01 Winter 519
Laira squinted as she leaned over the side of the wooden ship, feeling as though Syna herself was targeting rays of warm, dense sunshine from the setting sun into her field of vision. Moving her hand to shade her eyes, Laira could finally make out the details of the lush shore the modest Svefra vessel had just docked upon. The broad leaves collecting gems of water on their waxy surfaces were a vibrant contrast to the fine, sun-bleached sand grounding the boat from drifting back to sea. Compared to Sunberth, Syka was truly divine. Hues of orange and gold were captured in the waves lapping at the shore, bidding farewell to another passing day in paradise, and Laira was beside herself with awe.
Laira snapped back from the dreamy state after hearing some Fratavan orders barked at someone behind her, which she somewhat understood by piecing together, “Cargo… off… boat... now”. Turning around, she saw a tall blonde man, presumably the one who received the command, begin to pass large crates of goods to the other Svefra tradesmen, the rickety containers swelling with merchandise as they made their way onto the dunes.
Feeling quite useless simply standing there, Laira struggled briefly to carry both her backpack and quiver on her back, before grabbing her bow, and setting off down the ship’s ramp in order to lend her services to the sailors unloading. When she had secured passage on the ship, Laira had promised she would be an eager set of helping hands, yet it seemed as though she was simply getting in the way.
“Laira. There ya are”. The ship’s captain, a charismatic yet terse leather-faced woman, headed towards her with a basket full of bright, exotic fish, their intense reflectiveness causing their multicolored scales to appear almost metallic. Laira struggled to keep ahold of her bow as she took the basket from the common-speaking captain’s outstretched arms. “It’s time I put ya to work, land lover”.
The woman instructed Laira to follow the blonde man she had seen on the boat earlier to a bar up the beach, and she did so enthusiastically, as it gave her the chance to explore more of the flora. Still unaccustomed to the powdery sand, Laira somehow managed to kick up enough to form a thin layer in the bottom of her worn boots. From afar one would notice her walking in a slightly stranger manner due to this, not to mention the soft nature of the ground compared to the somewhat stony Sunberth leading Laira to apply a little too much force and sink in a bit with each footstep.
Having finally arrived at what she heard in passing was called the “Tidepool Bar”, Laira broke away from the blonde man (who continued to remain silent) and approached the man cleaning the countertop of a sparsely-decorated bar. Before she could open her mouth, his eyes quickly looked up to meet hers, and his face erupted with a lively smile. “You must be with the Bluepearl pod! I saw their ship dock here just a few chimes ago. I’ll take that of your hands...” The man reached for her basket and handed it off to what appeared to be a passing employee. “They come around here every so often, and tend to bring new faces when they do. That being said, welcome! Call me Stu.”
Laira, a bit overwhelmed by all the new information she’d been taking in, took a moment to respond. “Laira.” She blurted, before cringing and rephrasing. “Sorry, I mean... you can call me Laira. I think a few days on that ship scrambled my brain up”. She reached to rub her temples, as if to demonstrate she had a headache.
“It happens to the best of us,” Stu responded sympathetically. “Now sit, you must be exhausted from your travels.” Laira gratefully plopped down into a bar stool, and Stu pushed a mug of water towards her. “Let me know if you want something a little harder,” Stu winked as he said this, before adding “Can’t promise it won’t scramble your brain even more, though”. He chuckled jovially and picked up the rag he was cleaning with previously. Suddenly, his eyes darted up again. “What a treat! Another customer.”