15th Summer 517AV
It was a scorching hot day, the confines of the River Flower made almost unbearable by the dry spell. Syna had climbed high into the sky and even through the pavilion, Waisana felt the effects of the goddess. Her clothing clung to skin sticky with sweat, the doctor periodically pulling the fabric away from it to circulate some air. It was an unpleasant sensation although thankfully the skirt she wore billowed, even though it fell a little past her knees. It seemed far enough from her legs not to cling wetly to them and when she moved, the swish of material provided a welcome relief.
Few people had ventured into the River Flower, the few truly serious cases visited by some of the healers or a capable doctor. For the most part, the Drykas were unwilling to venture out under Syna's gaze directly, especially at this point in the day when skin was scorched and the very air rippled with heat. Some of those who had come had done just that however, ventured out during the hottest part of the day, and had paid for their folly. A few had merely fainted but that had caused additional problems when they fell from their Strider or fell and hit something solid. Some were suffering from sunstroke and were being closely supervised,
cool, damp cloths pressed to their foreheads. Those in the healing tent were adults, which the blonde could understand. When children fell ill, their parents preferred to keep them close to them in their pavilions and treat them themselves,
only sending for a doctor or healer when they deemed it necessary. Some were reluctant to seek one of the Opal clan should their child fall foul of a fever,
certain that they knew how to deal with such things, but Waisana thought it unwise, especially considering how many serious illnesses carried fevers as a symptom. It wasn't her place to interfere.
With little to do aside from prepare medicines, the teen swabbed her own face with one of the damp cloths floating around the place. Soon, she was dripping water down her neck and back as well. She excused herself from her duties,
begging a half bell to bring her Strider for a ride, intending to bolt alongside the city in an attempt to generate a bit of a cool breeze for herself.
When she got outside, she went straight to Drusine, taking the now dry cloths from the mare's back. She wet them again and placed them on the horse, watching a slight steam come off the horse's flesh, even though she was in a shady spot.
She could sympathise with the animal, especially as she felt as if steam should be rising off her too. The doctor tried to coax the beast to drink but she didn't want to do so, and Waisana knew better than to try to force her to do it. Ensuring that her mount was hydrated was important but her Strider was clever enough to know how to look after herself without a Drykas to tend to her. She rubbed the mare's nose affectionately, leaning her forehead against it.
"It is so very hot, I feel for you," she murmured, the horse responding with a snort, nudging its rider. She rubbed the cloths over Drusine's back before settling them about the horse's neck. She replaced her yvas, securing it in place as her mount fixed her with what she felt was a stern stare.
"We go for short ride so I can cool down. I will cool you when we return," she soothed, fixing her bag of medical supplies to the yvas in the off chance that they'd be needed. It was always better to have and not need rather than to need and not have, as the young woman believed. Taking a few steps away from the horse, she rushed forward and sprang, hands landing on the yvas and pushing so that her momentum would carry her high enough to vault onto the mare's back. Her right leg twisted easily to get over to the other side but her left hit the horse's side. There was a whinny of protest, four legs moving to maintain balance as the blonde rider wiggled her way into position. She blew a puff of air over her forehead and lightly brushed Drusine's mane with her fingers in silent apology as she caught her breath. Once she was recovered, she gripped the yvas firmly with her thighs, leaning forward a little as she tapped her heels into either side of the mare's flanks, urging her into a walk. Waisana began weaving her way through Endrykas, another gentle tap moving the animal into a light trot as she aimed for the city's outskirts. She had only been moving for a chime or two when she registered a disturbance.
Some people moved quickly about the city on foot and some would raise their voices on any ordinary day but now it was different. There was greater activity and it was growing closer, a panicked edge to the shouts that she heard and there were even a few shouts. Waisana applied pressure to one side of the mare's flanks to turn her, heading towards the sound and quickly finding herself in the midst of urgent calls and sprinting bodies. There was a great deal of confusion but the one thing she could pick out was the word 'fire'. She moved Drusine into the path of a running man, leaning back and providing a constant pressure to bring the beast to a halt so she could cut him off and wave him to a stop.
"Hey! You there!" she called, waiting until he looked up at her. Fire? Where? she asked with rapid gestures, eyes darting to the sky over the city, searching for a tendril of smoke that was different to those that came from cooking fires. Fire was used for many things in the city but if something had caught alight, the plumes of smoke would be darker and wider. She could imagine the grasses themselves catching alight, especially considering how hot it was and the time since the last rains.
The grasses were dry, which made them an ideal fuel for tendrils of flame to consume and use to spread.
Dung pits, he replied simply, adding hurry before he rushed past her.
His simple message conveyed a great deal of information to the doctor. The dung pits was a simple name for an area where many of the unsavoury or slightly hazardous jobs took place such as tanning and fat rending, as well as a place for butchery and the disposal of human and animal wastes. It was a broad area and often partly encircled a large portion of the city although never near a water source. Considering that dried dung could be used to start fires, Waisana understood the horror of the situation. She made Drusine turn, concentrating on the signals she was sending her horse so that she wouldn't give confusing or conflicting ones. She got her into a walk and then a brisk trot, slamming her heels in a little harder when she could see a reasonably clear path to the edge, Drusine getting into a canter as the blonde wondered how bad the situation was. People were sure to provide help to put fires out but accidents happened and she had horrifying thoughts of burning people and livestock, horses panicking in the presence of flames. When she saw where the fire was, she'd have to get as close as she dared before dismounting and running. It wouldn't do to be on a spooked horse.
Please let no one be hurt, she thought fervently as she raced to see where the trouble was, barely conscious of the sound of other racing hoofbeats near her.
It was a scorching hot day, the confines of the River Flower made almost unbearable by the dry spell. Syna had climbed high into the sky and even through the pavilion, Waisana felt the effects of the goddess. Her clothing clung to skin sticky with sweat, the doctor periodically pulling the fabric away from it to circulate some air. It was an unpleasant sensation although thankfully the skirt she wore billowed, even though it fell a little past her knees. It seemed far enough from her legs not to cling wetly to them and when she moved, the swish of material provided a welcome relief.
Few people had ventured into the River Flower, the few truly serious cases visited by some of the healers or a capable doctor. For the most part, the Drykas were unwilling to venture out under Syna's gaze directly, especially at this point in the day when skin was scorched and the very air rippled with heat. Some of those who had come had done just that however, ventured out during the hottest part of the day, and had paid for their folly. A few had merely fainted but that had caused additional problems when they fell from their Strider or fell and hit something solid. Some were suffering from sunstroke and were being closely supervised,
cool, damp cloths pressed to their foreheads. Those in the healing tent were adults, which the blonde could understand. When children fell ill, their parents preferred to keep them close to them in their pavilions and treat them themselves,
only sending for a doctor or healer when they deemed it necessary. Some were reluctant to seek one of the Opal clan should their child fall foul of a fever,
certain that they knew how to deal with such things, but Waisana thought it unwise, especially considering how many serious illnesses carried fevers as a symptom. It wasn't her place to interfere.
With little to do aside from prepare medicines, the teen swabbed her own face with one of the damp cloths floating around the place. Soon, she was dripping water down her neck and back as well. She excused herself from her duties,
begging a half bell to bring her Strider for a ride, intending to bolt alongside the city in an attempt to generate a bit of a cool breeze for herself.
When she got outside, she went straight to Drusine, taking the now dry cloths from the mare's back. She wet them again and placed them on the horse, watching a slight steam come off the horse's flesh, even though she was in a shady spot.
She could sympathise with the animal, especially as she felt as if steam should be rising off her too. The doctor tried to coax the beast to drink but she didn't want to do so, and Waisana knew better than to try to force her to do it. Ensuring that her mount was hydrated was important but her Strider was clever enough to know how to look after herself without a Drykas to tend to her. She rubbed the mare's nose affectionately, leaning her forehead against it.
"It is so very hot, I feel for you," she murmured, the horse responding with a snort, nudging its rider. She rubbed the cloths over Drusine's back before settling them about the horse's neck. She replaced her yvas, securing it in place as her mount fixed her with what she felt was a stern stare.
"We go for short ride so I can cool down. I will cool you when we return," she soothed, fixing her bag of medical supplies to the yvas in the off chance that they'd be needed. It was always better to have and not need rather than to need and not have, as the young woman believed. Taking a few steps away from the horse, she rushed forward and sprang, hands landing on the yvas and pushing so that her momentum would carry her high enough to vault onto the mare's back. Her right leg twisted easily to get over to the other side but her left hit the horse's side. There was a whinny of protest, four legs moving to maintain balance as the blonde rider wiggled her way into position. She blew a puff of air over her forehead and lightly brushed Drusine's mane with her fingers in silent apology as she caught her breath. Once she was recovered, she gripped the yvas firmly with her thighs, leaning forward a little as she tapped her heels into either side of the mare's flanks, urging her into a walk. Waisana began weaving her way through Endrykas, another gentle tap moving the animal into a light trot as she aimed for the city's outskirts. She had only been moving for a chime or two when she registered a disturbance.
Some people moved quickly about the city on foot and some would raise their voices on any ordinary day but now it was different. There was greater activity and it was growing closer, a panicked edge to the shouts that she heard and there were even a few shouts. Waisana applied pressure to one side of the mare's flanks to turn her, heading towards the sound and quickly finding herself in the midst of urgent calls and sprinting bodies. There was a great deal of confusion but the one thing she could pick out was the word 'fire'. She moved Drusine into the path of a running man, leaning back and providing a constant pressure to bring the beast to a halt so she could cut him off and wave him to a stop.
"Hey! You there!" she called, waiting until he looked up at her. Fire? Where? she asked with rapid gestures, eyes darting to the sky over the city, searching for a tendril of smoke that was different to those that came from cooking fires. Fire was used for many things in the city but if something had caught alight, the plumes of smoke would be darker and wider. She could imagine the grasses themselves catching alight, especially considering how hot it was and the time since the last rains.
The grasses were dry, which made them an ideal fuel for tendrils of flame to consume and use to spread.
Dung pits, he replied simply, adding hurry before he rushed past her.
His simple message conveyed a great deal of information to the doctor. The dung pits was a simple name for an area where many of the unsavoury or slightly hazardous jobs took place such as tanning and fat rending, as well as a place for butchery and the disposal of human and animal wastes. It was a broad area and often partly encircled a large portion of the city although never near a water source. Considering that dried dung could be used to start fires, Waisana understood the horror of the situation. She made Drusine turn, concentrating on the signals she was sending her horse so that she wouldn't give confusing or conflicting ones. She got her into a walk and then a brisk trot, slamming her heels in a little harder when she could see a reasonably clear path to the edge, Drusine getting into a canter as the blonde wondered how bad the situation was. People were sure to provide help to put fires out but accidents happened and she had horrifying thoughts of burning people and livestock, horses panicking in the presence of flames. When she saw where the fire was, she'd have to get as close as she dared before dismounting and running. It wouldn't do to be on a spooked horse.
Please let no one be hurt, she thought fervently as she raced to see where the trouble was, barely conscious of the sound of other racing hoofbeats near her.