[Jakobis Yard] The Squires Horse (Xalet)

[Ana Sol Starris]

Jakobis Yard Spring 87th, 512AV What a day, what a day, it was almost the afternoon and she was just finishing up the assigned duties of the morning. Ana had groomed the horses she was assigned, as well as had picked their hoofs, fed, and watered them. There was one last horse in particular that she had waited to work with, a beautifully gold looking one. She moved in slowly, in front of the creature, looking up at its eyes and frowned when the horse looked away, Ana tried to follow the horses eyes and she kept trying to look in said eyes till she gave up. Moving fowards and patting the beautiful creatures coat with a hand and took it away, dust, with a sigh she took out from the basket of tools she had gathered up a curry brush and set the basket down. Taking the hard bristled brush to the horses coat in circular motions, slowly, but not too hard on the horses body, just with enough pressure to loosen up the dust sticking to the hair. Ana reached up as high as she could to get both the sides of the horse as well as her back and shoulders, being unfortuantly extremely short. It was quite hilarious as she would step on her tippy toes with a look of determination darting through her features. Once the dander had been loosened up a bit, Ana knelt for the basket and took out the dandy brush. Rising once again, she made sure to go in the same direction as the coats growth all around the horses body and even her legs. What a beautiful creature, Ana admired the golden horse, she was certainly strong.. Well, Ana believed the horse was female. She wouldn't have checked anyways, looking at a horses privates.. Well that would be just a bit strange. So she shook it off and continued to work on. Soft, slow and with a lot of thought put into the process of cleaning the horse of dust. Horses, such wonderful animals, Ana couldn't help but brighten up when she saw them. Working with them was almost therapeutical but they would do her no good during the night, the insomnia had worsened than what she would have liked to believe. Anas eyes went blank as she worked, mechanical after a few days of working at the paddock with Jakobi and Jean. Night time was awful, not only did nasty mosquitos come and try to chew you up, you had spiders and other creepy crawlies slinking about waiting to bite you. Even noises from the cages set her mind at an unease, leaving darkened circles under her eyes. Heck, she could have been mistakened for the living dead if someone didn't know better. Ana felt dead as well, not in that sense of cemetarys and nuits but as lifelessness in its own lowest, depressed form. If it hadn't been for much of her brothers, sisters, and even her job as a groomer to get her up each morning even though she didn't really sleep.. Then she probably would have died from starvation, seeing as how if you didn't do your share of work then you went without food the entire day. Anas body went down again to the basket, she took out the comb and petted the horses nose, pressing downwards lightly in an attempt to get the horse to lean its magnificent head down. The horse complied and began to graze on the pasture as Ana combed its hair out slowly, gripping the mane at certain knots in it and working like that in hopes of not pulling the horses neck.. Scalp.. skin up and around to irritate it even more. Releasing, and then going through the horses mane once more to ensure glossyness as well as tidyness. Putting the comb back into the basket, she took out the hoof pick and set the basket a bit aways so she wouldn't trip on it later. Only to find the horse had moved to a different spot to graze. Much to Anas annoyance, she followed after, glancing up at the sky. The first time in what had seemed like days that Syna had come out, warming the air as well as the life about them. She didn't even need her cloak and so wrapped it around the handle of the basket and set it back down away from the horse, assuming the position to pick out the horses hoofs, lifting the leg and then wrapping her arm down and under it and held firmly at where the hoof began. Pushing the hoof pick in and around the crevices, Ana slowly worked her way in and got the manure and the clotted up grass out of the first hoof. Looking around for any sign of breakage, as well as what could have been other hoof problems she was relieved when the first hoof seemed to be fine. Setting the hoof down gently she attended to the next one, doing the same thing, digging in and around, uprooting the dirt, the poo and the refuse of hay from the hoof and setting it down again. Moving around the horse, she then worked on the front hoof on the other side and did the same, as well as to the last hoof with a slow, working patience. Ana wanted to make sure she did this right the first time, no need to anger Jakobi further with having to baby sit her for everything. With a tired exhale of a sigh, she set the hoof down and straightened up, stretching up high and gripping the pick hard and making the apropriate noises of one who was stretching their back. Settling down, Ana went back over to the basket and set the pick inside it. Ana ran her healing hand along the horses coat and was satsifyed with what she had done, cleanliness was good enough for her, for a moment or two she stared at the hand and thought back to the first mistake she had made with a horse. How silly it had been, now that she thought about it. Getting bit! Of all the possibilities to happen to her and she gets bit for trying to feed a horse by hand.

[Xalet]

Things were much more complicated in the Spires than Xuphim had anticipated. He shared a similar distrust for all things arcane with Xalet. No wonder the pair of them didn't trust anything tinged with magic, look what happened when all that Djed leaked out into the world. Mix enough wild Djed with the wilderness and apparently you got a fog that caused havoc. Thinking of it comparatively, Syliras got off easy.

As a a man with no rank, Xuphim had few responsibilities beyond keeping himself alive and trying not to disgrace the image of the Syliran Knights. One in particular, however, was keeping his horse alive. Having lost a horse not more than a year ago, going through a second would not have looked good on his Knightly resume. Out in the fields the large framed Akalak noticed his steed tended to by some tiny Human thing. The plates of his armor rustled against his chainmail hauberk worn beneath. Body mass considered, that girl couldn't have been one third of Xuphim's size.

Xalet would have addressed Ana as 'miss' or 'ma'am', but not Xuphim, "Hey there woman. The horse behaving?" he closed in as he spoke. 'Woman' was the best designation he could think for her, it's what she was. All that 'sir and ma'am' crap Xalet always went along with gave the dark brother a certain pressure across his brow. There was a line between cordial and ass-kissery, and Xuphim wasn't about to cross that line. Of course, perhaps he stepped a bit too far away from it. A wide pack was draped across his shoulders. It was the standard issued pack for holding various equipment while one might have been out on patrol along the outskirts of Syliras. It was difficult to think about just how far from home he was. This was the first time the Akalak had traveled so far from those sturdy Syliran gates. "Need to keep it in one piece. Especially after what happened to the last one."

Upon Xuphim's body rested a few weapons, though almost none of them were useful in conducting the duty of the Spires reclamation. His twin short swords were sheathed securely, one upon his left hip, and one horizontally across his lower back as they were far too valuable to simply leave alone. His crossbow was with him, one never knew when that might come in handy. Outside of those tools of the Order he had to rely on the unusual entrapment equipment to be used in order to do the least damage to the creatures lost to the mist. The payment went down with injury, after all.

[Ana Sol Starris]

"Aren't you lovely.." Ana cooed lightly to the horse, petting her neck gently as she watched the horse continue on. The small thief was quite content to just stay in the yard with all the horses for the rest of the day, they were simply magnificent in her eyes. But that was to be for another day, Ana wanted to go exploring around the camp more thouroughly and in great detail, anything to her advantage. Smart thieves got a lay of their setting before striking, and the ol' epharian Centroc seemed to have some nice goods in his wagons. Ripe for plucking, but not yet for her nimble hands to take yet. Sighing as she began to assimilate details into her mind for the small theft, wishing to aquire more items for Zand in any way possible for retrieving residents in the Spires city areas. What better way to stock up when you had a thief on your team loyal only to you and your other team mates? Stepping back, she heard the brief rustle of metal and looked from her perephrials at who was coming towards her. In suprise she snapped her gaze away and began to panick, a big, purple, monster was coming straight for her! Did monsters know how to talk though? He certainly did, questioning her actually. Ana glanced at the man, the purple skin, he looked very much like a human but in some regards different. Keeping her hand on the horses body she looked to the ground somewhat bashfully, she had been staring at him, she nodded to his question slowly as she tried to work up the courage to say something. Examining him, she found he wore armor like some others did.. Had weapons that seemed to be of a much finer qaulity than the questionably attained Sunberthian ones. Furrowing her brow at him thinking of what to say, he looked as if he were about to go riding or trekking around the area, but could such a horse handle someone of this appeared weight? Ana could only wonder, she glanced at the horse then back up at him. The 'man' didn't seem to be posing any threat besides size and appearence, but he also seemed to be sentient, maybe he was just one of those strange races around the lands? Just like how the Jamoura were giant apes, this man had purple skin, unique species. Curiously, Ana looked up at him with a glint of humor "what do you mean, last one?" Patting the horses shoulderblade lightly, "I'm.. Guessing then that this is your horse, does she have a name?" Horses couldn't talk, and she had no right to name them either so she had always left their titles as indefinite blank spots proposed as coat colors. Ana however, also wanted, needed to know what this man was, whatever in the gods he was! "Uhm... If I may be so bold as to ask.... But why are you purple?" She stared up at him with utter innocence of the topic at hand, trying to hide away her worries that this was a possible threat in disguise. Taking comfort in the sword at her side, though.. It was just there for that, comfort for a sense of safety and security in a foreign land, a strange new city. She was still very much a novice with the shortsword and wouldn't dream of inititating a duel on her own accord at such a level... Especially not with this man, she wanted to avoid conflict with him, he simply seemed to tower over her with his... Purpleness. Could she have purple skin too? Ana mused lightly to herself a glimmer of a smile crossing her lips as she inspected how his skin hue seemed to work. Morphing was such a wonderful way to build up disguises, as she had learned in the lesson with Shroud on the forbidden art before riding off for coin and the reclamation of the Spires.

[Xalet]

The 'last one' had been with the dual soul for several years. Though that horse was not the same as the one he utilized when he was but a Page, given enough time he and Buster, the name of the previous equine, had grown close enough to trust one another rather explicitly. Xuphim could still remember the days freshly when Xalet was deathly afraid of horses, to the point of almost being thought a lost cause for squirehood. He had grown out of that childish fear, but the uncertainty and caution around the creatures remained, prodding his senses whenever he found himself around one.

"Last horse took a crossbow bolt to the throat during an ambush by Ebonstryfe. I'm not overly fond of the things, but that one was a good horse and a soldier. This one's named Cynthia. Not quite the fighter Buster was, but I'll get her there yet." he clarified his previous statement, looking his newer horse over. They'd only been together for a little more than a season, but she seemed to be looking good. Much better than when just Xuphim was taking care of her. The Akalak knew enough to fix a horse up for riding, and keep it fed and watered, but combing and hoof picking wasn't something in his skillset. It wasn't even something he wanted to waste his time on. It was no wonder Cynthia's mane would sometimes look like it had been struck by lightning.

Xuphim wasn't one to waste too much time, and just when it appeared he had gained the information he wanted and was prepared to leave Ana caught him with a question in mid-turn. "Heh?" his frame turned back, a slight smirk on his lips, "Why am I purple? Why are you not? Never met an Akalak before? I suppose it figures, most of us live in a city far to the west of Sylira. Living in Syliras taught me a few things, but mostly that Humans fear the Akalak. You scared?" he leaned in a bit, the two feet in height he had over Ana created a long, looming shadow. His elongated ears and sharp facial features gave him an almost predatory appearance. The looming didn't last long however as he straightened up soon enough, "Don't be. I don't hurt girls. Least not intentionally."

[Ana Sol Starris]

Ebonstryfe? Ana questioned in her mind with a bewildered look, Cynthia was his second horse and his first horse had been another named Buster. Her hand trailed up to her own neck at the thought of a crossbow bolt lodging itself there neatly and efficiently, blinking quickly and shaking the thoughts off. Dropping her hand as he turned from her, she was about to say something about how rude he was being by not giving her some sort of answer but he turned back with a smirk on his face. Replying to her question, of why he was purple. His purpleness. Just as Ana had thought, the man wasn't human in the slightest.. Why would he be? Humans weren't born purple naturally, her lips set into a frown towards his person. Thoughts passed through her mind, whispers to back away from him as he loomed over her. Ana rooted herself to the ground and glared up at him stubbornly, one of her cheeks twitched ever so lightly so at the effort of remaining where she was. People in general that got to close made her wary, especially within reaching distance, the proximity of ones ability to touch another. The very thought was enough to make her want to run from him in terror, but she did not. This insanity that crept about her mind whenever they did get too close without her acceptance, was not race inclined, anyone could incite the warnings with their bubble-popping nearness. Taking a deep breath, she glanced at the ground away from his face towards his feet in an attempt to calm the buzzing feeling within her mind. Exhaling, she looked back up at him fiercely, narrowing her eyes and then shrugging as if nothing had happened "I've worse things to be scared of then to be scared of some silly purple guy, like that petching mist, or an angry Jamoura pounding me into the ground with its fists.." Ana retorted lightly. The comments had been sharp, but now she thought over her next words slowly "but.. No, I've never met an Akalak before, you would be the first then.. but I've heard of Syliras once or twice," she stopped, struggling, where had she heard of the place before? Snapping her fingers once or twice in an attempt to remember, frowning, "its.. its.. that.. Its that one place thats not Sunberth or Zeltiva, but still in the same area....Augh!" Ana let an exhasperated sigh out, throwing her arms up slightly in defeat. Running a hand through her hair and the other hand on her hip, confusion crossed her face as she tryed to remember still what the place had been.. It was a city.. That was all she knew, something about one of her sisters, that was the only clue her memory gave her "I..think one of my sisters use to talk about the place.. about moving there.. But I'm not sure." The small womans speech was chunky, as if she were striving to remember what had been forgotten, what had been forced out of her mind "what is Syliras?" Ana finally gave in to asking him, staring up at him intently for an answer. In the attempts to remember what the place had been, she had forgotten to introduce herself, scrambling frantically for her tounge Ana spoke up in a slightly louder voice in hopes of correcting the mistake "I'm Ana by the way, and your horse is in good hands.. Er..Sorry.. That was a belated introduction.. it was rude of me," the small thief liked to be polite, to be honest, because half truths were more dangerous than a lie or the truth. They caught people offgaurd, made a person trust another if only a little bit. Ana let out a nervous chuckle, trying to make the mood not so interrogative but social and friendly, she after all, did give her name first. The code she went by when someone gave you their name, you would give yours back (and vice versa) and that is why she always went by her psuedo name 'Ana Sol Starris' instead of revealing her real name to others, only those truely trusted knew of her real name.. Those few, outside of family, was only one person who was back in Sunberth, Wrenmae.

[Xalet]

"Pfft!" the Akalak began quite cockily, "Jamoura. Those peace-loving primates? Girly, if I want to contemplate the state of the world, which I must add is currently looking like total crap, I'll consult the Jamoura. But fear them? Never. For hundreds of years the Akalak's profession has been martial perfection. We are born from the blood of two Gods." Clearly Xuphim felt very highly of his people, but his egocentricity wasn't simply negative emotional taint. It was the confidence and competitiveness that made an Akalak. Indeed, it could be said that perhaps Xuphim was more of an Akalak than Xalet would ever be.

"Hmph..." he crossed his arms upon his broad chest. Comparing their widths at such a close range it was now apparent just how large the man's extremities were. All of the Akalak people were born into, and strove toward physical excellence. Xuphim had gone beyond that conditioning, constantly taxing and testing his musculature. Twisting his head slightly, looking out into the fields he continued, "...while the Jamoura watch grass grow, we train for the inevitable conflict this world brings. Even now I am here to reclaim the Jamoura lost to these mists. This is the way of the Akalak. We shall strike the problem with full force. Minimize loses, regain order. The Jamoura can spend time thinking about how to purge this...damnable fog. I prefer not to get mixed up in magic. I've my swords with me, they are tools that solve enough problems, I do not need to fall back on such manipulative techniques."

"And Syliras. It's where I've spent my entire life. The Castle City. Home to the largest fighting force in all Mizahar, the Syliran Knights. I'm a member of that Order, and even now we come here, west to the Spires, while other members go east to Zeltiva in order to extend our aid." no fibs about that. It was the more level-headed soul, Xalet, that was hoping Syliras wasn't spreading itself too thin. The movement to send aid to more than one city at a time was certainly an excellent political move. It could strengthen relationships and create valuable allies, especially if they were to one day crush Ravok.

Xuphim relaxed his arms as Ana introduced herself. His tone had sounded as if though he was defending the pride of his people and his city, but then again the dark half was never much for courtesy, no reason to start now. "Ana, hm? Xuphim. Listen, I'm not going to lie, in a place where I'm surrounded by giant apes and sweaty men, you're a welcome sight."

"Wow. Way to sweep a girl off her feet, brother. Even I've learned to be a little more direct with Human's than that. You've compared her to apes and men." Xalet felt it necessary to pipe up, but Xuphim wasn't going to have any of that mental backtalk.

"Shut it. I can do better with women than you'll ever know. A woman wants strength and confidence. You need to take what you want. You give them too much of that 'polite' garbage. Watch and learn, mudsucker." went the internal argument that Ana would never get to see. That was the burden of all Akalak, no matter their station or their upbringing.

"What I mean is, you're beautiful see. With all these wild animals running a muck, the safest place around here for the time being is my tent back at the camp. So I'm giving you an open invitation, feel free to swing by any time. Clothing is optional." his shining chrome eyes narrowed as he mentioned that last tidbit, almost as if he was narrowing his field of vision to only include the blonde before him.

"...bravo..." came the clearly unconvinced mental voice of Xalet.

[Ana Sol Starris]

"Blood of two gods? Hows that possible.." Ana muttered, in disbelief at his egocentric aditude. The arrogance that poured out of the.. the man, the Akalak in front of her. The very thought of having blood of the gods within ones veins was ludricous, did the divine really have children of their own? Images of pregnant, divine, looking women imaged passed her eyes and made her giggle, she had no idea what a goddess looked like nor a god, but the very idea was simply hilarious. Patiently, Ana grinned up at him as what had seemed to be the end of his confident speech on the Akalak. Looking upon him, it was only then did Ana realize how.. Tiny she was. Still her stubborn pride told her not to move, to back away was to let off fear and those who could smell it, would take advantage of it. Such of the ways in Sunberth she had to quickly learn her first few years in the city of anarchy, none too lovely, nor easy for the little thief. The time in Sunberth had taken its toll on her body, leaving it thin, weak, small, and unfortuantly non-curvy due to her previous malnutrition. Physical change was correctable with time and patience however, with the proper ammount of food, sleep, she'd be a charming young lady, her time within the Crimson Edge reflected that as the group helped her survive through the winter. The winter that had changed everything... When the Akalak continued on, his gaze to the rest of the paddock filled with grazing horses, she followed the direction of his eyes as well. For a split moment, his pompous nature was over looked, he had noble values... Goals to achieve. Just as she did, honor in a thief was rare, one who stuck to their word with a vengeance was desirable. Threats were not made, only promises, and even though the small woman couldn't take down a Jamoura nor any other animal, she could use her speed and size for manuevibility to play a group effort with her crimson family. Clumsy fingers had soon been forgotten as her confidence levels rose, making them stickier, nimble. Stealth.. It was needed for what she planned. Anything and for everything she would hope to do required light feet. Revenge, to be had with interest. Looking back up at him, narrowing her eyes at his comments on magic, they made her cringe and think twice before showing him anything magical related. Not like she would anyways, no matter how goaded she was to do so, no matter how tempting it was to show off an ability she had learned in a night but needed alot more practice, more experience, any time she went to the point of a headache- she backed away from the djed churning under her skin whispering to be used for great designs, full out changes. Should she give in to those temptations? Usually she did not.. Silence, she spoke nothing to him and appeared only to listen to him as he spoke, her eyes trying to search his own for tricks and lies. Whatever he spoke, she found to be useful.. It widened her veiw on the world before her, the one she was denied to explore at a young age. Syliras sounded... Okay, very law abiding, but okay. Whatever had posessed her to live in Sunberth when she could have chosen Syliras? Groping around internally for the reason, no matter what came up, only brief images of her older sister crossed her mind. Even the Knights had entered Zeltiva, her former home before Sunberth.. her childhood seemingly nonexistant within the city. Filled with nothing but what had seemed to be pain to Ana, nothing but hate, destruction, pressure and the red tint of blood spattered w-wal-...The small thief froze, her eyes giving off small tremors into some distant scene. Blinking quickly to shy away from the sudden memories, she knew what the images were as she had seen them before, at another time, a previous chapter in her life. They had left Ana’s body shaking lightly, her milky white face had paled in those few moments. For a second, she realized Purple had been talking to her still. Staring at her rather intently, mind numbingly sharply, his words had been in her ears but delayed within her mind and just then crashed into her. Taken aback, stunned, she stared up at him not sure what to say.. He was either desperate, blind, crazy, an idiot, or all of the above. Raising an eyebrow, she continued to stare up at him, unfaltering under the gaze with her eyes but her body said otherwise “I’m pretty sure the longhouses are just as safe, even more so when you have family inside the walls sleeping all around you..” she began with a shake to her voice “why would I need some purple, tin canned ‘Akalak’ to protect me? In a tent no less.... Alone...” Anas voice edged to a fine point, suspcious of his intentions, she didn’t quite understand the process of flirting, but knew well enough it seemed to be sweet talking her for something “if I needed to have someone like you to protect me, I would have been long dead.. Many, many years ago.. I wouldn’t be here right now talking to you Purple” That wasn’t all, “plus, I don’t understand what makes you think I’m beautiful, I’m rather ugly to be truthful... There’s other women in the camp, you must be too blind to notice them though..” Cocking a hip, crossing her arms with a slight wince as her hand began to act up painfully. Whether this threw a blow to his ego, or not, she was ready to sprint away from him if he became angry with her for insulting him and his offer.

[Xalet]

"Yes, two Gods. Wysar and Akajia." quickly clarified. That's how the stories went, anyway. It was difficult to confirm the statement as most of recorded history took a dive some five hundred years ago, but even Xuphim, an Akalak living outside of the city of Riverfall had heard this from his Konti Patron. Many Akalak's carried divine Markings of those deities, and in fact even Xuphim himself was marked by Wysar. He also carried the blades wielded by Wysar previously, and that was fact enough for him to believe in his people's lineage.

Listening to Ana's response to his invitation brought him mixed feelings. He didn't get backhanded across the face, which was the result Xalet was betting on, but she wasn't exactly jumping at the chance either. Xuphim was a shallow man when it came to potential physical relations with females. He was the strongest and the tallest Humanoid around, did women not wish to give themselves to the strongest and most skilled? Of course he didn't truly consider the Jamoura to be 'Humanoids' in the classic sense of the word. Xuphim was still trying to decide for himself exactly what they were.

"It's not simply about strength and skill, Xuphim. A woman can value sensitivity and selflessness as well." even Xalet wasn't certain about what he was hoping to accomplish by gifting Xuphim with this information. He knew all too well just how hard-headed the dark brother was.

"Sen-sensitity? What is that crap? Maybe I could mix some eggs and flour together and throw it in an oven, yes? Spend my time waiting for it to bake by writing some poetry, hmm? Or...I could LET A WOMAN DO THAT like they are SUPPOSED TO. Here watch this, I'm not done yet anyway."

"Well first off there's the fleas, as well as the smell of wet fur. Besides this there is a trust issue that simply goes with the hierarchy of life. Do you really feel safe? Would those around you protect you, or in the face of fear and danger would they resort to their basic survival instincts and save themselves?" Xuphim reasoned as he paced around her, very slowly. His gaze and movements weren't like a predator, almost instead as if he was simply trying to gain a better visual perspective of her body. His voice seemed very steady as he spoke.

"How'd you like that? That's some pretty freakin' deep shyke right there, no? Hold on, I've got more where that came from."

"Meanwhile, whether you believe it or not, my people are indeed descendants of the God of discipline and conviction. So I'll tell you this, should you stay with me..." and thus came the epic pause before he finished with, "...I will protect you to the death. Better still, I'm capable of protecting you to the death. How's that sound?"

"As for you being able to take care of yourself, I guess I can't doubt it, you are in fact alive." for just a moment the Akalak's eyes glanced down to the handle of her sword, it's blade sheathed in a scabbard. It seemed that short time observing it was enough for him to make some generalizations, "But is that from running, or fighting back against conflict? The handle of a sword becomes discolored through use from the sweat and oil of the hands, even if gloves are often worn. Yours doesn't have that." there was a range of reasons Xuphim was able to believe that hypothesis, but the most prevalent was his skill in making observations, and the fact that his own weapon of choice was the short sword.

Her comment of the Syliran's blindness did have him chuckling. He had stopped pacing by now, as if he had seen enough, "You think I'm blind? Because what...I don't see things as a Human does? I think it is Human's who may be suffering from blindness, since you seem to be doubtful of my assessment of your beauty." one could have almost wondered if some of that 'poetry' had rubbed off on Xuphim, of course it didn't take long for him to ruin any honeyed words, "I wouldn't waste my time speaking with someone ugly."

From there, the tracks seemed to shift somewhat, right as Xalet was feeling most embarrassed to be sharing the same body with such a narcissistic brute, "The truth is I see things they don't. What do Humans see? Your complexion? The curve of your body? Your hair? Petty. I can see the warmth of your breath. I can see the heat of your body. I can see the way your muscles change colors before my eyes as they move, blood flowing to and from them shifting their temperatures. I can see the way your perspiration changes the vibrancy of your skin." That was all attributed to the strange, predatory vision of the Akalak, the ability to view the infrared spectrum, "And also I can see strength here..." he raised a hand and split his fore and middle finger like a fork, pointing to either of Ana's eyes, "...that is what is beautiful to an Akalak."

[Ana Sol Starris]

Sighing lightly, looked up to the sky and watched as a stray cloud or two puffed across the blue sky. The familliar sounds of horses weren't enough to take the edge of suspicion she held inside away from her, "right, Wysar and Akajia, never heard of them.." Ana looked back to Purple, making a note to learn more about the two later. Two gods birthing a race, was this how all races were born? Even the humans? She wasn't overly religous.. and she had somehow been told to be wary of any divine power by her brother before his death, so worship wasn't her thing, never had been. Random prayer, here, and there, in hopes of some sort of help, from any listening divine force, for a plea to be answered. Sometimes it had worked, sometimes it had not, so the small thief wasn't sure whether to believe or not they held some signifigance in her life. As Xuphim would count off his reasons why she should share a tent with him, she leaned back to get a better look at him before shaking her head with another sigh. "Heh.." If only he knew. If only. Fleas, were a problem Ana had encountered it beforehand and was instructed by a.. ally.. within the anarchist city, her first year really, to cut the locks off before the little wretches could make her bleed. Ana had followed the words, reluctantly, but to her joy the little things had gone with her hair. Growth was slow and left her feeling awkward without a hood up, but after what seemed to be a year- her head was covered in gold strands once more. What was worse than fleas, was hunger, starvation, even beatings for being caught, for making mistakes, trouble, ect. Blades to ones person if you didn't hand over your goods, Ana rememebered the many times she would have to flee, escape, thrash and wiggle, play victem for the chance of life because she had no way to protect herself like she could now; even if her experience with the sword was minimal, it still left her more confident than usual. Wet fur? Really? How silly, Ana loved fur, what was better than fur? It was warm, soft, it retained heat and seemed to keep ones body warm even when it was soaked. The smell wasn't so bad compared to how the typical stench of the Sunberthian streets were, to Ana, the aroma of wet fur was more inviting than a flee bitten drunken vagrant. Purples statement about trust made her smile, tiresome, but a grin none the less. The small thief placed trust in the Crimson Edge easily, she didn't think there was anything to fear of them. Why, she slept near two Zith and they hadn't attacked her once in her attempted trials of rest. His words began to irritate her though, thinking that her family wouldn't give their lives for her.. Ana would give hers for theirs if she could, if she.. If she could survive in the process as well.. If not.. Well that would be a shame. Revenge was on her priority list, whether she understood exactly why or not, it was still there and she would have it before death, lest she become like one of the many faded figures in the graveyard back in Sunberth. No, Purple was talking about her, not her family she had been adopted into near the middle of last winter. Thankfully, Ana hadn't been subjected to such a situation yet and remained ever veiwed as the little sister with thievy hands. Thieves were cowards by nature, Ana had honor, but to a certain extent of how far it went, she wasn't brave, she wasn't courageous, she was just Ana the thief always looking for ways to get her next meal. Of course.. Instances of when she had stood up for others, Kit, a skunk kelvic she had helped escape capture of two slavers.. Wren who she had taken a blow for into the gut by Kreig on her own will. Rare, these acts of her 'courage' were quite uncommon indeed, few and far between but they did happen. Ana wasn't completely without the trait. Noticing he had begun to pace around her, her head followed him with a sharp glare and keeping her eyes locked on him. Having to turn her head to continue to follow him as he made a complete circle, and repeating the process, she kept watching him and listening. God of discipline and conviction, which deity had he mentioned that was male, which was the female? Unless... No, no. Ana affirmed to herself, a man needed a woman to make a baby. That was the extent to her knowledge of pregnancy, men needed women if they were to have heirs. There was a long pause that had passed between the two and Ana let her mind work out what he could possibly say after what she had said to his former offer. Only to be stunned, dumb founded by his words! Utterly and completely mind blown! He just told her he would protect her, and to the death, the heck, what in the name of Dira was this?! Anas pained hand tightened around her arm, letting the constant flow of pain eb through to get her to believe this wasn't some sort of... Spell.. Some sort of.. Dream.. Who ever would be in their right mind to vow to protect a thief? Ana quickly glanced around herself, suddenly very nervous, was she actually asleep? Would she wake up any moment now? Would the darkness well up and swallow the green fields, the trees, the creatures around her and lay waste to the land with death and destruction? Bloodened flames of firey skys, ash raining down? No, no, she shuddered, trying hard to get such images out of her head. This wasn't a dream, it couldn't be, she didn't remember falling asleep last night at all. Slowly, she let her mind buzz.. Then calm, she hadn't fallen asleep. She couldn't have even if she wanted to. Taking a deep breath, then exhaling, she appeared to be struggling internally over whether this was a slowly becoming nightmare or not still. But it had lessened as she listeneed to him again, trying to take her mind off of the possibility. Ana frowned up at him as he made observations of her sword, she glanced down to the hilt and back up to him. Eyes falling downcast to the ground, she didn't get much of a chance to use it in combat as she didn't feel she was ready.. She was afraid of losing again, and the next time she feared she wouldn't live. So fleeing danger had been her only option, she lifted a hand, not the black and blue one but the dirt covered one and flexed it lightly "I'm still very much a novice.. I prefer.. Subtly.. rather than facing something or someone head on," she let the hand fall and recross against her chest, a frown growing towards him "but...yes...I flee more than I face, I'm hoping to become better with the blade so that I don't have to be a coward and run away from danger any more" her eyes to the ground again, the brief flash of her eyes going up to his "..I run to fight another day.." But when would she ever be ready for such an oncoming event in her life? With the little speech she had said, done, she looked back straight up at him to give her undivided attention and was.. Still rather stunned by his words. What was she suppose to be feeling? To say? Ana appeared unfazed, or rather, oblivious by the little tidbit she added on, the inflection in her voice long gone now. His words were mind boggling one moment and infuriating the next, how could someone with such a pompous aditude be so charming in explanation the next moment? This sweet talk, what did he want? What was he expecting from her? Ana could only ponder as a brighter blush crossed her face, stubbornly she pushed back the part of her hair that fell in front of her face behind her ear. Not fully realizing how red in the face she was, she was a strong willed woman, and she had never been.. Remotely complimented in such ways ever before. The words made her edgy, jumpy, not helping her growing paranoia "I'm not exactly sure.. How to respond Purple, to that, thats.. th-thats interesting and all but I don't see how it adds to beauty.. You're just talking about what sounds to be heat.." Maybe if Shroud thought like this.. he would possibly see more in her, wait, wait, Ana halted that thought for a moment and stared up at Xuphim with a candle popping over her head figuratively "tell me, whats your wonderful vision called that sees so much..?" Ana questioned lightly, ideas sparking in her mind. Purple had just technically given her a key to seeing what he saw, this vision of his, he had just described it and now she could use it to her advantage. But how ever would she replicate it.. Only in thought would she ever possibly be able to figure out how, or the examination of an Akalak eye.. If she could ever get one.. She highly doubted that, especially when the one in front of her appeared to be overly macho. Where was this city to the west of Syliras? What was it called? Ana began to reconsider turning down his offer, "to be honest, I'd rather get to know you better.. Before I do anything of the such sort of sleeping in anothers tent" Ana smiled lightly up at him, calmer than before "we've only just met after all, it would be a rash decision to ever do such an act like that.." she let the non black and blue hand rise, do a slight twirl and rest on her cheek bone whilst her hurt one held onto her knuckle leant on elbow. Ana let her head lean on the knuckles lightly as she looked up at him, her demeanor had subtly changed in a matter of moments. oocOh my gosh, I'm so sorry.. XD;; I kinda got carried away with the length..

[Xalet]

OOCMessing around with changing up my post frame. I wasn't sure if Xuphim would actually know the vision is called 'infravision', so I just kept it vague for now. "Yeah, nothing wrong with running if you ain't got the strength to win." Xuphim seemed to agree with her, at least to an extent. Of course circumstances were different for himself. Ana was a woman, so that had some weight to his decision. Xuphim himself felt capable in dealing with most threats, and even if he wasn't, there was no certainty that with the pride he possessed he wouldn't simply charge on forward regardless. Still, if there was one thing both he and Xalet found 'attractive' it was a woman that had some power to her, or at least the desire to gain some. The nature of an Akalak was to spend no time lazing about. It was a constant struggle toward progression. Progression of the body, but also toward the harmony of the Souls, a conflict that most people never had to deal with. "Look girly, I can show you how to use that thing if you want. The right way. Short blades happen to be my specialty, and more than likely it's the best type of weapon for you..." he trailed off toward the end, prodding at one of Ana's arms with a sturdy yet dextrous finger, "...cause you ain't got a whole lot of meat on you. Technique and speed are important in any combat, strength and weight can't be overlooked either. Sarge was always going on about discipline in the mind as well as the body. You'll be ok with one, but better if you have both." Xuphim had to stop himself, lest he start sounding more and more like that Konti that often spilled reams of articulate advise to Xalet. She certainly had a way with words, but what was more infuriating was how she just never seemed to be wrong. Just once Xuphim would have liked to prove her a liar, but the direction she gave the Akalak was true. The large purple Syliran was as confused of Ana's statement about 'heat' as she was of his about how it equaled beauty. "Heat? Pah, think about it. You're a Human, talking to an Akalak. That would be like me saying..." his thoughts wandered for a moment, a hand sweeping up to his chin, allowing his thumb and forefinger to rub back and forth, giving him that false 'scholarly' look, "...like me saying that when Human's talk about beauty it just sounds like flesh. It's...perspective...gah, I'm sounding more like that pale hair everyday..." he was of course referring once again to Sergeant Braklin, "Look, if I say you're beautiful, then you're beautiful, got it? If someone tells you I'm wrong, then I'll beat the shyke out of them until they say otherwise." "And the vision? Uh...how would I know? It's just vision. Akalak vision? What do Human's call the way they see? Humansight or something? I wouldn't know, I just know it sees things Human's can't, and it's not limited by whether or not its sunny outside." In his head, Xuphim never thought he would have to think so much. Things went much smoother during his brief mental scenario of speaking with Ana. It basically ended with her fawning over his physique and then them doing unspeakable things together. All this talk and consideration wasn't his style. "Wait you...want to get to know me? Are you serious?" it was Xuphim's turn to be shocked. Typically when it came to the Akalak, regardless of whether or not Xalet or Xuphim was at the helm, any female response was one of two things. That was slapping the Akalak if Xuphim was doing the talking, or being generally uninterested if it was Xalet. "Ok. Well...look, you should come out with me and try to bag some of these wild Jamoura. It'll give me the chance to give you some pointers on that sword, as well as make you a bit more coin than caring for horses. You can ask me whatever you want then, I guess. But don't blame me if you don't like everything you hear. Unless you have a better idea."