Lonely Hearts [Eldon Sunkiss]

[Lynnea Timandre]

Timestamp: 13th Winter 511 A.V. So cold. It was so cold. The frost chilled her wet skin. It hurt her almost as much as the wind, which slashed her sharply like the slavers on the ship. The memories of them were fresh in her mind. All the horrors that those men had committed on that boat, all the horrors those men had committed against her...but she had committed crimes just as bad. Vividly did she remembered the horrific escape, vividly she remembered killing the man in her cell. She remembered her dive over the side of the boat into the cold, cold water, the shouts and curses that had followed after her. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't forget it. The water had brought her here, but where was here, exactly? She didn't know. Long fronds of waving grass surrounded her on all sides but behind her, whereas the frothy waves had lapped at her scaly feet. Driven by fear and adrenaline, she had run into those unending plains. And ran and ran and ran...but each strand of grass in front of her was exactly the same as the one behind her. It didn't matter which way she went, she ended up somewhere that looked, seemed, and felt exactly the same; it was almost if she could turn around and end up back at the shore. But by that time, even that change in surroundings was long since gone. Night was coming. It crouched on the edge of sky, waiting for its chance to overwhelm the Sun's dying glow. The cries of unseen predators surrounded her, erupting ever now and again as unlucky prey was caught. Sooner or later, she knew that those very same predators would take notice of her, and she would become the prey. In her exhausted state, she wouldn't be able to do anything but wait for inevitable death. Her steps faltered, and the ground reached up to embrace her. There she crouched, on her knees and devoid of the strength that had borne her hither. Sharp gasps escaped from her lips, signs of the fatigue that struggled to overcome her. Despair. That was the one thing that she felt, the one overriding emotion. Only death await her, and she knew it. Lynnea Timandre raised her eyes to the sky, unable to move beyond that. Tears glimmered at the edges of her cerulean blue eyes as she searched the heavens in despair. "Help me." she whispered. "Help me!"

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Live hard, die young. This was the life of a Drykas. The Sea of Grass made it so. Eldon had spent the whole day hunting, though the outcomes were nothing but fruitless. Any trails or tracks Eldon or his dogs stumbled upon were too faint for them to follow, and that was only on the rare occasion they even found the lingering signs that taunted the hunter. And now, now that his waning daylight was nearly at its end, Eldon was on another weak trail, yet the most promising one yet. All four of his hunting canine companions, Nejin, Morse, Danadeh, and Unlu, had a strong scent. If this trail fell through, Eldon would be forced to return to Endrykas empty handed. It was better that than spending the night in the Sea of Grass without shelter or protection. It couldn't have been too many minutes, but to Eldon his dogs began to pick up their pace, a stronger fresher scent. Eldon felt the livening of his heart, the strength of its beating growing as his hope began to grow. Eldon rode on, firmly planted on Vanah's back, following the four dogs, now barking and racing to their new found prey, it was exciting, this is the life Eldon had stepped away from for a season, and regretted doing so each day. Eldon wasn't sure if he was let down or not when he found his dogs, rather than chasing a rabbit or stalking a gazelle, sniffing and curiously circling a young woman. Eldon didn't know what he was looking at initially, almost silvery-white hair, skin that reflected small shimmering lines from what little light was left in the sky, like the scales of a fish. "Out of camp!" Eldon suddenly barked at his dogs in his people's language, Pavi, and leaped down from Vanah's back. The dogs, as any trained and obedient canine should, backed away from the Konti and hid themselves in the vicinity, guard duty. The Drykas stared at Lynnea for a long moment, half hoping she would speak first, though she was probably terrified. His animals had flung themselves on her, almost violently, before they recognized she was human(ish), therefore not something to sink their teeth into. Eldon glanced up at the sky, it would be dark before he reached home, and judging by this foreigner's situation, he had to assume her home was no closer. He knew of nobody that lived nearby, excluding the occasional hunting party of Akalak or colonies of Zith. It was obvious she was in distress, possibly even dying. "Curse my life." Eldon wanted to kick himself. He meant to return with food for his people, not return with another mouth to feed, but he had no choice. His father had firmly planted beliefs that he could not shake. Winter was already so difficult for the Drykas people, yet they would still welcome and share with a neighbor in need. Without so much as a word to Lynnea, Eldon reached down and lifted her up in his arms and carried to to his Strider, Vanah. He would Take Lynnea to Endrykas, he would help her get on her feet, and he would make sure she had a chance to return to her life. "I'm taking you to my people, we will get you clothed, give you a place to sleep, and spare what food we can." Whether or not the Timandre Konti understood Pavi or not, it didn't really matter, surely she understood his intentions as he helped her on Vanah's back, whistled for his dogs, and started to walk the party back towards home.

[Lynnea Timandre]

The sounds of dogs baying raised Lynnea's head from her prostrate form. They interrupted the lingering milieu of the grassy plains, and for a moment a smile touched the corners of her lips. Then icy tendrils of fear spiked through her stomach; what if they were feral? What is they were only sizing up an easy kill? Desperation burned clear and bright within those frightening blue eyes. When the first dog burst into her line of sight, Lynnea raised her trembling hand and tried to call to the djed within. She had little in the way of offensive magic - none, in fact - but it was the only solution her desperate mind could conjure. A swear passed through dainty lips when she realized she was too tired to work magic in any shape or form. Petchin' little- Lynnea tried to struggle, tried to get herself away from the dogs. But they were on her in a second, sniffing, prodding, quite obviously getting ready to bite... ...It took a second for her fatigue-drenched mind to realize the dogs weren't attacking her. What the?...Then, when the man came into view, it all became apparent. They must have been trained dogs, owned by this unknown man who spoke to her in a meaningless language. This thought had already been darkening her mind when the man quite obviously commanded the dogs - who followed his command without hesitation. But what had their purpose been? Hunting dogs...or tracking ones? She opened her mouth to speak only to have the breath pulled from her as the man picked her up. She struggled weakly in his arms, feeling a great deal lighter than Eldon would have originally thought she weighted. In her state, she was only able to aim a few weak punches, all which failed to do any damage whatsoever. She quickly turned to speech. At first, she swore at him in Kontinese, and then abruptly half way through broke into Common. Her words; "Let me go, you filthy slaver! I won't escape only to be recaptured by the likes of you!" which was only supplemented by Lynnea's renewed struggle. A particularly powerful punch was sent towards the Drykas's jaw. She was a feisty one.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Alright, so maybe it was just his intent to set her on Vanah's back. When he initially took her in his strong arms, she struggled weakly, perhaps discomfort or just the strangeness of being held so close to a man, he assumed. Then, a swift strike to his jaw, and of all times it had to be while he was talking, forced him to stumble backwards and drop Lynnea to the ground once more. Eldon growled angrily as he lifted his finger to his lips, picking up just a trace of blood from him biting his tongue, and glared down at the Konti. "You bitch." He cursed in his own language, matching the Timandre's choice of violent powerful type words she used in her own personal native tongue. Then she screamed at him in Common, and she spoke it very well. If only he could. "Stop..." Eldon pondered a moment, choosing carefully his words from his very limited Common Vocabulary, then proceeded. "I am Eldon Sunkiss. I am Drykas. I am take safe you. Home of... my Drykas home." Eldon continued to gently massage that painful jaw, and was nothing but thankful for what little skills he learned in his brief trip to Syliras and working in the Soothing Waters. Still, it did little for what might be a bruise in the morning. How was it that women always tend to leave their marks on him, one way or another? But he still had the problem of getting his point across to the woman. She obviously didn't know Pavi, and he knew only slivers and fragments of Common. It was like some god was tormenting her, and playing a cruel joke on him. Eldon, slowly, extended his hand out to her, offering to help her up, and in turn, set her upright on Vanah's (his horse) back once more. "Please. Drykas am good. Am good."

[Lynnea Timandre]

The man dropped Lynnea to the hard-packed ground, and she landed amid half-dead grasses with a bounce. In a moment, Lynnea was back on her feet. Arenaline had given her strength with antipathy and fear could not. She had been immobilized when her opposition had been faceless, but no longer. Now that she had a target she could touch and, more importantly, defeat, she found little of the crippling despair inside of her now. She kept her form low and compact, the better to avoid the man opposite her. Her main edge had always been speed and small size, never power. She knew he'd recover from the punch shortly, and she wanted to be ready when he did. But his uttered statement threw a wrench into those plans. Lynnea froze then, though she remained still wary; tense and uncompromising, like the world around her. "You are...Drykas?" she uttered the word with the unfamiliarity that came with only speaking it in passing. She knew the word and what it represented; the horseclans of fame. But the significance was superficial, little more to her than a word inscribed on a flimsy book page. And now this man claimed to be of one? "How can..." she started to utter, but then trailed off. At once, the reality of the situation came back to her. She was in an unknown land, facing unknown dangers. She was exhausted, dehydrated, and only had stolen enough food to last her a couple days. She would die out here - unless she took the man's hand. Even if that hand belonged to a slaver. A second passed, and then another. Finally, helplessly, a quivering scaled hand was sent meandering forth. It clasped the man's -Eldon's- hardened callouses. With his help, Lynnea swung up onto Eldon's horse. Lynnea stopped him with the very same hand before anymore can be done. "I..." she paused, took a breath- "...I am Lynnea. Lynnea Timandre. I am a Konti." a slight, sad smile touched her face. "Konti 'am good' too."

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Eldon found himself staring at the Konti in bewilderment, but was even stranger was his consideration of kidnapping. What if she was delusional? It was obvious she wouldn't last out here. Tonight, maybe she would be lucky enough to avoid Glassbeaks, tomorrow she might have Caiyha's favor and evade attention of Lions, but soon she would falter, fall to weakness, and die. Even a Drykas was nothing with his horse, Eldon was nothing without Vanah. The Sea of Grass was too big, and too dangerous to travel on foot. And that was the reason he was considering knocking the woman out entirely and dragging her all the way to Endrykas. Yes, she would forever be suspicious of his intentions, yes it would probably be pointless as she would flee back into danger just to get away from him, and yes, she would hate him, but she'd live a little longer, at least. It would have been easy, she was weak, Eldon could see the shivering skin, the quivering muscles, the wavering stance, she wouldn't be able to struggle long. He still held his hand out, an offering of peaceful compliance, otherwise he would appear to be the bad guy, just to make sure he was really the good guy. His options were, thankfully, quite open. He could a.) simply reach out and grab her by the hair and pummel her until sleep took her, which was brutal and would look bad, but again, she would survive in the long run, b.) Tackle her and wrestle until her remaining strength entirely left her, then tie her up on Vanah's back, which would undoubtedly look like a barbarian taking a beautiful prize back to his camp, or c.) follow her until she passed out from natural, nonviolent slumber. That, however, risked too much time out on the grasslands, and it was already so cold and dark. Eldon didn't much like the idea of risking more than he had to. Thankfully, she chose the wisest choice and took Eldon's hand. He nodded slowly and lifted her onto Vanah's back, and hopefully, wouldn't be struck this time. Soon enough, the party of two (or eight, if you counted every living creature that accompanied Eldon) were walking slowly throughout the night. The four dogs were wandering around just out of eyesight, though occasionally yelped or kicked up stiff tall grass to give away their location. They were in a frisky mood, excited, and certainly not in their hunting persona anymore. No, they were relaxed, though alert as dogs always were. Eldon merely nodded, without a smile, as the Konti explained that she also was good. He nodded, not sure if he truly believed it as he felt the faint dull throbbing in his cheek, mostly to comfort her. He was ready to be home, and there was still so much distance to cover, especially since he was on foot. Damn his luck, he might actually have to make camp. "This day just couldn't get any worse for me." Eldon spoke to himself in Pavi, and it's a funny thing when people assumed such things, wasn't it? It was as if the gods themselves sought to make him eat his words.

[Lynnea Timandre]

The man seemed to take her words with a bit of salt, as if after the punch he wasn't exactly sure that konti were good. That comforted Lynnea a bit. The only thing worse that getting stuck with a slaver was getting stuck with a fool. For a couple of minutes, Lynnea silently rode along on the man's horse as he guided them. She had never ridden before, but found the experience strangely comforting. Having others around her helped her feel more relaxed. Not that she could ever possibly be, as was seen in her tense posture and the taut lines of her face; this place could be nothing but dangerous. After a few moments of excruciatingly slow going, an unbidden thought escaped her lips. "Where are we?" were the words she spoke in Common, accompanied by a sideways glanced at the drykas. "Somewhere in Cyphrus?" she prodded. She allowed him time to answer, watching him as she waited until she couldn't help but talk again. She noticed his impatience and gestured to the mare she was riding. "Perhaps we ride together?..." she asked, exquisitely aware of the fact she knew no idea if you could do that on a horse or not. "Make it faster?" A howl sounded off in the distance, and an nervous look passed over her face. With a slightly shift in her saddle Lynnea got a little closer to Eldon.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Eldon would have preferred the partial silence of the night than trying to forge the Common Language into words. Such a language sounded so wrong, like the words were ugly and weak, or had too many unnecessary sounds. Eldon could point out a dozen different things about every word (which few he knew) that he hated about it. How one word meant something similar, but not quite the same thing. How one word was so easily changed with another. Pavi was flawless to the Drykas, and he didn't particularly care to learn Common any more than he had. Eldon merely nodded to Lynnea as she asked of their location; he didn't even bother to look at her. And whether it was actually an answer or not, didn't particularly bother him. Yet, he seemed somewhat bothered, or at least drawn into her next question about riding together on Vanah's back. His head not-so-slowly turned to glance up at the Konti, who was almost an illuminated sort of figure with her diamond pale skin, diamond shaped scales, eyes like diamonds themselves. Eldon chuckled at himself dryly as he caught himself, undressing the woman in his head. He truly was a man. Even in their situation, which was moderately dangerous at best, he couldn't help but feel physically attracted to her. Not to mention she was fierce. Eldon liked such a thing. Still, even logically he couldn't deny that getting back home to Endrykas was best done, if done swiftly. And the only reason he hadn't already climbed on Vanah's back with Lynnea already was because of the subtle fear that the Konti would punch him in the side of the head again. He was still vaguely aware of such possibilities. And then, of course, there had to be a howl. Eldon froze in his tracks, which caused the strider to do the same. He glanced over the plains, the dark shadows of the earth against the dark clear blue of the night sky. The howl wasn't one of the Akinva Deerstalkers, they were hunting animals that were trained to fight along a Drykas hunting party. Howling would only give themselves away. No, this was something else. Not lions, they didn't howl. Not Glassbeaks, they too were stalkers that kept their silence. Whatever it was, probably wasn't right on their trail, but that was too risky. "Home, go!" Eldon barked out his command, and all four of his canines dashed away from their location, taking a considerable lead towards Endrykas. They would meet Eldon, Lynnea, and Vanah there. For now, it was time to make haste. Eldon climbed onto Vanah's back, placing himself, of course, in front of Lynnea, and prepared to ride like the wind. Without explaining himself, Eldon grabbed the Konti's hands, chilled by the night, and wrapped them around his waist and placing them together. "Hold strong. Hold strong." And with that, he started Vanah off into a fierce gallop. Nothing moved as wondrously quickly as a Strider on the plains of Cyphrus. Even Glassbeaks were outmatched in raw speed. And Speed is what he was dedicating the night to now. Vanah was, at first, running at the speed that a typical horse might reach on the open plains, but to a foreigner of these lands you simply couldn't predict what would happen. Faster. Faster. And Faster. Vanah, without tiring or failing, only grew in speed, as if possessed by some divine power gifted from Zulrav himself (and perhaps she was) to simply and literally run as unhindered as the wind. It took several minutes, but they soon passed the four hunting dogs, who were also running at full speed, and left them literally in the dust. The would be back home in half a bell at most, then they could rest and relax. Well, then he could worry about this problem-woman latched to his back that he had rescued.

[Lynnea Timandre]

The man's shouted command and the dogs running off only heightened Lynnea's fear, brought on by the ravished howl of some unknown beast. Her eyes roved the forest with crystal alertness, not noticing what was happening next to her until it was too late. "Oomph," Lynnea grunted in a very unladylike fashion as her would-be rescuer's form saddled up in front of her. Eldon had an intriguing scent; enticing yet still masculine, formed of sweat and beaded brow. For a second she breathed in the odor, until she felt the chill of his hands around her wrists. He was as cold as her, but his touch warmed her skin. Too late Lynnea recognized the sign of her gift kicking in. She murmured a subtle "Gah..." as djed flowed through her veins, and high on her neck the tattoo of a swirling lotus pulsated. It reacted to Eldon's touch, examining, inspecting him, then retreating to her with information. Reimancy. Her eyelids fluttered open and she looked at the back of the drykas with renewed interest; he was a mage. That wasn't something he had expected. The next thing she suspected even left. Eldon, seemingly oblivious to the effect their contact had made, spurred his horse into action. And the horse responded. As Vanah leaped forward, Lynnea laughed, a bright peal of laughter lost in the wind. She had never gone so fast. The landscape passed by in a blur of yellow-brown-blue, the dogs that had a headstart of them quickly being outpaced by the horse she didn't know was called a strider. Though the title would seem quite appropriate to Lynnea at that time. The wind brought tears to her eyes, and Lynnea unconsciously buried her head in the man's back. When she realized what she had done, she abruptly froze. The all-too-familiar movement had been practiced many times with her mother Amaris as a child, but doing it with Eldon seemed so...different. Almost wrong. It was just like everything else. Out of place. What was happening to her? Lynnea vaguely wondered.

[Limey]

Lynnea Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Observation 2 A Prison Of Memories And Despair Never Be A Slave Again Eldon: Mage, Rider, Rescuer... Knows How To Take A Punch Eldon Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Animal Husbandry 1 A Desperate Hunt Persuasion 1 Lynnea: A Reluctant Rescue Struggling To Reassure The Desperate Sea Of Grass: Danger Behind Every Blade Additional Notes : Not a bad start, guys. Shame it came to nothing. This was a very different Eldon from the ones I read beforehand. Much more even-tempered and less of the crazy man thing. I liked Lynnea's character, too, and the writing from both of you was impressive. Enjoy what XP and lore you got, hope to see you both again. Any questions or queries, please PM me.