[Soothing Waters] Soothing Hands in Progress [Open]

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Day 58 of Summer, AV 511 Soothing Waters Eldon's arms were a little sore as he tried, in futility it seemed, to find the perfect level of pressure for the man below him. He pressed lightly, the man complained in that brutish Common Tongue. He pressed harder and still he was not pleased. When Eldon put a large dose of vigor, slander and cursings erupted from him. Eldon had probably toiled for a half an hour on that burn-scarred back before the man seemed remotely comfortable with Eldon's rhythmic massage. Calyna, despite being more than qualified to teach Eldon, had no time to learn Pavi and teach him everything she knew all at once, and Eldon himself was already having difficulty understanding Common at all. It would be a long while before he could speak it well enough to converse. One thing he did notice, however, was tone of voice. It was easy to pick up anger from someone's lips, or pleasure, or pain, or emotionless speech. It was like Pavi in that regard, but only in that regard. After an hour, the agreed upon timeframe, the man left the room without so much as thanking the Drykas Masseuse-in-Training for his efforts. Eldon sighed. "Not my fault you have the hide of an Olidosapux for a skin. Pray we don't meet in the Sea of Grass old man." Eldon groaned to himself as he threatened the specter that remained in his client's departure, in Pavi of course. He was not yet skilled enough to speak so recklessly in Common. Without much else to do, Eldon got to work cleaning the room, resetting bottles of oils on the shelves, folding towels, and inspecting himself in a mirror standing against the wall. What did he see? Himself of course, but it was deeper than that. He wasn't Eldon Sunkiss at that moment. Not a son of the Sapphire Pavilion. Not a rider of the Drykas. He was a commoner in Syliras clothed only in a towel that clung to his waist. His arm, from shoulder to elbow in tattooed ink, his windmarks, were visible, impossible to ignore, made him hurt for home. Why did he leave? Whatever his reasons were, they felt so foolish now. He missed his family, his friends. Edalene, he felt sick for abandoning her. Kashik? She was married, a mother, but he still loved her, wanted to see her even if it did hurt him so much to know she was beyond his reach. Sama'el, of course, was the one he missed most. They did everything together for too short a time. Hunting, teaching, rough housing. Not anymore, they were so many miles apart now. Eldon saw all this in his own reflection. He was still fit, he frequented the wildlands to ensure he didn't grow dull in his stay, but he still noticed the differences. He wasn't enjoying Syliras. He didn't find peace here. He wouldn't. Working near water in this place was as close as he got to being happy now. Well, the sooner his next client came in, the better.

[Runas]

The Eypharian had neglected to come to the Soothing Waters in her entire time in Syliras. She just didn't have the patience for such a thing, she didn't have any desire to spend time meant to be alone in a bath full of stinking people that had probably just finished training. She bathed in a stream in the Wildlands usually, or in the inn she rented board in whenever she deigned it proper and necessary to stay in Syliras' walls for more than one night.

Now, though, the Eypharian gave in to the simple temptation of a massage. She would not go to bathe, that was not something she required, but she would hire someone to relax her muscles.

The only disappointing thing the Eypharian believed she'd ever want from Soothing Waters would be a massage.

Now, the woman followed Calyna down a hall to where someone, probably a butch female with heavy arms, would order her on to a bed-table in only a towel and begin the process of almost breaking every single bone in her body.

She was surprised then to see a rather good looking male, someone rather familiar, standing there before her. With a narrowing of her deep green eyes as she tried to place where she'd seen the man, if at all, the Eypharian stepped into the room. While her eyes remained distant, a small smile touched her lips. The bottom lip was painted deep blue today and it looked weird against her otherwise plane face.

The Eypharian habitually sought out the male's gaze, her eyes trying to meet his to unlock that connection she always reveled in when meeting someone. Slowly, she entered the room and smiled a little wider, almost coyly, before speaking.

"I'm here for the massage." Thankfully, Calyna had warned her that the man was unable to dictate in Common, and being the compassionate being she was, the Eypharian tried to accommodate him. Sadly, she was not compassionate in the least, and her attempt to speak simply did not come out simple enough, she feared.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Eldon smiled as the six-armed woman entered his little room. What would you call it? An office? A room, for massages. A massage room? Whatever. Eldon turned away from the mirror, choosing to stare at Runas directly rather than through the mirror and turned back. Six arms, he had seen it correctly. This would be his first experience with an Eypharian. Six arms, how strange. He walked over to Runas in a slow casual manner, offered a quick nod. "Hello. I am Eldon Sunkiss." Eldon, after introducing himself, moved to the side of the Massage Table and patted it gently. It had already been wiped down, cleaned, and prepared for a new client, which happened to be this exotic attractive piece of Eypharian ass. Eldon smiled, forced himself not to grin as he waited for Runas to get ready for her massage. Eldon extended his hand, pointing to the large wooden wall that stood in the corner, it was the privacy wall. Obviously, it was meant for even the tallest of people, giving them a place to strip off any clothing not yet removed and to wrap themselves in their towels. "Need dress?" Eldon had already gotten in a habit of asking the question. It was important to give every costumer a chance to make themselves completely comfortable, since (as his experience with Asara told him clearly) not everyone was eager or entirely comfortable with having someone rub on them. Perhaps the thought of being naked (despite being hidden by towels or just lying face down) made them feel vulnerable. Eldon had noticed that there wasn't really anybody running around Syliras nude, or even mostly so. In Endrykas, you might see the Drykas prancing around baring skin and flesh on a notably warm dry day. Eldon wasn't excluded. As Eldon waited for Runas to make any final preparations, whatever she might need to do, Eldon decided he would attempt at some small talk. Common was still a pain in the ass to grasp, but he had to try to improve, right? "What name?" Eldon repeated the phrase several times in his head, Calyna, as well as the other staff, had been working with him on his Common when they could spare time, but for the most part he just wasn't grasping it quickly enough.

[Runas]

Runas' smile flitted over her face again, almost mischievously. Calyna had said she had an attractive Endrykas on staff, and she'd chosen to go with him and not some ancient old bat. She was so happy she'd chosen correctly. She would not have liked the joke if Calyna had brought her to a wizened man with two teeth in his whole mouth. Maybe that was unlikely to happen, but it still was a subconscious fear of the Eypharian.

Her eyes followed his gesture, and she took a moment to understand. The partition was designed for privacy, and Runas supposed she should access it. It would be only proper in Syliras if she didn't parade around nude in front of unsuspecting Drykas, no matter how amusing the reaction of said Drykas would be. With a bigger smile at the thought she'd given herself, Runas headed off behind the wall, removing her clothes and folding them neatly, then donning her fluffy towel and coming out in only that.

Unlike most people, she was comfortable with her own nudity, and once upon a time she had enjoyed the privilege of massages very much. She had very little discomfort with strange men and women touching her bare back. She could probably be described as a simple creature, pursuing simple pleasures in her existence, but she'd deny all of that and insist she was very complex indeed. But this Drykas didn't need to hear any of that.

Runas chuckled as she passed Eldon and looked down at the table before lifting her gaze to his again. He had asked her about her name, and she wondered which to give him. She decided it wasn't likely he'd see her after sunset, so she'd give him the name of her mortal body.

"My name is Tawna re Sirall." She said, her smile echoed in her voice as she spoke. She wasn't really lying, for Tawna was really a name of hers, and he was unlikely to understand the origin of the name 'Runas' unless he was learned in the names of Suvan constellations and stars. Of course, she wouldn't be averse to teaching him about them, or even some of the finer points of Common so he could understand what people were saying, but she rarely ever bothered teaching anyone.

"How are you today, Eldon Sunkiss?" The Drykas even had an adorable name. Syna probably blushed when she heard it and then kissed his skin to create that red burn on his skin. Leth was probably amused as well.

Runas smiled again, smiles seeming constant for her, and moved to lay along that table, stretching her body out comfortably.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Runas's smiles were infectious. Eldon found himself either chuckling or smiling in response to them, and despite knowing full well that he had it ingrained into his head that a frowning worker was not a comforting or pleasant one, he found he wasn't even straining to force it. She was friendly, he was pleased. Six arms or not (which he still wasn't sure how to take that) she would be much more pleasant than the hairy man that was aggressively condemning Eldon for being new to the art of massage. Assumptions had been correct though. It wouldn't have been proper to walk around Syliras nude, but in a place of bathing, it wasn't uncommon or shunned. Even Calyna mentioned several bold clients preferred to avoid even towels to prohibit the cloth from stealing any of their pleasure. Eldon wasn't good enough to really make anybody feel ecstatic with his hands, not yet, but he worked hard. He hadn't worked long, counting in days, but already he was raking in bells and bells of time. He was paid by day though, not effort and not by time. At least it wasn't too dangerous. What Drykas ever really risked their life for their responsibilities? Most, actually. Eldon did until recently. That was another little oddness he felt. Being so safe. It almost made him sick. Homesick. Even there nudity wasn't particularly shunned. It was hot and dry. Eldon didn't have a tanned complexion for no reason. Eldon grinned as Runas returned from her little privacy corner in a towel and sprawled across the table, and unlike that strange small pale girl with fangs, Asara, he found this new race of humanoid to be much more welcoming. It was even comforting for him, not that Asara really did anything to harm or scar him. She was just as foreign as he was. Eldon moved away from the table to swipe a vial of oil, something Calyna taught him the previous day, and thoroughly drenched his hands in the stuff. Less friction, more warmth. It was "magical" according to Calyna, but that was probably her skilled hands more so than the oil's powers. Eldon experienced her hands personally, he knew she was good. "Tawna." It was important for Eldon to repeat names, over and over, verbally and mentally so that he could not only learn how to pronounce, but memorize whose face went with which name. It was easier to remember names, they typically had a distinct sound that separated them from the rest of a phrase, much like Eldon meant nothing in Pavi. It was his name. Tawna belonged to the woman with six arms. That would be easier than most. "Good. And you?" Was Eldon doing well? He wasn't sure. Syliras was both good and bad for him. He was restless, terribly so as being confined in stone walls simply was now how a Drykas was meant to live. He was supposed to be riding his strider, chasing down herds of Olidos or combating packs of Glassbeak, murdering the Zith for being the monsters they were. He was supposed to be creating water so that the Drykas families would not die of thirst. He was supposed to find a wife, maybe two, and make a family so that his father's memory would last through the Sunkiss Pavilion. All that was trapped inside a stone wall now. But he was restless. The shoulders were exposed. The shoulders were always exposed because the arms always clung to the towel, hiding the breasts, the mid and lower back, the ass, the upper thigh, and depending on the person's height, more or less. He could start with the shoulders. Hands oiled, slick and smooth, he began Tawna's massage. It was slow, easing into the motions at first. His palms only faintly caressing her skin, the lower neck, to the side, to the collar bone, back towards the back, and circling around. He found that the oils did work wonders, making it considerably easier to move his hands more precisely, and even hid the roughness of calloused hands in its silky smooth texture. Certainly that make it more enjoyable than not having it. "I am Drykas. From Endrykas. Are from you? Hmm?" Casual banter, always came unnaturally to Eldon. Even in his native tongue of Pavi he wasn't much of one for fancy rhetoric or controlling the flow of words for conversation, in Common it was just brutal.

[Runas]

The Drykas had a very charming smile, Runas realized as he smiled or chuckled with every smile she granted him. Rarely did a simple smile bring out such an interesting reaction, but she'd rarely flashed real smiles at people. She could smirk, she could ghost, and she did, but true humour.

She stretched out in relaxation and, at a quick thought, reached back with her middle set of arms to open the towel on her back some more to give him more skin to work on. Luckily, she hadn't ever painted on her back, for she couldn't find the use in painting something she herself had no hope of seeing. She felt no aversion to letting him see her back, but as she didn't have eyes on the back of her head, she missed whatever reaction he would have had.

As he began working on her shoulders, she let her eyes close a bit. Part of what she remembered of old massages as an Eypharian was the sheer bliss of having someone else work so you could relax peacefully. Even with the ones she could remember clearly she still experienced that bliss, but she'd most certainly let him now if he was too hard or too soft on her back.

"Yes... Tawna." Runas affirmed quietly, speaking a little late, keeping her eyes closed while his slicked hands worked their magic on her back. "What is Endrykas like? Do you like Syliras?" Runas didn't have to try hard to speak slowly. She was enjoying this so much that only a small part of her mind was focused on banter with the masseuse.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Eldon nodded to himself as the woman went ahead and folded down her towel for him. He would have done that himself, but when you had clients like Asara that were more scared of you than you were of them, you had to be cautious. Perhaps in time he would be able to just pick up on who was more inclined to be open to him touching them and who wouldn't be. "Tawna Again Eldon whispered the name, taking careful time to nail that pronunciation, to memorize, and because it was a fairly nice name. Easy to say, easy to remember, and it was to the first six-armed woman he ever got to touch. It was as exotic and she was. Eldon chuckled to himself as he shook his head. She probably thought he was some pervert trying to seduce her, whispering her name to her like that. Silly Drykas. But he was all business now that he was officially at his place of employment and officially giving a massage out. Now with her back exposed, Eldon would lower his hands right above the butt, which is where the towel remained to conceal what would otherwise be dangerously and unnecessarily exposed. His pressed lightly with his palms, then slowly his hands moved upwards towards her shoulders again. His thumbs brushed against either side of her spine as his hands moved upwards towards the neck, then slowly back down towards the ass. A small circle to redirect his hands once more towards the shoulder, and the cycle continued, occasionally with a detour to focus on the neck or shoulders. "Any sores? Kinks? Uh... tight... tightness?" Knots, stiffness. Eldon was trying to ask Runas whether or not there was a specific area she needed him to focus on. Many knights, he noticed, had him focus more heavily on their backs and shoulders, carrying armor around all day. Once he had an acrobat who had injured herself, so he devoted a large portion of his time to working on the thigh and calf of the injured leg. If there was a place that needed more attention, he was there to relieve it to the best of his ability. "Endrykas? Lot of horse. Lot of women. Grass everywhere. No rain. No walls. Wind is good. Endrykas is good." Eldon smiled at himself as he recalled his home city, Endrykas. He missed his family, his friends. He even missed the problems he ran from, and would gladly pick them up and drop the discomforts he felt here, but he was forcing himself away, be it punishment or hope that something in Syliras could make him happy. "I like.... Syliras. I like, some. Not walls." Eldon frowned as the topic changed to Syliras. It wasn't terrible, but it was far from what the Drykas was made for. This was the place to exile yourself for sure. How did Sama'el ever survive it? "You like?"

[Runas]

He seemed utterly enthralled by her name, and Runas felt glad that he didn't know the name she'd chosen for herself whenever Leth was above the horizon. She feared he'd be muttering it even more constantly than the Eypharian name she'd inherited with her body. She didn't speak any of this, but she smiled with the thought of being able to captivate a Drykas with only her name.

As his hands worked along the curve of Runas' back, Runas herself felt lulled and lethargic. He may have been in training, but he worked well enough for her. No matter how timid anyone else was with a masseuse, Runas found herself not minding the firm touch of someone doing their work. It took her a moment to realize he was asking her if she had any kinks, and she chuckled to herself for her slow wits. The summer heat and the soothing ministrations had totally made her brain into mush fit for a Symenestra to eat.

"My shoulders and the upper part of my back." She said to Eldon with a quiet chuckle. She was an archer, and her shoulders were strained from the amount of practising she had put in while outside of the city. She hadn't done much else, really, and upon realizing that she snorted to herself. She had also been playing the harp, but stiffness in the fingers and wrists was most likely not something a masseuse was qualified to help with.

She didn't feel embarrassed when his hands descended to just above her ass in the least. Like the Drykas, nudity didn't bother her unless there were too many people gaping at her. But since a rather handsome man was working on her body, she had no complaints.

"Endrykas sounds so... free." Runas said softly. She had tried to venture into the Sea of Grass for exploration the first time she'd passed through Syliras not long after her rebirth, but she'd found herself too afraid of the land. There had been whisperings of Glassbeaks there, and while Runas didn't believe she'd ever met one she had no desire to do so and die. "I feel sorry for you, Drykas... Syliras is too confining for a horse-man."

She didn't know how to ask him why he'd come to such a cage instead of some open settlement without confusing him. Like him, she didn't like the walls of Syliras, so she stayed out in the woods just beyond Syliras' border. Her reason for coming to Syliras every year was simple. She did it because, in 493, she'd emerged from the Suvan Sea on to Sylira and Syliras was the first city she'd come across. In a way, she came to renew her bond to her fall and to remember the people she'd met at that time. Eldon here was probably very young at that time, a mere child.

"I do not like being in Syliras too much... It's too much of a cage for my liking, but I come anyway." Sadly, she couldn't confide in Eldon. He was a masseuse and she a customer, and he most certainly had no experience with being cast from his home and sent to wander a foreign land in a body not quite his own. Longevity was most likely something he'd never heard of either.

"Do people treat you good here, Eldon?" Runas asked after several chimes of silence. Even if she couldn't form a lasting bond with him she could at least make sure he led a good life.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

As requested, Eldon moved his hands to the Eypharian's upper back. Tension wasn't particularly a comfortable thing to have, a bit more pressure and it just might break up a little. "Endrykas is free?" Eldon stuttered lighlty as he asked, the term 'free' was only one he was familiar with in relation to cost. Air was free to breathe. Endrykas, it wasn't obtainable. How could it be free. Perhaps free meant something else and he was getting words mixed up. That kinda sucked to think about. "Horse man." Eldon chuckled at this. He had been called that before, not just in Syliras, but when the occasional foreigner to the Sea of Grass would pass among them, Horse Man. It was, to him, a compliment. It was what they were all about, their striders. They were everything to them. Eldon glanced at the mirror to look at himself, his arm, tattooed so beautifully to signify several important parts of his past. Bonding with Vanah, his initiation. He didn't get a mark when his father passed away, but now that he thought about it, he should have. If he ever returned home, that would have to happen. Caged, Eldon could understand that feeling. He felt no more free than a dog on a leash tied to a tree, or a bird in their iron prisons. A Drykas was meant to be free. He was supposed to be riding across the plains, wind in his hair, spear in hand, on the hunt with Zulrav pushing him faster and faster. The Drykas was supposed to gather around small campfires and take turns telling tales over drink. Drykas were supposed to marry young and work on making children even younger. Eldon, he felt painfully distant from that life now, and for what? This was a mistake, but he wasn't willing to run from it, not just yet. "I like Syliras." It was a lie and he knew it. Whether she was able to read the dishonesty or not, he would convince himself of that deceit. Syliras was a prison for a Drykas. "Yes. Calyna is very nice." Eldon would have given more names of people that treated him well, but none came to mind. Calyna took so much time to train him, help him speak Common, and that did not go unnoticed in Eldon's heart, yet she was really the only one. This too was an air-sucking blow to the chest. If he were home, he'd have more friends than could be counted on two hands, and any one of them would rescue him in a time of need. Here in Syliras, that was not the case.

[Runas]

Runas' eyes were closed, the green lidded as word less pleasure sent shivers through his body as she focused on her more sore regions. The alleviation in pressure really was magical, and she could almost just sink into this table-like bed in bliss. The Drykas working on her would probably pass out or shriek like some damsel being chased by a wyrm or something.

The Eypharian snorted. She would have laughed, but she rarely ever gave into such a childish noise. So, snorting was her go to reaction to that urge to burst with mirth. She didn't explain herself, though. She had no possible way to do so. He'd probably not understand, and she huffed a heavy sigh of disappointment. Despite the chaos she endorsed here in Syliras, especially with the half blood Seven and his birdie, Runas felt the altruistic side buried deep within her stir. She'd help Eldon learn Common, just so she could make herself a friend here that she could try to relate to.

"Yes... Hmmm... Free like... Not confined, not trapped." She smiled at her attempt to help him understand. She wasn't trying to sound condescending in any way. She really wanted him to understand her.

"Calyna is truly a nice person. She's really polite and nice I believe." She was speaking like he would fully understand her. "Eldon... Would you be averse to me tutoring you? Teaching you Common?" She smiled again and stretched out, a purr-like sound escaping her as he hit a particularly sore patch and worked away the stiffness. He had magical hands, that was certain.