Colors and Cuddies (Lacerta, Delani)

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ Lacerta smiled at the pair's decision, glad to have a nice leisurly sail before she got herself stuck on the Dawn sister for their voyage. She wasn't quite sure what it would be like on such a huge boat... but it would certainly be different. While the others discussed what they would call Starry Sea, she began untying them from the dock. Luckily, the sail was already up and fluttering loosely in the wind, meaning she didn't have to go through the annoyance of raising it. She untied the fenders, dumping them into a storage area build specifically for the things. Now that they were untied and floating freely, she moved to the wheel, before speaking to the pair. "You may want to move to the stern" she commented, motioning to the back of the boat. She doubted they understood the general nautical terms, but her gesture would make sense. The dock drifted further away, and the boat and pier were now approximately a meter apart. "And can you tell your bird to stay away from the sail? It'll be moving." She pointed to the foresail, which was flapping from uncertain air. "Tacking to the right..." she muttered after everyone was gathered, and haled on the rope that would allow the sail to use the wind's power to their advantage. This sent the boat swinging sharply to the right, aided by the Eth's use of the wheel, and they began moving in the general direction of open water. She planned on sailing out into the Suvan a bit, before turning around after half a bell and heading back to dry land. The wind was at such an angle that they wouldn't have to tack too often... but they would still have to tack once... maybe on the way there, she wasn't sure... and several times on the way back. However, now that they were moving, she began to give instructions to her passengers. "Just for general safety, always keep a hand on something. There are seats here, by the wheel if you want to sit. Also, if I ever say 'tacking' avoid that sail over there... it'll be moving." She pointed to the triangle of canvas that had indeed moved, the closest point being pulled from port to starboard. After musing a moment on using the passengers to help, she directed her attention at Delani. "Would you like to help? When tacking- I can do it alone, but we have more control if there's two working on it. All you need to do is pull a rope... Your choice however." ~|--|~

[Brodon Windriver]

Brodon had been chirping and clucking at Arrow, making a gesture of a long straight structure and bringing his arm to a point where his imaginary pole was directly under his arm perch. He lowered it, adding a new "phrase" of whistles and clicks and when Arrow cried back a short shrill squawk, Brodon flung his arm up, giving the hawk the impetus to soar up and seek a perch atop the mast.

He then turned back to Lacerta, thinking she had been speaking to him. "I would be loving to help in full in any ways I can be doing." He thought it would be greatly satisfying if he could be useful as more than just a crate mover on the upcoming expedition. If he could begin to gain a understanding of how sailing vessels were manned, he would be more than just another backbone.

He walked over to where a rope was connected to a reinforced corner of the forward sail, which wavered uncertainly in the unsteady wind. There were actually two ropes extending from the same corner. He took hold of the one with the least slack and pulled, thinking that the slack was supposed to be equalized between both ropes. The rope gave easily enough, coming with him as he turned to see Lacerta only now turning back to face him. Her eyes grew wide just as the sail he was pivoting caught wind again and pulled him right off his feet, bouncing him off the mainmast as it swung back to the rail.

Brodon found himself on his backside, rubbing his ribs and looking up into the faces of two women clearly making an effort not to laugh at him. But he then showed a bit of newly learned wisdom at the slapping sound of canvas catching wind. He pitched forward and turned to see if the sail might be coming back overhead again the other way. Growing up in the tent city of Endrykas, he knew the sound of canvas slapping in high winds.

"I was not being expect...ful...of such fast changing of directions." he explained sheepishly as he crawled out of the reach of the spar's swing radius. "So, I am guessing the sails are not needing for being full of equal wind on both sides all the time." he chuckled as he stood, his hands now instinctively finding a grip on the rail.

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ Lacerta nearly burst into laughter when she saw Brodon be nearly shoved off his feet by the sail. She'd made the mistake once or twice before, but knew better than to wander around on that part of the deck by now, especially when the boat was moving. It was easier to stay by the small seating area, and take a place there... more comfortable, more social, and overall safer... for everyone. You didn't wan't to step on a rope and break something. His comment about not needing equal wind made her smile, but it was more that she was please with his deduction... though it wasn't a particularly good one. If you kept the sails flat... you'd move sideways. In fact, with a sail setup like this, it was hard to go in a straight line with the wind for long... you always had to head at an angle. However, those massive ships with large square sails could sail at huge speeds with the wind at their backs... but not so far when it was heading towards them. "No" she replied in agreement, nodding. "The sails are set up to go at an angle... it's confusing at first, knowing when to tack, but you get the hang of it." She shrugged, adjusting their course slightly as she did so. They were out in the water by now, floating steadily away from the port with a light breeze at their backs. It wasn't as strong as she'd like... they wouldn't get very far with this, but it was something. The worst days were those without wind at all. Though sure, you could feel Syna's radiance even more than usual, it was a pain to sail in... or not sail in. All you could do was simply anchor down and wait for Zulrav to send a gust your way. "Did you want to take the wheel?" she asked, more out of politeness than anything else. She held the spot open to the Drykas, though kept an eye on their other passenger. "It's quite simple. You want to angle the boat so the sail gets the most amount of wind. If you go too far in either direction, it'll start flapping... so you want to head back then. Make sense? Oh, and if your bird wants, he can sit here." She patted a small, oddly placed wooden bar just above the cabin entrance. She'd had it put in so Apus could sit... all those years back, and had never wanted to remove it. It was just so... sentimental. She refused to think of the other Apus, however... he didn't deserve the name... ~|--|~

[Brodon Windriver]

'Confusing...not knowing when to...attack?' Brodon was sure he'd heard her wrong. There was no one to attack here. But her offer to "take the wheel" was enthusiastically received. Both the chance to experience something new, and the learning experience, beckoned him. Also, there was an undeniable element of feeling the authority of being the one actually directing the vessel's course.

In short order though, he was certain he was doing it wrong. She'd mentioned the flapping off the sails as an indicator, and they'd begun doing that almost immediately. But he knew that was due mostly to his excited desire to exercise a noticeable change of direction right away. 'What point is there in being able to steer the boat, if you don't do any steering?' he thought cheerfully, knowing it was somewhat childish, but nonetheless enjoying himself.

No, the thing that caused him concern was that he could not seem to make the boat go truly straight. Despite all his compensations and adjustments, it seemed that the boat was not cutting straight through the surface, but was more like sliding over it. It was sort of like running over something slick and trying to turn. It also seemed like there was no way to go back the opposite direction. Sure, he could accomplish some zigzagging, But the combination of flapping sails and they influence of the wind on his direction regardless of the direction the boat actually pointed, he didn't see how they could go back to Riverfall.

But they had only just started. They had several bells, and he knew Lacerta had experience and would not have taken the boat out if she could not return. So he let himself feel the natural glide of the vessel, the pull of the wind, and the sounds of the water, so different here than anything he'd known from an inland lake. There was energy here previously unknown to him, and he could suddenly see how people could be attracted to such a lifestyle.

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ Lacerta let Brodon take the wheel politely, stepping back to take a seat herself. She didn't like people touching the wooden circle without her permission... she was especially protective of her boat, after Apus. Even though it had been so long ago, she hadn't gotten over it. But with her consent... she was fine to watch and gauge how well the Drykas adjusted to the control. He didn't do so well at first, as the sail almost immediately began flapping. Frowning, she attempted to figure out which direction the man had gone to far in. The wind was coming from in front of her, and... yes, "Turn slightly to the right" she muttered quietly, motioning in said direction. "That should fix it up." If Brodon did spin the wheel correctly, the boat would straighten up and the canvas would fill completely. If he ever did mess up again, the Ethaefal would simply point him in the direction. After a few moments of silence in their sailing, the composer decided to start up a conversation again. "So... I'm curious... where did you get your hawk? He seems remarkably well trained... and when you talk to him, it sounds almost like you're talking bird. Why is that? I've never heard such a language..." She had heard of people who talked to birds in an odd, chirping and clicking language, but had never heard it herself. It sounded remarkably hard to pronunciation, nothing like any other language she knew. If she'd been able to speak to Apus the owl during their time in Lhavit... everything would have been so much simpler. Still, a language that spoke directly to birds, so they actually understood... sounded a little skeptical. It would have been like talking Dog, or Cat... it simply didn't make sense. Could humans even make those sounds? ~|--|~

[Brodon Windriver]

Her instructions were dead on. As soon as he turned a little to the right, there was a smooth sense of alignment. In a few more moments there started to be a slight shudder and the sail flapped again. He turned further to the right, but realized, even as she corrected him, that it would now take a turn back to the left. This was exhilarating! The way that the body of the vessel flowed smoothly across the surface without being perfectly aligned with the facing of the bow soon stopped bothering him. It almost seemed that it was supposed to work this way. And Lacerta was not expressing any concern over it, so why should he?

She asked about his hawk, Arrow, and he was happy to oblige. He told her he had been living in Yahebah at the time. How he'd crossed the desert and managed only through the grace of the gods, one of whom, he believed, had sent an agent of mercy to rescue his bird at that time, a pigeon named 'Prombus'. This man had promised to see the bird to safety and assured him he would find his way to Yahebah. After a few events bordering on the miraculous, he had reached his goal.

Needless to say, though he was naturally glad to survive, and glad Prombus was saved, he still missed his old friend, and hoped to find a replacement, since he didn't expect to see Endrykas again for gods knew how long. The gods answered his prayer in a typically unlikely way. He was provided one by a man whose daughter had been kidnapped. The man's son had come to Brodon claiming that his lack of affiliation with any of the families made him someone that might be able to move without being observed. As it turned out, the son himself was behind the kidnapping, and was setting up Brodon to be the fall guy for the fouled up ransom exchange. The son intended to remove the one obstacle to a full inheritance and keep the ransom money, killing both Brodon and the daughter in what the son would then claim was a betrayal by Brodon.

Brodon tried not to let an overabundance of pride show as he explained how he turned the tables on the treacherous son, saved the daughter, and won his new hawk as part of his reward. He had been using him as a messenger bird on that mission anyway, so Arrow had already grown accustomed to him. It was a natural partnership. He used Arrow on a number of other adventures in The Burning Lands as well, but joked that he needed to leave some subjects of conversation for the trip to Syka.

He went on to explain that the strange language was called Nari. He was not sure where it originated, but the man that taught him his rudimentary skill, had called it 'The Language of the Winds'. Brodon recalled how a brightly red-haired man had come though Endrykas a couple of seasons before his father fell ill. He called himself 'Chovis' and was a trainer and seller of birds. Brodon had not been getting the hang of shielding training and decided to try falconry instead. His father had warned him that this man would surely be leaving before Brodon could really capitalize on his presence. He also spoke of how unlikely it was that this man let him use one of his birds for falconry training without buying it first, and that he wasn't going to spend a hundred gold or more on a trained bird that would go to waste.

Brodon grinned as he recounted how the man had proved his father wrong on both counts. Chovis took Brodon 'under his wing'. The young man grinned at the play on words. He taught him this basic level of the language, saying that birds will be far more responsive if you speak to them in their own language. Chovis had given him personal lessons outside of those the Pavilion provided. He told Brodon he could grow to be a great falconer, because he could see in him that Brodon considered the bird his partner, and not a servant. When Chovis finally left, he gave Brodon his own pigeon, Prombus.

Once again, the young man grew distant and quiet, eventually muttering to himself, "I hope he is safe."

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ Lacerta found Brodon's story remarkably interesting, and listened with her full attention. She liked the tale, as emotional and frightening as it probably had been when it first occurred. She thought back to a few similar experiences, reflecting on them, especially the betrayal part, but quickly forced the negative thoughts out of her mind. She was onto new things now... and that was all in the past. When everything finally came to an end, she smiled and shrugged at the Drykas' worry. "You may never know... but you can hope. Friends are still friends, even if you haven't met them in years. Maybe one day you two will meet again. We are going to create a new city, after all, interesting things are sure to happen." She patted the man companionably on the back, before glancing quickly at her other passenger. Delani hadn't spoken much... she might have been sick, but the Ethaefal wasn't one to guess. Instead, she focused more on the bird at hand. "He's very beautiful... you two must have grown very close. Now... I have a question. What are the Drykas like? I basically never go that far inland to see the Sea of Grass, but I've heard stories... especially about the danger. I prefer the ocean that way... it's harder for things to sneak up on you, unless it is one of Laviku's children." She was honestly curious about the human culture. She knew quite a bit about Svefra, and Benshira, but didn't know much about any of the other human races. In Lhavit, there had been one or two called 'Vantha', and quite a number of the 'Inarta', but she'd never really understood those cultures. ~|--|~

[Brodon Windriver]

Brodon was a little reserved to begin speaking about his people. He finally made a decision and turned to her, saying that he would speak of how it was before he left to follow his quest. He did not want to mention the new developments there. So instead, he spoke of the free spirit of the Drykas that was nonetheless cohesive in its fellowship, all families ready to embrace members of other families when the need was great. He spoke of the nomadic mobility of the migrating tent city. That it was not truly nomadic, as they followed a long set course around the perimeter of the plains of Cyphrus. It was not random movement, the circuit was long established.

Nor was the migration just because of some restive spirit, some instinct not to be in one place too long. It was cultural as well, the cycle of contact with other cultures as their travels brought them near other cultural centers. The sharing and melding of new ideas, the incorporation of new fashions and learning spectrums under the broad umbrella of Drykas familial stability.

Also, the migration served to prevent the ruin of the land so common with long human habitation. He spoke of the division of focus among the different Pavilions, each with an elder, or 'Ankal', that had final say for decisions of his Pavilion. On matters affecting the entire community, the Ankas would collect to make all-encompassing decisions that all the Drykas would abide by.

He grew quiet again, his look indicative of introspection. He caught himself and began a long praise of the horses of the plains, in particular, The Strider. This was the signature race of horses said to be the offspring of the shared song of Zulrav and Semele long ago, ages before the Valterian. He spoke of legends concerning the first bonding of Serifal Drykas and this first father of the Striders, then called 'Rakivas'. How this came to be a tradition of blood and spirit, forming a strong family-based people, which carried them through the Valterian until they rose again from underground sanctuaries to find the land changed to a vast 'Sea of Grass'.

He spoke of the different pavilions and their unique customs and focus.The healers of the Opal, the craftsmen of the Ruby, the hunters and animal trainers of the Emerald, the superior horsemen and navigators of the Amethyst, the statesmen and social developers of the Topaz and the mages of the Sapphire. He cited that, though his own Pavilion, the Diamond, focused on weapons and proficiency training, ALL Drykas learned to fight early as the Sea of Grass was a dangerous place, claiming many at a sadly early age.

When this happened, the families would pull together to give support, frequently adopting young brothers and sisters, or elder widows and widowers. The bodies of the slain, on the rare occasions that they were recovered, were not held in static repose to be gathered around in mourning. They were taken into the wild plains and risen on a bier, left for the cycle of predation to see the body returned to the land, the spirit free to be reclaimed by the web until rebirth returned it to its people.

Brodon halted again, blinking and struggling to steady his breath. His heart tortured over the fear that his father had somehow been removed from this cycle by his odd changeless condition. But he was grateful for the wind in his face. He was truly feeling a connection with this vessel. It was not unlike the flow of a horse through the high grass, where you can not see the legs and feel that you are gliding over the tips of the blades.

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ Lacerta found the explanation of the Drykas… interesting, to say the least. She honestly had no culture, no family to speak of… and held little in connection with the Drykas that way. The Ethaefal were not really… supposed to be in this land, if you could word it that way. Though Lhavit held many wonders of the Ethaefal, and the greatest population of all her race, the celestial race was more separate individuals melding themselves into other’s cultures and ways. If she’d done that at all, she’d followed the Svefra, but… still didn’t have the family ties and connections that their pods brought. Instead, she lived in solitude, herself, her boat… and her music. From the description, the Sea of Grass sounded like a very dangerous place. The simple fact that all children were taught to fight was a little surprising, but for a land so hostile… it made sense. She’d seen a group of Drykas once, in Riverfall, and all had been armed. She liked the way the clans were divided, as it was sort of… organized. Sort the people by profession. It made sense to her, at least. If Brodon was right, and all learned a weapon… that meant even those of the Opal clan, the healers, knew how to fight. Most healers she knew were pacifists, not wanting to inflict the harm they worked so hard to prevent. But if it was keep yourself alive and kill a beast… it was logical. When her companion finally began describing their ways of death, she slightly zoned out. Though death was probably important to most, her own views on death were a little different. She knew if she died, she would simply be reborn again in another form… and maybe return to her original celestial abode if Syna or Leth wanted. However, she didn’t consider the concept of dying very much… it simply wasn’t part of her. She lived, travelling, sailing, composing, and maybe one day she died. There was no visible end at the moment, and though she was slightly worried about their journey to Syka, it wasn’t the foremost thing on her mind. “Interesting” she commented, finally speaking after a long pause. “The Drykas are a very… interesting race. Though I understand the nomadic part completely… less so the importance of family. Even in my past life, which I barely have snatches of, family didn’t mean much to me… Syna was more important.” She shrugged, watching water splash and burble behind their boat. The sun was out and warming, and though there were numerous clouds in the sky, they weren’t enough to ruin a day. She loved this weather, and being on the water at times like this. Syna’s light was at full strength, warming her and comforting her. She smiled slightly, happy to be away in her own boat again, before remembering the current conversation. “Since I asked about your race… would you like to know about mine? Ethaefal are a confusing group, to be blunt… and I’d be happy to explain if you’re curious. I’ve asked you more than enough questions, so there’s plenty of time to interrogate me. “ She raised a hand in offering, not really minding either way. However, if Brodon did accept the offer, she would be able to continue an interesting conversation. She didn’t get bored easily, but didn’t know about her other passengers… and talking always kept the mind busy. Since she rarely had others on her boat, she always took advantage of the company. The Eth was more reluctant to allow people onto her home, however, especially after Apus… that had not been a good experience in the slightest. ~|--|~

[Brodon Windriver]

Brodon gave Lacerta a hollow look for a moment. "I'm thinking 'family' is not going to being so importance for the Drykas now." He slowly lowered his eyes and allowed them to range over the side, as he took a slow deep breath. In short order his eyes returned to the wheel, then rotated from the bow, to the foresail, to the slack ropes extending from it, to the water's surface, and back to the wheel. He was feeling the connection of all the elements involved in the propulsion of the vessel. It moved and inspired him. His somber thoughts on the recent developments in Cyphrus melted away in the glory of the moment.

Syna was dancing on the surface of the water, glittering and flashing in a visual symphony with the waves, a deep rumble underlying the display, a rumble more felt than heard. 'The voice of Laviku, perhaps?' Brodon thought, wondering absently if the two deities had ever been lovers. 'Clouds could be their children.' he imagined, chuckling at his own whimsy. He looked over at Lacerta to find her smiling at him. He reddened briefly at the thought that she had somehow heard his thoughts.

But instead she asked if he wished her to return the favor of speaking about her people. She phrased it as an 'interrogation'. He knew she was just making a joke, but he felt strangely complemented by it. As if she was crediting him with having given her a great deal of information. He found he was glad to have done it, not knowing if it was because he'd given her something, or himself.

"Yes, I would be happy...full...if you would be wishing to tell of your people." he grinned. "And after that, I am probably should letting you be having your boat back."