such few people around, they’d need all the allies they could get.

For a few moments, Anibesa stood in confusion, her eyes looking into the Mercantile before she decided she had best get on her way to find someone that wanted to go into the jungle with her to try to gather some food, though as she turned she heard footsteps leaving the Mercantile followed by the mans voice again, and she turned to look at him.

“Nothing, I was just about to head off. You’re quite different from most people here you know?” she said calmly before holding a hand out to him in greeting. “Ani. I was just about to followed one of the streams into the jungle to try to get some food. Whether that’s fruits and other plants, or an animal that might taste good.” she smiled as she gave her name and an explanation of what she was doing. “Not sure how long you’ve been here for, but have you ever been into the jungle? There’s so many plants in there!” she explained excitedly. “Fancy a trip out there? Get you set up with some stuff so you don’t have to worry about it for another few days?” she asked.

Whether he agreed to join or not, Anibesa would turn and start walking, checking over her shoulder to see if the man was following her. She was determined that she would need to find a stream to follow into the jungle, as animals were likely to congregate around a fresh water source like a stream.

“Every animal needs water...” she shrugged to herself as she mumbled before turning towards the man. “You ever been into a jungle before?” she asked him, smiling slightly as she did so before turning to look around again before spotting the nearest stream and then heading towards it, ready to follow it into the jungle carefully, though she had no intentions of wandering far from the stream. If she went to far from the stream, she knew that it would be a lot harder to find her way out of the jungle, and she’d have to rely on her compass and her luck to try and make her way back to the beach.