[flashback] Trade secrets (Yon Reefslip)

[Laeli]

Spring 60, 511 AV Laeli stood just outside the entrance to the Portmaster’s Office, looking back towards the bottom of the falls. Even at this distance, the noise of the bubbling, boiling cauldron, where the river finally touched and became one with the sea, was quite loud. It was a breathtaking sight, one she would never get tired of seeing, no matter how many times she visited Riverfall. At least once each Spring, she would make her way down to the harbor, just to be able to look up and see the Bluevein, the life giving artery that wound throughout the great sea of grass, as it tumbled thousands of feet to the Suvan Sea. The river had so many different faces, and this was one of her favorites, as it seemed to jump and buck like the spirited horses of Cyphrus, full of energy and vibrant with life. The water upon which so many creatures of the grasslands depended, including the Drykas, seemed animated with a force all its own. Though it was here that it met its fate, and died, even as it was subsumed by the even greater body of water, that pulsed at the feet of the city. Like all living things, even the river had a cycle that went on circling over and over, regardless of man’s own puny achievements along its banks and here, in this beautiful, amazing city by the sea. With her hands resting lightly on the railing in front of her, she watched the falls for many long minutes, waiting for her father to reappear from the office behind her. Twilight had already settled over the various buildings and structures of the port, the many piers and ships, tied up snug for the coming night. Eben had said his business with the Akalak who ran the port might take a while, but Laeli was not fussed. She was always glad to have a reason to come down to the water, and as the last streaks of the sun colored both sky and falls, she watched, mesmerized by this most perfect of nature’s fantastic shows. Far overhead, the first stars of evening were already beginning to sparkle with a magic all their own, and the girl sighed happily, bemused by such intoxicating loveliness. Below her, on the pier that ran along at the bottom of the stairs to the office, the port was still bustling with individuals of seemingly many different races and origins. The port of Riverfall was an important one, as it lay on the cusp between the inland sea and the oceans beyond. Traders and merchants, sailors and travelers, people from all over Mizahar might be found here, and in the city above. Passing through, reprovisioning, having repairs made, trading their goods, or as their final destination, they came from all over and had any number of reasons for being here. Laeli had always found Riverfall to be one of the most exciting places to visit as Endrykas made its annual migration around Cyphrus. There was always such a wealth of color and sound and so many different types of beings to be seen, and sometimes befriend. As she took her eyes away from the falls, they traveled over the crowd below and she smiled to herself, childlike in her enthusiasm. She watched a crowd gathered about a man who worked a spinning thaumatrope. Laeli craned her neck to get a better glimpse of the toy, but the shifting mob of sailors, businessmen, merchants, families and porters kept blocking her view. Descending the stairs, telling herself she would only go a few steps and be right back to wait for her father, she wedged herself in between the pressing bodies until she could actually see what he was doing. It was fascinating, and she stood watching for at least ten minutes. But alas, she had no money on her and so, sadly, she could not purchase one of the cunning devices. There was a woman next to the toy seller who had scarves knit of bright silk, and Laeli could not resist taking a quick peek at those. Then next to that was a stall with herbs from the far corners of Falyndar and Kalea. After a few minutes discussing the dye potential of one of these, Laeli next stepped over to a vendor who had moonstones affixed to any number of things, guaranteed to cure many ailments – or all of them, he wasn’t too precise with his description. Her father now altogether forgotten, Laeli walked further still, looking at this, picking up that. She had no money, which was probably a good thing, or she would have spent it all. Finally, she came to another pier which branched off of the first. Here were a variety of food sellers, and her stomach growled as she sniffed the air. She wandered down the way, looking and sniffing and feeling quite hungry. Beyond the last stall, she spotted something that really caught her attention, almost as much as the spinning toy had. On an overturned box sat a man who held a small knife in his hands. He also held a bit of wood and he was carefully applying his blade to it. She had seen many wonderful carvings made by the sailors who plied the waters of Mizahar, and she was especially intrigued by the more nautical and marine designs and forms they chose, as to her eyes they seemed quite unusual. Being a wood carver herself, she was also very interested to learn about new materials, or new techniques, or, really anything, that she could possibly incorporate into her own work. Coming closer to the man, she noted the bright headgear, the beads and more tiny, precious looking carvings that hung suspended from the scraf, and she wondered if was one of the children of Laviku. She had met a few here and there in her own travels, and they were certainly as free spirited as the migrating Drykas were, though their sea was one of water and not tall grass. In her typically friendly way, Laeli smiled at the carver and asked, “What are you working on? May I see it?” She took one step closer, but didn’t see any other finished items. “Are you trading tonight? Or just carving for the pleasure of it?”

[Yon Reefslip]

Riverfall. A grand city brightly colored and wondrously endowed with culture and history. The powerful waters of the Bluevein roared into the Suvan with a grace and beauty unique to those cliffs. Spending much of his first few hours in the city gazing mesmerized up at the falls, Yon could appreciate why people gathered from all over Mizahar here. He had spent the morning and early afternoon helping Lia Della and the rest of the pod unload their wares to be vended from the piers that housed their ships. After moving all that cargo he had returned to his own beloved Coral Star to conduct a post sail inspection of the hull, mast, and rigging. Though they lived a life of care-free wandering, Svefrans took the care of their ships seriously. Now that the sun was down and the stars shone brightly above, Yon simply sat and enjoyed the music of hundreds of talkative voices and the cacophony of merchants and vendors selling goods. Perched lightly atop an upturned crate he found the short blade of his carving knife and a small block of pine in his hands. Surely there was a dolphin hidden within this block somewhere. Dedicating the next few hours to finding said dolphin, Yon began to whittle away at the pale wood. Rough, callused hands pushed a gentle blade across the wood in an attempt at fine art. Though not very skilled in whittling, Yon did love the hobby. That in itself made progression and practice easier and he had gained skill fast. Most of the creatures and ships he carved were crude or had anatomical mistakes here and there, but all had a flare of life to them that he, at least, appreciated. He was just beginning to shape the face of the dolphin, a favorite of most Svefra, when he heard the voice of a young woman. “Are you trading tonight? Or just carving for the pleasure of it?” Cracking a quick grin Yon slid to his feet and peered at the girl. She was slim and obviously full of youth and energy, reminding Yon of Svefran girls in his own pod. Her face was framed with dark hair so foreign to him. Everyone in his pod was kissed by the sun every day, making their hair gold and their skin dark. But these land walker’s gods obviously favored other colors. He noticed she was gesturing at his attempt at a dolphin. He had not planned on trading anything, all he had were a few carvings he had done whilst floating at sea in Coral Star on his way from BlackRock, and a few odds and ends that could not fit on the Shanty’s Shiver. “Lass, this salt bag is always ready to offer a nice swap as it were.” He declared flamboyantly, he spoke common well enough, though it was generously accented. He leant backward stretching a few kinks out of his spine. Hearing the satisfying cracks he sighed with relief. He casually flipped the carving knife in the air and stowed it in his belt. “This splintered beast be a few until finished, methinks. But I’ve got a fair few bellow.” Yon cocked a thumb over his shoulder, pointing to the low sitting casinor behind him. “But what ya got that a bluejacket like myself need?"

[Laeli]

The young man stood and addressed Laeli in a most congenial way. From his accent, she again guessed that he might be Svefra. When he indicated the vessel behind him, moored to the pier, she looked at it with great curiosity. But she didn’t know enough about ships and boats to know which the Svefra favored, if any. She had never before been on a boat. The thought was both tempting and terrifying. What would it be like to know only a thin shell of wood stood between you and the great depth of the sea? Laeli had heard tales of how the rocking motion could be both blissful and agonizing, depending on the individual and the weather. Some, it seemed, became violently ill, even when Laviku and Zulrav were in kind and gentle moods. Others could apparently ride the crests of huge swells that clawed at their tiny ships like hungry monsters, and still they felt no queasiness in their stomachs. She had wondered idly from time to time how she would fare, when they were near a port city and her feet took her down to the water. She was curious, but wary. But she pulled her eyes and her thoughts away from the boat behind him, and she giggled a bit. “Lass? No-one’s called me that since I was very little. My name is Laeli. Laeli Stormfast.” As he put away his knife, she could see the little figure in his hand better, and she leaned forward to make out the details in the fading light of the evening. “Oh – I know that!” She exclaimed, looking back up into a rugged face which, like with her own horse people, bore the effects of years spent out in all sorts of weather. He still appeared very young though, perhaps only a few years older than herself. “That’s a dolphin, right? Is it true, are they really humans who fell in the sea and drowned?” Her happy expression wavered for a moment, at the thought of such a sad and no doubt dreadful fate. But it was only a story she had heard. Perhaps it wasn’t true. Her dark eyes went back to the carving, and she added, “I’ve actually seen dolphins, a few times.” There was a hint of pride in her voice, as if this was an exceptional thing. It was, of course, to the land bound girl. She wasn’t thinking that this sea farer might live in the company of such creatures every day of his life. Finally, his words about trade wended their way into her conscious thought, having made it past her preoccupation with the dolphin figurine. She bit down on her lip thoughtfully, and said, “I haven’t brought anything specifically to trade. I didn’t realize this little market was here. But …” Her hands went to a pouch at her belt, and she drew forth a scarf that she used to tie back her own long, dark waves of hair. She held it out for him to inspect. “This is mine. It’s not new, but I made it only back during the winter. I did the embroidery myself – and came up with the pattern. See?” She pointed to a running line of what appeared to be waves, of a sort. “Those are horses. And this is the grass. And here are the stars.” The strip of cotton was about a yard in length and maybe half a foot wide. It had been dyed a dark indigo, and the pattern of stylized horses was wrought in silver. They ran tail to nose in a continuous line from end to end. Each one had a small ruby colored glass bead, no bigger than a sesame seed, for an eye. Beneath their hooves ran another, complimentary pattern of emerald green, swirling swells of grass. And above were picked out a myriad of tiny stars, in silver again, with clear beads at their centers. Laeli glanced at the bright scarf wrapped about the man’s hair. She shrugged. “I think the colors would look nice with your eyes.” She held it up in front of her and squinted at him critically, taking in his hair, his face, and the scarf. Letting it drop again, she added, “Or you could gift it to a friend, if you don’t care for horses. Or sell it maybe.” “Well, even if you aren’t interested, I’d still love to see your other carvings. I like to carve too, you know.”

[Yon Reefslip]

“Laeli? No doubt the horsemen’s word for beauty unbridled!” Yon slipped into an extravagantly flamboyant bow, beads and shells tinkling with every movement. “Humble sailor and sea besotted soul be me lot in life, and Yon Reefslip be the name I take. Pleased to make yer acquaintance.” He held the nearly finished Dolphin out for her to see more clearly when he saw her interest, amused by her fascination with such a humble representation of the real thing. "Dunno about all that sunken men turned finned though. They be natural enough and friendly to boot." His blue eyes lit up when the girl produced the Dryka scarf and showed it to him. He thought her appraisal of the cloth too modest and marveled at the stitched pattern. The homemade feel of the cloth gave it a character that he found appealing as well. As he looked at it he thought of the scarf traveling across the rolling grass sea that was Cyphrus and experiencing all that this Drykas horse woman had experienced. She had peeked his interest. Trinkets of worldly cultures such as this, exchanged by hand with those who walk the world were the kind of commodity Yon prized. Starlight illuminated the harbor and warm torchlight danced merrily across the bustling, pier side market as he contemplated the scarf. The girl was clearly very intersted in his woodwork, though he discounted it as a sailor’s hobby. He would have to show her the rest of his creations. Yon thought the scarf would be worth more than his modest carving of the dolphin. Though always ready to make a profit, he felt this girl deserved more than the small beast made in the low light of a dockside night. "Tis a beauty to behold. Horses eh? They be taller than a man? Only really seen little donkey's and such. Are they much the same or no?" The horses intrigued him, having only seen them from a distance or as modest cart ponies in coastal cities. He had never seen a Drykas strider and had heard stories of the thunderous herds that were controlled by this girl and her people. He eyed her curiously. Such a small thing could tame and master those huge beasts? In the pods the tavan were friends and could be rode for a bit through the waves, but were always equals, never tamed enough to have that level of control. “Ye ride the grass with one of these between yer legs, eh? He asked her dubiously. “To me ears, that sounds awfully painful.” He glanced over his shoulder at Coral Star, contemplating his other carvings. “What say you to this, Missus Laeli. I be going over yonder ship and finding more finned critters to be taking your fancy. Whilst in said ship you watch me crate and wait for mine return?” He proposed hopefully.

[Laeli]

At the sailor’s rather fulsome compliment, Laeli simply giggled again. She didn’t mind being teased, and she could usually give as good as she got. The bow was really over the top, though. No-one had ever bowed to her before. She was only a simple girl who liked to make things with her hands, and of no particular importance. If she had even known how to make a curtsy, she probably would have done so, just for the silliness of it. But she had no concept of the ways of perhaps more ‘refined’ folk. So she only nodded back to him, at his introduction. The compliment to her work she took much more seriously, for she honestly strove to always do good work, and to improve as she went along, if she could figure out how to do so. But his questions about horses distracted her. She found it highly amusing that this Yon seemed as clueless about horses as she was about sailing vessels. “Oh, yes. Some are quite tall indeed. There are even breeds that the Akalak can ride upon, though they still look a bit more like ponies with those tall men on their backs.” She grinned at the recollection of such sights. “And I would say, no, horses aren’t so very much like donkeys. They are bigger, of course, and they look different. Donkeys have stand up manes.” She ran her fingers down the back of her head in imitation of the headdress of the equine species. “And their tails are only hairy at the end – a horse’s is much fuller. We use that hair for all sorts of things.” Then she put her fingers to her ear. “And of course their ears are quite long, too. But really, there is a huge difference in the way they think. Horses are . . . smarter. Easier to train. And many of them make great friends, companions – almost like a relative, a human. But donkeys . . . “ She wrinkled her nose in displeasure. “They are stubborn, and mean. They will bite you if they feel like it, which is most of the time.” Then she laughed. “And it doesn’t hurt to ride a horse – if you do it correctly. It hurts to fall off one.” Laeli paused, never having considered these things too much. It was all second nature to her. But then again, there were Drykas, like her cousin Ya-ya, who were as uncomfortable around horses as she was around snakes. So, she guessed maybe some of it was handed down from parents to children, this ‘horse sense.’ Maybe the Svefra were the same way, with boats and the sea. “If you are ever really interested, and have the time, I’d be happy to introduce you to my Strider, Jin. I’m sure she’d agree to let you ride her, if I asked her. And she would be gentle – unless I told her otherwise.” Here, Laeli grinned mischievously. But Yon was now looking at his ship and when he voiced his proposal, the girl almost jumped up and down with excitement. “Oh, would you? That would be great, Yon!” Somehow, he didn’t strike her as a man who would stand on formality, and would not be insulted by her use of his first name only. “I’ll watch your crate! And when you come back, maybe you can tell me about the animals you carve. Where you find them and what they eat and how they act.” It was all strange and novel to the grasslands girl, and her only connection to the creatures of the seas lay in such craftwork as she had seen in these port towns. Dutifully, if also a little unnecessarily, she sat down primly on said crate, to guard it – as if it was imminently going to be stolen out from under her eyes just as soon as Yon had turned his back.

[Yon Reefslip]

As Yon mounted the gangway to Coral Star he shuddered a bit at the thought of bouncing around with a horse between his thighs. Ugh! But if Laeli said it could be done with reasonably little harm to a man's... precious areas, then he would have to believe her. She was Drykas after all. The girl's passion for horses and their connection to her people left Yon with a newfound respect for the Drykas. He had never really spent much time socializing with the horse warriors and had thought them much simpler than justice did them. Ah but one more way the world showed him just how little he knew. He fumbled for a moment in the dark lighting of his cabin, searching for the sack he kept his carvings in. After he found the stained, brown bag he returned to the upper deck. The rider, Laeli, sat perched on the crate he had previously occupied. She had seemed genuinely interested in the creatures of the Suvan he represented in his woodwork. They were probably as foreign to her land-locked life as her horses were to his. Such an eager admirer could not be passed up. Sauntering up the gangway to the pier he slid the bag across the slightly rotten planks of dock. As Yon did so his creations fell into view. Lit by a torch not far away, they all looked like bleached white whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and various other sea life that had been caught in a net and strewn on the deck, ready to be eaten. "These be my collection, miss. There be a few more dolphins, and there two orca whales don took a minute to carve I'll tell ya now." He dutifully told her what each animal was, giving a brief description as well, simply to feed her curiosity. "This one be an octopus. They real soft and have too many legs for me or you, eight in total. Well, usually. This one be a small pink one found in the south, mighty poisonous if ye bit by it." He held up the small bulbous carving with gently swirling legs. "A napoleon fish, big salts, these. They got huge lips and high, thick bodies, but they don't do no harm. Very social folk, the napoleon." He held up the big lipped carving." The subtle contours of the wood bringing him back to the sunny day he had caught sight of the royal blue napoleon that had inspired the carving. "Usually they be blue or purple, but this one is white, on account of it being wood and all." He searched the carvings for something special to him, since the Drykas was willing to give up her scarf. He grinned a bit as he picked up one of the oldest carvings he had, one he had been keeping close. "This is a sea turtle. They be wider than you or me, or even both of us. Wise old creatures these, always good luck to spot one. Sail under the waves of the sea all their life and go many places. It's said a sea turtle can't die until he's seen everything under the sea, and he tells stories of what he's seen to us. The Reefslips, my family, we got something of a close bond with sea turtles." The turtle was about the size of a fist, though a bit flatter. The shell was carved with swirls and rivulets intended to represent the wear of the sea. "Any one of them is yours, Missus." The Svefran sailor said, waving dismissively at his humble work. He was not really very attached to any of them, and felt a twang of guilt since the girl was giving up a scarf that clearly meant a great deal to her. He could always make more carvings. But if she was interested in the woodwork and sea life, then maybe she had seen some worth in the carvings he didn't feel. "So do you carve wood or whittle it?" He asked, taking his chance to learn more about the Drykas rider.

[Laeli]

When Yon reappeared, and spilled the contents of his sack on the worn planks of the dock, Laeli jumped up off the overturned crate and knelt beside the softly gleaming white carvings. Reverently, she picked up each piece and examined it carefully. They were not the most polished work she had ever seen, for there were many master carvers amongst her father’s acquaintances in Endrykas. But still, each and every little animal captivated her and she smiled happily as she turned them over and around to catch each detail. With big eyes, she listened, rapt, to his descriptions of each one, her head full of questions, but wanting to be polite and not interrupt him a hundred times over, which she easily could have. At his casual, offhand gesture and unbelievably generous offer that she might have her pick of them, Laeli inhaled sharply, then turned her wondering eyes to him, as she bit down on her lower lip slightly. “That – that is so kind of you, Yon. I don’t know what to say!” Her gaze turned back to the collection of small treasures littered about her knees. “And I certainly don’t know which one to pick. They’re all so precious.” She began picking them up, one by one, all over again, as she considered which one she might choose, which one she liked the most. It seemed impossible, though. Each one was unique and novel, to her anyway. As she perused them, she answered absentmindedly, “I guess I do both. My father’s trade is as a builder, and a carver. He helps build the pavilions that people need. So he must carve the end pieces, you know.” If she had thought more carefully, she might have realized that a sea faring Svefra probably would know little to nothing about Drykas construction techniques. But she was too preoccupied with the carvings to think about that. “So he had taught all my brothers and me how to carve, and he is teaching me to glyph, so that the beams and poles stay strong and survive the winds.” Her eyes turned to him for a moment. “Do you do that with your boats?” She had the turtle laying flat in the palm of her hand, and she squinched her eyes to see the face once more, in the flickering torch light. “But I love to just pick up a piece of wood and try to figure out what’s hiding in it. I usually have my little knife with me.” She nodded briefly towards her belt. “So when I have a few moments, I might do a little of that. Sometimes it’s an animal. Sometimes just a design.” Once more she looked at Yon, this time with a slight frown creasing her forehead. “It’s too bad I don’t have any here to show you, though they aren’t very good. But I left all that back in our pavilion, in Endrykas.” Once more she looked at the little turtle, and this time she gave a deliberate nod of her head. “I’ll take this one, if you really will allow me to. All of them are wonderful, but this one … “ She smiled at the sailor. “This one will always make me think doubly of you, and that will make it extra special.”

[Yon Reefslip]

The Drykas girl was flattering and that itself was refreshing for Yon. He cracked a grin at her words and held the turtle out for her. "Wise choice, Laeli. The turtle be the wisest of sea creatures. Most live to be hundreds of years old. Imagine the sights they seen!" His voice gaining a charged excitement as his imagination stole him from the moment. Blue eyes shone framed around weathered skin and he stared off at the ocean for a moment before recalling he was in company. "Eh, but we'll have to find our own stories right?" His eyes peered into her face, apparently expecting her to agree. He shifted his belt a bit and glanced back at Coral Star. The boat rested in the shadows of the pier silently. "So, horses eh? Don't rightly know if I could sit one. Me legs only spread so wide, ya see." He indicated his bottom half and shook his head. He gave a slightly sour look as he contemplated the ways of the Drykas. "Sounds like a sore life, Laeli. But no doubt it's just as odd as the great blue might be to you."