Closed A Delivery

[Oralie]

73rd winter, 521
afternoon

The Outpost was rather overwhelming to Oralie. She had been used to the hustle and bustle of markets in Syliras, but then her goal had been to blend in and obtain her goods as quickly and quietly as possible. Now though, she was a different person, someone who wanted to see new things and not hide away from everything and everyone. And besides, she was certain that the Syliras markets could fit in the Open Sky Bazaar several times over.

Even getting to the Bazaar itself had been a lot for her. While she was growing very quickly accustomed to magic and the myriad of ways it could present itself, the fact that a strange door could transport someone from one place to a totally different one boggled her mind. She had known that it was possible, for Priskil had told her so earlier in the season. The Goddesses sleeping love had made such things long ago, though those particular doors no longer worked. Oralie had wondered idly if Priksil knew about the Dovecotes as she had taken the first tentative steps down the path in the strange new place she had ended up in.

The Kelvic had paused when the Bazaar had come in to sight, the sheer amount of noise and movement of people a little bit of a shock after the relative quiet of Syka. Bree, Tazrae’s Izxam had gently pressed her shoulder into Oralie’s side, reminding her that she was not by herself and there was no need to be worried. Once she had taken a couple of breaths, Oralie had followed Bree through the edge of the Bazaar, and slowly grew comfortable enough to look properly at some of the things they passed by.

It quickly became apparent that there must be traveling doors to nearly every place on Mizahar. There were so many wares that looked like they belonged in totally different places. They passed by some clothing merchants selling beautiful heavy furs that had no business ever seeing Syka’s sweltering sunlight. There were more lovely patterned fabrics that she was sure Tazrae would probably like the look of, and even a stall selling the most beautiful evening dresses that Oralie had ever seen.

The Kelvic kept close to Bree, for it looked like it was very easy to get lost here. She wondered if there were any potters selling wares, and craned her neck occasionally to try and see past groups of people. Bree however was setting quite a quick pace so she did not really have time to properly look. She would have to come back another time and try to find some.

Eventually they left the Bazaar and the crowds behind. Oralie followed the Ixam until it stopped outside a building named ‘The Shuval Apartments’. She glanced at Bree, who nodded, and Oralie held the door open before following her through. She stepped after the Ixam, following her out into a courtyard area littered with various chairs and tables. It was a lovely place, and Oralie was not surprised Tazrae had purchased an apartment here.

Bree led her out to a specific door before sitting and waiting patiently for her to catch up. Oralie fished the key out of her belt pouch, hesitating before sliding it into the lock. Was Alric inside? She hoped that if he was, the man wouldn’t be too startled to see her instead of Tazrae. Did he even know she existed? She looked over at Bree again. The Ixam obviously had been here before, so her presence would surely mollify the man if he was not sure about Oralie.

She took a breath, turned the key in the lock and gently pushed open the door. As she took a step, Oralie decided to knock twice on the door, to signal in a roundabout way that it was not Tazrae entering.
“Hello? I’m looking for Alric? I have something for you from Tazrae.”

+651

[Tazrae]

The Letter

A Rolled Parchment :

Alric-

I hope this letter finds you well.

There's a lot that's happened that I need to tell you about immediately, but I can't make it to The Outpost for a while. It's my hope you will know the woman who bears this letter as a friend for she is the young Kelvic that has been working for me at The Protea, Oralie. Bree agreed to take her to see you and deliver this letter. Share kindness with her since she has had so little of it in her life.

I was riding Bree in the jungle and was attacked. Someone threw bolas at Bree and tangled her legs. She fell from where we were running which caused us to get separated. The Ixam had enough sense when she understood it was an attack and ran for the Settlement to get help. I was captured.

It was a group of men - large in number - in the region gathering what they claimed were spell components and investigating the area for a potentially new stronghold because from what I understood the pressures of the desert had been overwhelming them and displacing them more and more due to war.

They were led by a man named Nico. He was under the direct control of Florentin Arcadius. The man seemed to recognize me, and more than that my twin sister was among the group acting as their field healer. This man was not a nice man and her treatment was appalling.

While in captivity, I overheard a few things I wanted to share with you. These things are going to be hard to hear, but I need you to know and I don't dare leave them unsaid while I convalesce in Syka's sun. Arcadius doesn't want you for the same reason he wanted your mother. He doesn't need you for breeding stock. Arcadius can somehow now step into a new form. He doesn't need your cooperation or your spirit to remain. He can take your body and make it his own, and live your life as his. There is no telling how many times he's done this or actually how old he is. Nico was adamant that they were looking for Arcadius' a new vessel and had to find him one soon. Once he has done this - if it is indeed possible, which I think it is - he can sire as many vessels as he wants as his host ages. It's why he wants me as well. It seems while my sister has no deep and abiding well, her magic is rich with healing and that's where her passion lies. I got all the aptitude Arcadius favors.

Be careful Alric. I have gotten away, thanks to the help of one of those dreams like you had. I had one of my own that was very similar, where I stirred a cauldron and a woman named Falyndar said she needed me. It changed me in ways I'm just beginning to understand. But at its core, I am now able to borrow a shape much like Bree enjoys and I used it to flee Nico before much harm was done. I took his head while I was at it - with my teeth. Then I fled with my sister and my life straight into the arms of a rescue party that Bree had rallied to our cause.

I have more information on Arcadius too. He is Florentin Arcadius Kois. My twin sister Kami was a hostage to him to keep the desert tribes from all-out war. He’s a Kois and my father is a Lisuli. My mother is warchief of the Kois, Matari Arcadius Kois. My father is Talsis Lisuli, third in line to the Lisuli leadership. They had a clandestine romance that couldn’t last. My Grandfather pulls the strings of the Kois, though his son who is my uncle is its leader. His stronghold is their stronghold and it's buried deep in the Eyktol desert. He held Kami to keep both the Kois and Lisuli in line. He holds her no longer.

Florentin Arcadius thought I'd died. My mother told him so because she knew I was the mage between the sisters while Kami was a powerful healer. I do not think my Grandfather believed her. She sent me into hiding with her own sister and her sister's long crush, my uncle Marketh. Estra was my mother's fraternal twin too.

I don't know if Nico was able to get him a message before I took his head.

Among Nico's people was a god Mascarading as a bard who was doing the recording of the expedition on what it found in terms of spell components and artifacts. It turns out it was Rhaus, keeping watch on the doings of mortals. He gave me a second audius mark and told me to get free and live... that I was important to this fight.

I flat out asked him... why Florentin Arcadius trying to get the Nymkarta bloodline into his family? Our… family? I’ve seen some things… in the past. He stole a woman who wasn’t his and did things to her, got her with children, until she could have no more, and is looking for her son that she had prior to his capture. She was a Nymkarta. This is what he told me.

Florentin isn’t a Nuit, but he’s older than even the Valterrian. He’s stolen something, something that doesn’t belong to him, and it allows him to… move from body to body like a parasite. He wasn’t originally of the Arcadius line either. He is something far older. But he’s taken it on as his own. And now he owns the whole of the bloodline, those that originally claimed it long gone. He wasn’t aiming for the Arcadius originally though. He wanted the Nymkarta. They were too smart and too powerful for him to take on until Kova was slain and they were scattered, mostly dead, via the Valterrian. He’s been tracking down the members remaining, one by one, and trying to bring their power into his own collective. Ivak thwarted him by Championing the Nymkarta left in Kova's line.

But Kova wasn’t the only sibling of that generation and her family passed through the Valterrian mostly unscathed. Her brother’s sons and their sons have all had strong djedline infused children until there was only one left and he got a child on a woman of another strong djedline. She gave birth to a daughter they called Serana. Serana was taken by Florentin because it was easier to infuse her djedline into his through breeding rather than magical means. The man refused to jump into a woman's body.

Serena also had a son, by a very powerful Mortanis, before she was taken and that boy is at risk of being Florentin’s next host. We knew that, and that the boy is you. They are assuming that you have as much or more power than Serana due to your father’s line. And if you have more power than Florentin’s current form, Florentin won’t suffer you to live long without taking you as a host. Rhaus said if he manages to switch hosts again, into you Alric, then I am in grave danger for he'll want me to be the next mother of the next set of hosts. Our power joined will be formidable in any children we have.

So my problems grow. Syka is now in danger from these intruders. When I fled after Nico's death, I ran straight into the rescue party that was coming full force to free me. They tried to kill what was left, but it only takes one person to escape and warn Florentine.

Kami is with me now. She's staying at the Healers where she thinks she has found a calling in a place that might just be able to keep her safe from her Grandfather. Her life has not been easy. And I honestly don't know how much I can trust her. We are working on that. I wish I could also have told you these things in person, but it's not possible. Nico had too much time alone with me and I need to recover before I can travel to The Outpost again.

Thank Oralie for bringing this letter. It took a huge act of courage on her part to leave The Inn and do me this favor. She is not good in crowds or with a lot of people yet. I am sorry I'm not there to tell you all this in person either.

But I understand how important it is for you to know all this. Trust no one, Alric. Be safe. We always knew this situation was dangerous, but if the Gods are watching and waiting... I can only fear this is world-changing. Your family is notorious for being in evolved with those things. And at least we know you are not the last out there. Somewhere, walking the world, is a Champion of Ivak that is your cousin.

PS. I sent cookies with Oralie.

Tazrae

Words: 1512

[Alric Lysane]

He had been spending more time at the Outpost of late, in fact many of his nights since about halfway through the season were spent there rather than in his shack in Sunberth. Partly this was because it was nice, more spacious and generally better atmosphere. It was also, however, largely due to the fact that it was a safe place to practise his magic – an even more important point these days as he was progressing and trying out skills that were not so easily concealed. The fact that he had the Keiss within shouting distance should Florentin – or his associates – turn up, was an added bonus. Still, he spent most of his days in Sunberth and when he worked the doors at Ruby’s it was often easier to trudge back to his shack than to walk all the way to the Outpost. Not all of his things had moved over, though there were a number of new purchases dotted here and there – a few books and some small pieces of furniture. More and more the Outpost seemed to him more of a home than as somewhere to clandestinely meet with a certain curly haired Sykan to explore dangerous things together. He wondered, briefly, as he sipped his wine, whether the dangerous things also included each other. The Founders had warned her as much, and he understood their reasoning. Still, it had been impossible not to grow to respect her more as their meetings increased in number, hearing of her life and what she might have had without worry from association with him. The fact that she had kept coming at all had made a deep impression upon him, one he thought he’d never really lose. Sunberth was a dark and grimy place. A place of few friends and much exploitation. She was the opposite to that, and he valued that generosity of spirit – not because it got him things, but because it showed what he could be, if he tried. He was reflecting upon such things, sat in his chair in his usually relaxed manner, when he heard the door lock begin to turn. He had not been expecting her at all, so he turned to offer Taz a smile as she entered, and that smile slipped as he realised it was not her. Briefly, in a flash of instinct, he thought that he could throw the cup at the intruder, be up the stairs and jumping out the second story doors, over the balcony and back to Sunberth quick enough. When Bree made an appearance his heart fell slightly, knowing deep down that that meant there was something wrong. There would be no need for Bree to come with another if Taz could come herself. Still, he eyed the Ixam briefly before plastering on a smile for the newcomer and moving to greet them. “I am Alric,” he said, looking the young woman over and seeing no apparent weapons or bulges beyond the usual that might suggest concealed thing about to be used upon him, “hello Bree…I take it something has happened?” “Tazrae’s written words can tell you better than I, Alric. She is sorry, though she is foolish to say so considering” “Considering?” he asked with a raised eyebrow, gaze shifting from Bree and then to the newcomer and back again. “Humans can be vile creatures” she returned with a grumbling sound that was akin for a snarl. “That I can’t deny. So…a letter then?” he asked the young woman, stepping aside so that they could both get into the apartments fully before he closed and locked the door behind them, scanning the outside to see if they had obviously been followed. As he met them again the woman held out a roll of parchment and he took it, opening it and beginning to read. As he read further his smile slipped into a deep frown, then a dark look crossed his face and his eyes hardened. By the end his fist had closed over his thin clay cup so hard that it cracked and squashed inwards, the remnants of what it had previously held splattering to the floor. He was also breathing heavily, nostrils flaring and there was little that he could do to vent his anger, and his sorrow. He settled for kicking the small side table across the room and throwing the now shattered clay into the fire, there to sizzle. The parchment, strangely enough, was barely crumpled, instead he let it fall to the chair as he passed to it, gripping its back tightly to prevent any further outbursts, though it would be clear his grip was straining quite a bit before he took in a number of deep breaths and rested his forehead upon the wood, there to close his eyes and try to seek an inner calm that he doubted he’d find for a while. Be kind, the letter had said, but he didn’t feel like being kind. No, he felt like murdering Florentin and all of his men, one by one and in some terrible fashion. Still, he breathed deeply and after a while managed to get his words out. “You…must be Oralie then,” he sighed, speaking slowly and carefully, “I’m sorry….it’s not your fault. It’s just…I’m sorry. Thank you, for being brave…for bringing this to me. I...” he pushed himself up, breathing out sharply as he did so, before stepping forwards and picking up the letter again, slumping into the chair. “How bad was it?” he asked, to both of them really, though he wasn’t sure either would know.

[Oralie]

Oralie’s gaze fell on the chair the man was seated in as soon as her eyes had adjusted to the room. She saw the bright smile on his face, softening his features and making him appear friendly and approachable. However, the smile quickly fell, and the Kelvic noticed something flicker behind his eyes as he looked at her. She could not tell what it was, but the brief expression had sent her guard snapping right up.

She felt Bree move into the room behind her, and the appearance of the Ixam seemed to mollify the man again. She was now even more glad that Bree had come with her this afternoon. The smile the man now wore seemed to be a struggle, not as genuine as the one that had clearly been meant for Tazrae. Oralie could sense the air of worry and questioning around him.

She nodded at the man when he eventually introduced himself, confirming himself to be Alric, the person she was looking for. She shifted her gaze to the Ixam next to her, letting Bree speak first. Her mouth drew into a thin line in agreement with the reptile’s statement, and she held the neatly rolled and tied letter out to Alric in lieu of an explanation.

Oralie waited patiently while the man read the long letter. Bree on the other hand, moved over to the fireplace and settled herself down, clearly much more comfortable in the room than the Kelvic was. She had no idea what the letter said, but she could guess the general gist of it from the darkening expression on his face as his eyes flicked across the lines of neatly written text. Oralie’s eyes widened in alarm as the cup he was holding broke in his tightening grip, and she visibly jumped when he kicked a small table across the room. Bree simply watched his outburst silently from her position near the fireplace.

Anger from other people scared Oralie, even when it was not directed at her. It was one of the things that she was still struggling to move past since arriving in Syka. Her heart fluttered in her chest like a hummingbird, and she inched around the room to stand closer to Bree as the man rested his head on the back of a chair. She positioned herself just the other side of the second empty chair, letting the furniture sit between her and Alric.

She met Alric’s gaze when he finally looked up at her. Tazrae must have mentioned her in the letter, for he knew her name. She was relieved to hear that his voice was somewhat steady, the anger he was feeling clearly being controlled now. “Yes, I am Oralie.” She shuffled her feet nervously. “Tazrae asked me to come here, I’d do anything to help her.”

She watched him sit, his posture defeated, and then considered his question. “She was in the Panacea for a few days… the healer’s clinic, that is. I did not get to see her until her injuries were mended though. And she is mended, physically.” Behind her Bree nodded. “She was tortured by that vile human. But she got him back, better than he did her.”

Oralie watched Alric for a moment before speaking again. “The rescue party bought back most, if not all of the Ixam the men had with them. I don’t know if they found any of the people, but even if they did not, I doubt they are able to survive the jungle without the Ixam. Taz seemed to think they were struggling even with them. So for now, I don’t think there is any immediate worry there.” Oralie, of course, had no idea the full scope of what had happened and what Tazrae had learned, but she was fairly certain of that fact. Even if a message had been sent by one of the men, it still had to get to whoever it was intended for before anything else could happen.

She slowly slid her backpack from her shoulders, unfastening the flap of it and sliding out a tin. She carefully set the tin down onto the nearest table. “She made cookies for you.” Because of course Tazrae had. Any opportunity to feed someone, and she was there. Oralie retreated back to the other side of her chair, still choosing not to sit down at the moment.

She studied Alric, her golden eyes taking in his features. His features were strong and he had long hair pulled back off his face. He seemed to have an air of roughness about him, the slightly crumpled clothing suggesting that he did not spend all of his time in the comfort of this apartment.
“Thank you.” Oralie spoke before she had properly considered what she might want to say. “For being Tazrae’s friend. I know that you are helping each other and I am glad. She tries to do too much by herself.”


+825

[Alric Lysane]

He listened as the sadness and rage battled within him, not quite sure which one would win out by the end of the day. He was not known for dealing with terrible things well, or rather, he’d not have been known for that had many people known him particularly well. Still, he could feel his muscles tensed, straining to get to work doing something terrible even as part of him rocked internally, foundations of happiness built throughout the season taking a bitter blow. He had decided not to go to Syka because he hadn’t wanted to bring down trouble upon the paradise. Now, it seemed, trouble had found it regardless and the person he felt closest to was unable to even see him after whatever vile tortures had been inflicted upon her. He also noted how Oralie was now visibly more nervous, not in a rude way but he knew a defensive posture when he saw one. She had moved, bit by bit, closer to Bree as she spoke and had not sat, instead keeping the other chair between them. He wasn’t sure that was wise, given his previous furniture kicking, but he understood. The letter had spoken of how this was likely difficult for her and he had simply added to that. There was a brief flash of shame as he transferred his gaze to Bree and the Ixam watched him intently, keeping her thoughts to herself for now. “A fate too kind for them,” he said in a carefully neutral tone, not wanting to disturb the young lass further, “hopefully one day I will get the chance to pay back their master in kind. Torment, for torment” he said, still looking at Bree, knowing that she would be bluntly honest with Taz when she returned. “Please, sit down Oralie. I have started our first meeting terribly. I can’t apologise for feeling the way I feel, but I shouldn’t make you feel…unsafe. Please, have some of the cookies. No doubt Taz meant for use to share them anyway, she always was a better person than I” he sighed, the rage dimming until it was a hard rock deep inside, submerged with sorrow. He pushed himself up, pulling out his corn cob pipe, thumbing in some tobacco and pulling a twig from the fire, lighting it with a few puffs before throwing the twig back. He paused to squat next to Bree, resting his free had upon her neck gently, leaving it there in solidarity with her before returning to his seat. He puffed a couple of times, inhaled deeply and let the small feeling or relaxation wash over him. Not that it did that much. He tilted his head and considered Oralie once more, wondering how much she knew. Not likely everything, even Bree didn’t know everything – though he conceded she probably deserved a full explanation now. “She said I was helping her?” he asked gently, gaze shifting between the two for a few moment, “Taz, you should take more credit” he said, almost to himself. “If anything she was helping me Oralie. She helped me discover who I am, gave me a way to live with it, grow and develop so that I could…well…suffice to say that she has been paid most poorly for helping me, it seems” he said, his tone becoming softer and sadder. He knew Taz would not see it that way but as far as he was concerned there was a sliver or truth to it, and that was enough to condemn him – at least partially. He was Arcadius’ target, apparently as a host of whatever he actually was, and no doubt the hunt for him factored into many moves that the bastard made – even if there was no obvious logical link. He was glad that Syka was apparently safe once more, even if temporarily, though that was a small mercy for the cost paid. “I should have been there,” he sighed, knowing that it was a vain hope to have that he might have been able to stop her suffering completely by his mere presence but it was how he felt, “she is stronger than I am, I think. I don’t know what I would do if she were to…” he let the fear trail off unsaid and sighed, taking another puff of his pipe. “No. Don’t thank me, I should thank you. She has spoken highly, and warmly, of you. No doubt you are a source of strength for her. If you are helping to watch over her I will sleep a little easier” he finished, though he wasn’t sure that he would sleep particularly well anyway.

[Oralie]

Oralie watched Alric carefully as he seemed to battle with his own thoughts for a moment. She took comfort from the presence of the Ixam behind her – Bree was visible in her peripheral vision near the fire. When he spoke once more, his voice was carefully calm, betraying no particular emotion. Perhaps he had sensed her almost animal like skittishness. It was not particularly hard to see. He seemed to mirror sentiments similar to those Oralie had voice to Tazrae, though perhaps a little more violent. She saw Bree give the man a single nod at his statement. She knew that the Ixam would leap at the chance to hurt those who had hurt Tazrae too.

The Kelvic blinked at Alric’s next words, her shoulders relaxing a little. She watched him as he moved to the fireplace to retrieve a burning stick before lighting a pipe. An intriguing scent soon filled the air, one that reminded her of the desserts her old master would have served at his dinner parties. His visible affection toward Bree soothed Oralie’s jangling nerves further, and she eventually perched herself on the edge of the second chair.

She considered him for a moment before speaking. “It’s okay. If you are as close to Tazrae as I suspect you are, then I suppose such a response is not unexpected.” She clasped and unclasped her hands in her lap. “You have no need to feel guilty. I… I am not so used to most of the unique quirks of other people’s behaviours yet.” Possibly a cryptic statement that she would hesitantly expand upon if asked, but Oralie felt a little bad that Alric seemed to feel guilty for expressing his anger in such a way. It was not his fault that she was scared of visible displays of anger.

Oralie listened to his words, trying to fit them into what little she had been told of his situation. “Well, she said you were helping each other. To learn… things.” She was unsure of how openly he would usually speak on such subjects as magic, hesitant to say the word since her lessons from the first Tenday had taught her it was mostly taboo outside of Syka. “She did not tell me your secrets, but I understand her Grandfather wants to hurt the both of you for whatever reason.”

The Kelvic offered him a genuine smile of sympathy as he echoed her sentiments. “I said as much to her. I have less use than… than a cooking pan made of wood, but I also wish I could have done something to help. If it is any comfort, the people of Syka look out for one another. As soon as Bree alerted us to what had happened every single person who could defend Tazrae left to do so.”

Oralie felt a rush of warmth and affection for Tazrae when Alric told her that the Innkeeper had spoken of her. She gave him a nod. “She has me, and Bree and Creature all with her at the Inn.” She paused for a tick before continuing, choosing her words carefully.
“I have told Tazrae that I will help her in any way that I can, and so I suppose in a way that extends to you as well, since you are both linked by the fact that you are each wanted by her Grandfather. I am not going to pretend to know what your story is, as like I said, Tazrae did not tell me, and rightly so. I am training myself to become stronger anyway, for other reasons. But Tazrae has become my family now and as far as I see it, I will do anything for my family.”

She ran a thumb across her left palm subconsciously. “I have one mage to face one day already, and that will not be an easy task. Whatever skills and knowledge I gain for that end, I will also lend to Tazrae.” She fixed her golden eyes on Alric once again, head tilted to one side. “I don’t know if I will see you again, but just know you have another ally in your quest.”


+693

[Alric Lysane]

“Magic, yes we are learning magic. It’s okay Oralie, she trusted you enough to bear this letter to me safely, you deserve to be able to speak openly about what you know. If you do not know things that you wish to then ask and I’ll answer…it only seems right given the fact that you could also be in danger now…truth it seems catches us all in the end” he sighed, feeling a squeezing sensation at his ankle and leaning down, seeing the resident Mussurana trying to climb up him, scooping it up with his hand and pulling it up, where it set about getting wrapped around his shoulders and in his lap. “Her Grandfather…Florentin Arcadius…fears and wants me, for reasons we weren’t really knowledgeable of until now, knowledge paid for with high cost…too high,” he frowned into the hearth as he absently stroked his Mussurana companion, “I’m not sure that I would have wanted to read it but sometimes sorrow in necessary” Bree came and settled between them at their feet, saying nothing and that told him enough about how she must feel about the whole thing. He wondered, but did not wish to ask, whether she felt as removed from Taz as he did with the whole thing. Neither of them would blame her for needing her space but he hoped that she confided everything in the Ixam, she had a way of making you think differently about things and as far as he knew Bree was the only one who knew almost the whole truth – if not all. When Oralie spoke, revealing the assumption that she was useless he momentarily forgot his own rage and a flash of compassion rippled through him, softening his gaze slightly as he wondered whether she had had a hard life as he had. He remembered feeling much the same about some things until he had been shown that it was not the case. She clearly had courage, if coming to the Outpost was difficult for her, and the suggestion that people made her uncomfortable for whatever reason. He reflected upon her initial skittishness and her comments after, wondering if Taz in some way thought that knowing each other might help them both, even if subconsciously. “I think she would say that you are brave and worth more than you think,” he said with a brief flash of a smile, “in fact she said as much, if not exactly, in her letter to me. Life…is not always kind, or givens us what we like…but it does sometimes give us the chance to be more than ourselves. Taz was that, for me, and I suspect that there will be such times for you, too. Do not sell yourself short Oralie. I feel guilty because she said that I could come to Syka a season ago…I refused because I didn’t want to put her in danger…danger found her anyway and I wasn’t there” he sighed and shook his head. “My story isn’t that interesting, but it is special in its own way. I am…from an old Djedline, powerful affinity to magic, and hated by many. Wanted by some. I didn’t know until Taz helped me discover it, that is why I am wanted. It is a secret, but you both should know, so you know why this all happened. No doubt more will come eventually, I would encourage you to prepare and I will help if I can, though I am limited to only doing so here, if that is possible” “You have your own secrets it seems Oralie...you own mage to find and a sense of self-belief that is as low as mine. Are you sure we don’t share mothers?” he asked with a snort of amusement, knowing the impossibility, “I won’t pry but I suspect that one day…whether for good or ill…we will meet again. It is, after all, what the Vision Waters showed. I hope, when that day comes, that you will still greet me as a friend” “Tell me…what do you plan to do? Not just to help Taz, but towards your own goals. One thing I have learned is that giving everything to others is not always the best thing for yourself…I’ve never been one for sworn loyalty or some such thing, which is ironic I suppose, but I would want you to be happy with yourself. If that meant that you were happy to help me then all the better. You have helped me today, is there some way that I can help you?”

[Oralie]

Oralie watched Alric carefully, large golden eyes reflecting the flickering fire. She did not blink as much as humans did and her pupils were strangely large in the dim light of the room. If the man had not yet figured out that she was not quite what she appeared to be, then it likely wouldn’t take him that much longer under her intense stare.

She nodded slightly, just a small incline of the head, when he spoke of magic. She was glad that he did not seem to be one for what she saw as unnecessary secrecy, though not knowing the ways of the wider world would lead her to admit that perhaps sometimes it was prudent to me more careful with ones words.

She looked down with surprise to see the slender Mussurana snake coil itself in Alric’s hands before settling on his lap. Of course there would be one of those here. She smiled softly at it. “I don’t think I have ever been out of danger to be honest.” She flicked her gaze back up to his. “What is a little more?” She tried to make her tone light, but she knew that they both felt the heaviness of the situation.

Florentin Arcadius… Tazrae had not said her Grandfather’s name out loud to her before. She was glad to know it now. She cast her mind back, trying to recall if she may have heard it before, but came up blank. It was a unique name, so surely she would remember if she had done. Her brows knit together as Alric revealed it was he that the mage was after. Her head tilted as she studied him while he watched the flames. He was a curious person. He seemed rough around the edges and she had the sense that he was fully capable of taking care of himself in… tough situations, but she could also see that he had a sharp mind, one with many thoughts.

He seemed to bring his focus back to the room again at Oralie’s words, and as he responded the Kelvic’s eyes widened a fraction and she dropped her gaze to her hands, neatly clasped in her lap, as he continued to speak. It sounded like the pair of them were similar in a way. She did not know his past, and doubted that they had been through the same things in a literal sense. But in a metaphorical sense? Perhaps they were more similar than outward appearances would suggest.

She peered at him. “I hope you are not blaming yourself for what happened. It seems it would have happened either way, and if nobody already in Syka could have stopped it, then I doubt you would have been able to.” She paused, thinking for a moment. “In any case, I would say it is good that you were not there, because from what you have just told me I would imagine they might have tried to take you too.”

Oralie nodded as he continued to explain a little more about himself. She had no idea what a Djedline was, but she did know about djed now. From his words it sounded like a Djedline was a magic family, similar to how people had blood families. It sounded to her like he was sharing his most important secret, and she adopted a serious expression as she spoke again. “Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me Alric.” She liked the man, she decided. He was earnest and warm underneath a somewhat hard exterior. “I am not going to pretend to know what a Djedline is… but know that your secrets will be safe with me. I hope that whatever information we bought you today will help you stay safe.”

Oralie had relaxed further as the pair had been speaking, despite the tense and serious nature of their conversation. She was now sat properly in the chair, though there was still an air of alertness about her in the set of her shoulders and the slight tilt to her head.

He tugged at her curiosity again and allowed a proper smile to wind over her mouth for the first time since she had entered the room. She had always thought it would be difficult to find people out in the world who were genuine and who cared for others in such a pure and honest way. But she had repeatedly had that thought proved wrong. First when she landed on the shores of Syka, second when Tazrae had welcomed her into her home immediately and fully, and now with Alric in this dim room in a place she had never heard of before this morning.

“You have trusted me enough to share what I suspect is your most guarded secret, so in return I will share with you. You may have guessed by now, but I am not human.” She paused, waiting for any indication that he had figured it out. “I am a Kelvic, an ocelot to be precise. My parents were not… pleased when they realised and they sold me. I was slave in Syliras for all of the past three years – my whole life. I managed to escape from my master and ended up in Syka. I have no idea if he wants me back… he certainly has enough money to buy another poor soul if he wanted to.” She sighed at the thought.

She smiled wryly. “So there is no worry of me swearing my services to anyone. I do not want that sort of life again. However, for the first time in my life I now have people to care about, who actually, somehow seem to care about me too. And I refuse to lose that. So I will be helping Tazrae however I can, and therefore, you too.”

Oralie reached for a cookie and bit into it with relish. Tazrae really was the best cook. She found that the more she spoke with Alric about who they each were, the more she felt that she was on the right path. It felt like he was always meant to have been the next person she met.

“What do I plan to do? Well… as I sort of mentioned before, I am not the most… useful person when it comes to confrontations. So that is what I want to change. I’m a little lost as to where I should be starting, but I am sure I can figure it out. I need to somehow become strong enough to help take down a mage who once defeated a God.” She laughed nervously at the thought. “If you know how to go about that I am all ears.”

She smiled again and then showed Alric her left palm. It shimmered with a soft golden light, almost like lines of magical thread creating a vortex in her hand. Part of her duty was to share knowledge of the Radiant Goddess to others. “I am blessed by my Lady Priskil. Those of us who are, one day hope to remove the evil mage Sagallius from his power and restore the heart he stole from her love.” She watched Alric’s face for a moment as he studied the light. “I am aware that it sounds as though I have in fact sworn myself to another, but my Lady does not work like that, she never asked me to. I want to, for her and for Mizahar, because it will be a better place once that happens.”


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[Alric Lysane]

His mind recalled the vision from the waters of the fountain at her words, there was truth in them that he found left a bitter taste in his mouth. She was likely right, he couldn’t stop Arcadius, or protect those he cared for it seemed. Even when the time would come that he would be in Syka, facing the monster, he was doomed to fail at that also. He could only console himself with the fact that he’d crack the beast’s armour, begin the rotting process upon this…host. He’d not give him another host to take either, which would leave the creature weakened for others to finish off – or that was the hope at least. He looked into the flames of the fire thoughtfully. “Yes, fate is something one can’t escape. We all fail and fall before it in the end, we simply do what we can before that time arrives” he said, his tone sad for a few moments before he blinked and brought his attention back to Oralie. She seemed to have relaxed somewhat, her shoulders looser and her posture more relaxed, if still as gracefully careful as he would expect from a feline. Her smile, when it came, was genuine and warm, a fact for which he was grateful. He wasn’t surprised she didn’t know what a Djedline was, he had not really known himself either, but she understood the gist he thought, by the way she referenced it. Normally he’d have left it up to Taz to teach her, they were closer than Oralie and Alric were clearly, but he didn’t have that luxury this time and so listened to her, watching her eyes as she spoke and shifted in her perch upon the chair. “Slavery is a hard burden, one of the worst things one can do to another. Yet it seems to infest everywhere, or at least most places that I’ve heard of,” he said after a few moments of pause to choose his words, “it casts long shadows, ones which many wish did not block out the warmth of better things. It saddens me that you had to endure it, and I hope that it has made you stronger despite all its trials. One of the few things I would do, if I had the power and despite my usual code of freedom ruling, would be to wipe the stain from the lands” he finished in a very matter-of-fact tone. “I knew you were a Kelvic, though I wasn’t going to mention it. As far as I’m concerned you are Oralie, and you have a good heart. That is all that matters,” he suggested with certainty, “and you are welcome here any time. I suspect Syka will be a safe haven for you, despite recent events, but should you feel the need to seek refuge then you can stay here. I practically live here these days, so I’m never far away” “Hold onto the bonds you form, they have a way of making you better than you were before. They give you strength to be what you need to be, as well as what they need you to be. I have no doubt that you will put all of your heart into it, and that is all that can be asked of you to give,” he said after a while more of listening and reflecting upon her words, meeting her eyes directly, “I am not sure that I can compete with the Lady Priskil, though she does sound interesting…but I can teach you what I know if you’d like. Magic…combat…the rest…Sunberth is a rough place and I have learned much to add to the skills needed to survive there atop the ones Taz has helped learn with me” “Tell me, do you know of the different magics? Have you an understanding of fighting or weaponry?”

[Oralie]

She struggled to read his expression for a moment as Alric considered her words. Oralie hoped he had not taken them as her implying he would have been useless, for that was certainly not the case. She had only meant that it had seemed like an inevitable event, one that would have happened short of divine intervention.

Her brows lowered at the tone of his voice. He sounded… almost sorrowful as he stared into the fire. When he looked over at her again, she responded, even if he hadn’t been after anything form her.
“What if your fate is to succeed, Alric?”
Oralie was an optimist. Her survival in Syliras had necessitated it. If she hadn’t been then she would have likely faded away into nothing, a shell of a person with no hope of a different future. And while her words were mostly that optimist speaking, she also had a strange feeling that the man sat next to her was not someone whose story would end before he wanted it to.

She nodded at him, grateful for his words. It was funny, she had found there was a clear line in the ground dividing those who kept slaves and those who found it abhorrent. There were never people who toed the line even a little. She would be eternally thankful that everyone she had met in her new life were all of the opinion that it was wrong, had seemed appalled when they had found out how she had been kept. She smiled, mostly to herself, and met Alric’s gaze.
“There are no such shadows in Syka.”

Of course, Syka had its darker side, but it was due to the very nature of the place, not thanks to the evils of the people who called it home. The smile grew again at Alric’s next words.
“Thank you.” If she did not know better, she would suspect Alric had spent time in Syka. He had spent plenty with Tazrae, she supposed, and the Innkeeper’s nature surely must have rubbed off on him. Not just anyone would open their homes up to practical strangers so quickly.

“Syka has become my sanctuary, it is true. This place though is very intriguing. It seems as though the whole world is here and I would very much like to come back again.” She would have to find a way to get over her fear of crowds of course, but perhaps knowing that this apartment would be open to her with a friendly face inside might help with that problem.

Oralie looked sharply at Alric as he spoke, his words reminding her so strongly of those that had been said to her before. She gave him a wry smile. “You may not be a Goddess, but you certainly sound like her. She told me as much as you have when she last visited me. She said that the people I meet will be important and I should keep them close. I will need them and they will need me.”

Her head tilted as she considered him. “I know about some magic. I know less about weapons, save for the shortbow I can barely wield. Earlier in the season I was taught what djed was, and the same conversation mentioned Auristics, Spiritism,…. um, reimancy? Magecraft… I’m sure there was another one too. Wayfinding maybe? Something like that. I mostly just know the names of them, though Spiritism and Auristics were explained to me, and I’ve seen Tazrae use Reimancy.”

She shook her head gently. “Indigo taught me how to aim my shortbow properly, but that is all for weapons. I own a machete too, but I only use it to chop foliage in the jungle.” She gave an apologetic shrug. “I am not weak, for I have the strength of an ocelot, but I am very much unlearned. I never had the opportunity.” It sounded as though Alric was just as learned as Tazrae in a myriad of things, if not more so. And for him to offer to teach her? She would be silly to turn down the offer.
“I would be ever so grateful if you could show me something.”

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