Location [Riverfall] The Land and Sea Gates

[Delilah]

Delilah Time stamp - Day 7, Summer, 513 AV As the boat neared the city, Delilah watched the giant waterfall flowing out of the Bluevein River grow larger and larger as they got closer and closer to Riverfall. The mist grew thicker as they neared the waterfall, obviously coming from the mass of water pouring into the bay from atop the cliff. As the ship grew closer and closer, she began to notice the fishers and other various boats moving about the bay, and it seemed the closer they got, the busier the bay seemed. The boat pulled into the bay, the boat traffic was very heavy. It took near half a day for the boat to make it into port and dock. When the gangplank was finally leveled, Delilah, along with the other passengers of the boat, filed down the plank onto land. Within only a few moments of exiting the boat, a very tall, by her standards, Akalak approached her saying ”Hello there, can I help you with anything? Here is a scroll of welcome from the city. It contains a list of our laws, a map of the city, and some advertisements from local businesses that sponsor these scrolls to be made. You can feel free to come in if you agree to our laws and turn this scroll back in when you leave so we can reuse it." Delilah agreed to the rules, accepted the scroll, and proceeded to navigate away from the ports. After avoiding being kicked around by the dock workers and making her way into the city, Delilah unfolded her map and attempted to locate herself. After a while she decided she was next to the Gilia Medical Center. The first thing she needed to do, was find a suitable living space. The nearest inn was the Kulkukan, and so Delilah, rolling up her scroll, set forth to her destination.

[Artimus Arkham]

30th of Summer, 513.

"Aye! Larger than ye and blue skinned. Tis not natural I tell ye." The words were the latest story from Cirel, a loud mouthed fella aboard the Dirty Laundry. "Fightin, fearsome, and probably eat just about anythin!" Artimus listened as intently as he had listened to every other story Cirel told on the journey to Riverfall. "Eat anything?" Arty asked. "AYE! Anythin. They'll eat the flesh right off yer bones while yer still lookin for where to check in iffin yer not careful. Breakin a law is sure to get ye served as a feast to their whole army too." Cirel kept filling Artimus full of stories, all of which involved describing who or what is willing to eat humans. This particular one was about Akalaks. Arty couldn't remember ever having an encounter with an Akalak before and truly had no idea what to expect. No matter; he was determined to start a new life here. If he could deal with Eypharians, he could deal with Akalaks.

The ship was pulling up to the dock, forcing the loud shipmate to have to tend to his docking procedure duties and begin unloading the cargo. Artimus glanced up to the beauty of the city. He always had a thing for water, particularly running water and especially rainfall. This was his primary reason for choosing Riverfall in the first place. He tugged his back pack onto his shoulders, tightening the straps to keep it snugly secure to his body before scooting off the ship. The mist was cool and refreshing all at once. Walking along the docks, his neck remained craned back to allow the best view of the city. So absorbed was he in sight seeing, that he didn't even notice the hulking blue man in front of him until he walked into the muscular chest, face-planting into it with a soft thump. "Gyah!" Artimus jumped back immediately. He had just bumped into the very being that he was told would eat him.

”Hello there, can I help you with anything? Here is a scroll of welcome from the city. It contains a list of our laws, a map of the city, and some advertisements from local businesses that sponsor these scrolls to be made. You can feel free to come in if you agree to our laws and turn this scroll back in when you leave so we can reuse it." the Akalak stated after a brief stare of what Arty wasn't sure was amusement or disdain. Taking the map and list of rules, Arty opened them immediately and began reading them. He didn't want to be served to the army after all.

The rules looked easy enough to follow. He nodded, mumbled something along the lines of, "Yes sir." and then backed away a couple paces before turning to continue into the city. That wasn't so bad, he thought to himself. He glanced, left, then right, then back down to the map he was just handed. Where to go?

[Iriene Padfoot]

[frametrans=#004000.8] 30 Summer 513 [/frametrans] The young fox skittered across the roads leading up the the gates of Riverfall. Her sleek black fur all frilled up from fear of the strange world. She was a normal kelvic and she had been told by other of her kin that Riverfall, while gorgeous, was also a dangerous area for her to journey to. She was dampened from the misty air that surrounded the town and watched the gates cautiously. Slowly falling toward the gates of Riverfall Iriene knew that if she entered she might not leave with the same ideal of the world. That view of the world primarily focused on the cruelty of the hunting parties she had come across while living among the other foxes. At this point she considered them more humane then those who form she was able to mimic. Bounding of the path that led to the gate Iriene would sprint past the next person who entered into Riverfall to explore the beautiful city of waterfalls. After sneaking past the stranger her head would briefly cock as she took in a glimpse of the Akalak before darting off down the street stopping at the corner for a brief second. As the fox stopped at the corner of a building, Iriene looked back to the gateway letting out a brief yawn. Her head bobbed from one side to the other before she once again took the path on her right. The only source of direction she had was her scent and at the moment she was following a strange assortment of flowers. From there she would slowly venture forth through the glamorous city. Attempting to avoid sight of other people but still curious to see their expressions when they saw her. Would they try and kill her for food? She couldn't bother herself with those thoughts. She finally was in the city, and exploration would soon commence. A flustered furry blur would be the slightest glimpse that anyone could have caught. As she would finally reach her destination in Semele Park. Her path while round about hopefully was strange enough to keep anyone from pandering her presence to much.

[Xavios]

Summer 10th 513

The closed door of the cabin muffled the shouts of the crew up on deck. Xavi was not the only cargo being transported and there were preparations to make as the ship approached the city of Riverfall. With a sigh he turned away from the door again, forced to ignore the shout of what sounded like the captain chewing out one of the men. The young man would be up there, joining in the work as he had throughout the journey, were he not busy making preparations of his own.

Muscles straining, the last leather strip was tightened until Xavios was satisfied and let the remainder hang loose. It was the third and last to be tied around the bundle of wood that rested in his place on the bed. Next to it was an identical, already tied pile of a different variety of wood. Each was fifty pounds, and was going to be left with the ship until Xavi had found a place to stay and could return for them. He didn't have a problem with lifting the wood, but as this was a new place he had little idea what to expect when it came to carrying them through the city. A back injury was the last thing he needed when trying to look for work.

"'Ey Xavi, we've 'bout docked!"

"Yes sir!" Xavios firmly replied. As per an arrangement they'd made days ago, he was to accompany the captain out to the docks the moment they were able. There was registering the ship and taking care of shipments to worry about, so there was little to no time to use making sure that their passenger was on his way.

Both bundles of wood remained on the bed ad Xavi slung his backpack up over his shoulders. It contained most of his tools from back home, some hammers and nails, a toolbox. Leaning against the wall were two axes which he picked up now, his hands sliding over them with a strict familiarity. They were too large for his pack, and would be carried instead in each hand. Carvers and Carpenters axes. The two professions he knew the best, and the two he was most likely to have the hardest time finding work for in a this new city.

He'd been notified ahead of time about the lack of wood Riverfall had. This was, in large part, the reason for bringing the 100 pounds of wood. His mind however was already set. In this place he would find work, no matter what it meant giving up or learning.

Any shred of doubt of this resolve vanished as soon as he reached the dock. While much of the crew was distracted by the lavish waterfall and magnificent decor and scenery, Xavios saw only strength. Among the flurry of gasps and "wow"s, he gave a simple, but firm nod. This was the place he was meant to be.

"Xavios, boy, with me." The captain was clearly irate with having to deal with his star-struck crew and was impatient to head to the dock and get things moving.

"Yes sir." Xavi promptly moved to his side and made his way to the buzzing crowd that was the dock. Everywhere, men with ropes and crates rushing to and from their ships, and several men, Akalaks, were overseeing the whole thing. One of them seemed to have spotted out the different nature of Xavios's movement and was making his way over.

Before leaving him the captain turned and gave Xavios a firm handshake. "You worked hard on my ship. You keep that up, they'll be a'right with you here. An boy - you don't come back for that wood a yours, it's mine."

"Of course sir." He nodded and gave the man a last goodbye just as the Akalak arrived to give him their typical greeting and pamphlet.

Looking over the paper, Xavios gave the laws a careful read so that his answer was genuine in that he knew what he was agreeing to. "Yes... Yes sir. I accept your laws, and thank you. I will return this as soon as I can."

And he meant it. Heading off in the way of one of the listed inns, axes in hand, Xavios knew full well that he was the last person who anyone would have to worry about trouble from. He would earn his citizen and his keep here, every Miza of it.

[Rinya]

Day 16, Summer, 513 AV Looking back on her decision, the boat was probably one of the worst ideas she had ever made. She was a creature of land and air… most certainly not one for the sea; at least nothing longer than diving for fish. Spending most of her time either below deck buried under a blanket, or leaning over the side of the railing topside, Rinya realized any travel she made from now on would most certainly have to be by land unless forced otherwise. Regardless of her lack of sea legs, her sickness abated with the sight of the waterfalls and the beautiful bay that promised her that all the miserable traveling was certainly worth it. Sylira had a beautiful ocean, but something about Riverfall spoke quietly to her soul. She could easily make a home in this place. She wasn’t intending to stay forever, but she could certainly find herself settling. It almost seemed like a dangerous thought, judging by the fact she knew next to nothing about the city. Hitching her backpack and quiver further up onto her shoulder, she ignored the loud shouts of the captain yelling at the crew behind her and took her first timid steps off the boat onto the dock. She was so focused on not stumbling, she nearly ran into the Akalak head on in front of her. Suppressing the squeak that threatened to escape her throat, she glared at the large male towering over her. He only scowled back at her for a moment, before shoving papers into her hand, and reciting an obviously trained speech he probably used to welcome all strangers into the city. Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, she read through the rules of the city quickly, carefully tucking the map into waistline of her pants. ”Very well, the laws are simple enough to follow. I’ll return your map when I settle in.” Her body was literally aching with the need to fly, to take in the landscape from above, but at the moment she had more important tasks to attend to first. Pulling the map from her waist she glanced over it quickly, before determinedly heading off the dock and into the city.

[Jorin Ertihan]

Season of Summer, Day 3, 513 AV Jorin Ertihan gaped at the beautiful and imposing sight of Riverfall come into view, the mist of the morning slowly clearing as he gazed up at the structure, like a bird of prey about to fall upon its unfortuate victim. "Stop gawking and help us unload the costumes!" the stage master growled at him, and Jorin nodded as he assisted the small troupe in unloading from the ferry. It was going to be an interesting few seasons, to be sure, as the troupe was intending to set up in on of Riverfall's many gardens in order to "not interfere with the troupes at the amphitheatre". Jorin secretly suspected the stage master simply didn't want to pay the high price of entry. "Welcome, traveler. Here is a scroll of welcome from the city. It contains a list of our laws, a map of the city, and some advertisements from local businesses that sponsor these scrolls to be made. You can feel free to come in if you agree to our laws and turn this scroll back in when you leave so we can reuse it." Announced the two Akalak at the gates. The stage master nodded his acceptance. "We are honoured that the Akalak are permitting us to set up our humble act here," he replied. "We will obey all laws, and honour all codes, while we are here. This I swear as master of this troupe." The two gate guards nodded at his response, and the gates swung open. "Welcome to Riverfall," floated the greeting from behind, as Jorin took his first step into the mighty city.

[Niraeya]

47th of Summer, 513 AV

Aimless chatter filled the air as Niraeya relunctantly followed behind the caravan. It had been nigh on two weeks since she had left Kenash with the group of travelers and she just about regretted her hasty decision. They had been the only ones heading out at the time and she had jumped at the first opportunity. But if she had known what their pace would be, she would have waited it out. They were an entertaining and welcoming bunch but they moved oh so slowly. It was as this thought ended that Riverfall finally stood against the horizon. She almost dared not to believe that after such a tedious journey the great cliffside city was almost within reach. It was all she could do not to spur Pashoutan into a mad gallop towards it.

As if sensing her sudden shift in energy, said horse whinnied and threw his head back. She smiled and petted her companion affectionately. "Soon." Much sooner she hoped. Unable to contain her excitement, Niraeya took firm hold of the reins and urged the beast forward. She swiftly rode up beside the head of the procession. "Do you see it? The city?" She asked the woman seated at the front of the vardo.

Lianna glanced at Niraeya with surprise etched on her face. No doubt thinking it rare that the girl had initiated a conversation. Eventually surprise faded and she flashed her a smile. "Aye, can't miss such a sight." The woman chuckled. "Eager to get there are we? Sit tight, it's not much longer."

A few hours later and they were crossing the river. It had taken much coaxing to get Pashoutan to board the ferry but it wasn't anything a bit of bribery couldn't handle; he was worth all the apples in the world. He seemed to think so as well if the nudge to her back was anything to go by. Niraeya giggled and swatted at the horse before returning her gaze to the grand structure before her.

It had been months since she had last been to Riverfall. She was still traversing Cyphyrus with Endrykas then. Yet she hadn't spent much time within the cities walls. Even now she questioned the reason behind it. But that was then and now she would see all that she had failed to the first time around.

As the ferry docked, Niraeya turned to assist her traveling companions in unloading from the ferry but Lianna merely waved her off. "We've got this here. Go on," she shooed her. She would have stayed and argued, but if there was anyone more stubborn than Niraeya, it was Lianna. Besides, the woman had already turned her back to her. Niraeya shook her head, amusement plain on her face and grabbed hold of Pashoutean's reigns. She led the stallion to the gates where two Akalak stood guard.

"Welcome, traveler. Here is a scroll of welcome from the city. It contains a list of our laws, a map of the city, and some advertisements from local businesses that sponsor these scrolls to be made. You can feel free to come in if you agree to our laws and turn this scroll back in when you leave so we can reuse it."

Niraeya took the offered scrolls and nodded her consent to the laws without a peek at what they were. They allowed her entry and she led the horse through the gates. It was a different sight inside, though just as impressive. She gazed around in awe until a snort beside her reminded her what her first order of business should be. Niraeya unrolled the map scroll and stared at its contents until she located the stables. She rolled it back up and slipped it into her pack. "You're going to have a new owner for a whilst and you'll get a nice sack of apples too." She spoke softly to her friend. He bowed his head and nudged her in the side. She smiled and rubbed his side before heading for the stables.

[Vanari]

Spring, Day 10, 510 AV

From the moment Vanari had stepped aboard the slim vessel, everything had been a confusing blur. She knew there was something strange about the way her greasy guide had so hastily dumped her at the docks, but hadn't the courage at the time to confront him. Now, she was watching the giant, alien city of Riverfall materialize before her in the morning fog, inching nearer and nearer with every push of the wind, whether she wanted it to or not.

Oh Morwen, what have I done? she whimpered to herself. I was supposed to be on my way to the shining city of Syliras. Now I'm lost and haven't a clue what lies within Riverfall!

It had occurred to her to ask the captain and fellow shipmates for help, but it was hard enough passing herself off as a boy, mutely hunkered down by the sides of the ship, trying not to hurl. She would've tried to enjoy her first excursion over open seas, had she possessed any sea legs at all. Nevermind that every attempt to relieve herself was a complete nightmare. She had been warned that her small amount of coin would guarantee her arrival, but safe and comfortable passage was out of the question.

Which was why when the ship finally reached the docks of Riverfall and its passengers quickly relinquished, Vanari had to resist falling to the ground and kissing it reverently. Whatever Riverfall may be, she fervently hoped she could give up this tiring ruse of boyhood, piss in peace, and take a real bath.

That is, until she found herself standing before two towering, heavily muscled Avalak guards, flustered like she had never been flustered before.

"Miss, you ain't foolin' anyone," the guard on the left smirked. "But when you're all nice and cleaned up with some proper lady clothes on you, I'll be happy to help you settle in real cozy. No strings, just lookin' out for a newcomer as pretty as yourself."

Some of Vanari's ex-shipmates behind her guffawed and slapped their knees. "How the hell did we not notice?" one shouted. "You mean, how could we 'ave?" another cried, and the whole crew burst out laughing even louder.

Mortified didn't even begin to describe how the weary Vantha felt. She stared resolutely at the ground, paralyzed with anger and fear and unable to do anything more. Then, to her surprise, the laughter immediately died as one of the sailors fell to the ground, gasping in pain.

"Just a little friendly advice, sea rats." Vanari looked up, and only one guard was left. Turning around, she found the other--the one who had spoken to her first--standing nonchalantly over the fallen man. "We treat our women here with respect, and they know it. One little complaint and you'll find yourselves like this poor fella here, outside of our gates, fetal position. Got that?"

A sea of nods ensued. "Good. Now miss, if you please, we'll check your belongings and you can be on your way." Vanari nodded vigorously and let them politely look through her things.

"And don't be a stranger," the handsome Avalak grinned, "I know how to show a lady a good time." He winked, and his fellow guard merely shook his head. Not knowing what the gods she was supposed to respond with, the Vantha stammered her thanks, clutched her bag close, and walked blindly through the gates.

[Kirsi Winterflame]

2nd of Summer, 513AV Gripping her backpack tightly, Kirsi took in the beautiful and intimidating sight of Riverfall's Land Gate. The rest of the trading caravan flowed past and around her sparing the awestruck woman little thought, safe arrival at the city having ended their business relationship. Kirsi hardly noticed their passing. Nervous excitement fueled her steps and she followed, albeit a distance behind, her former traveling companions. She took in the city walls and the unfamiliar noises, feet moving forward of their own accord until she found herself face to... Chest with an appropriately intimidating guard. Blinking up at him in silence, she barely registered his recitation of welcome and warning. When the Akalak stopped speaking Kirsi nodded, hoping that was the proper response, accepted the leaflet he handed to her and took her first steps into the city of Riverfall. A few steps past the gate, the reality of her situation set in, and Kirsi had a momentary flare of panic. She had just left everything and everyone she knew far - very far - behind her. It took only a moment before her natural optimism quashed her trepadition, and she allowed herself a true smile. Icemaiden, hrm? she thought. If nothing else comes of this, at least I'll have left that horrid name behind. The Vantha consulted the map and pinpointed her first stop in her new city: The Labor Aide office. If she was going to live here, she would need a job.

[Malla]

Summer, Day 50, 513 AV Malla stood a bit from the gate, looking up to the walls, and chewing her lip. Oh, she could very well regret this, but after a couple days of camping a safe distance away, she figured it was time to actually go in the city. Especially since she might want to figure out where the nearest tavern was; she would like to eat some food she didn't catch herself at least once. Besides, she still had to work on regaining the right to her name and then she could go back to Endrykas. The Konti woman couldn't help but feel a bit giddy with that thought. Yes, probably no one really knew what she had done those thirty-five years, but she did. She blinked as someone bumped into her, shaking her from her thoughts long enough for her to move closer to the gate, pressing her fingers close to hide the delicate webbing between them. Malla quickly checked that her scales and Windmarks were covered before reaching the blue-skinned guards. "Welcome, traveler. Here is a scroll of welcome from the city. It contains a list of our laws, a map of the city, and some advertisements from local businesses that sponsor these scrolls to be made. You can feel free to come in if you agree to our laws and turn this scroll back in when you leave so we can reuse it," she heard the man say, though only halfways since she was thinking Oh, great, so I'm going to be super short around here....unless there are enough shorter people here. I hope there are. If there aren't, I might- Her thoughts cut off as the Akalak clears his throat, thrusting the scroll towards her again. The petite woman smiled apologetically and took the scroll, still with her fingers pressed together. It was important to her that it wasn't obvious she was Konti. "I can easily agree to your laws. Afterall, they're part of the reason as to why I'm here," she replied with a bright smile, before she enters the city, holding onto the scroll though planning to ditch the map soon. Better she would get lost to find her way than know it already.