[Verlyna's Emerald Pond] Abrupt Awakening [Sesha]

[Dlight]

His hand retreated from the air once she took her pipe, curling his fingers against the moss and kneading it idly in comfort. If only Sylira had a secluded pond like this, he'd have retreated to it every night. The quiet raise of an arched brow was his only answer to the woman's words of Ionu's enchantment, until for the first time he caught her indigo eyes noticing his nakedness. A more intense focus came to the woman, Dlight curious as to how she would react.

Unlike most other, not a speck of blood had rushed to the woman's cheeks, his revealing state brushed off with a suggestive remark that made a small smirk surface. While her gaze was skyward, Dlight's rested on her red lips as she blew rings, only realizing he was staring when she stopped and began giggling. The laughter reminded the Ethaefel of his own silliness and his slightly embarrassed face retreated to the sky, arms crossing over his bare chest in confusion over his intrigue in the woman.

"Sky," Dlight answered naturally, the word having been the first thing that came to mind. "among the stars," His indigo eyes flickered to her own, then playfully went to the glowing face of his God, "held by Leth." As if his He'd heard His name, the glow of the moon seemed to brighten, however maybe that was only in Dlight's mind. He rolled to his side, facing the woman. His hand, the one that was more clean of dirt, came to rest on one of his bone-white horns, curling around it as if attempting obscurity, "When Leth leaves, this body leaves. Then, no home, no family." Dlight's head tilted forward just the slightest towards her, arm coming down to rest by his side. "I fly under Syna, I land, I play under Leth, and I sleep. Then I wake and repeat."

Sadness touched by the smallest bit of anger wasn't hidden, his emotions always worn on his sleeve. Dlight's intimidating mask of scowls and frustration crumbled once Syna lowered, revealing the quiet, lonely individual he truly was during the night. Perhaps it was out of respect for his God and the belief that nothing should be hidden from Him, but it had been this way since he fell into the ocean from the Ukalas. "Leth dropped me in Abura, then I fell again in Falyndar. I flew to Sylira, and now I'm here."

[Sesha]

Spurred by the Ethaefal’s action and perhaps a little by the warm haze that seemed to embrace them, Sesha turned to her companion and rested her hand on the same horn when his head tipped forward. Shocked, even more so than her own forwardness, was the fact her hands actually felt any kind of physical manifestation. Surprise gave way to embarrassment and she returned to her thoughts to the other’s words, knowing now that what lay beside her was no Illusion. “You fly?” she cried and suddenly burst into laughter. But of course, the faerie tale wouldn’t be complete without a flying champion, come to whisk her away across the Suvan Sea. “I’m sorry,” she said, “it’s just that…” stifling further chuckles with the stem of her pipe proved to be a bad decision. This brought a wave of candy flavored smoke into her mouth and set her to coughing, which incited further peals of brilliant laughter. All about them, the clearing around the pond seemed to suddenly come to life, filled with echoes of the light and laughter shared between them. Glowing insects in a countless array of colors began to chirp their evening songs. They danced in a number of irregular patterns, making sounds no insect should be able to make. Even Verlyna’s whispers were hushed by the expanse of this sudden shift in things. Sesha was well aware of the feeling, but her acquaintance might not be. The moon and the stars abruptly fell from the sky. No they had stopped. They were stopping. Everything had changed so quickly that Sesha doubted the experience had happened at all. But she knew better. The Emerald Pond continued to babble its hypnotic waters, casting a spell of ease over them as they took in their new surroundings. The old trees still lingered overhead, and they still lay in a mossy clearing, but something was definitely different. The song of the insects had dulled to almost nothing, as had their light. Stray wisps still lingered in the treetops, but not even remotely at their earlier magnitude. Leth hung higher in the sky, and the air smelled different; fresher somehow and devoid of the salty tang. Sesha sat up hurriedly, forgetting their conversation as she ran to the open edge of the clearing, her skirts swished but her feet made no sound. “Just perfect!” she moaned when she’d reached her destination, toeing a small rock off of the stony face of the incredibly steep slope beneath her. The rock fell for a good while, then began to roll as the grade of the mountains slowly gave way to the forested hills that engulfed Alvadas. The City glowed brightly beneath them, like some crown jewel to the Suvan Sea. “We will have to wait until it moves again,” she said dejectedly. “It could be hours, or days.” She sat hard on the rocky ledge, unafraid of heights. In her dreams she had never fallen. She had flown.

[Dlight]

Dlight rolled onto his back as the changes began, confused but assuming that from the woman's expression, it wasn't too unusual for Alvadas. The insects that flew in the sky above him fascinated him, their glows as they danced forming shapes and patterns that the Ethaefel had never seen mere insects create. His next inhale of air brought something new and fresh into his lungs, and Dlight exhaled only to inhale once more, deeply. The air no longer smelled as if it had been trapped within the barriers and walls of a city for a decade, and a rare, wide smile rested on his lips. Above him, the clouds were brighter, stars more vibrant and Leth much more proud. This caused the Ethaefel to stand just as the woman did and follow her, noticing for the first time, as her skirts swished against her skin, that she had been blessed with not only intriguing eyes and a generous chest, but pleasant hips, also. Just as he'd reached her, Dlight saw the rock she'd moved tumble down the steep cliff they'd been relocated to, Ionu having decided that they'd be better off with an aerial view of Alvadas. It was a mix of relief, happiness, and slight competitiveness that stirred within the complex exterior of the Ethaefel, happy to have gotten a break from the city but annoyed because he'd paid for more nights at the Wolf's Cave. The woman didn't seem too pleased about it, but Dlight rested a tentative hand on her shoulder that was his response to her earlier hold on his horn, telling her simply, "We return with dawn." The creature's eyes were the same intense, intriguing shade as the sitting woman he stood beside, and if one were to stumble upon the pair, would they possibly think that the two were related? Or perhaps, Dlight thought with a inward snicker, that a woman of Alvadas had captured one of Ionu's illusions as her own. Not many would discover the Emerald Pond in such a secluded area, though, and that made Dlight wonder when it was last that the woman had been outside of the illusion of Alvadas. "Have you left home before?" Concern came over the Ethaefel that may have seemed irrational but was perfectly natural for him. He didn't want any other to experience the anxiety and pain of being cast away from their rightful place. "There's no illusion in the sky." This time, Dlight's eyes were focused solely on the illuminated clouds above, not looking at Leth.

[Sesha]

Sesha gazed up at the Ethaefal when he spoke of returning. She did not understand the words, but he seemed confident enough that she relaxed beneath his touch. It was beautiful, up there on the mountainside. The woman felt very relaxed and assured just then, as if everything had suddenly laid itself out for her. She placed a hand on his foot, inviting him to join her once more on the earth, even though he spoke of the sky. “How can you say there is no illusion in the sky?” she asked, almost offended that he would suggest such a thing. “Does Leth’s waxing and waning not constitute illusion? Can the clouds not be pink and green and yellow? Does a bird fly simply because it has wings and we do not?” She looked out over the expanse and saw the light bend around Alvadas, its streets and the humidity created a flickering effect that made it seem all the more surreal. “Illusion is everywhere and in everything. Illusion is simply the understanding one lacks as a result of not seeing the truth.” Her tone softened, as if explaining the world to a small child. “Illusion is what separates us from the gods,” she continued, “and even the gods can be tricked by Ionu’s power.” Impossibility was merely another form of illusion; every child of the Trickster God knew that. “What makes you think that all of this, all that we are, isn’t just some illusion? Can you know in your heart that we are really here? That we even exist outside the imagination of some god?” She’d become somewhat impassioned, looking to her companion with eyes that saw more than he could suspect. Silence stretched out between them again, though this felt somewhat less comfortable than earlier. “To answer your question,” she said, breaking the hush in a careful tone, “I have never been outside of Alvadas.” She nodded her head with regret, wishing that she could explore the world outside the walls, but unsure as to the purpose of such a journey. “My mother…” she hesitated, hiding the slip up by looking to the heavens. “She was not from here. That is all I know of her. I don’t even know if she’s still alive.” Sesha had cried too many tears for her unknown mother to break down now. She had grown stolid about her past on the streets, choosing instead to invest her heart in the future.

[Dlight]

The woman's response surprised the man born of the moon, her words confusing him in their strange and illogical way. Dlight had never considered if they were in the mind of a God, or if reality... Only a child of Ionu could speak such wisdom, and it clashed with his, but made sense all the same. And it confused the Ethaefel, because all he knew was that he had been granted entrance into Leth's world, granted a name and otherworldly body, but then he had been put back onto the ground below, unable to speak his name nor remain in the body come sunrise. Whether the shifting of his body with dawn and dusk was illusion had never occurred to him, nor if the colors of the clouds he flew through changed upon Ionu's will. Her questions continued, and kept coming even when the Ethaefel thought that maybe the woman had finished. But, he should have known better, because to say that there was no illusion outside of Alvadas would have been offensive to a follower of the God, as if he was saying that He was not strong enough to exist elsewhere. When she had seemed to finish her questions, Dlight sat, mind idly remembering the faint touch of her hand against his foot. He remained silent only because he was speechless, her words having struck against something within him that felt... displaced. Mention of her mother made him wonder who this woman was, what her name was and what she did for a living. "It," Dlight started, struggling not only to find voice but to find words that would describe how he felt, "i-it makes me wonder if..." The Ethaefel looked to the wide sky that was slowly beginning to brighten, "... if the sky is.. real.." His eyes looked to the woman's, scared and searching for some sort of comfort. "I saw the truth once, but you make me confused whether what I saw was truly there." Without a doubt, he had been held by Leth for a undefinable amount of time, yet if illusion could fool even the God's... "If I truly fell, or had a nightmare; and if this body truly changes, or if it's only what I believe." The logic of someone that wholeheartedly accepted illusion could shake the world of someone that didn't, and the Ethaefel's already shaky perception of reality had become even more unstable with her words. Likely, the woman hadn't meant to cause such a thing and was merely voicing her passion, but he still looked to her for some sort of answer. Tentatively, Dlight moved his hand over top of hers, fingers curling around the back of her hand to the softness of her palm. His grip was loose, ready to be shaken or nudged off. Atop the solid and strong structure of the mountain, his perception of the world had grown a tad bit weaker, wavering and flickering just like the glow of Alvadas below.

[Sesha]

Sesha noted her moonlit companion’s closeness and the unease he felt at having his foundations shaken by the Ionu’s creed. She didn’t move her hand, knowing how difficult it could be to have one’s faith distorted. The Temple of Ionu had been a beacon of light and understanding in her otherwise dreary world; one torn between the streets and her father’s protective authority. She resented him for not taking her to the hallowed grounds sooner. In fact, it had been one of the courtesans who had insisted Sesha learn to appreciate the nature of her home for the first time. The Temple was her refuge, her sanctuary. The glow of Ionu surrounded her always, even in her darkest moments. “You misunderstand me,” she said soothingly, continuing the dogmatic lecture in the way it had been explained to her. “Illusion is not reality; not truth. But neither is it falsehood. Of course it blurs our vision, our hearing, our sense of smell and touch,” she accentuated the last by taking the Ethaefal’s hand in her own and squeezing gently. “But that does not mean that we do not exist, only that we do not know the truth of things.” She smiled sympathetically, trying to cool the tension of her earlier words. “When you look at your reflection in the water you are seeing an illusion. That is how everyone sees the world. It is not truly you in the water, but that does not mean you are not real.” She was very near him now, far more comfortable with this otherworldly wonder than she had ever been with a human. “Nor does you knowing that what you see when you look at me is an illusion, but I exist. You simply do not see the truth when you look at me.” This was the hardest part of her lesson. No one could know the truth of the world, not even the truth of their own hearts due to the illusions they believed. “Walking the border between truth and falsehood is a tricky business. Most don’t even know there is one. But Ionu teaches us that one can only see the truth of things when one first embraces illusion, and then transcends it.” Sesha fell silent then. The air was still warm, even high up on the mountain, and the trickling of Verlyna’s pond could be heard faintly from behind. She looked out on the sprawling landscape before them. The beginnings of sunrise began to turn the horizon a sapphire color that reminded her of half remembered dreams. The thief realized that she hadn’t watched Syna’s ascent to the heavens since her childhood, tucked away in the city as she was. Sesha also felt concern over the loss of this brief friendship with the ethaefal due to her beliefs. Her steadfastness was weighty even among the inhabitants of Alvadas, but the rogue’s faith had guided her through many hardships. Perhaps it would be enough.

[Dlight]

Syna was approaching steadily but slowly, taking her time to tease the stars with her light, tinting the sky shades of light blues and greens. The silence that followed his company's words wasn't uncomfortable, as it had been before, but one of thoughtfulness and understanding that allowed Dlight to explore his feelings on the subject of illusion. Ultimately, his thoughts were never fully expressed, his response being a simple smile that possibly showed his troubled interior. Bells had passed quickly by without the Ethaefel's notice, it having been quite a while since he'd woken in the late night and found the woman aside the Emerald Pond. Conversation came and went, sometimes as constant as the water behind them and then fading into quiet admiration of the brightening sky. Sleeps tempting embrace would have easily taken Dlight if it wasn't for the woman beside him, and every now and then, he wondered if perhaps she was also feeling tired. The longer Dlight spent with her, the more he wondered about a name and a past, catching bits of information here and there but not enough to fully fill in the interior of her image. Yet, the Ethaefel was satisfied with what he knew of her, and their talk of beliefs was forgotten as easily as it was for the stars to gently fade with Syna's approach. Her rays slowly illuminated the clouds, coloring them faint shades of oranges, pinks, and yellows that would grow more vibrant as Her gaze grew stronger. It was at this time, when the sun was close to shining it's first rays throughout the land, that Dlight's eyes traveled to the woman's. At night, he was well aware that his appearance could be intriguing, enchanting to some, and the Ethaefel was happy that it was during Leth's reign that he'd met her. "Do not be afraid." He reassured her, standing from his mossy place aside the Pond and walking towards the edge he had sat at before.

[Sesha]

Sesha had long ago abandoned her pipe to the confines of her purse, delighting in the quiet company of her horned acquaintance. She’d never asked his name or the shape he would eventually become, instead leaving formalities to the commoners far below. They would be rising from their slumbers with the daylight, busy with the labours and monotony that so plagued the lives of those who chose the tedium of an honest life. It was times like this when Sesha felt freer because of her past, and not bound by it. The pickpocket functioned equally well by day or night. The night often proved more rewarding. She lifted herself to a lounged position on her elbows, watching the Ethaefal’s curious departure and catching a glimpse of his buttocks through the imperfect tendrils of his exotic garb. She did not blush, nor even look away, simply admiring his posterior with a smile. It was a silly thing, this ease of being with another and not feeling the need to lie or disappear around some street corner. Not that disappearing would be particularly possible at this high vantage, but the feeling lingered all the same. His warning not to be afraid grated her nerves slightly. She'd hoped he would think more highly of her by now. In jest she made the exaggerated motion of gathering her purse and making a rucus, sticking her tongue out at the back of his head. “I’m not some petulant child, you know!” The smile in her voice would assure the ethaefal that she was only kidding. “I won’t go jumping out my stockings at the sight of some scar or buck teeth!” Sesha edged nearer the cliff face. Her friend still watched the light at it neared that brilliant point where the edge of the world met the land of the gods. Her steps were silent. She wouldn’t startle the man; that would be a folly beyond belief. The scraggy cliff face would rend him limb from limb in an instant and she found that she thought of him as rather appealing. Instead she skulked to the edge of the cliff to his right. The point where he stood jutted out somewhat, but she would have a perfect view of his divine transformation. Sesha felt a sudden warmth on the side of her face and she was nearly blinded by the first brilliant red-orange glow of the rising sun. This would be quite a treat.

[Dlight]

The playful taunting and jests of his company brought a smile that had grown more fuller from when they had first met, stretching easier across his lips and not fading even after the woman had scrambled to follow him towards the cliff's edge. If his form beneath Syna was one of a human, or even a Isur for that matter, perhaps he wouldn't have issued the warning-- but as the first rays shined across the horizon, the light atmosphere that they'd created throughout the small haven faded as fast as his smile. His companion wasn't forgotten, but her company was remembered only in the back of his mind, attention absorbed easily by the feeling of his pale skin being warmed by the sun Goddess' heated gaze. Dlight's body faced outwards, towards Alvadas and the slow withdrawal into himself began. Bent over double, the Ethaefel's opalescent skin was the first to be marred, small, invisible hairs extending and growing. The fur that spanned his entirety could be mistaken for nothing but what it was, remarkably significant compared to his former pallor. No pain accompanied the transformation other than mental, not even as his quiet grunts grew louder, a deeper, more masculine tone coming to his voice. The quiet shyness that seemed to come naturally during the night disappeared as his body changed, Dlight's Zith nature coming through fully as his nails extended. The routine growth left him with sharp, jagged claws extending from both hand and foot, their presence noticeable as the Zith finally fell to one knee, fingers digging into the ground beneath him. The sunlight that shone down may have appeared beautiful to some, but dawn was always bittersweet to Dlight. It brought memories of his home and what he had lost, as well as what he had to endlessly work towards in order to return back to his rightful place-- clenched eyes formerly a shade of indigo equally as beautiful and exotic as the woman that watched him darkened until they could blacken no further, their inky depths exposed as the Zith's lids snapped open, a high-pitched screech ripping from him. The worst part of it, was when his horns retreated within him. It may have looked grisly, otherworldly at the least, as the dark horns fell back into his skull, disappearing beneath rapidly shortening hair. His formerly long mane was coloring itself to resemble smashed, trampled blueberries from the roots down, and Dlight's shockingly high-pitched screech continued until the last reminder of Leth left him. A mockery of Dlight's wish to be in the night sky with his God, the Zith's wings began sprouting from his back, nubs of muscle extending from the bare skin near his shoulder-blades. The steady process of muscle and skin building began, and it was during this that Dlight finally began taking heavy, heaving breaths, black eyes searching blindly for the woman. When his eyes found hers, his wings had fully grown, outstretched and imposing. The miserable, angry scowl on his lips was not directed at her but at Syna, however it ended up in her direction anyways.

[Sesha]

Sesha watched with a wide grin as the first rays of crimson light touched on the Ethaefal’s skin. Transformations were a common thing for the woman, but those had been the magic of her god. What she was witnessing was the miracle of the sky gods; the transformation of a heavenly descendent. This would be the first time she would see something beyond the realm of her own world first hand. She was tickled with excitement, clutching her purse against her chest in a low crouch near the edge of the cliff. Excitement gave way to shock as her companion bent over, as if stricken by an invisible blow. She made as if to help him but was grounded again by the guttural sounds coming from the creature. It was then that she noticed his hair. Not that atop his head, but sprouting from his arms and legs like tiny insects emerging from miniature burrows. Her hand went to her mouth as Sesha saw claws sprout forth from her friend’s fingers and toes; long, wicked-looking things that ate the earth as easily as his Ethaefal hands had kneaded the moss. She stumbled backwards when he cried out, the savage sound of his voice rumbling inside her and awakening fear where shock had been. As his horns, the ones she had touched so playfully earlier, sunk back into his skull she could not help but cringe, stricken by the vulgar display. His whole body had darkened far beyond its original pearly glow, taking on an animalistic nature. The continual wail that issued forth grew less and less human as the full light of Syna seemed to burn his skin before her eyes. At last Sesha witnessed something she could not have imagined in her wildest dreams. Emerging from the skin of his back, great bat-like wings burst forth easily doubling his already imposing size instantly. Her eyes were torn from the abhorrent appendages by the dark penetrating stare of the man who had once seemed so beautiful. “Z-zith…” she murmured, dumbfounded and more than a little terrified. She had barely the time to recall the tales of zith snatching up travelers before her back foot slipped on the precipitous edge of the cliff face. She looked to where her foot should have fallen and saw instead a great span of nothingness stretching out below her like a long awaited reality. I’m going to die, she thought numbly as her weight committed to the expanse of air beneath her. The last thing she saw in this lifetime was the angry face of the man who had once been her friend. Her scream of terror echoed against the mountain face as it blurred by her.