Sunsets Keep No Secrets [Nira'lia]

[Pash'nar]

"Oh aye, most of the constellations have names, if not all of 'em. I figure diff'rent folks have diff'rent names for 'em, too. In Fratava, that one's jus' th'tortoise. It's an easy one to find on th'Suvan, so it's a good one for navigatin' by." He settled against the mast and squinted across the darkness at the smudge of the parivel, a few lanterns twinkling from her deck. The rest of the ocean reflected the stars in it's choppy surface, though Leth's face was surely soon to rise and light the night sky in his pale, cool glow. He kept his gaze on the water while she spoke, watching for trouble, though his moonlit features drew together into a smirk when Nira'lia spoke of Zeltiva. The sailor sighed; the port city seemed to be the hub of the slowly turning wheel of his existence, or at least a frequent stop along the way. "I washed ashore in Zeltiva... a long time ago." Ornamented head tilted in the Konti's direction and he was forced to huff some sea foam hair from his aquiline face, changing the subject away from himself and his ancient history, though he wanted to at least mention they had the port city in common, "An', aye, I've been to Mura a handful o'times." He remembered at least one of his trips there had been unwilling and unplanned. "S'lovely there, if you're into blonde women an' magic." A slow grin creased it's way unbidden into his features. He enjoyed the idea of the island immensely, though he kept his fantasies to himself. Lovely women who aged slowly and felt the same connection to the sea as he did—what wasn't there to enjoy about that, really? Well, other than their visions and their vision water … "The White Isle's a beautiful, quiet place, but there's too much thinkin' for me. Too many folks there can see farther than I can, an' I ain't always comfortable with that." He rolled his statuesque shoulders and looked away again, laughing quietly, "But I don't ever mind visitin'. It ain't so bad to get a bit 'f attention." He chose not to elaborate the possible implications, deciding to leave the Konti to draw her own conclusions. "Did'ja escape? Or did'ja get set free?" The moonlit sailor was genuinely curious, but didn't want to pry too deeply. Pash'nar had spent too much time at sea and not enough time in the cities that seemed to require slavery to exist. He couldn't comprehend that kind of confinement, feeling stifled enough by the confinement he perceived himself to be bound to after his fall. He could relate to feeling trapped, but perhaps not in the same way as Nira'lia had lived. He was his own captive, and while he refused to see it, it was his choice to remain in chains.

[Nira'lia]

"Oh, you've been to Zeltiva!" realized the Konti, though she put no further thought in it as he soon spoke of Mura. If she had actually dwelled on the thought of Zeltiva more, and made a few connections, she would have realized that he was The Sailor -- the man who was always in the thoughts of a friend back in the port city. She couldn't help but laugh as he spoke about Mura. Nira'lia knew that Mura was known to be beautiful and peaceful, but she found it funny the way he spoke about the seers. Nira'lia glanced at Pash'nar. "Attention? Don't tell me you're the father of a whole line of Konti?" It was a joke, but now that she thought about it... it was possible. Laughing, she shook the thought away. When he asked about her past, an uncharacteristic dark expression swept over her face. It was gone in a second, hidden behind a blank stare, and she gave a frown. Although those years would only be a small fraction of her life, she felt like it would mark her badly for the rest of her centuries. "I got set free," she said as she remembered that fateful day. "I don't really remember what happened or who saved us. But, yes, due to some good souls... I assume they meant to free us... here I am." She looked at him, blinking. "Why do you ask? Anyway, now I'm curious... what have you been doing all these years anyway? Travelling to all the cities? Is there anywhere you haven't been to yet?"

[Pash'nar]

The ethaefal laughed, statuesque shoulders shaking in amusement at the accusation of his more intimate activities on Mura. Incapable of blushing with moonlit, opalescent skin, the light in his cerulean eyes was enough for the Konti to see he didn't entirely object to such an idea or implication, "Nah. If I, uh, have fathered any Konti in my time, it ain't like they'd let me know, eh? Not that they'd complain, either, I s'pose ..." He winked with a more wicked grin a bit of a purred undertone to his words, unwilling to divulge if he'd ever engaged in such an activity that lead to such a result. "Ain't like they'd look like me, either." He shifted his position, unsure of what he saw moving in the inky darkness of the water far in front of his casinor and the even more distant palivar. Maybe it was just a few dolphins or whales, but it was something. He leaned against the mainsail line and watched carefully, still answering Nira'lia but in quieter, more serious tones, "Aye, I've traveled much of th'Suvan. Driftin' mostly. Me'n'my boat. I'm a navigator by trade, chartin' courses for merchants or guidin' folks for pay, but I've carried cargo, too. I ain't been up north, in the cold places, and I ain't ever set foot on Fylandar's shores. The sea outside, aye, but I ain't interested in gettin' eaten by folks that look like men instead of beasts." He smirked, though she couldn't see it. What had he been doing? Nothing. Sailing. Wasting time. Fighting. Drinking. Gambling. Enjoying the more carnal nature of being earthbound in flesh in general. The physical things. The unthinking things. Thinking too much hurt. Remembering was uncomfortable. Flitting from one port to the next, from storm to squall, meant he wasn't spending time contemplating his fate on Mizahar, from trying to understand why he slipped through that seeming and landed in the ocean alone and changed. Not to say he hadn't loved or lost or enjoyed the deeper things, but how did he put over a century into words? "I've been keepin' busy, I s'pose … but maybe not productive." His answer was heavy, burdened; more an embarrassed admission than prideful rebellion. Did he feel guilty for his choices? Sometimes, alone, under the stars, yes. Other times, under the full moon, no. Petch no. He watched the dark curve of something surface, spraying wet breath, and his shoulders relaxed. Whales. Good. He slid away from the bow, one pale hand raising to point in the direction of the small pod of dark shapes surfacing and sinking again in their own rhythm so the Konti could spot them. He looked at her, however, an almost helpless expression carved into his aquiline features, "Petch, I ain't sure what kinda answer you want, but I s'pose I've just been findin' things to keep me from thinkin'."

[Nira'lia]

He looked troubled. What was it about her questions that seemed to do that to him? When she asked them, she didn't give much thought to them. They were just a way of maybe getting him to tell her about himself. She mentally kicked herself... she was being rude. It was probably time to stop her myriad of questions. He answered them, yes, but it was evident that he'd rather be doing something else. Nira'lia would have lingered on the thoughts further, but the pod of whales caused her musings to drift away quickly. "Oh, wow!" she exclaimed loudly. Her eyes twinkled with delight as she scurried over to take a peek at them. She dangerously leaned over the side of the boat, her eyes focused on the surfacing and sinking figures. It didn't scare her to fall over – she actually wanted to be in the water. The animals of the sea were made mad from the Djed storm, but these particular whales seemed fine. "Pash, look! Pash!" she exclaimed, ultimately shortening his name because it seemed easier. Nira'lia grabbed his arm and attempted to pull him against his will. The Konti pointed an excited finger at the whales, altogether forgetting that he was the one who pointed them out in the first place. Just like a child, the Konti kept her eyes on the whales. It seemed like she had ignored his last words, but rather, she had chosen to put them aside. Now that the excitement was dying down though, she glanced at him with a puzzled look. "If you don't want to think, then don't," she stated simply, as if it was the easiest thing to do. "Whatever makes you happy!" The Konti gave a shrug and started to look around. She looked at the ship in its entirety, and a thought popped in her mind, a thought which had slipped her mind beforehand. Puzzled, she looked at Pash and said, "Hey, wait... are you going to tie your casinor back to the bigger ship tonight?"

[Pash'nar]

Pash'nar was almost always troubled, and his decades-deep issues were far from the Konti's fault. He didn't particularly object to her questions, but he couldn't help that his answers came with struggle. Still, he laughed at her excitement over the dark, spouting shapes in the water. Just whales, but still a special enough sight in these times. They were even more mysterious at night, just dark lumps in the inky brine. The moonlit navigator tried not to flinch at her touch—did she see things each time? Was her magic always crawling in his mind? It was curious and a little scary, but also somewhat intriguing. Pash'nar realized he had very little idea how the White Isle women worked their powers, but he probably wouldn't mind finding out. He was afraid of Nira'lia knowing more than he did about himself, though he was hardly one opposed to physical contact otherwise. He managed a smirk instead of look afraid or worried, careful to make sure she didn't tumble overboard by resting one arm on the bilge rail in front of her. Sure, she had gills, but this far from land and the water was cold. At night, it was far from safe, whales or not. After a few minutes, the surfacing creatures disappeared again, leaving pale foam and ripples in their wake as they disappeared into the black deep. It was quiet again and once the ocean calmed from their passage, the stars returned to twinkling in the waves. Her question turned his expression into a slightly more devious sort of smile, his opalescent, hand-carved features warming wryly, "Goin' back to the palivar? Nah. Not 'til dawn." Too-perfect teeth flashed as the ethaefal laughed again, hoarse and sea-worn, "I'm out all night scoutin', lass. You dragged yourself into a long night away at sea. I can either keep you up all night," his tone was mischievous and it was slightly unclear as to whether he was being serious or taunting the Konti. Honestly, it was always hard to tell for the sailor as well … everything was an opportunity, after all, "or if you get tired, I've gotta extra berth in my cabin." He winked, sliding away from the woman with a wave of his hand in the direction of the door to belowdecks, "It's up t'you, but we ain't headed back 'til sunrise. How d'you think I've managed to keep everyone from noticin' what you know, eh?"

[Nira'lia]

Nira'lia looked at him. He was masking it, but she couldn't help but think that he felt uneasy. She blinked at him with a puzzled expression. Why? Nira'lia felt slightly hurt, though she tried her best to hide it. As usual, the reactions that her Konti gift led to was not positive. "I only get a vision when I touch a person for the first time..." she explained. 'Though if I wanted to, I can dive into your chavi just as easily...' Nira'lia didn't tell him her thoughts. The Konti laughed sheepishly because of the mischievous tone he used as he answered her question about the palivar. She could be child-like, but she understood the implications behind certain statements. A tinge of red crept to her cheeks, one that she attempted to shadow behind her laugh. "I'll take the extra berth, thank you very much," replied Nira'lia. "But I'm not tired yet, I was just curious. I'll keep you company out here until I get sleepy." With that, she returned her gaze to the water, wanting to see if the whales were still around. They weren't, and she frowned, feeling disappointment. She had wanted to watch them more. However, the night was still fairly young – and the sea was great, maybe it had more surprises for her.

[Gossamer]

. Character: Pash’nar Experience: Interrogation +1, Observation +1, Sailing +1, Teaching +2, Interrogation +1, Lore: Stating The Obvious – A Lot, Clinging To Old Angers & Hurts, Bearing A Chip On One’s Shoulder The Size Of Mizahar, Lying Out Of Habit, Equating Life To Sailing, Teaching To Distract, Character: Nira’lia Experience: Observation +1, Teaching +1, Sailing +1, Interrogation +3, Astronomy +1 Lore: Having One’s Gift Make Things Awkward, Having Eternal (and sometimes annoying – to others) Optimism, Witnessing Eth Transformations, Having Perpetual Curiosity, Manning The Tiller, Constellation: The Tortoise, Pash’nar – (Fell in Zeltiva, Has been to Mura, A Child of Leth, A sailor) Additional Note: Lovely little social thread. Its one of the better I’ve read filled with things I could give a bit of XP for here and there. Pash’nar, you need to get into the habit of doing a bit more detail with your sailing so you can get more XP if your after it. I loved how you dealt with Nira’lia, and Nira’lia your optimism and enthusiasm is catchy. Anyhow, let me know if there are any issues! .