Closed Missing Persons (Nephti)

[Sayana]

Winter 45, 515 AV

The wind whipped at her hair. She was running. Gracefully her steps made soft thuds upon the rooftops and shingles clattered when they were disturbed. She dodged chimneys and ran with abandon under the dark starry night. The air was crisp and when she jumped she soared through the air to land on the next rooftop. She was beautiful, she was bold, she was free. Like a queen of the night she leapt into the air and…

With a slight misstep, she stumbled with her landing and slid down across the slanted roof. Scrambling with her arms, she tried to catch hold of something, anything, and only managed to lessen her fall as she grabbed onto the edge of the roof with promptly cracked under her weight. In a heap she, she tumbled to the ground and fortunately there was a small wooden fence and some bushes in the front yard that shielded her embarrassment.

Groaning, she could feel the large bruise on her leg already starting to take hold where she had landed on it. But even as she started to get up, there was a voice in the dark. “Who’s there?” Sayana froze. She was half crouched as she peered out from the bushes, trying to spot the source of the voice. “Is that you Okana? I’ve been looking for your tent. I can’t find it. I need to know what’s going to happen. That everything will be okay.”

The voice was definitely female and growing more hysterical by the tick. Sayana spotted a pair of elegant shoes approaching her hiding place. She didn’t have much time before she would surely be discovered. Quickly she began reaching within herself, drawing upon her djed, shaping it and bringing it forth. However, this time instead of focusing on a message or feeling she intensely pictured the corner of a brick wall. The shape of it, the colour, the rough edges… Then fueled with that image she pushed a forceful message to the crazy woman who approached her. Okana is just beyond the corner. The hypnotism was rushed and somewhat sloppy but the woman seemed so intent on finding this person that her eyes began to seek out such a corner with new vigor.

Sayana exhaled a soft sigh of relief as the lady scurried along calling out the name of who she sought. “Okana? Will my children be alright? What about my new dog? I should have known it was a bad season to take up gardening…”

She was almost sorry for the lady, and as Sayana slowly got out from the cover of the bushes, she was rather tempted to follow after her. It couldn’t hurt, could it? After rubbing some circulation into her newly formed bruise, she crept along with quiet footsteps peering around the corner to make sure the lady was still in sight. She found herself following after the woman for several chimes, while now and then she drummed her fingers against the brick wall. Just one more corner… The illusioned zith kept to the shadows and made sure to stay several paces behind. Yet the ramblings of the crazy lady could still be made out.

“I could have sworn your tent was just around the corner. I’ve been looking for you for days and days. All I want is my fortune told, honest. You’re the best in all of Alvadas…”

Despite the temptation to continue following, Sayana frowned at her words and slowed down. Another missing person? She had heard whispers of others going missing but she first thought it had just been the dangerous illusions that had pervaded the city earlier. A gaudy looking house of bright pink and green attacked her eyes and she quickly turned away. It was time to get back to the Wolf’s Cave. There might be more to these missing people, and she had someone in mind who might be interested in her search.

After about half a bell of twists and turns, she made it back to the tavern and opened the door to her room to wake Nephti. She scribbled two words on a piece of paper to show to the girl.

Okana
Lost

Sayana speaking Zithanese

[Nephti]

Nepthi was already awake when Sayana returned, applying makeup. She had gently spread the skin cream over her face, massaging it in to make her cheeks soft and refreshed. Nephti rummaged through her cosmetics kit, finding some eye shadow. Using the tiny brush provided, she brought it over her eyelids, trying not to go all the way up to her eyebrow. They shined a light silver, sparkling a tiny bit in the light. Then she gently applied kohl, tracing a faint line above her eye lids. She added a little flick at the end, happy with the look. Packing everything away, she turned, finding Sayana who had just entered.

The woman moved to scribble two words on paper. Okana. Lost. Nephti knew exactly what she was trying to say.

Of course the Eypharian knew of the other fortune teller, the famous one in the city. There were so many times that she wanted to go in, ask for help with her own tarot, but up against someone of her skill, Nephti had never been certain enough to do so. But while she had never spoken to her, she knew what Okana looked like. She knew how many people frequented to the tent, stumbling across it when they needed guidance.

If Okana was missing, just like many others in the city, then so many would miss her. Fortune telling was much more than an entertainment for many. Some relied on it to guide them through life, addicted to the idea of knowing the future. Without Okana, they would feel so lost. She needed to help them, and the fortune teller.

Nephti rose off the bed immediately, taking her black cloak and bringing it over her many arms. She snatched at the nearest pair of cards - the ones Sayana had bought for her - and hurried to the door.

"We have to help," she said, speaking in Arumenic, then switching to common, "Where hear about this?"

[Sayana]

Nephti looked beautiful as always. The pristine care she took for her features was even more than Sayana strived for and the girl was at that budding time in her youth. The Eypharian seemed to understand the words and the intent, quickly gathering up her cloak. Sayana nodded briefly at the word ‘help’, but when Nephti asked about where she had heard of this news, the illusioned zith struggled to form something comprehensible. She was at a loss of what emotion to project, or what couple of words she could write down and use to communicate that she had simply heard it on the street. In the end, she gave several circular waves of her hand as if dismissing it as unimportant.

Instead she led the way out of the tavern and onto the streets. She did, however, decide to bring a blank book as well as a quill and some ink. It was a rarity for her to do much, if any writing at all, but she was beginning to realize that she couldn’t entirely rely on her hypnotism. As she walked, she began constructing another sentence in the book.

Were do fortun tellers go?

Subconsciously, she was already seeking out the Bizarre Bazaar. It didn’t take long to begin hearing the sounds of bustle and chatter within the marketplace. Some Alvads regarded her illusioned form with suspicion, distrust and fear, while others paid the illusion little notice due to more fantastical illusions inhabiting the city. The mix of reactions felt strange but she was still intent on learning more about this missing fortune teller.

To those who seemed more curious rather than distrustful, Sayana beckoned them forwards with an illusioned claw. She would point to the name ‘Okana’ and tilt her head in curiosity. Some simply shrugged while others shook their heads. However one man pointed to the word scribbled below. “You’ve noticed that she hasn’t been seen too? Yesterday I came across what looked like the last place she had set up tent. The tent was gone, but some of her things were scattered about in a mess. It looked like she either left in a hurry or was being chased by something.” He looked a skeptically at Sayana’s form but then continued on. “I could show it to you if you like.”

Sayana speaking Zithanese

[Nephti]

Nephti hurried alongside Sayana, not knowing where they were going, but not caring. She wrote a sentence, which she made out as "where do fortune tellers go?". Such a vague question - she barely knew the answer. If they weren't established, didn't have a tent people knew to go to, like Okana, they would have a stall in a busy place. But Okana was too good for that. She didn't need to be something as a side-attraction. She was the reason people came to her; she didn't need anything else.

"Noisy place," it was the best way she could describe it, "Lots of people." But it seemed Sayana already knew that, as they began to hear the noise of the market. People watched them, the Zith and the Eypharian, some curious, others fearful. She approached everyone, asking with the point of a claw. They all understood, not needing Nephti's elaboration, but she waited to give it anyway, just in case. She felt so useless, walking behind, not doing anything. Surely Nephti wanted to solve this more than the Zith. Yet she felt like she was just being dragged along. She wanted to help.

Perhaps it stemmed from slavery. As a slave, she needed to be useful, to do something, or she would be punished, not given food or whipped, depending on her owner. They made it clear that she was purchased for a purpose, to work. Like her last mistress, who had bought her to care for the boy. If she hadn't, she would have been punished for not helping. Yet Sayana was no longer a mistress. Nephti did so little for her, she felt unnecessary. But Sayana didn't sell her on. She didn't know what the woman thought, but she felt like Sayana was more of a guardian than an owner.

No, she didn't own Nephti anymore, but looked after her anyway

Her thoughts were broken by a man that came talking of Okana's tent. He offered to show it to them. Nephti snapped up the chance, nodding quickly. "Please. We want to help her." He nodded, leading the way as the girl followed. "You say chased. You think in danger?"

[Sayana]

They arrived shortly in a small courtyard tucked into the streets just off from the main Bizarre. There was one stall displaying fine silks and fabrics of all sorts of colours. But to the left was the mess that caught Sayana’s eye. There were nick knacks of this and that strewn upon the ground. Some were more or less in a pile but others were looked like they had been dropped and forgotten. Dreamcatchers, crystals, dice, even some cards were amongst the various objects. Then there were also a couple of larger items. There was a fancy decorated piece of pottery and also a small stool.

What had happened here? Had there been some sort of fight? Or a kidnapping? Or theft? But why leave an array of items if it had been a theft? Sayana started rummaging through the remains and the man who had led them here shifted his weight from one foot to the other nervously. The illusioned zith picked up a string of beads that might have hung from a doorway and tried to imagine the fortune teller’s tent. Oh. That was what was missing. The tent itself. Sayana began scanning the remains for anything cloth-like that could have once been part of the tent but all she found were a couple of old pieces of clothing. Unless someone really wanted the tent too, then that would leave out kidnapping. Usually it wouldn’t make sense to bother taking an entire tent if you’re just trying to kidnap the person in question.

Sayana took a seat on the small stool continuing to look around at what was left of Okana’s belongings. It was a lot of pretty things and she was half tempted to pocket something. A bit of wind picked up and a speck of white movement caught her eye. Frowning, she reached for the small scrap of paper within the pile of nick knacks. As she opened it up she read:

They are coming.

Well yeah. Wasn’t that the bigshot phrase amongst all the rumors? Her shoulders slumped in disappointment and also a bit of annoyance. Yet she passed the note over to Nephti for the young girl’s benefit. And then she spotted another piece of paper. When she flattened it out, it read the same thing. Suppose a fortune teller might know a little about what might be happening in the future. Something was plaguing this city, either now or soon.

There was another scrap of paper. She almost didn’t want to bother reaching for it, knowing that it probably just contained the same message. Yet after several ticks her curiosity got the better of her. As she opened it, a chill shot down her spine.

They are here.

Well shyke. Sayana did a double take, looking around the courtyard. Okana knew something that they didn’t know. But where was ‘here’? Like actually here? Sayana hadn’t seen any evidence of anything showing up yet. But maybe they weren’t easily perceived? Hastily Sayana shoved the last piece of paper to Nephti and got out her quill and book. She awkwardly scribbled down a question leaving big blots of ink.

Okana, fite or flee?

She looked to both Nephti and the man who had led them here. Okana knew something and she clearly had taken her tent along with her, not to mention any bedding or clothing she needed. None of those items were amongst the mess although it was possible they could have been stolen after the fact. No, if they had been stolen then the other items would have also been stolen. But back to Okana. Either she was frightened enough to flee without a word. Or frightened enough to go fight somehow, but keep it all a secret to avoid spreading panic within the city. Maybe it had been urgent? Maybe it was already dealt with? But Sayana dismissed the latter otherwise the fortune teller surely would have returned.

Sayana speaking Zithanese

[Nephti]

It was a total mess. Nephti squatted by the cards, taking them carefully. Tarot cards, but not the Alvadas type. The images were different, not stylised around this city, but another. Of course, Nephti only knew of one other, and this wasn't a deck from Eyktol. Taking them in her hand, to examine later, Nephti moved on, scanning the ground. She gathered the crystals too, holding them in an opposite hand. Scratched, little nicks in them from being thrown across the floor. Crystals should be clear, she knew that much. Yet these were cloudy and ruined. Nephti stared into them, watching the light shift and change with the scratches.

They turned dark, Nephti's eyes widening. Was this an omen? No, it was just the shadow cast by Sayana, who passed her a note. Who were coming? Why? Not why were they coming, although that question lingered in her mind, but why had Okana seen this? At least, she assumed these were predictions from Okana. But a fortune teller never saw something irrelevant. What had the woman wanted to know?

Another piece was handed to her, Nephti swapping the borrowed tarot cards to another hand to look at it. The Eypharian did the same thing as Sayana had: look around, a little confused, a little scared perhaps. But was there even anything to be scared of? Perhaps these messages were about her family, or group of travelling warriors. She stayed positive, not assuming the worse.

Sayana wrote them both a message. Nephti shrugged. She knew little about the woman. Not like that anyway. Okana had never seemed to care though. Why would she leave so suddenly? "Maybe we watch from - not right eyes? Maybe not bad, but meet good?" Nephti shrugged, trying to share the optimism. She took out Okana's tarot cards, shuffling, asking them to find their owner.

The moon. This one was so much more haunting than the one she was used to. More unclear, more twisted, more dark. Something bad had happened, she could tell. Something to do with illusions too, she assumed, as what card represented the city better than this one. The Moon stood for illusion, so whatever had happened, it was the city. Not something external. But how did that match?

Nephti tried to explain what she had seen in the card. "Fear. Illusion. Alvadas." Her sentences came out as single words. "City is fear. No. City make fear. Answer in city."

[Sayana]

The city is fear? The city makes fear? “The answer is within the city? Are you sure? I thought they were coming from elsewhere. Like from where the zith were fleeing…” Sayana spoke but forgot that she would not be heard. It was strange and she peered at the tarot card curiously. The Moon. Leth. Night time. Was there some place in the city where it was always night and that was the source of all this?

She puzzled over the idea and took another glance around the remains. Broken crystals. It was saddening to see it in such a state. But there was one thing she realized. Okana was a noteworthy individual of Alvadas. Big things must be happening for her tent to be in such a state. While Sayana was lost in thought, she didn’t even realize as someone else approached the remains.

“I suppose this means she’s already gone,” spoke a tall male Eypharian in a deep and rather haughty voice. His body was turned to Nephti and he hardly deigned to even glance in the illusioned zith’s direction. “By choice or by ill, I suspect I will be seeing her soon.” While his words were ominous, he seemed to already have an idea of what was going on. Or at least that was how he presented himself.

“Karash Divine,” the Eypharian introduced. “I don’t suppose you would know where Menna Moresly is. Of course, if I can’t find her, you probably won’t have much luck either. Okana might have known but… it seems as though she is unavailable at the moment. Menna last said she was gathering spirits but I haven’t seen her since the beginning of Winter. But you know how the Underground is. Or maybe you don’t.” He was curt and spoke little to elaborate on his words but he was clearly seeking some help even if he didn’t openly state it.

Despite being ignored, Sayana couldn’t help but listen in. Someone else was missing too? She didn’t know much about this Menna girl, nor Karash either but it sounded like he had some idea of what was going on. Would he know what was causing the illusions to be like this, or did he know what was to come?

Sayana snatched one of the small pieces of paper back. Specifically the one that was unique, and written in the present tense. They are here. As she showed it to Karash, he nodded sagely. “I need to find Menna as soon as possible.”

It was frustrating that he wasn’t giving many details. Did he just not know or did he not want to tell them for some reason? As his focus returned to Nephti, Sayana started reaching for her magic. Sharing, trust, being helpful, generosity… She quickly fueled her djed with the emotions and pushed it outwards to the arrogant Eypharian. Just as she was beginning to release the magic against him, Karash turned sharply towards her with a glare. “Menna said she was seeking out a haven or a prison for ghosts. She didn’t specify which.” But there was something in his look and the way he said it, that he had somehow sensed or known that the feelings he must have received were not his own. And that he hadn’t liked it.

Sayana speaking Zithanese

[Nephti]

Sayana spoke, but in the language of the Zith. Nephti didn't understand, but didn't bother, a shadow passing over her. A little scared, she rose, stepping out into the light again. An Eypharian, six mighty arms, an ominous voice. He looked upon the girl, not the Zith, the Eypharian pride showing through with even that slight distinction. Nephti straightened with the sight of him, revelling in the thought of another of her race. Especially one that appeared it.

He called himself Karash Divine. There was the haughty tinge to it, claiming rather than suggesting the connections their race had to the gods. Nephti didn't know what to think. She had been like; she might still be slightly like that, yet at the same time, she knew it wasn't right. In the eyes of Priskil, race made no difference. Only hope and faith in her. Nephti would always put that first. He spoke of a Menna Moresly, but she didn't know the name and signified this with a sorrowful shaking of her head.

"I could ask the cards..." she began softly, but didn't know how effective that would be. They were vague, to be interpreted. It would be better to simply investigate with knowledge they had, rather than with knowledge that had been poorly attained. Sayana snatched a piece of paper, showing it to Karash, but he seemed to know it already, or at least be unsurprised. He needed to find Menna, they needed to find Okama. Were the disappearances connected? She assumed so.

As Sayana and Karash shared some sort of strange looks, incited by Hypnotism, Nephti thought over what he said. A haven or prison, for ghosts. Where would that be? Where could that be? "What you call the place where the dead are? Under the ground?"

Karash frowned, "A graveyard? A graveyard."
"Ghosts there? Graveyard in Alvadas?"
"I don't know about the ghosts, but there is a place. The Sealed Grounds. But she wouldn't go there. It's too dangerous," he said, but Nephti had a feeling that it was his own arrogance that made him say that. With the strange happenings in Alvadas, perhaps he feared to travel there.

Nephti stepped away, head forward. She had to go there. Nephti just knew it. Just because she was scared, didn't mean that she wouldn't. There was a reason she had been chosen to look of Okana and she wasn't going to stop with a bit of fear. Taking a deep breath, she spoke. "Take us there."

Karash smirked, but listened, leading the way. Nephti followed briskly behind, walking quickly and clutching her gnosis as she did, whispering quick prayers to Priskil in Arumenic. Karash glanced back at her occasionally, but said nothing. They moved into the underground, a twisting path that seemed to take forever.

Until he stopped. She hadn't noticed the transition to woods, old trees hanging over them as a chill wind whipped through their branches. A white mist hung before them, cries and moans coming from it. Nephti stopped, scared. She couldn't do this. Getting here was the easy part; entering the Sealed Grounds was much harder. She moved over to Sayana, asking for help. "Please, you first," she whispered, Arumenic again. She couldn't do it alone.

[Sayana]

Sayana was surprised that the stuck-up Eypharian knew of the Underground and seemed to lead the way with ease. Apparently the place wasn’t beneath him. Or at least not in the figurative sense. Whether or not this would lead them closer to finding Okana, she wasn’t sure, but she was nonetheless intrigued and curious to see these ‘sealed grounds’. As the streets of the Underground opened up into a somewhat forested and somewhat open field, Sayana felt her skin begin to prickle with the pervading chill and the misty fog that covered the place. The Underground had its own foreboding feeling, but this was a whole level higher.

For those that could see, her illusioned wings twitched nervously and she fidgeted with her long black claws. Yes, this was definitely a graveyard with tombstones littering the open spaces. Some were in neat lines while others seemed almost haphazardly placed. She half wondered whether the graves shifted just as frequently as the Alvadas streets.

She had only had a few experiences with ghosts. Mostly the ghosts of slaves back in Ahnatep who were too stubborn or vengeful to move on. She had met one ghost in Syliras who seemed keen to play tricks on people and then she had also met a nuit. Actually two, but she hadn’t realized that the first was a nuit until much later. But here was one of the few times she’d really visited a graveyard.

An unnatural wind seemed to pick up but it hardly stirred the white fog that hovered over the darkened scene. Nephti seemed about to step forwards to the graveyard but then stopped and spoke in the desert tongue. It took Sayana a moment to grasp the meaning of the words, but the young Eypharian’s tone and body language spoke more than the words themselves. With an encouraging smile, Sayana stepped towards Nephti and delicately took one of her mid hands in her illusioned clawed hand. She then proceeded to step into the graveyard, leading the way but hardly half a pace ahead. If nothing else, at least they would enter the sealed grounds together.

There was a sudden chill down her neck as if they had somehow crossed an invisible line. When she glanced down there was a mix of dead grasses and faint traces of lines upon stonework. A soft moaning could be heard which sounded like more than just the wind. If she could help it, Sayana didn’t want to stay here any longer than she had to. But when she glanced over at Karash, she was glad that he wasn’t looking particularly comfortable either.

If Menna was here, where would she be? There were the tombstones, but she doubted anyone in their right mind would casually sit by a tombstone just to daydream. Then she spotted the crypt in the distance near the middle of the grounds. Releasing Nephti’s hand, she set off at a slow run, anxious to be in and out of this place. The tombstones continued to look randomly placed and several times she veered around them in her path to the stone building. Yet as her hand touched the doorknob of the crypt, everything suddenly felt wrong. Really wrong. Just as swiftly she released the doorknob and took a step back.

Why would Menna be here? Why would she have not gotten back to Karash? Did something happen to her? The mist was thicker here and she strained her eyes to see the surrounding desolate ground. Near one tombstone there looked to be something a bit off. Like the grass was torn up as if there had been a scuffle. And then she heard it, a soft sob of tears. Quickly she approached the tombstone and nearly lost her balance as the ground right in front of it opened up into a pit. Down below was the curled up figure of a girl, rocking gently with her arms wrapped about her knees.

Was that Menna? She tried to whistle the others over but it was so poorly executed that she instead gave a brief clap. She began rummaging through her vest in search of some rope. She had some, but she wasn’t sure if it would be long enough. By the time she had tied the short length to the tombstone, Karash had made it to the pit.

“Menna! What happened? Are you alright?” He exclaimed. Sayana quickly gestured to the rope tied around the stone and brought his hands to it. For a moment he seemed puzzled but then she gave a firm tug of the rope and he seemed to understand he was meant to hold the tombstone in case it wasn’t enough to support Sayana’s weight. The illusioned zith gripped the rope in all six of her hands, even the ones that weren’t visible to the others and slowly made her decent. It would have probably looked ridiculous to see a zith climbing down when most zith would simply fly the short distance, but even though her illusion gave her the appearance of wings, she couldn’t manage any sort of flight… except falling.

She brought her hands down the rope, one over the other, and braced herself against the wall using her feet. It was easier going down even though it was tricky to make out the bottom as she walked her feet down along the dirt wall. The last couple feet she jumped, and she was glad the rope was just long enough to get to the girl.

At first there was fear from Menna as she scurried to a stand and pressed her back against the wall. Sayana couldn’t help but feel some annoyance rise in back of her mind. She was trying to help the poor girl. Out of reflex or perhaps as an excuse to fuel her addiction, the illusioned zith began to reach out for her magic. She focused on a sense of calm, trust, and safety and imagined it blending in a warm glow to push outwards to Menna. It wasn’t a visual thing, but she continued to push the djed towards the girl to compass her being, yet here and there were snags and knots of annoyance from Sayana’s earlier state. Menna would surely receive a mix of emotions but it seemed enough to minorly calm her down, that and the fact that even though Sayana appeared as a zith, she didn’t attack.

Softly Menna spoke, “There are ghosts here. Some who want to help but can’t, others who don’t want to help. And then there was that.”

She pointed to a half rotten corpse with one arm torn off and cast to the side. Sayana hadn’t noticed it at first, but it had clearly fallen into the pit at the same time Menna had.

“But it is no longer.”

Sayana speaking Zithanese

[Nephti]

It wasn't just her who was nervous, Sayana fiddling with her claws and twitching her wings. But she still went in, taking Nephti's mid hands and stepping forward, leading the way. Nephti moved after her, taking deep breaths as she tried to not shake at the sudden chill or deep feeling of fear that had come across her. Moans echoed from the distance, Nephti wrapping her fingers around Sayana's claw a little tighter.

However, Sayana released it moments after, jogging away towards the crypt in the distance. It was an old, crumbling building, death clinging to it, but Nephti had to follow, feet padding along the ground softly as she tried to catch up with Sayana. The maze of tombstones slowed her and she felt herself fall back and become separated. No. She wouldn't let herself remain alone and trapped in this darkness. Focusing on her hand, she let the light grow, lighting her way. Safe with Priskil's light, she found her way, shining through the mist.

There, Sayana stood by the crypt there. Then she stepped back, moving around. Nephti moved to run, then stopped suddenly, tumbling back as the ground opened in front of her. The girl held her hand over, casting light into the darkness and trying to see the girl, curled up, scared. She watched as they organised themselves, getting a rope to descend down to the bottom of the pit. Karash held the tombstone and Nephti watched from the other side, not sure how to help.

She couldn't see them clearly anymore. Her eyes moved up to meet Karash and she felt her way around the pit, moving towards him. He nodded at her approach and Nephti placed a glowing hand on the tombstone, deciding to help. "Sayana, is it okay?" she called out, voice disappearing into the darkness. But she was no longer scared. Not truly, anyway.