Jungle Flowers, Jungle Trees (Sophia Sunshore)

[Okara]

Summer 23, 518

Okara carefully considered what to put in her backpack, tapping a finger on her chin as she thought. The day before she had begged Uta to take her back into the jungle to explore and find more plants she could stock the Panacea with for medicines. Uta had told her to meet her in the morning and she would lead both her and another girl into the wilds for all day trip so that they might get some extended time to study plants. Okara was curious about who would be joining them but for the moment she needed to consider all she might need.

Into her backpack she carefully placed her filled waterskin, flint, steel, eating knife, journal, healer’s kit, and suvai. Okara quickly braided her icy white hair and tied her jungle boots securely. Shrugging on the pack, she took her kukri firmly in hand. She felt as prepared as she could be to spend her first night in the Maw. She was nervous but excited and hoped with three people to round out the group it would grant some additional safety in numbers from the jungle’s dangers.

Okara almost began to set out for Uta’s when she noticed her chicken coop and drew in a sharp breath, she had been so wrapped up in planning what to bring she had almost forgotten about her chickens. She could hear them quietly clucking around the sparse line where the beach met the jungle. Most likely hunting insects. They seemed to eat non-stop when they were out of their coop but it didn’t seem to have much of an impact on the relentless onslaught of bugs.

Okara hurried over to the coop and slid off her backpack, placing her kukri beside it. She lifted the side door of the coop and used a large frond from a nearby bush to sweep the floor out. When it was reasonably clean she changed out the grasses that padded their nesting boxes, careful to not break the two eggs that lay there. They would be payment for Lars who had agreed to stop by when the afternoon got to its hottest to let the chickens out for some exercise and fresh air. Once the coop was clean Okara cautiously chased around the three chickens, approaching slowly them quickly grabbing the birds as they clucked in indignation. The chickens tolerated her well enough but she was still learning how to care for them correctly and hadn’t gotten over the awkwardness of handling them yet.

All three chickens secured in the coop, Okara shrugged on the backpack again and picked up her kukri. Finally she was able to start off down the beach towards Uta’s home. It was a lengthy walk but it gave her some time alone with her thoughts. Mostly she lingered on her nervousness of plunging into the jungle again, it was a mysterious place with plenty of danger. She had met some of that danger in her last venture with Uta, sometimes she still woke startled in the middle of the night with the piercing yellow eyes of the jaguar in her mind. The big cat had been curious to try its luck with two tired out women, perhaps three women would make the big jungle cats think twice. Okara understood that there was worse than jungle cats out there in the depths but she tried not to imagine the specifics.

A bell passed before Okara had finally covered the distance across the beach and she could make out Uta’s dwelling amongst the trees. Luckily she had risen early to get prepared and the sun was still low in the sky. She saw a blonde head turn to notice her from the balcony of the raised home and Okara lifted a scaled hand in greeting. Well, there was no turning back now. She had been seen.

”Hey there! Is everybody here?” Okara called as she walked up the stairs to see if Uta was alone or not. ”Sorry if I’m a little late, I had to get the chickens taken care of. But I’m all packed and ready to go!”


BoxcodeThanks Anais Seawind!

[Sophia Sunshore]

Sophia had been working alongside Uta for a short time now. She constantly marvelled at the woman’s never-ending knowledge about plants that Sophia was just discovering for the first time. Already the young Svefra woman’s journal was filing up with notes and crude sketches of her fellow botanist’s discoveries. Uta was adamant that there were countless more unknown plants just waiting for them in the jungles surrounding their homes, and whenever Sophia gazed at the towering trunks covered with various climbers and vines, she was inclined to agree.

On this particular day, Sophia was packing her rucksack for an entirely different sort of work. As she had said goodbye the evening before, Uta had informed her that they would be going out into the jungles on a day trip for the apprentice's first practical field trip in collecting and studying plants. Almost as an aside, Uta had mentioned that another would be joining them and she was itching to know who.

Her bag now rested next to the low desk she was working at. Sophia never usually bought much with her - the tent she currently resided in wasn't that far away and all she really needed on a regular day was her journal and some food.
Today though she had bought along anything she could think of including her filled waterskin, tools for a fire and her cutlass. She had been learning the bow for only a handful of days, and was much more confident in her ability to swing the blade than fire an arrow. She hoped they wouldn't even need it though, as a marked of Caiyha Sophia was able to communicate with plants and animals... although she had yet to properly test that outside of her grassland biome.

Her hand ran absently over the shifting mark on her forearm as she pondered her tutors latest scribbled notes. After a few more chimes she heard footsteps approaching below and turned her head to see if she could spot the newcomer. A head of white-blonde hair stood out in stark contrast to the deep shades of the forest and she noticed a gleam of pearly scales as the woman below raised her hand. Sophia rose from her seated position as the Konti entered the dwelling.

"Hi! Uta's just getting some food for our trip, she'll be back in a moment. My name is Sophia, she forgot to tell me yours." Sophia reached up to tuck some stray hair behind her ear and offered a warm smile.
"You have chickens? I think I might have seen them - over past the Ranchos? How are they faring here?"

After a few more chimes, another pair of footsteps sounded and Uta appeared to hand out a few bits of food that would keep overnight. The botanist smiled and clapped her hands together once. "Right, are you two ready then?" At confirmation, she would collect her rucksack, motioning for Sophia to gather up her supplies also. When ready, Uta would lead the pair down out of her house and into the jungle proper for what appeared to be the first time for each of them.

As they began to walk, Sophia hastily tied her hair up into what could politely be called a pile on top of her head, and then pulled her sleeves down to cover her arms. She hated to hide her mark away, but she'd rather not be food for the thousands of jungle-dwelling insects. She grinned sidelong at her new companion as they stepped behind Uta. "Excited?" It was evident that the Svefra probably had enough excitement for the both of them if the Konti was lacking.

+609
oocJust realised and wanted to clarify! The line “what appeared to be the first time” part was Sophi assuming Okara hadn’t been into the jungles before either.

[Okara]

Summer 23, 518

Okara came to the top of the steps and realized the blonde woman she had seen was in fact the person Uta had mentioned. A group of blondes setting out into the jungle for learning and collection. The young woman in front of her introduced herself and provided a warm smile, she seemed like a nice enough girl.

”Pleasure to meet you Sophia, I’m Okara.” Okara said and returned Sophia’s friendly smile. The Konti leaned back against Uta’s desk to wait for their group leader’s arrival. She noticed had a pack all stuffed and assembled, it boded well that they were both prepared with supplies. One night in the jungle was not long but Okara had begun to realize it did not take much time out there to find trouble.

”I do have chickens, three in fact. Their doing well, I negotiated with Lars from the sawmill to let them out and keep an eye on them while I’m away tonight. They seem to like getting out and eating bugs for their meal better then the feed I give them. They like visitors too, well, except Gertrude. But she’s another story.” Okara laughed and waved dismissively. She was never quite sure what to make of her green chicken Gertrude and didn’t know how to explain the strange chicken to a relative stranger. Better to leave it be for now, if Sophia did visit her chickens she would see the hen for herself.

Eventually Okara heard the footsteps of Uta’s arrival and stood up straight, waiting expectantly. Okara patiently watched the other two women gather up their packs and stepped forward when they looked ready to go. When Uta asked if she was ready, Okara responded with a nod and a smile before following the women down the stairs. Uta led them back behind her home, following the stream deep into the tropical forest as she had done before with Okara. It made her nervous to follow the same path but she trusted that Uta knew what she was doing.

As they walked further into the dense vegetation the ocean breeze was stifled and the humidity of the wet foliage descended on them. Perspiration collected across Okara’s forehead and neck attracting insects to the salty moisture. She turned as Sophia spoke, and wondered briefly if the girl was joking before realizing that she was quite sincere in her excitement.

”I’m not sure excited is the correct word for me, perhaps curious is the most fitting. Earlier this summer Uta brought me out here and we had quite an unfortunate encounter with a jaguar. I think it saw how exhausted we were from fighting out way through this brush and thought it might try its luck with us. Fortunately we all survived the situation but it was pretty unnerving.” Okara explained softly, though Uta could certainly hear what she said and chose not to comment. Okara was silent for a moment as she reflected on her last foray into the jungle with the botanist. After a chime she realized she had probably come off as an unwilling participant and hastened to correct that perception. ”I am interested to see what plants we find. I like learning more about the wilderness here, I feel like the more I learn about it the less threatening it seems. I figure out new ways to deal with things and come to a better understanding.”

Whether or not Sophia responded, a few chimes later Uta stopped the two women to call attention to a particular plant. Okara shrugged off her backpack and drew out her journal in preparation to record what Uta was about to explain. The botanist pointed at a brown, woody vine that curled around a tree, thick thorns curved around and hooking into the tree’s bark.

”This is a type of liana called cat’s claw. Duly named for the appearance of the thorns that it uses to cling to trees. When it’s in bloom, it has yellow flowers. The thorns aren’t wicked sharp but they can’t be a pain when you try to collect some of the vine so beware when harvesting. If you take some to Jansen he might be able to fill you in on the medicinal properties, I know the bark of the vine is more potent then the leaf or root.” Uta explained slowly. Okara opened her journal, labeled the page, and carefully sketched the cat’s claw. She drew a simple tree then a winding vine around it with smooth edged leaves in pairs along its length. She made a small drawing of the shape of the thorns to diagram the details. Finally she wrote a few notes about the flowers that Uta had mentioned. When she finished, Okara used her kukri to cut a length of the liana, careful of the hooked thorns, and placed it within her backpack for later study with Jansen.

When the group was done with the liana, they continued their trek into the jungle. Uta eventually turned away from the stream and plunged them straight through the jungle. It was slow moving through the treacherous, thickly wooded terrain and Okara had to step carefully to avoid slips or stumbles. The three women traveled for a full two bells before Uta decided they were far enough in to pick a spot to begin inspecting and cataloging.

”Let’s make our day camp on that hill, I haven't explored the plant life there yet. Higher points lets us have a better view of the area, or as good of a view as you can get in this dense tree cover. A good view might help prevent anything from sneaking up on us. Most predators hunt at night when it's cooler but don't let your guard down during the day, it's important to always stay aware when we are out here. We can practice making a fire for times when we might need to spend the night out here. A lot of the wood around is soaked so it can difficult to make fires in the jungle, it doesn't hurt to practice doing it when it's a luxury rather then a necessity. With the constant rain of the jungle it will be a slick trip up to the top so take your time and go carefully. Watch out for sharp rocks that may be hidden beneath the brush and dead leaves.” Uta said and pointed towards a small rise in the land, definitely higher then where they presently stood but not so high as to be challenging to climb.

[Sophia Sunshore]

Sophia trudged along behind the botanist, Okara beside her. She had never been so deep into the rainforest before and was surprised at both the heat and the denseness of the trees. The sunlight that filtered through the thick canopy was fragmented, often making it difficult to see details like stones or roots on the ground. The heat was oppressive, and coupled with the moisture in the air made for a rather damp trio of women. Sophia wiped at the back of her neck with a slight grimace, and then turned to the Konti as Okara spoke, responding to her brief question.

THe Svefra's eyebrows raised at the mention of an earlier encounter with a jaguar. That would certainly explain the look of apprehension Sophia had spotted flitting across her companions face earlier. She nodded. "Well, I'm glad to hear you made it out in one piece... Uta forgot to mention that particular story to me." She paused as Okara seemed to fall into a deeper thought for a moment. At the woman's next words, Sophia nodded again.

"I think that's a good way of seeing it. I suppose it's fear of the unknown, especially in a place like this where even the locals don't know everything yet. I totally understand how exciting wouldn't be the right word. I guess I am excited to see what we find rather than about the trek itself, you know?" She carefully stepped over an exposed root. "Uta reckons that there are hundreds and hundreds of plants nobody has ever seen before out here." She squinted up at the canopy for a moment and them smiled at Okara. "It'd be great to discover some!"

When Uta stopped them Sophia diligently retrieved her journal, following Okara's lead. She had been practising her drawing by continuing to copy notes from the botanist's own books but she still had a long way to go. She roughly sketched in the tree, followed by the vine winding around it's trunk. Next a few leaves went down, followed by the wickedly sharp looking thorns. She jotted down a few points Uta had mentioned, before stepping over to the tree and taking off a leaf, being careful not to touch any thorns. The leaf was tucked between the pages of her journal - as her drawing skills didn't hold up so well at the moment an actual sample would help wonders when she came back to her notes.

When the trio continued on, Sophia could hardly muster the thoughts to make any sort of conversation with her new acquaintance. Uta had taken them off the path and into the jungle proper, the trees growing more and more dense around them. The air was thick and muggy, and she had to concentrate hard to make sure she didn't trip over any tree roots or other hazards. Occasionally they would have to cut their way through a vine, or move a particularly spiky plant out of the way before they could continue.

Sophia had just managed to cut through a particularly dense part of vegetation using her cutlass under Uta's instruction, when the botanist decided it was time to make their day camp. Together the trio made their way to the top of the hill. The slope was difficult to climb up - the sodden leaf litter made for treacherous footing but eventually they all made it.

"Grab a long-ish stick and clear the ground of the wet leaves and other bits. And be careful of snakes. We need a safe area to come back to and we don''t want any surprises!" Gingerly, Sophia did as instructed, first finding a stick about the length of her arm. She pushed leaf litter and small stones away from the area they had chosen, thankfully not finding any snakes herself.

Sophia inspected a small-ish rock for any bugs before she set her backpack atop it. While Sophia and Okara were orienting themselves, Uta went to gather a few things to make them a small fire.

"I was expecting it to be warm but this is crazy!" Sophia grinned, though much more tiredly than earlier, and blinked sweat out of her eyes. "Did Uta mention Jansen earlier - the healer? Do you work under him?" She hadn't seen the Konti when she had previously stopped by the Panacea. It sounded like Okara had been here a little while - longer than Sophia at least, especially since she had even set up a home for her chickens. Which reminded her - "I'd love to come by and meet your chickens sometime if I can? I haven't ever actually seen one properly before." By that she meant that she had never been within arms reach of the birds - after all they didn't do so well on the ocean.

Uta returned, and Sophia went to help make a fire - it was the one task she actually felt she was good at. Stones were arranged in a little ring, and she carefully stacked the wood and tinder in the middle. She wasn't sure what other tasks were needed, though she assumed the other two did as they had both been here before. She was hoping that she wouldn't have to cook anything at least - that was not her strong point!

+882
oocSorry it took me a little while! I hope it's okay - I wanted to get something done for you and I don't have a huge amount of time right now!

[Okara]

Summer 23, 518

Okara carefully picked her way up the hill, placing each foot down steadily and carefully before transferring her weight. The hill was slick indeed from the wet leaves and stones that seemed to cover every inch of the ground between bushes and trees. She was always surprised by how long it took to travel small distances in the wilds around Syka, even reaching a point you could visibly see was no small task.

Reaching the long, flat top of the hill Okara stopped for a few moments to catch her breath. She found a large rock to set her backpack onto where she would be able to easily see it and not lose it among the thick plant life. Okara's green eyes carefully surveyed the area, noting the rich diversity of trees, bushes, vines, and herbaceous plants around them. She turned as she heard Sophia speak and smiled at her questions, nodding enthusiastically.

”Goodness, yes. The heat gets so difficult out here. It gets hot in the settlement but at least there we have the ocean breeze. Here in the jungle everything is so thick and covered its just still and muggy. The insects don’t help.” Okara said, slapping at a flying insect that buzzed around her face with a grimace. ”And I do work for Jansen! I’m just an apprentice right now but I’m learning a lot so I think one day I will be able to work on my own. Not that that’s really needed around here, there aren’t enough people to necessitate multiple clinics. But it’s nice to know I could handle it one day if I needed to. Where do you think your work with Uta will lead you? This is such a strange place I’m sure there’s lots to learn.”

”You can definitely come by and visit the chickens! They can be a handful, I’ve never really cared for animals before so it’s been an adventure. Actually now that I think of it I should ask Jansen to come by and look at them, I think he’s got some experience with animals. Have you taken care of animals before? It’s harder then I thought it would be though I love the fresh eggs.” Okara said with a laugh. Her chickens certainly kept her on her toes. Whenever she had them out she had to keep a close eye on them so predators didn’t snatch them but they loved to dive into the jungle chasing insects. They seemed to have little survival instinct, or at least not a good idea of what survival meant in the settlement. For a chicken, it meant staying the petch out of the jungle.

Uta returned and Okara watched as she and Sophia carefully built the fire. She noted the way Sophia constructed the firepit and how she went about building the fire, tinder in the middle of carefully arranged pieces of wood. It seemed difficult to make a fire in such a wet, rain drenched place but the two women persevered and managed to coax forth some flame. With their little hill all ready to be explored, Uta gathered the two for a little pep talk about the day.

”Alright! Now we can start looking around us to see what we can find of interesting plant life. Be careful of what you choose to touch, if you don’t know what it is it could be poisonous. Some signs that a plant may be poisonous are milky sap, fine hairs or thorns, an almond scent in the leaves or woody parts, or plants that grow things in pods like beans or seeds. Now that’s a really basic list, but it should help you make some initial decisions about what you choose to touch. If you really want to experiment with something you can crush a leaf to release some of the sap and rub it on your wrist. If your skin doesn’t have a reaction after a half hour or so it’s probably safe to touch. But safe to touch doesn’t mean safe to eat. Um…. I think that’s enough to keep in mind for now. So, lets start looking at the plants and trees around our campsite. If you see something with interesting features call the others over and we can talk about it. If we get lucky, we might be able to find something I haven’t seen before.” Uta said with a big smile, then waved her hands to encourage the girls to explore the immediate area.

Okara stuck her suvai in the waistband of her pants and grabbed her journal out of her backpack before tightly securing it so that she didn't come back to any slithery visitors. She stepped back and let her gaze travel along the many layers of plants. They all seemed interesting in their own ways but a red flowering plant clinging to a tree caught her eye.

”Uta, what about this red flower over here? What kind of plant is that?” Okara asked, pointing at the plant she meant. Uta trotted over to where Okara stood to better see what she was pointing at amid the myriad plants.

”Ahh! That’s a variety of bromeliad. They have such beautiful flowers. This variety of bromeliad is an epiphyte. That means it lives on other plants instead of in the ground.” Uta explained excitedly, always loving a chance to discuss an interesting plant.

”Does that mean it’s a parasite? Is it taking nutrients from the tree?” Okara asked. She opened a page of her journal and began to sketch the shape of the beautiful red flower and it’s long slender leaves nestled in the curve of a tree.

”Not at all, it merely uses the tree as an anchor. You can see how its roots are clinging tightly to the bark around it. It gets all of its nutrients and water from the air around it. It often collects water in the central flower cup that you can find insects and frogs living in. So it turns into its own little ecosystem.” Uta continued as Okara sketched the roots clinging to the trees. She labeled the various parts and wrote a quick note Epiphytes – live on other plants instead of in the ground, take their nutrients and water from the air around them. Uta gave her a pat on the shoulder and turned to continue her own observations. Okara shut her journal gently and began to examine the ground around herself.

Word count: 1053
OOCNo worries! I’ve been super busy too, I’ll try not to fall so far behind on my replies.

[Sophia Sunshore]

Sophia smiled and nodded at Okara's comments. "Mm, it would be nice if the bugs weren't quite so attracted to us!" Pausing for a moment, she wondered if there was a way to actually make that possible. She'd have to look into it - even when she was sat up at Uta's Place the insects were everywhere. Too bad they had a tendency not to listen to her when she asked them to leave her alone.
"Well it's still good to know that there are people about who can help out with healing. In a place like this who knows when we might need you! According to Uta half these plants alone could be sending us off to the Panacea, which is a little worrying!" Hopefully none of them would come into contact with any of those on this trip.

"Honestly I'm not really sure where I'm going! I came here because I wanted to learn what was out here, but that's all I had." She peered up at the vast stretch of canopy above them. "Now all I can think about is what they all do. They must all have some sort of use, you know?" Syka had definitely turned Sophia's view on things completely upside-down and now she sort of felt like she was floating along. But that was okay.

The Svefra grinned. "Oh great! I haven't really ever looked after anything, no. A boat isn't the best place to keep a pet! I have Pearl, my Tavan, but she does her own thing." She gave a light shrug. "Fresh eggs must be nice though."

After the tiny flame had been coaxed from the fire, she joined the other two women in exploring the area around them. There was an almost alarmingly long list of things to keep an eye out for with regards to toxicity, and she would certainly do her best to remember them. Sophia tended to steer fairly clear of thorns anyway, but she had never realised that scent could be a tell. She quickly scribbled a few notes in her journal.
Bad = milky sap, thorns, almond scent, hairy....

At Okara's comment, Sophia carefully stepped over to peer at the flower she had found. Diligently, she also sketched the plant, the petals going down to create a somewhat wonky flower. She glanced over at the Konti - Okara's drawing was definitely much better. A few notes followed. Bromeliad - this one lives on other plants - an epiphyte.

Moving on from the beautiful flower, Sophia turned to investigate a vine hanging from a nearby tree. It was brighter than other vines she had seen before and she moved closer to inspect it properly. Then Sophia noticed it had eyes and she leapt back with a small noise of surprise.
Uta quickly looked round to see what had happened. "Careful! That's a vine snake." Sophia froze where she stood as Uta moved over to look. "They eat small animals like frogs, so don't worry too much. Just don't bother it. We don't want it to feel threatened." Sophia took a step back till she was at a slightly more comfortable distance. "I am fairly certain they have poisonous venom, but I don't fancy testing the theory today, okay!" She gave Sophia a smile before peering a little closer at the reptile.

Turning away from the slender green snake, having just about caught her breath again, an interesting tree caught Sophia's eye. She pointed at the trunk a little way off. It was fairly tall and thin, with a spray of bright feathery palm-like leaves, and about halfway up a great bushel of round, dark purple fruits was growing off one side. "Hey, do you know what that is?"

Tearing her gaze from the little snake, Uta joined Sophia at the base of the tree. "Hm, no I haven't seen anything like it before. Okara, come and have a look." She motioned for the other woman to join the pair.
"Do you think that it could be edible?" Sophia titled her head and squinted up at the berries. "They certainly could be, but I would need to do a test to find out for sure. We should collect some to take back. There doesn't appear to be anything that suggests they are contact poisonous at least."

Glancing at the ground, Sophia nudged the others. "Hey it looks like other animals like to eat them." At the base of the tree were the remains of some of the little fruits. "Well that's usually a good sign!" Uta knelt down to look. "It still doesn't mean that we can eat them too, but it's certainly encouraging. I'll touch test it, and then if it's fine we can collect some to bring with us okay?"

Sophia watched as Uta located an intact fruit and picked it up. She ran the skin of the fruit over the top of her forearm, and then squeezed a single drop of juice onto her skin. "We'll give that about 30 chimes to be sure. You two should take some notes about the tree."
At the instruction, Sophia pulled out her journal once more. She drew one of the feathery leaves, and the branch of berries as best as she could before adding a few notes. Understory tree. Palm-like leaves. Bushel of purple berries. Animals feed on the berries. Safe for humans??

She looked over at Okara with a smile. They'd found something that Uta didn't know, a completely new discovery perhaps? "What do you make of it?"

+924
OOCIt's the Acai palm, just fyi! I couldn't find it in the Codex so I figured it would be a new discovery

[Okara]

Summer 23, 518

At Sophia’s gasp of surprise Okara looked up, startled. Her heart immediately began to pound as her eyes darted around to spot the problem. She relaxed when Uta announced it was just a vine snake, she smiled at herself for having feared the worst. Okara stepped up behind Sophia and peered at the snake over her shoulder. She was surprised at how well the little creature camouflaged itself among the foliage. It made her consider how many other creatures she had walked or sat by and never noticed them there, blending into their surroundings.

As Sophia and Uta moved away, Okara stayed a moment to continue gazing at the vine snake. She flipped open her journal and made a rough sketch of the snake hanging among the branches. Her drawing skills were basic so she included a small arrow to designate which of the looping threads she had drawn was the snake amongst the vines and leaves. Beneath the drawing she added a few notes: Vine snake, mainly eats frogs. Venomous? The snake is well camouflaged and difficult to spot. Do many creatures use camouflage as a survival tactic?

Okara looked up from her notes at Uta called her over to examine Sophia’s find. She hurried over with interest, cursing under her breath as she stumbled over a rock in her haste. She stopped beside the other two woman and starred up at the tree. It looked similar to other palms she had seen but this one had a huge bundle of purple berry laden panicles protruding from it. Okara visually studied it with interest and a small frown of concentration.

Okara opened her journal to a fresh page as Sophia and Uta discussed the edibility of the berries. She drew the straight trunk of the tree crowed with leafy palm fronds. The spray of panicles and berries was a bit of a messy mass on the side of the trunk but she added a few notes about the color of the berries and estimated quantities to add a little more sensibility to the drawing. She topped the page with a large question mark to denote that the specific name had not been given or discovered yet.

As she finished her drawing she looked up with interest to find Uta rubbing a fallen berry over her arm and squeezing the juice onto her skin. Okara raised an eyebrow, impressed with how calmly the botanist tested the unknown substance on herself. Doubtless, she had probably had to use herself as a test subject many times before hand. The Konti had to wonder how many times she had tested something on herself only to find it was in fact poisonous or a skin irritant. Her estimation of the botanists bravery rose several degrees as she considered it.

”I think your point about other animals eating it is a good one. I’m guessing it’s edible but its still smart of Uta to play it safe and test it before one of us pops one in our mouth. Even with the likelihood of it being edible, I think it’s pretty brave to test something unknown like that. I’m not sure I’d have the courage to rub something on my skin I didn’t know much about.” Okara said thoughtfully in response to Sophia’s question. ”I was just thinking actually, it seems so simple and straightforward when Uta explains what a plant is to us or how it grows, what it can do…. But someone had to discover that first. Someone had to test it out on themselves or someone else. I wonder how many people tested something only to find out it was actually bad for them and hurt themselves so we could benefit from that knowledge. It really puts things into an interesting perspective.”

Uta had wandered away from the pair of women, investigating an interesting tree fungus that had caught her eye. Okara turned away from Sophia, quietly lost in thought as she considered the science and dangerous nature of plant discovery. She knelt down in front of a bushy plant to ponder its leaf structure. Okara picked up a broken stick from the ground to push at the leaves, careful not to touch any with the exposed skin of her hand.

Her thoughts elsewhere, Okara pushed aside a branch of the bush and through the foliage she could see deep yellow eyes staring back at her from the other side. Her body went rigid with shock and surprise. The yellow eyes were framed by black stripes on the orange and white fur of a jungle cat. The cat was so large she could not see the entirety of its body crouched among the thick brush. All she could see were its large, luminous, yellow eyes staring intently back at her.

Its gaze was intense but it did not move, merely staring back at the frozen Konti. Her thoughts trembled for a moment as she wondered if she was facing her death. Did the cat wish to eat her? Or perhaps was it merely observing the interlopers in its territory? Her thoughts coalesced around Sophia and Uta, both going about there business with no idea of what stared back at Okara. Uta was further away and she didn’t dare shout to get her attention, even if the tiger did not want to eat her the noise might provoke it into action to defend itself.

”Sophia….” Okara whispered, trying to keep her voice steady but quiet. She wondered if she could get to the suvai she had shoved into the waist of her pants in time but with only two or three feet between herself and the jungle predator she highly doubted she could move quickly enough.

[Sophia Sunshore]

Sophia barely batted an eyelid as the botanist tested the berries out on her skin. She had watched Uta do the same thing a couple of times before. When Sophia had enquired once, the woman had informed her that she only tested the smallest amount when she was out in the rainforest to determine if it was safe for her to bring back. The edibility testing was always done when she was back at her home, within reach of medical aid should she require it.

The Svefra turned to Okara as the Konti started to speak. A little smile wound over her mouth and she nodded. "I also think it is probably edible. I am sure that animals can probably eat a lot more things than we can though so I agree that Uta is right to be careful." She paused as Okara continued, the smile waning slightly. "I never thought about that before..." She peered at the berries on the ground again. "It is an interesting thought. I wonder how many poor souls were stuck without medical aid when it went wrong too."

Sophia quietened as the Konti turned away, seemingly lost in her thoughts of discovery and mortality. She stared up at the palm above her for a moment, before glancing round to see where Uta had wandered off to. She spotted the botanist examining one of the large plate fungi that grew so frequently here. This particular one was striking, banded in beautiful shades of purple, red and green.

She was just about to make her way over to investigate Uta's find closer when Okara whispered her name behind her. Curiously, Sophia looked over to see what the Konti was doing, and to see why she had felt the need to whisper. The healer was knelt just behind where Sophia was standing, her eyes fixed on something ahead. Sophia turned fully and squinted above Okara's head to see what she was looking at.

Her breath caught in her throat as the luminous yellow eyes stared back at the pair of them. Instead of immediately feeling fear, Sophia was intrigued. There was in intelligence in the great cat's gaze that held her still. She wondered how long the creature had been crouched there observing the trio. The deep rust colour of it's coat interspersed with black stripes was absolutely beautiful.

Sophia then remembered Okara crouched in front of her, and she realised the sudden severity of their situation. Panic started to unfurl deep in her stomach. They were so small compared to this regal feline. It did not appear to be agitated, thankfully. If anything it seemed curious, but wild animals were unpredictable and that could change before she could do so much as blink.

She took a slow, deep breath to calm herself before she remembered that she was a Witch. If the situation hadn't been so dire she might have actually laughed. Sophia hesitated before looking right into the great cat's eyes. Yes, she was marked by Caiyha, but she was out of her biome. She knew that she could communicate with the living world around her, but the things that lived in the jungles didn't have to listen if they didn't want to.

Slowly, painstakingly slowly, Sophia pushed her sleeve up to expose her mark. It wasn't necessary for her to be able to use it, but she had no idea if it might help. Her eyes still fixed on the tiger, she mentally said a prayer to Caiyha. Mother Caiya, please protect us from harm from your beautiful creature. Let us part in peace so that neither need harm the other. I do not wish to cause pain to this beast.

The tiger had shifted its gaze from Okara up to Sophia. With the quietest murmur she could manage, she let Okara know what she was about to do. "Don't move. I'm going to ask it to leave us in peace. I am not sure if it will work as my biome is the grasslands, but it's worth a try. Just be ready."

She held the cats golden orbs with her own. She sent it a feeling of peace and calmness. She tried with all her heart to let the animal know that she felt no ill-will towards it, that she had no desire to harm it. These feelings she continued to give to the tiger, never once breaking eye contact.

It was up to the tiger now to react how it would.

[Okara]

Summer 23, 518

Okara was utterly frozen in her kneeling position. The yellow eyes that glowed at her were captivating and held her in place. The creature was astonishingly beautiful, in a deadly sort of way. She dared not imagine the size of the teeth that dwelt behind the cheeks of that large face or the sharpness of the claws on the feet supporting its elegant body. A pit formed in Okara’s stomach as she wondered how she might get herself out of this situation without the other two women carrying her back to the Panacea. She didn’t let her mind go down the more likely scenario of the consequences of a tiger attack, her innards strewn across the jungle floor.

Okara held her breath as the large feline’s eyes traveled away from her and towards Sophia. She didn’t dare turn and move to see what Sophia was doing that had drawn its attention. Sophia’s murmured words brought a confused frown to the Konti’s mouth. What did she mean by speak to it? Okara’s frown deepened as silence stretched for a few seconds. She was about to chance a few murmured words herself when the tiger slowly blinked a few times in disinterest at Sophia before languidly rising to a stand. The cat turned and silently padded away, his striped body disappearing amongst the jungle foliage.

Okara watched the silent predator disappear from view before slowly rising to a stand. She took two deep breathes to calm herself while she stared at the place where the tiger had been. She felt relieved but also oddly frustrated. When faced by a threat she had frozen, and been of little use. Perhaps if the tiger had leapt passed her and shredded Sophia or Uta to bits she might have been able to staunch the bleeding until they hopefully made it back to the settlement but she would have been able to do little else to prevent it in the first place. She doubted her untrained reflexes would have been able to draw her suvai and knock out the cat with its poison before it could leap onto her or one of her companions. She felt useless and that uselessness festered into an ugly feeling of helplessness. Sophia had not been helpless though, she had done…. Something. What exactly had she done?

“What… what was that? You said you were going to ask it to leave but I didn’t hear anything…” Okara said, confusion in her voice. Her words trailed off as she noticed the elaborate grassland scene covering Sophia’s forearm. Okara could not mistake it for anything but the mark of a god as the grass and horses’ manes on Sophia’s arms rippled as though stirred by actual wind. She looked up to meet Sophia’s gaze and raised an eyebrow in question with a quirky smile curling at her lips.

“So you has their mark on you?” Okara asked ruefully. She turned her own forearm so Sophia could easily see the opalescent blue rakavinas swirling around each other. She never went to any length to hide Rak’keli’s mark gracing her body but neither did she particularly show it off. Many of her sisters were graced with the same mark, often multiple of them, so she was humble about the gifts the healing goddess had bestowed upon her. Besides, she didn’t know whether the mark would be eye catching to a non-Konti as she knew they were often intrigued by the shimmer and shine of the opalescent scales in swirling patches along her body.

“What did you mean about grass biome? What affect does that have on whatever your gifts allow you to do?” Okara asked, confusion creeping back into her voice as she thought back on Sophia’s words. She dropped her arm beside her body again, her other hand rising to grasp her forearm, fingers gently tracing the winged serpents of Rak’keli. As helpless as she had felt with the tiger, she acknowledged to herself that she had no regrets or resentment about the goddess that had marked her and the path that had set her on. She only wished she could do more, prevent the hurts from happening in the first place. As grateful as she was to heal those who were hurt, she felt like she was on the sidelines of the action. She was there to clean up after everything had happened, not to take part in it. Those thoughts left a sour taste in her mouth, she forced herself to push the thoughts away, only for the moment. Those desires would need to be addressed soon enough.

[Sophia Sunshore]

Time seemed to flow between Sophia and the great cat in strange ways, stretching and bending as the Svefra kept her eyes trained on the golden orbs before her. Her heart thrummed in her chest as she continued to send her message to the tiger with all that she had. The creature blinked once, twice, the motion almost lazy and then after a brief pause Sophia felt it in herself. A brush of disinterest, her feeling of peace reflected back at her and beneath it all she thought she could feel the soul of the beautiful cat before her. The tiger flicked an ear and stood in one fluid motion, it's gaze lingering on her for just a second longer. As its form disappeared into the thick foliage, Sophia realised she had started to hold her breath and she let it out in one whoosh of air.

Her eyes lingered on the space in the understory where the creature had vanished through. Sophia had never felt a connection like that before - barring her Tavan Pearl. She wondered how it would have felt had she possessed the mark of the jungle, not the grasslands. Sophia's short adult life had so far been focused on the plants that grew around her. She understood that the animals were connected to them too - that all things linked together so that an environment could work in harmony - but she had been so caught up in creating this new life for herself that she had forgotten. Had Mother Caiyha sent the tiger to remind her? I must do better to connect with the land around me...

Sophia had almost forgotten where she was and that she had others with her until Okara stood and broke her line of sight. The Svefra blinked, pulled out of her thoughts, and trained her eyes on the face of the Konti in front of her. The confusion in her voice was clear and Sophia subconsciously shifted her arm to give the healer a better view of her mark. Okara had appeared to recognise it for what it was, and Sophia returned the smile with one of her own.

Before she could say anything, Okara had turned her own arm in a similar way, and the Svefra flicked her eyes down to see that the healer had been chosen too. It was one she thought she recognised, the beautiful swirling mark that often graced those who could heal others. Sophia's smile stretched a little wider. "Ah, you are more of a healer than I thought!" As Okara lowered her arm again Sophia figured she should explain herself.

"Mother Caiyha marked me before I arrived here. It means that I can... talk to plants and animals in a way. You didn't hear me say anything because I do not need to speak out loud to do so." Her eyes drifted past the Konti and back to the trees for a brief moment before she continued. "I have the grassland mark as you can see, and it means that when I am there I can feel the health of those lands. I connect with the plains far easier than I do with the jungle. I don't feel anything like that here. The tiger didn't have to listen to me at all."

Sophia paused as that particular line came out of her mouth. She dreaded to think of what might have happened had the great cat ignored her completely. It hadn't seemed to be feeling aggressive, but nature is unpredictable. She wondered if she might have been fast enough to draw her cutlass and protect Okara. She smiled at Okara again, perhaps not quite as brightly as usual. "I am glad that she did though." She had suddenly come over with an odd feeling of being lost. Was it perhaps her lack of connection to the environment around her?

To distract herself from those thoughts Sophia turned her attention on Okara again. "So, what exactly can you do with your mark? Would you have been able to help us if the tiger had decided not to leave?" She glanced over to where Uta was still inspecting the fungus a little way off. Sophia raised an eyebrow and smiled sidelong at the Konti next to her. "Should we tell her?"