Time: Late MorningInteractions:Mentions: The air was abuzz with the cheery buzz of lively chatter. Wherever Sjan-dehk looked, he saw only smiling faces and eyes bright with excitement. Booming, percussive music reverberated in his ears and the sweet, savoury scents â amongst so many others â of strange and foreign foods teased his nose. The former, he found to be discomforting; he much rather preferred the lilting notes of strings or the hollow, wistful tones of a flute. The latter, conversely, proved to be far more enjoyable. Beyond that, even. As he ventured onto the soft and pristine sand of the beach, he found himself following the smells more than anything else.
âTsaan-teik!â But he couldnât fully enjoy them. That shout from the unknown boy still played in his mind. He didnât hear it as much as he felt it throb like an old wound somewhere at the back of his head. Neither did it stay for too long in his conscious mind, lingering just long enough to cloak all that he felt in a muting greyness â akin to a heavy fog clouding a dawn sea â and disappearing before Sjan-dehk could even do anything about it.
He clicked his tongue with knitted brows. This was neither the right time nor place to deal with such banal matters, even if he was left free enough for his mind to start entertaining such nightmares. It was anyoneâs guess when Lady Adiyan would need his services, and now that he was in an unfamiliar city, wandering unfamiliar streets, and amongst people who spoke unfamiliar tongues, he would need every last scrap of his wits about him to see his tasks through. He couldnât allow his mind to hobble itself.
âTsaan-teikâŠâFor now, he ignored the cloying scents calling to him with promises of delicacies. Instead, he made tracks towards the shore, where sapphire water washed white against land. The languid crash of waves and the bracing scent of ocean brine were together a stronger call than anything else in the world. Especially now, when Sjan-dehk needed his mind calmed and his sight clear.
A few people gave him curious looks as he passed, but not as much as before. Word mustâve spread that there were Viserjantans in Sorian. That, or perhaps he didnât look as imposing as he did days before. For today, he had forwent his usual weapons and armour. His tassets werenât lamellar, and were instead made to simply look like it with its stitching. In reality, they were simply padded cloth and did more to protect his azure pants from the swishing of his swords and pistols than anything else. Arm and leg wraps secured the loose fabric of his clothes to his limbs, and he had a scarf wrapped around his neck to protect the skin there from the irritation of sun-rash. And of course, his usual woven hat sat atop his head.
âTsaan-teik.âAs he walked through the thronging crowd, however, he slowly began to get the feeling that he was a little too overdressed. Almost everyone he saw was â for the lack of a better term â in some state of undress or other. Not that he had any problems with that; Viserjantans from the inland cities approached the sea in a similar fashion, not being comfortable enough with the sea to jump in fully-clothed as those living along the coasts were wont to do. What Sjan-dehk had problems with, however, was that he didnât quite know where to look. To allow his eyes to linger too long over a strangerâs naked flesh was simply rude. That was simply a matter of courtesy, really.
And so he kept his eyes directed straight ahead, at clear and rolling waters.
âTsaan-teik!âHe didnât stop until he felt the waves lap against his boots of hardened leather and soak his legwraps. The water was cool against his flesh, and the brine sharp in his nose. For several moments, he did nothing and simply stood there with arms by his side and took in the sea and her endless beauty. Undulating waves shimmered like precious gems in the sunlight. Gliding seabirds cawed overhead. A gentle breeze washed over his body, its light touch brushing past his cheeks like a loverâs caress. Sjan-dehk closed his eyes and breathed in deep.
For a moment, he was home. Not Viserjanta, not Jafi, but a home beyond them.
Then, he slowly lowered himself to a knee and slid a hand into the water. It still carried the barest traces of the chill of night, but it wasnât icy. Neither was it dark; so clear was it that Sjan-dehk could easily make out faint scratches on the stones beneath its surface. The peaceful cold, calming and familiar, travelled up his arm and spread to every corner of his body. A soft smile spread across his lips, and he carefully scooped up a handful of water with a deliberateness that bordered on reverence.
âTsaan-teik.âSjan-dehk never was one for rites or rituals. As far as he was concerned, they were little more than acts of pomp and vanity; simply ways for the nobility to make themselves feel even more self-important, as if they needed it. But when it came to the sea, things were different. The sea was the very thing that could see him safely to distant shores, or it could lead him to a sudden and abrupt end. She could be either a mother that nourished with love, or a mother that punished with furious anger. She was that which washed ships away from dangerous shoals, or that which dashed them into flotsam against shallows.
And above all, the sea was the domain of the Mother of the Waves. She, who became the Blue Serpent to protect Jafins of old; she, whose favour allowed Jafin ships to rule the open sea, and she, who all Jafins called ancestor.
Sjan-dehk drew in a deep breath, closed his eyes, and pressed his hand against his face. Keen seawater washed down his cheeks, and he tasted its salt on his lips. He opened his eyes and blinked several times as he exhaled sharply. His smile returned to his face. This was the sea which he loved, the sea which he knew would never let him down, and the sea which he would always find no matter where he was.
âTsaan-teik!âThat ghostly voice still called in his head, but it grew muffled and soft.
âThose who live, will live and see a new dawn,â Sjan-dehk recited beneath his breath, wiping his face dry with sleeves between words.
âThose who must die, will die and be brought to calm waters and fair winds by the Mother Serpent and be granted the long peace. Such is the Jafin Way of the Great Harmony.â He squeezed his eyes tight and bowed his head. In the wind that blew over him, he heard the Motherâs whispered words, and in the waves that broke against his ankles, her soft embrace.
He slowly returned to his feet, knowing that he had likely attracted more than a few curious gazes, but he couldnât care less about that. All he knew was that the unknown boyâs voice had vanished from his mind, at least for now. He knew it wasnât gone for good â it would one day return as surely as the tides â but that would be a problem for another day. There would be more nightmares in his future, he imagined. Times of quiet always did that. But so long as he had the sea with him, all would be well.
All would be well.
He drew in a deep breath, and turned back around.
Now his day could begin.
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