Ayla gets lost in her thoughts.
Ayla decides to deconstruct sonic magic, creating some mental concepts to practice and expand upon.
Ayla does her duties around the Refuge, helping train the children, chores, and some late night private practice.
Ayla has a closed conversation with Jocasta about how to handle the Duque.
See Collab entries for Silas, Vieri, and Casii in their respective posts.

Introductions had been perfunctory and… morbid? Maybe that was just the atmosphere, the stories told poisoning Vieri’s view. Suffering had long since steeped into the walls and now the sun was baking it out, a miasma. Five Names, it was miserable.

Something needed to be done about it.

In a shaded passage of the Refuge, Vieri stared out as the midday sun set the air shimmering and leached all colour from the world.

So the idea formed.

Ayla was already a step ahead as she was painting the walls of the Refugio. Out with the old as the decadence and corruption that has run this place has been scraped away, leaving behind a blank canvas for the Tethered to start painting their own story. The drab red and sand bricks being coated with the colours of the rainbow, the void filled with the paint strokes that reflects the hope and ambition of the residents, creating inspiration for a bright future. Such gestures are window dressing, but the morale does rise as the younger Tethered take moments in their day to stare in wonder at the different scenes adorning their ways. Splashes of colour which show off the wider world, the dance of animals, tales and stories adorning the corridor of brave heroes and dastardly villains.

Shielding their eyes in the glare, Vieri said, “You know, I did not expect another artist to steal my idea so soon. Before I had even realised it… are you a mind reader sister?”

Ayla blinks as she gets caught off-guard by the newcomer, taking a moment to finish off strokes before putting it down to interact with them. “Been seeking a good excuse to do this since our arrival…”, she turns to glance at the stranger, taking a moment to inspect them, before clicking her fingers. “Oh, you are one of the arrivals from the academy.”, she wipes her hands down as she moves over to Vieri to take a hold of their hand in greeting, shaking upon it warmly.

“I am, I am, a good memory sister. Vieri. And you are… No, I have forgotten. Too many names and too much to do, no?”

Ayla nods as she acknowledges the offered name. “My name is Ayla Arslan, but my friends may call me Ayla.”. She releases the hand as she uses it to gesture towards the barren walls, “So you’re an artist? What do you think of our canvas then? Turn this place from a prison into a home. Some colour would not go amiss.”

“I do not think I have seen anything that is asking as badly to be painted, Ayla, as you say. Do you have a brush? I will kill this ugliness with you. Perhaps brushes?”

Ayla grins widely at the request, "Got brushes?”. She puts her hand within her saddlebag to pull a bunch of them out between her fingers like a claw. "Plenty of paint too…”, she references the buckets behind her, some seem to be filled with water. "Have you had a tour of the place yet, or have you been settled in?”.

“Only a little,” Vieri said. They took a large brush, knit their brows together, and watched as the paint shifted upon the bristles, dropping into a dark purple. A scene was already forming in their mind, pieced together from muse, memory, and imagination.

“The Great Bath, a room that is to be mine, and the few hallways in between are about all I’ve seen so far. I think… I think… I think I am a little scared of what I might find if I venture beyond, though. I cannot imagine… it’s just. A horrible, horrible place - why…”

Ayla ticks with her tongue upon hearing the words, “This is now a home and we are here to leave behind a beautiful place. We just got to solve the Sand Wyrm problem… … but you are here to help with that too.” She gives a wink as she continues to paint with her brush.

There was a lull, just the swish of brushes.

“As you say,” they glanced sidelong, “you just point the way.”

“Was thinking about themes…”, she taps the brush, “the Naranja tree is the heart and soul of this place, the tree is carved with names of those who came before. We could put shapes along the walls… leaves… adorning tree branches which follow towards the middle. This would allow for future expansion and growth, as if there is more to come, and all of these are connected together…”, Ayla looks towards Vieri as she is pitching the idea, “Any thoughts, or suggestions for the other rooms?”.

Vieri was smiling. The first smile since finding out about… this place. “It is a lovely idea, sister. I think, those children here, it won’t take much for them to cover the walls in dreams… or paint. Suggestions will not matter then.”

Ayla smiles brightly as she considers Vieri words, “Good thinking there sister,” at this Vieri twinged almost internally, “Why not, we could get the niñas, give them brushes, and get them painting their dreams. We can fill a lot of the walls in colour that way, then we concentrate our efforts on the main areas.” She takes Vieri’s hand again as she shakes it excitedly. “Any experience managing los jovenes before?”.

Taking their hand back, laughing, Vieri swapped brushes, the paint changing to pale pinks and peaches, “Only in a bordello, and I feel they might have been a more chaotic breed than those here. Yourself, Ayla?”

Ayla offers a puzzled look, then realizing it may have been her Torragonese. “Meant children, not what you were probably referring to…”

“No, sister, children, I know. When their mamas and papas work, we look after our own, see?”

Ayla comes to an understanding, not expecting her classmate to be raised in a brothel with their brother and sisters, though assumes the close kinship of the environment fosters a sibling-like family of children from different parents. “My error, no consideró…”, attempting to return to the subject, “We have been looking after these little ones for the last couple of days. Reminds me of being back in Varrahasta, the local orphanage sent out children to work on the docks. They made for good company growing up, always so lively and appreciated any gifts sincerely. inocente.”

Vieri took the chance to get the measure of Ayla, eyes down, up, back to the painting, then sneaking to Ayla again, “You dress well for a dockhand. Either you are in a truly lucrative trade, or am I speaking to nobility?”

Ayla confirms the latter, “Ayla Arslan, daughter of Duque Duarte Arslan, Protector of Varrahasta and the Arapor river… the titles can start getting long”. She pokes fun at how long winded the various titles can be, and how some of her kin do enjoy rattling them off. “Though the temptation to say ‘Dockhand’ was there.”

“Perhaps I will tempt you one day. You are much nicer than most of the nobles I’ve met. Some don’t even understand the concept of payment, let alone gifts.” Vieri took a step back, brush tipped with sapphire. There, against a swath of purples and fleck-white stars, was the painterly idea of a young woman, pale, dressed in silks of all colours and gold and jewels. Vieri had painted the eyes last.

“What do you think, inspiring, no?”

Ayla grew rather flustered, especially when brazenly propositioned in such a manner. “You dress… very well.” the words were a somewhat muted response than what was most likely desired, though this is something she had never considered previously, taking a moment to process. “Sapphire… … that reminds me, for the pool maybe an oasis theme.” she skillfully tries to navigate the earlier conversation back towards the painting. ”Would really fit in with the surroundings.”

Vieri belly laughed. “Sister, sister, sister,” they shook their head, “not like most nobles at all.” Still chuckling, there was a swish, a flick, and the painted woman now held a brush. Vieri began on the rainbow, dripping from the painted bristles. “The trouble is I love portraits. Landscapes take too much effort, and I haven’t the eye for the abstract.”

“At the Naranja tree, Instead of leaves… you can draw their portraits on the walls!”, takes Vieri’s hand again in an excited manner, “They take much care in their carvings upon the tree, but imagine having some their portraits upon the wall, sat amongst the branches, so those who are no longer with them in person are still there to be remembered. Can start with the older ones, like Amanda. Are you up for this?”

“Of course, sister, it sounds great fun.” I just hope time does not run out.

It was an early afternoon in the middle of one of the harshest deserts of Sipenta. Even indoors, one could feel the moisture on their lips dry out in a matter of seconds. The children craved the little oasis, but the older residents knew full well the rays of the sun would be nefarious to their wellbeing with the sun gazing above the Refuge. Plus, nobody wanted to supervise them under these conditions. A siesta was very much warranted at these hours, and Zarina was definitely going to continue this daily ritual as her turn to look after the youngest among the Tethered came to be.

The choice was easy as to where she would bring them: The Library. Quiet, relaxed and remote of any high activity sector in the establishment. Of course, the kids were going to have energy to spare after a meal while others would want nothing more than to nap. The biblioteca accommodated for both much to the Virangish’s pleasure. With no librarian around- a member of the staff they had to lock up- Zaz assumed command behind the main desk that overlooked a good portion of the library.

”Raoul! No running.” she scolded one of the youngest. He seemed to be about nine years old and had long, silky and blonde hair, ”You too Janna.” her tone came with an authority the kids were used to, but also with a smile that had them giggling when they ceased their shenanigans, knowing they had a friend in their supervisor.

For a moment, the library was completely silent. A good half were asleep at the corner where kids could rest while listening to stories, while the others were either reading or whispering to one another. Zarina took this time to indulge in some literature of her own: A Bestiary with loads of images! Loads of pretty creatures she could admire while sagging her back against her seat and putting her feet up on the desk.

Vieri hurried into the room, careful not to spill what they held in a battered tin cup.

“Sorry I am late,” Vieri whispered, “If not for the heat, I might have forgotten entirely. That doesn’t speak well of me, does it?” Across their forehead: a bright blue smear of paint.

Zarina nearly dropped her book, startled by the newcomer, ”Shit.” she whispered back with a light pant, ”Thought you were one of the pre-teens with their rotting naranjas.” she eased up quickly enough and straightened her posture as she faced Vieri, ”Is that drinkable?” she nudges her chin to the other’s cup, ”You can make amends by bringing me a nice drink. Heat’s a killer, as you say.” she smiled and winked.

Vieri looked down at their drink and shrugged, “I am yet to find that out. It was a bit hectic in the kitchens, I did not want to stay long enough to get roped into slaving over some stove in this heat.” They swung up onto the desk, sat there cross-legged, a smile toying around the corners of their lips.

“I will make you a deal, if you like it I will go back and snatch the whole bottle.” The tin cup rasped as Vieri pushed it towards Zarina, setting the burgundy drink before her.

Zarina reached for the weathered container. She leaned in to see her reflection from the surface of the beverage and then took a long sniff, ”Hmmm.” she then oriented her attention up toward Vieri, ”A deal. Well you’ve already made your offering,” she took a swift and confident sip from the cup, taking her time before eventually swallowing, ”so what do you want in exchange-” she paused, eyes narrowed and head tilted, ”We’ve never properly met until now, have we? I’m Zaz.”

“Vieri,” they gestured overgrandly at themself, “and I thought I was the one making the amends? I would not rob you so blatantly, sister. You like it, I take?”

The Virangish took yet another sip, ”As good as it gets in the middle of ass nowhere.” she chuckled, her hand extended out to give her new coworker their cup, ”So, I take this deal is more of a gift? Or maybe the novel idea of getting drunk on the j-” her focus deviated instantly to something beyond Vieri’s sight, ”Jorge.” she spoke up loud enough for her voice to echo in the large and quiet library,”Don’t pick your nose.” she kept a hawkish glare in his direction until he complied, ”What was I- Drunk on the job? Sounds responsible.” she shot a complicit smile at Vieri.

“It is not my fault if you cannot control your impulses,” Vieri stretched like a cat, sliding off the desktop, “Jorge! Don’t get caught again whilst I’m gone. You have to hide it better.” They could hear a ‘Tsk’ behind them as they departed.

Minutes passed. Then five more. And another. By then Zarina was nose deep in her animal book and feet were back on the wooden surface before her.

When Vieri came back, they held another cup, and slipped a green bottle out from the folds of billowing cotton. Both clacked onto the table. A triumphant smile.

“Amends made, no?” They hopped back onto the desk, peered over at the book.

Zarina nodded with an exaggerated expression to show how impressed she was, ”All debts pardoned. Wowie.” she claimed her cup and presented it to Vieri with an expectant look.

“Very good, madam,” Vieri rasped. They made their face long as they poured Zarina a drink in a manner both wooden and proper. It would have sold better had they not been seated. “ I did not take madam as a connoisseur of picture books.”

”Hey, this is an- whatchamacallit-” she checked the cover of the book she kept on her lap, ”Encyclopaedia.” she pronounced it a tad wrong, especially with the ‘ae’ sound, ”Kinda boring to just read descriptions of all these weird animals. It’s so much cooler to see them too.”

She sifted through the book and found a page on Froabasses, ”Hey, see what I mean? By the description I’d imagine, like, giant chickens that fly.”

“You’re right, they look much more like flying lizards - Jorge, if you’re going to keep doing that just hide behind a bookcase, you’re embarrassing me little brother.” The boy stopped. It was oddly quiet, much too quiet for children their age.

Vieri seemed close to saying something, then lost the nerve and drained their cup. They’d poured another before finally speaking, “For now, I will believe that you can read.”

Zarina scoffs, ”Hmph! I can also ride a horse. AND I can read like, a page in a minute.” her eyebrows raised, daring Vieri to one up here as she drank from her cup, and, perhaps wisely, they didn’t. It looked as though the few drinks earlier were already getting this one uncharacteristically playful and happy. Then, after a few pages were skimmed through, the Royal Sand Wyrm came up, ”Huh. And here’s what’s gonna ea-” she peered up, checking to see if any of the children were close enough to hear, ”Have its good yum yums with us.” the book was set over the desk so they could both see it without straining themselves, ”Spooked?” she shot a quick glance at her fellow babysitter.

“Spooked? Have you seen the size of that thing?” They used their hands to measure it on the page, then clapped them together, softly, “I don’t get why anyone is worried, just squish it.” They raised their cup to their lips, and a sip turned to a shaky swig, set it down on the table, empty, “I’m terrified.”

”Shit, you’re right.” eyes wide and lips pursed, it was hard to say if she was joking or not, ”Glad we have you on the team, we could never do it without you, Vieri.” she even raised a wordless toast in his honour before finishing her cup. Zarina, with all her willpower, did in fact gesture in dismissal if there ever was an offer to refill, ”Which means … The only scarier thing than a Sand Wyrm … Is you!” she pointed an accusatory finger in their direction and dramatically rested the back of her hand over her forehead, feigning (badly) deep distress.

Vieri jumped up into a squat, hands clawed, “Boo.”

Zarina pushed her seat back with her rear and stood up, ”Mireille, gather the others! We have a wicked Chupacabra here!” she grinned a toothy smile at Vieri. The young Mireille nodded in excitement and gathered her fellow warrior-friends, ”Gonna make sure they sleep through the whoooooole afternoon alright.” and then she vaulted the desk to gather her legion of little monsters.

What noise did a Chupacabra make? Probably not the mess that Vieri came up with.

“I’m coming for you first Jorge, you and your nose!”

Let the screeching begin. The big, scary Vieri ‘frightened’ the kids, although only until they returned from their napping base with pillows to smack the monster with, ”Yes! Careful Jorge, it’s coming to the side!” and then the kid fell on his butt. Most were content with just laughing and cheering on, while the most courageous charged in with their negligible strength, ”What is the beast going to do now?! The Refuge Champions are just TOO STRONG!”

The beast ran. Around bookshelves, over and under desks, at the children, away from them. And at the end, panting, lying on the floor after the children pummelled them with pillows and then dogpiled, as Jorge did a victory dance, Vieri shut their eyes and pretended to be vanquished. And hoped and hoped until their heart hurt.

Victory! Well, for Zarina anyway. The little fanfare and celebratory dance from the kids were about enough to seal their fate as soon-to-be nappers. The mastermind behind the ploy clapped and even cheered as well before eventually plucking the dogpiling critters one by one until her sacrifice was freed from their torment. She offered a helping hand, ”Guess we’ve really got nothing to fear with these ones around, huh?”

“Truly the most terrifying of them all,” Vieri took the hand up, and was hoisted to meet a giggly Zarina.

”Good work.” she turned to look at the increasingly sluggish children. A job well done indeed, ”I’ll get ‘em to sleep. Wanna power-nap and we take turns? I feel like I’m gonna keel over with the fucking heat.”

“Sleep then sister, sleep. I will eat the ones that misbehave. I’m sure it’s just the heat.”

In the shade of the walls, dew drops still clung to the Refuge and it was blessedly cool. This is where Vieri hid with a handful of children in the interstitial time between breakfast and lessons. They were painting. Most of them, at least.

“I can’t do it!”

“Do what?” Vieri picked up the brush Bos had thrown into the dirt, crouched to be level with him.

“Paint!”

“No? Why not? It looks good to me.”

“It’s not good! I made a mistake.”

“We don’t make mistakes, just happy accidents.”

“You’re wrong, it's bad, look.”

Vieri sighed, “Would you like to try again?”

Bos nodded. His face was flushed and at the corners of his eyes welled tears.

“Then I will show you a trick. Watch closely,” with a large brush, Vieri washed white all over whatever it had been Bos was trying to paint, “Just wait a bit for it to dry, and it’s good as new.”

The boy's lower lip stuck out. Still not happy.

“I’ll just do it wrong again.”

Vieri shrugged, “That’s fine, you can just paint over it again. Experiment, go wild with it, little brother. You will have more fun in not caring.” Hypocrite. The boy did not seem entirely convinced.

Kaspar was working on his own section of wall nearby, sketching broad strokes with sticks of charcoal that left splotchy marks of dust on his fingers and up his arms. He wasn’t good with children, but the boy knew more than something about art.

“Art is about what you put into it,” he offered, trying to help his classmate encourage Bos. “Mistakes happen. Charcoal is smudged, lines are wrong… But if we put fun and joy into it? That is what others see.”

He shot a small, uncertain smile towards Vieri and the child, hoping his words helped at least somewhat; the kid might not grow up to love painting, but perhaps he could enjoy it today.

Vieri returned the smile, “And whatever you do, it will always be better than a blank wall.”

The boy, having two not-quite grown-ups encourage him, pondered the wall, then attacked it with colour. It was not much different to before, but this time, the boy laughed.

“Nice advice, by the way brother,” Vieri said. They stood behind Kaspar now, watched his sketch, bottom of their brush tapping against their lips, “You are good. Very good. You should paint with me when we are back at the school.”

Kaspar glanced towards his classmate, a hint of blush coloring his cheeks. “I’m just glad my advice could help,” he admitted. As they complimented his art, the blush deepened incrementally. It endeared him incredibly to Vieri.

“I’m more at home in charcoal than paint, admittedly,” he started, “But I was once out of place with charcoal, too. I work sometimes with Ayla already, but I would be willing to work with you as well.”

Ah, so it was like that.

“I would not step on Ayla’s toes so, brother!” their mouth made an ‘O’ in faux horror, “I like her too much for that. Although… Perhaps I could model for you both? Yes, I think I would make a fine form to practice from! And I know how dreary some models can be. I don’t think art would be half so lonely if they did not think they had to be statues. And I am so very good at keeping secrets,” at this they tapped the side of their nose.

“I do not think you would be stepping on anyone’s toes,” he offered, “We often spend time working on separate pieces in the same space. Though I’m sure Ayla would love a chance to work with others as well, as artist or model. My human forms could certainly use the practice.” Kaspar smiled, something subtle but reassuring at Vieri.

“In these matters it is better to be safe than sorry. Perhaps when Ayla has covered the… hmmm… fundamentals… we could work on portraits. I know Ayla is less fond of them. They are what I should be really doing at the - what is that tree in the middle of this place? - I should be painting the portraits there for Ayla, but…” Vieri shrugged, “I have no excuse beyond these ones.” They gestured at the children, who were busy painting or slapping the paint onto the walls with their hands, or each other. Jorge was picking his nose.

“They remind me of home. It is silly, no, to have this, this power afforded to you, this golden chance, and to still yearn for what you have left behind?”

Kaspar was quiet in thought for a moment, the soft sound of charcoal on brick briefly dominating the conversation. “I don’t think it’s odd to miss home,” he said after the silence. “The appreciation for this opportunity can coexist with the bittersweet nature of leaving something behind.” He glanced back at them, eyes softening, and said, “I miss the plants and the cold of Helbahn. Not just because it was comfortable, but because it was familiar. Ersand’Enise does not feel like the home I’ve known for so long, but it does offer something that home could not.”

And what if that something was unwanted, the opportunity a poison apple?

“Good job, Bos, little brother,” Vieri called. The boy positively beamed. Vieri sat in the dirt forearms over knees, “Why did you come to Ersand’Enise brother Kaspar?”

“My parents wanted me to learn how to utilize the Gift—more control, and more power. Not many schools teach Binding, and that is what I and my tutors thought I would be best in,” he explained, glancing to see the progress on Bos’s painting. “And what of you, Vieri?”

“Ah, now that would be telling, brother, and I am so very good at keeping secrets,” they tapped the side of their nose, “Maybe you will find out, if Ayla allows it.”

Kaspar raised a brow, but didn’t press the question—nor ask any that occurred to him at the response. “That is fair. Perhaps in the future I will be worthy enough to learn,” he joked lightly.

Me too, Kaspar, me too.

Casii hadn’t been through a portal before today. Now she could cross that off of her bucket list, though it felt no different than stepping through the threshold of a door into another room. Only this other room was wider than the grasslands of Mycormi and hotter than dredges of the warmest Dorrad day. Dryer, though.

As one of the few Yasoi at the Academy, she was surprised to have even gotten a summons to attend. She reckoned the Yanii wouldn’t rely on a Yasoi but here she was. Eating her own words. She also never expected a desert to be as… yellow as it was. Sand, she thought, was supposed to be little rocks and would be colored all kinds of grey. No vegetation. Well actually very little from her first glance around the Refuge where the portal had been summoned.

Little vegetation and whole lot of Yaniis. Casii tugged at her red and yellow tunic, a size too small to completely reach down to her waist line allowing the barest hint of midriff and clinging tightly to her lithe form. A light brown linen leggings reached to her knees leaving her shins exposed until her ruddy boots.

A single half of a Jamb’ysp hung in her right cheek, puffing out a slight bit. She turned and spat a wad of black tar. She looked unphased but she bounced on her toes and ruffled her fingers across her leggings. Who the hell was running this show? The wheel chair, lady, right? Hugo mentioned something about her.

Stepping lightly over she glanced down at the woman known as Jocasta. She didn’t look like much but Casii knew never to doubt someone by appearance. Legends like Talit’yrash weren’t no joke.

”So err.. Just how bad is it?” She plainly put, turning to spit behind her, trying to keep her habit away from the Yanii’s sight incase she had one of those sensitive dispositions.

They’d come through another of Hugo’s portals and, as ever, Jocasta found herself jealous at his abilities. Maybe if I got to live to a hundred seventeen, I’d have a shot at being a spacetime god too, she mused flatly.

The first had been an androgynous Joruban, the second a powergazer street urchin. This one was a yasoi. Jocasta blinked. After a moment, she shrugged. “There’s about a hundred feet worth of reptilian death somewhere out in that desert, a greedy duke on his way here to possibly raze the place, and about three dozen bitter birdies down in our dungeon.” She took a few errant chews of her chicle. “Another day, another adventure. Speaking of which, that’s why you’re here, right?”

Casii mulled over what Jocasta listed in her head. She hadn’t quite been that experienced with the world as maybe someone like her but was that really how these always went? ”Oh that’s all? The Yasoi almost sounded bored but really didn’t know how to comprehend the extent of everything she was being brought to face. At least it seemed like she, and every other student tagged for this would be on the same branch. Right before it snapped, no doubt.

”Yeeeaaaah, I reckon I can do somethin’ about yer problems. I ain’t a stranger to a scrap but seems to me yer in more for a scrap. Exactly what are yer thinkin’ we do’n just who in swamp’s pit do we have here to help?” She turned and spat once more.

Jocasta’s eyes flicked, imperceptibly fast, to the disgusting wad of spit and she expertly repressed a shudder. This yasoi was nothing like Verdi. Nothing at all. Still, she was… another capable person and beggars couldn't be choosers. “Six of us students,” she replied, “and more coming out of that portal” - and asking me all these same questions - “every little while, plus about a dozen trained magic users here.” She set hands to wheels, backing up a bit so she didn’t have to crane her neck so much to make eye contact. “Big problem’s all the untrained ones.” She shrugged. “They’ve got the Gift in spades, but no idea how to use it, so we’re here to give ‘em a crash course.”

Sounds of play, training, and construction all blended in together. They weren’t too far from the central courtyard, and around a bend was the Great Bath and Gran Naranja, and eventually the gardens. Jocasta really didn’t have time for this, but she could appreciate being a stranger in a strange land and… We’re working on not being awful to people, right? “I can get you a room, she offered, maybe somewhere high up? Give you the tour?”

Casii watched in obvious bewilderment as the Yanii wheeled back, never quite seeing someone get around like that. She realized soon after that she was probably way too tall and quietly squatted down. Her heels bounced in the air but the rest of her remained still on her toes. ”All fine and dandy to me. Reckon you got it figured.” Casii didn’t quite sound convinced but she was just as game at being polite as this Yanii was.

Now the offer of a room made the Yasoi fold her lips in a frown. She couldn’t even stay in her dormitory for an hour, let alone some strange room here. The offer for somewhere higher up was appeasing but glancing up to the roofs of the buildings, Casii could see the heat radiating, distorting the air in their usual manner. She’d burn to a crisp up there.

”You’n all got a place of shade. Tree shade? I’ll figure out how I sleep then.”

“For the record, you’re getting a room just so we can say we gave you one. And when it comes to trees, there’s not much to choose from around here,” admitted Jocasta, rolling from hard-packed dirt onto tiles. She tucked her gum into her cheek for a second so as not to swallow it by accident. “Though there’s Gran Naranja, down by the bath.” She began chewing again. It had taken her all of two days back here to become hooked on the chicle again, if only to manage the incessant pressure. She gestured. “I’ll take you there, but if you sleep in the tree, you be gentle,” she warned, half twisting as she wheeled. “She’s been here for two hundred years and she’s… like a great grandmother to us all.”

They made their way, then, out of the courtyard and around the bend, to where the younglings, all under twelve and still on four, swam and played in and around the bath, innocent to the worst of what was going on elsewhere. A colossal, gnarled orange tree, its fruit-laden branches hanging a mere foot or two above the water in places, stretched its shade across the area, leaves rippling gently in a light breeze. Names and little pictures were carved into its ancient bark, a rope swing hung from a particularly sturdy branch that Jocasta knew a yasoi might recognize as ‘palbor’ or ‘elbor’, and numerous chairs clustered around its trunk. “You can see why,” the tethered remarked, watching the yasoi’s reaction carefully.

Gran Naranja didn’t make a lick of sense to Casii but it sounded like “Grand” so it was probably their largest tree. In all likelihood, a pitiful comparison to the trees back home but to the Yaniis, sure.

She gave a look in reaction to being asked to be gentle. Just exactly who did she think she was? She wasn’t no Yanii but let it pass for now. Following Jocasta around to where their Gran Naranja was rooted, Casii’s gaze moved from watching how Jocasta wheeled herself around to the tree. Every bit of it was studied and judged. It wasn’t like a tree back home but she could tell then and now. It was special.

Quietly the yasoi approached, running a careful hand along the trunk of the old tree. She reached out with a little mana, letting the leaves rustle in excitement. New growths of fruit began to bud while those that had been afflicted by disease cured from their sickly color to the more vibrant namesake.

Casii reached out and grabbed the nearest orange and spun, sliding to plop down at the base of the tree. She peeled an opening into her orange and took a bite, displaying a rather smug satisfaction back at Jocasta. ”I reckon Gran Nan will be fine with me here, don’t you?”

There was something about the little display that irked Jocasta. She wasn’t sure why, and the person she’d been a week ago would’ve thought horrible, nasty things. Trust a yasoi to love a tree, though, at least. “So you’re a greengrowth, huh?” the tethered asked. She gathered a bit of energy to lift herself and let the gravity loop do the rest. She floated forward and sat on one of the cushions under the tree, brushing a hand fondly over its trunk. “Skyborn, here. It comes in handy,” she admitted. “Sometimes, I don’t know what I’d do without it.” Jocasta let out a long sigh, closing her eyes for a second and trying to just relax. She had people to settle in, training to conduct, facilities to repair, interrogations to run, and meetings with Amanda, Escarra, the other students, the Afortunado, and… She took another deep breath. “I imagine it doesn’t compare much to home, but I hope it keeps you centered like it does for me.” She smiled. “Jocasta, by the way. I think we forgot introductions.” She held a hand out.

Casii watched as if she were being treated to a magic act of Jocasta lifting herself from her chair and levitating over to her own spot under the tree. It was at this point, the yasoi removed her Jamb’ysp she had been sucking on, prefering to taste the orange without the sharp taste of tar in her mouth.

”Skyborn.” Casii repeated, carefully sounding out her Avincian. It was a new word for her but she could understand what it meant considering the levitation. Good to know. ”Think me’n you are just like yer Gran Nan here. It’s got its fruits and we got our family gift.” She offered lightly with a mouthful of orange in her mouth. There was some missing context in her allegory with the fruits being an advantage over other trees. Lures to spread their seed far and wide from animals that came to gorge themselves. Family gifts were the same way, at least in Casii’s nature themed comparison, but Jocasta’s second sigh cut off the explanation.

”Casii.” She replied, taking another bite and offering a slightly sticky, wet hand back. All from the orange, thankfully. ”It ain’t like home but yer right. It takes a special sort to stay here like this. Toughin’ the heat’n everythin’ else out like that. Givin’ you’n all us somethin’ more than just fruit, ya know.”

“Hun,” said Jocasta, eyes darting from Casii’s sticky hand to her face and back, “You forget, these are my feet, too.” She held her hands up. “I need ‘em clean to push my wheels.” She’d seen the yasoi’s curious looks and imagined that they were both fairly used to being on the receiving end of those. “But I’ll give you a magic handshake, if that’s just alright with you.” She shaped a hand out of telekinesis, her precision something only a tethered or a true master could manage, and shook Casii’s. “Now, much as I could just stay here all day, we’ve a crisis at hand and someone elected me to deal with about half of it.” One more deep breath. In, and out. “I hope this helped you get settled. I’ll have someone come by in a few and complete your tour, get you up to speed.” She was reaching down, uncrossing her legs. Jocasta paused for a moment, about to lift off. “Give you a room you probably won’t use,” she joked. “And then we’ll get you training people, ready for that aberration-addled dragon. We’ll win.” The tethered took a moment to roll her neck. She was honestly well-rested. It was just stress, all of it. “Oh, and before I forget, I think we might have a greengrowth here. She doesn’t know much about her abilities, but she’s usually attached to this tree like you wouldn’t believe, and it always seems to grow better in her presence. Luisa’s her name. Now…” she began straightening her dress. “I have so much to do and so few hours to do it in.”

Casii looked down at her hand, confused for a moment. What was wrong with her hand? Sure it had orange juice and pulp on it but that was just the benefit of eating a fresh fruit. Still, the yasoi didn’t protest the exchange. In fact, it only made an eyebrow raise as it felt exactly like a hand shaking hers. Not just any hand but a hand and grip like what Jocasta’s hand would have been.

There was a quiet consideration as Casii turned away and as the other continued to speak, going on about her responsibilities it was clear to see her initial instinct had been right. There was nothing fragile about the wheelchair bound girl at all. She even had the underlining confidence. A low chuckle escaped from the yasoi’s mouth as she stuffed another bit of orange in her mouth to suppress her tell.

”Send her my way. Actually, I’m sure I’ll see her soon.” She muttered dutifully as she pried apart the orange, spattering juice into her face. ”I could teach her somethin’.”

Before Jocasta could get entirely away, Casii raised her head, an amused smile returning to her face as she turned to meet the other’s gaze. ”You know, I knew yer tougher than you appear.” She chuckled again, quietly approving of the answer to her earlier question of just who was in charge here. She turned back to her orange, fishing out seeds and stuffing them into her bag. ”You’ll know where to find me if yer in need of me.” She uttered, shifting her attention to the messy corpse of the orange she was now dissecting.

Jocasta was already rising, her gravity loop beginning once more. “Tellin’ me I don’t look tough?” she teased, “With arms like these?” She flexed playfully. Side effect of using her arms for everything: they were huge. “Anyways, It was a pleasure meeting you, and thank you for coming here. I’ll see you when I see you.” She turned daintily in the air and was back in her wheeled-chair moments later. Then, she was gone.

With Casii’s first day coming to a close, marked by the setting desert sun, she had come to at least somewhat tolerate this place. This was entirely due to the Gran Nan she had claimed as her own for the next few days. If she didn’t want anything, she’d be here. If she wasn’t required, she’d be here. Thankfully her only assignment, that of instructing Luisa a bit on being a greengrowth. It wasn’t hard. The whole family gift revolved around being natural, at least as far as her opinion was concerned. She wasn’t sure a Yanii would get it but Luisa did fine, showing an understanding and maybe an improvement after an afternoon of trials.

That left Casii with Gran Nan to herself and an evening sun to relax to. Climbing to one of the more robust branches of the orange tree, the yasoi reclined laying sprawled out on the bark, letting her limbs dangle off of the sides as she looked out into the rest of the complex. She still wasn’t sure if she belonged but at least she had this.

The momentarily peace would easily be disturbed by the noise occurring by the pool where a light framed girl in swim clothes seemed to be humming and singing followed by the repeated splash as she fell into the water before her. To her credit, the girl is getting herself back out, then attempting whatever it is she is doing again.

“It seemed so simple…” the girl muttered to herself. She tries again as she starts to sing a silent song, then like fingers upon a piano, the tones of the song play as she steps out upon the surface of the water. The girl makes some distance this time before the music ends with an uncharacteristic splosh.

Casii felt her eyelids grow heavy, fluttering in near sleep as she reached the height of comfort. It would have been nice to fall asleep there but the plunge of water made her snap awake. A scowl folded on the yasoi’s face as she lifted her head off of the branch and scanned the Great Baths. A muttering voice was around and Casii dropped her head with an audible sigh. Guess she wasn’t getting any sleep.

She lifted herself and nimbly navigated over to a perch on a higher branch that had an unobscured view of her intruder. Another student, this one floundering in the water. With the same posture as before, Casii dropped her stomach on the branch and let her limbs dangle as she watched, trying to figure out what in tarnation this Yanii was doing. It wasn’t long before she hollered.

”Hey Yanii! Yer gettin’ all wet!” She called out with a laugh, heckling the poor girl.

Ayla looks up towards the talking tree? It is at that moment she starts to notice that it seems a lot greener than before as she casts her eyes up towards it as she exits the pool. “Good thing that we are not wearing our Blancho best then.”, she calls in return, before considering the situation for a moment. She does a silent clap of her hands, before it erupts, the excess water upon her skin scattered around her. “You must be one of the new students from the academy, pleased to meet you. Would take your hand but…”, she moves over to tug upon a branch tip, as if shaking the hand of the tree.

Casii watched from her perch as the little Yanii climbed out of the water and casted to dry herself off. ”Blan-cho? What are you on about?” She uttered giving a look of confusion since she wasn’t quite as knowledgeable in Avincian words. She didn’t really care for the answer and instead something became even more pressing as Casii witnessed the Yanii reach out and shake a branch on the tree.

”You shaking Gran Nan’s branch… like a hand? Yer not very smart, aren’t you Yanii?” Now Casii just felt bad. She rolled from her branch, sliding off like a slug from her perch and down to a lower branch, adding a touch of Kinetic magic to slow her momentum enough for her to easily swing up and around and land in a low crouch at the base of the very same branch Ayla was shaking.

”I’m over ‘ere, Yanii. I ain’t a tree.” She tilted her head giving Ayla a patronizing look.

Ayla offers a smile as she looks towards the strange lanky individual, “Did you say your name was Gran Nan? Used to have one myself, she had white hair too.” She takes one of the ripe naranja from the branch, then offers it towards the shy girl. “My name is Ayla, not Yanii. Is Yanii the name of your friend you are looking for?”. As she examines the girl closely, she starts to notice some uncharacteristic aspects of her appearance, “Do you happen to be… a yasoi?”, she asks questioningly.

Casii could feel her head tilt the other way at the name confusion. Gran Nan? She was sure she said Gran Nan’s branch. ”I ain’t Gran Nan. Gran Nan is the tree.” She curled her hand into a fist, tapping on the branch she was crouched on. ”You were shakin’ the branch, remember?”

The Yasoi let herself fall back, plopping onto her bum and lounged against the trunk. She quietly took the orange, though not exactly hungry, but instead twirled it in her idle hands. ”No. Yer a Yanii whose name is Ayla. And yes. I’m a yasoi. What gave it away?” She mused, giving the orange a toss and catch. ”Goin’ too fast for ya, Yanii?”

Ayla frowns as she looks towards the girl, “It seems you are not used to interacting with humans. It is considered polite in our society to provide one with a name, and to address others by their name.” She takes a moment to breathe, then relaxes, and starts again. “My name is Ayla Arslan, it is a pleasure to meet you, Miss…?”, she tilts her head as she offers out her hand, giving the wrist a shaking moment as to ‘hint’ what the custom is to do in this situation.

Casii’s eyebrows raised as she considered the reaction. Yewwie this girl really ain’t been around enough. Better to take it slow and now it made sense what that other one had asked her. Keep an eye out for this one and that other one like they needed help. Sure enough they’d need help if Ayla was the measure.

”Alright, Ay-la, I am called Casii.” She reached out and accepted, even shook Ayla’s offered hand. ”But you oughta know, Yanii is what I call yer kin. It is a yasoi word for humans and I wanna keep usin’ it. Hope that don’t hurt your sensitivities’n all that. It’s just natural.”

Casii touted, flashing a smug grin as she finally peeled apart the orange she was offered and bit into it. ”Just what are you doin’ out ‘ere anyway. Water dancin’?”

“Do you prefer to be called Yasoi, instead of Cas-ee ?”, she adopts the similar type of pronunciation as the girl, not sure if that is a typical yasoi custom or not. “It would have been rude for me to address you as such, you’re a person, a being, more than a thing.”, she nods towards her, using her reaffirming talk, “... and in a manner of speaking, yes, was practicing water dancing. Getting better at it too. ”

The yasoi scoffed, shaking her head in a disapproving way in response to Ayla’s question. ”If you wanna be that way, I don’t right much care what you call me, Yan~ii~.” She flourished with her tone proudly, not taking a liking to being directly confronted like that. Back home you’d only start doing that if you were looking to start something and there is no way Ayla would survive if she was going to start something.

”Yea yer great’n all but why bother with dancin’ right now? It ain’t gonna do much when a giant dragon eats you’n everyone else whole.” She took a big bite of her orange to play into the point but she didn’t believe it. No way was everyone going to be eaten. Only those smart or strong enough to avoid it. ”Maybe yer dance can distract the dragon or somethin’.”

Ayla frowns, as she considers the situation a moment, “You know, they do say bullies are cowards…”, she ponders as she whimsically makes a delay, “Perhaps hiding in a tree and throwing barbed insults will take care of the Sand Wyrm.”, the jab obviously referencing current events. “As for dancing at this hour, practice makes perfect.” Ayla moves her hands together as if clapping, only for it to be heard behind Casii’s head as an orange from the tree erupts, splitting as if crushed, spilling its juices, though Ayla deliberately did not use the one within the girls hand for her demonstration. ”Perhaps we should retire to bed, rest is needed for the morning. Buenas noches, Cas-ee.”

Poor Ayla, Casii considered as she thought she’d be getting a lecture. That thinking was too pure for what life really was. If you were too soft, you’d be squished by everyone and everything. This girl probably never got squished but Casii wasn’t about to be the one to rob the sweet innocence of someone like that. She bit her tongue, ready for the lecture… and was pleasantly surprised.

No lecture but a little show of teeth brought a smile to Casii’s lips. She wasn’t mad or stung by Ayla’s words, rather amused by the comment even laughing through her nose as she dug into her orange a bit more. She’d only peel herself away from her orange to watch the little display of Ayla channeling her magic, sound bursting an orange nearby. ”Well shoot, should have just said yer dancin’ helped you channel. Lead with that next time to shut a few mouths up before they start.” Casii’s own lecture was starting to slip in as she took, quickly scarfed down the remainder of her orange in that next second.

”I sleep ‘ere. I ain’t much like rooms or beds or buildins like you’n them all Yaniis like. But reckon we can sleep. Night, Yanii.” Casii offered as she dusted her hands together to wipe away any of the orange juice clinging to as she turned to climb up back to her cozy branch she had found earlier. ”Oh and Yanii!” Casii hollered from her perch. ”Try’n not take things so seriously. It ain’t gonna work with us if yer gettin’ worked up all the time. I ain’t meanin’ most of it.”

Ayla also recalls the other tale for when confronting a bully, they soon back down when they face any resistance. She silently continues to move over to her towel, covering up her figure as she makes her way out of the courtyard, offering a light wave of her hand in farewell as she leaves.

It had been a day since Casii’s arrival in a strange new land. Deserts were honestly frightening at first and yet as her understanding grew, it became an intriguing place. They were barren of most vegetation from view but they seemed to be life defiantly clinging on in what she counted as inhospitable place. It was inspiring to say the least. How the animals and plantlife defied their circumstances and thrived.

If they could do it, Casii could too. Starting first with figuring out just who the hell these Yaniis were that she was stuck with.

There wasn’t a particular order but considering she only knew two by name at this point, thanks to the bag of bones she spoke to a few days ago, might as well start with them.

Casii was an early enough riser that she beat most people to wake up. Dressing in a loose green tunic that dipped beyond her waist and a pair of cloth leggings that had a very basic pattern, she was pretty much ready for the day. Dawn’s first light was always a warming sight for her so she never missed that but after the sun crested the horizon, she moved to hover around the rooms where her classmates were likely waking.

Perching herself on the balcony, Casii lounged delicately along the low wall in the open hallway. One leg was propped up on the wall, the other kicked from the knee down in boredom as she waited for her first target. Zarina.

She heard the door open and Casii turned to spit a wad of tar from her mouth as she shifted the Jamb’ysp from her bottom lip to her cheek to speak clearer. ”Mornin’ Yanii. You get yer beauty sleep alright?”

Zarina was taking her sweet time. As per routine, she was generally awake a good half-hour before the sun broke through the horizon and thus had some time to kill before she could do anything with the other residents. Today she took an early morning bath! And boy did she enjoy it. The light splashes and the loud humming were easy to hear from the other side of her quarters’ door, almost taunting anyone that would be waiting for her. She did, eventually, dry up and get ready for the day with a visage that was about as fresh as it got with the local insomniac. A little bit of covering up here and there and she looked normal enough.

Finally, the door opened and Casii greeted the Virangish with a drawl that Zaz did not recognize. Not that it mattered too much as the tall teen nearly jumped in place and gasped at the sight of a supposed stalker with a look she definitely wasn’t used to. Okay, she was exaggerating a tad, Casii wasn’t that scary and Zarina wasn’t really caught off guard, but it was rude to wait outside her door like that! Or so she thought anyway, ”Fuck!” she clenched her chest, feigning a near-heart attack, ”At least wait until I’ve had breakfast.” she looked around to see if there wasn’t a sort of ploy going on, ”... What’s up?” she inquired with her own, foreign accent, ”What’s a Yanii? Are you making fun of me?”

Casii brought her tongue around to shift around the Jamb’ysp in her mouth as she watched Zarina react to her sudden greeting. She wasn’t sure if it was a Yanii thing to do, but being attuned to life, she could sense the reactions to stimuli in living things. It got more diverse and complicated as the life grew complex. Plants had them, especially to the sun and water. Animals had them with favorite foods. Yasoi and Yanii and their emotions. So why the fright? Casii didn’t feel that to be right.

She spat tar onto the floor of the hallway as Zarina continued before finally opening with her questions. Casii spat again, nearly hitting the same spot she made earlier. ”Yanii means human.” She stated matter-of-factly, mulling over her regional word for human. It was a different term compared to the proper Yasoi language. Not exactly as flattering but it wasn’t anything bad. Just what they called them. The prospect of talking about her own kind had interested her enough to sit up. ”Err… I’m forgettin’ the Yanii word for it but only a small number of my kin’n I use it. It ain’t bad.”

Casii turned, shifting to face Zarina fully, bringing her legs up to fold over one another in a seated position. Her fingers drummed on both of her knees as she continued. ”’Fraid I’m talkin’ shit about ya, Yanii? I ain’t even know you. Yet. Figured I’d start.”

She turned her head and spat another wad of tar, this time outside of the hallway. She already knew Zarina’s name and a bit about her. At least what her sister was willing to share but it wouldn’t do to come forth with that. She had to keep that on the hush. ”So spill, Yanii. What’s yer name and all that?”

Zarina squinted at the Yasoi after a certain mannerism of her’s became a clear habit. The spitting was not a pleasant sight, and even less pleasant to hear. She set her hands on her hips, her posture making her appear as tall as she could before she spoke, ”Right. Human. What do humans usually call you? Or can I make somethin’ up?” her jaw shifted when she saw Casii spit yet another time. She did not like that at all.

The Virangish looked to her left, where the row of doors leading to bedrooms was, and then to right which led to a group of halls with the kitchen at the very end. Zarina pointed in that direction in particular, ”You mind if we move? They’re still sleeping. And I’m hungry.” less so now that she witnessed all that spitting, but she was a slave to her early day routines. She began to walk, turning her head slightly to see if the peculiar female was following or not. If she did, Zarina would blink and stop for just a small moment. It’d probably be the first time she’d meet a girl taller than her, or at least noticeably taller. Boy was she in for a surprise back in school.

”I’m Zarina. Zaz is fine.” she spoke during the little stroll through the empty halls of the still sleeping Refuge, ”Yours?”

Casii’s turn to squint in displeasure followed shortly after being asked what humans called her. She didn’t think this Yanii had the best intentions if given her choice of name to call her. ”Yasoi. That’s it.” She injected quickly in reply.

She eased up a little as Zarina offered to move this conversation elsewhere. That was fine but part of stationing outside of their doors was to catch them all at once and get it over with. Now some might slip away and it would become a whole deal to track them down. Despite her reluctance, she lifted her shoulders. ”Fine by me, Yanii.”

Casii leapt up from her perch and stepped quickly to reach Zarina’s side, pausing with her Yanii. She turned and met Zarina’s surprised look, tilting her head wondering what that was about for a moment before finally getting a formal introduction.

”Zaz.” Casii repeated getting a feel for the sound before turning her head and spitting again. ”Okay then. I’m Casii.” She turned and continued walking down the hallway. ”You’n ‘em all in your group get along? I ain’t never met many Yaniis so don’t reckon I know how y’all get along.”

Again with the spitting. The cringe was more apparent on Zarina’s expression with some of her features involuntarily twitching at the sound alone. Still, she didn’t speak up about it. It was far too early for whining and complaining. She let out a loud and conspicuous sigh right after it, hoping the Yasoi could correlate it with the incessant purging of tar.

”Casii. That’s a pleasant name. Sounds pretty …” she pauses, ”Yanii.” and then she chuckles before throwing a little smile over to her newfound friend. The not-so-tall teen paused to think though her legs kept going. The smell of the kitchen was keeping her going and it looked as though the staff was already preparing meals for the residents at this hour, ”I think we get along. Nobody’s tried to kill anyone. Yet.” she shrugged.

They got to the kitchen, and adjacent to the relatively large facility was a large dining room meant for the youths. Coffee was already at their disposal, so she took a cup and poured one for herself, ”Want some, Yasoi?” she waved a second, empty cup, ”Am I the first you’ve met, by the way?” she asked while pouring for Casii regardless if she drank or not. It was proper manners to at least leave such a beverage at one’s disposal, even if they weren’t too interested, ”If so, you at least got the rough shit out of the way.”

Casii’s lips scrunched up and eyes squinted as Zaz turned her word against her. ”No, it ain’t. Casii is as Yasoi as… everythin’ else.” She retorted, bordering between serious offense and light-heartedness.

She supposed that the Yanii group she got stuck with getting along was good. It wouldn’t do if they were at each other’s throats and somehow Casii had to mediate. That wouldn’t go well at all. Still, the answer wasn’t exactly what she had expected. Wasn’t Yanii supposed to be very communal and bonding compared to Yasoi? Like herd animals she’d often hear back home. Yet here Zaz was saying they weren’t exactly fawning over each other. Just getting along. That was confusing, she had to admit. ”Oh. Good’n all.”

The kitchen didn’t quite prompt her hunger. In fact, the smell brought a tinge of repulsion as she smelled meat being cooked. She was vegetarian, believing that plants gave food willingly. Animals didn’t. It was a complicated belief and one that did allow eggs to be eaten, at least. She bit her tongue but her demeanor changed when entering the kitchen. She was tense and clearly bothered. It didn’t help that they left the open air for one reeking of burning animal fat. All packaged in the Yanii made walls and furniture of their dining room.

Casii turned and spat. Her hands fiddled with her bag. ”Coffee? Sure, yea.” She accepted but placed it on a table, not taking a drink. ”Yea you’n the group here will be the first I talk much with. I ain’t talked much at the school.” She spoke fast, finally conceding to a baser instinct and swiftly reaching into her bag. She pulled out an unsplit Jamb’ysp and cracked the shell into two pieces, revealing the black tar she had been sucking on. She placed one half into her mouth to join the first while offering the other with an outstretched hand.

”Want it?” She offered, shuffling and fidgeting in place before turning to spit again.

The discomfort didn’t go unnoticed, though Zarina clearly appeared somewhat apathetic to it. It was only fair that both of them were a tad grossed out and not just Zarina with all that unsanitary spitting. Still, the steaming, dark coffee would potentially help with that should she drink it, given how strong the stuff was. The Virangish certainly indulged in her drink however– she needed it with how little sleep she got most nights of the week. With a single ‘sip’ about a third of the cup was already gone.
”Really?” she raised her eyebrows at the revelation that she was not only the first member she met, but supposedly the first ‘Yanii’ too? She didn’t seem quite sure what to make of it, so she ended up opening her arms with a halfhearted smile on her face, ”Well it’s an honor to claim your first,” she said with an abundantly clear sarcasm, ”and you’re my first Yasoi. Truly a romance worthy of the theaters of Perrence.” she chuckled and winked at the one sitting opposite of her.

Again, spitting. It wasn’t enough to ruin Zarina’s mood at this point, and with an offering coming from Casii’s behalf, she let it slide completely, ”What’s thi- Oh.” it was the spitting material. Zaz pursed her lips and just looked at the Jamb’ysp half given to her, ”Do you just chew and spit it?” she seized the piece with her thumb and index fingers, bringing it close to her face for a sniff, ”... Does it make your teeth look gross? Or, like, do I HAVE to spit it?”

Both of Casii’s heels tapped lightly and rhythmically on the tiled floor. Her fingers drummed on the wooden table, joining the quiet orchestra of her Yasoi fidgeting. It wasn’t out of discomfort but usual inclination for her kind. Her discomfort was still present in her face, scrunching her face every time she got a strong whiff of the cooking just in the next room.

She’d scrunch her face again, but this time it was a reaction to what Zaz was saying. Romance? Casii had only understood that word in Avancian as the word to describe sexual partners. Was the Yanii joking or were they really light about sex? She eyed Zaz up and down as if she considered it as an offer but ultimately decided to let that line pass, hopefully sparing her from making an awkward response.

”Yea, Jamb’ysp.” She waved it in front a little just before Zaz took it from her hand. ”Yea you wanna be spittin’. It ain’t the type to settle right if you swallow.” Casii started before entering a low chuckle as she considered a dirty implication of swallowing. ”A bit like suckin’ someone off. Right nasty if yer takin’ that in.”

Casii turned and spat again but used that to lead into reaching into her bag and withdrawing a melon seed. She placed it down on the table, pinning the top and bottom of the seed with fingers. She channeled mana into the seed. It sprouted suddenly and the green, healthy stock grew swiftly and in a matter of a moments it germinated, spawning a ripe green melon that plomped on the table with a thud.

”Here. If yer hungry, I wouldn’t pop the Jamb’ysp into yer mouth yet. Eat first.” She raised her other hand and curled her hand into a fist. She dropped it down on the melon, splitting it with a bit of Force magic deftly applied.

Zarina just stared at the chuckling Yasoi. Lips only slightly parted, posture unmoving and the coffee left to cool before it could be finished. It went from light humors of romantic tropes to swallowing. The judging was off the charts, and slowly her gaze narrowed. This was awkward and she definitely needed a moment to ponder her strategy with this one. But, luckily for her, the Yasoi had something to ease some tension from the situation: A melon! … Sucking, melons. Vashdal help this lass.

”Err, wow.” a curious hand reached out toward the newly formed fruit that had just been prepped by Casii, ”Don’t mind if I do.” she seized this opportunity to let that previous exchange just kind of slip by. Using her own force magic, she waved her index in a perfectly vertical motion, which would cut a piece of the severed Melon, and then a little curve with the same finger to detach the orange piece of delicious fruitiness away from the shell. Then, she indulged, ”Mmm …” she chewed, chewed and chewed before taking another piece.

”This is fucking good.” she rapidly pointed at the opened melon, eyes wide with enthusiasm, ”How- just, like, how did you do that?”

Casii lifted her shoulders in a lazy shrug before reaching out to drum her index fingers on the melon she had just grown. ”Yanii call it Greengrowth. Castin’ leaks to other livin’ creatures so I just cast everythin’ into the melon. Easy.”

”Easy she says.” Zarina mumbles. Her arms crossed under her chest and her back sagged against her chair as she let the pieces of melon levitate into her mouth whilst she listened to the long-eared newcomer.

She wasn’t hungry, having eaten the parent melon that this melon’s seed had come from just a moment ago. ”Savin’ the seeds though. Need ‘em.” The second Jamb’ysp she had taken was starting to take effect. The room seemed to spread out like looking through a fish’s eye while the colors saturated, bleeding over into the other colors and mixing. Naturally, Casii’s words were starting to sound a bit more slurred as her attention to keeping her Jamb’ysp from impeding her speech was placed to the wayside.

”Better than that there kitchen stuff.” She gestured her head over towards the kitchen. ”Meat is no good’n gettin’ sick of smellin’ it. Don’t ya, too?”

The Virangish squinted at her Yasoi counterpart. The effects of what she had just ingested were becoming evident. A subtle brush of her hand over her side of the table had that Jam-grub be flung further away (although not on the floor, she’d be damned if a kid at this). The accent Casii wore was bad enough on its own, but now that it was slurred too, Zarina could only just stare in awkward silence as she only got about half of what was asked, only uttering a loud ”Uhhhh.” to pad out the moment, ”Yeaaaaaahhhh?” she shrugged with a clearly confused grimace.

Although, as fate would have it, the cooked sausages were about ready to be served and some were available on the buffet table already. Clapping her hands together, Zarina stood to indulge in some of them, plus some churros that came along with it and some freshly made, goat-milk produced cream, ”Want some, yasoi?” she shot a smile at Casii.

Yeah? Casii didn’t believe the Virangish girl, but the Yanii would soon get the chance to prove herself. The food came out and the extra Jamb’ysp had done its part to dull her senses to endure what was a fairly uncomfortable experience. This was her seriously trying to get to know her Yanii classmates and she didn’t want it to go poorly. Zaz seemed alright by Yanii standards, Casii quietly mused as she watched her collect her breakfast. Hopefully she would understand that the Yasoi did not want to see…

Meat. Sausages, specifically. Casii cringed as the Viragnish brought one up for a first bite. The smell was puncturing now and the vegetarian retreated her hands to hide her nervous fidgeting. ”Can you not eat those in front of me.” Casii stiffened trying to sound diplomatic but her tone had taken quite the turn to be more severe.

Zarina was just about ready to dig in. Knife and fork in hands, the still greasy and steaming piece of meat was about to be punctured for an added dose of stomach churning aromas. But it seemed as though Casii’s speech was a bit more digestible when put in distress- enough so to get Zarina to stop and look up at her, ”Hmmm? You don’t like sausages?” she asked with a somewhat dumb look on her face. She was hesitant to just eat a piece anyway, because that sausage really looked good.

The Virangish opted to just drop the utensils, pushed the plate away and just plucked a churro from her tainted breakfast so she could at least enjoy that, ”Shame, they’re actually real good. Churro?” she waves the long piece of sugary carbs. Its shape resembled a sausage too, and the smell from both the kitchen and the plate really helped to imagery here, ”Extra good with the cream, too. Better than uh-” she paused, recalling her own nauseating experience with Casii. A quick dip in the cream later and she took her first bite from the treat, ”Mmm. Better than riding through the Torraro coastline.”

Perhaps under different circumstances, you know, without any gross looking sausages being around stinking up the room, Casii would have loved to have tried a churro. Instead, the offer was spoiled by the presence of something hated. ”No thanks.” She sneered, suspecting the offer wasn’t quite as innocent as Zaz was making it out to be. In retaliation, Casii instinctively turned her head and spat, having spent the past few minutes collecting a considerable wad of tar and saliva.

”Never been. One day.” She commented on it but quickly relented to her impulse to try and leave this damned room. ”You wanna go outside, somewhere?” Between the smell of meat, seeing sausage, and the double Jamb’ysp she had been sucking on, she was starting to feel sick to her stomach.

Speaking of spoiling, nothing was more appetizing than seeing a sky-high Yasoi spit a wad of Jamb-shit and mucus into the floor just a couple of feet away from you. Zarina’s facial features twitched at the sight. The accumulated sleep debt and natural explosiveness of her person brought her to a near-headache at such foul sights. The Virangish’s mouth remained slightly agape, her stare directed at the impact point of the spit. It was important for Casii to notice this, and when she did Zarina would turn her gaze toward the tattoo’d face before her, ”Is it some sacred rite from your people to belch literal shit while eating?” she too had her appetite ruined and tossed her churro onto her discarded plate with a rough swing of her hand.

”Alright, new rule.” she tapped both her hands on her side of the table and rose up, ”No sausages. But no more fuckin’ spittin’ indoors.” a very crude imitation of the Yasoi’s drawl, ”To ensure the safety and prospering of future breakfasts. Yeah?” a tad aggressive, but her restraint testified to her desire to keep some peace. The Yasoi was gross, but at least tried to be enjoyable.

Casii followed Zaz’s appalled gaze to her spit before turning back to the clearly antagonized glare awaiting her. The Yasoi found her teeth clenching as the Yanii made a stab at her race, not quite understanding that is more meant for her. In hindsight, it was silly to get worked up about but there was a lot going through Casii’s head. It was difficult to search through the rationale part while stressed at the very moment.

Of course when Zaz rose up, Casii rose up as well, her chair sliding away in a rush as she was prepared to meet whatever Zaz intended. It was a common enough thing for her to fight back home and Casii believed if this Yanii was moving to try her luck, she’d be ready. It wasn’t quite as aggressive and the Yasoi only kept her glare trained on Zarina’s face, eyes darting around as if searching for something.

Zarina was about ready to square off as body languages were getting a bit too aggressive. Was the Yasoi going to leap onto her? Humans seldom dealt with them these days, so extra twitchiness was to be expected.

Casii would relent, her expression easing slightly. ”Fine. No spittin’. But pardon me if I ain’t much of an indoors person in the first place.” She withdrew a few steps from the table. ”Enjoy your breakfast in peace.” With that, Casii turned and walked out. Once outside and back out in the open space, she spat another wad of tar into the courtyard before heading off to her sanctuary she carved out of herself.

The Virangish relaxed the moment Casii complied and abandoned all stiffness in her disposition. The tension in the air had lightened at the very least, ”Aye. Enjoy the cool morning air before it chokes with the heat.” she didn’t stick around and packed some of her food and coffee to enjoy in her quarters. Zarina didn’t quite feel like dealing with people this morning after all.

Whatever Silas had planned to do next, it would be clearly interrupted by a rapping fist on the door to his dark room. ”Hey! Whadda’ doing in there? Pretty sure book burnin’ is against the rules. Came a loud voice came on the other side to match the pounding. It was the only warning he’d get before the pounding ceased and the door flung open.

Standing at the doorway was a white-haired Yasoi, dressed in a red tunic with brown patterned trousers that looked a size too big for her small frame. Her furrowed eyebrows indicated she was obviously annoyed, having to bear the smell of smoke for the past ten minutes. Although her expression, she thought, would be missed with someone who was blindfold. Annoyance lead to confusion as she considered the delinquent. ”Err… wait a minute. You ain’t able to see. Why are you in a library?”

The interruption startled Silas into knocking over the stubbornly-unlit candle as he rose with a start, heat creeping to his cheeks at being caught mid-distraction. He kept his face towards the ground, expecting an angry teacher on the other side.
"Sorry I was-" He didn't get to finish before the woman continued speaking, nearly pushing past him to get into the room. Her height was the only distinguishable feature to Silas' limited sight, but it along with her peculiar accent was enough to pique his curiosity.

"I can see." He folded his arms and looked to the desk of indistinguishable energies. "Mostly." He corrected, before sighing and looking at his guest again.
"I take it you're new too? Silas Rieger, resident Power-Gazer." He offered his hand in greeting.

Casii watched, arching an eyebrow in disbelief at his response. She looked intently at him, trying to read what his game was before shooting a glance to the nearby knocked over candle. ”Uh-huh.” She didn’t sound convinced as she leaned against the doorframe and considered his introduction. Crossing her arms, she let his offered hand hang in the air.

”Power..gazer?” She didn’t know that last word. From the context, it seemed like it was important relating to him. Is that what he calls being blind? ”Maybe I’m new. Doesn’t matter. I know well enough to not be messin’ ‘round with candles’n books. What are you doin’ here anyway? If you can see, that is.”

"Seeing probably wasn't the right word" He acquiesced and thought back to the way his vision was explained to him, first by Moriff, then Giarrone.

"My eyes don't sense light the way yours do, just energy. It makes reading pretty much impossible except-" He reached for the magnet and training papers from the table "Are you familiar with magnetic magic?"

Seeing definitely wasn’t the right word. He had some cloth around his eyes. He wasn’t seeing anything, Casii thought. Then he explained some magic about seeing energy and for a moment the yasoi thought about what energy looks like? Colors? Pictures? It didn’t make sense.

”Yeah. I know magnetic magic. I’m a Yasoi. We know magic.” This guy didn’t seem real. Reads in the dark, talks about seeing energy and now is starting on asking if she knew what magnetic magic was. To a Yasoi! She used her tongue to push the Jamb’ysp from her left cheek to her right cheek, procuring a small cup from her pocket to spit a darkened glomp of spit into. ”You bored enough to want to learn how to read without seein’ then? Or can you not actually see?” She asked but quickly decided she didn’t care to hear the answer. ”Show me.” She suddenly commanded, stepping forward and closing the door behind her.

"You're Yasoi?" He said, equal parts excitement and surprise. "Sorry but I've only met a few of your kind before, and facial features are lost to me" He waved a hand in front of his blindfold.

`
Casii leaned against the door in continued observation, quietly raising her cup and spitting in it once more. If he had to be told she was a Yasoi then he really couldn’t see. ”Okay so you can’t see.”

Silas shook his head “I can’t see light” He handed her the papers, and held the magnet beneath them. "There are flecks of iron in the ink." He explained. "You should be able to sense it, but that's how I see things, sensing the energies and putting a shape to them. It’s how I can see you. Your heartbeat, arteries, and even the electric patterns in your head." He smiled coyly at her. “This affliction isn’t common among your people?”

Casii opened her mouth to respond but she’d find herself interrupted by a rap on the door. Another Yanii was being drawn in from the smell of smoke, no doubt. The newcomer looked far too happy if that were the case and sure enough, the new Yanii cried out in delight at seeing her brother?

“There you are brother!” Vieri threw up their arms and then immediately pulled them back, wincing. They sidestepped into the room and pushed the door carefully shut with a heel, set down their satchel, “I am hoping I don’t get you kicked out for being so loud, but lucky we are up in the rafters, ey? Only the spiders to hear. I would almost think you were trying to hid.”

Cinnamon started to overpower the smells of old paper, and, was that… orange?

Vieri turned their smile to Casii, “I am Vieri, sister, you are a friend of Silas?” A tilt of the head, “You have a face that would be fun to paint. Nice colours. Cute nose.”

She was loud. At least she smelled nice. The only Yasoi in this cramped room made space by hopping her bum on top of the desk Silas was using, sitting on the edge and letting her feet kick idly. The newcomer came in fast, spattering off a lot of things prompting Casii to take in as she worked the Jamb’ysp in her mouth a little with her tongue. Amusing up until the nose comment. Folding her amusement into a glare, she considered if that was a slight against it. Probably but better to be diplomatic for now.

”Yer a spring climber, Yanii. Came to lecture your … brother about burning books?” She slurred with a mouthful, shooting Silas a scowl. She wasn’t going to let him live down the smoke thing quite yet. ”Yer too late then. I was already lecturin’.”

Casii flicked her head upwards before continuing, ignoring Vieri’s babble at her. ”You’n Power Burner here, related? Yer ain’t lookin’ too alike. That a Yanii thing?”

Vieri's arrival came as a whirlwind, assaulting Silas' heightened remaining senses. Loud and always sparkling with energy he nearly dropped his papers at their entrance, and scrambled to save what remained of his efforts as the Yasoi sat on them.

"If I'm hiding I'm doing a poor job." He complained, looking between the two intruders before resting his gaze on the Yasoi and replying dryly; "The resemblance is all in the eyes."

“And in our love of burning books, ey?”

His patience has worn thin first trying to explain the nature of his abilities to the Yasoi, and now with a second interruption.
"Vieri, this is the new Yasoi, too mysterious to share even her name; though I'm sure you'll manage."

“I do like them mysterious, but it’s another name I am after. I wonder, sister, could you help? This note came from a stupid bird,” they knelt down besides their satchel, rummaged, stood back up with a slip of parchment. “I can read our names, but not the last, I think it is Yasoi, no?”

Vieri held the note out to Casii. On it were three lines. Silas Rieger. Vieri Zimbasu. And…

Casii’s eyes narrowed as the pair before her exchanged before Vieri began to inquire about a name. She peered over and instantly recognized the horrid Yanii way of writing her name. Casii’fyret’alan. Silly Yaniis couldn’t even figure out how to read her name? Casii chuckled in her own amusement.

”Yea that’s Yasoi. That’s me. Casii.” She mused but soon realized someone had written her name on a paper with these two. ”Hey! Why you got my name like that?”

“Of course. If it was anyone other than Hugo, I might have thought it a coincidence, finding you here. I suppose he actually has a use for us, and you, now,” then, finding the humour: “Not bad, ey brother?”

“Or we’re already in trouble.” He peered at the scrap of paper, unable to see anything on it at all. ”Haven’t burned anything down yet have you?”

“Not yet. I suppose the Forked Tower awaits, no?”

Casii considered for a moment. ”I ain’t done nothin’ to be in trouble’n book burner just started so I reckon its somethin’ else. Suppose we should go see.”

Silas nodded in agreement and held open the door for his classmates and they funneled into the hallway.

On the surface Kaspar was the exact sort of high-born Silas had worked so hard to avoid since arriving at Ersand’Enise: Somber, aloof, and generally removed from the world immediately around him. So of course it happened that the Helbanese noble was tasked with showing him the way to his room.

While they were still at the entrance of the hallway, before the uncomfortable silence even had time to set in, Silas was desperate to end it; “So, how did you manage to kill a sand wyrm?”

Kaspar was not overly familiar with Silas—though it was not unusual, given the noble’s social skills. Nevertheless, he’d run out of time to be awkward and uncomfortable around strangers. Though he would’ve been fine with silence, he would not reject an attempt at conversation.

The question did bring a stutter to his step, though, as red eyes shot toward the powergazer. He was silent for a moment, coaching most of the surprise out of his voice as he responded, “We… Haven’t, yet. We diverted it with noise and movement, and it’s not approach the Refuge yet, but… It’s still out there.” He watched his fellow student carefully, wondering how little information any of them had been given before Hugo sent them here.

"Its the same one?" Silas stopped mid-step in surprise, only to double his pace to catch up to the taller boy once he moved again. "Is there a reason it keeps coming back?"

Kaspar inhaled steadily at Silas’s response, and he tossed the information around in his mind, figuring out how best to lay it out. Deciding on a straightforward approach, he finally answered, “The first night, it was drawn in by prey. The next day, it consumed an aberration and was driven mad.”

Silas let a silence fall over them as they turned two corners. It wasn't as uncomfortable as he feared; only solemn. But that was likely his own pessimism. "What do you take our chances of killing it this time?"

Kaspar thought on it for a moment as the silence settled between them again. Finally, voice more confident than one might expect, he offered, ”We’re prepared this time. We didn’t know to expect it the first time, but now we have numbers, training, and a chance to strategize.”

"Our numbers consisting of; a handful of students, a dozen half-trained tethered, and maybe dumb luck?" Silas shook his head. "We're going to lose people, and Hugo didn't send so much as a Zeno, doesn't that bother you?"

Kaspar was silent for a few moments. With a soft voice he responded, “It does. We’re working our hardest to make sure we don’t lose any more, but… We already have. And you’re right. It’s very likely we’ll lose more. But the only way we can confront Hugo is by making it back.” The ending note was one of resolve—Kaspar had felt the terror of being near this beast, and he knew the Warden’s original plan. But Hugo wasn’t going to rescue them—so they might as well live long enough to make it his problem. “This is you."

They'd stopped at a door, to Silas indistinguishable from any of the others they'd passed. With a final nod to each-other the boys separated in slightly worse spirits than before.

Ayla was nothing and everything a noble was meant to be. Like a princess from a story of old, the children congregated around her at any given opportunity, and were never turned away regardless of how busy the older girl was. She was open, kind, and ready with a smile despite their hapless circumstances. Silas half expected her to charm birds from the sky when she played her flute in a demonstration of sonic force magic. He stayed behind after her lesson, sticking to the walls until the rest of the room had emptied.

“Do you have a moment, Lady Arslan?”

Ayla smiled warmly as the boy approached her, not having a real moment to properly greet him since his arrival to the refúgio, “Si, it is a pleasure to be formally acquainted.” She moves her hands over Silas’ own, taking them in a warm gesture. “How may one be of help?”.

"Thanks" He said, pulling back his hand to fold his arms across his chest "It's about the Wyrm, I hear you were the one who came up with the plan last time."

Ayla nods with a smile, expanding upon it for her new friend, “Dança-Alsahra, or Desert-Dancer in Avincian, it is a Torragonese children's’ game where you dance and when the Wyrm comes, you got to stay still, or it eats you. This was the inspiration for my idea. Was there more you wanted to know?”

"What difference it makes now that it's eaten an aberration." He returned her smile sheepishly before continuing "I don't have any experience with them but would it change the wyrm’s instincts so much we couldn't use a similar trick?"

Ayla takes a moment to consider the words, trying to describe it for a boy. “In simple terms… have you seen how alcohol changes people? Some become happy drunks, others become sad, and some become very angry as if in a frenzy. The Wyrm has lost its senses and is currently in a frenzy.”, she shakes her head side-to-side. “The trick may work again, may not, but regardless, it will not give up its chase. Would only buy time. There isn’t a way to sober it up either that is known to me.”

Silas nodded along, doing his best to conceal how helpless he felt about the situation; two steps behind everyone else with no way to keep up or even be of much use with his meager Gift. "You don't find it strange that Hugo only sent us as reinforcements then?"

“Hugo has sent enough”, Ayla takes hold of Silas’ hands again, holding them up. “Imagine the Wyrm is a cart. You are not strong enough to push it along yourself.”, she moves her hands into his, squeezing upon them. “But by working together? We can push that thing along. Here in the Refúgio, we have a lot of hands. We need people who can help direct and teach those hands what to do. Now you understand?” She offers him a wide smile, “Now these hands are many!”, she releases the hands and claps them together.

Silas stared at the shape of his hands after she dropped them. He appreciated the spirit of her words, but when it came down to it, they were children teaching children to fight a monster few trained warriors would survive in a non-crazed state. "Thank you, Ayla. I hope to lighten the load however I can." His smile widened enough to show teeth as he forced a more positive tone; "And when it's dead we'll turn the damn thing into a courtyard statue in honour of your quick thinking."

Ayla tilts her head to the side with the last comment, offering a light smile. “We should dedicate it to all who took part and the lives of those we have lost. Dedicate it to a bright future, a sign of the challenges that had to be overcome.”, she seems to instinctively look towards the direction of the courtyard with the comment. “It is easy to slip into darker thoughts, as my Da used to say, being brave is about standing up when you have to.”

Silas thought it better to not to bring up that many of their allies couldn't stand. It wasn't what she had meant after all, though the vulnerability of the refuge's habitants still had him questioning their chances. But that was his own cynicism; it was better to put faith in those who had already dealt with the wyrm before. "You've got everyone here united and doing everything they can." He finally said, trying to think of a single positive thing to say about their hopeless circumstance. "I'm sure he'd be proud."

“You do like to flatter, Mister…”, she notices that the boy hasn’t shared his own name with her, and leaves an adequate prompt for him to provide it, encouraging it. “Reframing problems into solutions is always helpful. If they focus on what the problem is, they grow withdrawn, hide away, become demotivated. If we tell people what we can do, they become motivated, and active. The latter has a lot more success.”

"Rieger" He said with some hesitancy. It still felt strange coming from his mouth, his previous life had needed only one name. He kept his face towards the courtyard but kept close sense of Ayla's reaction, prepared to be disillusioned of her seemingly genuine kindness when she failed to recognize his name.
"I won't keep you any longer, but thanks for speaking with me."

Ayla shakes her head, as she directs the boy back towards her. “We are amiss. Let’s start again.”, she instinctively moves her hands down to pat them upon her clothes before she brings them back up again, “Hello, my name is Ayla Arslan, my friends can call me Ayla. Pleased to meet you. To whom do we speak?”, she takes Silas’s hand to shake upon it, seeming intent on wanting to have introductions in order before they depart.

Silas grinned at her, quickly disarmed of his fears by her continued enthusiasm. "Silas Rieger," He took her hand "I think I'm to be in your apprentice group, with Zeno Zemana? We'll have a lot to talk about." His head tilted to one side when their hands parted again, and his smile became more pursed. "After the wyrm obviously."

The Vangrish girl was to be avoided. Silas had decided that early, when he’d heard her speak during the debrief. She was confidence and shadows, quick wit with an underlying earnesty that he wasn’t sure what to make of. Going with his instincts to never trust a merchant, he’d purposefully awoken early to complete his morning task of tending to the prisoners in the Red Tower alone rather than in her company as originally planned.

It was upon his return to the entrance that he became overwhelmed by the smell of coffee; following it lead him to Zarina, standing by a window steaming mug in one hand, a book in the other. He considered leaving, but even as the thought crossed his mind he knew it was too late, and that his presence had been noticed.

“Goodmorning,” He said, not quite comfortable enough to enter the room. “Did I miss breakfast?” He’d risen and left before the sun had risen, and hadn’t expected anyone else up for another hour at least.

It was hard to find a good book around the refuge- the best one could find was a bestiary or detailed notes in the rangers’ quarters. What Zarina had in her hand was Vice-Warden Adela’s records. A lot of payroll management and details involving the logistics of supplying the Refuge. Her mind kept busy, but was eventually distracted by a set of footsteps passing under the window she had been leaning against to take in some of the Torragonese air.

”Silas, was it?” she inquired with her usual Virangish accent. The book was snapped shut and Zarina conferred a half-lidded but hawkish gaze toward the young teen, ”If you’re hungry, I have unfinished sausages and churros-” she turns her body to be perpendicular to the window- essentially inviting him in, ”we had a job this morning, yeah? Prisoner duty? Though I guess there’s no hurry.”

When she didn't immediately snap at him, Silas relaxed enough to enter the room, but did little more than eye her plate of food. "Just finished taking care of them actually-" His brow furrowed behind the blindfold "I guess there wasn't any alternative to keeping them down there?" One didn't need to be particularly astute to know something more had happened prior to his arrival. Something the others in the group had managed to keep tight lipped about, and if Silas was going to take part in any more criminal activity he'd at least like to know why.

The plate of now cold food was on a small desk a meter away from her recently straightened bed. Zarina kept herself by the windowsill as she watched the blindfolded youth absorb his surroundings, ”Maybe there was. Could’ve killed them. Could’ve just let them all leave. Safe. Risky.” she loosely held her mug with a couple of her fingers, letting it dangle under her hand would make the more neurotic of people a tad nervous, ”This was the safest option for everyone. Although they’re still dangerous, Silas.”

The Virangish took a sip from her still warm coffee and made her way to the large mirror opposite of her temporary bed. She focused on her eyes and what little makeup she had left, ”There’s a reason why they send two of us down there. Wait for me next time, yeah?” her voice had remained modulated the whole time, like nothing could quite frustrate her this morning. Or maybe she was just happy to not have to work, ”Are you gonna eat that?” she turned to face her guest, her book posed on the adjacent drawer and her idle hand over her hip.

Silas watched the teitering mug, its slow arc of kinetic energy as heat continued to radiate off. "Any more dangerous than a crazed wyrm?" Zarina quickly replied to the question, ”Think more the danger they pose plus the Wyrm, plus the not-so-jolly duke.” she then sipped from her mug again.

He reached for the plate of food and took one of the cooled sausaged from it before passing it off to Zarina."I'm not suggesting to let them go- but at the least we could use some more adults trained in the gift when the time comes?"

”Manpower’s good, sure.” she nodded but gestured in dismissal when offered the meat. There was a reason it was left cold, ”But these guys sent us to die to eliminate the aberration. They’re not exactly the sort I’d invite to the Carnival with the family.” she paused and narrowed her eyes toward where Silas’ own would be, ”Do you see me, by the way? With hearing or maybe the bandana’s see-through? Met a guy once who saw with sound …”

"Something like that." He bit into the sausage and chewed slowly, reluctant to go through the same explanation he felt he'd given a hundred times. But she'd been more forthcoming than expected, and he was beginning to feel guilty for avoiding her. "I sense energy. Your shape, movements I can see. But details; faces, writing..." He shrugged, motioning his head towards the space she'd placed her book. "Well, some day. Or so I'm told."

Zarina nodded, looking content with the answer given to her, ”Cool.” she responded as if she were a child that had just seen a big lizard for the first time, ”So you can’t quite tell if I’m smiling or frowning. But I guess you can see how I move and hear my voice.” she gestured to the plate, ”Try the churro, especially with the cream.”

The sausage finished, Silas wiped the oils from his fingers on the hem of his sleeve. "I'm sorry your sister had to leave, she seemed-" There was a pointent silence while Silas desperately searched for a neutral word to describe the witch he'd met for mere moments. "Interesting."

The Virangish went from relatively tame and content with her guest to tense and stiff rather quickly at the mention of her sister. Silas could probably hear and even feel it– her heart rate increased a little and her body heat went up a couple of increments. She inhaled loudly ”Yeah. Well. She’s always had her way of doing things.” she kept a tone in an attempt to hide how brittle her voice had gotten. A long sigh followed shortly after to vent that initial inhale, ”You’ll see her again, I’m sure. She likes unique cases like you. That is if we survive.”

It was oddly reassuring to hear someone else give voice to the thought that they may not live through the wyrm attack. While he appreciated the optimism of others, his own mind was full of doubts and questions. He considered sharing them with the Vangrish girl, but the mere mention of her sister seemed to have upset her enough already. It was always a careful balance, being unable to see what he should, while what was meant to be hidden lay clearly before him. Silas averted his gaze to the window and rising sun.

"I'd better get to doing something productive to increase our odds." He offered a smile as he moved to leave the room. "Thanks for breakfast, and the talk."

Zarina nodded, but raised her hand to get Silas to stop for a moment, ”Patience, fireball.” she scurried over to her bag she had left by her bed and after a bit of rummaging, she’d take out a gourd filled with still fresh water. The young lad eager to get things done was offered the container, ”The heat can even make the toughest guys faint. Take a good swig every hour or so, yeah?” but before he could take it, she pulled it away for a brief moment, ”It comes back to my room in the evening, alright?”

In Yalen, Silas saw what his life may have looked like. His mother had been pressured to give him to the church both when he was born and again when his eyes began to deteriorate. The clergy boy seemed happy enough with his lot; devout and honest to the point he seemed truly incapable of any sort of subterfuge. A relief in comparison to some of the others in their group. It was still Silas’ first night at the refuge when Yalen volunteered to help clean up after the children’s dinner when the former had drawn the short straw for the chore.

”Thank you” Silas said as he started to collect plates. ”But despite whatever Cassi told you I can see what I’m doing.”

Yalen gave Silas a sunny smile and continued to scrub the table’s surface with a moist cloth.

Since you’re here in this dangerous place, I assumed you could take care of yourself. I wasn’t trying to undermine your autonomy.”

"I didn't-" Silas stopped himself short before his foot got permanently stuck in his mouth. Of course he'd be so careless speaking to the boy fighting his own body to stay upright each day. But that was another truth he likely wasn't meant to see, so after muttering a second thanks he moved to the other side of the dinning hall to continue the chore in silence.

Silas meets people.

Kaspar and Casii talked about nature and conspired to plant some Naranja trees in Ersand’Enise
Kaspar trained some Tethered to make walls
Kaspar and Felix had a good time on watch and talked a bit about the future and the past
Kaspar is ready for shit to go down with the Duke

Yalen spends the time leading up to the Duque's arrival training the residents and keeping watch for the sand wyrm. He makes himself some nice bling out of a snail shell.

The time for the siesta had passed. The sun was beginning to kiss the horizon and the sand dunes promised even more safe shading for those unfortunate to patrol. It would so happen to be Zarina’s round and she brought along Kaspar for the ride. He was one of those with restricted mobility- a burden to the group should immediate retreat be necessary. The passionate rider of the group was keen on fixing this shortcoming, especially with the potential need to evacuate should things go sour.

”So, wait, what’s the deal with him looking like you, then?” she asked, clearly talking about Felix. There was small talk and some subjects tackled, but it culminated in the inevitable doppelganger discussion. Zarina was on top of a dark brown mare with a recently brushed mane, while not-Felix was given a male horse (not stallion, yes) with a similar base colour but with some white spots around his back and abdomen. Quite the docile one– a proper steed for a beginner, ”Loosen your hold a little, he’s pacing with Fiorella here.” she gave her horse a nice tap on the neck.

Kaspar shifted in his seat, both adjusting to riding and contemplating the question before him. The boy had yet to decide what he would tell his fellow classmates about the connection between himself and Felix—he’d never wanted to usurp the other boy’s life, but upheaving it all would be… complicated.

“It’s an interesting coincidence,” he admitted, “And he’s also from Helbahn. But we’ve not found any blood relation.” None of what he said was a lie—and the boy was careful of that, given how astute he knew Zarina could be. But there were many lines to read between, and he didn’t know how to avoid those, ”Uh-huh.” she simply answered, not looking too impressed by the explanations, but also clearly out of her depth in the subject.

Watching Zarina’s actions, though, he adjusted his hands on the reins, sliding more slack from his grasp while carefully eyeing hers. He patted the horse on the neck gently. “Is this true, Apelsinfrö? Are you copying Fiorella? You should be your own horse.” He tsked, voice sounding far too serious for the joke it was.

Zarina chuckled, ”You wanna go your own way, Apels- Apel is his name now. Apel and you wanna bond a little?” and then she smirked, ”Let’s go for a little warm up trot, then, shall we?” with only a tap of her boots against the animal’s sides, the mare began to to pick up the pace and trotted about. They were essentially circling the Refuge, making sure there wasn’t anything abnormal and keeping an eye out for potential intruders, ”C’mon, keep up!”

Kaspar narrowly bit back an exclamation as Zarina spurred her mare into a trot. Beneath him, Apelsinfrö was picking up speed, though his gait had not yet changed. The noble boy had learned one valuable lesson in the horse riding days of his youth—that you could most certainly kick too hard. He tapped his heels against the horse’s flank and spurred easily into a trot. ”Good!” Zarina cheered, her head consistently oriented toward her riding partner to ensure no accident happened.

Bouncing in his saddle and trying to shift his weight downwards, Kaspar kept pace with Zarina—though he was pretty sure Apel was doing most of the work for him, thank the Pentad. “You seem to know a lot about riding,” he asked as he adjusted to the change in pace. “Does it run in your family, or is it just a personal interest?”

”Nope, not a family thing.” there was her giddy answer. The girl definitely seemed happy to be riding, ”Mother hates ‘em. Well, all animals. I’m willing to bet she thinks I’m rebelling.” she tugged on the reins a little to equalise herself with Kaspar since she had taken a slight lead, ”Think you and Apple are ready for a canter, hmm?”

There would be no galloping yet, though, as she eventually tightened her grip and brought Fiorella back into a stable pace, ”So. Now that we’re nice and comfy, away from the nosy lot,” they were indeed quite far, and behind a large dune of sand that even shielded them from the Refuge’s sights, ”it’s time I get nosy myself, little Kaspar.” her lips pushed out a toothy smirk, ”Wanna tell me how you mashed the Halassa again? I had time to think, and even Mini-Padre’s fun methods weren’t that hard to figure out.” Fiorella scooted to the side, closing the little distance between her and ‘Apple’, ”How’d you do it? Or did Ysilla cheat and steal a kill to one-up me?”

“Is a canter very different from a trot?” was Kaspar’s response as his grip tightened on the reins. He shot a look towards Zarina, clearly nervous at the idea of speeding up, but was not outright rejecting the idea. ”It’s faster. And you’ll probably eat shit if you’re not careful.” she replied with the usual shit-eating grin.

Then she slowed down, and something reminded him of that first night in the desert, when they’d talked on the way to the refuge. As she spoke of getting nosy, his posture tightened and the features of his face drifted into something neutral. He expected a deeper dig at the connection between himself and Felix—but the Virangish girl had a different thought in mind.

His expression did not mirror his surprise, though, as he chewed on the answers he could give. Finally, voice cool in the practiced way of someone trying to remain unreadable, he replied, “I think it hurt itself more hitting my barrier than I expected. Or perhaps Ysilla did steal it and I didn’t notice—maybe even Jocasta.” He knew the cool tone would not keep her from suspecting he was being untruthful, but he hoped (though a large part of him suspected it was in vain) that she would not dig any further.

”Uh-huh.” another one of those, although despite her blasé demeanour, she didn’t drop it this time, ”So what actually killed it?” she mirrored his attempt at a poker face, although her gaze was adamant in its focus toward Kaspar’s direction. She was expecting something, and that stare would remain inexorable until the Virangish wannabe-inquisitor had her answer. Unrelated to the current circumstances, Fiorella released a cute little neigh!

Kaspar met her gaze with his own, holding it steadily. He could tell she would not back down, but he’d been trained in the art of keeping shit to himself. Still, the boy didn’t want to alienate himself through obstinance; what he’d done treaded the line of acceptable, but it was possible no answer would cause more alarm than a true one.

Taking a deep breath, he asked, “Why do you want to know?” Rather than being accusatory, the question was soft—something in his voice almost asking for a reason to trust her, a feeling he’d not expected to encounter when he first came to Ersand’Enise.

The way Kaspar posed his question seemed to matter as Zarina retreated back a little, adopting a more relaxed posture on top of her saddle, looking as though she was just about ready to tip over and lie down with her eyes now toward the sky, ”Because I wanna know what you can do.” she exhaled from her nostrils and paused for a moment, ”Aaaaand, I recalled our talk– y’know, after the fact.” she reached back to give her horse a couple of taps on its rear, prompting it to suddenly enter a trot just as she straightened her posture.

Fiorella cut off Apple, causing both animals to stop in their tracks, ”So I thought: Maybe he’s actually more than just some glass-making, silent boy at the back of the classroom sort of person.” by how she gripped the reins and held herself, it was clear she knew how to herd these animals and keep them pacified. Her expression remained calm, even playful, ”So. How did the Halassa die? Because it wasn’t melted brains- I’ve seen that before, and don’t ask how- nor was it my sister.”

“No one’s taught me how to hurt or fight with The Gift,” Kaspar admitted softly, glancing away from Zarina. “But they’ve taught me how to create, and I had to figure out for myself how to help the people around me.” He exhaled through the nose, red eyes returning to Zarina and meeting her passively.

“I put a rock in its throat. Like severing it from the inside,” he admitted. “It was not the cleanest kill, but it was what I needed to do to make sure I was worthwhile.” His expression was still stoic, but something in the boy’s red eyes were almost pleading, try as he might to hide it.

When his eyes met Zarina’s, he’d see pursed lips and eyes wide, as if she was shocked! She even started to breathe a little faster, her body language looking tense like an animal having had their space invaded, ”... Oh, Blood Magic!” she blurted out in uncharacteristic giddiness, ”That’s it? Huh. That’s a smart way to handle it, actually.” she nodded, her facial expression suggested she was impressed too.

Fiorella was guided to the side and made to pace with Apple again, ”Were you worried that I would actually lose my shit?” she still had a cheeky smirk on her face, ”With all the ‘Binding Magic isn’t used offensively’” she even used a silly, low voice, ”stuff we hear back at school? Mmm yes, I’ll definitely be super concerned over Offensive Binding after seeing twenty Froabasses just warped away!” the distance between the two was enough for her to reach out and tap Kaspar’s shoulder, ”Canter?”

Kaspar stiffened at Zarina’s initial reaction, the barest hint of panic filtering into his red eyes. His grip on Apelsinfrö’s reins tightened—and then, at her casual exclamation, the boy’s hands and face both seemed to go slack. He stared near-blankly at the girl, barely registering her words, and replied a startled, “Th-thanks. Thank you.”

He glanced down at his hands, a healthy blush creeping up his neck in embarassment. “My… my tutors were very sure to make it clear that Blood Magic is forbidden—that I should never use it. They always wanted to make sure I wouldn’t hurt someone else,” he murmured softly. “And I don’t want to hurt anyone. But Binding Magic relies on controlling the nature of Blood Magic, and I don’t know how to control the nature of something I don’t understand.”

The Helbahnese boy leaned into her tap, exhaling heavily, and gave her a small smile. “Only if you promise to point out why I eat shit the first time,” he half-joked, refocusing his grip on the reins.

Zarina nodded, ”Alright, Mr. Rule breaker, Lord of Law infringing, I will be your teacher today.” the two animals parted to create more of a gap between the two, ”Now, see, there’s no forbidden stuff with horse riding … Well, apart from hurting the thing or anything that’s exceptionally stupid. So you don’t gotta worry about that.” she reached her hands to grasp some more reins, leaving little to be loose when she would begin to go faster, ”You wanna grab your reins like this– Don’t want them getting all wobbly and end up whipping you or the horse. Just don’t pull. He’ll think you wanna stop or swerve.” she kept a close eye on his posture and movements, making sure he could see what she was doing in tandem.

”We’re gonna go in a trot, and then you’re going to give a few more kicks until he goes fast, yeah?” for a moment she let go of the leather fabric she had been grasping the whole time to brush her hands over her hair. The elastic that kept it in a tail was removed and then readjusted as she anticipated a potential accident if she got a bit too quick, ”If you feel a little unsure, grab some of his mane. Again, don’t pull. Helps you keep steady and he’ll react faster if you wanna stop.”

Kaspar listened intently to the instructions, copying Zarina’s postures and movements. He leaned forward a little, grasping some of Apel’s mane between his fingers. He was careful not to pull—and honestly felt a little worried that he might hurt the animal, but trusted Zarina not to give him instructions that would do so.

“Who begins?” he asked, voice a touch nervous as he watched his classmate, waiting for the go-ahead.

”You.” her response was instant, her tone flat and her facial features consistent with her cheeky attitude. With the most minute of Kinetic casting, she caused a little whip onto Apple’s rear. The horse, surprised by the sudden strike, neighed and skipped the trotting and went to a rather speedy canter! Not quite a gallop, as Zaz quickly matched the agitated beast with Fiorella after giving a couple of calculated heel-taps, encouraging it to simply follow, ”If you fall on your ass, watch for the hooves!” she called out, loud enough to be heard through the stomping and the air passing through them.

Kaspar let out an undignified yelp as Apelsinfrö took off, not expecting to start so suddenly. He hung onto the canter, albeit too tightly, for the first several seconds. But his grip on the hair in his horse’s mane was imperfect, and as he tensed he pulled—signaling Apel to stop. He was lucky enough to notice the pull a moment before the horse responded, rocking hard in the saddle as momentum tried to carry him forward. He managed not to fall, though just barely.

After a second of stillness, and with the anticipation of Zarina’s quick approach, he tapped Apel again, spurring him to walk and then into a trot—and after a second of trotting, he tapped again, gait slipping into a canter that he held onto more solidly this time, smiling slightly at his marginally better attempt.

Zarina’s lips parted more and more in anticipation of a disaster, which she would of course heroically prevent. Unfortunately, Kaspar actually managed himself just fine. A sigh of frustration escaped her, but in the end, she kept a subtle little smile on her visage when sharing gazes with her mistreated apprentice, ”Hey look, you’re not dead or in Magic Prison! So far so good.” they were going at the horse-equivalent of a jog, and hopefully the fresh learner adjusted as Zarina did not appear to have any intention of stopping.

They were a good half-mile away from the Refuge. The highest points were still visible to them over the dunes. The tethered could still sense them, some could maybe even hear them still, but such notions did not seem to perturb the Virangish rider, ”A blood mage, a super powered warper girl from a refuge, a tethered mini-priest, a puppeteer, a little lion and the prettiest girl in all of Virang gather in ass nowhere to defend the good cause.” she chuckled, looking over at the orange horizon before them. The twilight had just begun its reign, and with it came pleasant breezes, ”Sounds like a tale we can spin to look extra cool at school, eh? Or the start of a funny joke.”

“I’m not sure everyone would find it so cool,” he mused as they cantered through the dunes. “At least two of those things are probably against school rules… Though we could spin a rather good joke, I think.” He was getting the hang of this particular bit of riding, though certainly did not have the poise and experience that Zarina did.

After a brief venture through the perimeter they sought to patrol, Zarina whistled to get Kaspar’s attention, ”Alright, little break. These two deserve a little reward.” a light tug brought Fiorella to a trot, and then another with a loosened hold on the reins allowed the breast to relax until they entered a halt. Zaz hopped off the critter and reached for a small pouch attached to her saddle with a few old carrots. One was tossed over to the pale boy who hopefully got his steed to stop too, ”You know how to feed them without losing your hand, right?”

Palm flat, treat clearly presented to the animal and a good rub of the idle hand on the neck was enough to get those big lips flapping. The carrot was quickly scooped from her palm with a little bit of gooey saliva left behind, ”Now that’s a good girl. Yummy yum!” she cheered before giving the horse a light smooch on the cheek, ”So, what do you do for fun, Kaspar? Apart from conjuring rocks in other beings’ heads.”

Kaspar coaxed Apelsinfrö into a halt more gradually this time, pulling his high boots from the stirrups and swinging off the horse. He took the carrot from Zarina, watching her for a moment before offering his own horse the treat, keeping his fingers out of the way as he patted softly along the neck.

“It was in the throat,” he reminded Zarina teasingly, “Mostly, I sketch and study plants. Study other things too, when I have the opportunity,” he explained as Apelsinfrö nibbled happily on the carrot.

Zarina raised her eyebrows, ”That sounds uh-” she paused, eyes shifting side to side as if looking for a word, ”Cool?” not very convincing, and she didn’t try beyond that, ”Actually, hey, recall our last session. Gotta make it sound epic!” she cleared her throat with a balled fist before her mouth while the other caressed the animal’s neck, ”I am a scholar of the unknown! The most peculiar of plantlife intrigues me, and with knowledge of their essence, I seek to better understand the dark secrets of this world …” dramatic as always, her voice was on point with the sinister impersonation.

Kaspar chuckled at her reminder, listening to the impersonation. Adopting a similar tone, he continued, “I am a master of capturing form in ash. I duplicate plant and man alike across the continent!” Smirking towards the Virangish girl, he countered, “And what fascinating entertainment do you find, Mistress of Intrigue?”

”And man? What the fuck?” she conferred a most judgemental glare at Kaspar’s direction. A stare even more intense than her last attempt to make him uneasy. It was obviously an act, and she’d let go soon after. Fiorella was given a few scratches on her perky ears before she answered, ”Well! You’ve just experienced one of my more favoured hobbies. Doesn’t get more grand than that.” a second carrot was fed to the mare, because she was a particularly good girl, ”I otherwise get the girls to play cards. Or other games when we’re bored. Oh and work. Yeah, current work’s actually loads o’fun.” no grand display of her own hobbies, she kept it at that.

“Mostly duplicating biology studies from books—it helps me grasp it more easily. My tutors liked to make sure I knew a lot about the the body and healing,” he explained, understanding that this was not a serious gripe—though he did still shift slightly as some small part of his mind worried on instinct. “I can see why you enjoy riding. It’s fun, when you aren’t eating shit,” the noble boy admitted warmly.

”Yeah.” she responded with a somewhat smokey tone. Her attention was on her temporary steed. Gold hues in her eyes were evocative of many emotions, and it looked as though she longed for something. Like all this riding was missing a crucial element. It was a mix of serenity but also regret that her voice carried. This brief lapse of vulnerability was short lived as she shook her head and quickly hopped back onto the saddle, ”We should, y’know, patrol. Before they realize we’re slacking.”

Kaspar’s eyes watched Zarina, concerned for a moment as she seemed to have a moment to herself. He contemplated asking her about it, but decided against a direct approach—knowing the generally tough exterior she often put up. Instead, he nodded. “You're probably right, But if anyone asks… I know nothing about us slacking,” he said with a knowing grin.

”If you tattle, I’ll have your tongue, boyo.”” she drew a hunting knife from the back end of the saddle and clumsily waved it in his direction before putting it away, ”Actually, as I say this, you should probably be trained for battle, huh?” she pursed her lips at the notion. The whole Refuge was being prepared, and their own group shouldn’t be slacking either. Ayla and Yalen weren’t exactly fighters either.

As the boy mounted Apelsinfrö, the horse snorting beneath him but standing relatively still, he glanced towards his classmate. “For what it’s worth… If you find yourself wanting to ride with someone, I’d be agreeable. Or if you ever want someone to talk to,” he offered, keeping his tone light but his eyes knowing.

Zarina scoffed, albeit not in any sort of aggressive or condescending manner. It looked like a reflex to dismiss such things. The horses began to pace back toward the Refuge with the night sky slowly creeping onto the opposite end of the world, ”You’re sweet, Kaspar.” she says softly. The pale teen wouldn’t be able to see her expression from his position as she had taken a slight lead- as she usually did. ”May need to compete with Ayla for the riding, though. She does like those too.” she snapped her fingers, ”Wait. Idea. Do you think a Shetland Pony would fit her?!”

Kaspar snorted, doing a decent impression of his horse in the moment. “If you’re placing Ayla on a Shetland Pony, I would very much like to ride with you two,” he responded, trying not to sound too much like a little shit. “Though I’m more than willing to join you two regardless. I already spend plenty of time sketching with Ayla—hopefully she’s not grown weary of me.”

Zarina clicked her tongue, ”Ayla? Weary? Did the trotting shake your brain and turn it into sludge?” she turned her head with a brow raised and a grimace that confirmed her question to be genuine, ”Just ask her to hang out and she’ll just follow you. Maybe even do something cute.” and just as she said that, Fiorella found it appropriate to discharge at about this time, ”I’m pretty sure most of the group is pretty harmless. Except for that Yasoi. And I guess Jo. Hmmm.”

Kaspar hung his head in mock shame. “You’re right—I don’t think she could get tired of anyone. Almost anyone, at least,” he agreed. “Though I’m not sure I’d call you harmless,” he added, raising an eyebrow. “I saw the way that Halassa’s head exploded.” Zarina retaliated with a snap of her fingers and her index pointed at Kaspar, ”Just the brain! No way did I make that skull burst. I know my stuff!” she feigned offence, but in the end she nodded, ”Although you’re right, I’m not harmless. But I’m nice!”

“Nice—but frightening, too. A good person to be acquainted with. Enemies? Not so much,” Kaspar responded, staring down her pointing finger like the barrel of a gun. She slowly lowered her ‘weapon’ and forced a light chuckle, ”Do I actually scare you?” she tugged on the reins to have Fiorella stop so she could match Apple better and forgo her lead, ”Even more than a big, fat Wyrm?”

“More than the Wyrm? No. You haven’t tried to eat me yet,” Kaspar replied, smirking. “But you do scare me more than most of our classmates.” The boy paused for a moment, contemplating, before he added, “This is the most time I’ve spent with any classmates other than Ayla, though—so perhaps you’re not all that scary, relatively.”

Zarina squinted, ”Oh so I just LOOK intimidating?” she crossed her arms, letting the reins loose though it seemed the horse wasn’t bothered by this and kept going, ”I know you boys aren’t used to seeing a tall girl but c’moooon.” an eye roll later and she was holding onto her horse again, ”Or maybe it’s just how I bash skulls when I get pissy. Could be one or the other.” a teasing grin reigned on her expression as she looked over at him, ”Better not get me pissy, now.”

“You do look quite intimidating,” Kaspar offered, getting a good feel for the way Zarina interacted with others (or at least him) with these teasing moments. “And I watched you explode Halassa brain, which I imagine is a skill transferable to irritating humans,” at this, he sent another smirk her direction. “But you haven’t tried to kill me just yet, for which I count myself fortunate.”

The Virangish snorted, ”I don’t think I’ve tried to kill anyone in this journey, yet. Might change.” they were approaching the Refuge, and by then the sky had gotten quite dark with dusk serving as their main source of light before the light pollution cleared and let way to the stars, ”Also, if we’re worried about brain states after encounters, I’d fear Mini-Padre.”

Kaspar nodded sagely. “I think aberration-mad Halassa should fear Yalen, but I think you’re far more likely to use similar techniques against a person. Our dear priest doesn’t seem fond of violence,” he explained, ”Until he is. Until one gives the holyman a good reason.” she grimly responded to Kaspar’s observation. His moniker for the blonde was not teasing though it may sound that way. His red gaze wandered over the steadily growing walls of the Refuge, and he wondered what his classmates and his brother had done in the time they were gone.

The sun had since set, the cool night breeze ventured through the open halls of the liberated Refuge and those older than twelve were allowed up a little longer than usual. Some stayed up to do the rounds, others simply enjoyed the clear skies hours before their potential end. It was a time to be with loved ones, share the bits of happiness they may have left in this world and form some final memories for the aether that was the afterlife.

The anxiety of what was to come was not lost on Zarina, and if anything it had gotten worse the longer she stayed in the Refuge. Her sister was gone and now she felt more alone than normal. She wouldn’t let the others see this, of course, but she couldn’t bottle things up when the times were this dire. There was, however, a glimmer of hope. A hope she had been cautious of for a while and now was her best hope for some mental relief.

Knock-Knockknocknock-Knock … Knock-Knock

She waited, patiently, before Jocasta’s quarters’ door. Clad in humble, beige clothing typical of the cooking staff, she clearly wasn’t there to dazzle and make a fuss.

The Jocasta who emerged was trying to look like she’d been sleeping. In truth, she’d been close. Her hair was a dishevelled mess that cascaded in tangles like some kind of blonde waterfall down her back. She wasn’t even in her wheeled-chair, floating with a groggy nonchalance as only a skyborn of considerable power could. All at once, the door swung open with a high-pitched squeal. “You ever heard of a thing called sleep?” she grumbled, gazing tiredly, but sans any legitimate hostility at Zarina.

”Only rumors.” she replied with a deadpan voice to match her flat tone to conceal the sass of her reply, ”Sorry for waking you, though, Jo.” she tightened her arms around herself and let a silence linger for a second or two, ”I- uh, kind of wanted to talk about something.” her eyes shifted about, avoiding the short blonde’s gaze, ”Something important. And yeah, it could wait. Or we could be Wyrm chow first thing tomorrow. So. Yeah.” It wasn’t common for her to have such a wobbly voice, maybe she did mean business here. Her gaze eventually locked onto Jocasta’s frame, but eye contact was still scarce.

Finally ran out of bitch fuel, Jocasta thought. Well… a part of her thought. Apparently she wasn’t out of it. Seeing the likes of Zarina show up outside her door looking like a lost puppy would’ve brought her immense satisfaction mere days ago. It still brought her a tiny twinge of schadenfreude, but the tethered tamped down on this. “Um… yeah,” she replied after a moment, not quite letting the pause stretch into awkwardness. “welcome to my humble abode.” She’d been keeping up her gravity loop almost absently, but had to adjust a bit as she started moving towards her bed. Moments later, she settled upon it. “And for what it’s worth, don’t worry. We’re not going to be wyrm chow. My people are an army, and we’re ready. Now -” she paused and sniffed. “- what was on your mind?” She patted the bed beside her and looked up in anticipation.

After the briefest of hesitations, Zarina stepped into the ‘abode’. It resembled most other quarters in the Refuge, which gave way to familiarity and thus a way to relax for Zarina, ”Not just the Wyrm that’s on my mind. But yeah, they do kick ass.” she tittered nervously. When Jocasta offered a seat, Zarina awkwardly stared at it for a moment as if unsure if she would. She capitulated and took her seat with about a foot of distance between her and the tethered powerhouse, ”I wanted to ask something, first.” again, she crossed her arms, only to unfold them a second later and nervously brush them over her legwear, ”That thing you did, back in the desert …” those first words came with the same shifty eyes she started their exchange with, but when she got to the point she landed her gaze to Jo’s and didn’t avert it anymore, ”What did you do? Did you really move them away, just like that?”

As Zarina’s last few words reached her, Jocasta was already dampening the sound in case of eavesdroppers. “I uh… wouldn’t quite call it ‘just like that’,” she amended. “That might’ve been the hardest thing I’ve ever done with the Gift.” She decided not to be a bitch and try to guilt Zarina anymore, though. “But I get your point.” she knit and unknit her fingers, pursing her lips for a moment before continuing. “We think of the five magics and howo four of them are all about energy, but hasn’t binding - really blood - always seemed like the odd one out: how it uses matter?” She didn't wait for an answer. “Well, there’s another kind - harder to grasp - that goes beyond energy, and it pulls upon space and time. That’s what I used.” Her eyes met Zarina’s, unflinching. “That’s what you want to learn,” she concluded.

Zarina sucked in her lips at the mention of Jocasta’s considerable exertion and achievement. The guilting was definitely going to work, ”All of it went by so fast, heh. We do kind of owe you. A lot.” a weak attempt to humble herself, although her fidgety demeanour and obvious nervousness made it clear there was no domination to be had as she may often seek in normal interactions.

Then came some education. One on Blood, a familiar concept to Zarina, and one on notions that felt a tad farfetched. Nonetheless she remained attentive, ”I won’t lie. I can hardly visualize what space and time can even look like, let alone draw or bend it in any way.” she shook her head, and then paused for a moment, ”... Is that why you talked about the past, and maybe the future? I uhm-” she scratched her cheek, feeling a little out of her depth here, ”I just imagined it as, like, just moving things, or people, to other places aaaand- Yeah it’s simple thinking but I promise I have a good reason to about this stuff.” she stumbled in her thought process and even her words. It was hard to articulate what she really wanted, when the ideas proposed to her were oh so alien to some simple teen from Virang.

“Damn. Who switched your brain with Kaspar’s?” Jocasta teased and Zarina snorted, partly to allay some of her own discomfort at Zarina’s earnest, nervous intensity. “And it is a bit like that, but you’re not so much moving people or things through space and time as those are one big canvas and you’re grabbing onto its little threads and moving it around them and sometimes creating little gaps to slip them through somewhere else in it.” She shrugged. “Not easy to explain. Now, my turn to ask the questions, like I was - you’re right - probingly before. What’s your reason? People always have a compelling reason andiit’ll usually wreck the world or at least their lives.”
Now it was Zarina’s turn to deliver, ”That bad, huh? Good thing I have a pro to help me through.” she had regained a little bit of her spunk with a right smirk to go with her first response. She didn’t beat around the bush and properly answered right after, ”There’s -” a brief pause, she considered her wording carefully, ”someone I want to see. You know, before things may get bad. Not just the idea of dying but- like, you know, things back home may not be the same should some things go bad, y’know?” her leg was restless, even as she pressed her hand on it to try and calm it, ”It’s someone I at least owe a goodbye to- even if I don’t intend to die. No drama, I promise. Just, yeah. It’s important. Enough for me to ask for a favour,” she sighed, ”When I owe you about three of those already.”

“Ysilla?” Jocasta guessed. Zarina shook her head, ”Someone at home. Ysilla … Knows where I am, and how I feel. He hasn’t seen me in- Shit- two months?”

Oh, so not what I thought. Jocasta tilted her head in that way she often did when curious or bemused. “So, not to be a prying bitch, but I know you’re not made of papier mache,” the blonde began frankly. “Who, and why?It’s not that I don’t trust you, but…” She tucked some hair behind an ear. “You don’t mess around this stuff.”

Zarina was worried about the justification of it all. After all, in the grand scheme of things, or at least of this Refuge’s issues, this was small. She took a big breath and put on her big girl pants, ”It’s someone I’ve lived a good while with when times were the worst. I- hmm, I think it’s better you see him rather than I describe too much.” her lips curved into a subtle smile, ”I can just say he’s very trustworthy.” she even giggled at the thought of the contrary, how it’d even be possible, ”As for why- I’ve made the mistake of not reaching out, or just being there, when it mattered the most.” another deep inhale. She was gritting her teeth as she recalled, ”I don’t want to fuck this up again. That and-” she shrugged, ”He can be very helpful, if you can bring him back, somehow~” maybe she was pushing it, but her spirits were lifted a little more at such a thought.

Zarina was still playing it coy. Jo pursed her lips. Was she… embarrassed? How could she possibly be embarrassed about asking to see a person so useful and important to - Then, it hit her. “He’s a horse, isn’t he?” the tethered stated, deadpan. She remembered how Zarina’d had a way with animals, how she was always by the stables when she wasn’t doing something else. “Right?” she prodded. “I’m not shaming you, by the way,” she quickly clarified. “Animals are often waaay better than people.”

”Yes.” there was no hesitation or more games, she full-on admitted it with quite the flush on her stressed facial features, ”And they really are.” relief washed over her when Jocasta uttered feelings Zarina resonated with so much, ”But, yeah, it’s my horse. Riesco. I uh- didn’t want to bring him to school. Big boat trips, not good for the heart. And I just didn’t have accommodation.” she nervously justified herself, although in the end it was clear she’d have brought him if she could, ”I work well with him. And I miss him. It’s mostly that, really. I miss him.” she missed a few others, too. But Riesco never lied or went off on his own, ”Would you like to meet him, Jocasta?” she looked over at her blonde friend with a sly, little smile on her face, ”... Although now that I think about it, how would you even know where I live?”

“Virang, somewhere,” Jocasta replied flatly, a corner of her mouth ticking upwards in a smirk. “I’ll be honest: I’m all for it, but there is a problem…” Zarina leaned in just a little, her hopes pushed to high heavens and now ready to fall face first, ”W-what is it?”

“I’m not the Paradigm, Zaz,” admitted Jocasta, a bit ashamed. “I’ve never… teleported anything - myself included - outside of my own range.” She paused, looking pained. “I mean, in theory,” she continued, “I could,” She bit her lower lip. “I wanna try, you know. I have the capacity for it…” She blushed a bit. “Crazy idea, but maybe we could do it in stages. Virang isn’t so far from Torragon. I could try to work my way up in distance...”

A nod of premature acceptance was all Zarina could muster. At least until a new hope emerged under the form of a slightly contrived, but potentially effective solution, ”So like … We’d essentially hop over as far as you can in rapid succession.” she blinked and paused to actually process it, ”... That sounds really fucking hard.” arms crossed, she shot Jocasta a concerned look, ”Is there, like, any way I could help, then? I feel like I’m asking for a loooot.” and it made her quite nervous again.

“You are, chica.” Jocasta sat up a bit straighter and cracked her knuckles. “I’m gonna own that ass after this, comprende?” She grinned like a little fucker. “but it’s also a challenge and I’m up for a challenge. That's how we grow.” She took a deep breath. “Besides…” she leaned in. “It kinda sounds like a fun time, no? And I could stand to get away from all this grim seriousness and just zip through a dozen different random places.” She raised a finger to her lips and tapped on them pensively for a moment. “Mind you ‘rapid succession’ might be stretching things a bit. Accounting for missteps, rest time, and other breaks, we could probably get there in about two hours?”

Zarina liked this tone. From being a little shit to an upbeat go-getter, it seemed like this was going to happen after all. She refrained from commenting on rear-ownership, knowing full well how indebted she’d be, but got proactive when the time came to prepare for this otherworldly adventure. She hopped on her feet and clapped her hands together, ”Okay. How can I help?” she was very eager to do something, even if it was small, ”Oh! I know a few stops we can make on the way. Couple of not-so-shit Taverns to get a quick bite or sip for a break. I- uh, kind of rode the border a few times.”

Why am I doing this, again? Jocasta thought, rising from her bed. It was nighttime, she had a dozen more pressing things to worry about, and she had never gone such a distance before. And I’m doing it for… a horse. She raised an eyebrow in Zarina’s direction. “You be our map, then,” she allowed, shaking her head and smiling ruefully. “But, um… get out for a second. I have to change.”

Zarina nodded, ”Oh, yeah, I should get ready too.” she took a couple of steps backwards with those long legs of hers before performing a quick 180 and skedaddled out of Jocasta’s quarters. The Virangish was going to pack light: Her usual travel bag with a gourd of water, a pouch full of Asper and a few Kurush, another satchel with a handful of old carrots and her Hexaic pendant she kept in the bag rather than her neck for the coming adventure. And of course, both her Shamshirs were sheathed at her lower back for practicality. Finally, a couple of cloaks were picked up– the sort that could shield the face too in case of a sandstorm though in this case the shielding of one’s identity could be more useful.

Before Zarina left her own quarters, however, she paused and stood a good minute in doing absolutely nothing. Something was perturbing her, and when it hit her, she snapped her fingers and got to it with haste. A piece of paper from her night table was seized, and she wrote a brief message. Once the errand was complete, she waited patiently by Jocasta’s door.

The tethered emerged, like a little ghosty-thing, floating a few inches above the ground, a long hooded cloak covering her entire form, and only a smirk peeking out. Her hood shifted a little bit as she looked Zarina up and down. “Shit, Zaz, you look ready for an expedition. I brought…” Pale little hands appeared from her long sleeves and patted around. “A flask and a few Corona.” Jocasta’s grin grew. “Meals are on you!” She half turned but then thought better of it and turned back. “And drinks,” she chirped. “You know, in better times, I’d say we should turn this into a pub crawl.” The blonde giggled, gesturing for her friend to follow as they made their way down a colonnade to a remote part of the Refuge. “Imagine being too drunk to ride after all that,” she snorted. “Ipte, it’s been a while since I’ve been good and toasted.”

”Would you find it weird if I said I only got ‘good and toasted’ only once in my life?” the spare cloak was shoved into her backpack, overloading it even more than it already was but it withstood if just barely.

Jocasta’s eyebrows show up, not that Zaz could actually see it. “Uhhh, yeah. Colour me surprised. Always took you for the type to dive in headfirst, but I guess it makes sense. You’re not daft like me.”

“I don’t know about drinks, replied Zarina, but there might be something nice to munch on at home if we have time …”

“I won't’ say no to that. Viranish food is… not so different from Djamantese, just… a bit spicier.” Then, finally, they reached a little cleared space behind a supply shed. Jocasta flipped her hood back, serious again, rolled her sleeves up, and settled - cross-legged - on the dusty ground. Before beginning, she glanced up at Zarina again, furrowing her brow slightly.. “What’s your RAS again?”

”Seven point …” she paused, not to actually think about the answer but to let a little grunt out as she sat before Jocasta and mimicked her position, ”Sixty-two. And you?”

“Gods, high: like over nine, which is absurd. Truth is, I’ve never properly measured it, I don’t even know what to do with it all, and I’m a little scared of it.” She blushed. “Plus, if you’re tethered, overdrawing is… very bad, so I never draw to capacity and definitely not for some test.” She reached up and swept some hair from her face. “The reason I was asking was actually because I wanted to see if you were in the range to actually do something worthwhile with temporal magic.” It was a quick, professional smile, but bereft of warmth. “You are. Seven-six-two is nothing to sneeze at and, based on my sneaky little probing yesterday, I think I can actually trust you not to mess with the timeline.” She took two deep breaths and closed her eyes. Zarina could feel that strange sort of energy building. “If you ever want to, I can and will teach you. Magic is called ‘The Gift’ for a reason. It’s meant to be shared.” A hand flashed out in Zarina’s direction. “Take my hand! We’re going in!”

Zarina recoiled in shock. A nine? Never had a simple number been so terrifying to hear. And she fully believed it too, ”I feel like drawing at capacity would probably be distressing for not just you.” her hands got a tad clammy but she quickly adjusted her posture for the coming main event, ”To be shared to those deemed trustworthy?” she tilted her head, ”Will it be the great Jocasta that’ll determine who is and isn’t a dipshit?” she smirked and slowly reached out to her companion’s hand but stopped just shy of her digits touching, ”... After this, I’ll first repay you how I can. And then you’ll determine if I’m worthy, alright?”

“All the Great Jocasta and, for my first act, I shall ‘poof’ us to some random place due west of here. Get ready to land safely. Your butt could end up on a cactus.” She flashed her pearly whites for a moment, suppressing yet another smile.

Their hands touched, and then a flash. Not of a bright light but an instant change of air, smell, colours, everything. They were no longer on a dusty, stone surface but on top a dune of sand under the clear night skies. The desert’s cold air rushed through them under the form of sporadic gusts that brought with them small clouds of sand that would get in Zaz’s hair, ”Oh sh-” disorientated and caught off guard, she stumbled to her right and nearly ate a sandy dinner if it wasn’t for her elbow serving as quick support, ”You know, I expected, like, a portal. Like how the old beard did it.” she wasn’t being ungrateful, as she began to giggle between her words, ”This was definitely cooler.” she stood up to brush herself and took in her surroundings. The night was making it hard to actually distinguish anything, and due to elevation, the Refuge was out of sight, ”Lemme just … Figure out where West is.”

“Glad someone can,” Jocasta remarked, glancing around briefly. “Probably the stars. As for the Paradigm…” She bounced her palms off of her knees for a moment. “His way’s more advanced, actually. He’s got damned near a century on me.” She shook her head. “Remember how I said space and time were like a big sheet covering everything? Well, we move through that sheet by reeling it in and poking little holes in it to move through.” Jocasta took another steadying breath as Zarina calculated their next ‘jump’. “Thing is, those holes want to seal themselves as quickly as possible and, the further they are from where you stand in space and time, the quicker and more aggressively they wanna seal themselves.” She smirked. “I hope you’re listening,” she joked. “The Nikanese have a word: sensei, which means like ‘master’ and “teacher”. That’s me,” she chirped, leaning in with a self-satisfied grin. “Basically, a novice can do much more than take a quick peek through, while a true master like the Paradigm can open a hole anywhere, open it wide, and keep it open for a while. I’m… somewhere in-between.” She took another deep breath and closed her eyes. “Ready,” she confirmed. “Gonna go for a bit of a longer one, less guarantees here. You got us a direction?”

Zarina was in for a lesson, and as much as she liked to add something and involve herself, she humbled herself and kept quiet. Once again she seated herself before Jocasta and shifted her attention between the blonde and the stars above. Indeed, she could use what every other traveller used to find their way and as a rider she did have the experience needed to figure it out, ”Sensei. That actually rolls off the tongue, huh?” she flashed a quick smile at her friend, ”Who was your Sensei, Sensei?” a daring question, which she followed quickly with directions, ”Over there, if you can get us on top of that rocky hill in the horizon, I can probably get a good idea of where we’ll go.” she pointed at the mentioned peak, which was a good many miles away– maybe even too far for one warp, but it was something concrete rather than a vague distance.

“That’s the funny thing,” replied Jocasta quickly, “I don’t really know. There was someone who taught me: an assassin, more or less, but I already had some concept of this magic before, and I don’t know how.” She let out a small, frustrated huff. Zarina blinked and then narrowed her eyes, ”An assassin taught the novice assassin from the Refuge to bend time and space? You should write a novel, love.”

“I fear I’d not live long if I did,” she joked weakly, quickly changing the subject. “Now, this mountain. I see it.” She took her breaths and closed her eyes. “Hand.” She held it out. And Zarina reached out after taking a deep breath, ”Ready.” and then she seized the smaller limb, this time ready for the ride.

They materialized, after a moment, on a mountaintop. As one mad her way westward, these would become more common, near the headwaters of the Miharapori. This one, however, was a stray, and gave a magnificent view of much of the terrain around it. “Stay linked with me, Zaz, I can go again if you point me.”

Even in the middle of the night, Zarina could get a decent idea of where they were. The details were unimportant, but the formation of mountains were pretty clear indicators on their own. ”Same direction, try to stay on the mountains. We can probably follow the big river, until we get close enough to Gadankar. Though …” she pursed her lips, looking a tad concerned, ”You alright? This IS going to be a long ride. I haven’t been around this part of Torragon in …” she exhaled from her nose and blinked, ”Like three years.” She clenched her partner’s hand, ”Ready.”

“Right,” replied Jocasta, “First one outside of my range. We’re gonna start in the air and drop, just so we don’t risk materializing inside something else and the grisly death that goes along with it. Be ready to catch yourself.” She drew and pulled and voyaged to places that were hazy and unclear. Then, they popped out, some twenty feet up in the air. Jocasta used the gravity loop to catch herself and float. She looked over to Zarina to see if she’d managed the trick as well.

Once they manifested at their next destination, Zarina let herself fall. The energy gathered from the fall itself was used to unleash a small but strong air stream under her feet to soften the landing and keep things clean, ”... You know, we talk about cool time and space stuff, but I never got to master levitation like you do.” a hand on her hip and the other pointed her index up above, she almost seemed vexed at how impotent she was next to Jocasta, ”And I thought I was good with that school of magic too! But no, plebeian here.” she was quick to assume the position and this time she offered her hand, ”Alright, let’s do this. Maybe we can stop by the river and have a drink or something.” she paused, ”From our flasks. I’d avoid drinking the water if we have some on us.”

“I’ll teach you, Zaz. I’m this good because I’m Skyborn and I had teachers who turned me into a weapon. An absurd RAS didn’t hurt, but it’s not necessary.” Jocasta took the proffered hand and they pulled off the same feat again, and a second time, before stopping at the burgeoning river. In the distance, twinkled a handful of bright spots that signaled a town “I believe this is one of the forks of the Miharapori,” Jocasta asked, “Right?” She settled on the ground and uncorked her flask, taking a couple of greedy gulps. “Should we turn south when they converge or is it faster to head into Inipor first?” They were in the highlands now and the air was thinner and cooler.

The sound of running water and the cool air of the Miharapori were comforting to Zarina in all her wanderlust. She settled too, not too far from the edge and just stared blankly at the stars reflected on the water’s runny surface, ”Yeah. You are right.” she took too a quick sip, less so out of thirst than to get rid of the dryness in her throat after lurking in the desert for a while, ”Have you ever been to Inipor?” if the answer was no, then that’d be her answer, otherwise continuing south was likely safer, ”The Refuge turned you into a weapon. Did those that took you in do the same, Jo?” she didn’t seem in a hurry to end the break. Her face was mostly hidden by the night and the cloak she was wearing, but her tone manifested concern she seldom showed, ”Were they like- errr, a new family? Or was it more of a brother-sisterhood thing some orphans sometimes form here and there?”

Jocasta turned and grabbed Zarina’s other hand. “You’re a friend,” she said earnestly, “and I say this to you as a friend:” She worked her jaw anxiously for a moment. “This is something that you don’t want to get involved in.” She paused. “Well, maybe you do now, but you’ll regret it later. I’m into some serious shit, hun, out of my own choice. They’re… not perfect, and some are just bad, but I believe in their goals and… I owe them everything.” A dark kind of smile came over her face and there was a flash of the old Jocasta in there. “Besides, I don’t think they could stop me if they tried. Now,” she chirped, “Enough about my must-remain-a-secret-upon-pain-of-death life!” there was an ironic mirth in her words and face. “We have a place to get to. Hand!”

Zarina peered down, silently remarking that her hand was already held, ”I won’t push further. Not asking questions about big deals is common practice where I’m from. I get it.” her gold eyes were still on those hands. She nodded to herself and slowly raised her gaze back to the cloaked Jo, ”Just know you got some people that like you. And you don’t owe us anything. Nor do I think we’re the fairweather asshole types. Dunno about the Yasoi, though.” She turned her head and stared down south, ”It’s probably faster to avoid Inipor. Less chance of encountering the types that don’t sleep at night.”

Jocasta let out a snort at the part about Casii. “Thanks, Zaz.” She squeezed the slightly younger woman’s hand a bit tighter for a moment. “Not really sure what to say to nice things like that, to be honest. Now, big one. I think I’m getting the hang of this.”

The world flashed and then they were on a rooftop. It was thatched and rickety and they could feel it giving way the moment that it had to bear their weight. “Up, Zaz! Dammit!” Jocasta yelped.

”Wha-” she hadn’t quite realized her predicament until the roof began to collapse. Out of reflex, Zarina reached her other hand to Jocasta’s figure and clung onto her like a cat terrified of water, ”Up, up, Up!!” she yelled out hysterically, legs flailing under her. She could probably hop and flip her way to safety at this point, but as she calmed a thought came by her, ”Okay, bear with me. I’m gonna let go … And you catch me with your great power, yeah?” the more she explained, the wider her toothy grin got, ”And then I try to suspend myself, yeah? If I fail, I eat shit.” and so she did just that: Slowly peeled her hands and arms from her levitating friend and hoped she’d be ‘caught’ so she could begin this quick little exercise.

Jocasta’s expression turned from alarm to appreciation. Anything could be a learning experience. She felt Zarina let go and, drawing and expelling energy in equal measure, the tethered ‘caught’ her and held her up, the both of them hovering in midair. They were in a small village and it seemed to be still and quiet. “Okay,” she allowed, “I think the coast is clear.” She moved the both of them away from the rooftop, so as not to risk damaging it or disturbing anyone. “The trick here is to use the energy of gravity. Once you’re in the air, it’s a freebie. Draw it in as fast as it pulls you down and you should hit equilibrium. You’ve gotta be fast, though, and sharp. The other big trick is not to become overwhelmed. Expel the energy as telekinetic to help keep yourself up if you find yourself sinking, and to move yourself. If you have too much excess, just bleed it out or use it for other things. You’re a bit below eight, so you don’t have as much of a safety net as me, but you should be able to do it.” Jocasta looked her in the eye and grinned in nervous anticipation. “You ready?” she asked-but-not-really “Three… two… one.”

So much to take in, Zarina was visibly a little distressed! Still, her confidence wouldn’t be shaken, especially as she already grew accustomed to essentially ‘floating’ via Jocasta’s intervention. Deep breaths, she tried to visualise how she would do it. Like a woodsman readying an axe and giving a couple of swings before delivering the decisive blow, she drew and released in small bursts to practice the reflex of drawing faster than her fall. It was definitely tricky. ”So wait, I-” zero! She fell, and she caught herself mid-fall, albeit clumsily. The loop itself wasn’t difficult the moment she actually did prevent her imminent impact, now the issue was to rise back up while juggling the mana she contained for this balancing act. A couple of air propulsions under the form of air kicks were pretty quick at correcting her altitude problem, and so came the challenge of consistent levitation.

“Stop kicking!” scolded Jocasta. “Do you see me kicking in midair?” There was something deliberately impish about the comment. “Use Kinetic, use gravity. Relax.”

”Okay. I’m doing this. But I can only focus on this.” it was going to take a while before it’d become second nature, ”But it’s not too h-” she jinxed it, and one draw was a bit off and now she was playing a very clumsy game of catchup where kicking was banned. There was no relaxing, only panic-casting.

“Zaz!” Jocasta called, “Think of it like a river: the energy. You’re like a sharp bend in that river. It’s flowing into you and out of you smoothly. All that it’s doing is changing directions. That’s how you get it smooth.”

”A River?! Ahh!” all she could think about was the river they had just passed. Still, she managed to prevent the worst with her usual technique of softening the landing.

“Yes, you’re managing that river, keeping it consistent.” Jocasta watched her land safely. “Honestly, about the same as my first attempts. Just need to learn not to hammer it and overcompensate when you feel a slip. Leads to more course corrections.” She clasped her hands together and floated downwards until they were basically at eye level. “That was a good first try. Now, come on up with me.” She held out her hand again. “I need directions and we need to get moving again.”

”Wait, really? Here I thought you were just some super-genius good at everything.” she brushed herself off and welcomed her friend with her hand ready to be taken, ”Reassuring. Or maybe you’re just that good of a tea- Sensei, and you’re just telling me this for my self-esteem.” her eyebrows raised and her smile kept strong, ”Well it’s working.” her index pointed slightly south-west from their position, ”I think we can do a few jumps in quick succession, otherwise we may end up learning every school of magic before we get to Gandakar!”

Jocasta nodded. “Agreed.” she replied. “No more messing around.” and that was exactly what they did. Four more jumps of increasing length in quick succession. “You know,” the tethered said after one, “I think I’m learning just as much as you. I used to think of this as aiming for a target and the further away, the harder it was to aim properly.” They teleported again. “It’s more like pulling that fabric over to you, though, and just stepping on through.” After another twenty minutes, they were in Qamuz, in the massive estuary of the great river. “Southwest now, right?” asked Jocasta.

“So you’re telling me you’re figuring all this shit out now? Meanwhile I can barely fly. Sheesh.” they were now at their most recent destination and Zarina took this time to stretch and grab a quick drink, “West, actually. And take a sip. Don’t want you getting dizzy and end up in …” she exaggerated some shuddering, “Paggon.” she even offered her gourd to make extra sure Jocasta was well hydrated, “... You know, before we get back to the Refuge at whatever hour– and I know I said I should earn it first– But I should definitely try to jump us. Even if it’s like, five metres.” there was a child-like giddiness in her mannerisms and voice when she suggested that. Quickly, she grabbed her friend’s hand, “Onwards!”

“Walk before you can run,” Jocasta warned, but she paired her eyeroll with a smile. “But I like this ‘you’. Don’t compare yourself to me.You’re starting years later.” She reeled herself across space and time, then, a pressure building inside of her as she did so, but then Jocasta got an idea. She stopped for a moment. “Do a hover for a moment. I need some inspiration,” she teased.

“Got a big catch-up challenge ahead. No sweat.” she feigned unreasonable confidence, brushing her nose with her forearm to really sell the con, “I can even hum a little tune while doing it, I think.” she did a little hop just to get her feet off the ground and she was back to doing the exercise from before. Still clumsy, still just about ready to fall on her rear, but she was close enough to the ground to propel herself upwards the traditional way if it got too out of hand, “Mmmhmmhmm~” she hummed a little bedtime tune. A pleasant one as she had quite the pair of lungs, even if she rarely used them.

“Awesome,” Jocasta remarked. “Damn. Now I feel like I should hum too. I’m going to do something stupid.” Zarina would immediately comment, “I like the sound of that.”

“Not sure you will after I try it,” chuckled Jocasta nervously. “I’ve only messed with space up to now, even though I can see time. I’m going to try setting us back a little bit as we travel, so we have more clock to work with. You… okay with that?”

Zarina shrugged, still ‘floating’ in the air, albeit with the occasional ‘hops’ that weren’t all that elegant, “I mean, as long as we’re not changing the course of anything …” she crossed her arms and masticated somewhat nervously, “... Are there any consequences I should be made aware of? Assuming we don’t kill some Duke in the cradle for the betterment of all or anything.”

“To be honest, I’m not sure. We’ll only be going back maybe ten minutes at first, just to shave off some of our travel time. I’m honestly… not confident with any more.” With that, she closed her eyes, reeling in not only space, but time with intent. She’d peered before, fleetingly, but never gone. “This is hard,” Jocasta grunted. “It’s like two separate sheets that don’t want to be aligned and you have to…” She was straining now, “Align them.” Then, her voice rose. “I got it! Zaz, hand, quick!”

Zarina has ceased her floating when Jocasta manifested just how hard the endeavour was. The Virangish stayed quiet and near her almighty friend. Little mumbles were uttered from time to time, cheering Jocasta on in this remarkably difficult attempt at a magic that was beyond most. Then, she seized both of Jo’s hands when the time was right, “Let’s go!” she cheered with a big, fat grin, ready to tackle the unknown!



“Shit!” hissed Jocasta, as they tumbled down onto a brightly lit plain.“I flubbed it. I flubbed it horribly!” Her head turned this way and that. It was daytime. There were no dwellings in sight when they should’ve been on the outskirts of a small town. “Don’t touch anything or do anything. I… think we went much too far. You wouldn’t have happened to have been in this area before, would you? We should be just south of the foothills of the Angahar headwaters.”

Zarina froze. The light of the sun was blinding enough to get her to close her eyes for a good while. Given something had gone terribly wrong, she hesitated to even speak. It was only when she began to open her eyes that she breathed again, “... Fuck. Nevermind where. When are we?” she looked around and indeed Jocasta was correct. It looked like the beginning of the hours of Shune by the position of the sun. What day? Both seemed at a loss, “Uhm, okay. Do we just kind of go with this or are you gonna bring us back to nightfall? Worst case, we uh, walk. A long way. Well, I walk.”

Jocasta appreciated the joke at the end, but there was enough panic leaking through her features that any humour was set aside for now. She tried to remain calm. She didn’t even know if she could get them back, the air felt strangely… rich, and she sensed a series of very large, very unfamiliar creatures - reptilian - she thought, approaching. “Anywhere is better than here,” she assured Zarina, batting absently at a fly as she tried to concentrate. “Hand!” she called, and then they were on the same plain, at night. She breathed a sigh of relief. All was as they’d hoped. A small town hunkered in the distant foothills.“Thank Dami. There was still some evidence of the hole we’d left when we came. Travel back is easier if you do it quickly.” She shuddered in relief. “Okay, no more messing with time. One more leap and we’re in Gandakar. Then, we’ll have to pinpoint your home.”



Zarina could feel it too– the eyes of predators far beyond what she had ever seen, “Agreed.” she clenched Jo’s hands tightly, “Hurry, please.” the tall and confident Virangish girl whimpered. Luckily they were swiftly brought back to a more recognizable era. Zarina sighed in relief, her head falling over Jojo’s shoulder, “And here I thought we had doomed the world …” again with the jinxing, but she was blissfully unaware. After a moment to regain her senses, she adjusted her posture and held both of Jo’s hands, “Yeah, same direction, minus the time. I’ll show you my home if you can get us uhm …” she was pondering for a moment, “There’s a big plateau southeast of Gandakar, many from the city go there for hiking, or to impress someone. You can see my home from there, sort of. And we avoid the city.”

“Right,” replied Jocasta, nodding, businesslike. She closed her eyes. “Got it.” Then, they were there. A great stone citadel, covered in chaparral brush, with a chapel and a series of small structures, it loomed over the city. Vast and lush, Gandakar spread out beneath them, with its handsome gardens, grand plazas, bustling port - even at this hour, to an extent, and narrow, chaotic streets. Surrounding it lay endless green fields, terraced on the hillsides and pockmarked with dozens of little villages. At its very heart lay the enormous dome of the Silverstar Idasque: resplendent in platinum plate and one of the holiest sites of the Darhannic faith. Down a grand boulevard, it was mirrored by the six mighty towers of Sultan Osman’s palace. For a moment, Jocasta just took it all in. “Your home,” she observed, “It's… beautiful.”

Home sweet home, well almost. Zarina took in the Virangish air she had sorely lacked for at least two months. It really wasn’t any different than Torragon, or Inipor or even Ersand’Enise, but it just had this insignificant little something that brought floods of nostalgia to the native teen. The city definitely made most other places look somewhat backwards in comparison and Zarina, despite having seen these sights thousands of time, was awestruck just like her friend, “A lot of people have this mindset of ‘greener grass on the other side’ with their homes, especially young people.” she shook her head, “No such thing in Gandakar. Sucked all the green in Virang, and became the most beautiful city in the world.” she chuckled, although it almost sounded like a scoff. Her hand extended west, pointing at the south-end of the city where a few hills held large, gated homes. One of them was her’s with a few flat fields adjacent to the property, “You can get us on the big patch of grass over there. The servants should be inside or asleep.”

“That much property,” Jocasta wondered, “in the city…” Then, she nodded. “When we arrive, I’ll find a place to sit, out of the way.” She took one more deep breath, and didn’t even close her eyes. In a moment, they were there, plopping down gently on the lawn.

It was indeed a good amount of property. The field they were in was big enough to host small horse races if it were tailored for it. To the north was the family home. A three-story mansion to some, but just a relatively large house compared to the obscenely wealthy of Virang. There was little in terms of lighting beyond a few lanterns inside that illuminated the large windows surrounded by pure, white stone. Opposite of the home was the stables– a far more humble building that was well maintained with an old lantern dangling outside by the entrance. It was remarkably remote from the main home, and even further from the main exit of the property. Surrounding the property and beyond the iron fences were either stone as they were still by a hill, wild greenery of property owned by the governing bodies of the city or a neighbour’s plot of land that was carefully tended to like the Al-Nader residence.

“Come, you can sit at the stables. I’m sure you can make a friend.” she offered her hand and showed Jocasta the way. Inside the wooden animal home were two rows with give slots each. Five for horses, two for goats (there were two in each), and three were currently empty. A loud neigh could be heard the moment they stepped in and Zarina couldn’t help but grin knowingly while looking over at Jo, “Have you ever seen a Camargue horse before, Jo?”



“I… haven’t,” admitted Jocasta, floating up after Zarina. “I’ve just heard they were a Perrench breed originally, and a very ancient one. Came with the Torraro but didn’t do so well in the desert, so they sold most of their breeding stock out here.” She blinked. “I um… read a lot about animals,” she admitted. “Just don’t get o see as many as I’d like.” She paused, eyeing the horse hesitantly. “What’s his name?”



Zarina gestured for Jocasta to keep following, as the horse in question was at the very end of the row, “M’hm. Well, most animals don’t do too great in deserts if they’re gonna be there for a long time, unless bred for it.” she added, “They do just fine on sand. Given where they originally came from, beaches were part of their environment.” slowly but surely, upon passing a few other lovely equine creatures, they would meet him, a grey Camargue Stallion. The fact that he wasn’t completely white yet suggested he was still relatively young, “Hey, hey … Riesco.” the animal was agitated, he hadn’t seen his rider in a good while and now she was stopping by at irregular hours. AND with a stranger?

And yet, when she passed her hand over his snout and gently brushed upwards, he kept still. No more neighing, no more grunting, his black eyes were trained solely on his partner, “There we go.” her idle hand reached for her backpack and slid a carrot out to present to her neglected stallion as an offering. He gobbled that up instantly, “You wanna feed Riesco, Jo? I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.” another carrot was pulled from her back and offered to her instead. She then side-stepped and leaned her cheek against the big male’s neck while coiling her arms around him.

Jocasa’s eyes flicked between Riesco, Zarina, and the carrot. She accepted the third and slowly approached the first. She looked to the second for reassurance. “He’s… alright with strangers?” Zarina nodded in approval, although Riesco would grunt at Jocasta’s first approach only to mellow soon after sniffing her and her tribute.

“Aww, good boy, Riesco.” She let him vacuum up the carrot, accepting the inevitable stray slobber, and mimicked Zarina’s earlier motions, reaching out to pet him.

The animal was oh so happy to get this much positive attention. The stables were clean, the animals looked after, but the place was conspicuously distant from the main home and it was no surprise that the servants weren’t going to go beyond what was necessary. A good while was dedicated to giving Riesco the love he deserved. Some smooches there, scratches behind the ear and loads of petting. Then, she unlocked the wooden door he could only peek over, “Hold him here real quick, he tends to go for walks if unsupervised. Gonna just grab a bridle and a saddle.” she did just that, leaving the two cuties to bond. Camargue horses were known to be friendly to humans, and despite being a full-on stallion, Riesco was no exception. Except of course when in a rut or a total stranger tried to ride him.

Zarina would return, saddle and bridle in her arms, but she also came with an impish smile on her face, “Hey, Jo. Kaspar and I had this idea and … I mean, you’re gonna love this.” she’d still take the time to prep the horse, but she was eager to show her silly idea, giggling all the way. Riesco, being the horse that he is, tried to steal a couple of carrots from Zaz’s backpack. The lips were flapping fiercely.

Jocasta blinked and tilted her head. “Oh?” she chirped, “I will?” Zarina nodded and walked Riesco with her to the first slot of the horse row. There wasn’t a horse in there, but a white Shetland pony, “Meet Gina! She was our pony when we were like … Eight.” the slow but curious little animal approached the wooden gate and attempt to sniff the humans, only to raise its head and to scout out the same carrots Riesco was beaming for, “Wouldn’t this pretty girl be PERFECT for Ayla?” she couldn’t hold it and began to wheeze at the notion.



Jocasta, in the middle of taking a quick sip from her flask, snorted half of it out through her nose. “Oh my Gods,” she laughed, nearly losing control of her hover. For a moment, her feet thumped against the ground. She regained the lost height and grinned. “Well, the size is about right…” She nibbled her bottom lip. “You should do it, friend.”

They had a good laugh, and Zaz would be stuck with the hiccups for a bit, “You agree? Alright, perfect.” Gina was prepared just like Riesco after being given proper carrot compensation. The saddle was older, given the residents were no longer kids, but it fit nicely, “Hey, Jo. Why don’t you give the ol’ girl a try, hmm?” she smirked a toothy one while Gina kind of just stared at the Tethered behind that long, white mane.

A little pang hit Jocasta, and she swallowed. “I would… love to. She’s such a little sweetie, but…” She stopped herself. “I’ll have to use some of The Gift to hold myself properly on. That won’t spook her or anything, will it?”

Zarina shook her head, “There are two here that won’t lose their minds with magic.” she gave her Riesco a nice pat on the neck and in turn he gave her a ‘kiss’ with his snout, “This guy, whom I’ve travelled with. And then there’s Gina,” she focused on the unassuming little thing. She hadn’t grunted a single time or protested anything when geared up for a walk she likely hadn’t done in years, “so long as you just don’t make her do effort-heavy things, she’s essentially made to deal with kids.”

“Well, that works, since I’m basically an overgrown child.”Jocasta replied. She spent the next few minutes riding a pony, eventually coming to a stop in front of the stables where Zarina was with Riesco. “So… not to throw some water on your joy,” she began, “but, uh… what’s the plan here?”

Zarina was back on the saddle, literally. With Jocasta doing her rounds, she made sure to leave the note she had written prior to leaving the Refuge onto one of the wooden beams inside the building. When asked about the plan, Zarina shrugged, “We go back? With these two lovelies. Aaaaand,” a small tap of her boots brought Riesco to a walk. After traversing the field and reaching dangerously close to the house, Zarina directed her attention to an unlocked cellar, “There are a couple of jars of Virangish peppers. Absurdly valuable. Yummy as fug. My gift, for uh …” she lowered her head and sucked in her lips, “Being so good to me. And yeah, I’ll get them.” which she did. It took ten agonizing minutes. And during this time Jocasta could very much hear movement inside the house. Zarina eventually emerged and presented the promised goods. Dried and properly sealed, they were to be carried into a bag on Riesco’s saddle, “... Just don’t eat them raw. You’ll lose your tongue.”

“Oh, hun,” Jocasta assured her, “Who says they’re for me at all?” Her smile was all teeth. “Now, this goes faster if we’re both mounted and holding hands.” In practice, it meant that Jocasta had to reach well upwards. “Fun as the journey here was, I’d rather not take thirty jumps and almost two hours on the way back so, if it’s just the same to you, I’m gonna try to accomplish this in maybe six.” She reached out, closed her eyes, and took a breath. Then, they were somewhere else.

Zarina extended her hand in full trust. They were used to this, but the horses were now put to the test. Gina was thoroughly unimpressed unless they were suspended mid-air, while Riesco got agitated and stomped the ground to gather himself. But nothing wild, they reacted just about as Zarina anticipated, “Hey, hey …” she whispered sweet nothings to his perky ear, and it was enough. After a sigh of relief, she called out to Jo, “Hey, Jo. Before we just jump again.” she gestured for the blonde to come closer, which would probably require some floating. All so she could be in Zaz’s range for a big, warm embrace.

Jocasta blinked. “What is it?” she asked, rising from the saddle for a moment. “We really don’t have -” Zaz squeezed the little lady in her arms, her chin over Jo’s shoulder and eyes blissfully closed. She kept this going for maybe half a minute without a word, until very slowly loosening her grip and letting the floaty being go, “Thank you.” she said simply, her voice almost like a whimper. It was clear she didn’t like showing this much vulnerability, but this was earned. If Jocasta paid enough attention, and she needed to with how dark it was, she’d notice the faintest blush on this Virangish’s cheeks!

After about ten seconds, Jocasta squeezed back. She could count the number of genuine embraces she’d received on one hand over the past six years. “Thank you too.” she breathed. “You, Yalen, Kaspar, and Ayla…” she sniffed. “You’ve given me just as much as ‘ve ever given you.” She buried her head in Zarina’s shoulder. “God this sounds awful, but… you’ve given me myself back.” They parted with one last squeeze and, if Zarina was blushing, Jocasta was close to tears again, for the third time in three days, after having one for years without. “Now, come on, bucko, I‘d like to get at least a wink of sleep tonight.”

She tried so hard not to cry. Zarina would end up succeeding, in the end. But it was so hard and the teeth clenching was getting painful. She had to be strong for this one, even if she had all the power in the world, she was still a person. Gentle caresses were given to Jo’s head as the embrace lasted as long as it needed to, “Feels good to be around decent folk sometimes, huh?” a sentiment Zarina shared, even if not to Jo’s extremes, “I’ll promise you something, Jo. As a friend who respects you.” they were both back on their saddles, and Zaz reached out to hold her friend’s, “I’ll still be the one to say no if something feels strange, or if I think you need some standing up against.” she spoke with a brittle voice– she hadn’t fully recovered from holding back her own reactions, “Most will either be intimidated by how strong you are, or love you too much. I won’t let shit slide just because. And only because I care.”

“Right,” said Jocasta. “Right. Thank you. I think… I need that.” She nodded. “Now, just Casii,” she laughed. “No more delays, though. Come on!” She placed a hand against Zarina’s leg and they were somewhere else, and again. A couple jumps more, and they were at the headwaters of the Miharapori. Jocasta stopped for a quick drink. This was energy-intensive. She patted Gina, who’d been solid as a rock the entire time. “One more,” she told her friend. “to take us in range of the Refuge, and then one into it. Then,” she snorted, “All we’ll have to do is explain how a random horse and a pony showed up here overnight.” Jo winked. “I won't tell if you don’t.”

A complicit smile was plastered onto Zarina’s visage, “Let’s give them mysterious eyebrow wiggles until they force us to confess.” she stuck her tongue out as they paced closer to the refuge. Whether they warped there or not didn’t quite matter at this point as they were quite close. But one thing was for certain: They couldn’t wait to sleep!

Coming Soon, half the post is a tl;dr.

1) The riot situation was handled well by Leon and Carmillia. Currently, the crowd in the Entertainment Lounge remains there as they look upon Leon, while the rabbles outside are starting to panic due to the discovery that a Schluckodil had infiltrated the boat. An attempt can be made to deal with the panic... Or alternatively the panic can be used as a smokescreen that will allow Leon and Carmillia to move unhindered to do their things.

2) The Schluckodil in the boat had cornered the two remaining Arcanists of the Lorentine Queen. Manfred, Dory, Eun-Ji, and Seer are moving to hopefully take care of the situation.

3) If they are successful, moving the boat back to shore will become a much more likely prospect.

4) For Zarra, the action opportunity is obvious. He should think carefully to be able to save himself without losing a limb or two or even his life.

1) Choose your station for the upcoming negotiations. Be aware that almost all of these will see some action, while the main negotiations will be in the auditorium. The Duke's people will also make themselves at home in the refuge and need to be shown around.

2) Feel free to add to the conversation or interact with any NPCs or PCs.

3) Any final preparations, plans, or contingencies?

4) First impressions of Huarcan and his entourage? Any reactions or actions?

5) This post will be quickly followed up, within two days, by a second one. If you wish to post, it can just be a quick one. Do it within the timeframe or give me one and I'll fit it in.

6) The Duke's people aren't known yet to most characters, IC. For your reference, they are:

Thierry de Montblaise: dark-armoured knight
Avril Frannemas: daughter of the duke
Radolfo Frannemas: elder son of the duke
Clemencia Cardenas: tethered rider
Luz Suarez: woman in crimson
Huarcan Frannemas: the duke
Augusto Frannemas: younger son of the duke

Ayla shares her plan with Jocasta to swap places.
They dress up as eachother.
Plan for 'Jocasta' to negotiate, whilst the meek 'Ayla' can slip under the radar as the hidden trump card.

It was Benedetto who spoke first. "Holy fuck," he cursed, gazing out from the top of a vast desert plateau. "Where the hell are we?"

Below them, the rock tumbled into sand which seemed to stretch on forever, but there were things much more immediate to draw the eye. "Oh whoa," exclaimed Penny, rifling through the backpack she, like all of the others, had been given as she was preparing to leave, "It's like... full of useful things: a compass, a water flask, clothing..."

"Penny," said Benedetto, with an odd lack of malice, "Shut the fuck up and look."

Gathering her crutch with a scowl, she stood and did so. Below them was an army of some two to four thousand, dust rising from its path, armour shimmering in the early morning sun. It was headed towards a walled compound in the near distance, soon to be between them and the only settlement in sight.

Before the group could even begin to formulate a plan, however, there was a screeching roar overhead, and a great, arrowlike shadow. As Ismette peered up, her eyes widened. There were dragons - froabases, she remembered - circling on the thermals: four of them and, as she watched, one, and then another took notice of the new arrivals.

1) Feel free to play out any tech, personal, spatial, or other observations you might have during their flight.

2) gaps have been left in conversation pieces. You are encouraged to fill these in with thought, word, and action.

3) What item did you choose? What did you think of it? If they were related, you may have received a couple of small supplementary items as well.

4) Last kiss from Sileen? Was there more than one behind the shelves?

5) You have your weapons, still! You may need them.

6) Just what is going on below you? Should you make your way to the refuge or the army? Who are the good guys here and, more importantly, who's likely to come out on top?

7) Four froabases are headed your way. These are voracious, fire-breathing predators, five to nine meters long. They are highly resistant to internal tampering with the Gift. Run, fight, or hide? Good luck!

"So uh... you ever see those kids from the academy again?" Amelea asked. Busy rolling tobacco, Xavier shook his head. He shrugged and let out a small bark of laughter. "Eh, they went into the cave." Finished, he struck a match to light it and took a drag. "Nobody ever comes out of that cave. That's why you sealed it up, didn't you?"

The Pirate Queen of Segona gave a crooked grin and a shrug of her own. "That is why I had it sealed up," she confirmed, flipping a coin back and forth between her fingers.

"Shame about them," Xavier remarked, letting out a puff of smoke. It lingered in the air. "A couple were useful kids." He furrowed his brow after a moment, however, a stray thought nagging at him. "Say," he wondered, "If you knew, why'd you let them in there?"

Amelea answered by reaching down into the chest full of gold coins beside her. She arched an eyebrow. "You wanna be the one to pay them?" she questioned, letting a few coins fall in a trickle. They landed with that 'clink, clink, clink' sound that she loved so much.

The old scoundrel made a face and Amelea grinned. "Didn't think so." She kicked her feet up on a second chest and lit up cigar of her own. The two pirates laughed, and smoked, and laughed some more.

The End.