Completed Monsters in the Dark (Oryani, Arundel)

[Nathaniel Deveraux]

Day 44, Season Fall, 513 AV

Nate was lost. Not that this was a new thing for him; when he'd been in Syliras he had gotten lost innumerable times. Sometimes it was getting lost coming home from the market, other times it was getting turned around in the Bronze Wood. Either way, he'd eventually find his way back with the tried-and-true method of just picking a direction, and following subtle clues to where you are to try and stumble your way back to civilization. Following streams downhill helped. Roadsigns helped even better.

In Cyphrus, though, apparently neither things existed. And he wasn't like Lea, who could navigate by the stars, or Kat, who seemed to just have a sixth sense of where she was. No, Nate had to rely on good old-fashioned dumb luck and a bit of systematic searching before he'd find whatever destination he was going for. The problem was, that approach wasn't working now, and he realized with a sinking feeling that he might be spending the night out here, which was not a very promising prospect.

And Nate felt... alone, out here. Even when he'd gotten lost in Syliras, he always felt that the Syliran Knights had his back. That they'd be there, to rescue him, if he really needed it. They'd been there for his father, even though ultimately they weren't able to save him, and he'd always trusted that they'd protect him if he really needed them. That day they were captured; it all happened too quickly. If the Knights had known, Nate was sure they'd have been able to prevent it.

But now, he felt alone. He didn't trust a single one of those tattooed horsemen. Oh sure, they had his cooperation. As though he had any choice, what with them holding his sisters hostage. But that didn't mean he had to like any of it. If he'd been female, they'd have used him as a walking womb. But as a male they almost didn't know what to do with him, so they stuck him under Arundel with basically the directive of "behave". Fine. If he had to do that, he would, but he wouldn't trust them any further than he could throw them. Which meant he was fully expecting that he was on his own out here.

Hunting the Sea of Grass was not like hunting the Bronze Wood. There were no enormous trees whose canopy blotted out Syna's face, no stones and rotted logs dotting the ground, and the grass was extremely long and very thick, not like the short, blunt grasses that sometimes poked its way from the forest floor. The plains stretched for miles in every direction, and there wasn't even a friendly tall unique-looking tree or something to help guide him on his way.

Sighing, Nate glanced up at Syna, whose face seemed to dropping toward the horizon at an alarming pace. At this rate, he would be out here, in the dark, alone, which was basically an invitation to die. Nate was well-aware, from years of hunting in Syliras, that danger in the wilds was very real and you never stayed out overnight if you could at all avoid it. But it looked like he couldn't avoid it this time. Petch.

At least the Drykas let him keep his weapons. He supposed at his level of skill with them, he couldn't do much to the Drykas warriors anyway, and he'd be a pretty useless hunter without them anyhow. Nate touched his short bow he'd slung across his chest, taking comfort in the feel of the cool wood. If he was to get eaten by some hungry beast out here, at least he'd be able to put up a fight first.

Trudging along the endless plain, Nate strained to see anything that might look familiar, but all he saw was grass, grass, and more grass. Every so often a shrub or tree would show up, but they just looked exactly the same as any of the half-dozen other shrubs or trees he'd seen. Or maybe it was the same tree and he'd been wandering in circles. Great.

Deciding to take a break next to one such tree (or was it the same tree? Nate just didn't know), he took out his waterskin and gulped down some of the precious liquid inside. Half-empty, and he needed to preserve the water if he was going to be staying a night out here. Unlike in the forests of Sylira, Nate had no clue how to construct shelter out here, and even if he did, what sorts of plants were edible. Nate sighed, and leaned back against the wood, groaning a bit, figuring he'd take a short break before trying to move again. At least, he figured, it couldn't get much worse.

[Oryani]

Oryani's job for the day had caused her to frown in confusion, before she finally understood the concept. One of the new slaves, though... not actually a slave... had gone out hunting, and had gotten himself lost. Though the Drykas of course knew where the man had gone, due to the web, someone needed to go bring him back... that was where Oryani came into place. It made sense, honestly, but... really... who was stupid enough to get lost in the sea? At least she had the web to guide her back. However, what really did cause a raised eyebrow was the name. Nathaniel Deveraux. Seemingly, from the last name, he was related to Kalikar's wife, Katerina Deveraux.

She'd accepted the work without a complaint, before preparing herself for the coming journey. If everything went well, it shouldn't take more than a bell or two, but it was always good to be prepared. Her bow was strung and tied to the saddle, while the quiver and scimitar were strapped there as well. Her Yvas packs were full of all the supplies she had, including some flint and tinder in case - for some odd reason - she needed to make a fire. All and all... she felt ready for a little ride. Mounting Khal, she slipped comfortably into her usual seat on his Yvas. That done, she nudged her heels into his sides hard, and they set off at a trot. Another nudge brought them into a canter... though not at the Strider's full speed.

Oryani sat with knees tight against the stallion's sides, and hands gripped around the handhold for dear life. She still wasn't good at galloping... the speed was a little disconcerting, and set her off balance. She needed both hands just to stay on, but it wasn't as bad as when she'd tried full speed once. Soon enough, she deemed them far enough from the city, and slowed her horse, moving to a steady walk where she could let go. Using the time, the Chatakwe focused on the Web, picking out a strand she'd been shown earlier. The strand tied to Nathaniel. Luckily, it wasn't too far off, so she'd been going in the right direction. However, she refused to go too deep as to see the man, not wanting to get lost in the Web's hold... not after Uay.

She directed Khal in that direction, following the glowing line that led off into the grass. Feeling like this pace was too slow, she nudged the stallion to go faster, though still kept her eyes on the Web. She had to multi task with this, both hands on the grip as she moved up and down with the uneven strides, following the glowing path that led to her quarry.

The ride took longer than expected, but soon enough Oryani spotted a tree and some shrubbery, which steadily grew larger. And yes... a person. She kept riding until she had gotten much closer, before stopping Khal and turning the Strider to be parallel with the man... or attempted to. She wasn't very good at directing, so the horse barely turned at all, causing the Chatakwe to scowl. She'd also been told that the man didn't speak Pavi, just like his sister... which was incredibly annoying. "You lost." she called down, more a statement than a question. "You come to city?" she raised an eyebrow, hating to be stuck with such an annoying language.

x
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[Nathaniel Deveraux]

Nate heard the sound of hooves. In Syliras, it was the most beautiful sound in the world to him; it meant the Knights had ridden to his rescue. Here, it generated nothing but apprehension. So, did the Drykas finally send someone to finish him off? Decided they didn't need him now that they had his sisters? it made sense really, why did they need Nate, now that they had Kat and Lea? He needed to be careful around these people. Who knew which one of them would be the one to slip a knife into his spine?

Nate rose slightly when he heard the sound of hooves getting closer, removing his bow from his chest and holding it tightly in his right hand, raised slightly. His left hand twitched, ready to draw an arrow at a moment's notice, as he saw a stallion carrying what looked to be a young woman with pitch-black eyes pull up to him. Before she could speak, he had already narrowed his eyes at her and asked, "You here to kill me?"

In Nate's mind, it was a completely valid question. They captured people, enslaved them, made them their playthings. He'd heard of such behavior from cities such as Sunberth, lawless places without any sense of decency or honor, but apparently these Drykas did it too. So if they enslaved, why wouldn't they murder as well? He scowled when she spoke haltingly in common, announcing that he was lost, and ask if he wanted to come to the city.

"Oh no, I love it out here, what with the murderous beasts that want to eat my face," he snapped back at her, not really liking her imperious tone nor her raised eyebrow. "You lead, I follow. I will not walk in front of you where you can shoot me in the back."

Although Nate lowered the bow, he did not put it back onto his chest, opting to continue to carry it in hand for quick and ready access in case he needed it. He knew one thing for sure. He was not getting on the same horse as one of these tattooed petchers. Even if one of them was going to be the death of him, he wanted to at least see his killer, so that his ghost would know who to haunt.

[Oryani]

Oryani frowned at the man's statement, mostly catching the word 'kill'. It seemed like he wanted to know if she was here to kill him. "No." she told the man bluntly, though etched a little sarcasm into the words. "Why kill? That stupid." She rolled her eyes, but let the man continue on his little banter. He seemed a little paranoid, from what she could glean.

She barely understood most of his statements, but got the important parts, including 'follow' and 'shoot in back'. That made his thoughts pretty clear. The Chatakwe gave him a look like the man was a complete idiot, wondering how such an annoying man could be related to Katerina. Glancing around, she cursed in the universal swear: "Petch." The sun was setting... meaning that stuff would come out. Considering that they would have to go at a walking place, the pair would never make it back to the city in time before dark. And wandering through the grasslands after nightfall would be incredibly dangerous... though more for Nathaniel than her. She could sense anything coming, but shooting it in time... that would be a little more iffy. Instead, she sighed loudly and slipped off Khal's back, landing easily on the grassy earth.

"No time." she explained. "Dark. Night. We stay... wait for sun. Kill anything that come." That explanation done, she moved over to the tree, wondering how much lumber it would produce... and how well she would be able to chop it down with a scimitar. There was still light in the sky, but they would need fuel for a fire to last them all night. Though she fared better than a normal human at night, she was still half blind when all went dark. "Fire. You get... small things. Twig. Leaf. I get big wood." She patted the trunk of the tree with her hand, before fetching the curved blade from her Yvas. It wasn't specialized for wood-cutting in the slightest... but at least it was build for slashing, rather than poking. Scowling at the blade, she took it in one hand, and replicated the stance she'd learnt barely 20 days earlier. The tree was short, and scrawny, meaning that it wouldn't be too hard to chop down... but it would be annoying.

Beginning in the starting position, the Chatakwe lowered and twisted the blade, before sending it flying into the bark. She attempted to put all her body strength into it too, since the harder she hit... the faster it would go. It was sort of like practicing normal strikes... except better, because she was hitting things. Or not... she had to wrench the blade out of the half-inch dent it had made in the bark. Sighing, she hit again and again. Her arm became used to the motion... though not the annoyance of pulling it out of the tree. After a while of the repetitive motion, most of the trunk was gone, and it began slowly toppling to the side... away from their camp. Oryani stood back and watched, before dragging the heavy trunk in the general direction of Nathaniel. "You. Fire. Cut up too." She passed him the long blade, hating to give it up, but she wasn't planning on using it. Instead, she fetched her bow from Khal's back, hoping that the useless man knew how to start a fire, at least. At the same time, she grabbed her flint and tinder, also handing it to Nathaniel.

Prepared for some kind of a fight, she went off to search for water and edible plants, keeping all senses keen. Part of her kept the movements of the man and Khal, so she wouldn't get lost, but the other half focused for the rushing sense of water. Her eyes were also wide open, scanning the ground for leafy tubers or that edible grass stuff. Her senses were incredibly useful in the sea of grass, and once again she thanked her Chatakwe heritage.

By the time she nearly completed her circle, the sun had half set, staining the sky orange and creating deep shadows. She'd found a few tubers- barely enough to make a meal, but she had provisions... go thing she'd brought them. She'd also found a small stream and pool nearby, and she marked it down mentally... hoping she wouldn't forget about it. Bringing her load back to where there would hopefully be a fire, she dropped it, before sitting cross-legged on the grass to stare at the light (if there was one).

"So... you Nathaniel Deveraux, yes? You have sister. Katerina. I know Kat... My uncle buy." She didn't want to specify the word 'wife', as that had seemed to put a lot of people off... Kat included. She liked the woman, she honestly did... but this man was another matter.

x
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[Nathaniel Deveraux]

Nate was still convinced the girl was there to kill him. Or at the very least, to "observe" him and ensure his cooperation. As though keeping his sisters wasn't enough, they had to do this? He snorted at her assertion that it was stupid for her to want to kill him. As far as he was concerned, it was only stupid because she was facing him and he could see her do it. He agreed; if she wanted to kill him it would be much more efficient to do it when his back was turned. He determined to never turn his back on any Drykas if he could help it.

When the dark-eyed Drykas looked at the sky she swore. Well good, at least she knew how to swear, although Nate suspected curse-words were probably the first words of any language you learned. She explained that it was too late, and that they needed to make camp and killed anything that approached. Petch indeed. This was the last thing he wanted. He almost preferred to be out here alone. Sure he might get eaten by some horrible beast, but at least he'd die on his terms, not be murdered in his sleep by this Drykas woman.

So she wanted to make a fire. It was a good start, but he did not know exactly how cold it would get in the Sea of Grass at night, and thought that perhaps shelter might be a more important thing to find first. Nonetheless she instructed him to find twigs and leaves. He disagreed; the purpose of such wood is for tinder, and around here the best tinder would probably be dried, dead grass, which would catch fire the easiest. At least, that was what made sense to his mind; since there weren't that many trees around but an abundance of grass.

As the woman used her Scimitar to chop down the tree - Nate couldn't help but think that was a highly inefficient use of a weapon not at all designed for that purpose - Nate set to work examining the ground for sections of dried grass. Of which there was plenty, since it was Fall and trampled grass abounded, as the Sea lived up to its name. Gathering handfuls at a time, Nate pulled up from the ground, deciding to use his kukri to assist in cutting up the grass into more manageable chunks.

Bringing the bundles back, he got there just in time to hear a groaning creak as the tree fell. Nate's left hand itched. It would be so easy. Her back was turned, and she wasn't even watching for him. If he'd wanted to, he could quietly take the short bow off his chest, nock an arrow, and let it fly. Even if the arrow was not a clean kill, she'd be too badly injured to go very far, and he would have the advantage of range.

But the problem was two-fold. First, from many years of personal experience he knew the smell of her blood would attract all sorts of unwanted attention. He was in enough danger as it was, he didn't need to add to it. Second, and perhaps more importantly, if something happened to this woman, Nate was fairly confident that it would be Lea and Kat who paid the price. So for the time being, he simply grunted as he laid the grass down.

The woman offered her weapon to him, indicating that he should cut up the wood with it. Raising an eyebrow at her, he refused it, lifting his own kukri to show her he had his own cutting tool. "Y'Know, it isn't really very smart to hand your weapon to your enemy," he fairly snarled, as he began hacking at the wood. The kukri was uniquely suited to this role. Unlike the Drykas girl's Scimitar its blade was on the inside of the curve, and it was weighted toward the end of the blade, making it ideal for slashing through dense underbrush, wood, or tissue and bone.

She had handed him her flint and tinder, which he accepted simply because he didn't want to bother explaining to her that any hunter who leaves home without flint and tinder ought to get eaten by the nearest wolf to decrease the world's population of absolute idiots. What did she take him for, a ten-year-old?! It wasn't like this was his first day hunting! Just because he didn't know the terrain didn't mean he didn't know basic survival skills!

In any event it wasn't that big a deal to light the tinder he'd brought. After he'd chopped a few more large branches he used the kukri to dig a small indentation in the ground. He'd preferred to use a circle of stones for this, as he would've done in Syliras, but he did not see an abundance of large stones around, so he compensated by digging a fire pit instead. Laying the wood in a crosshatch across the top of the pit, he put the dried grass beneath it, and then lit it with the flint and tinder, after striking once or twice.

As he waited for the woman to return, he decided to inspect the tree she so hastily chopped down. He would not have chopped the entire tree; that was unnecessary since they only really needed a few branches. But perhaps he was thinking too much like he was still in a forest with an unending supply of wood all around him. Perhaps out here it was necessary.

In any case, he was looking for wood grubs; large white bulbous insects with black heads that fed on dead or dying wood, but he did not find any. What he did find, though, was a large mass of termites, their small white ant-like bodies scurrying across the now-exposed wood. Excellent.

Although somewhat tangy, termites and wood grubs were perfectly safe to eat. Grabbing one, Nate bit off the head and spat it out into the grass, then ate the termite, trying to ignore the sour, tangy flavor. He needed the nutrition, and insects while disgusting were rarely poisonous. And the ones that were had markings that clearly designated them so.

The woman had returned with what looked like the fruits of her gathering. Tubers, it looked like. Nate would have suggested weeds; almost all wild weeds were edible and while not much of a meal, would at least provide some degree of energy. Going back to the stump, Nate reached in and acquired a small handful of the white termites, thrusting them to the Drykas woman.

"Can't say they exactly taste good, but they provide energy and aren't poisonous," he explained. He would have tried examining the mushrooms that were growing on the side of the tree, but he wasn't yet skilled enough in identifying plants to know if the small, ear-shaped fungi were safe to eat or not. Mushrooms were among the most difficult fungi to correctly identify, and given the sheer quantity of poisonous species it was often best just not eating mushrooms period.

"So... you Nathaniel Deveraux, yes? You have sister. Katerina. I know Kat... My uncle buy."

Buy?! Nate's face grew dark with anger. Right, yes. Property. Like he was. "Oh. I see," he said through gritted teeth. Don't kill her, don't kill her.

Nate glanced back up at her. "So glad to see your uncle got such a good investment. I thought only Zith were in the market for slaves. I guess I was wrong."

Nate shrugged, glancing at the fire. Bugs and tubers weren't going to be enough to keep them running if they had to do this again, so they had to make it back to Endrykas before end of day tomorrow or they would both die.

"And yes, Nathaniel is my name, but call me Nathan, if you don't mind," he growled. "Only family ever calls me Nate. And only my father ever called me Nathaniel."

Nate felt a pang when he mentioned his father. How Nate wished he was here. He'd know what to do...

[Oryani]

Nathaniel's comment about being his 'enemy' caused Oryani to glance up in surprise, before scowling. She wished the stupid man wouldn't be so hostile. If it was up to her, she would have left him to die in the grass alone, for all she cared. But he was Kat's brother so she had to care. "Not... enemy..." she told him, teeth clenched in irritation. Still, she let it go, hoping the man would stop having such a negative attitude.

When she was handed the grubs, both eyebrows shot up in surprise. Partially it was because he was smart enough to find them- she hadn't expected that of a cityman- and partially because he was offering them to her in the first place. She took the offered food without a word, but went to Khal's Yvas bags and fished out a few strips of dried meat. She returned to their fire, popping the grubs into her mouth -it was bad to waste food- before passing two of the strips to her companion.

When she told him about Kat... that was when things started to go down hill. He said something about her uncle, and the Chatakwe didn't really understand... but the hostility in his tone was obvious. Her expression darkening, Oryani had to resist the urge to punch the man when he spoke about Zith. She was going to say that the Zith were savages, Drykas were not, but decided that would be pointless to explain that to the man. She waited till his introduction finished before stating her case.

"Yes, buy. But..." she put emphasis on this word, "Kat no slave. Kat free... ish. Kat happy. You not happy. You grumpy. And... Ziths eat slaves. Drykas do not." She leaned back and smirked, please with her argument- despite how iffy the language was. Once again, she wondered how in the world Kat and Nathan got along... they were complete opposites. At least Katerina was sensible... this stupid man was just paranoid. Plain and simple.

Shaking her head and sighing irritably, Oryani attempted to change the topic. The temptation to abandon this man to the night lions and glassbeaks was growing stronger every moment, and she kept cursing him mentally. This would be one of the worst nights she ever had... or was going to have.. And that was including some full of vomiting and coughing. "So... you hunt?" she asked, cocking her head to one side. Her hands lay flat on her thighs, to best allow her palms to sense the world around them. Despite her demeanor, her senses were alert, paying attention to anything that approached. Her shortbow lay at one knee, and her scimitar at the other. Though she barely knew how to use the thing... it was reassuring.

x
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[Nathaniel Deveraux]

Nate sighed and accepted the dried meat that the woman was offering. Enemy or not, at least she was showing respect, which Nate supposed he could return. He remembered a particularly memorable hunting trip out into the woods, where he and an old grizzled wolf played a deadly game of cat-and-mouse. They'd chased each other for bells upon bells, each playing devious tricks upon the other, until finally they'd met at the fords of a stream. Nate's bow was drawn, the wolf's teeth were bared. If the wolf lunged, Nate would have been bowled over and likely killed, but he would have also likely sent an arrow into the wolf's heart. They would've both died.

In the end, as if on some unspoken signal, they both backed away slowly, and left the area. Nate knew if the wolf ever caught him unawares, he'd pounce without hesitation. And he knew that if he ever caught the wolf unawares, he'd shoot it with an arrow without a second thought. But even so, even though they met as enemies, hunted each other as enemies, and parted enemies, and would not hesitate a moment to kill each other if they had ever met again, that wolf was probably the best friend Nate ever had.

So he knew that enemies could show respect. Maybe even a great deal of respect. But that didn't mean they stopped being enemies. But the thing about respect... it had to be earned. And thus far this woman hadn't earned even a tenth the respect that wolf had earned by chasing him through the forest and making him use up every single trick he had just to stay alive.

She continued to talk, apparently taking offense at his comparison to Zith. He didn't see the difference. Zith took slaves, Drykas took slaves. As far as he could tell they were exactly the same. In fact, the Zith might even be better, at least they admitted to it. Were proud of it in fact. They didn't try to clothe it in different words, pretend it was anything other than what it was. Hypocrites, the lot of them, but Nate said nothing.

As for Kat being "happy", Nate would believe that when he saw it. A tiny part of his heart told him it was probably true, which just made him angrier. Well that's just great for Kat, but why the petch should he be here then?! Nate knew he would have come along regardless, just to ensure Kat and Lea's safety. But that didn't mean he had to be "happy" here, a prisoner in this city of tents. No freedoms to speak of... he rather wished they'd just put an arrow through his chest and been done with it.

Then she asked him if he was a hunter. Nate snorted. "No. I'm a singer. Can't you tell?" he replied, face completely deadpan. Then he gritted his teeth. "Of course I'm a hunter. Why do you think I'm out here to begin with? What was I supposed to do, hunt rats in some guy's tent?"

Nate sighed. The light was quickly fading and he was wondering if there was any means by which they could construct any form of shelter in these plains. If they had any form of temporary shelter, such as a tent or even a cloth for a lean-to... but it was unlikely that they would. So they'd need to sleep under the stars and hope that some beast didn't try to nibble on them in the night.

The best way to avoid that was to alternate shifts, one of them awake while the other slept. But that only worked if they trusted each other to watch each others backs, and Nate did not trust this woman to not murder him while he slept. Was it irrational? Perhaps. She didn't have to come all the way out here, and wait this long, if she wanted to kill him, but that didn't mean she wouldn't. Which brought up another question.

"Why are you out here, anyway?" he asked, eying the woman suspiciously, while listening to the gentle crackle of the fire as it threw strange shadows onto both their faces. The implicit question, he hoped, was clear. Why did the Drykas care enough to bother trying to "save" him? Nate was well aware that if this woman hadn't come along, it was quite probable he'd have died out here. But he'd have died free.

"When do I get my slave brand?" he asked, only half-joking.

That was what he'd heard after all; that slave masters would brand their slaves as a mark of ownership. He'd only seen it once; the man had an angry jagged patch of burnt flesh where the hot iron had seared his master's symbol onto the unfortunate man's cheek. This man, he lived in Syliras; he'd escaped slavery, he was technically free. But the brand had forever marked him as property. And Nate decided he'd much rather fight to the death than be property.

[Oryani]

His sarcastic comment about being a hunter caused Oryani to roll her eyes. ”Converstation.” she stated, sighing. ”Silence boring. Draw animals.” he might not have understood the first part, but he would certainly understand the second. There was no hope of being hidden from the creatures of the Sea, but there was a chance to keep at least half away. Fire, and a conversation as heated as this would do for some, and especially the lack of food-smell. Nothing they had needed to be cooked, except maybe the tubers… and those didn’t draw predators.

When asked why she came, that caused another set of raised eyebrows. Wasn’t it obvious? Despite her lack of skills, as least she knew this area… the man would probably die here in moments, if alone… considering it, she would probably die too, but that was beside the point. Together they’d survive this- with Khal, of course. Striders were useful for more than riding. ”Because I told to. And Drykas no want you to die. And…” if he wanted personal reasons, she was about to give them, ”Because Kat sad if you die. Kat family. If you think Kat no happy, you no family.” she snorted, though felt a little annoyed at the way she’d expressed it. Honestly, this man couldn’t be Katerina’s brother if he thought she’d be unhappy with the Drykas. Also, he should have known that it was stupid to let people die… unless there was no other way, of course. If another Drykas was far from recovery, she’d put them out of their misery in seconds. It would have been what they wanted. It had almost happened to her, during her childhood sickness… but she’d recovered in time, though not without a few problems. Offhand, she hoped the night in the cold wouldn’t give her something… a lot of things did.

Sighing, she shrugged once, but heard the man’s next comment. She didn’t know what ‘brand’ meant, but he was talking about getting something slave-related. He didn’t need to… did he? His hair was already short and unbraided, and he wasn’t exactly a slave in the first place. He was being held hostage to keep his sisters from doing something annoying… or was it the other way round? Anyways, from what she’d been told, his situation wasn’t exactly the same as a regular slave. Anyways, if the chance came around, and he bonded with a Strider, he’d become a Drykas, not a slave. ”Brand?” she asked, confused, before voicing her thoughts. ”Drykas have long hair, braids. Slaves short hair, no braids. Simple. Slave become Drykas, grow hair. Kat might become Drykas” She added the last almost to mock Nathan, but didn’t make it obvious. She honestly had no clue what the woman’s decisions were, but it would be good to throw some information out there that might irritate the man. He was really getting on her nerves. However, she did hope that her statement was true… it would be nice to see Kat as a free woman, riding… not like she already wasn’t anyways. But Windmarks meant a lot to the Drykas, and it would raise Kat up in the eyes of not just the Darkeye pavilion, but all other Drykas as well.

x
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[Nathaniel Deveraux]

As Syna began to set Nate started to feel very nervous. When he'd hunted with his father, Anton had always cautioned against staying out in the wilds at night. "Everything out here is trying to eat you Nathaniel," his father had cautioned him, "and that's just during the day. Out here at night... well I sure hope you don't have anyone waiting for you at home if you're gonna do that."

And the reality of that statement was borne out by the few times he'd been caught after dark; even though he hurried back home, the low light and the icy chill of the night air sent shivers down Nate's spine. It was not safe in the forest at night. Every tree hid a new danger, every screech was a new predator. During the day, he was the hunter, but at night...

Nate was quite sure that nighttime in the Sea was not any safer. Just because there weren't trees that, in the dark of night, nearly completely obscured view of any dangers that might be lurking didn't mean the dangers weren't still there. In the wilds, no matter where someone was, the danger was very real.

So. The woman wanted to talk to drive off animals. Well that was just fine, although Nate knew better than most that it would also attract the wrong sorts of attention. There was a reason he built a fire-pit; it was easy to bury and collapse at a moment's notice if they needed to snuff it quickly. But truthfully, Nate realized if they were actually attacked by any large predator they were already done for.

He'd shot a deer three times once, and it still survived. He doubted any large meat-eater in the Sea would go down easily. Or at all. The best chance they had was to avoid them to begin with, but he didn't even know what the predators out here were. Maybe coming out here half-cocked wasn't the best idea, but hunting was more than just a means to an end. For Nate, it was also a chance for him to be away from the pressures of home, a way to relax almost. And now that relaxing exercise was quickly turning into an exercise in frustration and annoyance.

The first part he could believe, even though it seemed pointless. The Drykas didn't want him to die? Well, Nate guessed they didn't want their hard-earned Mizas to go to waste, although in that case he would've thought that they'd send Arundel out here to take him back, not the niece of his sister's owner. She called Kat "family" and Nate glared furiously at her. No. Kat was not "family", she was a slave, not any more family than a dog or a cow, bought for a purpose and then discarded when no longer useful. He was convinced that was the case, no matter what this woman was saying.

He knew, of course, that Kat would be sad if he died. It was a risk he took every time he went out into the wilds of Syliras alone, hunting the forests to bring home food. His medical knowledge was just not good enough to be accepted as a doctor; while he knew enough to stabilize a patient in the field, he didn't know enough to actually fix them. That fell to far more experienced and skilled surgeons, of which he was not. If he could have chosen a less dangerous line of work, he would have, if only for his sisters' sake.

But he still failed to see how that had anything to do with this woman. What would she care if Kat was sad or not? And then she mentioned that Kat might become Drykas. It... didn't upset him the way the woman apparently thought it would. Of course, he was angry she'd chosen strangers who'd captured them over her own family, apparently discarding the years he'd taken care of her to fly to the arms of these tattooed menaces.

But the truth was, Nate had known for many years that Kat was desperately unhappy in Syliras. She never said so to his face, but her acting out, her constant arguments with him, the increasing difficulty in getting her to listen or behave... a good brother knew. And Nate liked to think he was a good brother. If she was happier here, as a Drykas, he was actually not entirely opposed to the idea, it was just that she'd decided to draw Lea and himself here with her. Did she really think he'd want to be here? And of course, knowing Kat, she'd say he didn't have to come along. Which was patently absurd. As though he'd abandon the sister he'd taken care of for eight years.

"Brand," Nate explained, pointing to the fire, then to the steel of his blade, then to his forearm, pressing the forefinger into the skin while making a hissing sound through his teeth. "The mark of a slave. Sometimes they put it on the arm, sometimes on the face. It's burned into the flesh, to show ownership. To show as property. Like dogs. Or cattle."

Nate ground out those words with a furious anger. He truly would fight to the death rather then suffer that fate. He would prefer to die on his feet than live on his knees. But as quickly as the rage came, it left, flowing out of his body like water from a sieve.

It wasn't that he wasn't angry - he was. And it wasn't that he didn't think this woman, and all her race, wasn't directly responsible - he did. But out here, in a survival situation, being blinded by rage was an excellent way to get oneself killed. If he didn't want to get eaten by some beast, or stabbed in the spine by her scimitar while he slept, he needed to keep his wits about him.

So he pushed down the red-hot rage, deeper and deeper into his core, until it was a knot in his stomach. Turn it icy cold. Hatred. Good. Hatred he could use, rather than have it use him. Turning to face the woman, he fixed her with an icy glare.

"Let's get something straight," he said. And despite how he felt, this time the words were not a snarl. He'd gone beyond hot rage now, and it was something deeper. The hate was a cold block of ice in his heart, and it manifested in an icy steel in his voice.

"You are not family to me. Kat is family. Lea is family. You are an enemy."

Nate shrugged, leaning back a bit. "But even enemies must work together sometimes. So I will work with you. But I do not trust you. And I never will."

With a derisive snort, he concluded, "Y'know, I really love how you Drykas apparently believe a slave should be happy about his captivity. Kat may see this as freedom, but I do not. I am not Kat. So you can hold them hostage, and I will behave. But don't think that I will break for you."

[Oryani]

The definition of 'bran' made Oryani blink in amazement. "That stupid" she said bluntly, wondering why anyone would do something so permanent to a slave "What if slave free? Or become Drykas? Then brand stay. Stupid." She rolled her eyes to make an effect. Some of the northern cultures were just crazy, in her opinion.

His comment about family also confused her. "Kat my family. You no my family." Honestly... if she could just speak Pavi. "And enemy? Why enemy? I no enemy." She folded her arms to make a point, annoyed at the man's stubbornness. She wasn't his enemy, she wasn't trying to hurt or kill him. She was trying to help him. She didn't care about trust, however. Though it was nice, at times... she honestly didn't trust this man either, so agreed with that statement. "No trust." she agreed, glaring at Nathan.

His finishing statement made little sense to her, but the last few words confused her. "Break? Why break? That... hurt. Stupid." Sighing, she rubbed her forehead in her palms. She'd finally given up in this language. "I'm tired of Common" she announced, decided that if the man didn't understand Pavi... it would be time for him to learn. Standing up, she walked over to Khal, shivering slightly. Most of the light had gone, and an intent had settled over her. It wasn't really that chilly, but the Chatakwe was particularly susceptible to that, considering the rest of her race lived in the deserts of Ekytol. She went over to Khal, fishing her blanket out of the bags. She'd packed that, but never brought her tent... annoying, but she'd survive. She led the stallion closer to the fire, where she instructed him to lie down. Normally horses only sat when they slept, but Khal was used to this. He bent his long legs, folding them underneath his body. Striders had another use... warmth. With the stallion at her back, she wouldn't get as cold overnight, meaning that Nathan would get her blanket.

She passed the thick woolen square to the man, tossing it to him, before leaning against Khal with a sigh. Already she was warming up. "Do you speak any Pavi at all?" she asked, an eyebrow raised. The change in language made her feel at an equal to Nathan, rather than below... speaking Common put her at a disadvantage, one she didn't want. It was time to switch roles for once.

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