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SAUR CAMP - MORNING
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Bracvar finds himself scuttling out of the lesser used West Gate early in the morning, not that the crab feels any need to slink about, and he does in fact make his way with his usual air of 'I belong here.' Minutes later, he wanders into the newest settlement among Respite's boundaries, the camp of Saur refugees. He nods and tuts as he looks about, one hand gripping a shoulder-slung sack to his side, the other idly resting on his left foreleg as he wanders, speaking low to himself. "Aye. A right mess you lot have gotten into, eh? A right proper mess." He shakes his head with a low chuckle, looking about at the few folks awake at this hour and raising his voice a bit. "Righ 'ey. Who's in the leader seat, then?"
Narrator: Some of the refugess pay Bracvar no mind as he scuttles through the camp, a few stop to assess him, and when he raises his voice, one steps up towards him and points down the way towards one of the larger tents, "No Whisperer any longer. Usid, The Swift, has been working with your town's leaders. He is as much our leader as anyone."
Bracvar looks down at the kid speaking to him, his uncovered eye crinkling at the corner as he smiles. "Oh aye, heard about all tha'. Sorry yeh've been uprooted an' all, kiddo, an' thanks fer the directions. Keeper chin up, eh? Sun's on the horizon!" He gives the young saur a short wave before straightening up and heading for the tent he'd been directed to. "Usid. Say it th'same as th'kid, old crab. Usid." He clears his throat on reaching the tent, rapping his carapaced knuckles on a post outside.
Usid himself is already up, going about some of his morning routine as he cooks some meat for breakfast over the firepit in the center tent, the largest of the three tents connected to one another, making this more of a 'command center' than a living quarter, in part at least. It's still rather simple. He snorts as he hears the knock, not expecting any meetings this day. "Enter."
Bracvar hears the call, clearing his throat a little as he ducks through the tent flap, adjusting his satchel as he looks about until his eye falls on Usid. He gives a cordial bow before addressing him. "Good morn O leader, Usid. I do hope you are well, all considered."
Usid glances up at the rather unusual entrant. He hmphs. "One of the seafolk, hm? Usid has heard of you, never seen one of you face to face." He motions to offer a seat. "Usid is simply Usid now. Usid speaks for the tribes in these dealings with Respite. All things considered... we are alive. It is enough sometimes."
Bracvar smiles and nods, taking a seat on the ground as much as his dry hips protest. His legs are carefully splayed out in four directions, not knocking anything over, thankfully. "Yer welcome is appreciated, sir. Aye, a bit out of me home, I must admit, but Respite is... Unique. A real opportunity of a sort. Was a sad shame to be kept away for months. Heard tell some of that was yer doin'." His tone becomes lower with the end of his sentence, but perks back up with the next. "But far be it from me teh complain 'bout you landfolk's and yer territorial disagreements, eh? Don't e'en got myself a home in this ruddy desert!" He chuckles, grinning under his beard at Usid.
Usid 's face falls a bit at the accusation, for while Bracvar likely means 'the Saur' when he says 'you', the truth is that Usid himself was responsible for the caravan disruption for quite some time. He sighs, "Usid apologizes... the nature of war, yes? But it was a fool's war. We have seen this now, many of us."
Bracvar waves a hand dismissively. "A fool's nothin', Usid. Ain't nobody t'blame but yer Whisperer. 'Sides, yer here now, doin' right by yer people, and I hear tell yeh turned sides midway to help the ignorant ones." He shrugs. "Again, a drop in the sea. Care more about what yeh think yer doin now than what yeh though yeh were doin' then."
Usid 's expression slowly brightens, and he nods. "Yes. This is appreciated. What brings you to me this morning, then, hm? Surely not just to give forgiveness."
Bracvar nods, chuckling as Usid brightens up a bit. "Good lad! I got a proposition fer yeh. Yer Whisperer got on us seafolk first 'fore setting his teeth to Respite. Granted there were only a handful of us doin' trade, but he sent us on our way some time back. Oh maybe two years? Mean, I still snuck about under the moon, couldn't let yeh all go without fresh deepfish forever. Long 'n short, I wanna open that trade back up with yeh."
Usid brightens further at this proposition. "Fresh deepfish...? Such delicacies... Usid had heard that trading with the seafolk had ended, but the Whisperer gave no reason. Ahhh, but we have so little to trade with now. Some of us have found work within Respite, or without. There are plans to build more permanent homes, but many of the clans are still uncertain where to go."
Bracvar hums, rubbing his mandibles under his beard for a few moments. "That does pose an issue, mm? I think the Whisperer might have picked a fight with the best possible target, though. So many misfits and exiles in Respite, couldn't find a more understandin' bunch fer the post-war negotiatin'. As fer us seafolk, Xeil didn't want us pollutin' yer folks with tales from other lands."
Usid nods, "We are already learning much... so much beyond what we believed." He sits back, voice going quiet, "And so much we believed..." He shakes his head.
Bracvar sighs, settling a little. "Aye, that much was rather obvious. One thing that never came up back then, though... Were any of yeh remotely aware of Yzzayt's true nature?"
Usid shifts uncomfortably, falling silent. His voice creaks quietly, "Yes... and no. We knew he slept beneath the mountain... but not... not what he truly was, no."
Bracvar hums, tilting a bit in his spot. "Aye, so yer Whisperer kept that from yeh then." He nods, swinging the satchel from his side and setting it down. He dumps some of the contents onto the tent floor, letting three hefty pouches of coins fall to rest before Usid. "Their charity'll dwindle with time, this'll help get yer people a little ahead of that. A friend of mine has a certain int'rest in Yzzayt. We're takin' a trek to the Prominence and ah... would prefer some privacy fer his lookabout. I know not all of yer village is here, but yeh can find somethin t'keep yours busy fer a week and some, eh?"
Usid leans forward, reaching for one of the bags, looking inside and sifting a claw through the coins. "This is... most generous." He narrows his eyes, "More generous than a simple expedition would suggest. What is it you seek at Yzzayt's Transgression, hm?"
Bracvar glances between the coins and Usid, laughing after a moment. "I see. No no, the coins aren't fer anything but you and yours. An offering in sympathy, as it were. Yer folks outside the Whisperer and 'is goons never cast a poor look my way. Perhaps my timing was a little odd, he only be wantin' t'know where a storm makin' dragon woke from, as Yzzayt seems to have paid an extended and unwelcome visit to his home country. Happens I know the way, and want to see the Transgression fer merself."
Usid relaxes his gaze, nodding. "Then it is accepted in that spirit... and appreciated. Dyvrisse went north, with those who did not trust the people of Respite. I suggest... not discussing Yzzayt with others of the Clan... but I shall wish you and the one you guide luck, reaching that accursed place."
Bracvar nods, thinking for a moment. "Aye... We'll stick to the Southmost way I know, then. That warning is appreciated." He chuckles, making sure his satchel is empty before slipping the cover shut and setting it beside his legs. "Now, while I be here, why don' we discuss what yer clan may be wantin' from me in month to come? Quite a bit I can offer teh bring, though afraid I can't offer much more without cost."
Usid nods, pulling the coin from the table to continue on with simple trade talk, but at the back of his mind he makes note to himself to keep an eye out for Bracvar, and for the one that he is guiding. There is more here than there seems to Usid.
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OUTSIDE THE WEST WALL - AFTERNOON
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Melia is in a cheery mood. The elemental lizard glows lightly in the afternoon sun, her presence very green and only somewhat physical as she wanders by the still somewhat befuddled guards. She has become something of a local 'known entity' due to her work at the Clinic and general cheeriness of being, even if a lot of folks had not really seen before... last week or so.
Melia makes her way towards Tarbin's hut, calling out: "Tarbin! You here?"
Tarbin pokes his head out from the bushes a short jog away from the grassy hut. His mood since talking with Nesseth has notably improved greatly, though he occasionally hosts a sadness in his eyes when he looks at Melia in the quieter evenings. He grins on seeing her now though, waving to her and half-stumbling out of the bushes, careful to not tip a large basket of fresh berries. "Here, Melia! How are things in town this day?"
Melia giggles a bit as she sees Tarbin, just something about his stumbling amusing the elemental. "I think they're pretty good? At least, didn't really see or sense anything odd." She gives a shrug and a smile, her numerous frills lightly swaying in some non-existent wind. "How about your day out here?"
Tarbin holds the berries aloft, chuckling quietly. "Plenty for a few meals, perhaps a little [preserves] for on bread." He turns to meet Melia partway to the hut, hanging the basket off of his forearm. "Other than that, not too much. Some rot in a few trees was no trouble, though the old Elm I think we will let pass. It seems to want to return to the soil."
Melia nods sadly: "It is... unfortunate, but I agree. I tried my best already." She tilts her head for a second as though considering some question or other as she looks at Tarbin, but then just heads into the hut. Something is very obviously on the elemental's mind, she's been more quiet and pondering than outwardly talking a lot of evenings when the 'things to do' run out.
Tarbin watches Melia walk by, his tails swishing across the grass for a few seconds before he quietly sighs and follows her into the hut. Setting the mixed basket of berries aside, he looks toward her. "You did what you could, but the end of things is still part of Nature. If nothing returned to the soil, nothing new would grow eventually. I am sorry that the Elm's fate it makes you sad."
Melia shakes her head lightly, her frills swaying: "It's not that... I'm just..." She takes a deep breath she doesn't really need to take, another habit she has picked up as a way to gather her thoughts. She turns to look at the lizard: "Tarbin... what are we now? I've seen and heard all kinds of relations in Respite, but where do we fit? Friends? Partners? Lovers? Siblings? Although we're not like... blood-related. Well, not in that way."
Tarbin blinks at her question, tilting his head after a moment. "What are we? That... Is maybe complicated." He moves to the side of the hut, settling on one half of a large exposed root which creaks slightly from his weight. "We were more ah... [Intimate?] Connected than most folks will ever be."
Melia nods slowly, musing on this: "Yeah... I can not feel you anymore, though. But what we shared was... well, it was." She looks at Tarbin, sighing a bit: "Sorry. I just feel so lost in all this..."
Tarbin looks down at the ground for a moment as she speaks, nodding. "I understand. You are going through a lot. Much to think about, yes? Our connection... I am sorry it has gone. The quiet is unsettling, yes? But also freeing. The link to me was holding you back." He looks up to her again, smiling.
Melia shifts her nearly-existent weight from one leg to the other: "It is... though it also scares me. Scares me that there is no going back, and that I know nothing of... most anything." She lifts her hand, attempting to 'touch' her Flow to Tarbin's, but not finding anything. She sighs softly, looking down.
Tarbin looks toward the magic she's moving, sighing when she stops her attempt to reach him. "The only way back might be the same way it happened the first time. And that might not work twice. I am not willing to risk losing you to find out, Melia."
Melia starts to say something, but then just nods. "Y-yeah. It would be... foolish, even for me. Not that I even really know how we would go about it. A-and I'm free, I wanted this... right?" The elemental does not sound very certain of anything right now.
Tarbin watches Melia for a few moments before standing up and stepping toward her. He wraps her in a gentle hug. "It's alright, I'm still here with you, aren't I?"
Melia hugs back... then tightens her hug, closing her eyes: "Y-yeah. S-safe with you."
Tarbin nods slowly, rubbing her back. "Yes, safe. You can trust me, Melia. We can do so much more for nature this way."
Melia sniffs a bit, but nods into Tarbin's shoulder: "W-we can. We can. Just... I don't know. So much to learn..."
Tarbin chuckles quietly, keeping the hug for as long as Melia needs it. "Oh yes. Was for me, too. Years of it, so we will take it slow."
Melia leans on Tarbin for a long moment, before reluctantly letting go: "Slow... fast... however we do it, right?" She shakes her head: "So... complicated is what our, uh, thing is?"
Tarbin smiles reassuringly at her, nodding. "Complicated. I think... Partners might be a good word, yes? W-we aren't lovers. That would require well... A talk."
Melia tilts her head: "What kind of talk? We've talked a lot. Is there some kind of special talk for that?"
Tarbin chuckles quietly again, looking away a bit. "Much to learn, as you say. It is not something I could do. That is also complicated. Lovers love eachother. And enjoy eachother, like sex. Remember the deer mating? Like that, but not just to breed."
Melia blinks, considering this: "Love... I have seen it, like with sex... don't understand how to get to it, but if you say so." She shakes her head: "I have no idea if I can breed."
Tarbin blinks, shrugging. "It would be something to ask a scholar, maybe? I would not know either." He thinks about it for a few moments, giving her a half smile. "Do not feel alone in not knowing love, though. I have never fallen in love, either. We can share that, as well."
Melia looks at Tarbin: "But... you are so handsome and have seen a lot. Surely you must have."
Tarbin blushes a little under his scales from the compliment, but shakes his head. "My purpose in life is dedication to the Flow. I have had... [suitors] of a sort. I do not know the word in Common. But nobody I felt so strongly to."
Melia hums, tilting her head: "I am not sure of the word either, but... from Erika's, uh..." She pauses, not really wanting to dig in there but her desire for answers pushing her forward: "-m-memories, isn't getting together with someone special what everyone wants?"
Tarbin looks aside, toward the basket of berries he'd spent all day nurturing to ripeness. "What I want is what I have. To spend all day immersed in life. I used the day to sit and nurture those berries to ripeness. If anything else in the world can bring me such peace and happiness, I've yet to find it." He looks to her, sighing. "Many do not know what they want in life until they are adults. Many still do not find what makes them truly happy. Love, coupling, raising a child. They give common purpose. Purpose gives happiness. I know my purpose, you just need to find yours."
Melia looks at Tarbin as he talks, then down at the ground, not really having an answer. Or any answers, really. She swirls into a cloud of green magic for a second, appearing sitting on the bed. "Don't know until adults... so... when would that even be, for me?"
Tarbin has a moment to adjust to her no longer leaning on him, sitting back down on the root. "I do not have that answer for you. I have very few for you."
Melia looks at Tarbin, smiling lopsidedly: "I guess. I wonder where might I find them?"
Tarbin pauses, laughing after a moment. "Would you believe I do not have the answer for that, either?"
Melia blinks, then lets out a little laugh: "I g-guess I can believe that." She lets out a breath that she wasn't holding in the first place: "Well, d-damn. Guess I just gotta ask around?"
Tarbin smiles reassuringly, nodding. "And make friends along your way, as well. I do have one thing I can teach you today, at least." He gets up from the root, turning toward the berries and fetching a few of the mismatched cooking dishes they'd been gifted over time, getting ready to start in on a bit of work. "We've not made berry jam together, what do you say?"
Melia tilts her head for a second, then her smile brightens considerably: "That sounds like fun! Maybe not solving bigger problems, but solving the mystery of berry jam is somewhere on my list!"
Tarbin nods, chuckling over the tinkling of dishes. "The small problems should be solved first. Fit the easy pieces together, the rest of the puzzle looks much less difficult."
Melia gets up, looking at Tarbin confusedly: "The berries are a puzzle? Or my existential problems? Or both?"
Tarbin grins, shaking his head a bit. "Yes, we will go with that." He moves the basket closer to Melia. "You pick out how much of which berries we'll use. Your first jam will be your flavor. There is no wrong answer here." She smiles at her reassuringly. "I'll guide you when there might be a wrong answer."
Melia hums and starts poking through the berries, feeling their flavor as much as she occasionally tastes one or two. Eventually, with some help from Tarbin answering her queries about taste, they arrive at a concoction that probably becomes a jam eventually. The elemental is simultaneously a bit relieved and not in the least more knowledgeable about answers to her story.