Completed Chasing Phantoms

[Anders]

3rd of Summer 513AV
The main gates of Syliras stood, on this blue, sunny day, as secure and majestic as they ever had. All was safe and quiet as two Syliran Knights stood watch at the city entrance. Then, breaking the silence, the deeper pair of ironoak doors swung open. Outward, into the wilderness of the Cobalt Mountains wandered, what appeared to be, a pale human with unkempt wiry black hair.

Anders wanted to explore some of the more exotic locations surrounding the civilized city. Unfortunately, he came to an abrupt stop on the Kabrin Road. He fumbled around, for several minutes with a map which he wasn't quite sure how to read. Not well enough, anyway, to actually make it through the wilderness.

Specifically, he wanted to reach the Aylasa Caves. The caves were a symbol of hope and resilience. They reflected the history of humanity's survival during the darkest days of Syliras' existence. Although dark and expansive, the location wasn't seen as a place of particular horror. Anders didn't disagree with the generally positive attitude toward the Caves and he didn't look to change Syliras' feelings. However, he couldn't help but wonder if there might be a significant amount of supernatural activity in those twisting caverns.

Maybe he'd find the ghost of some poor souls who got lost during early explorations of the cave. Or perhaps something even a bit more esoteric than that. Humanity had spent nearly 100 years in that thick darkness, perhaps in that time, an interpersonal conflict or two had caused an avoidable spilling of blood. Either way, it was worth the chance. After all, Syliras was a beacon of civility and there were haunted locales to be found even inside of Stormhold's walls. If spirits could be found in a great city like Syliras, then there had to be something in that cave to pique Anders' academic interests.

None of this, unfortunately, mattered. He wasn't outside of the Aylasa Caves. He wasn't even en route. He was standing outside of the city walls, holding the map wrong and generally looking like some kind of laden traveler from a far off city like Lhavit. It was beginning to look like this trip was going to end as quickly as it had begun and that Anders would have to settle for the predictable city streets if he wanted to find more spirits.

[Ivandra]

The sky was a perfect, vibrant blue and not a cloud was in sight. It was the perfect day for exploration, and that was exactly what Ivandra planned to do. She'd spent the majority of the day at the market square, trying to find a buyer for the deer she'd hunted earlier. Her family needed as much money as they could get, and she was certain some resident in Syliras would be interested in some fresh kill. Sure enough, her pocket now weighed down more heavily than it had before, and the soft jingle of coins could be heard as she moved.

The female Kelvic gave a skip as she headed towards the main gate guarding the city, satisfaction sweeping over her. Even though she wasn't quite sure exactly where she wanted to explore, the prospect of going somewhere outside of Syliras always made her jumpy. She would simply let her legs carry her wherever, and trust that she would end up somewhere interesting.

But as she neared the gate, she noticed a pale figure holding what appeared to be a map. His back was turned towards her, and he obviously hadn't noticed her yet, which was fine by her. She was more of the introverted type, preferring to spend her time alone. Socialization wasn't her strong suit, nor was it something she took an especial liking to. However, as she strode past him, she glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes, and, with a start, noticed that he was holding the map the wrong side up. It was either her imagination or he also looked slightly confused. "You know you're holding that map the wrong way, right?" she blurted, unable to stop herself. Her tone held a note of surprise, as if she couldn't imagine why in the world anyone would not know how to hold a map. "Are you okay?"

Yeah, forget about the standard introductions. Those were always boring.

[Anders]

Anders wasn't necessarily startled by the sudden voice, but he did flinch and chuckle awkwardly; he was obviously embarassed to be found in such an awkward scenario.

"No, yeah I know the words are upside..." he chuckled again, trying to save face.
"I mean I can see Syliras here and I can follow the Kabrin, here," he pointed to a thick trail corresponding with the large road to their east.
"But I can't seem to make out any of these other lines. I can't follow these shapes through the woods." He admitted.
"So I guess that I can use this map to get really far from Syliras but I can't really get around the neighborhood."

He folded up the map and looked at the speaker. He took a moment to read the red-headed woman's aura. He immediately detected a grand curiosity about her. Not the focused obsession of a mage or a scholar but a broader thirst for discovery.

"I'm Anders," He smiled, finally offering a hand after his moment of study. "Its my first time out of the city in a long time, ya know?"How about you? It would seem as though you are quite comfortable out here, no?"

[Ivandra]

Ivandra cocked her head, suddenly curious. Were there certain maps that printed their words and roads upside down? She had never seen any such maps, but then again, Mizahar was full of strange items and creatures she'd never heard about. That was all the more incentive for exploring, after all.

She peered down at the map, following the speaker's finger as he gestured to various parts of the map, noting the thick trails drawn and the other lines. "Ah, I see." She couldn't blame him; the map did have shapes inscribed on it that couldn't be followed. Perhaps they were misprints? "But are you trying to find your way through the neighborhood? I grew up in Syliras, so I'd probably be able to help point you in the right direction if you need to get anywhere in the city." She was careful to say "point you in the right direction" rather than "lead you in the right direction". She still had her plans to go through and explore the territory surrounding the city, even though the male did seem nice enough.

As he introduced herself, offering out his hand with a quick smile, she allowed a smile onto her face as well. "Nice to meet you, Anders." "And I'm Ivandra." She shook his hand. "And yeah, same goes for me. I've spent so long in the city, I'm actually looking forward to getting out and stretching my legs a bit. Not to say I don't enjoy being in Syliras, though. I take it you're heading somewhere then?"

[Anders]

"Well, the neighborhood of the Bronze Forest, maybe. The larger neighborhood of the Sylira region," he told her. "I was planning to find my way to the Aylasa Caves."

Anders smiled, invitingly, at the stranger. "If it wouldn't be too much of a burden, could I spare a few moments of your time? Would it be a reasonable request for some aid in using this map? Would you be so kind as to point me in the direction of the caves?"

Anders took his set of ghostbeads out from his pocket. "I don't know that the place is actually haunted but I'd like to see for myself before I decide its not." Anders was excited about the prospect; by now he had witnessed a number of supernatural encounters but all of them in man made buildings along man made streets in man made cities. He wanted to find a ghost in a less civilized location. He wanted to interact with a ghost outside of the comforting environment to which he or she would have grown accustomed in life. He wanted to find a ghost who was forced to remain in the quiet, or the dangerous, or the wild or the eerie landscape where he or she drew their last breath.

"Have you ever actually seen the caves for yourself?"

[Ivandra]

The Bronze Forest. The Aylasa Caves. Both were names she'd heard; travelers passing through Syliras often spoke of them, but she hadn't had the opportunity recently to venture out and actually see them for herself.

"I've never actually been to the caves myself," Ivandra confessed, feeling somewhat embarrassed as she remembered how she had offered to point him in the right direction just moments before. "But I can help you find this place. I'm not up to much today, anyways. May I have a closer look at the map?"

She watched then as Anders took a small object out of his pocket. Ghostbeads. She peered more closely at him, and it suddenly hit her that he was an explorer too, just in a different way than she was. The beads showed his clear interest in ghosts, and it would make sense that he would be headed to the Aylasa Caves to find some. There had always been rumors of those pale, unearthly beings floating around in the dark caves. She had no idea whether or not the rumor was true or not, but it certainly excited her thirst for adventure. "Ah, I've heard many rumors as well. May I come with you? I am also interested in seeing whether or not those stories are true."

[Anders]

"A traveling partner would be wonderful!" Anders smiled. He handed the map over to the, clearly more experienced, lady.

Anders grinned at Ivandra's excitement. "Have you ever seen a ghost in its natural haunting?" He asked her. "I would be beyond thrilled to have you aboard but are you sure that you really want to climb into a dark, humid, stinky cave just to see something that you might never be able to unsee?"

Anders had too many experiences like this in the past. He imagined it was one of the first things the spiritist learned; everyone wanted to see a ghost until they actually saw a ghost. The ghostly creatures solemn, mournful wails are harder to deal with over the noise of the human's frightful ones. He remembered being horribly distracted from his work by terrified gawkers who had wanted an entertaining show.

But he could only be so cautious. After all, she was the one who knew how to use a map. Furthermore, Anders was reminded of having seen Ivandra's aura. She certainly had a trailblazer's spirit to her. If she hadn't seen some wild stuff yet, Anders didn't doubt that she was fated to do so. After seeing this and getting an idea of her aptitude out here in the forest, he was fairly confident that he could afford to take her into the caves with him.

[Ivandra]

Ivandra grinned at Anders's, his excitement carrying over to her. Smiles certainly were contagious. "Great, thanks, Anders!" She took the map from him and examined it, eyes following the path etched on it which led from the Syliras entrance gate to the Aylasa Caves. The path seemed fairly straightforward, and from the scaling, it didn't seem as if it would take too long to get there either.

"No, I've never seen a ghost," she responded. "But I wouldn't mind having to go through dark, stinky caves. I've been through worse; I think I should be able to handle it. It'll be an interesting experience too, either way." Even though she said it with conviction and was still raring to go out on the whole, his warning made her just a tad bit anxious. She had never seen a ghost before, so she had no idea what kind of effect it would have on her. But still, her excitement and curiosity raged beneath it all, overcoming most of the feelings of anxiety.

"We should get moving," she suggested. "Even though the way isn't too far, we should still allow a good amount of time for exploring. You know, increasing the chances of actually finding a ghost." She flashed him a mischievous smile before taking a few steps forward.

[Anders]

Anders wasn't worried about his traveling partner; she seemed quite confident and that confidence would help if things began to get creepy in the caves. He watched her decisively take the lead and start on the trail toward the caves. He quickly moved from his spot so that he could keep up with her.

Even if they didn't make it to the caves, at all, Anders was enjoying this walk. It was so rare that he had a chance to get out of the city. The natural surroundings were a welcome change. He was very aware of the chirping of the birds and the beautiful light as it traced down through the branches overhead. Something about being in a more natural landscape caused the ethaefal to smile along the entire trip to the caves.

"So, Ivandra," Anders warmly began, "what brings you to the city of Sylir? Were you born here or are you just passing through on one of your travels?" As long as he was going to be searching for ghosts with this woman he figured that he would have to get to know her as best as he could. And the reverse was true too; if they were going to have a trusting relationship in the darkness, he wanted her to get to know him as well.

"I've been in Syliras for as long as I can remember. For the duration of this lifetime, anyway. I think that I woke up in the Suvan Sea," he told her. "Not sure, why I never left Syliras. Most ethaefal wander the earth. I never really had that impulse. I guess my studies in spiritism became my exploration."

[Ivandra]

Ivandra breathed a deep sigh, allowing the sun to sink into her skin as she began the walk, moving through a small dirt path in the territory surrounding Syliras. It was the perfect day, and the fact that she had a traveling companion with her just made it all the more enjoyable. Admittedly, she didn't know him all too well yet. But they had the entire walk, and he certainly seemed open enough. He wasn't shy, and obviously had a passion for exploration and ghosts. The former was something they both had in common, and as for the latter, she wouldn't mind gaining some knowledge about ghosts. It would serve to expand her knowledge of the world and also have some stories to tell when she returned back to her family.

She turned her body towards him as he asked her the question, responding, "I was born here. I've never really been anywhere outside of Syliras, actually. I had the opportunity to travel a little bit ago, but my mother fell ill so I needed to stay behind and care for her. She's almost recovered now, though." She couldn't help but smile in return at his warmth; it wasn't everyday she encountered others who were so friendly.

"Ah, so you study spiritism." Her voice clearly held a note of interest. "What exactly is it though? So do you just travel the earth in search of ghosts?"