Timestamp: Fall 8, 515 AV
Talya had left the city of Zeltiva early, as she was wont to do time and again, whenever she needed a break from the people, or the stench of the bay, and of kelp, and of fish. Whenever she simply needed the chance to breath, and be alone, and refresh herself by looking up at the night sky- filled with the moon and glittering silver stars. As she had made her way through the sea of trees, she had taken the time to glance up at the sky every now and then, to take note of the passage of the sun- as it moved in its arc from the eastern portion of the pale blue bed above her, to the western portion. It was late afternoon now, and she supposed that if she wanted to have daylight during each moment that she set up her camp, she would have to settle down and find a clearing large enough to encompass her things as well as herself for the night. This task, didn't prove to be as difficult as at first it might seem, and before she knew it, she had found a roughly circular clearing, approximately eight feet in diameter all around. She had chosen it, for when she surveyed the land, she found it to be rather flat, which would be easier for the set up of a fire.
Talya also liked the fact that it wasn't very grassy. There were patches of it here and there, but for the most part, it was hard-packed, parched looking light brown soil. A few cracks coursed through its length here and there, meandering like rivers and their tributaries. As it was largely devoid of vegetation, she felt as though it were safer, as less vegetation meant less flammable things present... to well, be set aflame if anything were to go wrong with her campfire. With a smile, Talya set her bag down against one of the trees that lined the clearing, and then took a few minutes to rub some of the soreness out of her muscles, before heading back into the forest. She needed to find both firewood and kindling before the night fell, so she would have a continuous source of warmth, as well as light, when darkness overtook the sky. So, she wove her way in and out of the trees, and picked up whatever fallen branches she could. When her arms were full, she returned to the clearing, and dropped them off beside her bag. She then made another few trips, until she felt as though she had a good sized pile of firewood. Then she went back for kindling. Today, she didn't gather any leaves- she feared they may be too dry, besides they never burnt as well anyway. So, she collected only twigs, some of which she broke off larger, fallen branches.
When Talya had filled the length of her furled arms with kindling, she returned to her camp site, and dropped the twigs beside the larger sticks she had gathered earlier. Perhaps a half an hour had passed in all, she realized, as she glanced up at the position of the sun again. She should have more than enough time to build a fire, but still, she did not want to dilly-dally and waste precious daylight, so she set immediately down to work. She began by pulling eight of the larger sticks off the top of the pile at random, and then moving over to the center of the clearing. Here, she found an occasional patch of grass, but here, there was also more open space. More open space meant that the trees were farther, and trees being flammable, were a good thing to keep away from, especially if she didn't accidentally want to begin a raging forest fire. So, to start off, Talya drew a circle in the dirt with the point of one of the sticks. It was perhaps two feet in diameter all around. She made sure the indentation within the earth was about an inch deep- this would serve to help keep the fire from spreading if her log structure collapsed, or something similar, and it would help her keep the fire within a reasonable amount of space.
When she was done with this, Talya grabbed another log off the pile she had moved over to the center of the clearing. With a log in each hand, Talya put their points together. Then, she set them down within the circle in front of where she now knelt. Each unajoined portion of the sticks resting lightly against the dirt within the far corners of the circle. One to the east, and the other to the west. With the ground, they formed the beginning stages of a pyramid. When Talya reached for another two sticks, and added this to the structure, she completed the frame of the pyramid, as the stick's ends rested in each of the four cardinal directions. From there, Talya added another two logs, and slowly pulled her hands away, as the structure looked as though it were beginning to get a bit unsteady. It was, and for a second it seemed to wobble, enough where it might have fallen over. But only one of the logs slid out of place, dragging across the forest floor. Talya picked it up and pulled it away from the others, before righting the issue and moving on. Adding the last few sticks she had brought over. Then she pulled back and surveyed the structure, which now appeared more like a tepee. It was going to need a bit more work she realized.
Thus, Talya eased herself back onto her feet, and returned to her two collection piles. She pulled another few larger sticks off her slowly dwindling pile, and returned to the wooden structure. In some of the wider spaces, she added more logs one by one, so that they gradually filled in, and she was left with only one opening at the front of the tepee. Smiling, the Ethaefal dry washed her hands, as she knew it was meant to be this way. For into this opening, she could gingerly place the kindling, and then light the fire. With this in mine, she returned to her two piles and her bag. First, she rummaged through her bag and retrieved her flint and steel, which she set down on her lap. Then she picked up some kindling, and set it on the skirt of her dress, when she had gathered most of it, she picked up the skirt of her dress from the bottom, and got up. She used it like a basket to transfer her things from one place to the next. When she reached the side of her drawn circle, she sat down, and dropped her hold on her dress. She picked some kindling up, and then moved it over to the lip of the tepee's opening. She then set it down, and gingerly pushed it farther back with her fingers.
When she was done guiding this portion in, Talya reached for another small amount of kindling and did the same with it, repeating the process over and over again, until she had expended all the kindling that rested in her lap, and all that remained was the flint and the steel on the bottom. Talya smiled as she dry washed her hands, and then picked the flint and steel up. She held the flint in her right hand, and the steel in her left. She inched forward on her knees, closer to the tepee-like structure she had created. Then, she held her right hand toward the lip of the tepee, the opening she had left. She tilted her hand downward, so that it seemed to be headed toward the opening. From there, Talya took a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth, before she raised her left hand and brought it down upon the contents of her right. The flint and steel clicked softly, and then seemed to grate as she drew the steel down the length of the flint to the bottom. Then a little farther and into the thin air, solely from the momentum she had built up. When she had made her hand still, she raised it again, only to bring it down and follow the length of the flint all over again.
Talya repeated this process several times. It took about a half hour today, for her to begin producing sparks. She thought perhaps, that it had something to do with the air, the season change, but she wasn't entirely sure, as she continued her work, her fingers beginning to grow numb as her wrists ached, and several beads of sweat appeared on her brow. Her heart was beating a little faster now as she worked, none of the sparks taking to the kindling for several more minutes. It was annoying, but she kept at is, as she knew the fire would be worth it, and finally, fifteen minutes or so later, the first spark finally took to the kindling. She could see embers forming within it as she set her flint and kindling back in her lap, and then lowered her face to the side of the opening within the tepee. Blowing air into it softly, so as not to overpower the flame and cause it to go out. She did this a few times, forcing the flame to grow, so that she could hear the fire crackle, as smoke escaped the slender spaces between the logs. A pale grey shade, that smelled lightly of the earth. She watched it grow for a few moments, before returning to her bag and putting her flint and steel away.
Then, she looked up at the sky. It was almost dark now, but she wasn't worried. Although it would be a pain, she could set up her tent by the fire's light, so she left it for now in favor of going to find something to eat. And as she was searching, true darkness fell and she shifted from her mortal seeming to her celestial form- the form that showed she was one of Leth's children. She would have to finish her camp up when she returned, beneath his cover. Although now, it seemed so much less important, as many of her basic human needs had been washed away with his rising, to return on the morrow when Syna took to the sky again.
Talya had left the city of Zeltiva early, as she was wont to do time and again, whenever she needed a break from the people, or the stench of the bay, and of kelp, and of fish. Whenever she simply needed the chance to breath, and be alone, and refresh herself by looking up at the night sky- filled with the moon and glittering silver stars. As she had made her way through the sea of trees, she had taken the time to glance up at the sky every now and then, to take note of the passage of the sun- as it moved in its arc from the eastern portion of the pale blue bed above her, to the western portion. It was late afternoon now, and she supposed that if she wanted to have daylight during each moment that she set up her camp, she would have to settle down and find a clearing large enough to encompass her things as well as herself for the night. This task, didn't prove to be as difficult as at first it might seem, and before she knew it, she had found a roughly circular clearing, approximately eight feet in diameter all around. She had chosen it, for when she surveyed the land, she found it to be rather flat, which would be easier for the set up of a fire.
Talya also liked the fact that it wasn't very grassy. There were patches of it here and there, but for the most part, it was hard-packed, parched looking light brown soil. A few cracks coursed through its length here and there, meandering like rivers and their tributaries. As it was largely devoid of vegetation, she felt as though it were safer, as less vegetation meant less flammable things present... to well, be set aflame if anything were to go wrong with her campfire. With a smile, Talya set her bag down against one of the trees that lined the clearing, and then took a few minutes to rub some of the soreness out of her muscles, before heading back into the forest. She needed to find both firewood and kindling before the night fell, so she would have a continuous source of warmth, as well as light, when darkness overtook the sky. So, she wove her way in and out of the trees, and picked up whatever fallen branches she could. When her arms were full, she returned to the clearing, and dropped them off beside her bag. She then made another few trips, until she felt as though she had a good sized pile of firewood. Then she went back for kindling. Today, she didn't gather any leaves- she feared they may be too dry, besides they never burnt as well anyway. So, she collected only twigs, some of which she broke off larger, fallen branches.
When Talya had filled the length of her furled arms with kindling, she returned to her camp site, and dropped the twigs beside the larger sticks she had gathered earlier. Perhaps a half an hour had passed in all, she realized, as she glanced up at the position of the sun again. She should have more than enough time to build a fire, but still, she did not want to dilly-dally and waste precious daylight, so she set immediately down to work. She began by pulling eight of the larger sticks off the top of the pile at random, and then moving over to the center of the clearing. Here, she found an occasional patch of grass, but here, there was also more open space. More open space meant that the trees were farther, and trees being flammable, were a good thing to keep away from, especially if she didn't accidentally want to begin a raging forest fire. So, to start off, Talya drew a circle in the dirt with the point of one of the sticks. It was perhaps two feet in diameter all around. She made sure the indentation within the earth was about an inch deep- this would serve to help keep the fire from spreading if her log structure collapsed, or something similar, and it would help her keep the fire within a reasonable amount of space.
When she was done with this, Talya grabbed another log off the pile she had moved over to the center of the clearing. With a log in each hand, Talya put their points together. Then, she set them down within the circle in front of where she now knelt. Each unajoined portion of the sticks resting lightly against the dirt within the far corners of the circle. One to the east, and the other to the west. With the ground, they formed the beginning stages of a pyramid. When Talya reached for another two sticks, and added this to the structure, she completed the frame of the pyramid, as the stick's ends rested in each of the four cardinal directions. From there, Talya added another two logs, and slowly pulled her hands away, as the structure looked as though it were beginning to get a bit unsteady. It was, and for a second it seemed to wobble, enough where it might have fallen over. But only one of the logs slid out of place, dragging across the forest floor. Talya picked it up and pulled it away from the others, before righting the issue and moving on. Adding the last few sticks she had brought over. Then she pulled back and surveyed the structure, which now appeared more like a tepee. It was going to need a bit more work she realized.
Thus, Talya eased herself back onto her feet, and returned to her two collection piles. She pulled another few larger sticks off her slowly dwindling pile, and returned to the wooden structure. In some of the wider spaces, she added more logs one by one, so that they gradually filled in, and she was left with only one opening at the front of the tepee. Smiling, the Ethaefal dry washed her hands, as she knew it was meant to be this way. For into this opening, she could gingerly place the kindling, and then light the fire. With this in mine, she returned to her two piles and her bag. First, she rummaged through her bag and retrieved her flint and steel, which she set down on her lap. Then she picked up some kindling, and set it on the skirt of her dress, when she had gathered most of it, she picked up the skirt of her dress from the bottom, and got up. She used it like a basket to transfer her things from one place to the next. When she reached the side of her drawn circle, she sat down, and dropped her hold on her dress. She picked some kindling up, and then moved it over to the lip of the tepee's opening. She then set it down, and gingerly pushed it farther back with her fingers.
When she was done guiding this portion in, Talya reached for another small amount of kindling and did the same with it, repeating the process over and over again, until she had expended all the kindling that rested in her lap, and all that remained was the flint and the steel on the bottom. Talya smiled as she dry washed her hands, and then picked the flint and steel up. She held the flint in her right hand, and the steel in her left. She inched forward on her knees, closer to the tepee-like structure she had created. Then, she held her right hand toward the lip of the tepee, the opening she had left. She tilted her hand downward, so that it seemed to be headed toward the opening. From there, Talya took a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth, before she raised her left hand and brought it down upon the contents of her right. The flint and steel clicked softly, and then seemed to grate as she drew the steel down the length of the flint to the bottom. Then a little farther and into the thin air, solely from the momentum she had built up. When she had made her hand still, she raised it again, only to bring it down and follow the length of the flint all over again.
Talya repeated this process several times. It took about a half hour today, for her to begin producing sparks. She thought perhaps, that it had something to do with the air, the season change, but she wasn't entirely sure, as she continued her work, her fingers beginning to grow numb as her wrists ached, and several beads of sweat appeared on her brow. Her heart was beating a little faster now as she worked, none of the sparks taking to the kindling for several more minutes. It was annoying, but she kept at is, as she knew the fire would be worth it, and finally, fifteen minutes or so later, the first spark finally took to the kindling. She could see embers forming within it as she set her flint and kindling back in her lap, and then lowered her face to the side of the opening within the tepee. Blowing air into it softly, so as not to overpower the flame and cause it to go out. She did this a few times, forcing the flame to grow, so that she could hear the fire crackle, as smoke escaped the slender spaces between the logs. A pale grey shade, that smelled lightly of the earth. She watched it grow for a few moments, before returning to her bag and putting her flint and steel away.
Then, she looked up at the sky. It was almost dark now, but she wasn't worried. Although it would be a pain, she could set up her tent by the fire's light, so she left it for now in favor of going to find something to eat. And as she was searching, true darkness fell and she shifted from her mortal seeming to her celestial form- the form that showed she was one of Leth's children. She would have to finish her camp up when she returned, beneath his cover. Although now, it seemed so much less important, as many of her basic human needs had been washed away with his rising, to return on the morrow when Syna took to the sky again.
