Closed Truth Or Lies [Kirvan]

[Gabrielle Seawind]

“Uhm… well, I suppose we will have some random stranger decide for us,” she replied simply. Truth be told, she had no idea. Gabrielle also had no knowledge about malediction, or any other type of magic for that matter.

Being targeted by a dire shark was not something she wished to experience, though. Obviously, amongst other things, malediction had to be carefully thought-of. Unfortunately, Gabrielle was an impulsive woman, and she would most likely forget caution later on.

“I have lots of interesting things to offer!” she replied hastily. “I have a jewel from Alvadas, the man who sold it to me said that sometimes it shows you strange illusions, beautiful things you didn’t know your heart desired. And you? What could you possibly put at stake!?”

It was a lie. A lie he didn’t need to know at the moment. She had not bought the said jewel; it had been much too expensive. However, as much as she liked listening to stories, she liked making them up as well.

After what seemed like a long time to her, they finally arrived at his casinor. It was the standard looking casinor, the ones that most Svefra individuals would be given in their life. Gabrielle’s eyes drifted to the tooth that was resting by the entrance. It was a sight to see indeed, and he was right, it could most likely be carved into a handy weapon.

“Why do you put it there for everyone to see? It could be easily taken,” she stated, very matter-of-factly. It was a well-known fact that the Svefra took what they wanted. She was already having thoughts of her own to find a way to snatch it, but some subtlety was evidently needed. “You’re confident, are you not?”

He was most likely one of those who believed he could ward of unwanted hands easily. The tooth seemed to stare at her like a challenge.

Gabrielle shook her head to brush away the thoughts of taking it without his consent. He was an interesting guy, it appeared that she would find more advantages if she remained on his good side. Grinning, she held out her hand and took the tooth that he was showing her. Gabrielle flicked a finger against it, as if testing its toughness. Kirvan was correct; it was just the right size for a dagger.

“I’ll buy it from you!” she said abruptly. “Mizas are all I have with me right now, unless you want that empty bucket.”

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Chuckling, Kirvan smiled. "Very well, we will let some random stranger decide." It was as good a method as any, and they weren't exactly looking for qualifications. Of course, that was if neither of the items that they had made were curses instead of blessings and found themselves in the deep before they met again. Another chuckle at her boast at a great jewel. "I'll believe it when I see it," he said. "Not that I have anything to offer anyway. The teeth and my weapon are about the most valuable things I have." Then a thought occurred to him, and he realized that statement wasn't entirely true. Reaching into his shirt, he pulled out the necklace of glass beads so that she could see it. "I do have this," he said, "though that's not up for betting. Still a chance it'll mean something to someone." Noticing her interest in her tooth that was stuck into the cabin above the entrance, Kirvan grinned. "Who's going to bother prying it out of the wood?" he asked. "Yeah, you could say that. The manalim had quite a few though, that's one of the smaller ones up there actually, so if anyone would like it they can simply ask. I'm using it to mark my boat though, so if someone wants it they should let me know so I can put another one up, maybe smaller this time." He was well aware of his people's habit of taking things, he was a habit he was still growing out of in the city of Syliras, but here in the Flotilla things were a bit more personal than just up for grabs. That was usually in pod life, when everyone was working towards the same goal anyway: the good of the pod. Without hesitation he handed the tooth over, smiling as she examined it, testing its sturdiness and weight and length. Did she know how to use a dagger? Her offer at buying it earned another chuckle, another habit he should reign in. "You can keep the bucket," he told her. "My catch is too big to fit in anyway. How about this: instead of paying me for it, we'll look for a maledictor together and we can have all the teeth carved. Then we decide who gets what." It likely sounded like a generous offer, especially when their previous talk had been about betting who could find a maledictor faster, but Kirvan still held that old svefra spirit. Whatever was his was his family's, distant relatives included. Though he'd never met Gabrielle before, they were both children of Laviku and the sea, which gave them a bond that members of other races couldn't boast as proudly about. "What do you think sister? Sound good?"

[Gabrielle Seawind]

The Svefra gaped, and then her expression turned to one of delight. Her blue eyes twinkled with ecstasy and she gave a soft laugh. Was he actually just letting her have it!? It came with a disclaimer, but all that really stuck to her was that right at this moment, she would be permitted to claim the tooth as hers.

“Yes, that does sound good! Don’t get yourself killed until we settle this bet.”

She held the tooth up in front of her and examined it once more in the light. When she brought her hand back down, she was grinning right at Kirvan.

“You are going to lose so badly.”

Gabrielle tucked the tooth within the myriad of cloths that were tied around her waist. She made sure that it was put away snugly. If it accidentally fell and dropped into the ocean, she would be devastated. Simultaneously, her mind was already working its way around the possibilities. It could be made into a dagger… a maledicted dagger! She wondered, what would it be able to do?

She patted the bulk around her waist right where the tooth was hidden. Satisfied, she looked back at Kirvan.

“There we go. Thanks, Deepseeker.”

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

The look on her face was like that of a child receiving their first boat, lit up like all the sky on a sunny day, nearly as bright as Syna's glory itself. He couldn't help but chuckle, though he doubted that it would even go noticed in the state that Gabrielle was in at that moment. Such sheer pleasure from merely receiving something was hard for Kirvan to grasp, the novelty of it being a manalim tooth diminished by the fact that he'd actually seen one - alive, swimming, and trying to eat him. "Believe me, I don't plan on dying anytime soon," he chuckled again. Examining it, she lifted it towards the cabin entrance, and Kirvan could see it more clearly as well. It actually wouldn't be too hard to carve it into a weapon, given that someone could carve it. Her grin as she brought it back down was a challenge, met with a grin of his own. "We will see," he said. "You seem awfully sure you can find one. Do you even know where to look?" Not that Kirvan himself did, though he had heard rumors about somene who might be able to do it. Failing that, Syliras was just a bell away. There was bound to be someone there. It seemed horribly unwieldy to wrap it in cloth and shove it deep inside somewhere, but then again none of the teeth had ever left his boat. Dropping it in the ocean could be absolutely crushing to someone who had only one prize. Of course, he had the awareness to avoid saying that he had nine others the same size, not to mention ten little ones ('little' being a relative term) including the one above the cabin doorframe. Those would come later. "Whatever pleases my kin," Kirvan smiled. "If you do win, I'll let you have another to do with what you want, though you'll have to show me who you had carve it." He handed the bucket back, his outstretched arm offering it. "I look forward to seeing you again Gabrielle Seawind. Good luck in your search, and I hope you'll wish me luck in mind. Now I believe we should part ways, that is unless you think we might go fishing together? It is early yet, and it is such a chore to do it alone." Privately he was hoping she'd accept. It wasn't necessarily the loneliness that bothered him, otherwise he wouldn't have left his pod in the first place. It was the utter boredom of waiting that pulled his mind apart. He couldn't take the endless piddling about waiting for something to show up, just sitting their eyes goued to the water, not even thinking. Ster made for good company, but as much as he loved his friend it was never quite the same as haing someone who could talk back.

[Gabrielle Seawind]

Gabrielle gave a slight shrug. “No, I don’t believe I know any maledictors in particular. But that’s just what makes it all the more challenging, don’t you think?”

Aside from that, he had just offered to give her one more if she won the bet. A confident grin swept over her face. She definitely had to win this wage.

“Actually, yes, going out to fish would be a wonderful idea,” she required without much thought. Her eyes drifted towards her empty bucket. She could indeed use another trip; maybe use the catch for her own meals this time. “I’ve to warn you though, I’m no fisherman. I’m practically useless to fishing… the last catch had been purely luck, so you’ll have to bear with a novice like me.”

She was being honest in her words. Gabrielle was no fisherman, and the few catches that she had made were purely out of luck or made with the huge help of her dolphin tavan. Speaking of which, where was Kairo? She thought about her friend for a moment before reverting her attention to Kirvan.

“Let’s sail out on your casinor, yes? No point in bringing my own, especially since it’s all the way on the other side of the Anchorage.”

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

"I suppose," Kirvan grinned. To him, this was all just an interesting fun game on the side, he wasn't very competitive at heart. Well, outside the adrenaline rush of combat that is. Then he was as competitive as a shark. "We'll see how it goes, though it might take longer than a season if neither of us know anybody." Kirvan chuckled as her eyes wandered to the bucket. Luck in catching fish? She was a svefra, and she did not know even the basics? The thought amused him, though he refrained from saying it aloud. "I suppose I will just have to teach you then," he grinned, leaving his cabin and beckoning for her to follow. "If you unti my bowline from the next boat over I can sail us out a bit to calmer waters where we might find some catch." While Gab went about what she was meant to be doing, Kirvan focused on unfurling the sail, raising the halyard and tightening the main sail across the boom. It caught what wind there was amidst this forest of masts, and soon his boat began to pull away from the Anchorage. The man's hand went to the tiller while the other held onto the main lines, ready to direct the motion of his casinor as soon as he was loose, hoping that Ster would be able to find him once he left.

[Gabrielle Seawind]

“Alright, no problem,” she replied swiftly. Gabrielle looked over to where he had tied his casinor to the next ship. It appeared that the other ship’s owner was not around. Knowing that it was always easier to untie the knot from the ship it was tied to, she gracefully hopped unto the next deck. While Kirvan took care of getting his casinor ready for sail, she started to loosen the bowtie. The rope came undone in her hands, and she looped it around itself and jumped back on Kirvan’s ship before it strayed away.

The Svefra woman discarded the rope on the deck. She didn’t know his preferences as to where to put it and she didn’t bother asking. Instead of helping him with the sailing tasks, she noticed a familiar figure in the distance, out in the sea.

As the boat moved, Gabrielle one hand on the mast to keep herself balanced. With the other hand, she waved towards her dolphin tavan, Kairo. He had his head above the water and was watching them go.

“Hey, Kairo! Follow us!” she called out. Gabrielle then stopped waving and glanced at Kirvan. “That’s Kairo, he can help drive the fish towards us. Really helpful.”

Gabrielle took a seat, her eyes out on the horizon, as they made their way towards the spot that Kirvan had in mind.

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Kirvan was focused mostly on sailing for the most part, though he was dimly aware that Gabrille had done her job and nodded his thanks. She dropped the lines just where she happened to stand, which was fine by him - it's what he did after all. Steering them away from the Anchorage, the more wind he caught that wasn't trapped by the forest of sails, and slowly the casinor was picking up speed. Nowhere near its maximum, but getting to a decent number of knots. Some squeaking and clicking to his port side caused the young man's face to break out in a grin, though he remained focused on the winds and lines for now. "Good to see you too, Ster," he called over the side, to which the whale answered with a happy whistle. He'd only been on the Anchorage for a few chimes, not even half a bell, yet still the beluga was happy to see him. Just as he was happy to see his tavan. Well, hear. Kirvan hears Gabrielle call over the side of his boat and for a moment he thought she was calling to another svefra, but when he briefly glanced over to investigate it turned out to be a dolphin instead of a human. As Gab introduced him, Kirvan nodded sagely, and shouted his own greeting over the side of the ship. "Hey Kairo!" he called. "Great to meet you!" Returning his focus to the moving boat, which had picked up a bit of speed, he grinned at Gab's assumption. "With the kind of fishing we'll be doing," he said, "they won't be able to simy herd our catch." The wind pickedup a bit, and Kirv let the boom out so that the main sail could catch the gust, giving them a sudden burst of energy that increased their speed a bit. They were probably going between two to three knots, so at this speed they'd reach his favored fishing spot within a few chimes. "Sit tight, we got a bit of time to go," he said to Gab, adjusting course slightly to adapt to a minor wind change. As for Ster, he swam under the noat over to where Kairo followed, checking out the new guy, squeaking and whistling his curiosity.

[Gabrielle Seawind]

Aside from her own tavan, Kirvan’s was also within their line of sight. It was a white beluga while, and his color made him stand out amidst the blue waters of the Suvan sea. From where she was seated, she peered over at Kairo and at Ster. Her tavan seemed to be very curious about the whale, and it was an interesting sight to see the two of the acquainting themselves with one another.

She watched as Kirvan worked upon his boat. Her own hands itched to help, but she remembered how much it annoyed her when someone meddled with how she worked on her casinor. For that reason, she sat and simply observed him.

The wind was on their side and the casinor was going at a good speed. Gabrielle grinned, already thinking about the fish that were just waiting to be caught. Glancing at her side, she saw that the two tavans were swimming and keeping up with the boat.

“Kairo likes doing that… just enjoys being at the same speed with boats. I think it challenges him or so. He used to do it with the rest of his pod, they just swam in a large group and raced the boats, but… well, the rest of his pod vanished with the rest of mine.”

She sighed. She didn’t even realize that she had turned to a topic that she disliked. With that, she quickly changed the subject.

“How are we going to do this?” Gabrielle asked after a few chimes. She peered at Kirvan with questioning eyes. “Do you have a net? Will we be using one?”

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Ster seemed to be enjoying himself, swimming beside the other tavan and alternating which side he swam on. The white whale squeaked his greeting and introduction to Kairo, and though Kirvan couldn't understand he could see that the two seemed to be getting along fine. It was strange that two tavans of different species be meeting each other, but the difference didn't seem to be a barrier at all. The casinor was easier to handle than a palivar or some other big boat, having only one main sail and the jib up in the bow. Still, tacking and jibing coould be troublesome since he had to let go of both the tiller and the main lines to switch the jib lines. So for this broad reach, he tried to stay on one side of the wind for as long as possible. Fortunately, it seemed that the spot wouldn't require him to switch at all, coming up on the port side. When the two tavans began to flank the boat, Kirvan smiled but kept his attention on the sails. He listened to Gab's description of Kairo's habit and history, oblivious to her sudden discomfort at the topic. As his ship began nearing the spot he'd kept in sight, he dropped the main lines so the boom fell and unclamped the starboard jib line, letting his jib luff in the wind as it suddenly found nothing to push against. Just for added measure, he turned the tiller to the side so they made a tight turn, losing their forward momentum. "Nope, no net," he answered finally. "Well, I have one from when I was with my pod, but I don't use it. Know how to as well, just haven't needed to yet." Then he grinned playfully, looking at Gabrielle. "Shall we go then? To the bow that is." Without waiting for an answer he stepped gingerly over the boom and around the cabin to the front of the boat, where his harpoon launcher stood mounted and overlooking the patch of sea in front of them. He looked at they sky and the Anchorage, getting his bearings and making sure he was ini the right place. Close enough for his purposes. Picking up one of the tethered harpoons, he loaded it into the launcher with a click and took the handles, his fingers on the trigger and keeping an eye out for any dark spots that gave away the position of a fish. It could take a good bell or two before anything showed up, but he had to pay attention just in case something showed up in the nextfew ticks. The uncertainty was uncomfortable, but the method worked for the most part. Continuing to sweep his eyes across the ocean, he left Gab to put together herself what hewas doing. She'd have a pretty good idea from his tool of choice, though she might not know exactly what it was he was looking for.