Exploring is the Spice of Life (Open)

[Tao]

"Okay!" Tao was never one to shy away from a challenge, and since the offer was on the table, he was quite prepared to take it. Accepting the translations before they could fly away, he folded them neatly and put them between the pages of the tome before jumping to his feet.

"We should start a fire." He explained, looking around for some dry wood and leaves. "Reading in low light hurts the eyes." He gathered up a pile and clumsily put together a stack of wood. He had some idea of what he was doing, but it was hardly skilled work. He pulled out his flint and struck sparks onto the wood, looking very pleased when it caught alight almost straight away. Once he was sure it was going nicely, he took up his spot nearby, and began to analyse the two texts.

The first few pages in Common told the beginnings of what appeared to be a long and detailed tale. He could already tell that Symenestra social structure was very different from what he had grown up with.

He spend a good half hour analysing the text, gathering his questions as he went. It was almost like a puzzle; the way the words and letters were structured were similar to the codes he had played with as a child, though there was an obvious difference between a ceasar shift and the intricate structure between the two languages.

"Vendaril..." He looked over the man, who seemed distracted by his journal. Picking up the papers and the book, he crossed over to sit beside him, unable to keep an eager note out of his voice. "Okay, so this word here is mentioned a lot; it's the 'Web' that you talk about here, right? How do you pronounce that? And the way the words are arranged... well, it's a little confusing. Is your translation literal or did you just pick the ordered that sounded best?"

[Vendaril]

Vendaril smiled at the enthusiasm Tao was showing. He was clearly rather academic, and seemed to relish the opportunity rather than resent it. “Yes, it is all literal. I’m afraid my Common is not quite good enough to provide perfectly fitting counterparts to all of the words in the journal. Where necessary, I have used multiple words to describe the word in question.” He went on to explain the pronunciation of some of the words, along with helping Tao identify the different articles and some of the subtleties of Symenos grammar. He had to admit to himself, he did get a certain pleasure from helping him – he supposed it was the pleasure that a teacher feels when thinking of his star student, or a father watching his son grow.

The flames began to die as the night wore on so Vendaril roused himself to fetch more wood, leaving Tao poring over the ornate lettering. When he stood, he felt a little dizzy, and his stomach gurgled unhappily, reminding him of why they were there in the first place. As he wandered their surroundings, he gazed up at the stars above, reminded of Tao’s supposed interest in astronomy. He was tempted to ask him about the myriad of lights in the sky, but glancing back at him, he was concentrating hard on the open book before him, and he didn’t want to distract him from his work. He passed the hole in the stone on his way back to the campfire, listening intently.

When he returned to their makeshift camp, he laid the small amount of wood he had managed to find on top of the glowing embers, and walked to where Tao was leaning against Vendaril’s pack. He was instantly greeted by more queries about the book, although they were starting to grow less about the language and more about the content, as he began to decipher the tale. Eventually Vendaril was forced to interrupt the excited chatter. “Shhh, you’ll wake the baby!” He whispered, nodding towards the stone spur concealing the cave.

[Tao]

Tao snorted at Vendaril's joke, one of the better ones he had made that day. "Are you sure it's still there? I would've made a run for it back when we were arguing about adverbs."

He had made great progress with the language in a short night, though it was hardly anywhere near coherent. Symenos was a fluid language, one that his tongue was not exactly equipped to speak. That didn't stifle his utter fascination with the work and the teachings that came with it.

Eventually, when he had successfully had a rough understanding of the first ten pages, he realised how late it was, and that he was starving. Rubbing his eyes, he closed the book, carefully pressing the translated notes inside the cover and handing it back to Vendaril.

"Thank you." He said, much more at ease than he had during the day. "Your language is incredible, and your teachings are really easy to understand."

He got to his feet, covering his mouth to hide a yawn and heading back towards his own bed. Pulling out a small, fluorescent red fruit, he gave it an appraising look before biting down.

"Urgh." He swallowed and wiped his mouth. "These make a wonderful pie, but if they aren't cooked, they're extremely sour."

[Vendaril]

Vendaril smiled as Tao sunk his teeth into the gleaming fruit, but the time for merriment was at an end, and when he next spoke, he spoke solemnly. “I do not request that you follow me into the creature’s lair, for what shall pass shall not be pleasant. However, if you so wish I will not insist on your remaining outside. It is your decision, but I would hope you would not think less of me for the alien manner in which I feed. I shall return when I have satiated my hunger, and claimed your share of the carcase.” With those words, he softly walked towards the sleeping creatures den.

Stooping inside, he was struck by the smell of excrement and sweat. The creature had obviously been panicking during its tenancy in the cramped hole. It laid against the back wall, and by and large Vendaril supposed he was right about it being a goat. After all, it wasn’t quite large enough to be a bison. Crouching over the animals rising chest, he murmured a prayer to Viratas. “Moz seh krevas dav'ene obris zhevat.” With these words said, he leant over the beast’s neck, fully extending his fangs, and sunk them deep into the soft tissue. The animal’s eyes snapped open, and for an instant, pain shone out of them like the stars outside radiated light. Then the poison took action, and the animal let out a low moan.

Quickly moving to the beast hindquarters, he began to carve away at the point where one thick thigh met the hip with his tough fingernails. Eventually he managed to work it out of its socket before the digestive fluids reached it and he placed it gently to the side. Now he could eat. Placing his mouth over the puncture wounds at the neck, he began to suck the digested matter out of its skin, leaving only the bones and cartilage. After several minutes he was done, and he quickly exited the cave, drawing in a deep breath of fresh air. He handed the large severed joint of meat to Tao, and said “Come on, let’s get some rest.”

[Tao]

Tao nodded in response, smile fading. "Good luck." He said in reply as the Symenestra crept off to claim his prize. The description of the feeding made him hang back, however, not wanting to crowd him while he ate. Instead, he finished the small fruit and tossed the stone behind him into the bush.

He sat by the fire, which had burned down to the coals by now and was giving off a warm orange glow. He focused on that rather than the strange, slightly disturbing sounds coming from the tiny cramped cave. He was going to be mature about this and not judge; Vendaril had been nothing but friendly to him, and he could not fault him what he was.

It was a little difficult not to recoil when he returned and handed him a large slab of meat, still dripping with juices. He nodded his thanks - the meat was a prime cut, no matter how... gross it was.

Thankfully, he had some butcher paper crammed in the bottom of his bag, which he had used to store some jerky while he was travelling. He shook off the worst of the blood and wrapped it up. Satisfied it wasn't going to drip, he placed it back in his bag next to his waterskin. It was a cool night, despite being Fall, and it would last long enough for him to get cooked up tomorrow.

"All right." He nodded, pleased with his work. He flopped back onto his bedroll, taking a deep breath and relaxing his whole body. He was tired and sore from the long day and all the walking; it seemed like his body really hadn't recovered from the cross country trip. He had never been one for physical exertion.

"Good night, Vendaril." He mumbled, exhaustion quickly setting in without a distraction to keep him occupied. He looked up at the lights in the sky and smiled; no matter how much in love he was with his new futon, the night sky was always beautiful.

In a few minutes, he had already dropped off into sleep.

[Vendaril]

Vendaril was roused from his slumber by the sun creeping over the horizon casting an orange glow in his eyes. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he admired the effect of the dawn-light playing over the rocks, leaving deep shadows behind them. Even after years spent wandering the wilderness, he was astounded by its raw, savage beauty. After a while, he turned from the sun and began to pack up his gear, rolling up the temporary bed and stuffing it into his bag on top of his diary and writing equipment.

When he had cleared all his belongings, he checked on Tao, still sleeping. “Yesterday’s hike must have taken its toll,” Vendaril mused to himself. He decided to make a quick excursion to the stream they had left a while back, leaving is pack by the burnt out fire so his companion would not panic if he awoke before his return. The time it took to reach the waters, he made mental notes of items he would need to purchase upon his return to the city. “A good solid knife,” he thought, glancing at his gore stained fingers. “And a nice cloak.’

The water was cool when he arrived, and he bathed quickly, removing the majority of the accumulated grime from the previous days trek. Drinking deep, he noticed some plant life growing by the water’s edge that seemed oddly familiar. It took a while for him to realize that these were the vegetables he had seen Tao gathering at the spring the other day. Or at least he thought they were. He plucked them from the ground anyway, thinking that even if they weren’t what he thought they were, they may be of some worth to the human. Hoping he had not been gone too long, he set off towards his sleeping companion again.

His sleeping companion was, as it happened, no longer asleep. Vendaril presented him with the flora, and politely asked if he could have his journal back. He let Tao keep his own notes though. Eventually when Tao had gathered his belongings, they set off towards Lhavit. They took it slower this time, without the need for haste or concentration, chatting whilst they walked.

OOCI’ll let you make the last post now, then I reckon that should be enough. Oh, and in your last post you got the wrong season

[Tao]

Tao awoke sometime before Vendaril returned. It was late morning; the sun was high in the sky and shining down on him, making him squint a little in confusion as he sat up and stretched. His clothes and hair were rough and crumpled from the impromptu night under the stars; he was certain that he would have to go and clean up once they returned to the city.

Sure that the Symenestra couldn't have gone too far, he tidied up his belongings, reorganising his bag so the cut of meat (which was thankfully not as foul as it could have been) and his herbs were sitting on top and would not be squashed. The trip had not exactly been fruitful; he barely had enough to use in two meals, depending on how he decided to serve them. It was a shame, he thought, that he couldn't serve anything to Vendaril, as thanks for lending him the journal and teaching him the very beginnings of his language.

After covering over the ashes of the fire, he sat back against his pack and opened the journal once more, reading over his notes and just flipping through the pages, picking out words and phrases that were familiar from his notes. He didn't get very far; Vendaril returned, a handful of various greenery in hand.

Tao accepted the gift (and decided not to mention that at least two of the plants were poisonous) with a smile and packed them away. He then returned the journal, though a little sadly. He had very much enjoyed the challenge that it had put forward. Books had always been kinder to him than people.

Before he knew it, they were walking along once more. He felt much more comfortable around Vendaril now than he had only a day ago, when he had suddenly propositioned him into a hunting trip. He wasn't sure if he could consider them friends after so short a time, but he certainly liked him well enough. Maybe it could become; a new life, a new home, a new Tao.

He liked that idea.

When they reached the gate, he paused.

"Thank you for your company." He said, smiling shyly. "I... had a lot of fun."

They parted ways after talking a little more. Much more exhausted than he had ever let onto be, Tao wearily plodded off towards his home. He should really have known better than to go running out of the city on his second day there.

But at least I made progress. He told himself firmly, and the knowledge made him happier than he had been in a long while.

OOCHerpaderp, so I did. All fixed now, thanks for the catch. And it was fun roleplaying with you! We should do something else together sometime. Drop me a line~

[Kelpie]

Vendaril: +1 Rhetoric, +3 Tracking, +1 Leadership, +1 Writing, +2 Teaching Lore: Human Acquaintances, The Importance of Backtracking, The Pleasures of Teaching Tao: +1 Rhetoric, +2 Botany, +1 Observation, +2 Analyzing Lore: Vendaril’s Chatty Nature, First Hunt, Symenos (Partial) Mod Note: Two unlikely companions on one unlikely trip. Great thread, guys, your characters seemed very real and fluid. Excellent roleplay.