Solo Apple of my Eye (Solo)

[Arinel]

Fall 18, 518 AV

The ways of man are difficult, filled with loss, with despair and disrepair, with hunger and pain. They see only shadow, because they turn away from the light. They look down at the cold hard ground and see only that: dirt. It has only been a little while since I have come to Sunberth, but certain human truths are clear in the actions of men. This world is full of darkness, all-consuming seemingly, but I refuse to see it that way. My Calling drives me forward, for the happiness of all involved. The world can change, man can change, and this the story of a man that I helped change…

---

Baroque Bay

The insistence of the chill was not uncommon to the Konti woman. Mura too had such winds, but there was something different about this wind. It blew and bellowed at her, in a language she did not understand with words, but she could feel. It ripped at her back, her warm cloak and dress under drew forward towards the docks. It had only been a few days since she had landed in this strange new land, but she could already see the signs of the gods all around her. The insistence of this wind, others might ignore, but Arinel let herself be guided by it. Each step she was careful to have the wind at her back. Each step forward she trusted, her eyes looking about for signs and symbols. Her race was that of great seers after all, it would be foolish of anyone not to look for clues, to dismiss things as coincidence.

The sun was a smoldering red blot on the oceans edge, the clouds were a smattering of purples and blues, and the seagulls called their calls. The more she allowed herself to be guided by the current of air, the thinner the people became. The crowds of the docks thinned and the insistence of the wind only grew. She stopped to pull her cloak around her tighter at a rather nasty gust. It blew her hair and threatened to rip off her blue ribbon bow that kept it tied back.

Arinel wasn’t sure if it was just her, but with each step she walked down the pier the air grew colder and colder. Even with the winds bite, the air seemed to a blade of its own. The sea’s spray hung in the air, and salt could easily be tasted. Each one of the individual ports seemed to have a ship at dock. She counted and looked at the ships as she passed them. Sailors and merchants mingled, hired muscle, and port hands loading and unloading. Everyone was busy it seemed. Too busy to notice the last dock on the pier, and the man on that dock.

It was so far out the way, Dead Mans Swagger, that if Airnel didn’t follow her instincts she would not have happened across him either. At the time, Arinel did not know the last dock was called ‘Dead Mans Swagger’. She approached the last broken dock, the first footfall on the plank the wind stopped blowing. She watched the man staring out into the distance. He had not noticed her, probably too self absorbed in whatever he was thinking about.

The dock itself gave her the chills, there was something not quite right here. A silence hung in the air, choking, suffocating the emotions here were almost palpable. Darkness was here, it filled every fiber of the board. The red sun and purple clouds even looked ominous from this lonely station. The blatant despair tugged at her heart, and forced her to take another step. So seeped in emotion, the Konti was easily caught up in it, and from it, she could make a guess at what the man was thinking what he was feeling. She took another step, and another. Her breath caught up to her.

The man took another step, and then he stepped off the dock.

[Arinel]

Do you know how hard it is to swim in a dress? Luckily I had enough sense to take off my cloak, but it was at that moment, when he jumped, that I found my body moving on its own. Everything seemed to go in slow motion, and the water felt colder than usual. The grip of death was tight, almost absolute there, on that dock. Grim tidings gripped the wood. It is a place that I hope finds peace…

--

The struggle was real. The man did not want to be saved, but the Konti’s will was stronger than that of a trying to be dead mans. She huffed and puffed as she drug the man to the shore, barely enough strength to so as well. A particularly strong wave came and helped her along, to which she silently thanked Laviku. The bitter wind earlier had died down, and she took a moment to collect herself. Water dripped from her hair, and she was cold. She glanced at the man she saved, and it was the first time she got a look at him. He did not look too old. A young man, maybe 22 or 25, she could not tell. She had very limited experience with people in general. The man had darker hair, and his clothes were not particularly neat. Ragged. Holy. He looked in a sorry state crumped there on the beach, curled.

His fist shook with emotion, and he looked at Arinel before he spat and cursed and beat the ground. Over and over his fist hit the sand, and the shaking grew more intense. Sand was thrown everywhere from the tantrum, and Arinel silently watched him taking in the scene. He screamed and she flinched, before she collected herself. Slowly she reached her hand out and placed it on his shoulder. When he felt her touch, he drew backwards.

”Why?!”

The first words were screamed by the man, followed by more sobs and moans. The waves washed upon them, and Arinel stood. Her form dripping wet, her clothes clung to her from the sea water.

”Why?!”

The question was repeated again with pointed accusation.

Arinel did what she did best, and gave him a smile. She smiled, wide and true, and then laughed. It came like a giggle from her, the happy sound so contrast to the mans pain.

“You gave me quite the fright there.” She answered him. “I’m Arinel.”

She offered her name with an earnestness. The man himself seemed a bit shocked, taken off guard by the konti’s happiness. He swallowed hard.

”Go away… Nobody asked you to save me!”

Arinel’s green eyes focused on the man, but her smile never faded.

“You wanted to drown?”

The question pierced the air with an authority all its own. The inquisition was pointed, and the sharpness of the words gave the man pause. Though the answer was the same regardless:

“Yes…”

It was barely a whisper.

“Why?”

Curious Arinel could not help but to ask.

[Arinel]

Loss can be painful. Loss can be consuming, the empty feeling inside is all that one can feel. The emptiness is filled with darkness, and from that shadow comes those thoughts. The deep well of despair that came from the man was caused by the loss of his family. Those that he loved…

--

The reason why is a hard question to answer. There are a lot of reasons, of stimuli that one could react to. The suffering of the man who tried to take his own life hung in the air like a fog. Arinels presence did not seem to disperse it. She remained calm, patient, observing the man who refused to even get up out of the water, wanting to die. The waves washed over him, as if trying to lull him into action, to come to the shore.

Arinel had never lost anyone before. Konti were long lived, and even then, she wasn’t quite sure on how she would feel about death. It was something natural, for sure. Everything had a time and a place to die. If the seers of the isle knew nothing else, then it would be that things happen for a reason. The reason may not always be clear, concise, or even coherent, but it is all part of a greater web woven. The vastness of it all was quite beguiling.

”They are all gone!”

The man had been going on about his family since she asked, and his mind seemed to be going in circles, since he repeated that same statement many times over already. They are all gone. They are all gone. Gone. Gone…

“But you are not!”

She answered.

“And you are not alone.”

She followed it up.

“I am here.”

She tried to be reassuring. Calm. She gave him a smile and took a step forward. This time the man did not flinch or pull back. She crouched down to his level and tried to get him to look up by placing a hand under his chin.

“I am here, and all is not lost. Come on.”

She urged.

“Out of the water.”

She gave him a smile, and held out her hand. Her emerald green eyes never left his. She stood there waiting, and finally he took her hand. The touch was unsure, the grip loose. But she grabbed on securely, trying to make it known that she was here, and that she was real. Slowly the pair made it out of the ocean and onto the beach. The winds picked up again.

“You are here, and so am I. That is no accident.”

No. She was drawn towards that particular dock to save his life. Of that she was sure. She was drawn towards that dock to hear his story, and give him an ear, an ear that was denied him any other way.