Closed From a roar to a trickle

[Karsynwa]

55th of Summer 520 AV

He was falling. Falling. Falling into the darkness that gaped below. One moment he had been standing on the edge of the cliff his home was perched upon. The next he was sliding off the edge. Suddenly weightless as his feet and hands passed through empty air. The ground rushed up to kiss him.

Karsynwa sat up alert in his bed, a thin sheen of sweat soaking his skin. His hands were twisted into fists grasping the edges of his damp bed sheet. He was breathing hard through his mouth and his heart was hammering in his chest as his eyes sought to focus on the familiar interior of his home. Taking in a deep breath through his nows, he relaxed his grip on the sheets while slowly shifting so his feet hung off the edge of the bed.

Another nightmare. The fourth this week which was considerably distressing. He didn’t have such dreams while on the road but now that he was back, the plagued him once more. This one was light in comparison to the others though still his skin crawled from the sensations that lingered from that dark plunge. Rubbing his forearm thoughtfully, he made up his mind to get up out of bed even though dawn was a ways away. Outside the sky was a midnight blue and he could hear the waves faintly crashing against the bottom of the cliff.

Karsynwa shuddered at the fleeting thought and got dressed, pulling on his leather armor last. Once it was cinched tight, he made for the door, carefully closing it behind him before he locked it.

The was the rasp of a foot on stone barely a stone’s through behind him. He whirled around at the sound, his eyes quickly switching to infravision as he scanned the narrow hallway. They settled immediately on the form of a man standing in the center with his arms crossed. As he turned, the man stepped forward and spoke in a voice he surprisingly found comforting.

“Its good to see you.” Arrel said, and he could hear the man’s grin in his words as he extended an arm in fellowship. Still off balance from his abrupt appearance, Karsynwa hesitantly took the arm in his own.

“How long have you been waiting out here?” He asked his mentor warily before grabbing a torch from the sconce by his door. Arrel produced a flint and steel, an they soon had a blaze going so Karsynwa didn’t have to rely on infravision to see him. The man looked haggard, like he had been out here all night. His clothing was slightly disheveled and the hair on his head had a greasy sheen to it. Then the smell hit him. Like he’d crawled out of a bottle and pissed himself in the process. Karsynwa looked abruptly concerned.

Arrel smiled, and patted the air placating. “A bell at most. I had a job nearby.” He said with a shrug that was quite typical for the man. Karsynwa remembered him liking to play things close to the vest, but still. This was quite the introduction to a man he hadn’t seen in seasons. It seemed like nothing had changed in him though Karsynwa felt like there was a world between them now. What had transpired in his absence still haunted him and there were a few things that still lingered from that time. He almost blanched when he thought about the eventual conversation about his times on the road. He hadn’t exactly conducted himself in a way that he expected his mentor would appreciate.

“Speaking of, I have some work for you now that you are back.” Arrel continued before Karsynwa could open his mouth to respond. Karsynwa’s eyes widened as his face broke out into a grin. He’d been hoping for something of the sort but hadn’t leaned on his expectation of continuing where he left off. “I was actually heading to the lodge to see about that.”

“Couldn’t wait, eh?” Arrel grinned, slapping him on the arm and turning to lead down the narrow hallway. Karsynwa didn’t have to ask where he was leading, he already knew.

[Karsynwa]

Turns out, Arrel had something in mind other than sparring so their destination turned out to not be Lodge. Instead their journey took them to the city walls. The land gate to be more specific. Staring up at those vaulted walls it was hard not to feel small as Arrel lead him into a tent where a few others stood clustered together inside.

Karsynwa made the slightest of nods in their direction before taking his position beside them as Arrel stepped in front. The rest stood up straighter at his presence, and Karsynwa fell in line with the rest.

Arrel offered a slight flick of his hand in response as he went to the table to unroll a thick sheet of parchment. From his vantage, Karsynwa couldn’t make out much save that it looked to be a map of sorts not unlike those they commissioned for those new to the city.

Instead of a maze of streets down the side of the cliff, the landmarks on this one were broad and far more spread out. The sea then, Karsynwa decided. He felt his heart skip a beat at the thought. A part of him had been longing for this on the voyage back. To go out on the grass again, to relieve the times before he was on the road with familiar faces. Another part of him. A distinct part of him felt trepidation at the thought. Anxious to face whatever it was they sought on the grass.

Karsynwa was unfailingly honest with himself. He knew he was ill prepared for a trip on the grass in the manner he’d taken to it for his trials. Too much time in the comfort of a city, and on a boat had done that to him. Not that the travel hadn’t had his own challenges, there had been harrowing parts to be sure. However the sea of grass was a different beast entirely, an this was a far smaller group than the ones he had grown comfortable ranging with.

Looking at Arrel’s expression though, it seemed his intent was for the group to go out this morning, perhaps even before the sun had come up. Karsynwa had to wonder at the urgency but the place to question that was not now. So instead he stood there. Tense with anticipation as a bead of sweat worked its way down the side of his brow. It was hanging off the tip of his chin by the time Arrel addressed them.

“We got a rider this morning from a caravan we have been expecting for some time. They are close to the city now and we’ve been asked to meet them out on the Kabrin to properly vet them.” Arrel said, eying each of them in turn. A weight fell off his shoulders at hearing the man’s change in tone. It was that commanding voice that had coached him through the hardest trials of his life so it was easy to fall into order at the tune of it. The rest seemed to take heart in it as well as the room visibly relaxed though a few still cast him sidelong glances.

Perhaps noticing that, or perhaps intending to do it now all along, Arrel walked over to pat him on the shoulder while looking to the rest of the group. “This is Karsynwa. He’ll be rounding out the squad for this trip, and perhaps a few more.” Arrel chided, elbowing him slightly while Karsynwa offered a stiff gesture with his right hand.

After the others responded likewise, he refocused his attention on Arrel. His mentor was grinning. “Lets get going.”

[Karsynwa]

The journey was uneventful at first. In two layered wagons, they ventured out onto the sea of grass. Dawn’s light had long ago begun trickling over the horizon though they still used lanterns to guide their horses along the ancient Kabrin. Karsynwa perched in the back of the wagon, his inner eyelids shifted forward so that he could see infra light. His posture was rigged as he watch. Good and bad memories of this land swirled in the back of his mind as he made an honest effort to focus on the task at hand rather than what was.

It wasn’t as easy as it used to be. There was a time when he had no problem quieting his mind on such trips however he had been lax in his discipline for the preceding seasons. Meditation was something he longed for now, and he resolved to try it again in his free time.

For his vigilance he only caught the odd small shape in the grass along with the larger shapes of the outriders for their little group. They were all well armed for their little venture into the grass, and the numbered close to a dozen. That was a good number to have as they weren’t likely to be bothered by much on the grass. Still. Karsynwa was wary as was everyone else in his party. The sea of grass was far from safe, even in such numbers. An it wasn’t only the animals that they had to worry about. There were environmental dangers as well to consider.

However, they didn’t have to deal with anything problematic until the reached the caravan. It was midmorning and their stout little wagons stretched backwards into the horizon along their stretch of road. An there they found the most worrying sign of their trip so far. The caravan was surrounded by men on horses wearing a variety of clothing dyed white that denoted them as members of the Diamond Clan of the drykas people. While this wouldn’t be normally worrying as caravans bartered for escort all the time, it seemed that such was not the case in this situation for the caravan was being blocked from the road by the drykas.

From this distance they could see a glut of people addressing the drykas in their path, their individual features lost in the blur of the group at this distance. Gradually, the vision became more clear. The blob distinguished itself into the individual figures of the traders and soon he could make out the gestures each man were making. By then their voices could be heard as well. They were animated, heated even as they appeared to be arguing with the drykas.

One man seemed to be dominating the conversation, and also happened to be the only one who was speaking in that strange whistling tongue of the drykas. Complete with the accompanying gestures, though his were not quite on part with those of the drykas before them. Before they could close the distance to see what was going on, the drykas dragged that man out of the circle of his companions. Shoving him down on his knees, one of the drkas grabbed a fist full of his short brown hair to crane his neck up to the blue sky above. Arrel shouted something indistinguishable passed the rush of blood that roared in Karsynwa’s ears. A short blade was brandished and in the blink of an eye, the man’s throat was opened in a wide red slash.

A red spray fanned out onto the earth in front of the man even as Karsynwa jogged forwards with the rest of the party. He had a sinking feeling that this might have been what they came out here for, but his hands stayed away from the lakan sheathed on his chest rig. Karsynwa was disciplined enough to realize that in this situation, watching what his commander was doing was key to making sure he comported himself correctly. Things might have changed between them and the drykas in the meantime, and he certainly didn’t want to do anything to jeopardize that relationship.

[Karsynwa]

To his surprise, the traders quieted at the death of their companion. Naturally he expected to see more violence from the foreigners, even ones supposedly from Syliras. However, these men were far more demure than he was expecting. They weren’t meeting any of the drykas in the eyes anymore, their eyes firmly cast down around their feet. A few glanced up hearing Karsynwa and the rest of them run up, though they quickly looked down while they shifted nervously where they stood.

The drykas who had slain the man seemed non-pulsed at their arrival. He took his time wiping off the flat of his blade on the man’s tunic before he stood up slowly to greet Arrel whose shocked expression elicited an arched eyebrow from the drykas. Karsynwa moved up close enough to hear the conversation.

“Your information was correct.” The drykas said simply in stilted common. His hands were constantly fidgeting at his sides which Karsynwa noticed that the others kept a careful eye upon. Arrel was strangely silent for a stretch that almost felt awkward before the silence was broken by him clearing his throat.

“So it was. The others are unarmed?” Arrel asked in a hoarse voice before he coughed into the back of his hand again while he walked up to stand sidelong with the drykas. The drykas nodded, turning to face the assembled group before putting his fingers to his lips. A piercing whistle sounded then, prickling Karsynwa’s inner ear and causing him to unintentionally wince. Nothing happened that Karsynwa could see, but Arrel’s mood was noticeably changed.

“I.. My thanks then. Would you be willing to escort us the rest of the way, or do you have business to conclude?” Arrel asked changing tack to turn towards the drykas. The man turned to address one of his nearby companions in that strange tongue of theirs for a time before turning back to Arrel an patting him on the shoulder. “No problem friend. We can guide you.”

Then they were back in the wagons, the traders back in theirs, and now they had drykas trailing their flanks. Karsynwa knew he should feel comfortable in this knowledge but he didn’t. Not after what he just witnessed. Perhaps sensing this, Arrel gestured for him to come to the front of the wagon where he joined him on the leading bench.

“That man was an exile who’d chanced doing guide work across the sea of grass one too many times. He’s got.. He’s had a reputation for working with less than reputable groups out of Kenash, and then they found these on him.” Arrel held out a set of shackles and let them rustle a bit before setting them on the ground. “Apparently he’d shackled someone in the caravan with these, but nobody is coming forward yet. Not surprising. A slave is not like to want to remain a slave with his master gone. The drykas seem content just to be rid of the exile, but I had been hoping to question the man before handing him off to the drykas.”

“So you want to find this man, this slave?” Karsynwa asked, leaning forward, his eyes bright with curiosity. Arrel nodded. “I want you to do it. Take these shackles with you and integrate yourself with the crew once we get back to Riverfall. Pull them out when you feel the time is right, but careful about showing them to too many people. Word spreads fast amongst that bunch so it might be a little difficult to find the slave if word gets out.”

Karsynwa nodded apprehensively, and sat back on the bench to think on what had transpired in silence.