Quest Lost and Found

[Plume]

86th of Summer, 515

All throughout the city, sounds of life at its most vibrant and restless could be heard. They traveled down the streets, bounded off the walls, and trickled through windows and doors left open to alleviate the fading Summer heat.

For most, this was a time of getting things done, taking a dip into the nearest body of water, or finding a relatively cool spot of shade to rest in. Syna's midday rays shone radiantly overhead and would only relent once she began her slow descent. But it would not remain this way forever, as most knew. And so the people of Syliras rushed forth with a final surge of activity, preparing as best they could for the coming of Fall and, following closely in tow, the first signs of Winter.

Yet, in the midst of this hectic energy, there was one building whose tenants had gone very quiet and very still.

Within the normally boisterous confines of the Welcome Home, all the orphans under Aenysa Tieran's care had gathered on the first floor in the Great Room. Children of every age, shape, color, and size stared silently at their matron, who for the first time in a long time had no smiles to share. No kind or encouraging words to impart. Only fear. Fear, and worry, the two emotions mixing sorrowfully in Aenysa's soft, brown eyes. It reflected in the eyes of her charges, too, who could never have imagined something like this happening to one of them. Not in a hundred years.

Aenysa looked down at her hands, which she had clasped to stop them from trembling. But her hands had not been trembling out of fear. Nor were they shaking from panic. No...for a brief, unprecedented moment in the history of her employment, the young woman's terror coalesced into hard, unforgiving anger.

When she looked back up at her orphans, Aenysa's eyes shone with furious conviction. And once again the children chose to mirror their matron's emotions. Because they, too, felt the desire to rescue the stolen comrade amongst their ranks.

"We will not stand idly by," Aenysa finally spoke aloud. Her voice was firm and clear, unwavering in her decision. "We will do everything we can to find her."

Without hesitance, some of the older children stepped forward. Each offered to volunteer in aiding the search. One suggested she could post something on the Bulletin Board. Another said he was friends with many of the sailors at the docks and would spread the word there. And a third--a small but compact looking teen with bronze skin and fierce, black eyes--claimed she was able to go looking herself.

The matron of the Welcome Home readily approved all but this last request. "I don't doubt your competence and earnestness, Nira," she explained, "but I cannot in good conscience let you travel alone. What if the one who took her was dangerous? What if there is more than one?"

Nira gave her matron a conflicted and somewhat defiant look. But she understood, even if she did not like what she heard. Perhaps, if there was someone reliable who could accompany her...

It was at that moment that a completely unexpected visitor walked in through their doors.

[Jeremy Casing]

Jeremy wasn't entirely sure what had bought him to the city; he much preferred the quiet and sleepy lifestyle of the Mithryn. And yet here he was, trawling through the streets of Syliras, as always at a lost with what to do with himself. The walls of the city pressed down on him, made the Kelvic feel trapped and claustrophobic. He immediately regretted his decision to visit the city, and yet found himself unable to leave.

Something was keeping him here, and Jeremy hadn't the faintest idea what it was.

Every so often, he paused to glance inside a shop window, or to eaves drop on a passing conversation. But nothing of significance sprung out to him -- though he did learn a particularly juicy piece of gossip about a certain member of the Syrliran Knights and a woman called Larraine. The love lives of men and women were far from his interests, though.

As such, by midday Jeremy was thoroughly frustrated. He really ought to leave the city and return home, to get to work on his garden and to check up on his latest patients. One of the farmers had a sheepdog about to birth pups, and there was a troublesome goat apparently eating all of Mrs. Scrimple's apples that Jeremy needed to capture and hopefully find a home for.

What was keeping him in Syliras? And why?

The Phylonurist eventually came to a stop, causing the two housewives walking behind him to clatter into his rear. "Oi, watchit" one of them muttered, driving a podgy elbow into his ribcage as she flounced past.

But the Kelvic barely felt the jab. He was too distracted by the building on his left to even notice the woman's irritated presence. The structure stood out against the oppressive grey tallness of Syliras, and was instead pale in colour, with thin veins of blue running through the outer stones. Unlike the rest of the city, he could easily describe the building as pretty, even beautiful. It was oddly welcoming.

A shingle on the side of the building informed Jeremy that all unwanted children are welcome here. This was all the information he needed to realise what he had stumbled upon: an orphanage. Touching a hand to his chest, Jeremy asked for Oriana's blessing and help as he stepped inside. What exactly he was planning to do within the Orphanage had not dawned on him yet, but perhaps he would be of some worth to the children inside.

[Plume]

Aenysa was just about to offer a final piece of consolation before sending the older children off to their tasks when the door of the orphanage opened.

In walked a young man she had never laid eyes on before, with a serious, angular look about him and fair, golden features. Aenysa had the immediate impression that the fellow seemed a little too focused, as if he was unused to being at ease, though she did not comment on this so as not to alarm the children. Their visitor did not seem dangerous despite his grave persona and height.

"Excuse me, young man," she said in way of greeting. "Apologies, but the Welcome Home is currently dealing with some troubling matters at the moment. If you are interested in adopting, perhaps you could consider coming back another day."

"Nysa," Nira whispered loudly, black eyes darting from her matron to the newcomer then back to her matron.

Aenysa didn't even blink before she replied, "Out of the question."

"But--"

The matron held up her hand. Nira bit back the rest of her argument, though it was with great reluctance and. Her jaw was still set at a mutinous angle, but she listened to what her mistress had to say.

"Young man, it is best that you know we are missing one of our own. She has been taken, a child of no more than six or so years, and one who has seen enough hardship for a lifetime already. We will stop at nothing to find her and will go directly to the Knights if need be." Aenysa took a pause, her usually kind eyes squinting with a rare display of shrewd suspicion. "So answer me truthfully when I ask, or you will be the first we name as a potential suspect, waltzing in as you have, announced, the moment we have our plans set in action."

She squared her shoulders and delivered her question with a mix of grim conviction, genuine curiosity, and perhaps the smallest shred of hope. She was not particularly religions and prayed only where the children were concerned. But the moment Aenysa had found out about the stolen girl she'd prayed to Oriana with every ounce of faith she could muster.

Please, please, Great Mother. Let the child be alright. Let us find her safe and sound, to give her a chance at a life so many like her never have but deserve.

"Why exactly are you here?"

[Jeremy Casing]

Jeremy had expected to be greeted by laughter, loud voices; the general noises that was made by large groups of children. He had also expected the caretaker of the orphanage to be a podgy, happy woman who hugged everyone and made delicious cakes. He assumed it would be a place of intense happiness, to make up for what the residents were otherwise lacking.

The Kelvic's expectations were disappointed when Jeremy stepped within the Orphanage. There was a distinct air of anxiety and stress, something quite surprising in such an establishment. The older children in particular seemed to be struck by an intense seriousness that Jeremy only usually saw when he looked in the mirror.

But the questions were barely formed on the tip of his tongue before Jeremy found himself the recipient of a sharp greeting from the orphanage's matron. She was far younger than he had anticipated, with a head of voluminous curly hair. Despite her pointed tone and pinched expression, Jeremy could imagine her wiping noses and joining in with her ward's games.

Which bought Jeremy's focus back to what the woman was saying. There was some trouble in the orphanage apparently, which certainly explained the low mood within the building. A missing child. The shadow of a frown passed over the Kelvic's face as he watched in silence as the young matron rounded upon him, demanding questions and suggesting - no, telling him - that he might be a suspect.

"I came here to help the orphanage in anyway I can." He replied quietly, his voice calm as though their conversation was about something ordinary like the weather, and not missing child. The way that he spoke - and the way his amber eyes fixated on the orphanage matron - created the odd and intense illusion that she was the only other person in the world other than himself. "I didn't know about the missing girl until now. You have my word, by Oriana." He blinked, twisted his head to glance upon the faces of the surrounding children. The male's actions were all bird like, sharp and interested.

There was no way he could leave, not now. There was a missing child, and by some twist of fate, Jeremy had chosen to visit the orphanage the day she went missing. Refusing that it was pure coincidence, the Kelvic pushed this delicate matter further: "There might be some way I can help," As he spoke, Jeremy's bony fingers began to tug at his left sleeve, hitching the material up to reveal the gnosis underneath, "though Caiyha."

[Plume]

Aenysa's brow rose at the sight of the young man's gnosis, which he so freely and willingly revealed. A follower of Caiyha...even if he had not said it himself, the matron of the Welcome Home would have known. She had seen that mark before, the pairing of a tree and triskelion, on none other than the Desert Witch herself. Though such a nickname Aenysa discouraged the children from using, as it gave Sera Mora a rather foreboding reputation when the woman's intentions were anything but.

Her mouth opened to speak, but another's voice beat her to the punch. "Look, Nysa!" Nira burst excitedly. "He bears a goddess mark. And one from none other than Caiyha herself. This must be a sign that Maggie was taken into the woods, I just know it!"

The disapproving frown so unfamiliar to the matron's face only deepened. "True as that may be, I still don't like the idea of you being out there with who knows how many criminals on the loose, Nira. And though I trust you would not swear by Oriana so lightly, young man," she added, eyes returning to gaze upon their visitor,"the Bronze Woods is not a safe place, not even in this time of year."

Nira looked her matron in the eye, expression hard, will unwavering. "Nysa, you know it's the best lead we had. That's where Dina last saw the man going with Maggie before she managed to run away. Isn't that right, Dina?"

A small girl no more than six or so years with mussed, brown hair and large, sad eyes nodded. She was standing near the front of the gaggle of children, though she had not said a word the entire time. Nira rested a hand upon the little one's head in a show of sympathy before looking to Aenysa once more. "We don't have any other choice. We have to try, Nysa. We have to."

With great reluctance, the matron gave a curt a nod. "Alright, alright...we have no other choice, I know. Young man, what is your name?"

A smile bloomed on Nira's face, right about the same time a glint of predatory determination shone in her eyes. Should their unexpected visitor yield his name, she would do the same in return. "I am Nira," the girl greeted in return, "and if you want to help, you can come with me to the Bronze Woods. That's where Maggie and her kidnapper were seen last. I have everything prepared, I just need to know one thing."

She gave him a discerning look of genuine curiosity. "Can you handle yourself in the wilderness?"

[Jeremy Casing]

Jeremy silently thanked the Gods that at least one of the orphans seemed to be on his side. The matron of the orphanage spoke again, bearing down on the Kelvic with her authoritative and efficient presence. She was truly not a woman to be messed around with, and Jeremy found himself shrinking away timidly.

I should leave. They do not trust me and I am simply wasting precious searching time.

Though this decision was made, Jeremy did not move. Instead, he held firm on his stance in orphanage. He physically could not move from this spot until his aid had been accepted. As a Witch, he could request the assistance of the woodland animals. Even the insects might lend their aid, and the search party would be safe from bears and wolves so long as he was there. Bandits and criminals, however, were beyond his control.

"Jeremy Casing." He replied absently, to a request he had not entirely heard. The Kelvic's attention was pulled to the Bronze Woods, where he wondered how best to search for a single, young child in such vast woodland. It would be no easy task, and he could hardly switch to his feathered form while in the company of young children to speed up the search.

But another, younger voice pulled Jeremy back to the present moment. He blinked, turning his golden eyes from the matron of the orphanage to the girl at her side. She seemed to be the definition of determined -- at least someone's feeling confident about this impending search, he thought wryly. To her question about his abilities to survive the wilderness, Jeremy pulled a face. His two-legged physical form was not strong enough to put up a fight against any true dangerous foe, but to say he could not survive at all would be too harsh. His mark helped, as did his other form. And his experience in gardening and botany had, up to now at least, kept him away from poisonous berries and plants.

So eventually, Jeremy replied with a cautious: "I have done for the past three years." Then, realising that this was not a particularly impressive feat for a normal aged human male, he added quickly, "my Kelvic form is a falcon. That helps, at times. But- but so does my gnosis, too. The animals don't attack me, and they may even help." He fell into yet another awkward silence, frustrated for having sold his own abilities so short and making himself seem like a blundering fool. Who would ever trust him with the task of searching for a child, let along whilst supervising another one?

Keen to move the focus off of his own shortcomings, Jeremy decided that if he were going to look for a kidnapped child, he needed to be as informed as possible. "What did her kidnapped look like?" He paused, frowned and then continued, "And for that matter, what does she look like?"

[Plume]

There was a deliberating look in Aenysa's eyes and one of determined excitement in Nira's. "You sound perfect for the job," the dark skinned lass responded first, "I'll tell you all we know so far on our way out. There's no time to be wasted!"

As Nira swooped up her equipment with deft movements and headed toward the door, her matron stared after her strong-willed charge and the strange young man about to accompany her in dubious hope. "Take care of one another," Aenysa said at last, right before Nira slipped out of the door. "And thank you, Jeremy, for agreeing to help. I wish you both the best of luck and a swift mission. Come back to us soon."

Nira nodded, her lithe frame silhouetted against the doorway, as she waited for Jeremy to join her. Should he choose to follow, the lass would step out into the bustling streets and head toward the gates. It was still early, Syna's ascent have just reached its peak, but the journey to the Bronze Woods was neither short nor easy.

"This is what we know so far," Nira explained to Jeremy as they walked down the streets, past several shops, and eventually through the gates. There was a brief exchange to the knights on duty before they were allowed through. "The girl that was taken is named Maggie. She was a kitchen maid back in Sunberth, but somehow--she wouldn't tell us the whole story right away, just that she was glad to be away from that dreadful city--she and Dina ended up here. They both looked like they'd been through Hai and back by the time they showed up at the Welcome Home, but they were the same as any of us. Just glad to be somewhere safe and warm. A place where they didn't have to be afraid."

There was a look of grim conviction on Nira's face, though it did nothing to slow her pace as she stalked down the North Kabrin Road. "In any case, it had only been about two days after they arrived that Maggie was taken. Dina was there and saw it all. They were out hanging the laundry when a tall, strange man appeared. Dina said he smelled terrible, like he hadn't bathed in seasons, and had a thick, grey beard that covered half of his face and neck. He seemed alright at first, almost kind, and asked how old Maggie was. That's when Maggie shouted for Dina to run and threw an armful of wet clothes at the man. And that was the last any of us saw of her."

It took a good bell or so to reach the forest proper. By then Nira had filled in Jeremy as thoroughly as she was capable. In regards to his earlier questions, she explained that the kidnapper looked older. Perhaps the age of a father, with a grey beard and greyer eyes. His clothes had been torn and baggy as though he'd been living in the wilderness for some time. It wasn't the usual kind of city grime, as Dina had seen leaves and mud all over his coat and trousers. Hence the assumption that he had taken Maggie to the Bronze Woods.

Maggie herself was described with much more certainty and detail. She had black hair that she usually kept in a bun, pale skin typical of someone who spent most of her childhood in a kitchen, and watery blue eyes. The little maid was also a bit tall for her age but not as scrawny as most adolescents, as she had never gone hungry--the one perk of her thankless former profession.

"Alright," Nira announced once they'd reached the fringes of the forest. "What do you think we should do, 'o chaperon of mine? Should we let you scout in your falcon form before we enter the woods, or would it be better to rely on your god mark first? I would like to see how the animals can help us."

[Jeremy Casing]

The Kelvic found himself suddenly in charge of a young girl -- an outcome he had not expected by any stretch of his limited imagination. Still, he found himself bidding the patron of the orphanage good day and following Nira outside the door.

What, he thought lamely as he fell in beside the girl, by the Gods' names have you got yourself into, Jeremy? He had never been the sort to dive headfirst into an adventure, preferring instead to linger back and observe quietly. What had changed in the last few times?

Silently, Jeremy blamed his faith. His closest relationship was the one he had with Caiyha, followed closely by her offspring. There was little he would not do for the deities he worshipped, and Oriana was no exception. It was his desire to do right by her, then, that had lead to this slightly frightening outcome. Jeremy found himself wishing that he were skilled in at least some form of combat. But his pale form was as hopelessly weak as it physically looked.

Niva was a fast walker. Amongst his thoughts of doubt and uncertainty, Jeremy struggled to keep up with her. Her mouth was also working at speed, filling the Kelvic with great lungfuls of information that he also struggled to process. In Jeremy's innocent and naive mind, it made sense for someone to take a child they had kidnapped into the forest. There were no knights there, for starters, and no witnesses.

No witnesses that can speak Common, he corrected himself patiently. The trees and all of Caiyha's other creations would bare witness to any crime in the forest, but few paid them the attention they warranted.

As they approached the forest, Jeremy tried to organise his thought processes. Niva had given him all information he required, perhaps even too much. The Kelvic grappled mentally with the details she had shard, trying to imprint the description of Maggie and her kidnapper onto his memory. There would be no point in his aiding the orphanage if he could not even recognise the missing child.

"I, er--" Jeremy stumbled over his words, unsure of how to proceed. He was not familiar with giving out orders to anyone other than his pets. And even then, they didn't always follow his command.

The Kelvic frowned as he considered how to approach this momentous task. In these shallows of the woods, there would be few animals that would be of any help to their search. Rabbits were too distractible, birds too flighty. Plus, no truly capable kidnapper would stop so early on in the forest. So perhaps the wisest idea would be Niva's first suggestion, for Jeremy to take hold of his other form and scout ahead? He glanced cautiously to the girl. How old was she? Old enough to see a naked man turn into a falcon, or vice versa? No: Jeremy wanted to save that sight for a point later on in the search, when there was plenty of shrubbery nearby for him to hide behind. "I think we should start on foot." He said finally, nodding into the depth of the forest, "we might find tracks or signs of them passing through." Perhaps the kidnapper had accomplices who had joined in him in the forest. But then again, maybe not. The possibilities swirled around Jeremy's mind and made him feel like he was drowning in endless maybes.

[Plume]

Nira's young chaperon seemed uneasy at first, though the girl paid little mind. She was staring at the forest with those dark, hard eyes of hers, a grim sort of determination permanently set in her earthen features.

"Sounds like a good plan," Nira nodded once before setting one foot forward. She paused, however, just long enough to turn back and add, "You don't have to be afraid of changing around me, you know. Some of the orphans at the Home are Kelvics, too, and its common knowledge most prefer not to switch in the only good clothes they have. I'm used to it."

And then she was back into motion, progressing forward at a cautious speed. Though she was clearly involved with the orphanage and city proper, the Chaktawe teen appeared unbothered by the wilderness around them. If anything, she seemed rather at home, as though she'd spent more time out there than inside the walls. But for the first ten or so chimes she said nothing, eyes focused on the plantlife for any signs of human passage.

"So, um, Jeremy..." Nira half-whispered in the quiet of the woods, interrupting what was otherwise mostly silence, "your mark, from Caiyha...what does it sound like, when you listen to them? Or is there no sound at all?"

Her curiosity might have appeared random and abrupt, but a lass like Nira proved the kind to do nothing without reason. Though whatever her reasons she kept them to herself, for the time being, as she scanned the forest floor with one ear trained to the wilderness and the other for a possible reply from Jeremy.

There was a sudden crack somewhere in the underbrush. A trio of small rabbits dashed from one shrub to another, and Nira's right hand relaxed visibly around the hilt of her sheathed dagger.

"Syna is still high, but not for long," the girl noted in a hushed tone, almost to no one in particular. She then glanced up at Jeremy, eyes shaded by the canopy of Summer leaves above, and said in a perfectly serious manner, "You can get naked now, if you want. While we still have Syna's light. I can hold onto your clothes for you until you return."

Should Jeremy agree to this plan, Nira would turn her back while he undressed and folded his clothes neatly into a bundle once he was done. She would then suggest that he look for some kind of inhabitable clearing or shelter. Perhaps an old, hastily covered campsite, or even a cave of some kind.

If, however, he was paying more attention to their surroundings while she offered her suggestion rather than Nira's words, he might very well notice a tiny, momentary glimpse of something red flicker in the distance. A berry of some kind, most would assume. But upon closer inspection, one may discover that it is actually a small strip of cloth tied to a fistful of leaves on a shrub.

moderation note: :

Will you choose door #1, or door #2? Things may take a twist or turn depending on what you decide

[Jeremy Casing]

Once again, the young Chaktawe impressed Jeremy with her maturity and nerve. It was he who felt overwhelmed with anxiety about the task in front of them, and even changing forms in front of the girl. But Nira seemed genuinely unbothered, and if she was to be so bold, he needed to be as well.

But courage was something that Jeremy had always lacked. His confidence had been squashed early on in life when his short childhood had fallen victim to the harshness of Sunberth. Bullies, thugs, conmen and thieves all recognised this lack of certainty from within the Kelvic, and they had exploited it cruelly. Even now, Jeremy found himself avoiding conflict at all costs, fearful of attracting any unwanted attention in the form of physical conflict. His lank frame, and utter lack in any kind of physical combat, would make him an easy victim.

Nevertheless, the Kelvic sighed and tried to muster all the confidence he could. Touching his gnosis mark helped: it reminded him that Caiyha at least had some faith in him, even if he did not.

"It's not really listening," He said absently, touching a hand onto the bark of a pine tree. For a moment, the Kelvic fell silent as the tree gifted him with its memories. It was very old, with memories that spanned several decades into the past. This tree had witnessed many things, but nothing linked to the recent kidnapping. Breaking his contact with the pine, Jeremy turned back to the girl, his hand flexing as he explained: "It's like... knowing something. Like having feelings or memories suddenly flood into your mind, but they're not your own thoughts. They're that of a tree, or a dog or cow or... you get the idea. You get a feel of what that creatures live has been like. This pine, for example--" He gestured briefly to his latest acquaintance, "has stood here for approximately sixty years. Its memories are far more numerous than mine could ever be, perhaps even yours. It is patient, like an eternal being. But it is fearful for things that it cannot control: like the fire two seasons ago, or woodcutters." The Kelvic sighed again, suddenly weighed down with the fears of the forest around him, and his related responsibilities as a Phylonurist.

I must focus at the task at hand, he told himself sternly, turning to face his young companion yet again. Uncharacteristically, he had decided that Caiyha and her creations could wait for now: tonight, he would serve her daughter.

He considered the girl's suggestion, though her invitation for him to get naked did muster a sort of shocked, but bemused, smile onto his thin lips. She had a point: Syna was dipping lower in the sky with each passing tick, and Jeremy's vision in his falcon form would be almost useless in the dark. Yes: he needed to make the most of the light they had left. "You're right, Nira. I'll take my falcon form and scout the forest as best I can."

After she had turned around, Jeremy undressed quickly, his hands anxiously fiddling with buttons and buckles. He stood naked and awkward, his hands folded in front of him to preserve the last shred of his decency. "I'll be back in a bell or so." He promised briefly, before being surrounded by flickers of white light and taking the form of a small, creamy-feathered Falcon that would only just reach level with Nira's knees.

The bird hopped and skipped unnaturally across the earth, taloned feet crunching loudly as Jeremy searched for a space clear enough to take flight. Eventually, he found a suitable location and gave his young companion a final pointed look before taking to the air.

He flew slow and low, barely clearing the tops of the trees as he skimmed through the air. From this new vantage point, Jeremy could see just how vast their search area was: trees, shrubbery and green shadows hugged the earth below him. It would be no easy task for him to notice something out of the ordinary that might lead to Maggie's location. He came to a stop, landing upon the top branches of a tree and searching the low ground for any trace of footsteps or abandoned possessions.

A crow watched him cautiously. When the bird let out a harsh caw, Jeremy stared at it.

Fear? Hunter? Prey?

With a tweak of his wings, Jeremy replied: No. Hunting. Lost. Human. Girl.

The crow made no response to this beyond an indignant snap of his beak. He did not concern himself with the plight of the two-legged creatures.

But Jeremy did not give up. He hopped along his branch, coming closer to the crow and trying again: Fire? Noise? Smoke? Fear?

Fire. Gone. Wet smoke. East.

Jeremy lifted off again, feeling optimistic for the first time since he and Nira had left the orphanage that Maggie might indeed be found.

It took the falcon several chimes to locate what the crowd had described. But, as ever, the other bird's observations had proved to be correct. Someone had made a fire, and when Jeremy dropped to the earth beside the wet ashes, he guessed it had been lit about two bells ago. But since then, someone had thrown water over the flames and tried to kick leaves and sticks over the campsite to hide them.

Thrilled, Jeremy lifted off yet again, returning to Nira just as Syna began to burn the sky orange as she sank below the horizon. Jeremy turned back to his two-legged form without even considering the humility of being naked in front of the girl. Suddenly, his nudity seemed completely insignificant. "A camp!" He said breathlessly, beginning to throw on his clothes, "East of here. About two bells' walk."