[Sanctuary] TCB (Kavala)

[Cugacon]

Fall 1, 511 A.V. The warmth of the late afternoon sun touched Elantok’s skin like a caress from Syna herself, as he stepped out of the tower. His watch was over, but his feet did not set themselves on that familiar path leading homewards. On this day, he had other business to attend to – a true business matter in the Akalak’s mind. His son was stubborn, but Elantok could not afford to wait. Neither of them could afford to wait, and so one of them must act. Even if things went perfectly, and a son was produced, there was still no guarantee whatsoever that the name of Rama, and their bloodline, would not die out – but there would at least be hope. Hope for their family – hope for their race. It was Cugacon’s duty and his father intended to see that he carried it out, now – not ten years from now. Itsa had passed into the beyond and that was unfortunate, but no excuse to delay procuring another female. Elantok feared that if he let Cugacon begin yet another painfully slow deliberation of who to select, it might very well be another five years before his son had a new mate. Besides, the loss of the Kelvic had seemed to hit Cugacon much harder than he would have expected, though he knew his son hid much of his heart from the world. This was no time, though, for mourning. This was a time for action. So, as was not untypical in many Akalak families – though Elantok had held his hand from doing so for many years – the elder Rama had determined to secure a contract for his son. Elantok himself had had little success siring a child. Cuga was his biological nephew, adopted by Elantok before birth when his brother had been killed. His only natural child was a daughter, produced by the same Konti Nakivak that had birthed Cuga. Since then, human and Kelvic both had failed to conceive for him. Secretly, he feared that the same might hold true for his son. He had been inclined to think more and more that a Konti Nakivak was their best bet to produce a healthy child. When Cuga had given his brief summation of the events that had transpired at the Sanctuary, Elantok had wondered, and made inquiries. He had already heard of the skill of the Konti healer. But Cugacon had not bothered to mention that the healer was available as Nakivak, as would have been clearly shown by a silver cuff about her wrist. Perhaps he had been too distracted by Itsa’s death. Perhaps it had been a deliberate omission. When father and son had discussed options at length for securing the next generation of their family, Cugacon had appeared to have some strange aversion to the idea of contracting with a Nakivak. He had not come right out and said he would not do so, but whenever Elantok had mentioned it, his son had sidestepped that particular option. Elantok did not know why this was – perhaps he felt the chance that a human would die or a Konti might produce a daughter detracted from it being the best option. And so Cuga had arranged to purchase a Kelvic and she had been ill it turned out, and was now dead. That had been less than a week ago, and today, Elantok intended to settle this matter himself, at least for the foreseeable future. He needed a grandson. He was not going to wait any longer. So his feet did not take him home. He walked through the dappled sun and shadow of the afternoon, heading towards the Sanctuary – the same path Cugacon had taken in an attempt to save his Kelvic’s life. Elantok’s mission was one of life or death as well – though in a more indirect sense. There might be other Konti available for contract – but this one had already produced a son. She was highly intelligent, and very attractive, from what Elantok had heard of her. She seemed a woman who would suit his somewhat proud, stubborn, quiet son, and he meant to secure her services, today. With a last hope, that when he walked through the clinic doors he would not find that another family had gotten there before him, and a determination that he would, somehow, bring Cugacon around to seeing that this was for the best, Elantok climbed those same stairs that his son had a few days before, opened those same doors and stepped inside the front room of the place where life and hope were salvaged – an appropriate place to carry out the negotiation ahead.

[Kavala]

Kavala ghosted around Sanctuary more like their resident apparition Ragnor than a bright eyed well-engaged Konti. She exercised - taking her morning run with Tasival - that had concluded with a swim with her son as well. Then she'd come home and started the process of feeding the stabled and kenneled animals and cleaning stalls and kennels alike. She moved through the tasks automatically, nodding to other workers as they joined her or went on their way elsewhere. But there was no smile on her face, not like usual, not necessarily like normal. Kavala had been in a deep depression. To those that barely knew her, she seemed well enough. She plastered a smile when one was required, assumed her alto pitched voice when someone needed engaged in a conversation. But something had changed, a spark was gone, and the Konti was struggling fearsomely to find it again.

New horses.

New dogs, new dogs, new buildings, new plans... none of them seemed to fuel the inner fire that Kavala had. Deep down, she was suffering all sorts of feelings, mainly abandonment and inadequacy. Her mother had left her and Akela at a young age, her father was distant, her brothers always held more importance being males in the Endrkyas society, and now Hatot was gone. She had Tasival and was incredibly grateful for him. She had Sanctuary and was incredibly grateful it had turned out being as nice and profitable as it had. And she had her life, her health, her faith... and all that kept her going. But there was nothing to fight. There was nothing to rage against, and that was one of the things that lit a spark in Kavala.

She needed to feel needed. She desperately wanted a family that she could be a core part of, not one she was a breeder for and discarded so willingly after her duty was completed. She wanted someone to tell her enough was enough and that finally she'd made herself into someone others felt was good enough. She'd always been too Konti to be truly Dyrkas even though she'd been born to a family. Her mother's death had haunted them since then, as well as the curse no one believed existed including her sister Akela. The entire Denusk clan was cursed, her father, her brothers, and especially Akela. But none of them realized it. It even touched Kavala even though the Konti tried not to think of it. But it was an intangible thing, something Kavala had no way of confronting, not until she was stronger, wiser, more prepared to face divine things. She wanted to be able to walk the Chavi more confidently than she did now, altering what she saw just not viewing it.

And she wanted to help others in ways they could not help themselves. But she needed the right group, the right timing, and the perfect conditions. Kavala had dreams, most of which the Oathmaster had shattered when he'd taken one look at her and shipped her off to have her bracelet traded out instead of removed altogether. She understood why. She had no trouble deciding that the Akalak were right in what they did. But there were so many other ways they could go about it. She would have married her last parton instead of just vowed her world to him, a vow that he already broke by not coming to even see his infant son and one she would be forced to break when another accepted her contract.

But it still didn't make things any less complicated. It was hard to have that family - that love of your life = and that spiritual group dedicated to saving others from fates that they could be saved from, when you were busy playing pleasure slave with set appointments to lay down with a stranger so he could fill your body with his seed and hope you conceived to save his race from extinction. Daily.

And as the watchtower flared, Kavala knew things were going to change. She knew someone would pick up her contract. She just hadn't expected an older Akalak visitor on the very first day of spring walking into the clinic through the front doors that were usually reserved for medical emergencies. Kavala was cleaning, having fed all the outside animals and ones kenneled in the basement. Tasival was in his baby chair bouncing and wide away several feet away as the Konti rolled freshly washed bandages. His deep ebony skin and shock of white hair couldn't hide the fact he was Akontak.

When the stranger passed through the doorway, Kavala's heart sank. She looked him over, noting his age and his physical appearance and stopped short. His expression wasn't curious but determined and stern. Had he been looking for horses, he'd have come through the horse gate and into the stables courtyard outside. Had he been looking for medical advice, he'd have brought a patient with him. No, he was here for something else.

"Hello. I'm back here." Kavala called out from where she cleaned in the storage room that had the door flung open. Herbs hung everywhere as well as bottled tinctures, powders, roots, and any assortment of things needed for the medical clinic. If the stranger stepped through the door, he'd easily see the Konti, her Akontak child, and a mountain of work she was slowly making her way through - putting herbs away and cleaning after they'd been processed.

Wearing her standard set of black leggings and a long white sleeveless tunic, Kavala was dressed in her normal style of clothes she could fight or work in. Soft black kidskin boots lined her feet, and her hair was left long and sweeping. She was fit, her arms molded in akalak-style muscle but more delicately, the scales traversing the well chiseled limbs in a swirling pattern that disappeared beneath her tunic. To a stranger, she'd look fit, completely healthy, especially since her signs of depression were so subtle.

She glanced up at the wall where a calendar as kept to note which herbs needed brought in when and which needed to be processed first. Fall. The watchtowers had flared today. It was only early morning. She wiped her hands on a towel, put down the towel, and walked over to meet him.

"I'm Kavala ... I.... " She paused, then started again. "You are here for a contract, aren't you?" She asked softly, eyes falling to the calendar once more. Kavala knew it would have happened, sooner or later, but she hadn't expected it quite so soon. She had to accept the first one that came along, that she was well aware of, but she only had to agree to base terms, nothing more. Once a day at a place of mutual choosing. Once a day she'd have to turn whor... she stopped that line of thought and gently altered it in her mind to make it more acceptable. Once a day she'd have to be covered like a broodmare in hopes of conception. Sex was nothing to her. Once it had been everything, but slavers had changed that. She knew how to lie with a man and let him do what he wanted too. And she had naively thought that with Tasival's birth, her escape from Nakivak Status was a done deal. But now she knew that she'd never escape it. There'd be another baby, another contract, and another baby repeatedly until she was too old or too worn out to be useful to them. The Akalaks, as much as she understood why they did what they did, lied to her. They'd saved her life, but they'd also implied one would be enough. She knew better now... one would never be enough. It couldn't be. They were dying out and nothing but this... this barbaric practice, was going to save them.

"What are your suggested terms?" She asked softly, closing her eyes for a moment then opening them up. She looked at the Akalak, really looked at him, and wondered what he was like. What was it going to be like with him? Would he demand she go to the tower once a day so they could use a room there? Those ugly little narrow rooms with things in them she couldn't begin to conceive of... restraints namely. Would he want her to move in with him so she was accessible? Would he want more than the bare minimum? If he offered her coin for that purpose, she'd be humiliated. She knew it was done, buying Nakivaks not only for their wombs but for the pleasure as well since there were no females here that were unattached.

She looked for him to be carrying paperwork but he seemed to have none. Once they'd negotiated, he'd go to the oathmaster and that man would draw up the documents, have him sign, and place her name on them. There was no need for her to sign anything. The Oathmaster would negotiate her rights and make sure the Akalak was getting what he wanted.

What was it he wanted exactly? Kavala waited quietly, afraid to hope too much that she was wrong or that she misunderstood the situation.

[Cugacon]

Elantok looked about, but he waited no more than two heartbeats before a voice called out to him from a room beyond the front reception area. Stepping over to the doorway, he saw her right away – and the child that turned his light eyes curiously towards the newcomer. He did not miss the Konti’s quick glance to the calendar on the wall, and though she might not have been the one he sought, he felt sure that she was. The child’s coloring, and the silver bracelet, added to that somewhat thoughtful look at the date – the first day of Fall – all fell neatly into place. The one named Kavala would become available for a new contract today. Elantok had ascertained that from the Oathmaster. This is why he was here, now – to hopefully secure that contract before another did so. The next moment she confirmed her identity by introducing herself, and her acknowledgement of the significance of this day, for her. One more wistful glance at the calendar, a quiet pause, and then she got right to business. Elantok could appreciate that, and if he had noted the subdued demeanor underlying the businesslike speech, he did not allow himself to ponder its implications. Nakivak were Nakivak – she had agreed to this, as payment of her debt for her rescue. It was a good sign that she accepted this, and did not try to evade her contractual obligation. This comported completely with all he had been able to gather about this particular Konti – the one who ran the Sanctuary so efficiently and profitably – the one who had birthed an Akontak. The behavior of her former patron, allowing her to raise the child for now, and apparently not wishing to renew her contract to try for another son, was perhaps a bit unusual, but not totally unheard of. And it definitely created an opportunity for Elantok and his son – one that could not be passed by. So, he did not allow himself to register any particular internal response to that look in her eyes as she posed her question. Whatever her own feelings, her own hopes – or reservations – he was here to conduct this transaction in as businesslike a manner as she seemed to adopt, outwardly anyway. Elantok was not a heartless man – but this matter was far too important for any emotions to get in the way, for either of them. He nodded, his expression serious. “I am Elantok and you are correct. I’ve come to take your contract, and negotiate the terms.” He had already given much thought to what terms he would ask for, and was willing to pay what was asked to get what he thought would best suit his son. So he was ready to launch into it without any preamble or hesitation. “I ask for twice daily access, no prearranged times, for the schedule has to be flexible. A hunter can not order his life in the same way that a business owner or craftsman can. It would be preferable if the visits can take place here – the Oathmaster’s tower would not be acceptable.” Elantok knew full well just getting Cugacon to see that this contract was for the best was going to be hard enough. If his son had to perform the breeding in a place as cold and uninviting as the tower, there would be no way Elantok could convince him to exercise his rights. Somehow he knew, Cuga was not built that way, emotionally. This incident with Itsa was proof of that. “I’ve made inquiries and I know your duties here at the Sanctuary keep you quite busy, so I will not ask you to move to my home. But you must be available when needed, twice a day. And you may name your price for that.” The look he gave the Konti was steady and open. “Do you agree?” It had not occurred to Elantok that in the few words which he had chosen, he had not once indicated that this contract was not for himself. But, in the end, she was Nakivak – father or son, what did it matter to her?

[Kavala]

Kavala simply stood there for a moment, her mind going blank and her face and demeanor emptying of everything. Once, when she'd first came to Riverfall that had been her defense, a mask to hide behind. The people that worked with her at Sanctuary knew that version of Kavala, the one that became nothing in the face of something. She hadn't existed within the Konti for a long time, having been banished inch by inch with all Kavala had gone through to fight for her place here and be successful. Once, someone had pushed her and pushed her until she felt something again, until she embraced the rage within her had learned to fight back. Kavala had called her the coward, the little deer that just wanted to flag its tail and run off into the grass to safety.

But she wasn't that person anymore. The blankness lasted only a moment before Kavala recognized it and realized that banishing the coward was more important than what faced her across the room.

She blinked, her azure eyes paling to a light almost sightless blue as she concentrated on taking one breath, then another, then another until she could speak. An astoot person would know that she was calming herself and facing something she feared. Someone less observant would just see her pause as perhaps surprise. She thought carefully about the Akalak's words then nodded, signaling she'd heard and understood but was thinking.

"Greetings Elantok. Fair winds and tall grasses to you." Kavala started out with the niceties, her greeting accented with her chosen language of Pavi for all that she spoke common. Her eyes traveled his form noting his relative age, good health, and the politeness at which he approached her. He didn't dance around the subject or drop his gaze but was here to do business. She respected that although she didn't know quite how to deal with it. The Akalak was talking about using her body, twice daily, and wanting to negotiate terms to do that. "Twice daily, no schedule... is that for both brothers or is it for additional pleasure?" She wanted to know what he was thinking and if her contract was going to be with just one brother or for both.

The question she asked really wasn't that important. If he wanted twice, he'd more than likely get twice regardless of that reason. But she'd bargain well. Her mind was sharp and she thought quickly, though she had to blink and close her eyes at the thought of this man soon owning the rites to her body and its use at his whim. "I will agree to twice daily so long as it does not interfere with my training schedule or my regular work. The nature of my work means that you will know my schedule clearly, but because I am a healer, medical emergencies - even those of animals and kelvics - take priority over any of our arrangements though I will not use the as excuses or linger when it is not necessary to be duck my duty to you. And if you are that frequently here, I will need rest days. For every four you visit, I get two where you will not unless you have my permission." She didn't know if she'd get away with that or not. The Nakivak had no room to negotiate like that when it came to breeding. Even though a good healer could track cycles and know which days a partner would conceive, the Nakivak system was not set up for precision but rather for the Akalak's benefit. But she'd ask anyhow. It never hurt to try. And in a way she was going easy on him. Some contracts game with complex rules about times of day, ways it was done, locations, and all sorts of clauses. Kavala didn't want complex. She wanted something else, something easy, and she wanted it with someone she cared about not a stranger.

But that someone had fled as soon as her belly swelled and she had started to feel things for him. This one, this Elantok, would be nothing to her. He'd be a duty she had to fulfill and nothing more. In that instant and with that decision she understood what her broodmares felt when she arranged their breeding schedule.

Back to business though. The past was where it belonged, behind her.

"If either of you cause injury then I get a rest day to heal without argument.." She was a healer and didn't need it. Kavala could heal bruises and abrasions almost in her sleep, broken bones too if necessary, but she wanted to remind him that she would not be ill treated even though she knew the rules for Nakivak's were flexible enough that the dark brothers and their tastes were accommodated. Roughness was subjective, after all.

"If you'll agree to these terms, you'll have my contract." Kavala said softly, dropping her eyes and glancing down at the silver bracelet on her wrist. "You've also the right to an exam if you want. I do not know if you want that now or if you will take my word for it that I am healthy and fit. I assure you I am." Kavala said, lifting her eyes and meeting his gaze again. There was pride in her eyes, as if she dared him to question her fitness. Kavala had worked hard, and did daily, to keep her body in shape. The Konti would never be weak again, never be a victim, no really, not like she had been. She should be more shy to him, but the fact was there would be nothing left to hide soon.

So the Konti stood her ground and waited for his response.

[Cugacon]

If a businesslike approach to this negotiation was what he had wanted, Elantok was certainly getting his wish fulfilled, and more. The Konti’s calm demeanor pleased him – there was no room for histrionics here. She could not know it – and, in truth neither could he to a certainty – but she had nothing to fear from Cugacon. His son was not the type to beat a female, or force her unnecessarily. This Kavala had been under contract before – she would know what it entailed. There was no reason for her heart to beat with fear of the unknown, for her mind to imagine the very worst. The Konti was obviously intelligent – as clearly demonstrated by the success of her Sanctuary. She surely understood the easiest course for a Nakivak was the course of least resistance, and most cooperation. Fulfill the terms you are bound to, and that was all that was required. Of course, Elantok knew full well there were those of his race who did not abide by such simple rules, and who took more than they should have, and sometimes brutally so. But Cugacon was not that type – he was too honourable, too proud to go that route. In his thought processes, Elantok had conveniently side-stepped the whole issue of Eowe, though he was prepared for her question on that matter when it was posed, right off the bat. Though it was a reasonable question, as Elantok answered he did wonder if there had been any issues surrounding that concern with her previous patron. If so, it wasn’t something that would have been public knowledge, of course. He had found out a great deal about her, but that sort of detail – no – that would be something only Cuga could inquire about. And there would be nothing to compel the Konti to answer honestly. As for his son, Elantok doubted that Cuagcon would even go there, he was so reluctant to even talk about Eowe. “Twice daily to improve the chance of conception.” He replied easily and evenly. “Though I am open to discuss that. You are a healer – I will be guided by your wisdom. If once daily every day would bring more chance of a child, I am willing to agree to that, if you are willing to forego your two days of rest. The rest of what you have asked is acceptable – flexibility tempered by some attempt to know each other’s schedules – and do not worry. There will be no visits from the dark brother.” He looked about the small store room, his eyes lingering for a long moment on the child in the seat - a slightly wistful look. With one long step, he was beside the seat, bending down, one long finger going out towards the boy, who gurgled happily at the attention and grasped at the proffered digit. “This is not about pleasure, Kavala.” He said with a quiet dignity. “This is about survival – you understand?”

[Kavala]

Something changed in her the moment the Akalak approached her son who was surprisingly not sleeping and keeping fairly quiet. He peered at the boy securely wrapped and strapped onto his woven bouncing frame as if he was something precious and then reached out to touch the child, letting Tasival take his finger with his own deep blue skin. Kavala approached then, having kept the tables and equipment and all the potential weapons in her clinic between herself and the Akalak.

His words rang in her head and she nodded, moving to stand beside Elantok. Long white hair that had been swept behind her back fell forward as she reached out to touch the infant's head, smoothing back his own white hair. It hid her features for the moment, letting her talk without him being able to read her expression. The baby didn't cry but rather just began making his own baby sounds as if greeting them both properly and holding a rather one sided conversation in babble that was completely unintelligent until Kavala pointed to his off hand, which kept making a gesture over and over again. She smiled then, reached into a small bag she kept beside the table next to his chair, and pulled out a hard piece of rock candy, wrapped it in a clean length of linen, and handed it to the child so the rock was held firmly in the linen bag that was too big for the baby to swallow. The baby immediately put it into his mouth and began sucking on it contentedly, the sweetness filling his tastebuds.

Kavala brushed her hair back out of her eyes.

"Grassland sign is part of Pavi... he was just signing to us." She said softly. "I've taught him some already. Every time I give him something I make the sign for it repeatedly and sometimes he copies it when he wants that thing again. They are so much smarter, babies, than people understand. He was just making the sign for sweet. " She said softly then continued. Talking about Tasival was a lot easier than talking about her contract. "Now I often know what he wants. There's signs for pain and thirst ... he doesn't know the difference between thirst and hunger yet ... and a sign for soft and tired and all the things he might need. It's easier teaching him, knowing I'll know what he wants even though I can't feel or sense what he wants." She said and glanced at Elantok. "His name is Tasival." She added then smiled. "He'll have another name too. There are two of them in this little body. One's as gentle as a mouse and the other one just wants to fight. I know your people don't have your brothers emerge until much later, but I know my sons and I can tell when Tasival isn't here and someone else is. I just don't know him well enough yet to name him." Kavala said in her soft alto, digressing for a moment from the conversation at hand. She wanted to tell him that he was the first Akalak that'd ever taken Tasival's hand. Kavala wanted to say his father had yet to visit him to meet him for the first time, but she did not. That was a wound that was still bleeding inside her and one that needed to heal on its own over time.

Kavala paused, knowing she was straying from the topic deliberately, and just as quickly wandered back.

"I understand its survival, Elantok. Write up the contract this way. If you visit every day you get every day visits without a break. If you start coming twice daily, I will be granted a single rest day out of every five visited and we'll both be satisfied. I'm a skilled healer. I will make sure you know when the best opportunities for conception are so you can be here to take advantage of them. Even though its been two seasons since his birth and he should be walking soon, my body hasn't readjusted completely. It might take longer than you anticipate because nothing has leveled out completely though it is getting there. I will do my best to help you. I know it is a small thing to ask for what your people have done for me by saving my life." She said in her rich voice, the tone neither soft nor casual. Business... all business.

And now that she was close, gently overlooking her son, he could see something else too along her bare arms and disappearing into her sleeveless tunic. The pattern work on her arms wasn't all scales. Some of the iridescent scrolling common Konti scales existed, but on the skin between the patches of scales there were fine scars etched. Someone had done it with a knife, making precision cuts to graffiti her skin in a way that only a monster would do. They were fine, faded, as if they were shallowly made only to cause pain and not to actually threaten her life. There were other scars, at her neck and wrists, slightly below her gills and above her hands. All were common of the rescued Nakivak, the ones that were lucky to be alive rather than the ones that had willingly entered into contracts to simply get ahead in gain status in Riverfall.

Kavala met his eyes, awaiting his answer, putting on a brave face even though the unkown and new situations scared her deeply. She stood beside him, wishing she had some sort of gift - not for the first time - to read people and know if they were good people. She would belong to him, do her duty for him, and that would be that. Ten chimes here, fifteen chimes there... she would get to know him in a way that others would not and he would know her in a way she'd never planned to share with anyone until she'd been forced to share with everyone.

"If its settled, when do you want to start? Later today? Tomorrow after all the paperwork is filed?" She asked in a falsely light voice, wondering suddenly how she'd go through with it and if she'd fight him the first time. Probably. It was in her nature now to fight rather than to give in unless he kept it impersonal and just business.

He hadn't mentioned an exam and for that she was relieved. He believed her then and wouldn't' subject her to that small humiliation at least. She offered him a smile and wondered if their business was done.

[Cugacon]

Elantok nodded, pleased and impressed at the care the Konti was obviously giving her son. He had taken Cugacon from his own Konti mother once she was able to take up another contract, to be raised by Elantok alone so that the Konti could rest and be better able to accommodate his visits. Unlike Kavala, Cugacon’s mother had not been made to accept Nakivak status in exchange for her rescue price. She had come to Riverfall voluntarily, and entered into a contract with his older brother of her own accord. This contract Elantok had assumed when his brother died of wounds incurred in a skirmish with some raiding Zith, out on the grasslands. Elantok had allowed her to remain in the quarters his brother had given her in his home, even after Cugacon was born. Though Cuga was by this time legally his son, he allowed the Konti to raise him, content to visit at least once every few days to check on his welfare. She was a good mother, and he had no fears that she would neglect the boy, as they had already settled on terms for when she would once again be available to breed, and he knew she was looking out for her own self-interests by taking good care of the child. Whether she felt any great love for Cugacon, Elantok did not wonder or ask. It was his right to take the child from her whenever he deemed it appropriate. Perhaps that might influence a mother of any race not to develop too close a bond with their offspring. In any event, when her services were again available, Elantok had allowed her to remain still in his brother’s home, and taken Cugacon to his own, raising his son himself from that point forward. When the Konti gave birth to a daughter, she decided that she had had enough of Riverfall, and left, taking the child with her, as was her right. Elantok was disappointed – he had hoped she would take another contract with him. But, this was the way things were, for the Akalak. The fact that Kavala still had her son with her, and that apparently her former patron was content with that arrangement, for now, had factored into Elantok’s decision to offer the healer the chance to stay put at the Sanctuary. Based on what he had gathered abut the success and necessity of the mission of this place, he knew it was unlikely that the Oathmaster would force Kavala to leave it for any length of time. Still, he might have asked the Oathmaster to do so, against the Konti’s wishes. But that would just make a tricky situation that much more difficult. As Cugacon was already somehow reluctant to consider a Nakivak, setting things up right at the beginning so that the Konti would be resentful did not seem like the best idea. Elantok too knew of the rooms in the tower. He knew that would not be to his son’s liking. As he stood up now, in the storeroom, watching Kavala interact with her son, he was even more convinced it was right for her to live here and receive his son’s visits in a place where she could still attend to her work and child. Her soft words underscored the obvious love she bore her son, and that attitude boded well if she should become pregnant with his grandson, Elantok thought. Or granddaughter – though he did not want to think about that possibility. It happened, but he hoped it would not happen for Cugacon. When the healer returned to her steady recital of the terms they seem to have agreed to, the Akalak warrior nodded soberly. She seemed appropriately sympathetic, and cooperative, and helpful, even. More than he could have asked for. If he noticed any hesitancy whatsoever, if he noticed the marks of abuse on her arms, he said nothing of them and his own expression remained placid and neutral. He was just about to speak, in confirmation of what she proposed and to say he would go straight to the Oathmaster upon leaving the Sanctuary, when her next words rendered him silent. He looked at her with the slightest of frowns, for up until then he had not thought to enlighten her as to who this contract was for. Of course, now he felt a bit foolish for not having made this clear – though really it was of little account. She did not have the choice to refuse, unless she wanted to create a massive headache, and possible punishment, for herself. But he collected himself and went on almost without any recognizable sign that he now understood that she had thought that this negotiation was for him “I agree to your proposal, and I will see the Oathmaster as soon as I leave here, to have the paperwork drawn up. But this contract is not for me – it is for my son. I am young still, but I believe he has a better chance of siring a son. So it will be for him to say when he wishes to start. I’m sure he’ll let you know, soon enough. He is out on the grasslands at the moment, hunting. But when he returns, I’m sure he will come to speak with you.” Hopefully, he will, Elantok thought. Once I bring him around to seeing that this is the best way. But his face did not betray his apprehension of what he knew was not going to be an easy discussion with his stubborn son.

[Kavala]

Kavala was starting to relax. Between staring into Tasival's precious eyes and the stoic Akalak's business-like manner, the contract negotiation was something it seemed she was going to manage to survive. Glancing sideways, while his attention was on Tasi, Kavala studied her visitor. Fit, like all the Akalaks, he didn't wear a sense of importance like she always feared someone trying to take her contract would have. Instead he seemed more salt of the earth, a typical man of his race though not so typical in what he was forced to do. Kavala wondered, not for the first time, if it was as hard for them as it was for the Nakivak. It couldn't be easy, being dependent upon the bodies of others for survival. He couldn't have a son like human men could just by deciding to have one and taking a lover to do so. The men in Riverfall outnumbered the women three or four to one at times. Contracts were rarely open, and the Akalak had to give generously to even partially entice women to immigrate. Raiding was far easier. Offering slaves a new way, an easier choice, was far more productive. Breeding with creatures that the Akalak considered animals had to be so demeaning to them in so many ways.

Kavala looked thoughtfully at Elantok. He wasn't repulsive. He wasn't arrogant. He seemed so normal, so stoic, as if he was someone she'd like to know under difference circumstances and be friends with. The Konti offered him a soft uncertain smile and opened her mouth to reassure him, to tell him she understood and that she'd help him if she could... he looked up at her and frowned.

And then he dropped the bombshell. He wasn't going to be the one she'd have to ... service. He was just negotiating. NO. No no no no. Kavala wanted to growl. Instead she took a deep breath, then another, and stepped back from Tasival and Elantok and caught Elantok's gaze with her own. He could see the anger in her eyes. "I thought we were negotiating for you. If your son wants a Nakivak, then he should see to the contract himself. Talking to you I can see a bit who you are and get to know you a little to make the best decisions. Negotiating with you for someone else leaves me blind. We're talking about my body here!" She said, angry now, then dragged in a breath and exhaled slowly, trying to get her temper under control.

"Who is your son and why isn't he here himself?" Kavala asked, though she knew the question was loaded and spoken with anger. Was his face tattooed? Did he already have other Nakivaks? Could he be someone she could tolerate like this man was? Kavala gritted her teeth, wanting to yell at him that she'd done her duty. Wasn't an Akontak enough? Bitterness rose in her but it was hard to maintain. Her soul was a fierce thing, but not something designed for sustaining rage and the darker side of life. Who was he then? Why wasn't he here? The most she could expect from Elantok was a name, but what she really wanted to know was what kind of a person was he. She'd have to spend time each day letting a stranger penetrate her body with his for a singular purpose that had nothing to do with love and she felt she had every right - every one - to ask the question and know who that person was before she agreed to anything.

But it wasn't true. Both of them knew it. Contracts could be signed without consent. What they were doing was just out of politeness and niceties. Kavala took another breath, calming down, and asked again more softly. "I'm sorry, its just... I... its easier meeting. I know meeting you I can help you because your someone who's listening to me and is taking the time to talk to me about this and ask my needs. But he's not someone I know. It's harder, not ... well... what is he like?" She asked finally. It was already a done deal. She was already bought and sold by virtue of a fall from her horse on the grasslands.

[Cugacon]

Elantok was slightly taken aback by the Konti’s outburst, though he wasn’t surprised. She had been, up to that point, so matter-of-fact that he wasn’t expecting her to be upset that he was there on behalf of his son and not himself. But he wasn’t surprised that, even though she was bound to accept whoever first offered, she was unhappy about the situation. Many Nakivak were. Some were far more than unhappy – thus the rooms in the tower, and the restraints. He had been pleasantly encouraged by her business like attitude towards his visit, and its purpose. Now he was only mildly disappointed. Regardless of her objections or unhappiness or concerns, he meant to have this contract, for Cugacon. He was well within his rights – many families located and contracted with females for their sons. Kavala must know this was true – though perhaps she had just not been thinking along those lines. Obviously he had taken her unawares with this news – and that might have been his fault, for not making things clear right up front. But in the end, it always came back to the same fact – she had to accept – whether for himself or his son, or anyone else he had the right and authority to make a contract for. Feeling just the slightest bit affronted by her angry words and bitter tone of voice, Elantok consciously put his Akalak pride and sense of entitlement aside for a moment to answer her questions – questions that he had absolutely no obligation to answer. In the end, if he could smooth the way for his son, it would be worth the minimal sense of lowering himself and his dignity. “My son is hunting. When a Nakivak contract becomes available, it’s reasonable, and wise, for a man’s family to move quickly to secure it, if he is unavailable. Only a fool would wait about to have it taken by some other family. And I assure you, Kavala – I am no fool.” Elantok’s voice was not surly or angry – not even chastising – only matter-of-fact. What he said was entirely true. His tone, as neutral as it was, seemed to brook no pointless counter argument. Though what lies in the heart is frequently not ruled by reasonableness. Elantok paused. He had said enough – the Konti could not put up any words against his that would change anything. But, he wasn’t a cold man, not without some sensibility to her circumstances. They both of them were caught by fate. “My son is a good man. A noble warrior – young, strong, a skilled hunter. He devotes his life to keeping our city, our people here, safe. You need not have any fear. In fact, you know him already, though slightly. He was here in your clinic not even a week ago. He brought in the Kelvic that he had purchased from Ravoc to try to get a son – an otter. His name is Cugacon – Cugacon Rama. You may remember him. He spoke but briefly of his visit here.” I believe to speak more would have pained him too much, Elantok might have added, but didn’t. His son’s emotions were his own, to share or not as he chose. It was not for his father to discuss what went on in his heart. “He spoke well of you. He was grateful for what was done.” Now that was a statement highly open to interpretation. Elantok fixed Kavala with a steady look. “Be assured, you will be valued as comports with all that we know of you.” His eyes went to her son in his little seat. “You have already produced a male, an Akontak. We will be more than pleased if you give us a son and a grandson. Cugacon and I are the last of our line. This is necessary, Kavala. We need your services. You are intelligent. You know this can be relatively easy – or it can be . . . difficult. That choice is yours alone to make. But when I leave here, I will go to the Oathmaster, and you will be bound to my son.”

[Kavala]

Was he making threats? Kavala stood quietly watching Elantok, simply watching him, getting more and more upset without trying to show it. She took a calming breath and then another and then another keeping her composure and not letting him rattle her. She wanted to step forward and tell him just how she felt about what he was saying, but the truth was his threat wasn't empty. Kavala knew this man had power over her and if he requested it, she'd be locked in the Oathmaster Tower and his threats would be made real.

At least here she was free. And clearly according to him, the fight wasn't with him, it was with Cugacon. She remembered him and the tenderness in which she'd handled the kelvic otter. The Konti recalled his features and how empty his eyes had been, either hiding his pain or feeling none. Elantok was just a mouthpiece. As soon as he admitted she wasn't going to be his broodmare, then he ceased being important to her. Cugacon was the one she had to deal with, and the one she'd make clear he knew she couldn't nor wouldn't be mistreated. Elantok had crossed the line there with his last words, a line Kavala hadn't known existed. But her fight wasn't with him. According to him, it was with his son. That meant any rage she pointed at this man was wasted.

"Yes. Easy. That's what you think of this. I understand that. But your asking a skilled healer to bear your grandson, Elantok, and please understand one thing. Regardless of if I'm locked in the Oathmaster's Tower servicing your son whenever he wills it or if I am roaming here free, your best chance of a grandson is with my cooperation. It works both ways. I am not an unreasonable Konti, Elantok. " Kavala said softly but firmly. She was stronger than she looked, both inside and out.

- or it can be ... difficult. Those words haunted her. She knew what difficult meant, but she resented him reminding her.

"But I will not be threatened and bullied. I have agreed to this because I have no choice, but I will not tolerate veiled threats but rather prefer open dialog. Say what you want to say, Elantok, but I have offered you no resistance, only questions. I am not lacking an understanding of why things here are what they are. I know. But I will not have an unsavory Akalak forced upon me, when there is a city full of honorable ones. There are good reasons for my questions and I thank you for answering them. But you can leave now. I'm sure you have paperwork to file and finalize. Your son will be welcome here if he comes. And I will do my duty until my bracelet goes gold again." She said, all but baring her teeth at him. She kept her tone polite, but she had to prepare... mentally, physically, emotionally. Kavala knew what she wanted to do, find privacy, and walk her chavi and see who this man would be to her, this stranger who would be suddenly thrust into her life.