Early Summer, 515 AV
She'd taken the morning off. The business of spring at The Sanctuary had left everyone breathless and in need of a well earned break. The Konti was no exception. So she'd decided to take the morning and ride into town to the Antiquity Society's sale and look around. The trip had been a short one, the morning cool, and the day promising to be warm but not overly so. It was a good time for the Dreamwalker to take a break and set aside her Healer's mantle and just exist.
Cadra had taken the children for the day, knowing Kavala had wanted to go to the sale. Tasi was just getting old enough he'd be trouble running amok through beautiful and fragile things. The other two were just toddling, and far more than one woman could deal with while in a crowd and still managing a five year old as well. So the Konti had been grateful and knew she'd get Cadra a gift while she was at the sale, hopefully something that the kelvic house cat would appreciate.
The sale was not yet crowded when Kavala arrived. There were people about, but it was far too early in the morning for the hall's courtyard to be shoulder to shoulder. Kavala was relieved. It gave the Konti a chance to pass through the gates, check in to the sale, and then browse the long tables set up with hovering Antiquity Society Members in careful attendance.
There were bowls and cups and even jewelry. There were amazingly graceful pots, some having fragments carefully glued back into place, on display both for sale and not. It seemed each 'dig' or 'project' had a table. Some were more informational than actual sales. Kavala didn't mind. She carefully browsed the displays, sometimes touching when allowed, letting the mark on the back of her hand guide her way. The place was fascinating, distracting, and just what she needed in that moment to get away from the realities of her life and the hectic nature of The Sanctuary.
Voices whispered to her from the past as her Eyris gift touched items that were made or used to belong to long dead people. She caught flashes of insight here or glimpses of history there. Sometimes she stood, fingers delicately touching a glass vase, and gazed off into time reliving the moment the glassblower pulled it out of the fire.
It was like she was a voyeur to history and she loved every moment of it.
Konti were deferred to in Riverfall, so no one begrudged her the delicate touches she gave certain things. The Kuvan mark of citizenship gave her even more rights. But her reputation as a formidable healer and geomancer sealed the silence of people who witnessed her gaze upon their tables with eyes so pale of a blue they made her look blind.
Kavala was a kind one, well used to Riverfall's nature and her citizen's needs. She never left without a compliment to a displays owner if one was hovering, nor did she offer to talk them down when prices on antiques were clearly displayed.
She picked up a bracelet for Cadra and a set of horn ornaments for Caelum. Her nephew, Cadra's twin, got an old wooden compass she knew he wold love. A tiara was purchased for Caelum's daughter which matched a ring that Kavala was able to acquire for Elise. There was something picked up for everyone, be they family or just close employees. And even Aweston, the head groom, was thought of as she paid for and arranged for a large Drykas style desk - the type that could be broken down and reassembled easily enough - to be delivered to his care.
They worked hard for her, one and all, and she made sure they knew how much she thought of them and appreciated them.
But for herself, something else was selected. She would not have given it a thought save for the fact her fingers brushed the hanging pendulum, and her white brows furrowed in confusion. The pendulum swung and she caught a whisper of a voice so familiar, so comforting, that it gave her pause.
"What ... what is this thing with the pendulum?" She asked the man who was hovering over the booth. He chuckled slightly and shook his head. "No... its not a pendulum. That's called a bob. Together they are a plumb and bob. Architects used them. That one is Eypharian. I picked it up in a dig down in Eyktol. It was part of an old private estate, pre-valterrian." The man said.
Kavala gave it a second glance. The thing was.... oddly familiar. She would have called it garish, but for some reason the style was comforting. It was made of some sort of incredibly well preserved wood inlaid with golden glyphs. She ran her finger across them and found the spark of magic and nodded, recognizing them for simple preservation glyphs common on many ancient tools.
"What was it used for?" She asked, curious now, studying the triangular stand - the plumb - with its golden chain holding the 'bob'. She peered right, then left, and nudged the bob gently so it swung slightly before settling in the middle hanging straight up and down. Her sharp eyes noted the markings on the wood in gold while her fingers traced the lines in the grain.
The seller answered her quietly. "It's simple. The plumb bob establishes a line that is exactly vertical or true..." The man said, gesturing to the device. "It's basic math, Lady. Any string suspended with the weight at a bottom will be both vertical and perpendicular to any level plan through which it passes." He said as if he quoted it from heart. "The Eypharians used them to establish verticals in constructing their great cities." The man went on to elaborate their uses, how exactly they were used in different professions, and why that one was special.
"It was owned by a noble. See how well it was constructed and designed? Probably a second or third son, not an heir, who was required to pursue some sort of noble profession." He said with a smile.
Kavala nodded and then they carefully began to dicker. They traded values back and forth until finally they settled on a price. Rather than have it wrapped and delivered, Kavala took the item with her, cradling it in her arms like a child would a beloved doll. The voice whispered through her Lykata as she did so. She finished walking the sale in a pensive mood, puzzled as to why the voice in her mind was so familiar.
Presents delivered, the children asleep, Kavala settled into her Drykas style bed. She leaned back against the headboard, closed her eyes, and stroked the plumb and bob that was gripped in her hand. She fell asleep quietly, as easily as stepping sideway, and embraced Nysel's realm with a smile. Latching onto the chavi that linked to the item and thus to hers the moment she purchased it, Kavala traveled backwards and quietly stepped into the memories of a scene that might have been straight out of her memory.
She was no longer Konti. Instead, six arms graced her torso, one set resting on her hips, one folded, and the other carrying a tray of food. She slipped into the elegantly appointed office and walked up to the elaborate sprawling desk made of dark imported wood. She took no pains to be quiet. The man bent over the desk would not hear her anyhow. He was focused on his task, his work, obsessively. That's how he was, lost in the wonder of his work.
The woman set the tray down and folded her now empty hands with her second set of arms. She spoke gently... as to not startle him.
"Cousin. The cook says you haven't eaten. I brought you something." She said softly, repeating herself after a moment sure he hadn't heard. "There's wine and fresh bread, olives, and sliced meat. Please eat something." Shanru said softly.
Her name was Shanru. Kavala blinked and turned slowly in her dreamwalk, until she caught a glimpse of the woman she was inhabiting in a mirror across the room. Her face looked back at her... not Konti... not human... Eypharian. Long golden hair was caught up at her neck and the clothing gracing her body was elegant and cut with an eye for outlining the social status of her family. Gold adorned her arms and throat. She wore the man's torc who sat at the desk.
Her cousin... her protector. She was under his guardianship since both sets of their parents had been killed in an accident traveling together outside of their estate. The man behind the desk had went from second son to heir to head of household all in one day. And Shanru had lost her parents and her younger beloved sister. He? He'd lost his parents and older brother.
They never talked about it. Not the accident, nor the way she tried to stay out of his way except in these rare times when she worried that she would loose him too.
And now she lived here, with him, fighting the fact that women had no power and there was nothing she could do about the decisions that landed her there. Instead, she ran his household because he refused to do it himself. And she worried about his books and his gardens and how they were going to pay the servants and manage the estates while he leaned over his papers, using his tools, and designing buildings that no one believed could ever come to pass.
Shanru loved him. The old ones that matched bloodlines for marriage had even suggested they unite. Their blood was acceptable for it even though they were cousins. It was an acceptable practice especially since Shanru had six arms. Her blood was as royal as his... but he did not want her. He wanted his tools and his dreams and his towering buildings that were slowly birthed into being on the broken backs of his slaves.
And so she quietly plotted her escape, her flight to freedom, and her way straight out of the desert and north to where the mages lived. Eyktol was never more than a bastard stepchild of The Alahean Empire. But Shanru was convinced they'd let her learn magic, give her the power she craved to make her own decisions in life, and live as she wanted too... not in her cousin's shadow, defending him to their peers, and wondering what was so wrong with her that he wouldn't even ever look her in the eye.
Still he hadn't taken notice.
Shanru reached out and slammed her fist into the table. The tray bounced and so too did his tools. Ink splattered on the image of the building he was adding careful angles too with a protractor.
The woman took a step back, her lip curled up in an ugly sneer. "Or not. Starve for all I care." She said, whirling and fully intending to march out of the room and never ever bring him another tray the rest of her existence.
Leave. She had to leave tonight. It was simply intolerable to live within the belly of this monster they called an estate, growing fat on the free flowing food and water, while others starved around them.
Shanru intended to never look back.
She'd taken the morning off. The business of spring at The Sanctuary had left everyone breathless and in need of a well earned break. The Konti was no exception. So she'd decided to take the morning and ride into town to the Antiquity Society's sale and look around. The trip had been a short one, the morning cool, and the day promising to be warm but not overly so. It was a good time for the Dreamwalker to take a break and set aside her Healer's mantle and just exist.
Cadra had taken the children for the day, knowing Kavala had wanted to go to the sale. Tasi was just getting old enough he'd be trouble running amok through beautiful and fragile things. The other two were just toddling, and far more than one woman could deal with while in a crowd and still managing a five year old as well. So the Konti had been grateful and knew she'd get Cadra a gift while she was at the sale, hopefully something that the kelvic house cat would appreciate.
The sale was not yet crowded when Kavala arrived. There were people about, but it was far too early in the morning for the hall's courtyard to be shoulder to shoulder. Kavala was relieved. It gave the Konti a chance to pass through the gates, check in to the sale, and then browse the long tables set up with hovering Antiquity Society Members in careful attendance.
There were bowls and cups and even jewelry. There were amazingly graceful pots, some having fragments carefully glued back into place, on display both for sale and not. It seemed each 'dig' or 'project' had a table. Some were more informational than actual sales. Kavala didn't mind. She carefully browsed the displays, sometimes touching when allowed, letting the mark on the back of her hand guide her way. The place was fascinating, distracting, and just what she needed in that moment to get away from the realities of her life and the hectic nature of The Sanctuary.
Voices whispered to her from the past as her Eyris gift touched items that were made or used to belong to long dead people. She caught flashes of insight here or glimpses of history there. Sometimes she stood, fingers delicately touching a glass vase, and gazed off into time reliving the moment the glassblower pulled it out of the fire.
It was like she was a voyeur to history and she loved every moment of it.
Konti were deferred to in Riverfall, so no one begrudged her the delicate touches she gave certain things. The Kuvan mark of citizenship gave her even more rights. But her reputation as a formidable healer and geomancer sealed the silence of people who witnessed her gaze upon their tables with eyes so pale of a blue they made her look blind.
Kavala was a kind one, well used to Riverfall's nature and her citizen's needs. She never left without a compliment to a displays owner if one was hovering, nor did she offer to talk them down when prices on antiques were clearly displayed.
She picked up a bracelet for Cadra and a set of horn ornaments for Caelum. Her nephew, Cadra's twin, got an old wooden compass she knew he wold love. A tiara was purchased for Caelum's daughter which matched a ring that Kavala was able to acquire for Elise. There was something picked up for everyone, be they family or just close employees. And even Aweston, the head groom, was thought of as she paid for and arranged for a large Drykas style desk - the type that could be broken down and reassembled easily enough - to be delivered to his care.
They worked hard for her, one and all, and she made sure they knew how much she thought of them and appreciated them.
But for herself, something else was selected. She would not have given it a thought save for the fact her fingers brushed the hanging pendulum, and her white brows furrowed in confusion. The pendulum swung and she caught a whisper of a voice so familiar, so comforting, that it gave her pause.
"What ... what is this thing with the pendulum?" She asked the man who was hovering over the booth. He chuckled slightly and shook his head. "No... its not a pendulum. That's called a bob. Together they are a plumb and bob. Architects used them. That one is Eypharian. I picked it up in a dig down in Eyktol. It was part of an old private estate, pre-valterrian." The man said.
Kavala gave it a second glance. The thing was.... oddly familiar. She would have called it garish, but for some reason the style was comforting. It was made of some sort of incredibly well preserved wood inlaid with golden glyphs. She ran her finger across them and found the spark of magic and nodded, recognizing them for simple preservation glyphs common on many ancient tools.
"What was it used for?" She asked, curious now, studying the triangular stand - the plumb - with its golden chain holding the 'bob'. She peered right, then left, and nudged the bob gently so it swung slightly before settling in the middle hanging straight up and down. Her sharp eyes noted the markings on the wood in gold while her fingers traced the lines in the grain.
The seller answered her quietly. "It's simple. The plumb bob establishes a line that is exactly vertical or true..." The man said, gesturing to the device. "It's basic math, Lady. Any string suspended with the weight at a bottom will be both vertical and perpendicular to any level plan through which it passes." He said as if he quoted it from heart. "The Eypharians used them to establish verticals in constructing their great cities." The man went on to elaborate their uses, how exactly they were used in different professions, and why that one was special.
"It was owned by a noble. See how well it was constructed and designed? Probably a second or third son, not an heir, who was required to pursue some sort of noble profession." He said with a smile.
Kavala nodded and then they carefully began to dicker. They traded values back and forth until finally they settled on a price. Rather than have it wrapped and delivered, Kavala took the item with her, cradling it in her arms like a child would a beloved doll. The voice whispered through her Lykata as she did so. She finished walking the sale in a pensive mood, puzzled as to why the voice in her mind was so familiar.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Presents delivered, the children asleep, Kavala settled into her Drykas style bed. She leaned back against the headboard, closed her eyes, and stroked the plumb and bob that was gripped in her hand. She fell asleep quietly, as easily as stepping sideway, and embraced Nysel's realm with a smile. Latching onto the chavi that linked to the item and thus to hers the moment she purchased it, Kavala traveled backwards and quietly stepped into the memories of a scene that might have been straight out of her memory.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
She was no longer Konti. Instead, six arms graced her torso, one set resting on her hips, one folded, and the other carrying a tray of food. She slipped into the elegantly appointed office and walked up to the elaborate sprawling desk made of dark imported wood. She took no pains to be quiet. The man bent over the desk would not hear her anyhow. He was focused on his task, his work, obsessively. That's how he was, lost in the wonder of his work.
The woman set the tray down and folded her now empty hands with her second set of arms. She spoke gently... as to not startle him.
"Cousin. The cook says you haven't eaten. I brought you something." She said softly, repeating herself after a moment sure he hadn't heard. "There's wine and fresh bread, olives, and sliced meat. Please eat something." Shanru said softly.
Her name was Shanru. Kavala blinked and turned slowly in her dreamwalk, until she caught a glimpse of the woman she was inhabiting in a mirror across the room. Her face looked back at her... not Konti... not human... Eypharian. Long golden hair was caught up at her neck and the clothing gracing her body was elegant and cut with an eye for outlining the social status of her family. Gold adorned her arms and throat. She wore the man's torc who sat at the desk.
Her cousin... her protector. She was under his guardianship since both sets of their parents had been killed in an accident traveling together outside of their estate. The man behind the desk had went from second son to heir to head of household all in one day. And Shanru had lost her parents and her younger beloved sister. He? He'd lost his parents and older brother.
They never talked about it. Not the accident, nor the way she tried to stay out of his way except in these rare times when she worried that she would loose him too.
And now she lived here, with him, fighting the fact that women had no power and there was nothing she could do about the decisions that landed her there. Instead, she ran his household because he refused to do it himself. And she worried about his books and his gardens and how they were going to pay the servants and manage the estates while he leaned over his papers, using his tools, and designing buildings that no one believed could ever come to pass.
Shanru loved him. The old ones that matched bloodlines for marriage had even suggested they unite. Their blood was acceptable for it even though they were cousins. It was an acceptable practice especially since Shanru had six arms. Her blood was as royal as his... but he did not want her. He wanted his tools and his dreams and his towering buildings that were slowly birthed into being on the broken backs of his slaves.
And so she quietly plotted her escape, her flight to freedom, and her way straight out of the desert and north to where the mages lived. Eyktol was never more than a bastard stepchild of The Alahean Empire. But Shanru was convinced they'd let her learn magic, give her the power she craved to make her own decisions in life, and live as she wanted too... not in her cousin's shadow, defending him to their peers, and wondering what was so wrong with her that he wouldn't even ever look her in the eye.
Still he hadn't taken notice.
Shanru reached out and slammed her fist into the table. The tray bounced and so too did his tools. Ink splattered on the image of the building he was adding careful angles too with a protractor.
The woman took a step back, her lip curled up in an ugly sneer. "Or not. Starve for all I care." She said, whirling and fully intending to march out of the room and never ever bring him another tray the rest of her existence.
Leave. She had to leave tonight. It was simply intolerable to live within the belly of this monster they called an estate, growing fat on the free flowing food and water, while others starved around them.
Shanru intended to never look back.