Open What the Tide Dragged In

[Miha]

Spring 10th 520AV

The scratch of many sharp legs pricked the skin around her face. Miha's opened her eyes, vision zeroing in on the shell that she had on front of her. From her vantage point on the deck of the merchant ship she hitched the ride on, the Empyreal Demesne was in sight. The Empyreal Demesne... home of the Meraki, a guild of arcanists from Sunberth with the skill to carve out a home in the wilderness just outside of Zeltiva.

The seal only hoped her meager knowledge of auristics would be enough. She had spent the last fifteen chimes focusing on the aura of the shell. The fledgling aurist had wanted to know what lived inside it last. The delicate cycle of tidepools left the bodies of creatures to be used and reused, and hermit crabs simply took advantage of the fact. Miha felt similar with her deep blue hand-me-down shirt, one of the only remnants of her pod. That and her mother's silver ring, whose pearl had dislodged itself seasons ago. She sighed and pushed back her salty, windblown hair from her face.

Her grandmother had made little progress in getting Miha to see auras. Underwater, where she had practiced the most with her, her sensitive whiskers could pick up the tiniest of vibrations in the sea around them. They were much more useful than her eyes, only seeing a few feet in the dark of the sea at a time, but Miren was the most accomplished mage she knew. That woman could see auras in the dark that not even her own Kelvic form could find. Miha liked touch better, anyway. It was easier to focus when she could keep her eyes closed. Too much went on for her to look at, and she didn't like the cross-eyed feeling she got trying to stare at something until it gave away its secrets. Maybe her cheeks weren't as sensitive as a seal's right now, but she sure thought they made better receptors for auras.

The Kelvic stood up, tossing the shell back into the deep blue. If she sat there ruminating so much she'd be rocked to sleep by the waves in no time, and the seal was about to get off. As the Demesne drew closer, Miha gathered up her shyke. A bag fully kitted out with camping supplies, she wasn't even sure if she would need it - maybe they'd let her in with open arms and she'd sleep in a bed that night. She'd sold her tiny cottage and left in the same day. Zeltiva was too crowded for her, and her cottage was too far from the sea to let the waves lull her to sleep. The salvager had been in a rut for so long after losing her pod that the first hint of a new start was enough for her to drop everything and leave. Even if it was only a few miles.

Miha was antsy to get off the ship as they pulled up to the dock. She was ready for this new chapter. She was so ready. They had no cargo here, but they were leaving Zeltiva the same day she wanted to and a couple of gold Mizas was enough to convince the captain that a short stop was worth it. The seal wished the captain safe travels and departed down the dock towards the tower. She was already resolved to sticking around until they had to let her join. She wasn't going to petch up her first chance at a new family.

[Kelski]

The dock wasn't unoccupied. It had seemed to swing out and cradle the ship as it docked, then it stilled as the passenger with her meager belongings debarked. A child sat on the end of it, dangling his feet off the water. He had a shock of blond hair that was a lot like Miha's hair, though his was the gold of summer not the pale whiteness of winter. He looked over his shoulder at her and grinned, the sunshine causing his bronzed skin to glitter slightly.

If he was six or seven, he was big for his age.

Rising, he padded towards her with bare feet. He had a shirt on, but it was some sort of cotton with a faded print that was untucked from the short pants he wore. His hair looked like he'd swam in it, then let it dry unruly. A light dusting of freckles crossed his face and his eyes glowed with true power.

"Who are you?" He demanded, padding to a stop before the Kelvic Seal and staring up at her fiercely. "And why are you here?" He asked abruptly. It was odd. He seemed to draw more form, become more physical, as he approached her. A lone finger stuck out, pointed at her, and then bounced off her stomach about bellybutton level.

"I don't like strangers." He said. He was very articulate for a child. In fact, though he looked like one, he didn't sound like one at all. As he moved - poked - the dock rippled under him a moment though there were no waves. The child rippled with attitude, something protective but with an underlying fear behind it as well. He waited for her answer, fierce expression on his face, though the Kelvic Seal had done nothing to merit it.

From behind him... towards the shore... wings beat the earth and a shadow was cast along the sand and out across the rippling bay water to where the dock was. The boy thrust his head upwards, still angry, and watched as a Sea Eagle circled.

Kelski could feel the Kelvicness of the other woman just as the stranger could feel the Kelvicness of the sea eagle circling. The boy waved, calling out to the eagle above. "I got this, Kelski. Its fine." He yelled into the sky. The Sea Eagle circled again, backwinged, and landed behind him transforming before her talons even touched the dock.

"You don't have this, Dock. What are you even doing? Harrassing this visitor? That's not our way." She said with a frown, her silver eyes worried as she scanned the woman.

"Are you okay? I'm Kelski. Don't mind him. He tends to be crabby... often. But not without reason. We've been attacked by strangers on ships before. It makes him protective." She said, walking up to the child and resting her hands on his shoulders briefly. The boy turned and looked over his shoulder at the woman and shook his head. Then, just like that, he vanished as if he'd never actually been there to begin with. The dock rippled as if in response, and Kelski ended up spreading her feet apart to balance as the structure moved with the water as if there were waves that weren't actually present.

"I'm Kelski. Will you please come ashore before he tosses us both in the sea?" She asked, a ripple of amusement passing across her silver gaze. "I love him like hes my own flesh and blood... because he is... but Dock was born testy...and I don't think he likes anyone but the Svefra and those born of the sea." She added, having no idea at that moment what Miha's kelvic form was. That being said, since she didn't know, odds are Dock didn't know either, and the Architectrix probably would have treated Miha a whole lot better if he had.

"Like me, he has a fascination with the sea. He doesn't much care for people though. He'd rather hang out with a pod of dolphins or a family of sea lions than any of us with two legs." She added, offering the newcomer a grin.

"Good thing for you I like Kelvics... a lot. I don't share Dock's prejudices." She added, holding out a hand for the other woman, inviting her ashore to find a quiet place to sit awhile and talk. Up at the Tower would work well enough.. there was a lovely garden table and someone - most likely Mosa - would bring them out something cool to drink... and maybe cookies. There were often cookies.

If Miha would come with her, Kelski would show her the way up a small cart road towards the tower in the bluff and its little wrought iron table and chairs.

Word Count: 828

[Miha]

Miha was taken aback by the child. He looked like a child, but just-so-not-quite human. At first, the Kelvic thought he was a Kelvic, too, but he gave off no such feelings. Whatever he was, he didn't seem affected by the wavering of the dock like she was. The seal had met plenty of children before, and protective, standoffish children were not a rarity. Especially if they had run into trouble before.

"I'm here for the Empyreal Demesne," she replied, calm as the waves that lapped the shore. She was already tired from reading the aura of the shell before, and so whatever blend of inhuman this child was remained elusive. The Kelvic suspected he wouldn't sit still long enough to let her try and read it if she could. "I hope I won't be a stranger for long."

Miha was thinking of what to say next when a shadow passed - not uncommon, birds were all over the coast. She looked up when the child called to it. Kelsk. She recognized the bird as another Kelvic immediately. She felt her fortune changed for the better. Kelvics tended towards being more understanding to other Kelvics. Truth be told, the seal knew very little about the Empyreal Demesne. She had heard only that it was a place of mages, popped up near Zeltiva. She had rushed into the scene as blind as a bat.

She watched the eagle circle and, just before she hit the wood, shift into the form of a pretty woman with particularly striking hair. She watched as the child was chastised and started to walk towards the pair. "I'm Miha. I've been around feisty children before. It's okay."

The seal was mid-step when he gave Kelski what she could only presume was a dirty look and disappeared. Along with his disappearance was a ripple along the dock, almost causing her to lose her balance. "He's not a child at all, is he?" She asked, already knowing the answer was "yes", but with no concept of what else he could be. She took Kelski's hand as they hurried off the dock. "If he likes creatures of the sea and Svefra, I think we will become great friends." She added, smiling. "I'm a seal raised in a Svefra Pod, after all." Miha was instantly more comfortable around Kelvics. It helped that she didn't have to explain anything. Humans tended towards being more judgemental.

She followed Kelski up towards the tower and a lovely little garden table. She took a seat across from the other Kelvic, someone she now assumed to be in charge. She at least took charge from the child. "This place is more beautiful than I expected. Not that I knew what to expect..." She trailed off, taking in the sight of the tower and the wild, natural beauty that surrounded it. Soon after they sat, an elderly woman walked out with a pitcher of apple juice, two cups, and a plate of sugar cookies. She set them down and turned to the newcomer and introduced herself as Mosa.

"I'm Miha, it's great to meet you." She replied. Mosa excused herself to leave the pair alone, and the seal turned her full attention to Kelski, cookie in hand and an already half-empty glass of apple juice. "I heard of this place in Zeltiva. I lost my Pod a year ago and I've been listless since. That's why I came." She paused to take a bite of her cookie. "Normally I work as a salvager. My Kelvic form lends itself to trawling the bottom of the bay for shipwrecks, and Mathew's Bay has a shyke ton of them." She shrugged. "Usually I just find anything that looks useful, but sometimes I find jewelry, pearl oysters...all kinds of things get lost at sea." Miha cuoldn't tell if she was overexplaining herself or not. She wanted to be thorough in case that made Kelski more interested in letting her join. It was hard to know what to do in this sort of situation.

"I know some Auristics, too... it helps with finding things. What about you? What is it that's done here, exactly?" She added at the end, anxious for Kelski's thoughts on the matter.

[Kelski]

The boy shrugged, as if he didn’t care what Miha was here for. And truthfully, he didn’t. Dock was at a strange stage of his development, an awkward one if his mother was to be consulted, that left him apathetic and frequently angry. He was doing better now though… as a dock bridging the land with the sea. But that didn’t mean he still wasn’t grumpy, irritable, and generally anti-social. It was something Kelski had been meaning to work on, but there was absolutely no time to do so. She was busy… unbelievably busy… and Dock was falling by the wayside because of it.

Both women talked as they existed the dock, heading uphill towards the tower.

The Kelvic smiled in relief as the other Kelvic seemed to understand. “No, not really. He’s more pure magic with a rough history… and he can hear you.” She warned, though laughter was dancing in her eyes. She knew Dock would have heard that Miha was a Kelvic Seal and that would be a game changer for her. She might have a petch of a time getting rid of Dock if he annoyed Miha, since he had sworn off all humans and only seemed to like things of the sea. Kelski only smiled at the thought.

“Thank you…. a place of mages in the wilderness should be beautiful, no?” The Sea Eagle asked, thanking Mosa as she did indeed appear with cookies. They were delicious nut ones, buttery and covered with almonds. “You are astute to realize Dock isn’t a child… even though he doesn’t try to hide the fact.” Kelski added, then tilted her head. She was glad Miha explained what a salvager was because it wasn’t a term Kelski had come across.

“That could be very handy out here in Matthews Bay. There are a lot of shipwrecks, I suspect, and a lot of underwater ruins from before The Valterrian. There was a city near here… if not on top of here once. I don’t know its name, but my mentor lives just down the beach in some of its very old ruins. I’ve never heard of a salvager. I’m glad you explained it.” Kelski said thoughtfully and tilted her head.

Once in the garden at the wrought iron table, there was indeed cookies and cool iced water. Kelski was forever grateful for the old women who lived with her. Mosa was ever hospitable and worked far too hard for her age. But she was safe, dry, well fed, and would never have to live in Sunberth’s Tent City again. Kelski picked up a cookie, nibbled at it. The cookie was almond, sweet, and once one crunched through the almonds, the inside was soft. The Kelvic smiled.

“I’ll tell you what we do here, but then I’d like to hear the most interesting thing you’ve ever discovered.” Kelski said thoughtfully, and leaned back. She was a warrior, more so than she would ever admit, and while she looked relaxed, her guard wasn’t down… not in the least. Miha was friendly, a kelvic and that meant Kelski trusted her more than a total stranger, but still… she didn’t know her.

“We’re building a fortress for mages… a guild where people can come and practice or learn magic as they will it free of the prejudices of the cities. We are building a safe place to live that grows its own food, has its own livestock and gardens, and trades fairly with the Svefra and multiple other cities via The Outpost. We have a good population here… a tiny city worth… and we protect each other and are carving out a future in the wilderness. Zeltiva knows we exist, and too does the Svefra. None of them really mind since we have things they want and they have things we want. We’ve managed to put in a saw mill for wood… and the buildings themselves – as you’ve seen – are somewhat magical in nature as well. We have mages of all sorts to teach magical disciplines if that’s what people want… but we are selective about who we take… we don’t want people who want power for the sake of power. We want people who want an investment in magic because they are scholarly and have a love of magic.” Kelski said simply, laying it out for Miha.

Then she looked thoughtful and added. “We’d also love to rediscover old lost magics and bring them back into the fold. That’s what Dock is… an old lost magic we’ve brought back. It’s just one magic – a simple one – but there are others out there. We just have to find them.” Kelski added, then smiled at Miha.

“How did you learn your magics you know? You know an unusual amount for a Kelvic. Normally mages dismiss our race and don’t think to share their knowledge with us.” She said thoughtfully, then waited for Miha to respond.

She did take another cookie. Lately she’d been suffering terrible sugar cravings.

Word Count: 832

[Miha]

Miha nodded along to Kelski's explanations. She loved the cookies that Mosa brought out. They were soft, and tasted like nothing she'd had before. The seal hadn't ever had almond. The iced tea was a bit more familiar, but it tasted better than the watered down tea she'd had in Zeltiva. They really had been building something for themselves here, something lovely and far more welcoming in view and lifestyle than Zeltiva. The way that Kelski described it made it seem almost like a big family.

The Kelvic took another cookie before answering Kelski's question about how she learned her magic. Being reminded of her pod always made her a bit solemn, but she had to avoid drifting off into daydreams when she was in a conversation. Hah. "My gran taught me - she was a salvager, too, even though she was a human. As soon as she knew I was a seal she snatched me up like an apprentice of sorts. It's how she managed to figure out when useful things were hidden around. She couldn't hold her breath as long as me, so we always dove in the shallows. There's some places you can see all the way to the bottom of the water and the wrecks that lie there." Miha looked a bit wistful. It was always difficult doing things on her own, now. If Kelski liked her then she wouldn't have to be on her own anymore.

The seal sipped her iced tea. "So lost magics, huh? I don't really know about anything other than auristics. I heard about another pod getting one of their smaller boats burnt to ashes in the water because of a reimancer once, though. We didn't really have a lot of mages in our family unless they were salvagers, too. I guess it was a family tradition." She paused for a second, considering what else the woman had said. "I've been curious, about magics other than auristics... I wouldn't even know where to start on my own. Really, learning anything that can help me do more than dredge up waterlogged bits and bobs...even just learning how to refurbish those things. That's what I want to do. I want to learn more about the world, because I've experience so little of it just doing what I know day in and day out. That's why I'm here. That...and I'm looking for a family. I lost mine, and being alone is hard. Especially for people like us." Miha had almost bonded to her gran, but the old woman nipped that in the bud. She didn't quite know why, and sometimes blamed herself for not being good enough. Not that it mattered anymore. It had been years since she'd seen them, and they were likely fish food.

Miha herself seemed totally relaxed. She was rarely worried about new people and new things, and it had yet to bite her in the ass. The seal wasn't just relaxed, though, she was excited! These new opportunities lay before her and she desperately hoped that Kelski wouldn't turn her down. Life in Zeltiva was okay, but it wasn't fun or exciting. It was stifling living in an environment made for humans. This place was run by a Kelvic, and she already knew it would be a hundred times better. Plus, there was so much more beach and a nice, long, very magical dock for her to lie in the sun on, if he'd allow it.

Miha stood up, straightened her clothes, and grabbed another cookie. She was getting addicted to the taste of them. So good! "Do you think you could give me a tour around?" Miha started walking around the edges of her known world, peering around to see just how big the place was. She had a feeling that what she had seen was just a fraction of the place. "You've really got quite the place here." She knew she'd already complimented its beauty, but she couldn't get over it. The view was fantastic and the lands themselves - the forests, the water, the cliffs, the buildings - they all came together to something that was just so pleasing to the eye.