Event This Can't Be Happening Part 2

[Ialari Pythone]

Morning of the 15th Day of Fall, 522 AV

6th Bell

Ialari’s eyes lazily fluttered open as her senses were quickly filled with the sounds and scents of the sea. She heard the birds singing and in some cases talking; an oddity that she still had a difficult time wrapping her mind around and one she found rather annoying. There was the sound of the water licking away at the pilings of the rancho she was in. The salty smell of the sea filled her nose and the breeze that blew in carried all of it. As she allowed herself to awaken further, an odd feeling began to creep over her. Stretching her arms and legs before sitting up, she swung her legs around and let them hang over the side of the bed. Running her fingers through her hair, she paused for a moment while looking at her non-metallic arm. Her thoughts dwelled for a moment on the events of the previous day; on the story Kajun had told and on the messages delivered by the servants of Dira.

Eventually, she stood up and made her way to the latrine before heading back to the kitchen area. She walked over to the nearby counter where sat a large basin of fresh water and a folded piece of cloth. Unfolding the cloth, she dipped it into the water and proceeded to wipe her face. Briefly, she wondered if she’d remembered to put fresh water in the bowl before falling asleep the previous evening. Seeing that there was fresh water and the folded cloth however answered that question. There was a lot going on last night.

She looked over at the small plate with a bundle of five banannas and a half-full bottle of rum. She reached for a bananna and plucked it from the bundle. As she started to peel it, she quickly stopped and looked down at the bundle. She then looked at the one in her hand. Speaking aloud, “When did I get more of these…” She’d lost track of time but she was certain that she hadn’t replaced her plate of fruit. Looking over at the bottle of rum, she also remembered having finished it before going to bed. Did I have one or two of those, she asked herself. A little confused, she walked out on to the deck that surrounded the rancho where she looked out to the sea.

Something caught her eye on one of the pilings supporting one of the other ranchos. A large, blue crab was slowly climbing up the piling. While it would normally not be something out of the ordinary, she swore she’d saw the same crab crawling up the same piling yesterday. Ialari briefly looked back toward the shore and saw nothing different than she would normally see that time of day.

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[Ialari Pythone]

Returning her attention back out to the sea, Ialari proceeded to eat her bananna. She took her time chewing and savoring the fruit’s flavor as it had become one of her favorites. It tasted just as good as it did the day before. Still, she took small bites and made them last. When she’d finished the bananna, she took a long drink from the bottle of rum before wiping her face with the back of her hand. Mid-drink, she frowned, pulled the bottle back and looked at it closely before slowly setting it down on the deck railing. She left the bananna peel sitting next to it thinking that some animal may find it to their liking.

Ialari walked back inside and into the bedroom to get dressed. She put on her black silk loincloth and chest wrap. She slung her pouch over her shoulder and slid her dagger into the loop that hung from it. Once dressed, she packed a few things into her pouch; her journal and a few tools for collecting ingredients for her philtering projects before heading out for her morning walk on the beach.

As she started walking toward the Commons, Ialari scanned the beach for anything interesting. There was the typical collection of the hollow, broken remains of crabs as well as a variety of other cracked and broken shells. There were a few blobls of sea slime as well. Eventually she came to the bungalows. Looking at them, she noticed a moderately-sized bird of prey perched on the railing of one of the bungalows decks. It was devouring something that was once alive but now was nothing more than a hunk of shredded meat. Her brow furrowed as she remembered seeing the same bird doing the same thing yesterday. Thinking it odd, she reached into her pouch and took out her journal and a stick of charcoal. She flipped to the page where she’d originally recorded her observations of the bird. There was no such writing. She flipped through the pages trying to find what she had wrote only to find nothing. She continued her walk while still flipping through the journal before finally putting it back in her pouch.

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[Ialari Pythone]

Approaching the Protea Inn, Ialari stopped and looked up just as she heard someone call out. “Hey, you there, the short girl with the black arm.”

Ialari looked up and saw a colorful parrot perched on the edge of a bird feeder. It looked like the same bird she saw before.

Shaking her head she asked in a slightly confused tone, “Hello. Nice morning for a meal?”

The parrot reached down with its foot, picked up an especially large seed, brought it to its beak and proceeded to crack it open. After swallowing, it looked at Ialari and cocked its head to the side. “You ask as though you would like to share.”

Ialari rubbed the back of her neck, “I’m actually on my way to have my own meal and I’m late. Do enjoy yours.” She then continued on to the Commons with confusion taking an even deeper hold on her.

It wasn’t much further down the beach to the dock. Ialari looked upon the Veronica as she approached. She wasn’t sure exactly when James would be taking the ship out again. Everytime she saw the ship though she thought about the ghostly girl the ship was named for.

Arriving at the Commons, Ialari saw a Kajun. He was sitting on a bench under the roofed portion of the large deck in the same place he was yesterday. Kajun was sitting along the outer railing of the Commons with his large open book. Ialari smiled and took a seat next to him while being careful not to scare him again.

Kajun looked up as she sat down. “A good morning to you, Ialari.”

Ialari glanced at the book and said, “To you as well, Kajun. Some some good reading?”

Kajun carefully closed the book. In a rather deep voice he said, “Indeed it is. I was just reviewing the mating rituals of ancient humans. Let us just say that it is a wonder they ever made it this far.” It was Kajun’s attempt at humor which unfortunately he was still not all that comfortable using.

Ialari’s face twisted slightly with annoyance. “You already used that joke yesterday, my friend.”

Kajun’s brow furrowed slightly. “Did I? I don’t think so but perhaps I simply forgot.”

Although she was sure he’d told the joke before, Ialari let it go. She still chuckled and folded her hands in her lap. “I was hoping we could talk more about the story you told me yesterday.”

It was Kajun’s turn to look confused. “Whatever do you mean? Before this moment, I haven’t spoken with you for several days.”

Ialari began to wonder if she’d dreamed the entire day before. It wouldn’t have been the strangest thing that had happened to her yet it was a little concerning. Rubbing the sides of her head, Ialari said shakily, “Um...right...my mistake. Do you have...do you have a story about ghost ships?”

Kajun gave Ialari a concerned look before answering, “Actually...yes, I think I do have one you would like.” He proceeded to reopen his book and began turning the pages several at a time until flipping through a few individual ones and finally stopping; apparently finding what he was looking for. He proceeded to tell her the story of the fishermen, the lagoon, the tomb ship and the isur standing on the deck. It was the exact same story he told before, she was sure of it. The fact that he didn’t remember was disturbing. Still, Ialari Kajun for the story before the conversation took a different direction. Ialari found the conversation to be much the same as the one they had before. A couple of bells went by before Ialari took a break to find something for lunch. She returned to Kajun with a plate of fruit; apples and banannas, and a small bottle of rum and two cups. The two shared in bit of light lunch while they talked. Ialari refrained from pressing Kajun about the weirdness of her day as she herself wasn’t quite sure how to describe what she was feeling. As before though, the conversation eventually ended and Ialari bid her friend a good day before she set off back for the rancho.

Eventually she made her way back to the rancho. The walk back, while not long, felt...[/i]out of balance[/i]. She considered that perhaps what she was experiencing had something to do with what After had told her...that something unexpected had happened. Ialari decided to take the chance and attempt to commune with Dira or her servants once again for answers.

She laid out several pillows to sit on while noting that they were not where she’d left them before. Next she retrieved a candle from her pack that hung over one of the ranchos provided chairs. She had two of the candles with her at the rancho and had already used one. However, when she reached in to the pack she found that there were still two. A pin-pricky feeling started at the base of her neck and tickled its way rapidly throughout her body.

Nervously, she placed the candle in a small dish and set it on the floor in front of where she would sit on the pillows. Using a tinder box, she struck some steel and flint together until it sparked a flame in the box which she used to light the candle. Setting those things aside, the feeling that she’d done it all before was becoming more solid in her mind. Shakily, she sat down and tried to get comfortable on the pillows. She crossed her legs laid her hands comfortably at her sides. She looked into the flame of the candle and focused her thoughts on it; or at least she tried to. Clearing her mind was not going to be so easy this time. Focusing on the flame and how it moved; flickering and dancing on the candle’s wick, Ialari tried to imagine the flame as a source of quiet amidst the shouting confusion. She tried to picture the confusion, fear, any storming emotions as insects. As these insects got too close to the flame, she imagined them sparking and exploding in a single tiny silent explosion.

As her disrupting thoughts and emotions, one by one, popped away, she turned her attention back to the flame.

“Lady Dira.” She whispered aloud.

The flame of the candle continue to burn unchanged although the sickle-shaped mark on the palm of Ialari’s hand began to itch.

“Milady, I am troubled by the feelings I have after hearing my friend’s story about the wrecked isurian ship and the strange figure that was seen onboard. While it was just a story, I feel that there is much more to it...it’s a feeling that I cannot shake. I seek guidance.” Ialari rubbed her fingers against the itch on her hand.

After a moment of silence, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Slowly she turned her gaze from the candle to the source of the movement. It was then that she saw not who she expected to see...Shalla.

Blinking several times, Ialari asked shakily, “Shalla? What’s going on?”

Semi-transparent at first, Shalla materilized with more substance and sat down next to Ialari. “What do you mean? I noticed you were praying to Dira and I didn’t want to interrupt. Did she...did she respond?”

Ialari lowered her head and shook it lightly. “No...at least, not this time. I don’t know what is going on but something isn’t right.”

She then explained to Shalla what had happened throughout the day and how similar it was to what happened the day before. Unfortunately, everytime Ialari heard her own words, it all sounded rediculous. After awhile, the frustration started to become too much so Ialari decided it was better to just end the day and go to sleep in hopes that the next day would be more clear. She decided to forgo eating or drinking anything. A thought occurred to her that maybe it was too much rum over the past couple of days that was muddying her thoughts. After promising Shalla they would practice with Spiritism later the next day, Ialari made it a point to leave the pillows in the middle of the room before she got undressed and slid into bed. She closed her eyes and hoped for sleep.

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