As the Crow Flies

by **Kopesha** on August 12th, 2020, 10:33 pm

Timestamp: Summer 16, 520

Kopesha found herself a bit bored this morning. She had practically stumbled across a deer a few minutes into her daily hunt. It hadn't taken long for her to kill it, dress it, and haul it back to town for sale, which is where she was now. She knew she could certainly go hunting again, but her father had told her to seize unexpected moments, to use them.

The problem was she didn't know what to do with this time. So much of the couple of seasons she'd spent here in Sunberth had been spent focusing on survival, learning the lay of the land. And so, she found herself sitting upon the roof of a building near to the tavern she had first found in this town. Ever since that night, the same night she had met Karsynwa, she had discovered a fondness in the rooftops of this city. And it seemed she wasn't alone, though it wasn't nearly as populous as the streets and homes below.

Across the rooftop, there was man with wild hair and an even more wild look in his eyes, surrounded by a variety of local birds, predominately pigeons and ravens. As Kopesha's eyes fell on the birds again, the man hollered, "You can't have 'em!" She hadn't expressed any interest in the man's birds. She hadn't even spoken to him yet and at the rate of his accusations, she wasn't sure she ever would. Still, there must be a reason they were to meet. Crows were always a good sign, sent by Eywaat. She knew it must be something.

So she picked up her pack, lighter than typical as she hadn't packed her survival and hunting gear for coming into the city. She walked toward the man, who flinched defensively, scrambling to get his sandaled feet up beneath him, one hand reaching for the support of the low wall he'd been leaning against, another reaching into his cloak. Kopesha raised her hands and smiled at the man, hoping to calm him.

"Friend. I no want birds. Birds free, now and always."

The man finally managed to get to his feet, clutching a crude dagger made of bone, "You... you don't want to take them from me?" She shook her head softly, as he continued, "What... What do you want then?" He lowered the dagger a bit, looking at her with a little bit more confusion.

She gestured to a nearby crow that was hopping about her feet, likely seeing if she had any food. "Me see crow, me know Eywaat here. He lead me to you. Me want know why."

The man rushed forward, faster and with steps she wouldn't have expected from someone who had struggled to stand a moment ago. He clasped one hand over her mouth, the other trapping her hand that had just grasped for her knife. His wild eyes were close to her, "Shhh! Do not say that name here! It isn't safe! Not in this town!"

Kopesha stepped back from the man, glaring him daggers, not that the human would be able to tell from her obsidian eyes. She still didn't draw her knife but she kept a comforting grip upon it. He moved back from her, then spoke in her native Tawna, "You come from the tribe of crow?"

by **Kopesha** on August 12th, 2020, 11:31 pm

She was taken aback by this sudden change in the man’s demeanor, and it showed plainly upon her face. Her body shifted, slowly getting ready to run from this stranger who seemed to know more than he let on. Still, Eywaat had led her to this man, and her faith in her god was the only reason she didn’t flee now. Slipping into the comfort of her native tongue, “Yes. Who are you? Why do you pretend to be addled?”

The man smiled softly and leaned back against the wall, “My name, one of many, will not matter to you. But you tell me why I might pretend to be touched in the head.” She hadn’t expected a riddle. Well, a challenge. Her father often gave her similar questions, to make her figure things out rather than be told them. As she thought on it, her brow furrowed the same way as her mother’s, giving her a stern look.

This man must be another follower of Brother Eywaat. That was the only reason she could conjure for his protective reaction at her admission. Protecting her from… something. Or someone, in this city. People, she had to guess, having had a fair number of run-ins by this point. She hadn’t mentioned Eywaat to anyone before now, if only because she rarely talked to anyone. So if he was protecting her from others, then he knew enough to protect himself as well. She could see him looking at her, as though he could see exactly what she was thinking.

And then she realized she couldn’t see what he was thinking. His face was devoid of any obvious emotion or intention, at least to her. But earlier, she had thought he was a nut job based on how he appeared, how he spoke. She figured he wasn’t a threat, right up until he had his hand over her mouth.

That was it.

He did it to go unbothered and to not be viewed as a threat. She looked at his clothes, threadbare and worn, dirty and full of holes. But he didn’t have that gaunt look in his cheeks that most people in this city, herself included, had, due to food shortages.

“To go unseen, unbothered, in a town where everything is dangerous.”

The man broke into a smile, winked at her, and chirped at the birds, and watched as one of the ravens took flight, heading northward. He then pointed at it as it flew fast, toward a stone building upon a hill. “Follow our friend, find our friend and after, you won’t find yourself lost on an empty day. Run along, I have some business to attend to. And don’t try to find me, I’ll find you, if it suits me.”

Kopesha squinted at this. Why was he being so strange and mysterious. Then she saw him nodding toward the tower, urging her onward. She refused, standing her ground, and crossing her arms and scowling. Then he rolled his eyes, and in Common now, “Petch off, I gotta shyke and you’re standin’ in front of my bucket.” Kopesha looked down to her side, seeing a bucket of gross there, wrinkling her nose. Then she looked back up and the man was gone. She closed her eyes in annoyance at falling for his trick. Time to follow the crow, not like she had anything better to do.

by **Kopesha** on August 13th, 2020, 12:12 am

Several hours and being chased by some wolves among some tombs later, Kopesha found herself hiking up a hill toward the stone building the crow had flown toward. And there it was, sitting by the door, an expecting look in the tilt of its head. It hopped about impatiently, squawking loudly. Tired, Kopesha hoofed it on over, smiling softly at the bird.

“Sorry for making you wait, ran into some damn wolves. Wouldn’t have expected wolves in a burial ground,” she said in Tawna. The bird squawked twice, then pecked twice at the door. Nodding in agreement, she stepped forward, grasping the handle on the door, and pushing it inward. She gestured at the bird, who hopped in with a happy couple of squawks and Kopesha followed it in.

Inside the stone building, she saw an older man who didn’t even look up from attending to many doves around him. “Back again? And with a friend again?” The bird squawked again, as Kopesha closed the door behind them. She spoke, “Hello?” The man chuckled, “Hello and goodbye.”

A perplexed look crossed Kopesha’s face, something that was happening entirely too often on this day, and was annoying her. “Goodbye?”

Then the crow walked back past her, and began tapping on the door once more. Kopesha sighed, rolling her eyes, as she opened the door for the bird once more. As she did, her eyes widened at what she saw on the other side. It was not the overview of the tombs and city as was expected, but rather was… somewhere else entirely. She dropped the door handle, it swinging open a bit creakily, as the raven squawked and hopped into this magical world on the other side of the door.

Kopesha was entirely suspicious of this place. But the crow was squawking happily and flew off on its way. Eywaat had guided her this way, she was sure of it. She just needed to be brave enough to follow him. She took a deep breath, and stepped across the threshold, entering the Outpost for the first time.