Flashback Fathers Never Know Best (Sybel)

[Kavala]

Timestamp: Summer 504 AV Endrykas.

She stormed out of the Pavilion without an ounce of respect in her stride. The Konti's face was bright pink, flaming even, as she marched away, her wraith tangible on her face even to her sister Akela who stepped away. Kavala hadn't yelled, hadn't screamed, and certainly wasn't going to make more of a scene than that. But it was scene enough for the quiet Konti girl that liked medicine a whole lot more than she liked anything else about life.

"What was that all about?" Akela asked Bolden, shocked her sister had ripped back the pavilion doorway with such violence and had passed like a tornado on its way to knock down several acres of grass. The boy grinned, clapped his sister on the shoulder, and looked like he'd stolen an orange from a vender - something they'd never be able to afford. "Father told her no. Again. He never tells her no. It just cracks me up that for once... FINALLY... she's not getting her way." The brother said, his human countenance filled with delight. Bolden wasn't a cruel boy, not in the least, but he did feel his sisters - especially Kavala - were spoiled and indulged far more than they should be just because they were Konti and just because they had a dead mother.

Akela frowned. "She asked to go to Mura again, didn't she?" Bolden nodded. "Father forbids it. Her place is here, as a second or third wife. He'll marry her off soon. He's already started talks with several Pavilions. I think father is right, Akela, and she should never get to go to Mura. Father doesn't see it Kavala's way for once though. All he sees is that she's the same size and shape as other girls half her age. And he wants to take advantage of that. Kavala should understand that. We need the infusion of horses her bride-price will bring. It's her duty to the Denusks." The boy responded, talking like he understood any of this, even though he couldn't have been more than a year into his teens. "I mean, she's twenty six years old. That's practically a hag for a human. And your twenty eight.. no better. He'll marry you off too as well. I think I even know someone he's got in mind. He'll have to give you to someone who can pay your price AND wield a sword better." The boy clapped his hand again on Akela's shoulder, making the Konti swordswoman all but growl. "I don't know who is going to want you two though... your too old, and Konti. Some of the men stare - by the Ukalas even some of my friends do - but I've seen you in your skin and you're nothing special." Bolden kept on, walking away hounding his sister about which of his friends she'd pick. Their conversations usually ended with Akela drawing her blade and giving Bolden a sound thrashing because he didn't know when to shut up.

Kavala paid them no mind. She marched away from the encampment, grabbing her father's favorite crossbow and his sheath of arrows as she did so. He'd be enraged if he went to use them and found them gone, but she didn't care. If he said she couldn't protect herself to make a trip to Mura, she was damn well going to change that. She'd show him!

The Konti marched even further off. A buckskin form disengaged itself from the herds grazing nearby and trotted after. The stallion was fit, middle aged, and seemed concerned his mistress was as upset as she was.

And so, when she was out of earshot of the Denusk Pavilion and Eachann's nonsense.. Kavala told the horse everything that had transpired. "He's so unyielding. I don't want to get married. I want to be a healer. I'm not helpless! I can protect myself. I have Akela and if she can learn a weapon, so can I. Help me figure this thing out, Windsong." She said, angry but not at the horse. When she was even out of sight of the pavilions but not out of the range of the watchriders who came round every few minutes, she paused. There was a tree in the distance, growing out of a stump. It marked the boundary of a large stream that flowed by the encamped city. Near the stump was more woody debris, not alive, and soft enough to make a perfect target.

Kavala knelt, cocked the crossbow fed a bolt into it. Lifting the heavy thing, she squinted, taking sight down the line of the shaft, and gradually released the trigger. The bolt sailed wide, wildly.....

The Konti cursed, using Vanator's favorite swearword. She almost wished Van was here. He'd help her learn this godawful thing and make sure Bolden didn't tease her about which of his friends was going to pay the highest price for her.

"I can't do this. This is stupid. Healers shouldn't have to kill." She remarked to no one in particular and set about reloading a new bolt.

[Sybel]

It had been a solid week since she’d set up in the bustling Drykas encampment, awed by the vivid pavilions and boisterous people. Riverfall had been colorful, but Endrykas was wild. The city radiated out in layers like the skins of an onion, all which were populated by throngs of busy pedestrians. When she’d arrived, it was to a sea of incredulous stares. She knew the feeling. Sybel was completely in love with everything she saw; all so very different from what she was used to. Their food was richer, their horses stouter… The men seemed to vary more in shape in size – some were as thick as a stump, while others stood so tall they shaded the sun. Occasionally she’d even see some exotic breed of women, all covered in glistening scales. Her friend had told her they were called “Konti,” children of Avalis and Laviku. They struck her as some variety of celestial beings.

On that particular day, she felt inspired to do something other than wander. Sybel didn’t have the wardrobe to blend in, and she’d become tired of answering questions. Many people were intensely curious of her background. The attention was not something she was used to, and therefore she didn’t know how to handle it. Riverfall had been diverse, colorful… But in Endrykas she stood out. They didn’t get visitors often, apparently. The only thing she could do was get away, find some mindless activity to occupy herself with. Her crossbow sat woefully untouched since her arrival. It sat with solid metallic bearing in the corner of her tent. Looking at her. Conceding she sighed, gathered her quiver and bolts, hefted the unwieldy creation over her shoulder and walked out to the end of the town.

"I can't do this. This is stupid. Healers shouldn't have to kill."

The voice nearly startled her. She’d been looking at the ground as she walked – not advisable given the large piece of equipment she held to her breast. “No one should have to kill,” she replied naturally, her words laced with regret. Her eyes fell on the girl, admiring her sheet of luminous hair. “You’re a Konti.” She announced with amazement, clearly taken off-guard. “You here to practice too?” With her free hand, she gently indicated the stock.

It was difficult to say much else, not wanting to irritate the beautiful young woman. Instead, she spied a little sapling rising out of a thick tree stump. Showing off a little, she cocked the string with seeming ease. Of course, in reality she looked sort of silly. But it got the job done. Then she fed the fat arrow into place, braced the large weapon into her right shoulder and let it fly. It went low, embedding itself firmly into the very base of the thing, near the root. Not at all where she had been aiming. But hey, at least she’d hit it at all.

Somewhat joyful, she bit her lip. It was all she had not to act like a little girl. Sybel cleared her throat looking away. “That’s a foot, I think.” She said, gesturing offhand. “You know?” Realizing how stupid this looked, she laughed. “Sorry.” The Benshira apologized. “I’m Sybel. From the exotic, distant realm of the idiots. You may have heard of it.”

[Kavala]

Kavala frowned at the newcomer, both for invading her privacy but for also something she'd just done that she might not have realized. "You aren't from around here are you?" She said in common, detecting none of the characteristic drykas accent in the girls voice. "We don't have many of these here. You certainly don't kill them with bolts. I was aiming at the dead wood, the fallen stuff, and hitting it." She said, her voice harsh with judgement. "Maybe your from someplace with trees. But every tree we have here is a landmark, sacred, and should be protected. we don't even burn wood in fires. Don't hit the sapling. " Kavala said, frowning at the newcomer. She was upset, but not at Sybel. Her words, she knew, were overly harsh.

Marching forward Kavala retrieved her bolt and came back to where the two girls were now firing from. "I'm Kavala Denusk, Denusk Pavilion, Sapphire Clan." She said, as if she didn't acknowledge she was a Konti. "I'm only a Konti because my father likes Konti and took one as his third wife. My mother is a good healer. And according to him everyone needs to kill. We can't survive out here unless we all are willing to take another life. And I can't go to school in Mura to be an even better healer until I can kill as well as I can do other things like ride." Kavala said, insulted through and through.

"Yes, I'm practicing. But not because he wants me too. He doesn't want me too. He wants me helpless and to stay here with the pavilion forever. He also wants me to get married. I heard him and Vanator talking about it. That's my brother. I guess I'll get a good price because of my face. There's been offers already. Probably from fat old men who really want whores not healers. I don't need this. I don't need any of this. I want to go to Mura. I want to see where my mother came from. I'm going to leave, whether he lets me or not. That's why I need to learn this crossbow. So I can eat along the way." Kavala said, nodding to Sybel.

"That was a good shot, even if you were trying to kill something sacred. Hitting it in the foot means it couldn't run away." She commented idly.

[Sybel]

Kavala’s disapproving tone took her down a notch. As the girl rounded on her, her bright blue eyes flashed with seeming irritation. "You aren't from around here are you?" The Konti inquired. That particular question never seemed to take Sybel anywhere positive. Something she noticed however, was the distinct lack of accent with which she spoke. There was really something different about her, and it compelled the young Benshira to stand and listen rather than exasperatedly walk away. "We don't have many of these here. You certainly don't kill them with bolts. I was aiming at the dead wood, the fallen stuff, and hitting it." As she gestured to the plantlet, the young woman was slow to catch her meaning. Many what? Then it dawned on her – they don’t have many trees. These thoughts flowed freely alongside the beautiful scaled woman before her. "Maybe your from someplace with trees. But every tree we have here is a landmark, sacred, and should be protected. we don't even burn wood in fires. Don't hit the sapling."

“I’m not,” she responded impulsively. “I’m from the desert. We don’t get many trees at all.” Of course, she didn’t address the more important part of the other girl’s sentence. Realizing this, she quickly amended: “But I promise, I won’t hit it.” Nervously, she swept a long, dark lock from her eyes. "I'm Kavala Denusk, Denusk Pavilion, Sapphire Clan." That was strange. For some reason, Sybel had anticipated a slightly different introduction from the rest of the people she’d met. Her mouth opened to speak, then snapped smartly shut. Kavala was not finished speaking. She didn’t want to be rude. "I'm only a Konti because my father likes Konti and took one as his third wife. My mother is a good healer. And according to him everyone needs to kill. We can't survive out here unless we all are willing to take another life. And I can't go to school in Mura to be an even better healer until I can kill as well as I can do other things like ride."

Suddenly, a feeling of camaraderie washed over her. When put into context, the girl had every reason to be upset. Not wanting to derail the rant that was nearly full tilt, she politely waited for her young companion to let it all out. "Yes, I'm practicing.” She plowed on. “But not because he wants me to. He doesn't want me to. He wants me helpless and to stay here with the pavilion forever.” That sounded familiar. She sensed their similar predicatments. “He also wants me to get married.” Really? She thought with exasperation. Were Fathers really the same the world over? Somehow Sybel thought it was just Yahebah. But with horror, she considered the idea that perhaps everyone had their fates dictated by the whims of other people.

“I heard him and Vanator talking about it. That's my brother. I guess I'll get a good price because of my face. There's been offers already. Probably from fat old men who really want whores not healers. I don't need this. I don't need any of this. I want to go to Mura. I want to see where my mother came from. I'm going to leave, whether he lets me or not. That's why I need to learn this crossbow. So I can eat along the way." She nodded alongside the healer, ruminating on what she said. It was nearly overwhelming. Chewing it over, she loaded another bolt onto her wood and steel contraption.

"That was a good shot, even if you were trying to kill something sacred. Hitting it in the foot means it couldn't run away." It didn’t seem like Kavala truly disliked her. “You’re just reacting to a bad situation,” Sybel said suddenly, her speech flowing directly from the thought that proceeded it. “Fathers are tiresome creatures, that feel its necessary to dictate the actions of their daughters.” Almost angered by the idea again, she took aim and shot, a little higher up on the trunk. This time it went where it was supposed to, if not a little off center. As she strode over to retrieve both the shots, she continued to speak. “Mine did the same to me. No matter how I begged or pleaded with him, no matter how I appealed to his love for me… It didn’t matter. He didn’t seem to care. Because it seems,” she spat emphatically, “that men see us as fragile, helpless bovines with not a single thought in our heads.”

But before she could launch into a similar tirade, she sighed. “But it doesn’t matter now, for me. Some men killed him. Even though he was a biased old man, he was all I had. I loved him. But life saw fit to take that, too.” Shaking her head, she turned her face away. “So I understand.” That was all the Benshira could manage without revisiting newly inflicted wounds. There was no one in the world for her, anymore. The further she traveled, the more she’d come to realize how lacking in empathy people truly were. No one cared for a skinny little desert urchin. All she had was herself.

Looking down at the mighty crossbow, a smile tugged at her lips. And that, she thought. She had that, too.

[Kavala]

The Konti paused when Sybel started to speak. Like cool water, the girls words slowly deflated the pale girls' temper which was often very very slow to flare at the best of times. When the strange girl walked away and then slowly returned, Kavala watched her move and met her eyes and couldn't help but offer a smile.

"I'm sorry. It's just the men of my pavilion always have me worked up. It's like you say, they think they need to run our lives. But I do love them... I really do. I just don't need to stay with them. And I appreciate what they do for me and for each other and our family. I would hate it if something happened to them. I really would. I'm so sorry you lost your father. I really am. Is that why you are here? Just traveling? You're really beautiful. I bet you've gotten like ten marriage proposals already just being in this city. Don't take any of them. You don't want to be stuck here. And if you don't have a strider, your never going to be anyone's first wife. You'll be a second or a third and they'll treat you like a slave." Kavala warned.

Kavala waited until Sybel was fully back out of her line of fire before she loaded another bolt and leveled the crossbow at her eye. She gently squeezed the trigger after sighting on the area roughly where Sybel had fired into. She watched her bolt go wide and wobble out over the grass past the woody debris altogether. "I am really lousy at this. It's like I can never get motivated to learn something unless I need it in a life and death situation, then its always too late." She said, reloading. Kavala decided she'd go fetch the bolt after a few more firings. Her second attempt went better, but it only grazed the debris and didn't sink home. "My family makes bow work look so easy." She commented, not actually whining but her voice pitched in resolution.

"I'm a healer, not a killer." She decided, shouldering the crossbow and waiting for Sybel to take a few turns before they could walk together to fetch their bolts.

"What brings you to the middle of nowhere?" Kavala asked curiously. "I mean, if its not prying." She added.

[Sybel]

The anger seemed to ebb out of her. When their eyes made contact, it seemed the Konti offered her an apologetic little smile. "I'm sorry. It's just the men of my pavilion always have me worked up. It's like you say, they think they need to run our lives.” Sybel inclined her head in an assenting sort of way, again not wanting to interrupt. ”But I do love them... I really do. I just don't need to stay with them. And I appreciate what they do for me and for each other and our family. I would hate it if something happened to them. I really would.” Kavala really was a healer. She certainly had a healer’s heart. In fact the girl reminded her of a friend Bel had back at home. It was a daughter of one of the matriarchs – Elie’s youngtest daughter Lysea. She too was a healer and had that same gentle heart.

Abruptly the course of her thoughts changed tack, as if streaming with the flow of her consciousness. “I'm so sorry you lost your father. I really am. Is that why you are here? Just traveling? You're really beautiful. I bet you've gotten like ten marriage proposals already just being in this city.” There were so many questions inserted into the lone sentence that her mouth opened and closed, unable to address a single one. Seemingly excited, Kavala continued. ”Don't take any of them. You don't want to be stuck here. And if you don't have a strider, your never going to be anyone's first wife. You'll be a second or a third and they'll treat you like a slave." The advice, though unsolicited, was obviously given sincerely. It was good that Sybel learned these things early on, as to avoid issues later.

“I don’t plan on ever getting married.” That should address most of the inquiries. “My mother died in childbirth and so now that my Father is gone, I’ve decided to move on. You see my relatives would have married me off to some carpenter or shepherd. Since it’s not exactly something I happen to agree with, I thought it best to just go.” With a sigh, she shook her head. “And don’t feel bad. It’s okay. He was murdered but…” Her words trailed off. “Killing is ugly. It hurts. No matter how bad someone is - no matter what they’ve done, when you kill them…” The Benshira held her upturned palm out, and she looked down at it in disgust. “You’ll never be the same.” No, she wasn’t the same. Beyond the simple idea of their blood on her hands, she discovered how simple it truly was. Killing was just as easy as pulling the trigger.

During her speech she’d loaded another bolt and sent it whizzing unsuccessfully across the ground. "I am really lousy at this. It's like I can never get motivated to learn something unless I need it in a life and death situation, then its always too late." The young healer seemed dejected. “Oh whatever, look at me.” Sybel gestured to the grounded shot. “If you work at it and not give up, you’ll become great. All you need is a little motivation.” She observed at her friend took another shot, and did slightly better. It almost emphasized her point, and thereby widened the smile that spread from cheek to cheek. "Kavala, you're the most beautiful girl I've ever met." The sentence seemed out of place, yet rang with truth. "I thought that as soon as I saw you."

"My family makes bow work look so easy." She said, a tiny hint of pride in her voice. Though Sybel didn’t offer comment on that, she certainly knew how that felt better than anything. Her cousin Sijah was a far better swordsman, despite the tireless hours she’d spent training. Sometimes your efforts seemed so fruitless in contrast to those around you. But it didn’t provide an excuse to just give up. Still, the girl was eager for a friend and unwilling to annoy her, so she spared Kavala the lecture.

"I'm a healer, not a killer." That declaration rang with finality. Sybel decided she too would retire her training for the day, collecting the bolts. There were more fruitful endeavors to pursue; things like getting in trouble with her new friend. "What brings you to the middle of nowhere?" Kav inquired politely. "I mean, if its not prying." Stretching, Bel yawned. “Well, as I said I’m never getting married. I don’t need a man to care for me. I’m traveling all over, perhaps to be an adventurer. Don’t be fooled by my poor work at ranged weapons. I have a strong sword arm, and its served me well thus far.” Happily, she tapped her hip where normally the swordbelt would sit. “I don’t like to carry it around however. It gives people the wrong impression, I think.” That and the thing was heavy.

“People just wants us to be what we’re not. I think everyone grows up to be something, but society always wants them to be something else. I wish people could just accept us as what we’re designed to be. I mean, isn’t that the definition of unconditional love?” Sybel’s eyes were sad. “I guess neither of us knows what that’s like. Well, maybe you do.” Looking over at her, she grinned. “My friend who helped me get here told me Konti always give birth to more Konti. So I bet you have many sisters.” It wasn’t a difficult inference to make.

Unabashed, she threw in a final question. “Would you like to be a friend? I don’t really have anyone.” It wasn’t meant to make her counterpart feel guilty, but the matter-of-fact way Sybel stated it, made it sound like an outright tragedy. “I’d be nice to have someone to talk to.”

[Kavala]

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