[Lapis Park] The Ill Effects of Spying (Cailet)

by **Elem Bree** on October 24th, 2012, 5:25 am

43rd of Fall, 512 AV

Elem sat in the meeting area at the Society with the other members, listening to a lecture about the Watchtowers by none other than Malter, the President himself. Just as the other Society members did, Elem had his quill and paper, copying notes on the most interesting story which only further illuminated his understanding of the world.

"So, while many may believe the Watchtowers are only an ancient indicator of the seasonal changes, they are actually much more. Before the Valterrian, they were a means of travel from one place to another, with their timekeeping ability a secondary motive. These functions were gifts from the God Aquiras, who reigns over doors and travel as well as his lover, the Goddess Priskil, who reigns over radiance, hope and vigilance. The latter two aspects are more recent, as during the Valterrian, the Suvanese wizard Sagallius stole Aquiras' heart in order to become a god in his own right. Priskil now watches over her fallen lover, hoping someday that his heart will be returned. This is why the travel function is no longer suitable, while the light shines strongly each season, as she waits.

While many of us are aware, I might extend an invitation to our new member, Mister Bree of Zeltiva, to check out Lapis Park, behind the Blue Bull. There are many gemstones there, much too large to do much else with, from our mines. The lights there are courtesy of Priskil's own worshippers and there is a small stone there in Her honor. That will do for today, all."

With that, the members began to break up. Elem found himself delighted by the fact that the President had chosen to speak to him at all. He wasn't even a Kuvan yet! Well, maybe the dues he paid and his promotion of the Society was enough for a mention. He had many more ideas in the future.

Leaving the picturesque grounds, Elem made a beeline for the Blue Bull, having heard its rowdy activities many times as he passed through the gates. He had no idea there was a park behind it. He figured it was just refuse for the bar. That wouldn't make much sense though, with the Akalak's general use of every spot in the city, be it for practical or aesthetic purposes. he could hear raucous laughter and some crashing noises inside as he crept around back, looking for the park.

Once back there, he could see the entrance from the road and made his way there. It wasn't much to look at initially, mostly marshy grasses. In fact, it was the least Rivarian looking park he had come across thus far. however, once he moved through its paths a bit, he found the reason he had been sent. In a small pond was a large gemstone, its type lost on Elem, though one thing was for certain: It was huge. He could then see that brightly colored schools of fish darted around the pond, only accentuating the majesty of the stones. Elem's mind went back to the lesson, thinking of Priskil watching over her lover throughout the years. So romantic, it was.

A flash of movement to his left startled the young man, sending him down to his haunches out of sight. As he crouched down, he at once wondered why he had done so. Surely there were patrols in the area. Slowly rising, he saw a lovely young woman walking through the grasses not far from him. She carried a staff of some sort and had a look of determination on her face. Elem's curiosity was piqued, for sure. Looking around and deciding the two of them were the only ones around, he knelt back down, creeping along the path to see if he could get a better view of what she was up to.

OOC :

by **Cailet** on October 31st, 2012, 6:30 am

Her feet had carried her to Lapis Park; having left her room with no particular place in mind, Cailet decided to just walk and see where she ended up. It seemed as if this particular park called to her in some way, for she kept coming back to wander along its many paths. The sculptures were nice to look at, she supposed, but there was something about the wildness of the place that made her feel more comfortable.

Circling and looping along the different pathways, Cailet walked slowly, using her staff as a walking stick; every so often she stopped at one of the more interesting sculptures, leaning on the weapon in silence for a few chimes before continuing on. As beautiful as the park was… it did little to hold her interest for very long and the park was bare of any other inhabitants. Boredom began to slowly creep in, making the young woman feel restless.

“I suppose I could practice.” Speaking into the open air, Cailet leaned her staff into the crook of her arm as she moved to twist the straight black length of her hair into a bun at the top of her head; the thigh-long locks would most certainly hinder her movements. With loose fitting cotton clothes and the softest shoes she could find, Cailet avoided any kind of restriction she could.

Here? In this muck? Amanda stood behind her, visible only to Cailet, poking her ghostly little toe into the soggy ground that bordered the paths. You’re going to get dirty. A frown made the little girls usually smiling face into a serious frown, as if getting mud on ones clothes was a serious offense.

“I think I’ll survive. One won’t always be fighting in a clean, dry practice room.” Testing the ground for herself when she spoke, Cailet stuck her toe into the grass and watched it sink considerably; that made the decision to take off her shoes an easy one. “It’s best to be prepared for anything, you know.” Chiding gently, Cailet didn’t see the small girl roll her eyes and make faces as the young woman stepped onto the squishy ground.

Wrinkling her nose as cold, muddy water squished between her toes, Cailet hefted her staff in front of her and planted its end firmly on the ground. It took a moment for her to block out the ghost girls presence, but once she did she could no longer hear Amanda’s piping little voice; it was a very distracting sound, she had learned, when she was trying to practice.

Starting out holding her staff horizontal to the ground, she began to spin the heavy length of wood between her hands, slowly at first before starting to gather speed. It was harder than it looked to keep the staff spinning consistently out in front of her; it wasn’t long until her forearms began to burn with the effort. Just when she had managed to reach a speed that made the staff a brown blur before her eyes, there was a rustling behind her.

The sound caught Cailet off guard. Having ascertained that she was alone, strange noises were the last thing she had expected to hear. Jumping with a gasp, the staff went flying from her hands, one end whipping towards her face and striking her soundly on the cheekbone. A grunt of pain was followed by a solid, thudding-squish as the woman sat down hard into the muddy, soggy grass, a bruise already forming high on her cheek and right under her eye.

Wincing as she reached up to feel the spot, Cailet turned her chocolatey gaze towards where she had heard the sound, a frown pulling down the corners of her lips. Though she saw no one and heard no further noise, her voice crackled with cold, embarrassed anger. “Come out, who ever you are.” Hopefully it was just an animal. Though on second though, it didn’t make Cailet feel any better to think that a harmless squirrel made her hit herself in the face with her staff. Hopefully it was just nothing at all. “Now!”

by **Elem Bree** on October 31st, 2012, 12:17 pm

Elem found himself in a strange quandary all of a sudden. His initial surprise and fear had put him down beneath the grasses, but now he feared to stand. his body moved automatically with curiosity, on haunches and hands. he crept along the path, trying to at least ascertain what it was about this woman that had put him down there, feeling a tickle of fear creeping in his abdomen. It was so absurd, really, and yet he kept on skulking about.

Once he had circumnavigated the pathways, he could see that she was very fit and attractive as well. She carried a stick with her, which was one thing to be concerned over. What really seemed to put Elem off, however, was her attention toward some spot below his current point of view. After a moment of spying, it definitely seemed like she was just talking to the air. it was alright; he often did that sort of thing himself. He never answered back, though. maybe she had someone short with her. That would be best, considering she seemed to be slogging around in the mud with this staff.

Her long, dark hair was soon put up into a bun, which revealed more of the woman's athletic figure. Aware of his ogling, Elem sucked at his teeth, trying to think of what to do next. he watched as she began spinning the stick in a circle, faster and faster. She was quite skilled with it, which would only make popping up an even dumber idea. No, probably best to just backtrack and sneak out before there was any damage done.

Her fluid movements and seemingly effortless spinning were rather hypnotizing, though. The sound of the stick's rotations was a low, whooshing sound. Elem looked back toward the way he came, though a path toward the gate looked to be closer. Better too, should he need to run away. He moved again but his ankles had stiffened in the crouching and he fell over into the reeds that ran alongside the walkway. The sound of the wood hitting what had to be her, considering the grunt that followed made Elem cringe.

And then came the command to reveal himself. It was stern and sure. Elem knew he would do best just facing this, since he wasn't really sure why he had crept about in the first place. He stood up from where he had been, expecting to see the woman's angry face.

Nothing. Was she lying in the mud? Gods, he hoped not. "Uh..I'm terribly sorry. I don't even know why I did that. Are you alright?" Elem was half expecting to see the staff come flying out of the bushes, but even if that was the case, he kind of deserved it.