Open [Monstrous Menagerie] Closer than Comfortable

[Khida]

Spring 17, 515 AV oocThe date is somewhat flexible, if anyone has a need to move it.
afternoon

Khida did not like the cages. They made her uncomfortable at a subliminal level, in a way she could not describe in words. This irrefutable captivity, this situation even she would not be able to fly away from if she were on the other side of those bars -- it was a reality she had never been made to acknowledge before. It was one she did not truly confront now, because the Kelvic was was more than a little distracted. The things in the cages were more compelling, more fascinating by far -- in the way that venomous snakes could be fascinating.

Predators, monsters, up close and personal. They drew and held the eye, made her hackles rise and her nerves jump; even the solidity of the cages couldn't persuade her that these right here weren't dangers clear and true. When it came down to it, Khida didn't mind that these monsters were all on the wrong side of the bars; freed, each of them would just be one more potential hazard to her family. That was particularly true for this exhibit, what she had heard someone refer to as "enemies in the grass" -- one that struck very close to home indeed. These were things she saw... not everyday, but from time to time, usually from a distance; and they were dangers she could expect to encounter in the future as well. Yet for all that she did encounter these creatures, these 'enemies'... Khida had not spent much time thinking about them. Faced with them up close, at a very personal distance, and with a barrier between... here, in this relatively controlled environment, she observed, and she thought.

But even with that barrier, she didn't approach the imprisoned glassbeak; no, Khida watched it from as far away as the complex's layout allowed.

She leaned on the back of a strategically placed bench, one someone must have set out for exactly that purpose: keeping distance from the glassbeak. It seemed to be mostly humans who gravitated towards it, while the Akalak appeared to make a point of going up to the glassbeak's cage. But it seemed that Khida was the only one who really lingered, at least right now, looking past the drifting visitors to the creature that could not wander off.

While she watched, the glassbeak paced.

It stood even taller than a horse, if you counted the length of its neck. It wasn't built quite like the birds she was most familiar with, the raptors like herself and the prey the falcon hunted. Its body was thick, heavily built -- especially in the legs, which made sense given how the things ran. Khida had never seen one fly, and this one's wings -- which it sometimes raised in display, mostly when Akalaks approached -- its wings seemed relatively short and rounded, more so than for any other bird she could think of. Not that Khida had made a study of wing shapes as such, but she did recognize silhouettes in the sky: the pointed wings of falcons, the broad wings of hawks, the long wings of doves, the angular wings of finches. But these wings were different and these 'birds', if glassbeaks were really birds, simply didn't fly. Would they, if their wings were more like the others?

...and wasn't that an awful thought. Bad enough the bat-beasts flew; better that glassbeaks be stuck on the ground.

Khida space Common | Pavi
other space Common | Pavi

[Kei]

It was odd to be the one walking around looking upon the creatures trapped inside the cages. Kei did accept the fact that these were dangerous monsters - some of which had threatened him when he traveled to Riverfall - he couldn't shake the fact that he had been like them for his whole life up until a few weeks ago.

The thought of being behind the cages was disgusting and Kei couldn't help but feel that way when he gazed upon the caged animals. He couldn't help thinking back to being in his eagle form, capped so he couldn't shift back to human form. Often times, while an eagle, he was placed in bird cages simply for the pleasure of being looked upon.

It was not something he could control though and he wasn't sure that he would change it if he could. These creatures would attack if given the chance, so it would be foolish to release them in the city. They would stay here for the people's viewing pleasure until the died.

Kei didn't really feel great about leaving them in cages, simply because he could see himself in them. This was out of his control though and it was honestly for the best. Besides, the beasts were gorgeous and it was a pleasure to watch them.

He walked around for a while before coming to the 'enemies of the grass' exhibit. There was already another person there. It was a woman who appeared to be enjoying the glassbeak while sitting on a bench. He didn't bother her, but did glance at her once or twice to see if he was in her way.
NoteHaha. I wan't exactly sure what to post, so I guess this works. Sorry it's not really great and that it's rather short. ;A;

[Gwin]

OOCHi you two, I hope you don't mind me joining.


Gwin had ended up at the Menagerie by chance rather than out of a conscious decision. Despite her prolonged stay in the city of blue men, its walls still held many places unknown to her. Once she spotted the massive skyglass dome, she shrugged her shoulders and entered. The orangery fascinated her, mainly because it displayed amazing feats of architecture in a mix of the typical Rivarian and what she supposed to be Lhavitian building style. The birds within, many of exotic color or shape, seemed interesting, but their sight grew oppressing soon. Shuddering slightly, the Akvatari escaped the stifling air under the glass and fluttered outside.

She wandered aimlessly for a while until she happened upon a sign pointing towards the Symenestra exhibit. From the crossing, she moved into the other direction. Despite hearing rumors about the venomous spiderlings, Gwin wasn’t sure how she felt about sentient beings behind bars. And so she ended up in front of the glassbeak.

Watching its steps, so full of deadly power, she was strangely intrigued. The sight of a predator, the most dangerous the Sea of Grass had to offer, got Gwin to wonder about its eternal struggle for survival. As an Akvatari, she had it fairly easy: Oceans were bountiful and provided more than she could ever eat. Under the mossy fur of her tail were practiced muscles and freedom in her stained glass wings. She could outfly or outswim any and all beasts that wanted her flesh and blood. For others, things were different though. In her imagination the whole gritty experience held a certain appeal. It could be mere curiosity.

The longer she hovered in front of the glassbeak, the more Gwin noticed that she wasn’t alone in her fascination. There were two others who didn’t move, a woman on the bench and a man standing nearby. Both their gazes were mainly fixated on the deadly bird in front of them.

Looking at the scene from a distance, Gwin was overcome by a sudden desire to cast it down on paper. Humming softly under her breath, she wondered what it was that stuck out to her artistic eye, but couldn’t put a finger on it. The two spectators were connected to that predator somehow. But so was she, lingering just like them, or not? For the time being, however, she was content to marvel at the riddle with turquoise butterfly wings beating the air at a steady rhythm. As people walked by, she was still humming to herself, a habit she tended to slip into without realizing.

[Kaveh]

Near the front of the display among the crowd of Akalak stood one wide-eyed Chaktawe, his gaze a mixture of scrutinizing and awestruck as it traced the glassbeak's appearance. It was half curiousity and half convenience (the Akalak are too tall and block his view) that brought him up to the glass, and it was what he found that kept him there. The glassbeak's size was comparable to the Akalak, forcing his chin upward as he took in the distinctive transparent beak. Like their name suggested, it appeared glass-like though Kaveh wondered if it was actually some form of strong glass or simply the look of it. At that moment, the creature seemed to look right at the healer with its side profile, its red eye jutting out from the surrounding crimson skin. He froze, a cold chill to his bones that only dissipated with the voice of one noisy Akalak child. "It looked at me Pa!" The boy cried, pulling at his father with one hand and pointing with the other. The Chaktawe exhaled, only now noticing his tensed muscles. He swiveled his head to look at the boy, focusing on the waving, stubby finger. How easily this child would be torn apart by these powerful birds amidst the grass, perhaps only leaving behind that same small finger. Kaveh lightly grimaced with the thought, returning to the exhibit instead.

Avoiding any more possible eye contact, he looked down at the rest of the glassbeak. Supporting the large creature were thick legs that seemed to be made of only muscle, with sickle talons that looked to be the same material as their beaks. The wings were rounded and small, looking rather useless and disproportionate beside their large bodies. Unlike the main torso portion of the bird, the legs lacked the bright plummage of the bird and were instead, somewhat transparent scales that almost gave the illusion of vanishing legs if one were to stand far away. This was exactly what Kaveh did now, amusing himself with the illusion as he backed up from the glass. With his gaze fixated on the predator, he expectedly bumped into another visitor to the Menagerie. "My bad." He muttered, a half hearted apology as he continued to look forward, though he did notice the stranger was a female from his peripheral vision. "I wonder how strong this glass is..." He asked, then as if to answer his own question the Chaktawe's eyes wandered, finding a guard stationed at the corner before turning back. "Apparently not strong enough."

oocThis is getting a bit crowded I hope it was ok that I assumed Kaveh bumped into someone, even though everyone else can probably see him coming and be able to avoid him. If not I can just make it a generic NPC.

[Khida]

oocWelcome, all! I'm glad to have the chance to meet each of you.

Others wandered in during her contemplations, others whose steps slowed and attention lingered, who seemed as caught by the spectacle of the glassbeak as Khida herself. The group of Akalaks, tall and broadly built as they were, took up an inordinate amount of space before the enclosure and soon blocked most of her view. Others kept a greater distance; deprived of the sight of the main attraction, Khida regarded them instead. One was tall and lean and human-seeming; one was... not any kind she had seen before, a flier with the gaudy wings of a butterfly and a green-furred tail. That prospect distracted the Kelvic entirely, her focus centering on the winged being who every now and again cast glances towards Khida in turn.

Intrigued, perplexed -- she didn't see any feet on the fur-bug person, and that just seemed weird, weirder than anything else evident about her -- Khida followed impulse and started towards the gaggle, the better to investigate the stranger. She was so caught up in that question that she didn't even notice another of the arrivals, a man who had blended in with the troupe of Akalaks but was no such kind himself -- not until he was nearly on top of her. Khida stumbled as they collided, turning to evaluate yet another stranger, a man with the dark skin and darker eyes of the desert. He apologized in ready Common, then mused about the enclosure, musings which drew Khida's eye back to the monster they had all come to observe. Danger is, her hands shaped reflexively, following his gaze to the guard. "It's a glassbeak."

Those three words said everything that needed saying.

Distracted from her errand, Khida glanced towards the other people, now much closer to her than they had been before. Her attention hung on the one man's eyes -- tawny beneath dark hair, not unlike the occasional glimpsed reflections she had caught of her own. Impulsively, the Kelvic woman cast him a quickly sketched greeting, responding to the odd sense of commonality she felt towards him.

Then she looked back to the funny fur-tailed, bright-winged creature. Strange, you, she signed; there certainly was no kinship here, save that they were both female and evidently they both might fly. Which seemed like tenuous ground for similarity, in the face of all the more obvious difference between them. If Gwin implicitly permitted, Khida would try to touch the furred tail, perhaps to confirm that what she saw, really was. Regardless, she peered up towards the flier, query direct and to the point: "What are you?"

Khida space Common | Pavi
other space Common | Pavi

[Gwin]

OOCMoving this along...


Gwin watched as another visitor appeared, different than the others with his tanned skin and dark eyes, albeit bipedal like them. She’d seen one with such unsettling eyes before, on the beach of Zeltiva, although she couldn’t quite remember what they called themselves. He collided briefly with the woman on the bench and that, too, seemed like a scene worthy of a sketch. If the woman hadn’t been coming towards her and the cage, the Akvatari would’ve sat down then and there, unpacked her sketchbook and put charcoal to paper.

She was, however, and as she did, Gwin noticed her hands moving. Fingers fluttered through the air, too fast for her to make out any meaning the gesture might’ve had. She was still figuring out if it addressed her and what it meant (if anything), but her opponent cut those musings short. When their gazes met, Gwin felt a curious sensation, a slight shiver and a vague sense of unease.

It didn’t prevent her from turning away from the cage and also didn’t render her speechless though. “I’m an Akvatari. We hail from Abura on Akvatar Isle.” There was that. Her voice carried a bitter undertone at the fact that their introductions didn’t require more words. They didn’t know which of the divines had concocted their mismatched bodies and quirky little minds.

She didn’t dwell on that, however, as the woman before her posed a bit of a riddle as well. Gwin was fairly certain she had to be something other than human, although she didn’t make it as blatantly obvious as the black-eyed guy. “May I ask you the same? I’m not sure what it is, but there’s something about you that doesn’t seem human …” Biting her lip, she hoped she hadn’t insulted a stranger. Turquoise eyes were lowered to escape that piercing gaze. “Would you be interested in a portrait? I’ve been thinking of sketching here. My name is Gwin, by the way.” In fact the idea had just hit her, so she wasn’t lying. A hand was already moving towards her satchel, gripping the strap.