Swimming

[Onnika]

Onnika 8th of Fall, 513 AV "I'm going swimming, Mother, would you like to come?" Onnika picked up the net pouch she always took with her to collect shells and pretty things she found on her swims. "No, my dear, you go on ahead. I am meeting a few visitors this afternoon for a reading. Sylirans I believe...enjoy your swim!" Brenna beamed at her daughter as she looked up from the book she was reading. "I will, I hope all goes well." Onnika smiled and waved at her mother as she left for the beach. It took nearly an hour to get there from her home, it wasn't too far, but there was no rush and Onnika wanted to save her strength for swimming. Arriving at the small and secluded beach, Onnika removed the dress she was wearing, her undergarments covered enough that if non-Konti visitors passed by they would not think her uncouth. She folded her dress and left her thin sandals next to it before tying her net bag around her waist. Reveling in the feel of the air tossing her light shoulder length hair round she grinned and ran for the water, chasing a wave as it receded and diving into the deeper water behind the next one. She cringed slightly as she realized there was a strong rip current in this particular area, she swam with the current until it lessened then dived down, kicking swiftly and pulling with her subtly webbed hands to reach the sandy bottom. The water was clear but darkened as Onnika swam along the ground to deeper water, kicking up little clouds of sand as she went. Finding her rhythm she moved quickly through the water, the inside of her chest itched and she took in water through her mouth, letting it glide through her gills instead of into her lungs. She finally saw her destination ahead of her, a sunken ship that was about forty feet long with two masts. It listed to the side, the reason for it being on the bottom of the sea was not at first apparent, but Onnika had discovered a hole on the side that was firmly rooted in the sand. Perhaps it had been a merchant ship, perhaps a pirate's, maybe even a Svefra ship. Now it was an empty husk, most of the furniture still inside, but the valuables and cargo had been removed a long time before Onnika had found it. Onnika swam over the deck and used her arms to pull herself down into the dark hold, closing the wooden hatch behind her, the dim light from the surface above allowed Onnika to make her way over to a large wardrobe in the corner. She opened it and several tiny, glowing, squid rushed out and swam around the room. Onnika grinned, and caught one, it wrapped it's tiny tentacles around her finger as if attempting to bite her then swam away. Onnika then checked on her stash of sea glass and shells. She decided she would take a few pieces of sea glass to the jewelry maker that lived near the docks, maybe she could make a pendent for Mother. She carefully captured a squid and held it gently as she searched for a suitable piece of glass, finding a pretty blue one that would match her Mother's favorite dress she put it in her bag and released the squid. She decided not to put them back in the wardrobe just yet and carefully squeezed out through the hatch she had come in through without letting the squids escape.

[Onnika]

Onnika Once out of the belly of the ship, she swam circles around the masts. Small, brightly colored, fish flitted around as she disturbed their serene coasting. She swam back to the sandy bottom and let her gaze drift as she kicked just enough to keep from touching the bottom. Spotting a shell so old and worn she'd thought that it was a stone, she tucked it into her bag. Each time she saw a shell that didn't have any creatures in it, she'd put it in her bag with the rest of her treasures. By the time she began to get close to the surface the bag was mostly full and beginning to feel slightly heavy, Onnika began swimming faster in order to be able to fight the tide as the waves tried to drag her back into the sea. After a good amount of fighting and getting tossed around in the surf she stood on slightly unsteady legs and began walking down the beach back to her things, she'd ended up quite a ways away from where she'd begun. She discovered the reason for her difficulty in getting back onto land, the tide was going out, and it was late afternoon. No wonder her arms, legs, and stomach muscles felt a little weak. She took off the net bag and put her dress and sandals back on. Picking up the bag, she began to walk back home, choosing to walk near the water so she could look at the tidal pools next to some large rocks on her way back.

[Onnika]

Onnika As she walked, Onnika's eyes scanned the tidal pools, most held things that she would leave alone, but were in fact fascinating. Sponges that lived, starfish, glowing lichen, small creatures that looked like rocks, and of course fish. Stepping into a calf deep pool, she giggled as minnows nibbled at her toes and legs, they tickled. She kept going and was nearly home when she saw something glittering in a more distant pool, she trotted over and discovered a somewhat rusted blade, she studied it, she believed it was a called a Kris. The blade itself was about a foot long, and had spots of rust over a good portion of it. The handle had been worn down to a few rotten splinters of wood and the metal core that was the anchor for the blade. After examining it for several more minutes, she decided to take it home with her, it wouldn't fit in her bag so she had to carry it. Finally arriving home, she put her bag and the Kris blade in her room and went to go wash up for lunch.

[Tsunami]

Onnika

Skill	+# Experience
Socialization	+1XP
Observation	+5XP
Investigation	+3XP
Wilderness Survival	+2XP
Endurance	+1XP

Lores Gained

• Noticing strong current near beach
  
• Exploring a sunken ship
  
• Sunken ship was plundered before Onnika arrived
• Wilderness Survial: Ocean currents by the shore are stronger during high tide
• Ocean Fauna: Starfish
• Ocean Fauna: Glowing Lichen
• Ocean Fauna: Coral (?)

Items Gained :

Rusty Kris (This dagger can be repaired by a blacksmith.)

Notes and comments :

I loved the thread, Onnika! As a reader, you did a great job describing what she saw in the thread. Looking forward to your next thread!

If you have any questions/concerns/comments, please feel free to shoot me a PM!