Heart and Mind (Akilah)

[Colt]

She gave him and odd look, and he gave her an odd look in return. She didn’t seem to notice, trotting over and climbing nimbly up the rock. He sighed and watched the grasses sway in the fall wind, listening to her and nodding when he thought it was appropriate. He smiled when she asked about the Sea. “Yes. It’s big. It’s just water. Water to forever. It’s loud, too, but… not the same. It roared like a lion, but it never stopped. It was always there. Like a heartbeat.” He sighed in remembrance. “We met some Svefra, too. They were nice. I can see why they love the water.” He suddenly frowned. “You… you’ve never been to the sea?” It was strange to him, to think of someone not having a memory like that. The ocean had always remained with him, so powerful was the recollection. He turned to look at Akilah. “Someday I will show you the sea,” he said. “It’s not—” He turned and stood. “You hear that?” There was a faint, faint rumbling. Khasr put a hand to the ground and felt a tiny tremor. “A herd of something,” he identified. “Big. Running.” He turned back, a childlike grin on his face. “Come. If we hurry we can see before the sun sets.” He tilted his head, trying to catch the general direction of the noise. He focused, then nodded, and pointed due west. “That way.” Jumping giddily down the slope and almost falling, he pranced at the edge of the grass, waiting to see if Akilah was indeed following him or not.

[Akilah Windsong]

Forever. She smiled at the thought of an endless expanse. At his words, she flushed and looked away in embarrassment.

"Well, I sort of have..." she stumbled over her words, turning redder by the second. "I've seen parts of the Suvan Sea, but the parts near Cyprus are more like narrow rivers." She turned to face him now, her hands indicating the size. "Sure, the air is salty and the water undrinkable, but I can just barely make out the shore at the other side."

Fuming, she added, "As for the other sea..."

When she was smaller, she hadn't been allowed to go too far from the city limits. It was only when she could wield her sword, when her strider appeared, that the distance grew larger and further.

But, despite that, she couldn't think of a good reason why she hadn't seen the other sea. She had seen it from a distance, seen the dark blue over the horizon, but standing afar and perching on the edge of the sandy dunes were two different things.

"I..." her voice grew quieter and she played with the beads in her hair nervously. The city had never been too close to the sea when they followed the coast on that side, the cliffs a dangerous place for young, foolhardy Drykas. Still, it had been close enough for her to go to and...

Why hadn't she?

"That would be nice," she finally replied. Later, when she was alone, she would mull out the reasons she never did go down those craggy cliffs and stand next to the ocean.

When Khasr suddenly leaned down, his head flush with the earth, she froze and watched. Quiet thunder filtered in slowly, the sound of hoofbeats racing through the plain. Nearby, she could see small rocks clattering in response.

His reaction to the sound was rather child-like, and she remembered comparing his tantrum last summer to her toddler-cousin's mood swings. A wheezy laugh escaped her as she swung down the rock, nimbly landing on the ground after. Certainly, that first comparison wasn't too far off the mark.

Though, she couldn't deny the excitement that coursed through her as well. It wasn't every day that a large group of somethings stampeded in front of her. Turning in that direction, she could make out only a faint trail of dust, small clouds rising from the ground.

"Race you!" she challenged, running before he could even respond. By Zulrav, she'd get there first.

[Colt]

Khasr blanched. “No!” he cried, but she was already gone, grasses waving behind her. He bolted after, eyes wide. A small voice screamed within him to slow down and use caution, but he couldn’t hear. Merciful Caiyha, what if she became hurt? What if it was a stampede he’d heard, and she ran into it? By all that was divine, the girl was fast. Khasr had never been very into racing and had never chased anything down, and as he passed signs of her passage even a fool could pick up that she was outpacing him. This was not good. Not good at all. “Akilah!” he shouted, barely able to hear his own voice over the passing wind. The rumbling was getting closer. Looking around for anything helpful, Khasr caught sight of a small cliff rising above its surroundings. With no hope of catching up to Akilah, he needed to reach higher ground. He would be able to see her and call her back. He altered his course and staggered to the top, breathing heavily. He couldn’t see her. “Akilah!” he tried to shout. His lack of air turned it into more of a wheeze. The rumbling was almost deafening. He could feel the ground shaking through his boots. He looked to the north, where it was coming from, and a rise blocked his view. His ears were just fine, however. In mere seconds the great herd of somethings would thunder over, and if Akilah was in their path Khasr would be able to do little to help her. Khasr fell to one knee. “Mother Semele and Father Zulrav, I beg you, please keep your blasted daughter safe,” he muttered under his breath.

[Akilah Windsong]

She couldn't hear anything but her heartbeat, the ragged intake of her lungs. The thudding step of her feet. The silent rotation of her shoulders, her arms bent in front of her. One foot in front of the other, her limbs stretching, she could only pay attention to her body when she was running.

The rest of the world all but vanished. Eyes stayed peeled on the ground, helping her avoid slippery rocks and soft soil. The worst of it was while she was going down the hill, the earth loose and ready to break. A few times she nearly fell, relying on her balance to help keep her on her feet. The one time she did slip, she shot her hands in front of her, pushing off the ground as she did so. Her palms stung after, no doubt scraped, and her speed slowed momentarily, but soon enough she sped up again.

The long grass bent easily enough as she ran, some smaller plants scratching her ankles as she moved. The hoofbeats had grown louder, by now, so much louder. It was like being in the middle of a storm. The wind pushed against her, the thunder roared, and if this is how her mother felt when generating a storm, Akilah could understand how addictive it felt.

She felt powerful. Strangely, Khasr hadn't caught up to her yet--she had expected him to be faster than that, despite the handicap she had. Grinning, she raced on, shallow breaths sustaining her as she headed to the clearing where the sound was the loudest.

Stopping, she hunched over, her hands on her knees as she calmed her panting. Akilah turned behind her to see if he had caught up but there was no sign of the man. Only the endless yellow fields greeted her and the small path she broke between them.

Now she could feel the tremors coursing through her. The beasts were nearby and in the distance she could see the small cloud as it grew larger. Larger, and more distinct.

They were almost upon her. She was supposed to have more time than this.

"There should be a cliff here," she murmured to herself, remembering the area from a ride earlier. Pushing her panic down, she scouted the area for higher ground. Across the field, the jutted cliff stood, shooting up from the earth, and she raced across the flat land to reach its base. Small rocks and gouged holes stood here and there, providing footholds as she scaled the surface. Not too high up, part of the cliff sloped out, giving her a place to sit.

Fortunately, as well, while the angle was steep, it wasn't straight up. There was an incline, small as it was.

A foot went into one crevice, her hand reaching up to grab another. Slowly but surely, she climbed her way up, making sure each hold was stable before shifting her weight and moving herself up. The earth shook as she did, making it harder than she expected, but eventually she reached it. The rocky ledge was stable enough, and she made herself comfortable. A small out-cropping, she folded her knees in, keeping her body as small as possible.

The view was worth it. Easily, she could see the whole clearing. Hopefully Khasr was smart enough to find another spot, he wouldn't make it here in time.

As dangerous as it was, she couldn't deny the thrill that went up her spine. It was rare to see a stampede in action--generally she kept far away whenever the tell-tale signs of one occurred. Just wait till her cousins found out.

Provided, of course, she lived to tell the tale.

[Colt]

The stampede was short, but every second seemed like an hour, making Khasr ache beyond measure, ache with the pain of not knowing. Damn it, it was his fault if she got hurt. “Akilah!” he shouted. “Damn you, Akilah! Where the petch are you?!” As expected, his voice was lost. He returned to the edge and looked again, frantically scanning the area for any signs of her. Where in— Wait. There. He looked down, and there she was. Relief almost drowned him, but his happiness was short-lived. Almost immediately a flame flared up hot and hard in his chest. He grasped the edge and eased onto the cliff, slowly making his way down to her. The roar was becoming dull as the herd started to thin to stragglers. It got softer and softer, and by the time he got to the outcropping where she was only four or five animals were left. “We need to get down,” he said, dangerously unemotional. “If we get to that ledge down there we can jump well enough.” He knelt and started his second descent. He was silent, his face hard and his gaze chilled stone. He was no climber, and the face was difficult. But he preferred to go down rather than up. It wasn’t long before he felt the small ledge, and he took a small glance before jumping. Or rather, dropping gracefully. He bent his legs when they hit the ground to absorb impact, and though the soles of his feet were jarred he was unharmed. He turned and waited for Akilah.

[Akilah Windsong]

She watched as the wildebeest raced past, a myriad of brown, grey, and black. The herd was large, covering the field, and though there were gaps here and there, they flowed as a river. The sound was thunderous, deafening, and she couldn't hear anything above it. Not the birds angrily flapping away, not the sound of her own heartbeat.

Eventually, the sound quietened, the herd all but gone. Only the old and the weary were running now, the few stragglers that struggled to keep up with the group.

Ah, it was done. Akilah felt a little empty after, as empty as the ground looked now. The tall grasses were bent over, pushed down by the thousands of hooves beating the ground. A pebble bounced beside her, landing on the ground below.

Looking up, she stared in surprise as Khasr climbed to her ledge. She could only see his feet at first, then the rest. So he managed to get to the top of the cliff after all. Perhaps he headed here in the first place and that's why he disappeared on her.

Still, her spot was the best. As she waited, she carefully stretched her legs out, balancing them over the edge. Dangling, they swung back and forth slowly. When he landed beside her with a quiet thump, she moved over slightly, expecting him to sit.

His tone surprised her even more than his appearance. He sounded...flat. As though anyone who had seen that herd could be so unawed, so quiet. Khasr didn't seem the type to talk like this, like the stone she was sitting on. Cold and unwelcoming and without a trace of that anger that was so characteristic of him. Without any of that energy he seemed to show in all of his fits.

Struck, she watched as he descended, confused. Did he miss the herd? Wouldn't he sound angry then?

No, this was a different Khasr than the ones she had seen before, a different beast. Watching, she waited until he reached the ground before climbing after. Carefully, she turned her body, her feet carving small niches in the cliff's face as she lowered herself. Only when she reached the edge of the ledge, her head and hands still clinging to it, did she start the actual descent.

Blindly groping below the ledge would do no good, instead she placed her weight on one arm and lowered herself further, digging her fingers into the first hold she could see. Small pebbles started to wear off the rock, erosion at work, and she quickly moved her hand to the next spot.

Going down was a little easier and harder than going up. At least when she went up she could see where she was going, even if it was a fight against Semele. Going down, though faster, was more nerve-wracking. She was blind this way.

When she finally reached the ledge, she pushed off without a second thought. A little less graceful than Khasr, she landed heavier thud, her knees bent as she absorbed impact. Instantly, she sprang up from that position and looked up to face him.

His face seemed even flatter than his voice.

"Is something wrong?" Warily, she added, "Did you miss the stampede? "

[Colt]

Khasr’s eyes flashed with anger. “What were you thinking?” he asked. Though his temper was rising again, his voice remained softer than it usually would have. “What the petch were you thinking?” He turned on his heel, beckoning absently for her to follow as he started back towards Endrykas. What unearthly spell had possessed Akilah to run into the middle of a stampede? Had she not seen the obvious danger she had been putting herself in? His pace quickened. Dark was falling with the sun down, and they needed to be back by the time the light died completely. The grasslands at night were almost certain death. As the terrain moved past and his steps sped up even more, his mind descended into calm, as it always did in the wilderness no matter how hard he fought it. Though he tried to keep the flame of anger burning, it was slowly fading. He sighed. “Great Zulrav, did you even stop to think before you threw yourself into a fray of galloping wildebeest?” he asked, tone now more irritated than angry.

[Akilah Windsong]

It's not something she really thought about, but while he glared at her, she realized just how much taller he was. Older. Stronger. His muscles tensed and she could make their outline through his shirt. He at least had a head on her and his tanned, large hands looked like they'd hurt.

All in all, it made for a frightening picture when he questioned her, his words softer than they had been the last time he had been angry.

The last time it had just been that, a brief moment of anger. A flash of lightning in the plains and more an annoyance than anything.

But now his voice was soft and his movement constrained and she could only think of a predator waiting to pounce. Akilah swallowed nervously, not quite understanding his words and not sure of what she got herself into.

Afraid but confused, she refused to let herself be cowed by his words. "I don't know what you're talking about," she hissed in response, watching as he moved forward through the grass. He beckoned her to come and she bristled in response.

Like she would follow him when he acted like that. That cocky--she was acting childish, she knew, but he wasn't any better. She stared at his shrinking figure, standing her ground in a stubborn silence. It was only after several minutes that she realized that Adámas was in that direction.

In the fading sunlight, she trailed behind him, maintaining a safe distance from him. As long as she could anticipate his move before he made one, she would be able to avoid it. And with her strider nearby, it would take only a shout to find herself astride her horse.

He made his move, but it was not one she expected. More words, though he sounded nowhere near as livid as before. Strange.

Distrustful, she ground out, "I wasn't going to run into their path. What sort of Drykas do you think I am?" She snorted. "Who'd be that stupid?"

[Colt]

He stopped and looked over his shoulder. “You weren’t?” That was strange. He was sure he had. He turned to face her. “Then where were you?” He sighed and sat on the half-rotted trunk of a fallen tree, running a hand through his hair. His fingers brushed against the bright green hair wrap within, and he closed his eyes in annoyance. He could hear his mentor, clearly imagining what he would have said. You rushed, boy. Go slower. Think, then act. His reverie lasted an instant before turning to sadness. Khasr rolled the wrap between his fingers, expression pained, but quickly let go after a heartbeat and wrestled for control of his emotions. He looked back up at Akilah, face now neutral with a hint of curiosity. “What were you doing out here, anyway?” he asked.

[Akilah Windsong]

She frowned back at him, insulted. "Who throws themselves into a stampede?" Gritting her teeth, she tried to curb her irritation. This was only their second meeting. It's not like he knew any better.

But Zulrav, who would think someone would do something like that?

No, no, she was trying not to get angry.

"I was riding here earlier," she coughed out. "Considering the direction the herd was coming from, I thought going to the cliff would give me a good view."

And it would have. Had she not overshot it. Biting her lip, she averted her face as she swallowed her pride. "I went a bit past that cliff." It was embarrassing, but it had to be said. Before he could use that admission against her, she jerked her head back, and stared unflinchingly at him. "But not by much. I climbed up it instead. I still knew where I was."

She was being defensive, she knew, but Khasr seemed to bring that side of her out. He looked older than her and she could tell that at times, but more than that, she felt like she was the older one.

Perhaps that's why she felt stupid sometimes around him. Immature. Like they were children squabbling and the prize wasn't more than being right.

Did he really think she had a death-wish? He had spent his entire life out in the Seas of this land, out in the dangers that roamed freely. He had spent so much time and yet he still thought she--that someone would just go into the path of a rampaging herd?

She wasn't paying attention when he spoke and it took a moment for the question to filter in. Caught off-guard, she stuttered as she explained. "Ah, I-I was drawing. You?"

Catching herself, she watched him distrustfully once more. He was doing it again. That jump between moods, that shift between emotions. She never could quite catch the moment he translated between the conflicting feelings, from anger to calm to anger once more.

It seemed that calm had won out this time, but for how long she didn't know. He was a ticking bomb and she needed time to understand his intricacies. For the moment, she contented herself with watching him, taking in any twitch or spasm.