Time is precious.
That was a line that had little meaning to Svan only a dozen or so years ago. The first 100 years of his life had been without meaning. He had never had any goal in life aside from his survival, and later, his pleasure. It wasn't until he found Caiyha that his life had begun to actually hold any meaning. Sure the first few years in the wild had been more about simply not dying than actually living, but at least he had a goal to work towards. Years later, and after being seemingly killed more times than a possum, Svan had made it here. But the years had worn on the snake, and what was once an unstoppable blaze of determination, had been reduced to little more than a spark of hope. Still, it was enough to keep going, and there were few that could deny the man's resolve.
Unfortunately, that resolve was also part of the problem.
Svan ran his fingers through his hair and let out a sigh. "Lost would certainly be a fair thing to say...I know it sounds dumb for a century old snake to still be wondering what to do with his life, but if I was to compare my age to a human I would be roughly 20 years old. 100 years of wisdom, in the hands of a young adult. Its overwhelming to say the least." Laughing, he let his arms fall back to his side,and allowed the woman to continue to say her piece. He smirked lightly when the woman tried to preach the "treat other as you would like to be treated". Perhaps it worked for her, but what Svan wanted from other people was for them to recognize that he was the superior species and bow before him. He couldn't imagine doing that to someone else. If he ever bowed it was either for the purpose of sarcasm, or because he was planning to shiv that person later. He would however, agree to work for another person as long as he got what he wanted in the end. As long as he could pretend that he was using them and not the other way around, he was content.
As the woman went on a small frown began to form on his lips. For someone who wasn't trying to dissuade him from Familiary, she sure was doing her best to explain why he shouldn't do it. There was a certain sense to it of course, but there were also things that she didn't seem to understand about it. Not Familiary that is, but about Svan. The snake nodded at the woman's suggestions. He would try them, but he had been using practical means for the better part of two decades. By now he had simply come to the conclusion that only magic was strong enough to help him. "Perhaps I should have explained myself better." He hadn't earlier because the deeper he went the worse it would make him look. An easily fixed problem was one that an employer could easily root out, but one ground deep into his soul too time and made him a less valuable asset. "While yes I am lost, and am sure that this city will help me improve my outlook on life, there is a slightly different problem that I seem to have. You see, when I choose to get something done, I do it. There are never any if, ands, or buts about it. When I put my mind to something I accomplish it, consequences be darned. But thats the problem. Its not that I don't care about the consequences....its just that I usually don't realize them until its too late. For example, I once impaled myself on a sword just to punch a man who had challenged me to hit him. I didn't realize that I had skewered myself until about half a chime after mugging the man." Svan raised his hands defensively, "Before you get the idea that I'm going to cause trouble, I just want to point out that its not like I go insane or anything. I simply choose the most effective way to accomplish whatever my goal is. In a city like this, diplomacy reigns and so you have little to worry about as I can promise you that I will seek out a peaceful, or at least diplomatic solution to my problems. But I am a follower of Caiyha, and as such I will be called upon by her to travel to lands where diplomacy is not always the easiest way to get what you need, and I fear that my uh-pragmatic nature and conflicting....things... may get the best of me." For a man who lived half his time in the wilds, Svan was a fairly fluent speaker, but there was a hint of obvious struggle in his voice as he grasped desperately at the words floating around his head in an attempt to speak his mind. That is why I want a familiar. I want someone close to me who can see my problems from a different angle and warn me when I am about to do something I may later regret." Svan stopped himself and took in a breath to gather his thoughts. His mind flicked over to what Alses had said about the effect Lhavit had on her, and her warnings about the chance of a dangerous familiar.
"But you are right. There is the possibility that I will get a familiar that will encourage me to act poorly. However its as you said, what better place would there be than the city of Lhavit to teach the proper lessons to a young familiar? Both I and the familiar could learn how to better behave." Svan smiled and shrugged casually. "Not that I really need philosophy lessons by this point. I'm perfectly capable of recognizing good from bad. I just need someone to give me a good slap every now and then when I forget to factor in the details." Svan stopped talking as the pair reached the tea house. He stood outside the door and looked over to Alses with guilty eyes. "To tell the truth I think this is where we should part ways for now. I'm really not a fan of tea. To many plants, not enough meat." His voice suddenly softened to a whisper and he leaned closer to Alses. The term "invasion of personal space" came to mind, but it was with good reason. "And you don't have to worry, I will keep your mortal form a secret. Not that the having the form of a lady from Mura should ever be considered a bad thing. I can't imagine anyone I envy quite as much as them and their healers."
Svan let out a bark of laughter as he drew away. "Well, except for the whole "being female" part. I'm fairly comfortable with my current gender."
That was a line that had little meaning to Svan only a dozen or so years ago. The first 100 years of his life had been without meaning. He had never had any goal in life aside from his survival, and later, his pleasure. It wasn't until he found Caiyha that his life had begun to actually hold any meaning. Sure the first few years in the wild had been more about simply not dying than actually living, but at least he had a goal to work towards. Years later, and after being seemingly killed more times than a possum, Svan had made it here. But the years had worn on the snake, and what was once an unstoppable blaze of determination, had been reduced to little more than a spark of hope. Still, it was enough to keep going, and there were few that could deny the man's resolve.
Unfortunately, that resolve was also part of the problem.
Svan ran his fingers through his hair and let out a sigh. "Lost would certainly be a fair thing to say...I know it sounds dumb for a century old snake to still be wondering what to do with his life, but if I was to compare my age to a human I would be roughly 20 years old. 100 years of wisdom, in the hands of a young adult. Its overwhelming to say the least." Laughing, he let his arms fall back to his side,and allowed the woman to continue to say her piece. He smirked lightly when the woman tried to preach the "treat other as you would like to be treated". Perhaps it worked for her, but what Svan wanted from other people was for them to recognize that he was the superior species and bow before him. He couldn't imagine doing that to someone else. If he ever bowed it was either for the purpose of sarcasm, or because he was planning to shiv that person later. He would however, agree to work for another person as long as he got what he wanted in the end. As long as he could pretend that he was using them and not the other way around, he was content.
As the woman went on a small frown began to form on his lips. For someone who wasn't trying to dissuade him from Familiary, she sure was doing her best to explain why he shouldn't do it. There was a certain sense to it of course, but there were also things that she didn't seem to understand about it. Not Familiary that is, but about Svan. The snake nodded at the woman's suggestions. He would try them, but he had been using practical means for the better part of two decades. By now he had simply come to the conclusion that only magic was strong enough to help him. "Perhaps I should have explained myself better." He hadn't earlier because the deeper he went the worse it would make him look. An easily fixed problem was one that an employer could easily root out, but one ground deep into his soul too time and made him a less valuable asset. "While yes I am lost, and am sure that this city will help me improve my outlook on life, there is a slightly different problem that I seem to have. You see, when I choose to get something done, I do it. There are never any if, ands, or buts about it. When I put my mind to something I accomplish it, consequences be darned. But thats the problem. Its not that I don't care about the consequences....its just that I usually don't realize them until its too late. For example, I once impaled myself on a sword just to punch a man who had challenged me to hit him. I didn't realize that I had skewered myself until about half a chime after mugging the man." Svan raised his hands defensively, "Before you get the idea that I'm going to cause trouble, I just want to point out that its not like I go insane or anything. I simply choose the most effective way to accomplish whatever my goal is. In a city like this, diplomacy reigns and so you have little to worry about as I can promise you that I will seek out a peaceful, or at least diplomatic solution to my problems. But I am a follower of Caiyha, and as such I will be called upon by her to travel to lands where diplomacy is not always the easiest way to get what you need, and I fear that my uh-pragmatic nature and conflicting....things... may get the best of me." For a man who lived half his time in the wilds, Svan was a fairly fluent speaker, but there was a hint of obvious struggle in his voice as he grasped desperately at the words floating around his head in an attempt to speak his mind. That is why I want a familiar. I want someone close to me who can see my problems from a different angle and warn me when I am about to do something I may later regret." Svan stopped himself and took in a breath to gather his thoughts. His mind flicked over to what Alses had said about the effect Lhavit had on her, and her warnings about the chance of a dangerous familiar.
"But you are right. There is the possibility that I will get a familiar that will encourage me to act poorly. However its as you said, what better place would there be than the city of Lhavit to teach the proper lessons to a young familiar? Both I and the familiar could learn how to better behave." Svan smiled and shrugged casually. "Not that I really need philosophy lessons by this point. I'm perfectly capable of recognizing good from bad. I just need someone to give me a good slap every now and then when I forget to factor in the details." Svan stopped talking as the pair reached the tea house. He stood outside the door and looked over to Alses with guilty eyes. "To tell the truth I think this is where we should part ways for now. I'm really not a fan of tea. To many plants, not enough meat." His voice suddenly softened to a whisper and he leaned closer to Alses. The term "invasion of personal space" came to mind, but it was with good reason. "And you don't have to worry, I will keep your mortal form a secret. Not that the having the form of a lady from Mura should ever be considered a bad thing. I can't imagine anyone I envy quite as much as them and their healers."
Svan let out a bark of laughter as he drew away. "Well, except for the whole "being female" part. I'm fairly comfortable with my current gender."
