Closed At Sunset in Endrykas (Xnnn)

[Leto Sunsinger]

Timestamp: 6th of Fall, 512 A.V. As Leto was riding through Endrykas atop Arias, he slowly made his way towards the front pavilions. He wasn't really riding anywhere in particular, just riding, and enjoying the time spent with his strider. That was when he noticed him. A man just standing there with his strider. That's strange, I wonder why he's not riding his strider? he thought, and slowly began to approach him atop Arias. Arias neighed a little bit, and Leto patted him on the neck, before dismounting and approaching the stranger. Leto was adorned in his leather vest, pants, and shoes, his black cloak wrapped around him with the hood down. As he approached the man, who looked to be in his mid twenties, Arias nudged Leto forwards a bit with his nose, and Leto turned back to look towards Arias, smiling. Finally, he came within a few feet of the man, and said in common, "Hello there! You look new around here... but you're with a strider, I take it the strider has accepted you as one of our people?" he asked, not quite knowing if the man was a foreigner or not, but regardless, Leto would find out soon enough. His common wasn't that good, but he had refined it a little better than his shiber or grassland sign. Definitely not spoken as fluently as his pavi happened to be, given that was his native language. Leto brushed a hand through his short multicolored hair, which was odd for a Drykas to have, but it never seemed to get any longer despite Leto wanting it to. Perhaps he was destined to be the oddball drykas, but then again, so long as the Sunsingers accepted him, and Sama'el loved him, then he didn't care. He was part of a pavilion again, and that was what made him proud to be a drykas. As for the man that stood before him, well, only time would tell if he'd be a friend or a foe... even though he seemed to have been accepted by a strider, so Leto was definitely leaning more towards friend...

[Xnnn]

Xnnn had been standing there, his shadow beside him, and he looked to the left, and then to the right, taking in primarily the sounds of the mobile city. That Endrykas had no set foundations, and that its structures were made predominantly of fabric and not stone, or wood, or brick, didn’t amaze or intrigue him. So far in his four years he had lived in a Zith colony, somewhere out in the middle of this grassland, the filthy, sprawling city of Sunberth, and the far more orderly yet stark walled city of stone, Nyka, as far as “civilized” enclaves went. None of them had left any mark on his soul. In fact, it was really the opposite. He had left each with absolutely no regrets or desires to return. As a lifestyle, he was getting well used to the nomadic roaming of a predatory cat, and probably would have been content to live out his days in the wildlands, or the sea of grass. But there was still that tugging, at his heart. Or maybe it was something more basic even than emotion – an instinct that his kind existed to serve. It wasn’t enough to live this solitary existence. He needed…a master, or a mistress. He needed – to be needed, and useful. It was this as much as any memory of his mother that had brought him to the city of tents. He had chosen to come here, because he had some vague idea that perhaps he could locate his mother’s family. She had only been taken captive by the Zith some seven years ago. Perhaps there were those who would remember her. But as he looked about, he had no clear concept of how to go about looking for anyone that he might have a connection to. His companion made no move to walk one way or the other, but Xnnn still turned to the dark baby and said in a low voice, “Well, what would you suggest? If you are to be my guide, then I will follow.” He received no response, or reaction, though, other than his buddy tossing his head and giving a little nicker. But it wasn’t for him. Xnnn looked when he heard an answering neigh, and saw another beast approaching, accompanied it seemed by its human. That one slipped from his mount’s back and walked towards Xnnn, offering him a greeting, thankfully in the Common tongue, for Xnnn knew no Pavi. There was an immediate reference to the horse beside him, and again, it was clear that the weanling’s acceptance of him went a long way with these horse people. Xnnn nodded. “Yes. I have just arrived. I have come a long way. I am Xnnn. Or Achym – that might be easier to say.” His voice was neutral, steady, and calm, as was his expression. His stare though was perhaps more intense than most humans would be. He appeared quite focused on the man who had greeted him. It probably had not occurred to him that his Zith name might be looked upon with disfavor by these people who had to do battle with the horrible predators on a regular basis. He had only offered up the name that Elymas had given him because Grayson had seemed to find it easier to pronounce. His gaze switched to the weanling by his shoulder. “Strider? Is that his name? He didn’t tell me. And I don’t know why he is following me. We met out in the grass.” His green-gold eyes remained on the young horse for a moment before turning back to Leto. “My mother was of your people. I’m looking for them, my…my family.” It seemed strange, to say that word. For in his life, he had never had one.

[Leto Sunsinger]

Xnnn? What language was that? thought Leto as he looked curiously at the taller man. Leto was a bit short for a drykas, but that was okay, he was still useful to the pavilions. Obsidian hued eyes watched the man carefully, with increasing interest in him, the way he spoke, and how he articulated his words. It was a strange way of speaking, and Leto tried to understand as best as he could, the common words that the man happened to be speaking. "Xnnn," he tried repeating the word in common tongue, as he looked towards the man. He understood most of what he was saying, and even though the name was of a foreign tongue, he kinda liked it, to start off with anyways. If he really knew what language it was, he probably wouldn't like it as much. But Xnnn, was right, Achym was a much easier word to say, and so Leto would probably utilize that when speaking to him. The word Xnnn was definitely strange to his native tongue. "Well, I will call you Achym then... and I don't know the name of your strider, it is up to you to chose a name for him, one that he likes... A strider just means a type of horse," he said, not realizing in the least that he was speaking to a Kelvic. The thought never really occurred to him, just that he had a strange way of speaking, as some people might have, especially if they are new to Endrykas. "But if he is following you, it must mean that he chose you to be his rider... That would mean that you are one of us, a drykas brethren... Striders rarely chose riders that don't fit in with them," he stated plainly. "But... you don't seem to know that, did you? That's strange... How much do you know about Endrykas? And your family?" he asked then, looking at Xnnn with even more interest in the man, the way he spoke intrigued him, and his personality was even more enigmatic than anyone he had ever really met before. There was obviously something very different about this man, that Leto couldn't quite put his finger on yet, but he hoped to find out at some point...

[Xnnn]

When the horserider tried to say his name, Xnnn saw him struggle with the enunciation. It was so sibilant, and animalistic, almost bestial, that there were very few human tongues that could reproduce it with much accuracy. The man must have come to the same conclusion, for he indicated that he would utilize Achym. It really didn’t matter to the kelvic. The Benshira name was given to him by Elymas, and so it was special for that reason. But Elymas had been taken, by the slavers, and…that was that. It had made him quite sad. The loss of Tarn, and then Grayson, had been equally disappointing. However, being kelvic, he somewhat lacked the capacity to truly process these endings on an emotional level. It had not made him bitter or distrusting or disheartened. He only continued to feel both an emptiness – an incompleteness – and a drive to keep searching, for someone. So he nodded, but then when Leto informed him that strider was just a word meaning a type of horse, Xnnn frowned, turning to look at the baby horse beside him. The weanling turned his head too, his lips reaching out to once again nibble on Xnnn’s shaggy hair. Xnnn raised a hand to rub on the flat, silky cheek. “Well, he must have a name,” he said matter-of-factly. “Maybe he has more than one, like me. I guess he will tell me what I should call him, when he is ready.” The explanation given about how striders chose their own human didn’t surprise Xnnn a bit, other then he had a momentary thought that this might be a good place to live if the humans accorded their servants such favor. In the same neutral tone which he almost always spoke in, he said, “No, I did not know this. I know nothing about horses. They pulled the farm wagons in Nyka. But I did not work with them.” His hand moved to stroke the soft, dark neck of the baby, and he looked at Leto, unabashed by his forthcoming confession. “I know very little of the horsepeople, other than what my mother told me, or what was in the songs she sang.” His fingers went to tug on the open collar of his rough spun shirt. Pulling it open a bit more, he exposed the edge of one of the tattoos on his upper chest. “She gave me these. Her name was Aniss. She was very pretty.” He paused, and for the first time his expression changed, becoming a bit hopeful. “Did you know her? Before the Zith took her?”

[Leto Sunsinger]

"Er... you speak with horses?" he asked, unclear of what the man meant by the horse would tell him his name. This is getting kind of weird he thought, and then finally decided to ask the question that had been plaguing his mind since the man had started talking to him. "Are you human?" he asked, obsidian orbs focusing upon the man's eyes as well, truly wondering if he was human, or some crossbreed of some sort. As for if Leto knew the woman that the man was speaking about, he did not. The name definitely didn't sound familiar at all, and when it was spoken, he wondered where this man had come from. Then he said that the Zith had taken her. Not another soul lost to those winged creatures, he thought. "I... I'm sorry, I do not know of her... and i'm sorry that the Zith took her. Do... do you think there's a possibility that she's still alive? How long ago was she taken? I could petition The Watch to send out a search party for her... My best friend and Ankal is a member of The Watch," he said, referring to Sama'el, his best friend, lover, and leader of his Pavilion. There was something about this man though that intrigued him, something he couldn't place his finger on. Yes, he loved Sama'el, and would likely never betray him, but he wanted to get to know this man, find out more about him, and perhaps become friends with him. Anyone that intrigued Leto this much was worth becoming friends with, as rarely anyone intrigued him. He had his pavilion, Denen, Sama'el, and Ronan, his blood brothers... but he didn't really know anyone outside of the pavilion. Perhaps it was time that he started expanding his horizons outside of the pavilion, and stopped being so strange about social interactions. Hopefully this man could shed some light upon what happened to his mother, so that Leto could notify the watch of a possible Zith kidnapping from Endrykas. If the man was willing to share the information, Leto would certainly attempt to assist him in any way possible...

[Xnnn]

Xnn shook his head in the negative. “No, I am Kelvic. I have not spoken to this horse. But maybe he will speak to me, when he is ready.” It was something Xnnn didn’t feel the need to explain further, though it must have seemed puzzling to the Drykas. As a kelvic, Xnnn had his animal form, and in that form, he could communicate on varying levels, and in different ways, with many other animals. Others cougars he could communicate with very well – they spoke the same language, of course, though it was one of subtle signs and smells and postures and behavior, more than any intricate vocalizations. With other species, he had varying degrees of understanding, and it was never anything that he consciously tried to do. Being a hunter, he needed to know what was going on around him, in the environment, and he obtained that information from many differing sources. Then, when he shifted to his human form, there was more of a filter of sorts, that buffered even more his ability to pick up things from the other life forms around him. But he was still much more in tune with them than an actual human would be, unless they carried the gnosis of Caiyha. So he could not talk to his shadow horse per se, but he could pick up subtle clues from its behavior, and other even less tangible signs, and have a basic understanding say of its mood, or maybe its intent. Still, he figured when the time was right, the weanling would somehow let him know what it was called, by its herdmates, or mother, or . . . maybe of its own choosing. There was no way that Xnnn could have explained this to Leto though. Not unless someone sat down with him and coached him, teasing out the information he had in his head, his instincts, and got him to put it in words, which was problematic in itself. So he did not knowingly choose not to explain how he would know the horse’s name to Leto. He just simply couldn’t, nor did he even think to try, or that it was needed somehow. So after his brief statement, he just stared back at the man, green eyes meeting black head on, for, like a cat, Xnnn had a bad habit (which he was totally unaware of) of staring people down, simply because he was focused on them. Xnnn was mildy disappointed that the man did not know of his mother, though he did not remark on his feelings, nor did they show in his taciturn face. And when Leto posed his questions, he merely shook his head again, his face still neutral. “No, my mother is not alive. Shade took her. She died, when my brother was born. They both died. If you search you will find only bones.” He paused and considered a moment. “That was in the last Spring. Not this Spring – the one when the storm came. The last Spring, before that. Shade took off the band.” He tapped his wrist. “And I killed him and I was free. Last Spring.” If he felt sadness, or loss, or anger even, it didn’t show, not in his face, or his voice. “My mother was Aniss, of the horse people. Elymas told me that, when he saw these marks she gave me. And the mother of her mother was like me. She could fly – an eagle. But maybe that was long ago. I…do not know any more.” He frowned a bit as he kept looking at the man. “Thank you, for speaking with me. You are kind, to say you would ask your friend to help find her. What is your name?” The weanling by his side blew air from its nose in a loud whoosh, and nodded its head up and down, but it was highly unlikely that the timing was anything more than coincidental.

[Leto Sunsinger]

Oh, that explains it, thought Leto as he looked towards the man standing before him. He's a kelvic, the animal shapeshifters. Then he spoke of his mother, passing from a Zith, was it? A Zith named Shade? Possibly, very possible. Especially if it was the Zith that took her. "You have my apologies about your mother..." he said, and then the man named Xnnn asked him about his name. Oh, darn, should have started off the conversation with that, rather than a name for his Strider, he thought. Nearly facepalming himself, but without doing it, he simply said, "My name is Leto of the Sunsinger Pavilion. I am a glypher, and webber..." He left out the part where he was a summoner, for fear of scaring the kelvic away, given not many people approved of the Summoning arts. But Leto had always had a curious nature towards the other worlds out there. One day, he hoped to open a portal and go through it to actually see the other worlds, as he had seen quite a bit of Mizahar now, at least Taldera. Arias nudged Leto forwards a bit, looking towards the weanling and Xnnn. Leto turned, petting Arias' face before turning back towards Xnnn. "This is my strider as well, his name is Arias, said Leto as he looked towards Xnnn. He wondered about the tattoo that he had shown Leto, and Leto then thought about it. "Have you recieved your windmarks yet?" he asked. "If a strider has chosen you, then we should get you to the tattoer to give you your windmarks..." He said thoughtfully, looking towards the man. "Have you ever ridden a horse before?" he then asked, not quite putting it together that why would a Kelvic ever ride a horse? But if he was to be Drykas, like his mother, than riding would be within his blood. He'd have to learn to ride at some point, and Leto could help him learn if he wanted. But that all depending on what he would say next, whether it would be positive or negative towards riding a horse, Leto did not know. He wasn't quite aware of the cultural implications of a Kelvic riding a horse, considering they were just animals that were transformed...

[Xnnn]

“Leto,” Xnnn repeated, committing the name to memory. The rest, about the pavilion and the magic arts kind of flew right over his head. As he didn’t understand or have any knowledge of how the Drykas organized themselves, the term pavilion didn’t register with him in any way. And though he had encountered more than a few individuals who had some type of magic skills, to him, the arcane of the world was just not comrephensible. He could see it in use, could see its effects, but the whole concept of djed and res and all that, well… his mind just didn’t work that way. That was too abstract, for him. “Arias,” he also repeated, stretching out a hand to touch the horse’s nose, for it seemed to be a way of greeting, to these grass eaters. When Leto asked him about a wind mark, Xnnn stared rather blankly at the man. “I do not know what a wind mark is. It is a tattoo? My mother gave me these,” he said once again nodding with his chin towards his upper chest. In truth, he was littered with the tattoos Aniss had scribed on him when they were still with the Zith, but they were covered at the moment with his shirt. “There has been no other that has drawn pictures on my skin, since she died.” The dark weanling had shifted a bit and now rested its chin on Xnnn’s shoulder. When Leto asked about riding, Xnnn turned his face towards his new shadow and gave it a look, which resulted only in the horse dropping its head to rub its cheek against his arm. Xnnn curved his arm, then, under the baby’s neck and drew its head in, with something like a show of affection, or maybe he was just trying to get it to be still. “No, I have never ridden a horse. I walk. And once I rode on a ship. That was unpleasant. It made me very sick.” He looked at Leto and there was an infinitesimal shift in the kelvic’s expression, the slightest softening. “My mother rode. She was riding when she was taken by the Zith. She told me this. They killed her horse, and ate it. That made her sad.” His voice too was just ever so slightly wistful. Speaking of his mother was like remembering Elymas, or the others. All people who had passed from his life. Always he was alone. It made him feel so…empty. So incomplete. “Would…would a wind mark make me one of you, Leto? Would it make me one of the horse people?”

[Leto Sunsinger]

Arias neighed a bit in greeting to the kelvic's touch to his nose, and nodded up and down. Leto smiled at this, and turned towards Xnnn to answer him about the windmarks. "Windmarks are a sign that a strider has chosen you as his rider... If this strider has chosen you to ride him, then indeed you are one of the horse people. A Drykas is what we are called. You will still be Kelvic, always, but you'll be considered family among the horse people, as you call us..." said Leto smiling, and looking up towards the taller kelvic man. "It seems your strider is not yet ready for riding yet, as it's only a weanling, not even a year old yet. So you'll have to wait to ride it until it's grown fully," said Leto, nodding towards the strider. "But it is not uncommon for a strider to chose it's partner at a young age..." he then said. "Arias chose me when it was about a year old as well, and I had to wait to ride him until he was ready to ride. The same will have to happen to you." Grinning, he then said to the man, "Come with me, I can show you to the tattooers who will give you your windmarks, for a strider having chosen you... and if you'd like, I can take you back to our pavilion to introduce you to the Sunsingers... they are my brothers you could say..." He offered. It was entirely up to Xnnn though if he were to chose to come with Leto, or not. But Leto was intrigued by the kelvic, as he had never really met one before, and would like to get to know him better if only in an effort to understand their race. He sincerely hoped that the kelvic would agree to come with him as well, and hoped that he was not scaring him away by talking too much. Leto was no longer the shy man that he used to be, especially after what had happened with Sama'el. He was certainly becoming much more open, and able to make better decisions on his own. If Xnnn was pavilionless, then Sama'el might possibly take him into his pavilion, as a drykas of their own, given the fact that a strider had chosen him, and he would hopefully soon receive his windmarks. That's only if Xnnn chose to though, he could easily chose not to receive the windmarks, and leave Endrykas... but if he needed a place to stay, Leto was more than willing to assist him, especially since the strider had chosen him...

[Xnnn]

Xnnn cradled the weanling’s head as Leto explained the significance of wind marks. He had known the horse was barely more than a baby. Its mother’s scent still clung to it. Having never considered riding one of the beasts, he had never wondered at what age such a process began. So he accepted Leto’s explanation without question. It seemed to be a not-so-rare occurrence, that such a young one would have already decided upon its rider, or mate, or however you wanted to look at the bond that existed between strider and the one it chose. Leto said in a reassuring way that his own mount had been young too. As the Drykas talked, Xnnn felt a growing sensation of comfort in his spirit, his mind, his soul. Perhaps Leto was the exception and not the rule, but he was being kind, and helpful, and the Kelvic in Xnnn was responding to that. The man even offered to guide him to this place where it seemed he should receive another picture on his skin, and then on to his own…pavilion? Xnnn was not familiar with that word. But Leto spoke of brothers. Xnnn had had a brother, though he had not survived his own birth. And he had caused his poor mother’s death as well. Humans and Zith should not mate, Xnnn had seen that, firsthand. The Kelvic nodded. “I will follow you, Leto. This one has chosen.” He patted the weanling’s dark nose. “I will have a new mark. Then I will be one of the…the – Drykas.” He pronounced the word carefully. “And I would like to meet your brothers. But…what is a pavilion?” Leto smiled at the Kelvic’s ingenuousness. With a gesture that Xnnn should come with him, they set out, with Leto wondering just how much he would need to explain to Xnnn about his mother’s people. Le Fin